Tommy whimpered, forcing out labored words. “You have it wrong, Chin. We simply cannot convert those sums of cash easily.”
Garret stood and growled angrily. “The only reason you own anything is that I pull every string and bribe every two-bit official looking for mortgage payments for his mistresses. Not to mention putting together a corporate structure that makes you cleaner than the pope.”
Chin hissed, “Paid with my cash into your pocket. Several billion, which is now missing.”
Billion? Olivia and Abby gasped at the number. Tommy and Garret were not at all flummoxed.
Garret smiled grimly at Chin. “How does money that doesn’t exist go missing? I’m doing my job, Chin, and doing it very well.”
Chin inhaled and advanced to the door. “Remember who is feeding you.” He whipped around, rocketing a razor-sharp martial arts throwing star directly at Garret’s heart.
With reflexes faster than a cobra’s, Garret snatched it out of the air and hurled the deadly projectile back at Chin in the same fluid motion. The blur moved at a speed no normal person could see. Chin nonchalantly swiped the air and closed his fist. He opened his hand, revealing the star in his palm.
“Do not play games with me. Otherwise, your beloved Pittman Saunders will be...” Chin waved his hands indicating a magic motion, “poof.” He stormed out.
“I’m not hungry anymore. I want to go home,” said Olivia.
“Me, too,” Abby agreed.
“No. No. You hardly ate at all,” said Tommy.
“Please, Uncle Tommy,” protested Olivia.
“Uncle Tommy? You mean I’m not your client any longer? Come on, come on. Wing, get us another room. Now! Now!”
“Of course, Mr. Sung.”
“Daddy, I want to go!” blurted Abby.
Tommy shrugged. Kids. What could you do?
***
The marksmen saw Chin stroll out of the private dining room. He gave an almost imperceptible nod in their direction before disappearing into the noisy crowd.
The nod was their cue to move into position. Pau and Duke quickly moved the folding screen a few feet so they remained hidden from the restaurant and casino patrons. That they could do so was another example of the power of money. Normally, tables and machines were packed right to the wall in order to optimize revenue. However, Chin requested that there be at least a twelve-foot gap between the door and the closest table. At the Tiger Complex, whatever Chin wanted, Chin got.
Duke and Pau planted their feet firmly. They took aim, getting their arrows positioned exactly right. Not an extra muscle moved, not an extra breath was spent. They saw Wing leading Garret, Tommy, Abby and Olivia out of the private room.
“Now!” Duke shot first, a few milliseconds before Pau. They watched in what seemed like eternal slow motion, even though the arrows raced forward with incredible velocity. It seemed as if the arrows rotated in the air like a space station hovering miles above the Earth. The shiny arrowheads reflected ancient and contemporary images of China as they flew past the Chinese acrobats, singers and dancers.
Finally reaching its destination, Duke’s arrow pierced its target, slicing through flesh directly into the heart of a human body. Pau’s arrow bypassed all and embedded itself in the wall of the private dining room.
Job done, the marksmen left just as unobtrusively as they entered. No one saw anything, and no one heard anything.
***
With the shaft of the arrow protruding from his chest, Tommy was bleeding out, spirit rapidly ebbing away. There was no time for explanations, no chance for redemption, but there was one thing that Tommy willed himself to do before he passed to the next world.
“Abby, Abby,” he gurgled through the foam filling his mouth. “Goodbye, darling. I love you. Forgive me.”
Abby and Olivia shrieked. Abby wanted to kneel next to her father, but Garret pulled her away and held her. “No, Abby. You must go. Immediately.” Garret gently but firmly drew the girls away.
Pandemonium broke out as the other patrons, drawn to the girls’ screams, saw Tommy’s bloody, convulsing body. Pain wracked his frame, his vision began to cloud and voices from another cosmos seemed to beckon. Through the fog, Tommy heard somebody shout, “Call an ambulance!”
Another said, “Medicine isn’t going to help him anymore. Just go direct to the priest. He’ll be more use.”
As Tommy convulsed in death throes, Garret took out a huge wad of bills, gave it to Wing, and spoke quietly but firmly. “Distribute as necessary.”
