Hard Case: Boxed Set Books 1,2 & 3 (John Harding Books)

by Bernard Lee DeLeo

  He’s pinpointed the problem perfectly. “It is exactly like you say, brother. The only way I can see to bypass the lesson is to issue one on our own. It won’t be perfect, but a statement can be made in advance rather than retrospect. We just need to be careful of our targets.”

  “Now that’s what I’m talkin’ about, John. If we establish an early warning system for threats, it will be one hell of an experiment. I hear you have a first class tech guy.”

  “I recruited him in a jail cell. He’d just been arrested for stealing his father’s car. Jafar’s been in combat both on the ground and at sea on the pirate op we did. He’s as good as I’ve ever seen on electronics, and he’s just a kid. We’re training the hell out of him. Jafar’s intuitive. You’re going to like working with him. Even Denny compares him to Laredo.”

  “A jail cell, huh? I bet you deserved to be there too.”

  I nodded in agreement, and finished off my beer. “Let’s go find the girls.”

  “No need. Here they come now. They look as if they’re getting along pretty well. I’ve never seen Lynn interact with regular people, and especially kids. It seems like she’s doing okay. Alice is hanging on to her so that must be a good thing.”

  “Alice has a soft spot for benevolent psychos. The first time I met her and Lora was when Lora’s sister pressured me into a school meeting to look big and dangerous for the purpose of scaring the girl’s parents Al was having trouble with. She looked up at me, grabbed my hand, and led me in.”

  Dostiene chuckled appreciatively. “John, you definitely have more varied experiences than anyone I’ve ever run across in this business.”

  Lora walked up in my face, grabbing my chin with her hand. “Are you still coherent?”

  “I’m not doing my Dark Lord robot dance am I?”

  Lora and Alice giggled, while Clint grinned, and Lynn was measuring me for how big a shot I could take. The smile spread on her face slowly.

  “Who is this Dark Lord guy, and when do I get to see the robot dance?”

  What the hell. Ever see a guy over six and a half feet tall with a mug like he belongs in troll-land under a bridge do the robot dance? Probably not. Everyone at Sam’s Town with eyes near our spot at the bar saw it. I marched. I sang. I issued warnings during my performance. “Do not laugh at the Dark Lord!”

  No one listened, and everyone around us was laughing hysterically, including the bartender as I ended my exhibition with a bent at the waist, limp swinging arm finale. I noted tears were streaming down Lynn’s face, while laughing so hard she was having trouble breathing. There was applause, and demands for an encore. That straightened the Dark Lord up.

  “The Dark Lord does not do encores! Move along! Nothing to see here!

  More laughter, with Clint giving Lynn a hanky to wipe off her face. Lora shook her head. Alice was still laughing and hugging me.

  Lora kissed me. “You are something, DL. I just haven’t figured out what yet.”

  “That was the best, brother,” Clint added. “We’ll be spoiled for going to any shows around here now.”

  Lynn reached up and patted my cheek. “That was insane, DL. Thanks for the performance. I haven’t laughed that hard in a decade.”

  I nodded with a smile before turning to the barkeep for another round. “I’m dry. The Dark Lord is fading from dehydration. Let’s get our drinks refilled here and head in for food. Did you pick out a restaurant, dear?”

  “Lynn said she liked the looks of Billy Bob’s Steak House.”

  “That sounds great to me.”

  “Hey,” Alice called out, pointing toward the entrance. “There’s Samira and Jafar, John.”

  I turned to see Jafar leading Samira around the outer light show perimeter toward us. He wasn’t smiling and neither was his new bride. All business, Jafar kept walking without turning. It was then I spotted his four followers. I could tell they weren’t happy Jafar and Samira had made it inside Sam’s Town. I smiled as I saw their followers, Lucas and Casey. They weren’t smiling either. Jafar and Samira were like their own kids. I slipped Alice behind me. Lora picked up on it and guided her a few steps back.

  Jafar moved Samira next to Alice and spun around. He went from neutral to pissed off in two seconds. His fists were clenched as the four men slowed near us. They went into a huddle, talking rapidly in Arabic, complete with hand gestures. Lucas and Casey spread out near them.

