Operation Midnight

by Sharon C. Cooper

  “Also, the medical examiner just arrived. There are two vics in the apartment. Neither look like your guys though.”

  Sheldon lifted the yellow caution tape blocking the entrance. Wiz and Quinn followed him underneath. The place was crawling with emergency personnel. Broken glass, bullet casings, and furniture littered the place.

  Wiz’s pulse pounded in his ears as they roamed through the apartment, taking in the small tents with numbers on the floor that marked evidence. They viewed the two bodies, confirming they weren’t any of the agency’s security specialists. One had a tattoo identifying him as a member of the Cidal Boyz.

  “So are you ready to tell me what’s going on?” Sheldon asked Wiz as they stepped out of the way of the medical examiner who had just bagged a body. “Somehow I think you know more than what you told me when I questioned you at the hospital.”

  Wiz shook his head. “Not much more.” He basically repeated what he had already told Sheldon about how he thought the Cidal Boyz were behind the attacks. He would eventually tell him about the diamonds, but not yet. He needed the jewels as leverage to get Olivia back. Besides, the less he shared, the better chance the cops wouldn’t get in his way.

  When Sheldon was pulled away, Wiz walked back to the bedroom that he and Olivia were using. The room had been tossed. Someone had clearly been looking for something.

  Standing in the doorway, his gaze traveled around the whole room and landed on a candlestick holder laying on the floor. His heart stuttered when he saw blood near it on the off-white carpet.

  A surge of fear shot through him.

  She has to be all right.

  He rubbed his chest and bent forward, his hands on his knees. Their baby had to be all right. Wiz wasn’t sure what he would do if anything happened to either of them.

  A large hand gripped his shoulder and squeezed.

  “We’ll find her. Let’s go.” Quinn led him out of the apartment and it was as if Wiz could finally breathe.

  Once they were out of earshot of everyone, he said, “This ends tonight.”

  *

  “I brought you some company, Keisha. Maybe now we’ll get some answers.”

  Olivia glared at her sister, whose battered face stood out like a neon sign against a black tarp. She sat in a wood chair across the room, her hands tied behind her back, and her feet bound to the chair.

  “Come on! Keep moving,” Olivia’s abductor, Frankie, said. She had learned their names on the short ride. And thanks to being blindfolded until a few moments ago, she had no idea where they were.

  Frankie jerked on her arm, pulling her toward the only other chair in the room. Her hands were bound behind her back as well and her head hurt so bad, it felt as if someone had taken a bat to it multiple times.

  She said nothing to Keisha. Her main concern now was keeping her and her baby safe until Wiz found them, which she knew he would. In the meantime, she would do as they say and try to keep warm. Wearing only a fleece jogging suit and a long sleeved T-shirt underneath, the layers did nothing to ward off the chill in the room.

  Frankie untied her hands and pushed her down into the chair.

  Thank goodness. She rubbed her hands together to warm them up, trying to ignore the pain in her right wrist.

  “Oh no you don’t.” Frankie jerked her arms behind her back and retied her hands. “We know what you’re capable of.”

  The second man, JT, waltzed into the room. Based on how he bossed Frankie around, it was safe to say he was the man in charge.

  “Make sure you secure her feet, too. We don’t want a repeat of earlier.” He stood in the middle of the floor and looked from her to Keisha. “Now one of you better start talking.”

  Though he made it sound like either of them could respond, he stepped in front of Olivia.

  “Well?”

  She gulped. “I told you. I don’t know anything about your diamonds.”

  “Wrong answer.” He backhanded her across the face and her head jerked back. A blast of pain shot through every inch of her face and tears swelled in her eyes.

  Licking her lips, the metallic taste of blood on her tongue only increased the fury raging through her body. Her face stung like she had been burned with a soldering iron, but she refused to let one tear drop fall.

  “I’m just going to keep slapping you until you remember where those diamonds are.”

  She braced herself when he drew his hand back again, slapping her other cheek.

