The conference room was full. All twenty-two seats at the table were occupied, save for his. Jasper had taken the end chair opposite him, with Anarchy perched on his knee with her tablet in hand. Around the room, the rest of the team were either standing or had dragged in chairs from their offices.
But everyone was here, and that was the main thing.
“Settle down!” Atticus called out sternly, cutting off the chatter instantly and directing every eye in the room towards him. He nodded, acknowledging their attention, then strolled over to take his seat. “I’m sorry to ruin your Sunday morning, but as we all know, sleep can be a rare commodity in this line of work.”
A ripple of agreement reverberated around the room.
“We have a very real threat staring us in the face. Not only does it affect me personally, but it has the potential to reduce Phoenix—and other cities—into a cesspool of drugs, sex, and murder. If anyone is intending to take notes, now is the time to start,” he warned, casting his gaze around his teams. Several of them were like Archie, ready with their devices in their hands, while several more reached for theirs. His Alpha unit needed nothing but their memories. “This is a long, twisted situation. Are we ready?”
“Yes, Sir.”
It took Atticus over an hour to lay out the groundwork from the absolute beginning, all the way back to fourteen years ago when Alicia had been knocked out of the way of a bus by her sister, saving her life but sentencing her to an existence of misery. He added layer upon layer of information, building the foundations as accurately as he could.
Some of his research team chipped in, adding the data they’d found while helping Christophe with the Russian case, and by the time they hit the end of hour two, the whole sordid catastrophe in waiting was being discussed by his staff.
It was always a pleasure to see his people—handpicked by him—coming together not only in their own dedicated teams, but as a whole. The tech guys already had their heads together, occasionally asking the research division for their input. The research crew were busy on their phones and tablets, and the Alpha unit was listening quietly to whatever data was being relayed.
That was fine, in his opinion. Perhaps, they as a group—without the emotional attachment he felt—could come up with a less bloody end. Personally, he wasn’t against all fifty of the assholes going up in a cloud of smoke, but cooler heads should probably prevail.
“Boss,” Zachariah said loudly, twitching two fingers in the air to get Atticus’s attention. “The deadline is midnight tomorrow. Does this mean you have a plan?”
“I have, but I’m open to suggestions from any and all of you. Fable will not get her hands on Alicia. The Bangers will not take over this city, or any beyond it. Right now, we may or may not have Russian support, and we won’t find out for definite until later today. So we work on the assumption that we don’t.”
“We can take them out.” Patrick laid his hands flat on the table, calm and collected. “That guy we picked up yesterday, Koda? Fount of information, boss. He told us shit without even asking, and not in an underhanded way that suggested he was setting us up. The guy was freaked out by whatever’s going on inside that organization—honestly, I don’t blame him. Gasoline downers, burning people alive—”
“Drug roulette,” Erik interjected.
“Yeah, that’s a killer. The crazy head bitch swaps out the drugs so no one actually knows what they’re dealing. They’re cutting the gear with all kinds of crap.” Shaking his head, Patrick looked Atticus straight in the eyes and said, “My vote is that the Alpha team goes in and makes a clean sweep.”
“I’m not sending a handful of my best men into a situation where they’re up against an estimated fifty assailants. I don’t care how good you all are,” he said when several pairs of eyes looked at him with betrayal. “All it takes is for one of you to get split off, and we’re burying another good man.”
The room fell silent for a long minute, everyone taking the time to remember the last man they’d lost. Michael had been an exceptional team member, and his death had shaken the entire unit. For Jasper and Anarchy—who had not only heard his final breaths, but ran over his body when it was tossed in front of their truck like trash—it was a reminder of what had happened after his death.
“How many are in favor of a clean sweep?”
Three-quarters of the hands in the room shot straight up, including the Alpha team, Jasper and Anarchy, and several research guys.
“Those not in favor—do you have any ideas?”
