by K. M. Hodge
Although Mari didn’t buy it for a minute, part of her shouted to take the bait—the easy way out. In the end, all that mattered was catching Charles and putting him away for the rest of his life.
Chapter 16
MDNA Headquarters
Unknown Location
June 30, 2026
1:30 PM
~~~
Jude paced back and forth in one of the deserted corridors. Word of the explosion had rocked the compound. The emergency response system, the one he’d put in place years ago when he still ran the group, had kicked in and the MDNA teams had been mobilized.
“Jude, we have a problem.” One of the techs, eyes and ears assigned to St. Rita’s, grabbed Jude by the arm to hold him in place. “The doctor gave himself up to the cops.”
All the air left Jude’s lungs, leaving him gasping for air. They needed the doctor—they needed someone quickly. The driver had reported on Zane’s and Charles’ injuries five minutes prior, en route to the compound. They didn’t seem life threatening, but they might take that turn if left untreated.
“Do we have any backups?” he asked.
“Our backup is Jacobs. Charles doesn’t trust him to do the job, says he’s not a real doctor.”
“He’s a little weird, but he went to medical school. For now, that seems to be our only option.” As the words left his mouth, Dr. Jacobs came lumbering down the hall like a drunken bull.
“Where is he? Is he here yet? What’s his status?” Dr. Jacobs rattled off his questions without a breath, leaving him gasping. “I can get the implant room ready in five minutes.”
Jude couldn’t help but smile at the man, whose enthusiasm alone could power the facility. Charles may not have faith in Jacobs, but Jude saw promise in that enthusiasm. “The driver says he’s alive, but he got pretty banged up. Nothing you couldn’t handle. I believe in you.”
The young man’s shoulders dropped and his breathing became less shallow. He clearly needed all the faith he could get.
Jude’s watch vibrated with an incoming message. “They’re here.”
Dr. Jacobs took off in the direction of the one and only sterile room in the facility, while Jude took off towards the main entrance.
Two men rushed a makeshift stretcher, with Zane on it, through the door.
When Jude first saw the boy, his heart skipped an anxious beat. The kid looked like a mass of bloody pulp. He was the closest thing Jude had to a son, and the thought of losing him left him unhinged, dangerous considering the precarious ground he stood on.
Charles hobbled in behind the stretcher, covered in dirt and plaster.
His head of security, Henry, a cast-off from the Maryland Syndicate boys, walked at his side.
“I want to know how this happened, Henry. I’m holding you personally responsible.” Charles stormed passed Jude without another word.
Henry came to a stop at Jude’s side.
“Henry, why didn’t he take him to the hospital? We can’t help him here. He looks like—”
Henry held up his hand. “The kid will be fine. It looks worse than it really is, and the cops are crawling all over the hospital. They want to take the kid in for questioning.”
Jude didn’t want to push things with the thug, and he didn’t have any power to do so anyway. Not really. But he would do everything he could to make sure Zane came out of this alive and well.
His watch buzzed again and he turned to face the man behind him, not able to remember the guy’s name. “What’s the deal? Why did the doctor turn himself in?”
The young man looked behind him. When he seemed satisfied that they were alone, he turned back to Jude. “That former detective put two and two together and figured out that Charles put his tag in the blue-haired chick. They set it off, and she went into cardiac arrest.”
Jude’s mouth went dry, and when his hands began to shake, he stuffed them into his pants pockets. The young man didn’t need to know how upsetting the news made him. Knowledge was power, and he needed all the power he could get, so he waited another beat to gather his thoughts and calm his nerves.
When he finally spoke, he fooled even himself. “Is she okay?”
The young man shrugged. “I guess.”
Jude wanted to throttle this goon, but that would get him nowhere. He would need to track down one of his loyalist friends, or risk leaving the compound to find his former colleague, Ash, and have him check up on Sally. After taking a shuddering breath, Jude tapped out a message on his watch and sent it, crossing his fingers that it would work.
He crossed himself and prayed that no one was monitoring his outgoing messages.
***
St. Rita’s Hospital
Danville, Virginia
July 1, 2026
10:00 AM
~~~
Manny tried to adjust the pillows behind him, but nothing seemed to improve his comfort. He would rip out his eye teeth with a set of pliers if it meant he could go home. The hospital stay became more and more irritating the better he felt, especially since Marianna wasn’t there to help him pass the time.
Julie had told him how Sally had almost died, and that Zane and Charles might have died in an explosion. Now their rag-tag group seemed to be under a sort of lockdown.
Besides letting Jason and Julie go to the bar for the meeting with Charles, the goons wouldn’t let them leave. Somehow, the tables had turned and they were the ones now under house arrest.
I told ya so.
A knock at the open door grabbed his attention away from his self-pity. When he looked up, his breath caught in his throat. The young man looked a little different, older than the last time he saw him. After the raid on the facility, he’d lost touch with him. With both of the boy’s parents gone, Manny had worried he’d get sucked back into the crime world. He had even tried looking him up one day, but had come up empty.
“Ash....”
“Hey, old man, heard you were at death’s door and thought I should pay my respects.”
“How ya doin’, kid?”