  “Hey, kid, I see you found some new friends.”

  “They recognized Samira and began harassing us along the strip, John. I know not to go on without back up so we immediately hailed a cab and came here. When I saw them get into another cab and follow us, I called Lucas and Casey to let them know we were headed here. They had just returned from dinner so they came right over. These men said many unacceptable things to Samira.”

  Clint had been listening, having also witnessed the entrance, along with where Lucas and Casey were. Lynn watched it all with professional interest. I could tell how Jafar wanted to proceed, but we were on a mission. He had brought them here for my input.

  “You don’t think these four have anything to do with the ‘Slayer’ or Darzi,” I whispered sideways to Jafar. “You wanted to make sure. That’s excellent thinking, kid. I’m sorry you and Samira’s first night in Las Vegas is a little rough. It looks like your new buddies are through with their meeting.” I held up my i-thingy and got nice shots of all their faces as they were turning to look angrily in our direction. I didn’t want any trouble in here, but I figured we had enough people to end it quickly. I sent the pictures to Denny immediately.

  The four turned to leave instead of making any more of a scene. I gave the high sign to Lucas. He smiled and nodded. In seconds Lucas and Casey had the four men stopped, using their FBI credentials. They weren’t happy. Sam’s Town security arrived and assisted with the arrest, which wasn’t needed, but it’s always best to be grateful for local help. Denny called to do face-time. He didn’t waste any breath on fomalities.

  “John. Get those guys. Don’t let them out of the casino!”

  “Wait one.”

  I nudged Clint and he followed me. “Denny wants all four put on ice. Do you have your FBI/HS credentials? I need you to be agent in charge and move casino security on their way.”

  “I’ll take care of it.” Dostiene pulled out his FBI/Homeland Security ID, holding it up as he drew near the casino security guards. “I’m Special Agent Dostiene. Thank you for your help. We must take these men into custody immediately.”

  The tall man with Horton on his name tag looked over Clint’s ID carefully and nodded. “We will let you get on with your business then, Agent Dostiene. C’mon guys.”

  As security moved away, the four men being detained began ranting in Arabic, which all four of us also speak. The leader made a racial slur in Lucas’s face and got Gronked. It was a short right to the chin that lifted big mouth up two inches clear of the floor. That silenced the other three while Lucas simply put an arm around the guy before he could crumple to the floor, and headed for the exit.

  “See you guys outside.”

  Casey plastic tied the remaining men’s hands behind their backs. I face-timed Lora on the way out as Clint and I framed the three men with Casey leading. “Get us a table, my dear. Tell Jafar he and Samira will be dining with us.”

  Lora sighed. “I knew an uncomplicated night out was too much to hope for. You disrupted the cosmic balance with the Dark Lord robot dance.”

  I grinned at her. “That is a distinct possibility. Be right there in a few, babe.”

  I disconnected with Lora as we passed through the door, and reconnected with Denny. “Denny wants these guys put on ice.” I held up the i-thingy so Denny could see we were on our way to Casey and Lucas’s car. “We’re on our way to the car, Den.”

  Denny sighed with relief. “They’re a hit squad. Samira was the target. I had hoped with all the media attention her speaking engagements had generated the idiots still issuing Fatwas for her death
would have to back off. I hope you patted those suckers down.”

  “Was that an insult?” Casey spun around, peering into the i-thingy. “We not only patted them down, but one of these dudes decided we didn’t speak the lingo. He did a racial purity zinger in Lucas’s face and got Gronked right in the casino.”

  “Sorry, Case,” Denny replied. “I was so excited about having these guys in custody, I forgot myself. Can you and Lucas take them to the safe house? I already contacted Fiialkov. It’s empty. I have a team in route to take over there. I’m afraid Jafar and Samira will have to be with someone from now on.”

  “Count on that,” Casey said. “Want Lucas and I to hang around there?”

  “No. I’ll handle this one. You guys go back to whatever you were doing. Nice work. John, tell Jafar that was a head’s up play leading those clowns into a trap.”

