Scion

by Murray Mcdonald

  Silence.

  “Look, you planned the thing. This is your fuck up!” Scott heard the phone slam down. It was his cue. He opened the door and slid quietly inside. With his back to the door, Cunningham hadn’t even realised until he turned round to go back to bed. The sight of Scott, the UK’s secret assassin, an assassin he had helped to kill, standing in front of him instantly made his heart race and knees go weak. The feeling of dread began to rise from the pit of his stomach.

  “You look like you’ve just seen a ghost,” suggested Scott menacingly.

  Cunningham recovered quickly. “No, not at all in fact. I didn’t recognise you until just now. Sorry I don’t often get intruders sneaking up behind me.”

  Scott shook his head. “This can go two ways, painful or quick. Trust me, you really do want quick.” Scott’s pupil’s flared, a little trick he had learned that instantly unnerved people. His stare had gone from intense to insane.

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” replied Cunningham in his most arrogant and condescending tone, just as though he were shouting down a heckler in parliament.

  Scott spun round, threw out his trailing leg and caught Cunningham perfectly on the nose, breaking it cleanly.

  “Who?”

  “Who what?” replied Cunningham, struggling to his feet.

  Scott snapped out his foot and broke the arm Cunningham was using to push himself up, sending him crashing to the floor.

  “You’ve not got it yet? I am going to kill you. I can make it quick which, thanks to you, was how most of my family and friends died or I can make it painful and punish you. The choice is yours.”

  Cunningham didn’t hesitate and told Scott everything he knew which wasn’t much more than Scott knew already. Although one surprise was the involvement of the US Secretary of Defence. The Unit and its existence was another, as was the name of its commander Mike Hunter. With two additional men on the hit list, Scott turned to the now trembling Cunningham.

  “Anything else?”

  A shake of the head sent a spray of blood from the broken nose across the cream carpet.

  “Positive?”

  “Yes!” confirmed Cunningham, praying that Scott’s earlier threat was just that. He had told him everything knew and was hoping Scott would show some mercy.

  Scott couldn’t stand to be in the room with Cunningham a second longer. Every time he looked at him he just wanted to smash his face into a pulp. However, that would be too quick. Cunningham, despite Scott’s earlier promise, would not die quickly.

  Scott moved towards Cunningham and without another word delivered a crippling kick to his midriff. Cunningham was bent over double and desperately gasped for air, the pain was intense but bearable. Scott turned and left the room and with Jasmin at his side went back out the way they came.

  Grabbing his stomach with his one good arm and struggling for breath, Cunningham hit his panic button and as he waited for his knights in shining armour to come to his aid, dialled Hunter back.

  The pain started to get more intense as he waited for Hunter to answer. Eventually after the eighth ring he picked up.

  “Hunter,” he answered.

  “It’s Cunningham…” his speech struggled as he gasped for breaths. “We missed him, he got off the island…”

  “What island? Who?”

  “The target…he made it,” Cunningham dropped the phone and bent over as a wave of pain passed through his intestines.

  ***

  “You didn’t kill him?” said Jasmin angrily as Scott explained what had happened before turning and walking back towards the house that was now bathed in light and had a number of blue lights flashing around it.

  “Where the hell are you going?” he asked grabbing her arm.

  “To kill that son of a bitch!”

  “I said he wasn’t dead, I didn’t say I didn’t kill him!”

  “What?”

  “I killed him slowly. He thinks I didn’t kill him but all I wanted was to make sure he phones and warns them I’m coming.”

  “What the hell for?” shouted Jasmin stopping in her tracks.

  “I want them to panic at every sound they hear and flinch at every sudden movement. I want them to shit themselves from now until we end their miserable fucking lives!”

  “I can live with that,” smiled Jasmin. “And him?”

  “He’s a bleeder, massive internal bleeding that even if they caught now would be too much to fix, he’s dead. He just doesn’t know it yet.”