“I’m getting by. Since my ma’s gone, I’m busy taking care of my brothers.”
Manny didn’t ask how. The less he knew, the better. “Take a seat.”
Ash sat down on the chair beside the bed and leaned forward, resting his arms on his knees. “A friend of ours wanted me to pass on some information.”
Manny twisted his hands and wet his lips. The last time the kid had given him a tip, he’d been roped back into the investigation and had killed a man—a killer, but he’d still taken a life. “What is it, kid?”
“The businessman and the doctor were there in the blast, but they got out. You can’t tell the police. There are a few lives on the line right now. Our friend sent me because only a few people know I helped you out last year.”
Manny’s heart raced. Sally’s boy is alive, Thank God!
“His mother—”
“She can’t know,” Ash said. “At least not for a little while.”
“Then why even tell me?”
Ash adjusted his baseball hat and shoved it down further, hiding his eyes from Manny. “Tell your girl. She’s making a fuss with the police and needs to back off. She’s putting him in danger. The last thing the businessman wants is attention from the police, as you can imagine.”
Many leaned back against the lumpy pillows and ruffled the peach fuzz on the top of his head. Once again, he found himself trapped in a web of lies and deceits.
“And if I don’t?”
“You don’t want to do that, or you’ll end up like me—alone.” Ash stood and extended his hand.
Manny hesitated, then accepted the handshake.
“Later, old man.”
***
Unknown Building
Unknown Location
July 19, 2026
7:00 AM
~~~
Scott rolled his neck and took in a deep breath. It had been over two weeks since the explosion, and he still didn’t know if the kid and Charles had
died or not.
His bomb girl expert, Cassidy, stood next to him, looking around the small apartment with interest. Her blonde hair swished behind her as she chewed her gum.
The space was a far cry from the kind of opulent living he’d grown up with, but it afforded him the kind of privacy he required.
Cassidy picked up a copy of the Art of War and scrutinized it. Black kohl lined her eyelids, making her eyes look gigantic.
Scott had the impression that nothing got past her, but she needed motivation to care enough to share what she knew. It had cost him everything he had to hire her.
“The cops won’t confirm anything,” Cassidy said. “They found the kid’s ID in the wreckage, but so far they haven’t located his remains. There might not be anything if he was close enough to the blast.”
Scott finished buttoning up his shirt and put on a pot to boil water. “I chose you because of your reputation for being precise. I need to know for sure that this kid and Charles died in that explosion.”
“I’m not a private detective. I blow shit up. I did that. They were in the building when the bomb went off. None of the security cameras survived the blast, but some satellite footage I was able to get a hold of showed the front of the building. No one left by that door. They could have gotten out the back, but it’s unlikely.”
Her darkened gaze looked away from him, making him think that she wasn’t quite telling the truth.
Scott grumbled under his breath and poured the hot water into the French Press. He couldn’t rest easy until he knew for sure his targets had been taken out. For a minute, he thought he might have Sally out of the picture, too, but the crazy bitch had pulled through. All charges had been dropped against her as well after that idiot doctor had stepped forward and confessed to everything.
Cassidy hopped up on the countertop and swung her leather clad legs up and down like a girl on a swing. “So, what’s the plan, boss?”
“Charles wanted me dead. If he’s alive, I doubt his resolve to kill me has lessened in any way.”
Cassidy stretched out her long legs mid swing and crossed them at the ankles.
Scott sipped his coffee and considered her. He tolerated this woman to an extent, but he had to. After all, he didn’t have people knocking down his door to help. When he’d first put out the bounty on Sally, he’d received an outpouring of interest from people all over the east coast. Now, the well of resources had, for some reason, dried up. Someone on the other side was messing with his attempts to regain power, but who could that be?
He skimmed over the misconnections like he did every morning, and finally something clicked. “I have something for you to look into.”
“I told ya, I’m no PI.”
“Shut up and listen to me. I need you to meet up with someone.”
***
St. Rita’s Hospital
Danville, Virginia
July 19, 2026
7:00 AM
~~~
Jason rolled over in bed, his bare leg touching the empty side—cold sheets.
Sally didn’t sleep much anymore. The hard recovery from surgery and the lack of news about her son left her awake most nights. When she did manage to catch a few hours of rest, she usually awoke to horrific nightmares that left her trembling.
Something needed to change, and soon. He didn’t know how much longer they could take being stuck in this limbo. Not to mention, the goons seemed intent on keeping them as guests of the hospital.
Jason slid out of bed and padded barefoot across the hall and out onto the balcony.
Sally stood with her arms crossed looking out over the city.
“I thought I’d find you out here.”
She turned to face him, her cheeks tear-stained, eyes swollen and red. “He’s alive.”
“What?”
“Zane,” she said, holding up her watch. “He’s alive.”
A rush of excitement shot through Jason and he rushed to her side. “Did he contact you?”
She swiped at her cheeks and laughed or sobbed, he wasn’t sure which. A small blinking light flashed on her MDNA-issued watch—a Morse Code message.
“What’s it say, Sal?”
