Detective Jack Stratton Series
by
Christopher Greyson
Girl Jacked
the first book in this series
is on sale today
for $0.99
Novels featuring Jack Stratton in order:
GIRL JACKED
JACK KNIFED
JACKS ARE WILD
JACK AND THE GIANT KILLER
DATA JACK
and coming soon…
JACK OF HEARTS
Epic Fantasy
PURE OF HEART
Now Available
Looking for Romantic Suspense?
Be sure to check out Katherine Greyson’s:
EVERYONE KEEPS SECRETS
CONTENTS
Chapter 1 ~ Hunting Wild Boar
Chapter 2 ~ Pierce Weston
Chapter 3 ~ Our Network Girl
Chapter 4 ~ Zombie Hunter
Chapter 5 ~ Anatoli
Chapter 6 ~ I’m a Fan
Chapter 7 ~ Babies
Chapter 8 ~ How Long?
Chapter 9 ~ Dead isn’t Macho
Chapter 10 ~ From a Distance
Chapter 11 ~ Need to Know
Chapter 12 ~ Too Much Feng
Chapter 13 ~ Sixty/Forty
Chapter 14 ~ You’re Beautiful
Chapter 15 ~ There is One Wrinkle…
Chapter 16 ~ Clunky
Chapter 17 ~ Patience
Chapter 18 ~ A Sense of Humor
Chapter 19 ~ That’s Not a Thruway
Chapter 20 ~ Updates
Chapter 21 ~ C Level
Chapter 22 ~ It’s Bad
Chapter 23 ~ Bad to the Bone
Chapter 24 ~ She’s a Girl
Chapter 25 ~ Right Away, Boss
Chapter 26 ~ He’s My Guy
Chapter 27 ~ Did You Leave the Lights On?
Chapter 28 ~ You’re Both Scary
Chapter 29 ~ Like an Imperial Probe Droid?
Chapter 30 ~ The Boy Billionaire
Chapter 31 ~ Stable
Chapter 32 ~ An Unanswered Question
Chapter 33 ~ He’s Buying
Chapter 34 ~ Double-Scumbag
Chapter 35 ~ Selling Normal
Chapter 36 ~ Crumbs to the Peasants
Chapter 37 ~ Naughty Cinderella
Chapter 38 ~ She’s Sweet
Chapter 39 ~ Baby on Board
Chapter 40 ~ I’m a Machine
Chapter 41 ~ Thanks for Being One
Chapter 42 ~ Cold
Chapter 43 ~ Not Yet
Chapter 44 ~ The Kick is Up
Chapter 45 ~ A Club to a Gun Fight
Chapter 46 ~ You Don’t Know Jack
Chapter 47 ~ Achilles
Chapter 48 ~ RUN
Chapter 49 ~ Light is Might
Chapter 50 ~ The Mother Bear
Chapter 51 ~ Not Alone
Chapter 52 ~ I Need to Tell You Something
Chapter 53 ~ The Biggest Requirement
Chapter 54 ~ If Anyone Asks
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Chapter 1
~
Hunting Wild Boar
Jack waited behind the seedy bar, hidden in the shadows at the end of the alley. Like a hawk, he watched the motorcycles parked there. Two were sport bikes, but his attention stayed focused on the leather, saddle-bagged Harley.
Jack’s body stiffened. He reached for his gun, but felt nothing but air. He grimaced. After his latest run-in with the sheriff’s office, Sheriff Collins pulled his license to carry a firearm. He was also out of Taser cartridges and mace. The medical bills emptied his savings, and day-to-day expenses cleared out the reward for catching the guy the news had dubbed the “Giant Killer.”
Now I’m hunting wild boar barehanded. Great.
The fall night air had a chill to it. It rained earlier. That and the smell of the autumn leaves helped alleviate the stench that rose from the trashcans along the wall.
Jack looked at his phone. 2:52 a.m. The bar closed at two, but his prey remained inside. He’d continue to wait; he needed to get him alone.
The back door burst open and “Mad Dog” Jenkins stomped out. Jack instantly recognized him from the wanted poster. Jack snickered. He doubted the other bikers knew Mad Dog’s real name—Marvin.