  Chapter 71

  Within seconds of Cunningham’s call, the phone lines between The Unit, Transcon and Intelligence Agencies across the globe lit up. The level of security at each of the Transcon bosses was raised with their security detail instantly tripled and supplemented by the addition of heavily armed tactical response teams stationed nearby on 24 hour readiness.

  Hunter’s call to Ernst had spoiled what had already been a day of ups and downs. The success of Ernst’s idea over the funding of the police crackdown had been a master stroke. Initial polls suggested a four point spike in Baker’s already impressive approval ratings but this was marred by the killing of Hughes which Ernst had ordered. Although had Baker not been so fucking stupid and told him about the call, that wouldn’t have happened. The news that the target was alive and well and on the warpath did not go down well and it was with some trepidation that Ernst picked the phone up to tell Baker.

  “JESUS H FUCKING CHRIST!!” he screamed on hearing the news. “You have got to be fucking kidding me!!!”

  “I’m afraid not,” replied Ernst.

  “What are we doing?”

  “Everything we can, all agencies under our control are working on it as a priority.”

  “What about the girl, did she survive?”

  Ernst hadn’t even thought about her, but thought quickly enough on his feet to cover it off. “We don’t know but we’re looking for her as well,” he’d have to phone Hunter the second he got off the phone to make sure she was added to the search.

  Baker caught his anger and realised he needed to emphasise the danger Scott posed.

  “Ernst, I can’t tell you how important it is we find him and kill him. Eduardo Ramirez pales into insignificance compared to what this guy can do to us! We must find him and find him soon, time really is of the essence. He can take everything from us, everything.”

  With Baker’s words ringing in his ears, Ernst phoned Hunter back and asked him if they had any leads on the girl. More honest than Ernst, he admitted he hadn’t thought about her. Ernst went ballistic and told him to pull his finger out of his ass and do what he was exceedingly well paid to do, before slamming the phone down. A bit of anger motivation never hurt in a manhunt he thought.

  The surprise death of Cunningham shocked the Transcon bosses. The stories of the UK Defence Secretary’s last few hours filled the news headlines. The details of the excruciating pain all too relevant for each of them, a clear message to each of them from Scott, a professional killer was on their trail and it was personal.

  The security at each of their homes was increased further and all high profile engagements cancelled.

  Chapter 72

  Kirk and Kyle had watched from their hideaway as the fleet of Range Rovers rushed through the gates and deposited their cargo of men throughout the property. The floodlights were switched on and the grounds blazed in a bright light more akin to a mid summer’s day than 04.00. in the morning.

  “Hmm little bit harder now!” exclaimed Kirk.

  “Just a bit,” agreed Kyle.

  “Just a bit what?” asked Scott, startling the twins.

  “Jesus, I wish you wouldn’t do that.”

  “What?

  “Sneak up so fucking well.”

  “So where are we?” asked Jasmin joining the group.

  “I think someone tipped them off that we we’re coming?” explained Kirk. “The place just filled up and lit up.”

  “Yep, it was me!”

&n
bsp; “What the fuck did you do that for?”

  “He wants them to shit themselves before we kill them,” explained Jasmin.

  Both the twins shrugged. “Fair enough,” they said in stereo.

  “So what’s the plan?”

  “Wait until sunrise and hit hard,” replied Scott patting the kit bags they had brought from the flat in Bayswater.

  Chapter 73

  Charles Russell was a very worried man. The news of Cunningham’s demise shortly after the failed attempt on the PM and the resurrection of Kennedy’s son from the grave was a fucking disastrous scenario. When you added the fact that Kennedy’s son just happened to be a prolific assassin who was a secret employee of the PM who they had just failed to kill made the worst even worse. It was highly likely that Charles Russell was at the top of the list of one of the world’s most accomplished assassins who had just wiped out their team of highly paid and accomplished assassins.

