Missy Goes to Hong Kong (Missy the Werecat Book 8)

by P. G. Allison

  “Thank you, sir!” Missy now understood why he’d asked to see her. She was being cleared to go spend the night with her pack during the full moon. She suspected the Supe himself might have dreamed up this excuse, once he saw that letter about her summer assignment.

  The colonel smiled and said, “I can see by your reaction concerning this briefing session that you already know where to go for that.”

  “Yes, sir!”

  “Well, enough about that, then. I do have that other reason for asking to see you.” The colonel studied her for a brief moment. “I want to let you know your request to participate in West Point’s Service Exchange Program next semester has been approved. Congratulations. You’ve been selected with eight other cadets here to attend Annapolis this September.”

  Missy was very excited to hear this. “Oh, that’s wonderful, sir! Thank you, thank you!” She’d put in for this but had not been sure she’d get it; it was very competitive and the requirements were extremely high. The Service Academy Exchange Program was where students from each of the four service academies were exchanged to spend the fall semester at an academy other than their own. She had hoped for the Naval Academy, should she be selected, and that had come true.

  The students enrolled in the program would spend the semester living at their exchange academy, taking classes and training with fellow future leaders in the military. Missy thought it was an especially good fit for her since she was majoring in Defense and Strategic Studies. The program had its roots dating back to 1945 when West Point cadets and Naval Academy midshipmen did a weekend long exchange program. The program was expanded to be semester long in 1975 and that has continued ever since.

  While staying at their exchange academy through the end of the semester before returning to their home academy in January, the cadets and midshipmen would sit with their home academy during the Army-Navy game in December. There would be a special “prisoner exchange” ceremony prior to the game where they would be marched out onto the football field. The two academy leaders would then exchange their prisoners before returning to their own seating sections, allowing the cadets and midshipmen to go over and cheer for their teams from “friendly” areas. After the game, of course, they needed to return and finish out their semester with “the enemy” academy.

  The colonel could see how pleased Missy was. He said, “I noticed you received high marks in the swim test portion of the evaluation. For the Naval Academy, that was a key factor.”

  “Yes, sir!”

  “I was told you could have been on our varsity swim team, only you opted for soccer, basketball and softball.”

  Missy smiled and said, “That’s true, sir. I spent a summer as a lifeguard and do like swimming. But, I’ve chosen varsity sports where I can participate more as a member of a team rather than as an individual. Except for marksmanship. That’s really more of an individual thing.”

  The colonel nodded. “What prompted you to compete on our Rifle Team and Combat Weapons Team? I looked in your file and it says you never did any shooting prior to coming here.”

  “Ahh, well … the thing was … after I won the competition as top shot during Beast? Well, after that, everyone wanted me to help our academy. And, I guess it helped in my getting selected for Special Forces last summer. I’ve learned life has a way of showing me which choices I need to make.”

  “Very interesting, Ms. McCrea. All right then. That will be all. Good luck with all your future choices.” After they had exchanged salutes and he’d watched her leave his office, the colonel realized he no longer thought she was getting any special treatment.

  No, he was quite impressed with all he’d learned about her, including the things from that chat with Sergeant Town which Captain Bonomo had suggested. He now was thinking she was getting exactly the right treatment, all things considered. He just wished some of those things weren’t classified, with his not being in the loop. Oh, well. The Supe would be back in another couple of weeks and he’d wait and see. Maybe someday. Time would tell.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Friday, Apr 3, 2020

  Glenn Paxton’s team was positioned outside the pharmacy in Brooklyn which Sid Yeary had said was the drop used by Ricardo Salvi. This would be the FBI’s fourth arrest based on information Sid had obtained from Esteban Aparicio. One of his men was wearing a microphone which transmitted to a nearby van, so Glenn was able to listen in from his office. He was also able to watch what was happening thanks to the computer hacking expert working for him who had managed connecting to the surveillance cameras inside the store. The video could not be used as evidence but that didn’t matter; he was using it to gain information on who from Zhu-Gung might be involved.

  There had been only moderate traffic in and out of the store that evening. Nothing suspicious had been noted so far. Then, Ricardo came in and browsed in the aisles for a few minutes. There were three men and a woman also shopping. One of the men paid for some items but then went into the restroom just as Ricardo went up to the register to pay for his items. Then, after paying for his purchase, Ricardo slowly turned towards the exit.

  The man who had disappeared into the restroom came back into view, carrying his purchase in a bag similar to the one which Ricardo was now carrying. Both men reached the exit at about the same time and, out of view from any of the cameras, went outside. Glenn’s man approached both men as they came out and said, “Ricardo Salvi … this is the FBI … stop right there!”

  Ricardo saw there were three agents and had no choice. He stopped. The other man who had exited the store with him continued on his way. The FBI kept that man under surveillance, however, and was able to follow him down into the subway system. Ed Collinsworth had asked that Glenn merely identify any Zhu-Gung members, so no attempt was made to arrest him.

  Sure enough, when the FBI team demanded that Ricardo reveal what was in the bag he’d brought out, it contained a sizeable quantity of illegal drugs. Obviously, he and the other man had made a swap while leaving the store. Consistent with the information Sid had obtained, any payment arrangements had been handled separately and this had merely been a pickup.

