The Koda Files Boxed Set - Books 1 & 2

by Ivan Bridgewater

  "I'm just really tired Kath," I responded, echoing the same words over and over.

  Her voice softened even more, and she said, "Don't worry Mike! You're not alone any more!"

  I heard the beep as the security system showed a door opening. I could see it was Tim's entry code on the monitor, and seconds later, he walked in with Shooter and Harold. The two men were both heavy hitters from my past. They could have each been pro football players, but they became Marines, and ended up working as hit men for the agency. They left, and went independent just as I retired. I heard they were making big bucks doing corporate hits. Now there's some nasty people to work for.

  I stood, and they tried to hug me. The pain in my arm was incredible. I began screaming, freaking everyone out. Koda abruptly stepped into the room in a short robe, saying, "I heard screams! Are you okay?"

  Shooter and Harold both said, "WOW!" in unison.

  Koda blushed slightly, and told us, "I'll be right back!" Then she stepped back out of sight.

  Harold looked back at me, and asked, "What the hell have you been up to Mike? What's this all about?"

  "I tangled with some local corporate baddies’," I explained. "I can tell it's not over. I'm going to clean out a rat's nest, and bring the thing to an end!"

  I hesitated for a moment, and Kathy said, "And you need help!"

  "Yes," I acknowledged. I settled down meekly into my chair, and said, "I need help!"

  Shooter quietly noted, "I never thought I’d hear you say that!"

  Tim softly said, "Shut up, Shooter!"

  "So, what's the job?" asked Harold. "Just designate the target Mike! You know we'll follow through!"

  "Look folks! I'm not sure what's going on here!" I began. "But here is how it started for me!" For the next ten minutes, I told them all how this started, and how I got involved. As I finished, Koda came walking in.

  Shooter said, "Mike told us some corp exec is giving you a rough time. What's his name?"

  "Mr. Robert Hetrus," Koda replied. "He killed my parents, and he tried to kill me!"

  "Whoa!" Tim blurted out loudly. "You mean THE Mr. Robert Hetrus!"

  Kathy noted, "I really hate that guy!"

  "You know him?" I inquired.

  "Not really," she responded. After a second more, she said, "He tried to foreclose on an old folk’s home in Tampa once! I paid off the mortgage! He was really pissed off!" She glanced at me, and said, "I used a lawyer! He didn't know it was me!"

  "I hope not," noted Shooter. "The guy is building an army! He's been buying talent for almost three years. He's got a lot of money, and a lot of pull!"

  "He's just a cheap thug in an expensive suit," Kathy snarled.

  "A cheap thug with a half a billion dollars!" corrected Shooter. "He's going to be a tough hit. Lots of hardened security!"

  "I'll take him out," volunteered Koda. "I just need your help to set it up."

  The entire room seemed to moan in unison. Harold asked, "How many people have you tracked and killed?"

  "Well, about half a dozen this week," she observed. "Almost a dozen if you include the men in the two trucks yesterday."

  Harold once again exclaimed, "WOW!"

  "Reacting to a stress situation is different than carrying out a planned hit,” Kathy pointed out. “You need to be cool! It sounds like you're too close to this! Besides, Hetrus and his people are looking for you. It will be twice as hard for you to kill him!"

  "Let me do it," growled Tim. "I hate pricks like this!"

  "I'll do it," stated Kathy. "I researched the guy when I ran into him the first time!"

  "I'll do the final hit," I observed. "I called you all into this, and I have the least to lose!"

  "Mike! You're in rough enough shape..." Shooter's voice trailed off as I gave him the look. He knew better than to argue with me.

  At this point Kathy stepped in, saying, "These two just got off a plane! We need to be fresh when we begin this! I suggest we start up tomorrow at ten in the morning!" She looked at Harold and Shooter, and told them, "Follow the trail down to the next house just like last time! You two remember how to work the security systems?"

  Both men nodded, and Shooter said, "Good idea! I'm wore out!"

  Seconds later, Tim left with Shooter and Harold. They walked past several security cameras, and we watched as they receded into the distance.

