BLOOD TIES (Decklan Jennings Thriller Book 1)

by Philip Duncan

  “Are you okay?” Langley asked. “Whatever you were dreaming must have been pretty bad. I was going to wake you up, but I can’t exactly move too quickly right now.”

  “It was my family. I was dreaming they were taken away from me again, only this time I was there and saw the whole thing,” Decklan said.

  “That must have been awful. It’s bad enough losing them once, but to feel like it was happening all over again…well, that shit isn’t fair,” Langley replied.

  Decklan shook his head like someone trying to get rid of a bad thought. “It was just a dream. I will be all right.”

  He looked over at the clock again to see how much time had passed since he fell asleep: 7:15 pm. He had been asleep for over two hours, but it had felt like ten minutes. Langley seemed to be feeling okay and it appeared that he had got all his color back.

  “Can you stand?” Decklan asked.

  “I think so, why?” Langley replied.

  “You should try getting cleaned up and getting some clean clothes on. Just leave your dirty clothes by the guest room door and I’ll toss them in the washer,” Decklan said.

  “Good idea,” Langley said.

  Decklan sat there, alone in the living room, wondering what was going to happen next. He figured that it wouldn’t be long before Vladimir caught wind of what happened, especially if that guy Langley shot made it back alive. His door could be kicked in any second and they would be caught with their pants around their ankles.

  “How’s the wound?” Decklan asked as Langley came slowly walking back in the living room.

  “Not too bad. You make a surprisingly good medic,” Langley replied. “I think as long as I keep the bandage clean it will be okay. I’ve had worse.”

  “Worse? You’ve been shot before?” Decklan asked curiously.

  “Sure have. Back on one of my tours. Me and my team got pinned down by suppressive fire while we were trying to perform a hostage rescue. I was held up behind a concrete wall and a stray bullet managed land flush in my right thigh. I couldn’t stop fighting to manage the bleeding, so I grabbed my tourniquet from my pocket and managed to get the bleeding under control. By the time we got out of there and back to base, it was progressively worse. They took me straight to the medic tent, but it was already infected, and the infection was starting to work its way through the rest of my body. They had to knock me out so they could take care of it without having me squirm like a little girl from all the pain. When I woke up, they told me I was lucky and if we hadn’t made it back when we did, I would have lost my leg, and possibly my life.”

  “Holy shit!” Decklan replied. “Sounds like someone was watching out for you.”

  “I like to think so,” Langley replied.

  Decklan went to get a glass of water for Langley so he could rehydrate from all the blood he lost. Just because he was feeling better and managed to escape death, didn’t mean he was completely out of the woods yet.

  “Let me know if you need anything for the pain,” Decklan said. “I have some painkillers leftover from my wife’s surgery last year.”

  “Thanks, but I should be okay,” Langley replied. “I try to stay away from that shit if I can. I have seen too many good people taken down by pills.”

  Decklan didn't reply but understood. Once again, they found themselves at a disadvantage and stuck having to make up lost ground. Now that Vladimir knew who they were and that they couldn’t be left alive, they were going to have to constantly be on the lookout and be ready to fight for their lives at the drop of a hat. They weren’t sure how many men he had working for him, but they had already managed to take out two, maybe three, depending on what happened to the guy Langley shot. What was worse was that Vladimir knew there were only two of them. He knew Decklan was a highly trained and skilled soldier and probably knew the same about Langley, but two against a small army was nothing short of a massive disadvantage. Vladimir was smart, cunning, resourceful, and did anything to get the job done. His lack of compassion for human lives made him exponentially more dangerous because he wasn’t concerned with collateral damage. He was even willing to sacrifice his own men if it was for the greater cause. This guy was a Russian Genghis Khan.

  “What’re the chances that Vladimir and his guys are on their way here now?” Decklan asked, already assuming the answer.

  “If we are assuming that he’s the one responsible for your family, then that means he knows where you live. So the chances that he’s coming now could be high. However, if there is one thing I have learned about him over the years, it’s that as reckless as he can seem, he never does anything without a plan,” Langley said. “My best guess would be we have some time before they come knocking.”

  “That’s reassuring,” Decklan replied sarcastically. “So what do you think our best move is right now?”

  “We know that he was following us, because how else would he know we were at the docks? But with that being said, I think our best move is to stay here and try to utilize home court advantage. No one knows this house better than you, so we need to make sure there’s not anywhere they can get in and catch us by surprise. If they want to take us on, they will have to come through the front door.”

  Decklan started showing Langley every point of entry. The front door, the four windows in the dining room, the two in the front of the living room, a side door leading into the kitchen, the window above the sink, the back door leading out to the back porch facing the beach, and all the windows in the basement, along with both garage doors. Then they went upstairs to check all the windows. Each one brought up painful memories of what once was, and Langley could see it in Decklan’s face.

  “Hey man, I can check out the rest up here. Why don’t you go back downstairs and put some coffee on? It’s going to be a long night.” Langley said kindly hoping it would help ease the pain for Decklan.