  Ricardo was complaining loudly about “illegal search” and demanding to see his lawyer. Glenn smiled to himself since, in all probability, their case would indeed be dismissed since there had been no probable cause for this. However, this was all about shaking up the organization and getting information on Zhu-Gung; making these arrests would hopefully do exactly that.

  -----

  The man who had delivered the drugs to Ricardo did manage to elude his surveillance by making a last-minute subway train switch. He then made his way downtown to meet with Antony Ying. After reporting how Ricardo had just been arrested and how he’d ditched the man who had followed him, he received his payment and left.

  Antony then called Wagner and said, “The FBI made another arrest. This time, it was Ricardo Salvi in Corallo’s organization.”

  “Excellent! Did our man get away all right?”

  “Yeah, he was followed into the subway but managed to lose whoever it was. Of course, the FBI can now identify him.”

  Wagner said, “Well, we knew that would happen. That’s why we hired these guys to make the drops for us. I’m sure the FBI will eventually try to connect some of them to us but I don’t think they’ll have enough to make any arrests.”

  “Well, our strategy seems to be working. It’s costing us but at least we’re getting partial payments, thanks to our insistence these dealers pay half up front. Since the FBI is intervening, we won’t be seeing the other half but that’s okay. Nobody can complain we didn’t deliver.”

  “True. And, I’m sure it will take several hours before their lawyers can get any of these dealers released on bail. That should give us the opportunity we wanted.”

  Antony chuckled and asked, “I wonder if the FBI knows they’re helping us?”

  “No. But this is what we predicted. Whether it was D’Amato or Morelli or whoever ha
s been providing the drugs before we came along, it doesn’t matter. Someone had to have complained to someone. And, since we knew the cops were all being paid to look the other way, it’s not that surprising it’s the FBI who are making these arrests.”

  “Well, it was the FBI who arrested our members at that nightclub in Long Island,” agreed Antony. “I’m sure they know we’re back again and are trying to build a case against us. They won’t surprise us again, however.”

  -----

  Later that evening, Wagner and Antony made an appearance outside the home of Hands Harper. It took quite a while for them to finally be admitted but eventually, after identifying themselves and being searched, they were allowed to sit with Hands in his spacious study. Hands used this as an office and for meetings like this which he did not want his family to be part of.

  Wagner said, “We were very unhappy today, as we are sure you were, to learn that your man Ricardo Salvi was arrested. Are you aware of the payment arrangements we had with Ricardo?”

  Hands grunted and said, “Yeah, he told me he’s been doing that in two installments. Half before and the other half after delivery. Are you guys here looking for that second payment? If so, you’re not getting anything from me.”

  “No, no! We assure you we understand. But we wanted to be sure you understood we’ve made an investment now. In your operation. And, since our delivery was taken by the FBI, that means all those customers who were depending on Ricardo … they must now be getting worried.”

  “Are you two looking to get me involved in this?” asked Hands. “While Ricardo worked for me, I’m not willing to take any risks. I know he won’t talk to the feds. This meeting right now? This is my being courteous to you Zhu-Gung people. That’s all. We won’t be meeting again.”

  Antony nodded and said, “We appreciate that, Mr. Harper. We only wish to help. As Wagner mentioned … we are now invested in your operation. We thought, perhaps, until Ricardo returns and can run things again … maybe we might help. We have the drugs your customers want. We can provide them. We would even be willing to do that without any payment up front. Just this one time, of course. Are there any people in Ricardo’s operation we could make delivery to?”

  Hands stared at them for several seconds. “You’re saying you will provide another delivery to replace what the feds got today? Is that it? And, you’ll do that without payment?”

  “We’ll do that with the understanding that full payment will be made after delivery. We are hoping to continue the excellent relationship we have established. Allow us to work with Ricardo’s people and you will continue seeing nice profits.”

  “Well, that’s very interesting.” Hands was unhappy that he was out the payment which Ricardo had made to these guys. They had delivered and he couldn’t complain about that. And, he wanted to hear from those cops on his payroll. This had indeed been a bad day. But, he liked the idea there’d be minimal impact on his operations if he agreed. “I’ll tell you what. Ricardo has a couple of college guys he’s been telling me about. Clay and Frank. I think they could step up for him until he gets released. I’ll give them a call and explain they should meet with you.”

  “That would be excellent, Mr. Harper. We will work with them and make certain all of Ricardo’s customers are taken care of. After you have learned things are back to normal as far as distribution of our product, then you can arrange for our payment.”

  After seeing the two Chinese men out, Hands placed a call to Clay and explained what this arrangement was. Clay assured him that he and Frank would take care of things. Anything they could do for Ricardo and the organization, they would do. They’d be only too happy to cooperate and deal with these Zhu-Gung people while Ricardo was away. Business was business. They promised Hands that he could leave it for them to handle things.

