by R. A. McGee
Hylands didn’t blink.
Porter saw Hylands wrenching the gun into place, so he grabbed the pistol again, keeping the barrel pointed away from him.
He turned so his back was facing Hylands, gun off to his left side. Risky, but he needed to keep the muzzle of the gun away from him.
Hylands yanked on the gun and Porter slammed two backward elbows into the bridge of Hylands’s nose. The man groaned.
Porter let go of the pistol and slid low, underneath the big man, and brought his arm up between Hylands’s legs as he pulled down on his shirt. It was an old wrestling move called a fireman’s carry.
Hylands leaned forward as he was pulled down, then flipped, ass over head, as Porter slammed his arm up into his crotch. Hylands landed flat on his back and the pistol fell from his hands. Porter climbed on top of him, pinning him down while Hylands tried to buck him off.
Porter’s rifle was useless, strapped tight to his back, so he pulled his own pistol from the holster on his hip. As he brought it to bear, something flopped in front of Hylands. Something with long brown hair and smelling of pricey perfume.
“No, please! Don’t kill him,” Stacy Brown said, shielding Hyland's body with her own.
Porter dismounted Hylands, taking several steps backward, away from both him and Stacy. He pointed his pistol at the pair.
“Move,” he said. “Move or I’ll shoot you, too.”
“Please don’t,” Stacy said. “Don’t kill him—he’s my brother.”
“I don’t give a damn if he’s Mary Poppins. If you don’t move, Trey won’t have a mom.”
Vance appeared, holding the boy. He held up a pistol, and threw it far away, into the overgrown grass. “Look. We don’t have any guns, relax. We don’t have any guns.”
Porter didn’t have a shot on Vance, not with Trey as a human shield. He kept his weapon on Hylands and Stacy.
“Please,” Vance said. “I don’t know what Kevon paid you, but don’t do this.”
Porter kept his pistol on Hylands but shifted his eyes to Vance. The little boy in his arms was bawling. “What the hell do you mean? Kevon didn’t pay me anything. He’s missing and I think you assholes made him disappear.”
“You said that when you kidnapped me,” Vance said.
“Man-napped,” Porter said.
“In the warehouse, you asked why I killed Kevon. Why do you keep saying that?”
Porter had a gnawing feeling in his stomach. He looked at Vance, then glanced at Hylands and Stacy, then back to Vance. “I found a body in a storage unit that had Kevon’s license nailed to the forehead. It’s not Kevon, but we still can’t find him.”
“But I—”
“Then when we were trying to leave, your guys shot at us. Almost got an innocent family killed, too. I hate that shit.”
“I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about,” Vance said. He sat Trey on the ground and pushed him behind his legs. “Listen, if you want to do something, just shoot me. It’s okay. Leave everyone else alone.”
“You didn’t try to take us out at the storage unit?” Porter said. “Assuming I believe you, what about Cat? Why did you bastards kill her?”
“Who’s Cat?” Hylands said from the ground.
“Kevon’s lawyer,” Porter said.
“Why would we kill a lawyer?” Vance said.
The gnawing feeling was getting stronger in Porter’s stomach. “What are you saying?”
“I’ve done a bunch of shitty things in my life, I swear to God I have. I’ll tell you every dirty thing. But I didn’t touch Kevon and I didn’t kill his lawyer.”
“Porter?” Amy Olson spoke into his eardrum.
He took one hand off the pistol and keyed his radio. “Yeah.”
“I don’t know if this is a problem, but there are two black vehicles coming down the gate. The truck in the front just pushed your burning truck out of the way and smashed through the rest of the gate.”
“Kevon isn’t dead, is he?” Porter said to himself more than anyone else.
“That’s what I’m trying to tell you,” Vance said. “I didn’t kill him.”
“I’m realizing that,” Porter said.
“It’s okay. We can forget about all of this, don’t worry. Just let us go,” Vance said.
“That’s not going to work,” Porter said.
“Why the hell not?” Hylands said.
“Because I think Kevon just showed up.”
Thirty-Seven
Badway came jogging up the walkway, rifle at the ready. His eyes flicked from Porter to Vance, and then to Hylands on the ground. “Why aren’t you shooting?”
“We’ve been played, Sarge, that’s why,” Porter said.
Rifle pointed straight at Vance, Badway looked at Porter. “You need to explain.”
“Wait, what happened to the other guy? The one that was shooting at us?” Porter said.
Badway took his left hand off of the fore-end of his rifle, and made a quick back-and-forth motion across his neck.
“You guys killed Clancy?” Hylands said. “What the hell?”
“To be fair, he was shooting at us,” Porter said.
“Clancy… Clancy Jones?” Badway said.
“Yeah, that’s him,” Hylands said.
“I know that guy,” Badway said.
“You didn’t recognize him?” Hylands said.
“By the time I got close enough to know who it was, I’d already turned his head into a canoe. No way I could have recognized him,” Badway said.
Porter clicked his radio. “Amy, those vehicles still coming?”
Amy’s voice was scratchy and cut in and out. Porter tapped his handset, but the voice didn’t get any clearer. “Let’s move into the trailers. Right now.”
Porter pulled Hylands to his feet and pushed him toward one of the trailers. Vance grabbed Trey and Stacy and followed.
“What the hell is going on?” Badway said. “I heard Amy before she cut out. Who’s at the gate?”
“I think it’s Kevon,” Porter said.
“What? Why?” Badway said.
“I don’t know, but if he is here and he’s moving in, it isn’t for a happy conversation.”