“Jude. He sent me an encrypted message this morning. He wanted me to know that Zane is okay. He was hurt in the blast, but he’s alive. Jude’s being watched but finally got away long enough to send me a quick message.”
Jason wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. “That’s wonderful news. When’s he coming back?”
Sally tightened her hold, and he knew bad news was coming.
“He’s not.” She choked back a sob. “Charles is going to use him to get to Scott. Jude said he tried to talk that bastard out of it but he wouldn’t listen. Jude wants to leave the MDNA, but Charles has them all on lockdown like he does with us here.”
Jason let out a slow breath and kissed his wife on the crown of her head. While he hated Charles for what he was doing, he was also grateful that it kept a lot of people, like his wife, out of the fight. But he knew, if the boy died, he wouldn’t be able to stop his wife from killing them all with her bare hands.
***
MDNA Headquarters
Unknown Location
July 19, 2026
8:00 AM
~~~
Zane shifted his leg. The firm bed did nothing to ease his discomfort, but the thought of getting up didn’t appeal to him either. After two weeks, only a dull ache in his head and a pain in his right leg reminded him he should be dead—had it not been for Charles. How they’d both survived the blast remained a mystery to him. When he’d asked Charles about that day, he’d simply said it had been dumb luck, but Zane didn’t believe in chance.
As a scientist, he put his faith in action and reaction. His mother would say it was God’s will that he’d survived. He might buy that if God would have also spared him from these massive post-concussive headaches. This morning it throbbed behind his eyes, making his vision blurry. Part of him worried the headaches weren’t getting better.
He reached for the bottle of pills on the stand beside his bed without looking and popped two into his mouth. He didn’t bother with water, but chewed the pills, grimacing at the taste.
“You awake yet, kid?”
“No, fuck off.” Zane rolled over to face the wall.
“It’s time to move.”
“I’m good. Thanks. You go on ahead.” A swift kick to his side adjusted his attitude. “You’re an ass.”
“Tell me something I don’t already know, kid.” Charles tossed him a clean t-shirt and jeans. “Get dressed and meet me at the command center.”
Zane rubbed his head and pinched the bridge of his nose as a spike of pain sliced through his skull. Charles shook his head but left him alone, at least affording him a moment of privacy.
It had been two weeks, and they were no closer to stopping Scott and whoever it was that had blown up that bar. Except for the headaches and some fading bruises and cuts, Zane seemed to be recovering, though he hadn’t seen his own scans to confirm anything. Charles still walked with a slight hitch in his step, but he wouldn’t let Zane or Dr. Jacobs look him over.
Charles hated waiting, so Zane quickly got dressed and slipped on a pair of Toms. The corridors were bustling more than usual; something was about to happen. People he still didn’t know eyed him with suspicion, but said nothing. No one was allowed out of the compound under order of death. Needless to say, Charles wasn’t making any friends with that command.
As Zane made his way to headquarters, a hand shot out and grabbed him, pulling him into a darkened passageway.
Jude. Thank God—the face of reason. “Jude, man, what’s going on?”
“He’s put out a call through the interwebs to Scott and he got an answer. He wants the two of you to meet him at some remote location. I tried talking Charles out of taking you, but he said Scott wouldn’t come unless you were there, too.”
“Jude, you’ve got to help me get out of he
re. I can’t go with them. Let them kill each other. I didn’t want anything to do with this shit in the first place.”
Jude pulled Zane further into the shadows and placed his finger up to his lips.
The giggling pink lady twins Zane met when he’d first arrived shuffled passed them, whispering to each other.
Zane waited until they had passed before he spoke again. “Seriously, you have to help me.”
His friend’s gaze dropped to his shoes. There would be no help.
Zane crossed his arms over his chest as the panic began to set in. He didn’t want to die because of this hollow cause.
“I’m sorry, Zane. I did what I could, but my hands are tied. I got a message out to your mom. Maybe someone on the outside can help.”
“Thanks a lot. I sure as fuck hope someone can do something, because apparently I’ve got a date with a psychopath who wants my ass dead.”
Jude’s hands shook and he bit his lip. “There’s something I can do.”
“What? Tell me.”
He slipped off his watch and placed it in Zane’s pocket. “Do not let him see that you have this. If you get in trouble tap S.O.S. on the watch crown.” He pointed to the twisty knob on the side. “Remember when you were little and we would play that shipwreck game?”
Zane nodded, faintly remembering the sing-song game that he and Jude played whenever his mother had left him in Jude’s care—something that had happened quite often back then.
“Good. It’s three dits and three dahs all run together without letter spacing. But only do it in case of emergency, because the message will be sent here and to the one or two members who are still topside.”
Zane nodded, but even with this tool at his disposal, he couldn’t quell the growing dread in his heart. “I’m scared.”
Jude pulled him into a hug. “Me too, man. Me too.”
***
Richmond Police Department, First Precinct
Richmond, Virginia
July 19, 2026
9:00 AM
~~~
Mari tipped back in her chair and tapped a pencil on the arm. She needed to come up with a plan before her shift started, something to push her investigation forward. Even though her lieutenant had requested she back off the case, she hadn’t. Instead, she’d gotten smarter about keeping it all under wraps.