  “Stop!” Keisha yelled. “Please … leave her alone. I’ll tell you. Just leave her alone.”

  “Where are the diamonds?” he asked Olivia again as if Keisha hadn’t spoken.

  She shook her head and this time tears did slip through. “I swear, I don’t know.” When he drew his hand back again, she quickly said, “But I know who might. My husband. Call my husband.”

  She gave him Wiz’s telephone number, praying that she hadn’t just made things worse. If nothing else, maybe Wiz would find her quicker.

  Once they were locked in the room, she turned her attention to her sister. “What have you done?” Olivia ground out, her voice shaking with rage.

  “I’m … I’m sorry,” Keisha cried. Olivia couldn’t remember the last time she saw her sister shed a tear, not even at their parent’s funeral. “I’m so sorry.”

  “Why would you send them after me?”

  “I didn’t mean for this to get so out of hand. I’m so sorry.”

  “Stop saying that! I already know how sorry you are! I can’t believe you did this to me. Dragged me into your mess, almost got me and my husband killed and for what, Keisha?”

  “They were going to kill me. I figured by now, Cameron probably knew about the diamonds and I knew that after the shooting …”

  Olivia’s body stiffened. The way she was feeling right now, she could probably break through the ropes holding her hands and feet and put an end to her sister’s useless life herself.

  “I figured he would have so many security people on you that no one would be able to touch you. So I texted you. I thought you’d call me back and I—”

  “Stop!” Olivia screamed, her head hurting even more. “I never thought I could hate another human being, but there’s a first for everything. I have sacrificed so much, including my marriage, because of you. I can’t do it anymore. I will not do it anymore. You are like a terminal disease, Keisha. You worm your way into people’s lives and taint every aspect of their world, making them suffer, lose money, or die.”

  Olivia shook her head, tears flowing faster as her heart broke into tiny pieces.

  “I will not let you ruin the rest of my life. Starting right now, you are dead to me. You are no longer my sister and I want you to stay the hell away from me and my family.” Her thoughts went to Victoria, Travis, and everyone else who had put their lives at risk because of her.

  “Olivia, I—”

  “I’m done, Keisha. I’m done with you. And if anything happens to my family, Cameron will be the least of your problems! I have gone to battle for you more times than I can count, I lost my baby because of you, and my husband was almost killed because of you! I’m done!”

  Keisha nodded slowly, tears streaming down her face, her body slumped in the chair.

  “I really am sorry … for everything.”

  For the first time in their adult life, Olivia believed her. Too bad it was too late.

  “I pray to God that I’ll be able to forgive you again one day, but it won’t be today.”

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Wiz stopped pacing when Quinn walked back into the office rubbing his head. After leaving the penthouse, they went straight to Supreme. Thanks to the watch Wiz had given Olivia for her birthday, he was able to track her to an abandoned industrial park on the south side of Chicago. But Quinn insisted that rushing in and going Rambo wasn’t the way to handle the situation with this group.

  “So? Did you get a hold of Bishop?” Wiz asked.

  “Yeah. Here’s the thing
.”

  “No. Don’t give me no here’s the thing shit. We called him out of courtesy. When his Boyz open fired on Olivia and me, I listened to you and didn’t start a damn war. But now, all bets are off. They have my wife, dammit!”

  “You need to calm the hell down!”

  Wiz glared at him as if he had lost his mind. “Would you be calm if this was Alandra? Would you be calm knowing that some assholes, capable of doing God knows what, had her?”

  “Listen.”

  “No you listen. I don’t give a fuck who this Bishop guy is or what his people are capable of. All I know is when I get my hands on the punks who took Olivia, they will regret the day they ever involved us in this shit.”

  He snatched his jacket off the back of a chair, pocketed his cell phone, and grabbed the keys to the company’s Chevy Suburban truck. He had already loaded it with enough fire power to take out a small village.

  “I’m going to get my wife. You coming?”