  Even with the wall of men around him, he felt uneasy and decided that Regents Park was just a little too public when Kennedy was on the rampage. A helicopter had been arranged for first thing in the morning. Charles Russell was going to spend some time visiting his various homes around the world. If he kept moving, he’d be harder to kill and at least that way, he wouldn’t be top of the list. Freeman, DuPont or Astor could take the first bullet and draw the fucker out.

  As the sun began to rise, Russell could hear the chopper coming in from the East. He grabbed his bag and almost ran towards the back door of the house, the sooner he was out the better. However, before he could reach the door, four members of The Unit’s elite personal protection division blocked his route. Ex US Secret Service or Royal protection officers, the men took their duty as seriously as though the president or the queen herself were their ward. Charles Russell was going nowhere until the chopper was down and ready to leave. They would then rush him across the lawn, covering him with their bodies before bundling him into the chopper and accompanying him wherever he went.

  The chopper suddenly appeared as though by magic from the glare of the rising sun on its final approach to the landing pad just metres from the back door of the house. With little or no view from the surrounding parkland, thanks to a high wall that surrounded the rear garden, the protection officers were comfortable with the exit route and were themselves glad of Russell’s decision to get he hell out of dodge.

  The first anyone noticed that something was wrong was when one of the protection officers saw a slight change in the landing pattern. The helicopter usually came in slightly further down the wall to allow a slow and easy approach into the pad. However, he initially put it down to speed. Russell wanted to get out quickly and they didn’t have time for fancy flying. However, with this concern, he watched the helicopter more carefully than he would have otherwise and with only seconds to spare, he grabbed Russell by the cuffs and screaming to his colleagues, rushed him to the front of the house.

  ***

  With the plan set and Scott just about to give the go, they heard the helicopter. Scott considered the options, let Russell board and get him as he left with the chance they may miss him. Or ensure he couldn’t get out and kick things off in style.

  “Kirk, Kyle take out the chopper pilots,” he said into his small headset.

  “Roger.”

  “Roger.”

  The four K Squad members were spread across the countryside, each having taken up sniper positions to cover the four corners of the house. Kirk and Kyle had the rear while Scott and Jasmin had the front.

  Kirk and Kyle lined up their shots and fired. The suppressed 7.62mm SR25 sniper rifles hardly recorded a spit as the bullets tore through the air, straight through the glass of the helicopter, killing the pilots instantly. The power of the shot left no more than a bullet sized hole in each of the two front windscreens and to the outside world nothing had changed. However, the helicopter now had nobody to spin it around and land on the helipad. It simply kept going and crashed into the back of the house with a loud explosion.

  “Now,” said Scott calmly, as the helicopter hit.

  All four began to pick off the men surrounding the property, the four semi automatic SR25’s with 25 round magazines clicked away as each islander selected, aimed and shot, always selecting the man nearer the house, working their way forward. It took a few seconds before the guards realised what was happening and very few made it back to the safety of the house. With the numbers dwindling and shots raining in, Scott could almost smell the fear emanating from the house. It was almost time to move. A few more headshots to idiots looking out the window had all but discouraged the activity and offered them a fairly clear run in.

  However, just before Scott issued the Go, the sound of two more choppers could be heard approaching.

  “I’ve got them in my sights, a couple of Lynx gunships,” announced Jasmin through their headsets.

  “Can you take them?”

  “Already on it.”

  “KK, go.”

  Jasmin had dropped the SR25 and moved over to a shoulder mounted Starstreak missile system. As she pressed the trigger, the missile fired and accelerated to Mach 3.5 before releasing its three explosive darts that were guided into its target by laser beam. The Lynx didn’t stand a chance and with their tight formation, one missile proved more than enough as two darts singled out one while the third flew into the other, killing any hope for those inside the house that they might make it out alive.

  Kirk and Kyle were up and moving. While one shot anything that moved in any of the windows, the other rushed forward and covered the other. Continuing this process until both of them were safely tucked up against the wall of the house.