  Without responding, Decklan turned and headed back downstairs. He knew eventually he would have to face the pain head-on. Eventually, if he lived through what was going to take place, he would have to pack up and move. There was no way he could bear the thought of living in this house every day, knowing what it used to be like. But for now, he had to push through and finish what he promised he would do so his family could rest in peace. He had it in his head that they couldn’t be at peace as long as the men responsible were still free. He imagined that they were living in eternal pain and misery until he stepped up and finally did something to help them, since he failed so terribly when they were alive.

  I’m so sorry. I should have been here. I should have protected all of you. Please know this is not your fault, it’s mine. I promise I will make this right. I love you three so much!

  It had been almost a month since their passing, but it still felt like yesterday. People said time heals all wounds, but that couldn’t apply to this. Nothing and no one could ever prepare him for the pain of losing a child, much less two. And to lose them in the way that he did—it was unimaginable, but it was his reality. He knew Langley felt the same kind of pain but wondered if it was the same as losing them so young. At least his son got to grow up and live life a little. Decklan’s kids didn’t even get to see their teens, and his precious princess never saw double digits.

  God, if you can hear me, I need you to answer one question. Why would you allow this to happen to my family? Why would you allow two young and innocent souls to be taken away in such a brutal way? It doesn’t make any sense to me. What could I have done for you to allow this to happen? They were just kids.

  Decklan wasn’t expecting answers to his questions; he just wanted God to know how pissed off he was.

  Langley finally made his way back downstairs and the house was secure. He looked over at Decklan. “Hey, I know you and your brother aren’t exactly best friends, but do you think we should give him a heads-up about what happened at the docks?”

  “I’d say if he was still having us followed, he already knows. I suspect he will try calli
ng me or even stopping by sometime soon,” Decklan replied.

  “Do you think it’s worth trying to get his help? Since he is the chief of police and all.”

  Decklan shook his head. “I don’t want him knowing about anything we are doing. He’s not an idiot and he knows how I am. I’m sure he knows I’m not just going to sit back and watch from the sidelines.”

  Langley could tell Decklan didn’t want to keep talking about this, so he didn’t press any further. The last time Decklan needed and wanted his brother’s help, it didn’t turn out well. And it wasn’t just with his family’s murder; it had always been this way. Part of why they were never close, besides Decklan going off to the military shortly after their parent’s deaths, was because Parker wasn’t exactly mister reliable. Decklan lost count of how many times he needed his brother’s help, and each time had the same result. What was worse than that was the fact that Parker expected everyone to drop what they were doing to help him out when he needed it.

  In the span of two years, Parker had to call his mom, dad, and Decklan to come bail him out of jail, and the only reason he needed his older brother was because his mom and dad told him no more help if he got in trouble again. Unfortunately, their dad was a bit of an enabler when it came to Parker. Parker knew that no matter what he did or what kind of trouble he was in, Dad would always step in and help. This was obviously a great thing for a parent to do for their kids after all, it was their job to protect and provide, but there came a point where enough was enough and tough love needed to be established.

  One of the most important lessons Decklan learned in the military was that discipline from superiors meant they cared. If they just let you slide by and get away with shit, then they couldn’t care less what happened to you. The same applied for parents after a certain point. Kids needed tough love and discipline, or they would never grow up and learn. So when their parents decided to leave Parker in jail, he called his big brother. He called at least a dozen times from the prison phone before getting an answer. When Decklan finally picked up it was about a quarter till eight.

  “Hey man, it’s Parker.”

  “Are you in jail?” Decklan asked, already knowing the answer.

  “Yeah, I need someone to come bail me out and Mom and Dad told me they weren’t helping,” Parker replied.

  “Well shit, man, can you blame them? You were just in this exact same situation less than six months ago. What the hell happened?” Decklan asked.

  “Me and my girl broke up, so I went out drinking with some buddies. I thought I was okay to drive home, but apparently a cop saw me swerving, which I still think was bullshit.”

  “So you got arrested for drinking and driving—again?”

  “Yes, Deck. Are you going to help me out or what?” Parker snapped, clearly still hungover and irritated.

  “First off, you need to chill if you want my help. Second, I don’t even know where you are or what to do,” Decklan snapped back. “I don’t exactly go around bailing people out of jail all of the time.”

  “Sorry man, I’m just really tired and pissed off,” Parker said. “The lady who helped me out with my bail last time will call you and arrange everything.”

  “All right, I’ll help, but you are going to pay me back every penny for this,” Decklan said.

  “Okay man, I swear I will. Thanks,” Parker replied.

  Everything went smoothly and Decklan got him out within a few hours of their phone call. However, it was almost two years before Parker paid him back, despite Decklan being in financially difficult times himself. This was the last time Decklan did anything for his brother and the last time he asked for his help until his family, and that was just because it was his damn job. After a few moments of neither one of them talking, Langley finally spoke.

  “I have been meaning to ask you one very important question.”

  “What’s that?” Decklan replied.

  “What if Vladimir had nothing to do with your family? You could potentially be risking your life for nothing and their true killers could still be out there.”