He turned to Olivia and Abby. “You were never here with me. Do not argue. Do not say anything to anyone.”
He addressed Wing. “The ladies were just entering the restaurant to join us, right?”
“Absolutely, Mr. Southam. We had not even made it to the Grand Room when the incident occurred.”
“But, Dad...”
“For once in your life, Olivia, do not argue with me. Let me handle all the questions. And, whatever you do, if anyone asks you anything, don’t contradict a word I say. You were never here. Now go.”
Olivia had never heard her dad speak that way, and it scared her. What scared her even more was that he was absolutely in control of the situation, as if he had done this a hundred times before or... as if he knew what was going to happen and was fully prepared.
Wing led the two girls away. Abby turned back and saw her father looking at her. He gave a quick little wave.
“No!” screamed Abby, trying to free herself from Wing’s grip.
Wing tightened his hold, restraining her. “No, Ms. Sung. You can’t go to him.” He tried to forced her to accompany him but neither she nor Olivia would have any of it. They broke free and scurried off on their own.
Garret knelt down beside Tommy for a final time. Tommy knew he had only seconds left. “Step one accomplished, Garret. Now it’s up to you and Noah. Do you think he’s up to it?”
“If he isn’t, we’ll all join you soon. We might anyway, even if he is.”
With a last strength coming from an unknown place, Tommy’s hand faltered as he tried to touch Garret’s face. “We must not die in vain, Garret.” With that, his eyes bugged out, his expression stiffened and his body went limp.
Garret gripped the lapels of his friend’s jacket and voiced hoarsely, “We won’t fail, Tommy. Mary and Jocelyn will be avenged.”
Chapter 24
Duke and Pau raced through the door. Duke locked it, then the two pounded down the stairs.
“I don’t know what happened!” cried Pau. “I never miss.”
Duke was silent as they exited into the interior loading area of the complex. In the garage were a dozen trucks coming in and out and one waiting E-Class black Mercedes six-door stretch limo.
Pau tried to run in the opposite direction, but Duke snatched him back. “You’re going the wrong way, Pau.” Pau tried to pull away, but the stronger Duke yanked him to the Mercedes, where inside Chin sat beside Ron, the human punching bag.
Duke pushed Pau into the limo, and the two sat in the seats facing Ron and Chin. Duke looked at Pau and said, “You can die fast, or you can die slow. It’s your choice.”
“No! It wasn’t my fault! I don’t know how it happened.” Pau shoved back against the seat, arms crossed protectively across his chest.
“Shaddap.” Duke walloped Pau in the solar plexus, and Pau buckled over.
“Drive,” commanded Chin, and the chauffeur began a smooth navigation out of the building.
As Pau made gurgling, belching noises, Ron felt his heart hammering out of his chest, hoping against hope that he could avoid the inevitable. A bead of sweat formed at the base of his receding hairline.
Chin slapped the accountant on the knee. “Thank you for coming to the meeting.”
“No problem, Mr. Chin.”
“I want to show my appreciation for what you have done for us for so many years.”
“That’s not necessary.”
“But it is.”
Chin grabbed Ron by the throat and began to strangle the fraudulent accountant. He struggled, but the powerful Tiger Master snapped his neck back. Trying to yell, Ron’s felt his tongue pop out. Chin reached into his throat, breaking his jaw, and jerked the gooey, fleshy organ.
Chin, with firm yanks, pulled on Ron’s tongue several times, finally tearing it out with a powerful jerk. The driver pushed the window button, opening the window. Chin tossed the tongue into a passing dumpster, then released his hold on the accountant as the window went back up. Blood covered the seating area of the car. Ron slumped back in the seat, savage pain distorting his features. He was paralyzed for life and would never speak again, but he would live.
“Next?”
Chin’s sense of humor did not amuse Pau, nor did it diminish his fear. “I never miss,” he blubbered. “You know I never miss. Something must have happened. Please, Chin, please. I have been with you since I was thirteen.”
