BLOOD TIES (Decklan Jennings Thriller Book 1)

by Philip Duncan

  Finally dressed, Decklan tried moving around to get used to the feel. “Not too bad. I think I can make this work,” he said.

  “Good, because we still have weapons and gear to carry too,” Teddy replied.

  Decklan took the winter clothes off and put his clothes back on. They headed down to the basement, where all the weapons and gear were. They needed to be smart and strategic with what they brought for the mission. They needed enough firepower and ammo to take out anyone they came across, but they also needed to be discreet and quick.

  “No RPG for this one, huh?” Decklan said jokingly.

  “Unless you want to roll up to his front door and blow that shit to kingdom come, I think it’s best if she stays behind,” Teddy replied.

  They both laughed, but at the same time they were both secretly thinking what a fun idea that would be. When you had nothing left to lose and you’d been to hell and back, shit like that started to sound normal.

  “You a good shot?” Decklan asked, pointing at the sniper rifle mounted on the wall.

  “In my younger days, but I ain’t got the eyesight for it anymore. I guess these puppies have seen too many things,” Teddy said. “What about you?”

  “I’ve taken out my fair share of towel heads when I served, but it’s been a while since I shot anything with that kind of power,” Decklan replied. “But we might need something long range to help us out before moving in close.

  “I think so too,” Teddy said. “We will bring it just in case and take this silencer for it as well.”

  Next, they grabbed some pistols, both 9mm and .380. Teddy grabbed a dark green sack and filled it with several grenades, both frag and concussion, as well as a couple of flash bangs.

  “These babies will help us clear out a room that we don’t feel like going into,” Teddy said, with a sadistic grin.

  Trust me, I know, Decklan thought to himself after having just dealt with some in his fight with Vladimir.

  Decklan was no stranger to tossing a frag into a room that was being held up by some terrorist. Sometimes it was better to make sure everything inside was unable to fight back before actually going in, rather than take a chance of getting shot. Decklan was starting to have flashbacks of him and Langley preparing for Vladimir back home. The only difference here was they were going into unfamiliar territory this time. It was going to be one hell of a ride.

  “You any good with a knife?” Teddy asked.

  “About as good as I am with my hands,” Decklan said.

  “You're a special forces guy, so I’ll take that as a yes,” Teddy replied. “Here, this should suit you just fine.”

  Decklan watched as a knife came flying his way. He reached out and caught it by the handle and placed it in his waistband. After a few more minutes, they had everything they needed. Or at least everything they could carry. If they could, they’d bring the whole armory.

  “I believe this should work.” Teddy said. “If we can’t kill him with all of this, then we deserve to die.”

  Decklan didn’t have a response. Clearly Teddy didn’t fear death, and at times it seemed as if he welcomed it. He was like a modern-day Viking. Dying in battle like a true warrior was the most honorable way to die. Decklan had a similar mindset in that he didn’t fear death. However, he did fear not keeping his promises and letting down the ones that he lost. That thought alone drove him to keep pushing, even when he felt like giving up. Some people would probably have even ended their own life after experiencing such loss, but Decklan Jennings was built differently.

  He followed Teddy out and over to a large metal table where a map was spread out. Once he was close enough, he could tell it was a map of Moscow. Since Teddy knew where Vladimir was probably going to be, they could use the map to lay the best route and plan for getting into the house unseen. Of course, that would be the best-case scenario, which seemed too good to be true. Decklan always found himself on the other side of the fence, where all the chaos and death was. The good news was, he has great experience in killing Vladimir’s men so that shouldn’t be any different if… when shit hit the fan. Decklan was battle worn and unfazed by violence. He had been handling bad guys his whole life. He just needed to do it one more time, that was all… just one.

  Teddy was surveying the map, trying to figure out the best route. There was only one road leading to the house, so that part was easy. It was after they got out of the car that would be the tricky part.

  “Here. This is where we will stop and get out of the car. I don’t want to risk getting too close and being seen. He’s not used to uninvited guests so it’s best if he doesn’t see us pull up. We want to avoid a firefight as long as possible,” Teddy said. “Once we park, we will grab our gear and work our way toward the back of the house. We should be able to move in undetected on foot, especially with all this snow. It will help decrease their visibility.”

  Decklan looked at Teddy. “How do you know the snow will pick up?’

  “Because when it snows in Moscow, it fucking snows,” Teddy replied.

  Decklan got the point, and Teddy went back to the plan.

  “It should only be a couple hundred yards from the car to the house, so it shouldn’t take us too long, but I think we should post up about fifty yards out and use the scope from the sniper to do some surveillance. The better idea we have of what we are up against, the better chance we have of getting the job done.”

  Decklan nodded his head in agreement. “Makes sense.”

  “Then we will make our final push to the house against the south-facing wall. It has a large set of concrete stairs that leads up to the back doors.”

  “How the hell do you know so much about his house?” Decklan asked. “Did you build the damn thing?”

  Teddy smiled at Decklan’s reaction. “I worked a party there a couple of years ago as part of an undercover operation. It was a long party with lots of people, so I was able to get a good feel for the layout,” Teddy replied.