  Quinn chuckled when he climbed into the driver’s seat of the truck. “You’ve changed, man. You used to be the voice of reason, the person who kept Malik and me from going half-cocked. What happened?”

  Wiz wasn’t sure. The last few weeks, he hadn’t felt like himself and now that Olivia was in danger he was a man who was willing to do anything to get her back. Anything.

  “The easy answer is that I had to deal with you and Malik for so many years. I guess you guys finally rubbed off on me and apparently not in a good way. I will say this, though. I have a whole new respect for both of you. I am feeling the anger and torment you two must have felt when your women were in danger. This shit right now feels like a damn nightmare that I can’t wake up from.”

  “Been there. And you know as well as I know that we need a plan before we go after these guys.”

  Wiz nodded.

  “Now if you’re ready to listen for a minute, I’ll tell you how my conversation with Bishop went.”

  Wanting to make sure they hadn’t moved Olivia, Wiz double checked the app he used to identify her location.

  “Go ahead, but talk and drive. Head south toward Englewood. I sent Hank ahead of us to get the lay of the land.”

  “All right. So it seems these four guys that stormed the apartment were trying to work their way up the ranks here in Chicago. They thought that if they brought in the diamonds and Midnight, they could make a name for themselves with Bishop.”

  “So they’re making a name for themselves by first trying to kill me and Olivia, and now kidnapping.”

  Quinn shrugged. “Supposedly, no one knew Midnight had a twin and Bishop wants her back alive and unharmed. He said you can do whatever you want to these guys, but don’t kill them.”

  “I can’t guarantee that won’t happen. Anything else?”

  “He wants a courtesy call when we’re … done. We leave the guys, Midnight, and the diamonds, and he’ll take it from there.”

  “Fine. Whatever.”

  For the first fifteen minutes of the trip, they rode in silence, which was fine with Wiz. All he could think about at the moment was seeing Olivia and wanting this to be over. They should be taking care of the last minute details of their upcoming wedding. Instead he was out in the middle of the night praying that his wife and unborn child’s life would be spared.

  Wiz glanced at the app on his phone. “Turn left at the next light. Assuming she’s still wearing her watch, they’re holding her at an abandoned factory.”

  “They have to know by now that Olivia doesn’t know anything about the diamonds.”

  That’s what Wiz was afraid of. Considering the mess left back at the penthouse, these guys were stopping at nothing to find those jewels.

  His cell phone rang and an unfamiliar number showed on the screen. Any other time he would let it go to voicemail.

  “Yeah.”

  “I have something I’m sure you want.”

  Wiz straightened in his seat. “Yeah you do.”

  “She’s all yours once I get those diamonds.”

  “What diamonds?” Wiz asked.

  “Motherfucker, don’t play with me! If you ever want to see this bitch alive, I suggest you find those diamonds.”

  “And you won’t get a damn thing from me until I talk to her.”

  “No.”

  “Then we have nothing else to discuss. Find your own damn diamonds.”

  “Wait … hold on.”

  Wiz blew out a breath. His heart pounded double time, feeling as if it were going to leap out of his chest at any moment. So many emotions rattled around inside of him as he waited for her to answer.

  “Cameron.” Olivia’s shaky voice came through the phone line. If he hadn’t have been sitting he would have collapsed to the floor as relief flooded his body.

  “Are you all right?”

  She hesitated. Wiz heard the man he was just talking to yell at her to speak up.

  “We’re fine. There’s two of them and we—”

  “Aarrgghh!”

  Wiz jerked and he squeezed the phone in his hand when Olivia cried out.

  Wiz’s blood turned to ice. “Olivia! Olivia!” He pounded on the dashboard, his teeth clenched in an effort to stay put.

  “Now you heard her. Find the diamonds.”

  “I’m going to kill you! So help me when I—”

  “You have an hour. No cops, otherwise she’s dead. I’ll call you back.”

  Wiz glanced at the screen.

  “Dammit!” Maybe it was good the guy hung up because what Wiz was about to say to the punk might have made things worse for Olivia.