“Which is why you should know better.” Chin’s face darkened. “I know why you missed. You were not synchronized with Duke. You hesitated a fraction of a second after Duke gave the order, and that means Duke fired first, allowing the slightest gust of air—the kick from his crossbow—to blow on your shot. That diverted your arrow a millimeter at most. However, over the course of the two hundred feet the arrow traveled, that millimeter became several millimeters. Minuscule, yes, but it made all the difference. Life, like death, is measured in fractions.”
“I won’t do it again. I promise I won’t,” begged Pau.
“No, you won’t.” Chin nodded at Duke to finish the man off.
“Why, Chin, why? I have been faithful and... and you gave the accountant a second chance. Why not me? Please, give me a second chance.”
“Ron got a second chance because one thing Garret said was right.” Chin ignored Pau’s pleading. “My corporate and financial structure is a maze that cannot be untangled. Not only are there traceable assets, but there are also undocumented funds. It would take years to train someone else, and I don’t feel like spending the time bringing another person up to speed. You? There are ten thousand like you in every city. Every block has a tough guy that can easily be replaced by another tough guy.” Chin glanced to Duke. “What are your thoughts, Son?”
“Excuses are for losers. The problem with losers is that they never know when to stop.”
“Which means?” prompted Chin, as if he were teaching ethics to a student.
“Which means a loser will never change his habits. So, if he doesn’t change, we have to change the situation for him.”
With that, Duke swiftly delivered a hammer punch to Pau’s midsection. Pau buckled over.
“I’ll change! I’ll change!” cackled Pau.
Duke grabbed Pau’s neck and put it on his lap. Despite Pau’s fight for existence, Duke easily held the wannabe down. He raised his right arm, bending it so his fist was beside his ear, then brought his elbow down on top of Pau’s head. The stomach-churning sound of his skull being smashed permeated the car. There was no blood, but there was a small cave indented into Pau’s head.
“Please,” gurgled Pau, in the midst of death throes.
Chin ignored Pau’s pleas and looked at Duke. “This is a lesson. This is not a random killing or execution for the sake of pleasure. You have to ask, ‘Why did he hesitate?’ and the most likely answer is: doubt. Even though Pau carried through with the shot, doubt caused him to miss the target. Doubt will cause him to miss again if we allow him to.”
“You couldn’t have seen that. You were too far away!” cried Pau feebly.
“I see everything,” said Chin. “Even though you were wearing a mask, I saw your eyes. They flickered and rose a bit as the group left the room.”
“That doesn’t mean anything!”
“No, Pau. It meant a brief moment of indecision. I can’t have anyone working with me who does not follow orders completely.” He looked at his son. “Understand, Duke?”
“Yup.” Duke pulled his arm back and threw two hundred and fifty pounds of force into Pau’s breadbasket.
“You’re so friggin’ useless.” Duke raised his arm again and plowed his fist into Pau’s head. As the fist made contact, he applied a corkscrew twist, crushing Pau’s nose into his cranium. Pau lost consciousness, and his body froze. With the massive bleeding, the young gangster would soon be of another world.
Chin looked at the freaked-out Ron. “You heard what Duke said about doubt. I taught him that. You’re a goner, too. I just wanted to enjoy myself for a few moments watching your pain.”
Ron tried to scream but only chortles that got stuck in his throat came out.
“Slime. At least Pau was loyal to me.” With that said, Chin applied the same nose-to-cranium corkscrew twist blow that Duke used on Pau.
Same results. Ron joined Pau on the highway to Hell.
Chin nodded approvingly at Duke. “You’ve got promise. You’re learning well.”
Duke grinned at the praise of his father.
Chapter 25
Lexus was given his moniker for good reason. A chauffeur held the door open to a $140,000 Lexus LS600. Lexus slid into the back seat and waved at Sam, Noah and Chad as they walked toward their shared vintage MG sports car. “See you next time.”
“You got it!” shouted Chad as the luxury vehicle took off.
“So where you off to now, Sam?” asked Noah.
“Nowhere.”
“Now, that’s not a real answer. You going home? Maybe Chad’s Internet coffee house? See a movie?”