  “Wouldn’t that mean he knows what you look like?” Decklan asked.

  “Maybe he does and maybe he doesn’t, but that doesn't really matter, does it?” Teddy said.

  “Why not?” Decklan asked.

  “We know without a doubt he knows what you look like!” Teddy said. “You said it yourself: He was just on your front lawn a couple of days ago.”

  Decklan let out a short laugh. “Touché.”

  “Once we get inside the house, we will move room to room, taking out any of his guys along the way. We will have to do this without making noise or else the whole place will come crashing down on us. I have silencers for our pistols, but our knives might be the best option, depending on the situation.”

  “How many rooms does he have on the main floor?” Decklan asked.

  “If my memory serves me correctly, there should be four, including the kitchen,” Teddy answered.

  “Okay, continue,” Decklan said.

  “After we clear out the main floor we will head upstairs. It’s important that we are both very aware here because it’s the only set of stairs that leads to the second floor and it’s right in the middle of the house. It would be very easy for someone to be coming down at the same time we were going up, so you have to be on high alert,” Teddy said.

  What else would I be in this situation? I’m not an idiot, Decklan thought. “Roger that,” he said after his internal dialogue.

  “I believe upstairs is where he will be entertaining his lady friends if that is what he wants that night, so shit could get a little messier than you would like,” Teddy said.

  Decklan knew exactly what he meant and shot him a sharp glare. “I’m not risking the chance of killing innocent girls. Enough people have died already because of this bastard!”

  “I understand that, kid. But sometimes that is out of our control and we have to be willing to do whatever it takes to get the job done. Even if that means a few loose girls get killed,” Teddy said.


  Decklan didn’t back down from his position. “Like I said, Teddy, that shit ain’t happening on my watch. There’s always an alternative and those girls wouldn’t deserve to die.”

  Teddy sighed, and looked back down at the map, purposely choosing not to respond.

  “Upstairs will be a little trickier to navigate since we will have to enter closed rooms. We won’t have any idea what’s waiting inside until we go in, so hopefully we get lucky and find Vladimir early on. Once we take him out we will need to haul ass out of there and get back to the car as quickly as possible. One call from Vladimir or one of his men, and their whole cavalry will show up. If that happens before we get out, I can assure you we will die in that house.”

  Their plan was laid out. Although it wasn’t airtight, it was good enough to have them both on the same page and know what to do once inside the house. As long as they stayed together and had each other’s back, they stood a fighting chance. Teddy rolled up the map and tossed it in his duffle bag.

  “Any questions?” Teddy asked.

  Decklan shook his head. “Nope. I’m all set.”

  “Good. We roll out in half an hour,” Teddy said. “I just need to piss and grab another drink before we go. You know, in case we don’t come back. Might as well have a little buzz if I’m planning on walking through the gates of hell to meet the Devil.”

  They both headed back upstairs where they would wait to leave. Decklan sat anxiously on the couch, thinking about all the things that had happened over the past month. Losing his family. Almost getting shot at the docks. Having to save Langley’s life, only to have it taken shortly after. And now, here he was, halfway around the world in a frostbitten country that he had no business being in, about to make one last effort to finally right all the wrongs caused by one man… Vladimir Ivanov, the Russian drug kingpin.

  One thing still didn’t add up in Decklan’s head. It was the one question that had been burning since the start. Why would Vladimir pick out his family to carry out such a brutal act? There would be no way of Vladimir knowing who he was, and even if he did, why the hell would he want to harm his family? There was a piece to the puzzle missing and Decklan had no clue how to find it. His only chance was to get Vladimir to tell him before finally putting an end to his miserable life. But would someone like Vladimir even tell the truth?

  “Teddy, I have two things that are a must for this operation,” Decklan said.

  “Sure, kid. What are they?” Teddy asked.

  “I have to be the one to kill Vladimir. I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep at night if I’m not the one to finish the job.”

  “Makes sense. No problem. And the second thing?”

  “We have to make sure he stays alive long enough for me to get some answers. If he dies before I get the chance to ask him about my family then I may never know why he did it.”

  “Again, makes sense, and I’ll do my best. You have my word,” Teddy said.

  “Thank you,” Decklan replied.

  Teddy finished off his final cup of bourbon, and slammed it down on the table, indicating it was time.

  “Grab your shit and let’s go get this son of a bitch,” Teddy said with enthusiasm.

  They opened the big blue door and stepped out into the freezing cold air with heavy snow falling from the dark sky. It was the kind of snow that silenced all the noise in the world, which was exactly what they needed.

  CHAPTER 20

  They tossed their bags in the trunk and got in Teddy’s car. It was snowing so heavily at this point that not many people were on the roads, which meant they wouldn’t have to fight the kind of traffic that Decklan saw coming here from the airport. However, they couldn’t drive very fast, which meant it was going to take them longer to get there. This would give them more time to mentally prepare…if anyone could actually prepare themselves for something like this. To Decklan, it felt like another mission like he had done dozens of times in the military. Only now, there were two of them, not a whole team. The odds were stacked against them and they both knew it, they just didn’t care. This was something that had to be done and it had to be done now.