  Kathy looked over at me, and said, "I'd like to take a walk! Will you go with me?"

  I decided I felt up to it, and stood up on unsteady legs. Kathy led me out before I had time to think about it. Seconds later, I was walking slowly along a wooded trail. It was beautiful Florida day in paradise, and I walked along quietly as Kath led me down the proverbial garden path.

  Kathy finally stopped, and looked up at me. She quietly said, "It should be safe enough here to talk!" She looked closely at me, and noted, "This isn't like you Mike! You're out of the loop, and you know it! We’re all younger, and still in the game! You know we should take the shot!"

  "This will be ugly when it goes down," I observed.

  "I think you're planning to commit suicide, and take this asshole with you," Kathy stated point blank. "I'll have Shooter and Harold tie you up and leave you here if it looks like that will happen!"

  "I'll have a heart attack and die, just to get back at you," I promised with a smile.

  "God you piss me off!" she growled. "Why won't you let us do for you, what you did over and over for us?"

  "Because I love you all as if you are my family," I whispered, "You're all I have left, and I won't let them harm you!"

  Kathy stepped away slightly, and turned her back to me. She seemed deep in thought. She abruptly turned looked back over at me, and said, "Please just come away with me Mike! I'll get a doctor that will fix your heart! We're both too old for this shit!"

  I stood really thinking about what she’d offered. Then I told her, "This guy Hetrus is a real piece of work! Innocent people are dying because nobody is willing to try and stop this creep! I'm going to finish this, if it's the last thing I ever do!"

  Kathy began to cry. They were silent tears, but I hate that shit! She quietly husked out, "You're not going to listen to me! You're going to get yourself killed, and I'll spend the rest of my life wondering why I couldn't talk you out of this!"

  "If I don't stop this jerk, he'll just keep getting bigger and more powerful till he can't be stopped," I said, stating the obvious. "Do you really want this guy running the country?"

  "He'll fit right in," she observed gruffly.

  "C'mon Kath! You know better than that," I quietly said. "The system may be bent, but it's still the best there is!"

  "I don't give a shit about the system any more, Mike," There was a pleading tone in Kathy's voice. She said, "The things we fought for are dead Mike! It's a bunch of big corps running the whole show! All that talk about truth, justice, and the American way, died when we started torturing people and building secret death camps overseas! It's over!"

  "Not for me," I growled. "As long as I'm alive, assholes like Hetrus will need to look over their shoulder."

  "For as long as you're alive!" Kathy snapped back at me. "How many days do you suppose you have left?"

  She was so vehement, I stepped back, and told her, "You need to calm down, Kath!"

  She began speaking to herself, and spinning very slowly in place, saying, "I try to talk to him, and he just won't listen! I’d kill him, but I love him! He is making me crazy! My nice, sane life is gone!"

  I reached out and took her elbow, saying, "Please stop that! You’re freaking me out!"

  "You’re freaking me out!" she screamed at me. "I won't let you die! This is not going to go down like this!"

  "Calm down!" I hissed. "Stop screaming at me!"

  "Well! I'm really pissed right now!" she exclaimed, her voice dropping to a whisper. She stopped abruptly. I could tell she wanted to say more, but she caught herself. A few seconds passed, and she said, "I give up!" and walked away, going back
toward the house.

  After a moment, I started to follow her. She stayed twenty feet ahead of me till we reached the house. She stopped at the door, holding it open for me. As I walked past, she quietly said, "Just remember! I love you Mike!" There was nothing for me to say. I walked past her deep in thought, and as I walked down the hallway, past the room Kathy called her security center, I heard Koda ask, "Am I causing problems?"

  I stopped, leaned in the door, and explained, "It's not you! It's me! I'm being difficult!"

  "Shut up and go to bed! Get some rest!" Kathy yelled through the house from down the hallway at me.

  It was Koda's turn to say, "WOW!"

  "Yeah! I get that a lot!" I noted. Oddly enough, I suspected Kath was right, and went back to bed. I had no doubt the next day would be busy.

  Chapter 5

  Visiting the Past

  I woke up the next day with the sun streaming in the bedroom window. It looked like a glorious day outside. I great day to plot to kill some bad people.