  “Will do,” I told him. “Clint and I will be going back to our dinner in Sam’s Town. I guess you’ll let us know how the hell all of this shit’s hitting the fan right now. What the hell is this, the Taliban convergence?”

  Denny laughed and disconnected.

  “You cannot hold us!” One of the clowns decided to inform us as we continued to where Lucas was standing near their rented Chrysler 300. There was no bad guy in sight so I figured he was in the trunk.

  Casey starts chortling over the directive. “You four followed the wrong kids tonight. If our boss wants you taken to a safe house it ain’t because you’ll be safe.”

  “That whore and her-”

  Casey Gronked him. He didn’t knock him out though. Case drilled him right in the nuts. Lucas held the rear Chrysler door for him while Casey deposited the tightly wound ball of pain into the back seat.

  “Anyone else have anything to say about my kids?” Casey nodded when the other two men remained silent. “Good. Shove on in there next to your friend. The trunk’s full I’ll bet, so you two will have to do the best you can.”

  The two remaining outside the car squeezed in to the backseat with their groaning comrade. “You guys want to come back here? We may go bowling or something after dinner.”

  Lucas shook his head in the negative. “Our ladies were none too pleased with the break in our gambling excursion. Case and I need to get back to the Mandalay to make amends. Have fun. Tomorrow’s arrival day so I sure hope Denny finds out what the hell this is all about.”

  “One good thing,” Casey added. “Between Clint gunning them down, and us delivering them into Denny-hell we may be making a significant dent in the bad guy population.”

  “Yep. This simple fight cover vacation with a quick takeout is getting a little more exciting than Denny figured. He may also have figured all this was a possibility and we’re bait again,” I replied.

  “I’d vote he knew and we’re bait,” Clint said.

  “Ditto,” Casey agreed.

  “That’s my call too, John.” Lucas opened the driver’s door while Casey slid in on the passenger side, taking out his silenced automatic to cover the three prisoners. “We’re sleeping in, so don’t count on us watching your torture session in the gym, DL.”

  I laughed. “See you guys.”

  “I hope you win,” Clint added. “You hit, we split. Right Lucas.”

  Lucas popped his head back over the Chrysler roof. “You best get that boy looked at, John. I think he hit his head on the way out.”

  Clint and I waited until Lucas was on his way out of the parking lot. We were looking into every shadow with wary eyes. There are anomalies on any mission, but this one had zipped past freaky into the danger zone. Yeah, we’re killers, and maybe we think we’re all that, but we also have a healthy respect for when we seem to be four or five steps behind the action.

  “I thought I recognized Samira,” Clint said. “She’s the Afghani woman speaking out about reformation in Islam for women.”

  “Yeah, and Samira’s damn effective. Like Denny was saying, she’s drawn so much media attention, with her popularity soaring, we figured she may have reached the status where self proclaimed imams would stop issuing death decrees. I’m glad I didn’t leave her back in Oakland with no one around watching out for her.”

  “You know my feelings on this crap from experience. When these clowns get tired of mouthing off, they start building bombs. We may have to come up with a proactive campaign to chill out this interest in Samira.”

  Oh yeah. “I like your thinking. Samira’s old man and Jafar have tried to tone her down to no avail. It would be interesting if when one of these jerks threaten her in the media, he winds up sleeping with the fishes. I’m sick of hearing the word Fatwa.”

  “It’s possible we could turn that word’s meaning into suicide.”

  I grinned over at him. “You know there will be outrage, right?”

  Clint shrugged. “Into each life a little rain must fall… and sometimes a bolt of lightning.”

  “There have been many times I’ve watched one of these imam idiots issuing death warrants on the news, while wishing I had his head sighted in for a fifty caliber can opener.”

  “I’ll start working on backgrounds when I get back to the room,” Clint said. “That fighter’s staff being involved in a hit really set off the alarms. Follow it with this attempted grab using guys already wanted, and I’m getting real curious as to what Darzi will be bringing in with him.”