Marvin stood just shy of six feet. He dressed the part of a wanted fugitive who’d just left a bar filled with reprobates. Clad head to toe in leather, Marvin was the kind of man most people wished would never cross their path. But not Jack. Jack grinned as he pushed away from the wall. The hunt for Marvin had lasted three weeks. Right now, he struggled to restrain himself from running up and tackling him.
Jack let Marvin get on his bike before he stepped out of the shadows.
“Hold on a second, Marvin,” Jack called out as he approached.
“Who the hell are you?” Marvin glanced up as he started his bike.
“You skipped bail. Titus wants his money.”
Marvin scoffed. “Tell Titus to screw himself.” He revved the engine louder.
Jack stopped ten feet in front of the bike. “I wouldn’t try to leave.”
“Try to stop me.” Marvin dropped the bike into gear and pinned the throttle.
The motorcycle surged forward, and an earsplitting metallic crack filled the alley. The motorcycle shot up on its front wheel and Marvin flew up and over the handlebars. The bike crashed onto its side; Marvin face-planted on the ground.
Jack sprinted forward and pinned Marvin to the tar. “Boy, that sucks, Marvin.” Jack patted him down. “Looks like someone put a heavy duty lock on your front wheel.” He took a knife from Marvin’s belt and another from his back pocket. “Guess you should’ve listened to me.” Jack smirked.
Jack clicked a handcuff around Marvin’s wrist.
The back door of the bar burst open. The metal door rang like a bell as it clanged off the railing. Four guys poured into the alley. All of them wore jeans, black shirts, and black leather vests. The big guy with a potbelly clenched a pool cue in his hands. When they saw Marvin lying flat out in handcuffs, they glared at Jack.
Damn.
Jack snapped the other end of the handcuffs on Marvin’s other wrist. He read the road name on the patch on potbelly’s vest. “He jumped bail, Chunk. I’m taking him in.”
Chunk hesitated when he heard his name. His nose wrinkled as he peered closer at Jack.
Jack never understood why bikers who break the law wore their name on their vests; it made identification much easier.
“No, you ain’t,” Vegas snarled.
Jack yanked Marvin to his feet while he stared them down. “Believe me, he’s not worth it.”
“Hammer. Ice. Kick his ass!” Marvin barked.
Chunk charged forward with the pool cue raised over his head and swung hard.
Jack shoved Marvin into the way of the oncoming onslaught. Marvin swore as the cue slammed into his arm. Jack grabbed the cue with his right hand, while his left fist slammed into the side of Chunk’s face.
Hockey players, boxers, and Chunk had one thing in common—they’re used to getting punched in the face. Even though the blow solidly connected, Chunk only stumbled to the side and he held onto the cue.
The two other guys, Hammer and Ice, did what Jack didn’t expect. They dove over the bike and tackled him. Hammer caught Jack around the chest while Ice’s arms wrapped around Jack’s thighs. The three of them crashed to the ground next to the still running motorcycle.
Jack lay flat on his back. He ripped his right hand free. Two rapid punches to Hammer’s head, and Hammer slumped to the ground.
Vegas ran forward and kicked.
Jack rolled onto his side and blocked Vegas’s boot, but Ice kept a hold of Jack’s legs.
Marvin, handcuffed and standing over Jack, kicked Jack in the back. As Marvin drew his leg back to kick again, Jack grabbed behind his knee, yanked him forward and punched Marvin in the groin.
Marvin dropped to his knees.
Vegas jumped on top of Jack and tried to pin his arms while Ice continued to wrap up Jack’s legs. Vegas punched Jack in the face. The blow caught him on the ridge of his left eye, and he felt the skin tear.
Ice let go of one of Jack’s legs and pulled a knife.
Jack’s right leg shot out. He planted his heel against Ice’s shoulder and his foot against the side of Ice’s head. Jack growled as he pulled his leg down and pushed Ice’s face against the hot muffler of the bike.
Ice screamed. He dropped the knife and rolled off Jack.
Vegas tried to grab Jack’s feet.
Jack drew both legs up toward his chest and slammed his heels into Vegas’s knees.
Chunk swung the cue for Jack’s head, but it smashed into the handlebars next to Jack’s face.