  “What happened?” Quinn asked.

  We’re okay.

  Wiz wasn’t sure if she was talking about her and the baby or her and Midnight. All he knew was that he couldn’t lose his family.

  “She said she’s okay and that there were two guys. Then the asshole hit her or did something to her and she screamed.”

  “Did the guy say anything else?”

  “He said we had an hour to get the diamonds. Then he’ll call back.” But by then, Wiz would have whooped the man’s ass and Olivia would be safe.

  Wiz pressed redial. He doubted they would answer, but he tried anyway.

  No answer.

  “So it sounds like Clayton was right about them having Keisha, since they didn’t mention her,” Quinn said.

  “Maybe. Or they could just be planning to keep the diamonds and the hell with Keisha.”

  Wiz slammed his hand against the door in frustration. He needed this to be over, but first he had to get his mind straight. Otherwise, going in there unfocused could get them all killed.

  Quinn slowed when the industrial park came into view and stopped the truck in the shadows under a tree.

  Wiz scrubbed his hands down his face and peered out the window of the dilapidated building. The more he glanced around the area, the madder he got. It was killing him that he had to sit and wait despite knowing that it was safer this way.

  There were three abandoned buildings on the property and from where they sat, he couldn’t see any vehicles or movement. A small amount of light from the two street lamps nearby illuminated a portion of the parking lot and part of two of the buildings. The other one sat in complete darkness.

  Wiz’s phone rang again.

  Hank.

  “Yeah.” Wiz put the phone on speaker.

  “Okay, so I’m at the back of the property. I already made my rounds. My guess is that she’s either in the largest building or the one story that’s north of it. In the front, you won’t be able to tell that they’re attached, but they appear to be in the back.”

  “Have you seen any movement? Can you see through the windows?” Wiz asked.

  “No movement. But there are two windows in the back of the one story that might have some type of lighting. I’m not positive because the windows are painted and on the other building they’re boarded up. There are four doors, but I think it’s safe to say that our best option is to go through the
one on the south side of the four-story building. There’s a dark four-door sedan with tinted windows parked near it and someone is a smoker.”

  “How can you tell?” Quinn asked.

  “Fresh cigarette butts are littering the ground in that area.”

  Wiz glanced at the building. “Q, pull up to that mound of dirt.” That would give them a better view of the door but kept them out of sight.

  “How many cigarette butts are near the door? Are we talking one or two, or enough to fill a pack or two?” Quinn asked.

  “We’re talking enough to guess that someone is a pack a day smoker or more than one person smokes.”

  “All right. Since there are only two guys, let’s give the smoker a few minutes and see if he shows. When he does, we’ll be ready for him,” Wiz said.

  “Oh, one more thing,” Hank said. “Stan called from the hospital with an update. He said Vicky is out of surgery. A bullet grazed her neck, and during the shootout, she fell on a glass table, catching some shards in her back. She also has a concussion.”

  “What about Travis?” Wiz asked.

  “He’s still in surgery. He took a few slugs in the back.”

  Quinn cursed under his breath and shook his head.

  Frustration grated on Wiz’s nerves. Granted they all knew the risks that came with the job, but when one of them got hurt, they all hurt.

  “Thanks for keeping us in the loop, man.” Quinn grabbed his gloves and hat from the center console. “Ready to do this?”

  “Definitely.” Wiz patted the front of his jacket, ensuring the jewels were still in his pocket.

  “This looks like it’s going to be too easy,” Quinn grumbled and climbed out of the truck. He fastened a second weapon to his thigh.

  “I hope so. I can use a little easy after my last few weeks.”

  They all checked their earpieces. Quinn and Wiz would go in together, while Hank kept watch.

  Wiz had popped a couple of ibuprofen before leaving the agency, hoping the pain in his side and leg would subside. So far the meds were working.

  They hurried across the parking lot. Quinn stopped near the car that looked like the vehicle the shooters used days ago and shined his flashlight into the windows.