  I have a warped outlook at times!

  I sat for a minute thinking about the sudden change in my life. After all these years, I was going on the hunt again. The thoughts instantly brought my heart rate up. I felt the slight adrenaline surge as I mentally went over the problems to be resolved. I crawled out of bed, and realized I felt much better than I had the day before.

  I got cleaned up, and went out into the kitchen to find Tim sitting, reading a book. He looked up and said, "Good to see you up and going! Everyone else is crashed! I got guard duty!"

  Fixing a cup of coffee, I said, "My body may be up and going, but my mind is still in bed asleep!"

  He just nodded as he laid his book down. Then he told me, "Ya know Mike, the team can carry this off alone! You trained us well! We won't let you down!"

  "Sending the old guy home are ya," I joked.

  “Kathy’s concerned," he observed. "We're all worried about you!"

  "The old guy took down seven shooters just a few days ago," I reminded him.

  "And he got shot in the process," Tim pointed out.

  "I've been shot before! It happens," I noted. "I got home without your help. What's the problem?"

  Tim gave me a stern look, saying, "That's not the point, and you know it!"

  My shoulder was starting to ache, and I said, "If there is a point to all this, tell me! Cause I'm feeling kind of grouchy, and it's too early in the morning for twenty questions!"

  "The point is, we've been in the loop for the last twenty years, and you haven't!" growled Tim. "Aside from that, I think you know exactly what I'm talking about! Your trying to bull through this, because you don't care what happens to you anymore. Try thinking about Kathy or Lisa. Try thinking about all the stupid idiots that call you their friend. What will happen to us after you get shot down right in front of us?"

  "Hell! I didn't know you cared," I joked. Tim never cracked a smile.

  He looked closely at me and said, "I watched Kathy sit here and cry over you for an hour last night! I've known her for almost thirty years, and I've never seen her cry like that! Even when her dad died!" He was obviously agitated, saying, "She was freaking me out!"

  "I'm sorry, Tim," I said quietly. I sat down at the table, and tried taking a sip of the scalding coffee. "I'll talk to her!"

  Tim sighed deeply, and said, "I don't want you to talk to her! I want you to drop the hit, or at least let us take the shot!"

  "Well! The hit will happen!" I stated. I sat thinking for a moment, and then added, "If it looks like I can't handle it, I'll turn it over to you!"

  Seeming slightly shocked, he said, "Seriously! You're actually going to listen to me?"

  I started laughing, and said, "I'm listening! Don't act like I've never listened to you!"

  Koda walked into the room at that point. She was yawning widely, and obviously half asleep. "You guys make too much noise!" she observed, already starting to yawn again. She finished the second yawn, and sleepily asked, "What are you two arguing about?"

  "Tim thinks I should be put out to pasture," I said.

  "I didn't say that," corrected Tim. "I just observed it might be better if we took care of the hit!"

  "He took out seven men just the other day," Koda reminded him, repeating my earlier observation.

  "And he got shot!" Tim pointedly said. "In technical terms, it's called fucking up!"

  Koda rolled her eyes, stepped over, and started fixing herself a cup of coffee. "Everybody gets shot sooner or later!" she observed in a matter of fact voice.

  "So, how many times have you been shot?" asked Tim.

  I knew he was kidding, but as she turned back to us, she said, "Twice so far! How about you?"

  He paused, slightly shocked, and then asked, "You've been shot twice?"

  "Single event! Two shots!" she noted. She pulled up her shirt slightly, showing a scar from a small caliber entry and exit wound. "You can't see the other scar unless I'm naked!" she explained, "Which means you can't see the other scar!"

  Tim seemed to be just sitting, taking in her comment, as I said, "Sorry we woke you up. We're all supposed to be up soon anyway."

  "Don't worry about it," Koda responded as she loudly yawned again.

  The beep of the door entry alarm told me Harold and Shooter were in the house. Seconds later, the two men stepped into the kitchen. Shooter went straight to the fridge, and took out a pack of eggs. He went to the stove, and soon had a dozen of them cooking. Inside of ten minutes, we were all eating breakfast.