One of the research team stood up, a solidly-built woman who went by the nickname, Sonic. Not because of her short, spiky blue hair—although it did suit her—but because of her unrivalled skills with tracking down data. “Atticus, I see the necessity of this, I do. But it feels like we should hand this over to the cops.”
“Opinion noted. I spoke with my contact in the Phoenix PD this morning, and they’re not willing to touch this. Lack of evidence against the main players. Suspicious activity within the department, suggesting that some officers may be taking bribes to look the other way. Any operation the PD stages would be at risk of being thwarted. Here, I know each and every one of you. I like to think that all of you are above bribery, considering what I pay you.”
A soft wave of laughter and agreement ensued until he lifted his hand for quiet.
“My suggestion is, we feed the prisoner in holding whatever information we want Fable to have. Tell him that we’ll take the package to the warehouse at the agreed time of midnight. My guess is, Fable will assemble her crew on scene early tomorrow morning to cover her ass.”
“And then we strike!” Harry stated with enthusiasm.
“Alpha team is getting an upgrade.” Atticus jabbed fingers at several of the quieter members in the room. “David, Winston, Doug, Trey, and Reece. You’ve all passed your firearms certification and simulations. I was going to get some more training under your belts simply for experience and integrate you into Alpha gradually, but it seems you’re needed now. Are you willing to step up?”
The five men he pointed at puffed themselves up, looking proud. “Yes, boss.”
“Alpha team, are you ready for some new blood?”
They responded with sharp nods.
“Take an hour, get to know each other. Run through the equipment and assign gear to everyone. Get organized before the end of the day. Jasper, I need you to come up with a tactical plan. I’ll do the same, and we’ll see what we can combine together.” Atticus’ gaze ticked over to the window, pleased to note that Alicia was busy coloring. “Patrick, before you head off to the weapons room with everyone else, I want you to go down to the holding cells. Give Jakub the spiel on delivering the package at midnight tomorrow, then truss him up and blindfold him. Get Paul to drive him downtown and dump him near the river. Let’s make sure he returns back to the rats’ nest from whence he came.”
“Got it, boss.”
“Everyone else, we need data. I want images, I want building specs. I want every tiny fucking detail that keeps our team safe when they go into that warehouse. Anything you think is vital, flag it. We go into this armed to the teeth, in more ways than one.” He looked at every man and woman in the room, meeting their eyes and reading the same keen urge to succeed that he knew was in his own. “Any questions? Excellent. Let’s get busy, folks.”
The room erupted in a flurry of movement. Alpha team had simply been waiting for his dismissal—they were the first to exit. Those who’d brought chairs with them gave the others a chance to leave unhampered, then pushed and carried their seats out the door.
Anarchy left with some encouragement from her Master.
Sonic stayed behind, as did Jasper, and it was the research tech Atticus turned to first, gesturing her to come nearer when she hesitated. “I’m not going to eat you, Sonic.”
Her laugh was nervous, dying quickly as she inched closer. “I-I just wanted to apologize, Mr. Heisler. I’ve never questioned your actions during a missi
on prep before. It won’t happen again, I swear. I-I love this job—not for the money but for the good we do, even those of us behind the scenes—and I don’t want to lose—”
Atticus lifted his hand sharply, cutting her off. “Sonic—Olivia,” he said gently, using her real name to get her attention centered on him. “I’m not in the least angry with you for voicing your opinion. I asked for thoughts, you gave me yours. Sometimes I forget to engage with you and the others in the research department, and I neglect to tell you all how much I value your skills and your commitment to this company. That will be rectified going forwards.” When soft hazel eyes went shimmery with tears, he continued, “I’m proud to have someone like you on my team, Olivia. Don’t forget that, even if I’m remiss in reminding you.”
Her lower lip trembled, and she choked out a “Thank you, Sir,” before she hightailed it from the conference room.
“Well, that’s one way to make sure the girl works her ass off for you for the next ten years, Att. I think you just gave her the greatest gift of her young life.” Jasper leaned back in his chair, steepling his fingers together.