  The longer Vladimir had breath in his lungs, the more anger and rage built up inside Decklan. And the better chance that more people would die. Plus, it seemed Teddy didn’t have anything better to do, or at least not that he cared to mention. They slowly moved through the snow that only seemed to get heavier by the minute. Decklan stared out of the window, unable to see more than a few feet. The sheets of white covered everything. It was something Decklan wasn’t used to. Sure, they got snow up north, but it couldn’t have been anything like this. This was the kind of snow that was special to this cold, heartless city. Any place that Vladimir lived had to be a special kind of hell.

  An hour had passed and they still weren't there, but they were getting close.

  “Get your mind right, Decklan. We are almost there,” Teddy said.

  Decklan straightened up in his seat, removed his seatbelt and leaned forward like he was going to pounce. Teddy’s words sent an endorphin rush through his body and he was ready to lock and load. He felt the car start to slow down, even more so than it already was, and it eventually came to a halt. Teddy put the car in park and looked over at Decklan.

  “Look over there,” Teddy said, pointing over the dash. “That’s where the house is.”

  Decklan looked, but couldn’t see anything. The snow was too heavy. “I can’t see anything in this shit. How do you know?”

  Teddy smiled, knowing good and well the house wasn’t visible. “Trust me, that’s the direction we need to go.”

  Having no other choice but to trust Teddy, Decklan agreed.

  “Okay, if you say so. Let’s go.”

  Teddy turned the car off, stuck the keys in the visor above his head, and got out. Decklan followed suit and they met at the trunk. They unzipped the bags and grabbed what they needed. Decklan picked up the sniper rifle and slung it over his shoulder using the strap. Not bothering to zip the bags back up, Teddy shut the trunk and they started making their way through the snowy terrain. The wind was starting to pick up, which made it near impossible to hear each other without yelling. After what seemed like a hundred yards, Teddy reached over and stopped Decklan with his arm.

  “Use the scope of the rifle from here and see if you can get a visual yet,” Teddy said, loud enough for Decklan to hear.

  Decklan pulled the rifle back over the same shoulder he slung it over, placed the butt of the gun to his arm and looked down the sights.

  “Can’t see a damn thing!” Decklan said. “We have to get closer!”

  Teddy nodded his head and they kept moving. They made it another fifty yards, or so it seemed. Who could really tell in this weather?

  Again Teddy stopped Decklan and leaned in so he didn’t have to yell. “Try again.”

  Once more, Decklan pulled his rifle up and looked down the sights. “Still nothing,” he said.

  “Well shit, so much for my plan.” Teddy said. “If we can’t get some kind of visual before we get there, we will be flying blind.”

  They kept walking and somehow the snow and wind were only getting worse, and the temperature was now single digits and dropping.

  “All right, kid. Last try. Let’s see if you get anything,” Teddy said to Decklan, hoping to finally get that visual of the house they desperately needed.

  For the last time, Decklan looked through the scope of the rifle. “Holy shit! There it is,” Decklan said excitedly. “Good thing you were right or else we’d be stuck out in the middle of nowhere to freeze to death.”

  “What do you see?” Teddy asked.

  Decklan slowly moved the gun from one end of the house to the other, scanning for anything and everything.

  “I got two guys in a front room and I see two more guys up top, posted up as armed surveillance, it appears,” Decklan said.

  “Can you tell what kind of heat they are packing?” T
eddy asked.

  Decklan adjusted his scope to zoom in. “Looks like they are both carrying an AK-47.”

  Teddy looked over at Decklan. “If you had to, do you think you could take them both out?”

  It had been years since he had attempted a shot at this distance and never in conditions like this. The velocity of the bullet would be drastically altered from the wind and snow, but he knew taking them out would give them their best chance, so he had to try.

  “I guess there’s only one way to find out.” Decklan replied.

  He lowered the rifle for a brief moment so he could try and get himself in the right mindset. Hitting a shot like this would require ultra focus, extreme precision, and a lot of luck. Plus, he would have to do it twice without any hesitation. If the shot wasn’t hard enough, he would have to do it lying down in the freezing snow because trying to shoot from that distance standing up wasn’t going to be an option.

  He took one last deep breath in, and exhaled it back out. He assumed the shooting position, placed the rifle against his right shoulder and once more looked down the scope. He adjusted the scope until he felt it gave him the best visual possible, but it couldn’t be too closely zoomed in because he would need to laterally switch targets quickly after firing the first shot. Finally finding the sweet spot, he fixed the barrel on the first guy and whispered to himself, “See ya, buddy.”

  He squeezed the trigger slowly until it hit the final stage, sending a round ripping through the snow and directly into the first guy’s skull. It was a direct hit, sending the guy back against the wall and dropping straight to the ground. Quickly, Decklan moved his sights over about eighteen inches to the left, where the only guy left standing looked confused and unsure what to do. Before he had the chance to sound an alarm or shoot back, Decklan pulled the trigger again, and again a direct hit right through his skull. Two shots, two down, perfect execution!

  Teddy was watching through a pair of high-powered binoculars so he could see the impact of Decklan’s marksmanship.