  Scott had lost his cover fire as Jasmin dealt with the incoming gunships. Loading a new magazine into his SR25, he ran and fired creating his own suppressing fire and was soon feeling the heat as the defenders threw down their own wall of bullets. Scott dived for cover and threw his body behind one of the bodies that now littered the once immaculate lawn. The body danced in front of Scott as the bullets tore it limb from limb as the defenders zeroed in on Scott.

  Jasmine noted the change in noise from short bursts of fire to a continuous onslaught. With the Lynx choppers down, she spun round and spotted Scott just as the body covering him was about to disintegrate. She grabbed the AS50 Accuracy International sniper rifle from the kit bag and quickly brought it bear on the house.

  Scott could feel each of the bullets move closer and closer as the body in front of him gave less and less resistance. Kyle and Kirk screamed for him to stay down but were powerless to help as bullets pinged just inches from their feet, pinning them to the wall. As the body gave way, Scott felt the first bullet strike his Kevlar vest. His body kicked as the force of the bullet lifted him off the ground.

  Kirk watched as Scott’s body kicked once and could wait no longer. He dived and rolled into the lawn with his finger pressed firmly on his trigger. Kyle could only watch as his twin brother fell to the ground, stopped in his tracks by the hail of bullets that surrounded Scott.

  Jasmin felt the world slow as she brought the AS50 to bear and tried desperately to fire quicker as Scott’s body flinched and Kirk’s body stopped in mid air under fire from the house. She spotted the main protagonists and fired the massive 12.7mm bullets straight down their throats. The boom of the AS50 silenced the other weapons instantly as the defenders dived for cover.

  Scott was up and moving as the first boom echoed out from the massive rifle, Jasmin was back in action. He sprinted across to the motionless Kirk and dragged his body towards the safety of the house wall. Kyle was beside himself as his brother’s lifeless body was dumped at his feet.

  “What the fuck!!!” screamed Jasmin through each of their headsets.

  “I’m OK,” replied Scott. “The vest caught the bullet. But I can’t say the same for Kirk, he’s been hit.”

  “Badly?”

  Scott looked at Kyle who was checking on his brother’s condition bef
ore answering.

  “Five hits. One in the arm and another in the ass, both through and throughs. Three to his vest. He’ll live!” replied a relieved Kyle, wrapping pressure dressings on each of the two wounds.

  Jasmin continued to lay down suppressing fire as a groggy and pained Kirk came round.

  “Thanks man,” said Scott.

  “Don’t mention it,” replied Kirk through gritted teeth.

  “Don’t mention it! What the fuck were you thinking about!” shouted Kyle.

  “One of us had to step up and show some balls!” smiled Kirk.

  “Prick!” said Kyle dropping his brother’s head. “Let’s go and get these mother fuckers!”

  Kyle dropped his SR25 ,pulled his MP5SD from his back and prepared to enter.

  “Scott?”

  Scott winked at Kirk and grabbed his MP5SD and followed Kyle’s lead

  “Jasmin, stay on the perimeter and keep their heads down,” commanded Scott.

  “Will do!”

  “OK, let’s go.”

  With a flashbang grenade announcing his entry, Kyle burst in through the kitchen window, taking two guards down as he came.

  Scott opted for a more dramatic entry.

  “Jasmin any chance of a high explosive through the door?” asked Scott.

  Less than a second later, the front doors were obliterated as the supersonic explosive shell literally blew them off their hinges. Scott followed up with a flashbang and was in the main hallway taking down three disorientated guards before they knew anything about it.

  Scott could hear the sirens. The police had got the calls, probably from joggers or dog walkers who had called in on their mobile phones as World War III kicked off within the confines of the park.

  “Come on guys, let’s wrap this up quickly,” he said into his headset.

  The two seasoned killers worked their way through the house relentlessly. Every now and then the crack of the AS50 could be heard against the small weapons’ fire as Jasmin picked off another guard stupid enough to have given his away position. Walls were as good as tissue paper against her AS50 and more than a few guards lost their lives thinking ducking behind the wall was safe.