Marvin staggered to his feet.
Ice grabbed Jack’s legs again.
Vegas stumbled forward and fell on Jack.
Hammer covered Jack’s upper body like a wrestler going for the pin.
Three bikers held Jack down.
Chunk lifted the pool cue over his head. Blood ran down his chin from his cut lip. He sneered as he aimed for Jack’s face.
Jack grabbed the throttle of the motorcycle and twisted hard.
Chunk screamed as the tire whirled against his shin.
Jack kept the throttle down. The rear tire made contact with the ground. The bike started to spin, and Jack held on to the handlebars. Like a water-skier lifted out of the sea, the motorcycle pulled Jack free from the pile of people on top of him. Jack grabbed both handles as the motorcycle pulled him to his feet.
The lock on the front wheel held as smoke poured from the rear wheel. Jack kept the throttle down, and the motorcycle spun in a circle. The bikers screamed and swore as Jack used the motorcycle for a battering ram. After three circles, he drove the group of men back toward the back door of the bar.
Jack stood with the motorcycle between him and the bikers. He heaved the bike over; the men stumbled and fell back into some garbage cans.
Jack grabbed Marvin and dragged him down the alley. He lifted up on Marvin’s hands and forced him forward.
“You’re gonna pay for this—” Marvin’s threat stopped short when Jack yanked up on his arm.
“Keep moving,” Jack ordered.
Marvin swore as he stumbled onto the sidewalk.
Jack pulled him to the left and scanned the street. He was on D Street. All the businesses on the street were closed except the bar. There was an ATM in the bank behind him, but the large glass windows would do nothing to conceal them. Jack’s Charger was parked five cars down.
The front door of the bar swung opened, and five guys hustled out. They now stood between Jack and the Charger.
Chunk ran out of the alley first, followed by Ice and Hammer. Ice had a look of murder in his eyes as he cradled his burnt face.
“Over here!” Chunk yelled to the men from the bar. He turned to glare triumphantly at Jack. “You’re screwed.”
I’ll never make the Charger. I can outrun them, but there’s no way I’m letting Marvin go—I need the money.
Jack pulled out his retractable billy club and snapped it open.
A guy behind Chunk stepped forward and held up a large bat.
“You think that little dinky thing is gonna hold them all off?” Marvin laughed.
“Shut up.” Jack pushed Marvin closer to the bank.
The men fanned out. Jack stepped back up against the ATM glass as the men circled him.
“Looks like it’s not your night.” Chunk laughed.
Jack swung his billy club with one swift motion. It struck the huge bank window behind him. The whole sheet of glass crackled as shards of glass hit the sidewalk.
Lights flashed and alarms blared inside the bank.
The group of men stared at Jack in disbelief.
“Stop, thief!” A smirk spread across Jack’s face. “These men are trying to rob the bank. That’s a felony!” he yelled.
“You did it.” Chunk pointed at him with the pool cue.
“Yeah.” Ice nodded.
Jack smiled as he heard police sirens a few streets away click on.
“Why don’t we all stay here and explain it to the police.” Jack tightened his grip on Marvin’s arm. “I’m sure they’ll believe you.”
Vegas turned and ran. Once one bolted, they all followed. The tough bikers turned and dashed off down the alley.
“You bunch of—” Marvin yelled, but Jack pulled up on his arms, which pitched him forward and cut him off.
“Shut up, Mad Dog. Or I’ll tell them your real name.”
Jack stood in the middle of the sidewalk with glass all around him as he listened to the sirens getting closer. He glanced over his shoulder.
Great. I wonder how much that window is going to set me back.
Chapter 2
~
Pierce Weston
“Mr. Weston. Mr. Weston!” A young woman in a light gray business suit and high heels that revealed a peekaboo butterfly tattoo on her ankle rushed over to the limo as it pulled onto the tarmac. “I’m sorry, sir, but…” Her voice trailed off when the matronly woman stepped out and scowled. “I’m sorry, Mrs. Maier, but I was asked to get Mr. Weston’s signature on these forms before he left.”