Sam thrust his hand into his pants pocket and pulled out a bag of crack. “You want some? Ten bucks.”
“You’re crazy, man.” Chad tried to snatch the bag from Sam, but Sam yanked it back.
“You’re gonna go to juvie or some home where they’ll lock you up if you get caught,” Chad snapped angrily.
“What you want me to do?” Sam barked back defiantly. “Somebody’s got to put groceries on the table.”
“Well, you ain’t gonna put shit on the table if you’re in jail,” retorted Chad.
“Whoa, man,” interrupted Noah. “What’s the deal, Sam? You gotta know this is going to get you into a heap of trouble.”
“My sister’s three. My mom’s got MS, and my dad just got busted for a B & E. He can’t make an honest dollar, so he’s gotta make a dishonest one. Stupid loser. Can’t even do that right.”
Noah whipped out his wallet. “Tell you what. I’ll buy that hit and anything else you got on one condition.”
“What’s that?”
“That this is the last time ever that you do anything like this. Deal?”
Sam reluctantly took six other hits of crack from his pocket. “Deal. But I got a condition, too.”
“You in the negotiating business now, Sam?” asked Noah. “What do I have to do?”
“You got to find me another way to make some money.”
Noah nodded slowly as he forked over seventy bucks. “Sounds about right. I’ll see what I can do.”
Sam jetted away, waving the cash in the air.
Chad gave his buddy a look of disdain. “Now why did you lie to him? You can’t get him a job anywhere. You know he’s gonna be at it again.”
“Yeah, but if he stays away for two days, that’s two days more of freedom he’s got. And two days for us to try to figure out something else for him to do.”
“How much cash you got?”
“Not much. Why?” Noah looked confused.
“Because if you want us to solve Sam’s problems in two days, we gotta win a lottery, and we gotta buy a ticket to win.”
They reached the MG and Noah tried to start it. It didn’t work.
“No big deal.” Chad got a wrench out, popped the hood, banged on the alternator and yelled, “Try it again!”
Noah turned the key, and the engine rumbled to life. “Let me drive,” he said.
“Sure. You paid for half of it.”
Noah gently drove the car out of the
parking lot. The leather seats were cut up, the windows had a few chips, and neither the odometer nor the speedometer worked, but hey, they were two guys in their twenties and they were riding in one of the most coveted sports cars ever built.
“You got to stop being an easy touch, Noah.”
“As my parents used to say, 'It’s not the healthy who need a doctor.’”
“Yeah,” Chad said, "but if the doctor gets killed, who’s gonna look after the patients?”
Noah sneaked a look at Chad. “Certainly not a corporate lawyer, especially one that works at Pittman Saunders.”
“That bad, huh?”
Noah yawned and shook his head to rid the sleep from his system. “I got assigned to the most boring job in the world. Got to check out the real estate contracts for Golden Asia. It’s the cure for insomnia.”
“Doesn’t sound like you’ll last long. You gonna hand in your notice tomorrow?”
“Well, uh, the place does have some fringe benefits.”
Chad turned to see Noah grinning broadly.
“You dirty dog, you. Damn, you work fast, Noah.”
“Real estate bills. Speed thrills. So at least temporarily I’m doing both.” He floored it.
Chapter 26
A crowd of about fifty gathered outside the perimeter of the cordoned-off area surrounding Tommy’s body. They were all pointing, talking, crying and shaking their heads. There would be a lot more, except the Tiger Palace’s security squad whipped into overdrive. They reassured the patrons that “everything is under control” and encouraged them to return to their tables and slot machines with an extra fifty dollars’ worth of chips. For others that still wanted to gawk, a free coupon expiring in fifteen minutes for the normally fifty-dollar-per-person buffet was a great incentive to leave. Between security and the hotel’s PR department, enough payola was doled out to make sure damage was kept to a minimum.
Someone quickly reset the private dining room, putting the table upright again with two used settings and two unused settings. There was still the matter of the arrow embedded in the wall. Not even the most brazen of PR hacks dared tamper with part of a crime scene.
The Noah Reid Series: Books 1-3: The Noah Reid Action Thriller Series Boxset Page 13