  Without hesitation, Decklan replied. “Trust me, I’ve already thought about that a hundred times, but we do know that he had something to do with your son’s death so as far as I am concerned, we are in this together. One way or another, I’ll find out the truth about what happened to my family and whoever is responsible will pay with their life.”

  Langley just sat there, almost stunned. He wasn’t sure what to say back because he didn’t want Decklan to feel like he had to risk his own life to help him and potentially lose out on being able to bring his family peace. On the other hand, he selfishly knew that taking on Vladimir and his gang of thugs alone would almost certainly result in his own death, so he needed Decklan’s help. After all, that was exactly why he showed up just a few weeks ago, to lend a helping hand and get one in return.

  “You have no idea how much that means to me, and you have my word that if we make it out of this shit alive and Vladimir isn’t your guy, I will help you find the real killers,” Langley finally replied.

  “You got yourself a deal,” Decklan said.

  CHAPTER 15

  Decklan couldn’t believe that this was where his life had ended up. Just a month ago, everything seemed as normal as anyone else’s life, but clearly, he was mistaken. He couldn’t help but think that he could have been followed for God knew how long. Or worse, someone was following his wife and children. If this wasn’t some random house invasion turned deadly, then whoever was responsible had done their homework and knew that he wasn’t going to be home when everything happened.

  This meant they would also know of Decklan’s background and training, which confused him because why would they let someone with his skill set live? Why not tie up the one loose end that could potentially hunt them down and make them pay for their actions? Nothing really seemed to add up in his head. No matter how hard he thought about it or how much he tried to come up with a logical conclusion, there was just something missing. Who could possibly do this?

  Then Decklan had a crazy idea. “Hey Langley, I think I need to arrange a sit-down with Vladimir to try and talk things out.”

  Langley peered at Decklan with wide eyes. “Have you lost your fucking mind? After what we have been doing to his guys, he will probably shoot you on sight.”

  “I know it’s a long shot, and I’m not for one second forgetting what he is capable of. But…”

  “But what?” Langley interrupted. “That’s a suicide mission. You might as well shoot yourself in the head right now.”

  “I’m telling you, I really think I can get him to stop sending guys after us. Think about it: The more guys he sends that we send back bleeding or in body bags, the more attention that is getting drawn. I don’t care how crazy he is, he’s not stupid and he knows that is bad for business,” Decklan replied. “If I can get him to realize that it’s a waste of his time and resources to try and hunt down two unknown widowers, we might actually have a chance of taking him out.”

  “Well shit, when you put it like that, I guess it’s not the worst idea,” Langley replied. “But you have to at least let me come with you. Going in alone is too dangerous.”

  “No way, Langley. You two have a past and having you there would only make things worse than they already are. Plus, there is no guarantee you wouldn’t snap once you got close enough to him, which would result in both of our untimely and certain deaths.”

  “Fine, but there is no way in hell I’m just going to sit around here and wait for you to come back, or not come back. I’ll drive separately and post up from a safe distance, just in case you need back up,” Langley said.

  “Okay, good idea,” Decklan replied.

  “One question: How are you going to arrange a meeting with him when we can’t get within a hundred yards of him without his men?” Langley asked. “We can’t exactly go knock on his front door.”

  “That’s easy. The strip
club. Just like last time. Only now, I have a good reason to talk to him.” Decklan said. “Plus, it’s a public place so that should decrease the chance of something happening, hopefully.”

  “And when do you plan on trying this insane Hail Mary?” Langley asked.

  Decklan looked directly at Langley. “Tomorrow.”

  With the new plan in place, both had a restless night. The anxiety was at an all-time high and they both knew that this plan could go south in a split second and there would be virtually nothing they could do about it. This was a complete leap of faith, but they were desperate and had no choice. They couldn’t keep dodging bullets, literally. Sooner or later, their luck would run out.

  ***

  The plan was to arrive at the club around ten and try to see Vladimir as quickly as possible. The less time Decklan spent inside, out of Langley's sight, the better chance he had of getting out safely. Decklan was almost certain he could get a meeting with Vladimir, so that wasn’t what was keeping him on edge. It was the unknown. He was going into enemy territory to play a game of Russian roulette with an actual Russian. One wrong move and it was over.

  “All right man, it’s time,” Decklan said.

  Langley instantly felt his hands become damp and his heart rate increase. Even though he agreed to this, he was still unsure it was a good idea. But he knew that their time was running out and it would only be a matter of time before it was an all-out war. Something needed to be done, and it needed to be done now.

  “Let’s roll,” Langley replied, trying to mask his uncertainty.

  As planned, Decklan took his truck and Langley followed behind in his Charger. The drive was less than an hour, but the anticipation made it feel like five. There it was, the same neon sign, The Mouse’s Ear.

  Shit, this had better work, Langley thought.

  Decklan pulled into an open spot about twenty yards from the door, and Langley found a spot in the back so he was far enough away that one of Vladimir’s guys couldn’t spot him. He could see Decklan getting out of his truck and making for the entrance. His heart leapt from his chest. The only time he had felt this anxious was in war, and rightfully so. War was life or death with every step, and this seemed to carry the same weight.