  “Good deal. I’d like another set of eyes besides Denny’s on these coincidences. Jafar’s still too green when it comes to outside the box thinking, and Denny may get tunnel vision. I know you won’t. Let’s go eat. I’ll get to intro you to Jafar and Samira.”

  We entered the steakhouse and Lora waved to us. She’d snagged a table with enough room for all of us to eat comfortably. Alice sat next to Lynn, listening to a story she was telling with rapt attention. She wasn’t the only one. Samira and Jafar didn’t even look up as we approached the table. Lynn did glance up and smile though, halting the story.

  “I was telling everyone about when that guy took me while I walked home from school. Don’t worry, I didn’t get into any details.”

  “She was my age,” Alice said. “Finish Lynn. How did you get away?”

  I could see Lynn hesitate, while trying to figure out a way to end the story without going into detail. It made me want to hear how she got away including all the details.

  “I… that is… the guy who had me turned his back to me… and-”

  “You Gronked him,” Alice helped her to much laughter.

  “If Gronk means what I think it means then that was it exactly,” Lynn replied, putting an arm around Alice’s shoulders as Clint sat down on the other side of her.

  “Al invented the word and meaning,” I explained. “It stuck. Jafar, Samira, this is Lynn Montoya who I guess Lora already introduced you to, and this is Clint Dostiene, an old friend of mine.”

  “Nice to meet you Sir,” Jafar shook hands with Clint.

  “Just Clint.” Dostiene then grasped Samira’s hand gently. “It’s nice meeting both of you too. Lynn and I hope to be joining you in Oakland after this project and fight are over. I’ve been told John recruited you out of a jail cell, Jafar.”

  Samira giggled, and Jafar nodded in agreement. “Yes, it was just so. He also recruited our friend Devon Constantine on the same night. I had no idea where or what I was headed into at the time; but looking back, it was a very good night.”

  “What were you in for, John,” Lynn asked.

  “He Gronked someone,” Alice answered for me.

  Chapter Twelve: Wet-Work

  Dostiene watched Lynn’s profile with a slight smile spreading as he listened to her ragged breathing slowly return to normal. Blonde now, in preparation for her move to the Mandalay Bay, and the mission ahead with Darzi, Lynn slapped Clint’s hand away from the sensual stroking motion he initiated along her inner thigh.

  “Get away from me. I’m mad at you.”

  Clint chuckled. “For what? We’ve been making love for over two hours.
Was I doing it wrong?”

  “You like me better as a blonde. I’m not comfortable with you enjoying the fake me more than the natural me.”

  “Funny,” Clint replied, “you didn’t seem to mind when-”

  “Shut up, you!” Lynn shifted quickly over him, pinning his shoulders down. “I didn’t know what a lecher you were. You also enjoyed helping remove all indications of my dark hair everywhere else too, you pervert.”

  “I thought I soothed your transition to the bare necessities very well.”

  Lynn giggled and kissed him. “Yeah, you did that alright. Maybe I’ll make you dye your hair blonde and defoliate too.”

  “After the last couple hours, I’m willing to negotiate anything. How did you like my friends? You sure hit it off with little Alice.”

  Lynn slipped down inside Clint’s embrace to his side. “She reminds me of me. If we make it through this audition, the west coast seems like a sanctuary to me. Do you wonder if we can have a sometimes normal life out there?”

  “They’re already doing it now, babe. Hell, anyone of us can bite the big one on a mission. It would be nice if we had back-up when a mission ends without needing to disappear off the face of the earth until we’re needed again.”

  Lynn grasped Clint’s hand and kissed the palm. “Is someone tired of living like a hermit up in the mountains?”

  “Nope.” Clint thumbed over at the sleeping Tonto. “It’s Tonto. I think he’s getting soft on me. All he wants to do is lie around all day, eat, and play catch once in a while. His ears perk up every time he hears the words west coast now. It’s embarrassing.”

  Dositene’s reply drew laughter from Montoya loud enough to wake Tonto, who looked around a moment before settling back into a prone position. “Do you have any more surprises for me? You were talking to John for a long time.”