  The room was soon alive with the sounds of voices as the day got a good start. Through the various noises, I heard Kathy say, "Good Morning!"

  The whole room stopped, and we all said, "Good Morning." It looked like something out of a TV sitcom. A room packed with killers, all being socially polite.

  Kathy walked straight across the room, reached in the fridge, and pulled out more eggs. Handing them to Shooter, she said, "I like mine sunny side up!"

  "With two pieces of toast, lightly buttered," added Shooter.

  "And a glass of orange juice," both Tim and Harold said in unison, loudly.

  "Shut up you clowns," Kath growled halfheartedly. "Don't pick on me! I'm still half asleep!"

  After she had eaten a plate of food, Kathy looked over at me, saying, "I was looking at my research records dealing with Mister Hetrus. I've already got a pretty good paper trail on the target."

  "I can tell you anything you want to know," noted Koda in a matter of fact voice.

  Harold looked at Shooter and said, "Kind of scary, isn't she!"

  "Reminds me of myself at her age," observed Kathy.

  "Enough about the good old days," I told them. "Let's stay focused here! Who's going to do the footwork?"

  Everyone in the group looked at one another. Kathy said, "We don't do street observation any more Mike. We use satellite and drone recons. The information’s a lot more detailed, and we draw less attention."

  I could see I was going to hate this already. "It just seems lazy to me. You can't tell me you can recon from space as well as I can from the ground."

  "Probably better," Harold said quietly. "Take the high ground!" he stated in a matter of fact voice.

  "As I recall, Custer had the high ground," I corrected. "It didn't help him much!"

  "That's not a really good analogy!" Shooter noted with a slight giggle.

  "Do you remember the time I saved you from that angry husband in Crete?" I asked. Shooter sobered, and just nodded. "As I recall, you had the high ground with a rope around your neck, and he was trying to kick the chair out from under you! Is that a better analogy for you?"

  "I get the idea," agreed Shooter.

  "The guy hides behind an army," said Kathy. "We need to separate him from some of that firepower!"

  "He likes young girls," said Koda. Everyone focused on her, and she quickly added, "I read it in a fashion magazine!"

  "Well! He knows you, so using you is out," observed Tim.

&nbs
p; Kathy said, "Shooter! I need you, Harold, and Tim, to go on line and get me this guy's life. I need everything you can get by end of day. The target knows he's got at least two active shooters on his tail. He's going to be more dangerous than ever."

  "I have to know!" asked Tim. "Who's bankrolling this operation?"

  Kathy and I both said, "I am!" in unison.

  "I am!" Kathy repeated far more sternly. "Till further notice, you're all on my payroll!"

  "Good!" agreed Shooter. "We need more eggs!"

  "I'll be working for free," I said.

  "Not me," noted Shooter. "I at least want more eggs!"

  Kathy yelled, "I'll get you the damn eggs!" and everyone in the room broke out laughing.

  I started to clean up, and Kathy stepped close to me. I casually asked, "What should I be doing boss?"

  "Clean up your mess, and I have something to show you," observed Kathy. The other men in the room started making growling noises, and Kathy abruptly growled, "Shut up, assholes!"

  Everyone in the room broke into open laughter again. Even Koda was giggling now.

  Ten minutes later, everybody but Kathy and I had begun running computer searches. Kath walked past me, saying, "Take a walk with me!" She led me outside, and we walked across the road to the house across from hers. It was a beautiful place, built a lot like hers. She palmed the security systems open, and we stepped into the living room.

  The place was huge, plush, and immaculate. She led me through several rooms, and down a darkened hallway. Just as I got ready to make a joke, she opened a door, and I stepped back in time.

  It was a room I had lived in almost thirty years before, or at least a direct duplicate of the room. It felt extremely eerie standing there.

  "Wow!" I whispered. "How the hell did you do this?"

  "From pictures," she noted. "It reminded me of you!"

  I started looking at the things in the room. Slowly looking up at her, I said, "This is my stuff! You kept it all these years!"