“I didn’t lie,” Atticus pointed out. “We couldn’t do what we do without the teams grafting tirelessly behind us. I don’t tell them often enough that they’re appreciated.”
“Trust me, once Olivia spreads the word, they will.”
Atticus cocked his head. “You didn’t stay behind to compliment me on the handling of a research tech, J. Did I miss something during the briefing?”
Pale blue eyes were direct, a little darker than usual which meant Jasper was in some kind of turmoil. “Assigning me to tactical planning, Att. Is that all you’re assigning me to for this one?”
Atticus glanced toward the window, his eyebrow twitching at the sight of Alicia holding Mr. Bear at eye level, talking to him earnestly. Oh, to be a fly on the wall. “I’ve just sentenced ten of my best men to breaching an unknown building with assailants that outnumber them five to one in order to protect Alicia and keep at least one city from falling into a psychopath’s control. Are you asking me to sacrifice you, too?”
“It’s not a sacrifice if we win this unscathed, which is a definite possibility. The odds of a successful entry and sweep is higher if you put me in there, and you know it. My parents trained me for this, Att.”
“No. They groomed you to be an assassin, J, not a soldier. This isn’t likely to be quick and clean, and you haven’t had blood on your hands for decades. Hell, you went up against your brother and ended up with a spinal injury bad enough to paralyze you temporarily. We aren’t young men anymore.”
Jasper snorted derisively. “Bullshit. You and I could beat the pants off the team you’ve assembled, one hand tied behind our backs. They can use an extra man out there tomorrow, and I want to do my part in taking down the assholes—”
“This isn’t about vengeance for Bodie or Alicia, Jasper.” As he said it, he realized it was the truth. “Alicia took care of that herself. Abraham and Diane got exactly what they deserved, and the taxpayer was saved the expense of paying for their sorry asses to sit in prison and rot. This is different, it’s a threat that’s evolved from a singular target to a much larger one.”
“So, you’re not going to send me in?”
“I hired you as the field medic, J. Healing hands, remember, rather than spilling blood. Besides, I can’t imagine Anarchy would be thrilled if I got you shot or worse.” Atticus couldn’t stifle a grin. “I’d have glitter blowing from my AC units for a year, and she’d probably wax my beard off.”
“If that’s the worst she did, you’d be lucky. My kitten has a mean streak.” Jasper didn’t seem displeased by the notion. “All right, if you think that’s the best thing for the team, I’ll stay out of it.”
“Jasper, I love you like a fucking brother. I refuse to send you back into a hell you had the strength to drag yourself out of when you were just a kid. Let it go. Throwing yourself into a barrage of bullets and knife fights won’t keep your masochist warm at night.”
Jasper chuckled somberly. “Yeah, she would be pissed at me.”
“She would. Now, anything else before I go tend to my abandoned little?”
“You didn’t assign anyone to go talk to the guy in the safe house. Koda?”
“Patrick and Erik seem to have established a kinship with him. If we need any more intel from him, I’ll send them to pick his brain.”
“All right. And the one downstairs? Jakub? That was some U-turn, Att, going from interrogating him to releasing the prick.”
“Whatever serves the greater purpose. Hopefully he’ll be a good boy and go back to his boss to deliver the message. He knows nothing other than what we’re telling him to relay back to Fable, and with any luck, we’ll have the advantage on our side come morning.”
Jasper grimaced. “He’s one more enemy to fight tomorrow.”
“I don’t think so. He’s been gone since yesterday afternoon, no check-ins, no feedback returned. For all intents and purposes, he’s been corrupted—or that’s what the psycho in charge is going to think. My guess is that she’ll execute him as soon as he tells her what happened.”
“And we feel no guilt about this?”
“The fucker was willing to shoot me in cold blood, J. Sending him back to her, well, he has an even chance of surviving it, which is more than he was going to give me. Plus, he threw his lot in with her and the rest, so let him reap what he sowed.”