  -----

  Glenn Paxton decided to call Ed Collinsworth and update him with the latest concerning the arrests which had been made. When Ed was on the line, he said, “My undercover guy came through for me. He was able to get some excellent information from Esteban Aparicio, the guy we know is handling all the drugs here in New York which are coming up from South America. Esteban was pissed off at all the dealers who have gone over to these Zhu-Gung people and was quite happy to provide names of those he wanted to see us arrest. He figures these arrests should convince the bosses to come back to buying from his people again.”

  “Well, it’ll be interesting to see what happens,” replied Ed. “Are you learning much about Zhu-Gung?”

  “So far, not that much. Although we have managed to identify everyone with our facial recognition software since they’re already in our database, these guys are merely middleman, hired help just making deliveries. They all seem to be locals, hired by Zhu-Gung rather than being anyone actually from Hong Kong. They’re also being very careful. They deliver their package without accepting any payment and know how to slip away, losing whomever we send to follow after them.”

  “Shit. That’s very different from the way Zhu-Gung operated last time.” The frustration in Ed’s voice was evident. “Of course, they’re not attacking anyone yet. If you know who these delivery guys are, you could arrest them and try to get them to implicate whoever is paying them, right?”

  “Ha, fat chance,” said Glenn. “We actually were hoping the guys we’ve arrested might give us something to go on, but none of them are talking. We can only hold them a day or so before their lawyers get them released on bail. And, these arrests are not likely to stand up. We’re mostly just harassing the mob and they know it.”

  “Okay, but will they stop buying from Zhu-Gung, the way Aparicio is hoping?”

  “Our inside guy will let us know what the next couple days are like,” replied Glenn. “We’re stirring up the hornets next and there’s no way to guess what that’ll do. The mob families are still trying to maintain that truce we heard they’ve agreed to. Of course, getting into a war with their drug suppliers would be different. And, the cartels from South America can get pretty violent.”

  Ed thought that over and realized Glenn had no idea just how violent the Zhu-Gung group could get, especially if their witches used any of their supernatural abilities. He asked, “Are you worried about any of the cartels?”

  “Well, my guy tells me Aparicio is a good friend of Carlos Mancini. You know about him, right?”

  “Oh, yes. I know about him, all right. But I didn’t know he was close with Aparicio.” Ed had been briefed by Robert Ulrey all about Carlos, the werecat now running things down there in Bogota. He had no idea, however, on how Carlos might handle things. Or, on how Robert’s task force might want to handle Carlos, if at all. “Glenn, keep me posted on anything that inside guy of yours learns concerning Aparicio and the cartels. And keep harassing the mob families. Let’s see how this plays out.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Sunday, Apr 5, 2020

  Missy was just coming up to bat when she noticed both Wagner Shen and Antony Ying were seated in the stands behind her. She sensed their presence but did not yet attempt to look for them. But she knew they were there. Obviously, they had figured out who she was and were now checking her out.

  This was the second day her team was playing Bucknell at their Becker Field in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. The Black Knights had played two games against them the day before, winning the first but losing the second. Then they’d stayed overnight at a local hotel. Brooke Ackerson had been her roommate and had insisted on sitting next to her on the four hour bus ride from West Point. Ever since Alice had managed rescuing Chrissy for Brooke’s sister Janey, Brooke had been especially appreciative.

  Now, it was the first inning of the one game they were playing against Bucknell that day before they’d be riding the bus back to the academy. Missy was their power hitter, batting fourth. Since one of the girls batting ahead of her had gotten on base, Missy was now coming up. There were two outs but the girl on base had managed to reach second after the sacrifice fly the previous b
atter had hit.

  Missy watched the first two pitches go by, one a ball and the other a called strike. She glanced up into the stands and saw where the two witches were sitting, both watching her very intently. She felt safe enough, doubting either of them would try anything out in public like this. No doubt, they were merely there to see how she might react. She focused on the next pitch and batted it deep into the outfield, between the left and center field players and easily reached first before she could be thrown out. The girl on second base scored and her team was now ahead, one-to-nothing.

  Her teammates were loud in cheering her on but she turned and looked directly at Wagner and Antony. They could see she was well aware of them. She used her super hearing ability, which they were not aware of, to listen in on their conversation. Unfortunately, they were speaking in Chinese so although she could hear them, she was unable to understand them.

  Antony said, “Well, it seems the stories we read about her being a gifted athlete are true enough. She knew we were sitting here and yet had no problem getting that base hit. Look at her out there now. Taunting us.”

  “Oh, I wouldn’t say she was taunting us,” said Wagner. “But she certainly knows who we are. And, she is the witch we all sensed but couldn’t see at our apartment the day before we attacked that nightclub. She definitely was there that night, as well. At the nightclub. She killed Richard. I have no idea how she managed that but she’s the witch I sensed was there. Not only that … I can sense her supernatural entity is something more. Perhaps that’s why … whatever else she is, it enabled her to defeat Richard. We probably should be careful. We’ll keep watching her.”

  “Perhaps we can capture her and bring her back to Hong Kong. Then we’ll kill her.” As Antony watched the way she moved and realized how attractive she was, he began thinking of a few other things he’d like to do to her as well. Of course, those were fantasies and would never be possible. So, he’d settle for watching her die. He’d enjoy that.