Mrs. Maier’s ever-present thin smile did nothing to disguise the displeasure in her eyes. “Miss Moran, that paperwork should’ve been interofficed to my desk. There was no need to bring these out and disturb—”
“It’s fine, Lydia,” a man’s deep voice said from within the limousine. His tone was refined but firm. Mrs. Maier stopped short and stepped aside. A tall, handsome man with wavy brown hair and deep green eyes stepped out.
The young woman gulped as she looked up into his attractive face.
“It’s not a bother.” The polished young man took the clipboard from the girl. He scanned the paperwork on the Weston Industries stationary before he signed. “Here you are, Miss…?”
“Tiffany.” Her voice rose along with the color in her cheeks. “Thank you, Mr. Weston.”
“Thank you for your diligence. And please, call me Pierce.”
Tiffany nodded and clutched the folder against her chest.
Pierce nodded toward Mrs. Maier before he walked over to the waiting private jet.
Mrs. Maier motioned to the limo driver to take the luggage on board. Her heels clicked on the tar as her short legs moved rapidly to keep up with Pierce’s long strides. She scanned an itinerary page on her tablet. “You have one more meeting, and then I’ve cleared your appointments for the next two weeks.” She looked around and lowered her voice. “Do you want me to reschedule this week’s meeting? I can put it off until you’re back.”
“We shouldn’t. It’ll only be a two-day meeting, and I really need to hear some feedback from a trustworthy source before we present it to the board,” Pierce said.
Mrs. Maier clicked her tablet and smiled. “Well, you’ll have two full weeks after that to relax and do whatever you want.”
“Relax? I want to code. It’s all I’ve been thinking about for weeks and the only thing I haven’t been able to do. That’s why I’m getting a head start and leaving today.”
“The meeting with the staff is scheduled for the day after tomorrow. That gives you a day to get settled.”
“Everyone RSVP’d?”
“Yes. Our flight is late afternoon tomorrow. Should I follow the standard operating procedures for who’s allowed to interrupt you?” she asked.
“No. I have an idea I need to program, or I’ll go out of my head. Unless it rises to an issue that the board can’t deal with, I’m unavailable.”
“Understood.”
“That’s to say for anyone excep
t you.” Pierce gave her a little wink. “I’m sure you’d go completely mad if you didn’t check up on me at least a few times.”
Mrs. Maier skimmed over the long list on the tablet. Her smile thinned. “It’s my responsibility to see you have everything you need at your disposal. I wish you’d let me make sure the house was settled. I don’t know if the contractors had time to finish. No one planned on you arriving early.”
“All I need at the house is electricity and peace and quiet. Besides, I thought we agreed this would be the perfect time for your vacation.”
“It’s the perfect time for me to catch up on a million things back at the office.” She huffed but smiled.
“After the meeting, take the time to get some rest. When I get back, things are really going to get busy.”
Pierce hurried up the steps of the private jet; his hand instinctively tightened around his laptop case. Two stewardesses waited for him at the door.
“Mr. Weston.” The blonde nodded politely.
“Mr. Weston.” The brunette looked as if she was trying to hold back a bubbly smile.
Pierce scanned their hands. The blonde wore a wedding ring; the other didn’t. “Ladies. Your names?”
“Maggie,” the blonde answered.
“Stacy.”
Pierce nodded. “I’m afraid this will be a very boring flight for you. The only thing I’ll require is an occasional water.”
“We’ll be happy to get you whatever you want.” Stacy flashed a dentist perfect smile that matched her surgically enhanced form.
“Please let us know if you change your mind.” Maggie took a small step forward, and Pierce caught the slightest disapproving glance she shot back at Stacy.
“I’ll ring. Thank you.”
A man in a dark gray suit waited behind them in the galley. Standing ramrod straight, the man gave Pierce a confident, tight-lipped nod.
“Manuel.” Pierce nodded.
“Sir.” Manuel’s tone was clipped. He only met Pierce’s eyes for a brief moment before they continued to sweep the tarmac.
Pierce sighed. “How many men did Bagwell send to the house?”
“Just five, sir.”
Pierce shook his head over his overenthusiastic head of security, Leon Bagwell. The former career Marine treated his new profession with an even greater intensity than his outstanding military service. That zealousness, while appreciated in all other areas, was trying on Pierce’s personal life.
DATA JACK Page 1