“Ouch. That’s the boss I know and love.” Jasper rose and stretched, his eyes sliding toward the break room. “She doesn’t have a clue, does she, about what’s going on out here?”
“She is delightfully oblivious. She’ll remain that way.” Shoving his chair back, Atticus stood, groaning as his muscles complained. “If Anarchy is open to it, I’d like her to stay with Alicia tomorrow. It’s going to be a long day, too long for her to stay by herself. And should any of Fable’s guys escape the net…I need someone who has a backbone of fucking steel here to protect her.”
Jasper scowled. “I don’t like the idea of leaving them unprotected with only my kitten as first and last defense, Atticus.”
“The house’s security is the first line of defense, Anarchy the second. As much as you’d prefer to deny it, your girl is a fucking pitbull when it comes to defending those who mean something to her, and she likes Alicia. It’s more for company than it is needing a guard at the gates,” he assured his friend. “Plus it keeps Archie out of the bloodshed.”
“Fine, I’ll run the idea by her.” Jasper lifted his hand and waved. “I think Alicia needs you, Att. I’ll get out of your way. My ideas will be on your desk in a couple of hours, once I look over the schematics of the warehouse.”
“Thanks, J.”
When Jasper closed the door behind him, Atticus shut his eyes and tried to shuffle around the weight inside him until it balanced out evenly. So many facets to this operation, and a thousand ways it could go deadly wrong. There was a real possibility he would lose men—good, solid, brave men—in twenty-four hours’ time, and he was prepared for that.
For the heartbreak and grief that never seemed to end.
For the talks with the deceased’s family, the promises of support, both financial and emotional.
For the failure that dogged him with every step he took.
Michael’s death still wrapped around his ankle, a ball and chain that never let him forget the needlessness of a friend’s demise.
Goddamn it.
*
Well, this was an awkward predicament.
Alicia squirmed, alarmed by what felt like an elephant playing trampoline on her bladder. She’d been good and drunk her juice, and eaten all her cereal, and now she was on the verge of being a very, very bad girl and peeing herself. Honestly, she hadn’t needed to pee like five minutes ago, she’d swear it on any bible or holy book placed under her hand.
The tall white-haired guy had seen her frantically waving, then he’d left. Whether that boded
well for her, she didn’t know, because if Daddy didn’t come in the next, oh, thirty seconds…
The urgency screaming at her did nothing but bring tears to her eyes. She tried to push herself over to the door, only to find that the movement put exquisite pressure in a bad place. Her eyes almost rolled back in her head with the effort to hold her bladder.
God, she was going to humiliate herself.
“Alicia?”
Oh, maybe someone was taking pity on her after all. “Bathroom!”
“Well, hell.” Atticus was there in an instant, taking hold of the handles and spinning her around. The chair seemed to take off like a rocket ship, zooming through the room with the huge table, then out of the door and down the corridor. “Ten seconds, princess.”
She didn’t have ten seconds.
“Door!” Atticus called out, and two of those ten seconds later, steered her sharply to the left.
The wheels rumbled gently over a tiled floor, and she caught the scent of flowers laced with bleach. As she squirmed again, whimpering with desperation, a strong arm banded around her waist and hauled her clean out of the chair. Her bladder threatened to pop.
Atticus slammed through a stall door with his shoulder, one hand already yanking down her pants and underwear to her knees. Her butt hit a cold toilet seat and acted as a trigger.
Alicia couldn’t look at him as urine hit the bowl. She was peeing in front of him, and he was stroking her fuzzy scalp as though he didn’t care. “I’m sorry. I didn’t—”
“Hey, hey, what are you apologizing for, princess?” Att tilted her head back, his green eyes puzzled. “If anyone should be apologizing, it’s me. I shouldn’t have left you so long without checking on you. Everything’s fine, emergency over.” With one last stroke, he stepped back. “I’ll give you some privacy. Don’t fret, Lisha, you did nothing wrong.”
The stall door swung shut behind him.
Walk For Me: Club Avalon Book 4 Page 29