The group shut the trailer door behind them. The inside was as bleak as the outside—white vinyl walls, worn tan industrial carpeting, and several tables and filing cabinets.
“Someone needs to start talking,” Porter said.
Stacy Brown sat her son down. “What is there to say? There’s a reason I was in court trying to stop him from seeing our son. Kevon’s a maniac. After his discharge from the Army, he got worse and worse.”
“Kevon is a maniac? Have you seen his face? He says you gave him that scar,” Porter said.
Stacy Brown’s mouth fell open. “Did he tell you he was kicking my ass at the time? That slashing him was all I could do to keep him from killing me? When he went down, I grabbed Trey and ran.”
“Wait, what do you mean ‘discharge’?” Badway said. “I thought he was still finishing his time in the reserves?”
“No. He was court-martialed and given a dishonorable discharge. I never knew what for. But we had a family to support, so I hooked him up with Keith for a job.”
“You guys do like hiring criminals, don’t you?” Porter said.
“Hell, I try to hire everyone,” Hylands said, the bottom of his shirt on the bridge of his bloody nose. “I tried to hire you, remember? Besides, how am I not going to hire my little sister's husband? I have to give the guy a second chance. Hell, he was our best recruiter.”
“Recruiter?” Badway said.
Porter walked to the trailer door and peeked through a small window that ran vertically through it.
“He was always bringing us guys for work. I have no idea where he got them from,” Hylands said, “but any time we had an open slot, he always found someone.”
“I know where he got them,” Porter said.
“My therapy group,” Badway said. “No wonder the
turnover was so high but Kevon came for two years straight. He was recruiting talent. I thought he was there for the help, but he was just poaching guys and giving them jobs. Clancy Jones was one of them.”
Vance handed Trey back to Stacy. “I sent Kevon overseas, to supervise a few projects. Try to give him a chance to do right and move up. I’d never even met Stacy, I was just helping the kid out. Besides, Hylands vouched for him, so I figured how bad could he be?”
“How many times do you want me to say I shit the bed on that one?” Hylands said. “You’re never going to let me live that down, are you?”
Vance continued. “While Kevon was overseas, he gets arrested by the locals. Apparently, he developed a taste for the girls over there. And by ‘girls,’ I mean the young ones. I didn’t want any trouble for the company, so I pulled some strings and got him sent back home.”
“Why should you let him do the time for his crimes, right?” Porter said. “Your business was much more important than little kids.”
Vance ignored him. “Not like it mattered; by then it was too late. People were asking me questions about it. Reporters, congressional aides, the whole nine. Kevon caused all kinds of bullshit trouble.”
“Then you started sleeping with his wife? I’m sure that went over well,” Porter said.
“Even though I kept him out of trouble, I felt like I needed to tell Stacy what I knew about her husband. What kind of guy he really was, you know? She came to the office and we talked and… things just happened. It wasn’t like we planned any of this. When she told Kevon that things were over, he went apeshit. Said he’d kill her, take Trey and disappear. We couldn’t let that happen.”
“That’s why all the stalling in court?” Porter said. “You were trying to keep him from seeing his son because he’s a monster?”
“Yes,” Stacy sighed. “I tried everything to keep Kevon away from us. I told the judge about the crimes overseas and all the things he’d done. He said with no conviction, they couldn’t use it against him. I had no other choice but to hide Trey so Kevon couldn’t get him. I knew when he got the chance, he’d kill me and steal our son.”
“Once you two got involved, we thought you were trying to help Kevon. A couple of his buddies tracking us down. That’s why I tried to pay you guys off in the elevator at the courthouse. I wanted Kevon away from us; I would have paid any amount,” Vance said.
“I just can’t even…” Badway said. “We’re talking about the same Kevon, right? Thin guy, real ‘aww shucks’?”
Stacy’s face grew dark. “That’s a front. Kevon’s a master manipulator. You see what he wants you to see. Everything he showed you was a fraud. You got conned. Who he really is… that’s someone else entirely.”
“The real question is, how did he find us?” Porter said. “We tracked you down with legwork and a couple favors. How is he here right now?”
Somewhere on the compound, a sound like popping popcorn rang out.
Porter clicked his radio. “Amy? Do you have eyes on the group? How many are there?”
There was static on the radio, then a sharp sound. Porter looked at his radio. The green on light was off.
“I think she’s gone, bro,” Badway said.
“Is there any way you can talk to him?” Porter asked. “Lie to him, get him to calm down?”
“He won't listen,” Stacy said. “He wants to kill us, everyone but Trey. There is no talking to him.”
A drumming hip-hop beat came from behind Stacy. She pulled her phone out and looked at it. “It’s him. What should I say?”
“Let me.” Porter took the phone. “Kevon?”
“This isn’t Vance… is this Porter?”
“Yep. I gotta tell you, I’m not much liking how things have turned out.”
“No hard feelings, huh? When Badway bragged about how good you were at finding people, I knew I had to set you loose on the situation. I was gonna tag along with you guys for a few more days, put on the same sad show and make you feel sorry for me. I figured that would get you to hunt down Vance, no problem.
“Once I found out you two went to jail, the opportunity was too good to pass up. I knew if I got y’all fired up, you’d lead me straight to those bastards. You didn’t disappoint.”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence,” Porter said. “How did you find us?”
“The day you all met me at the courthouse, I slipped a tracker on Badway’s truck. I would have just put the tracker on Vance’s car and followed them myself, but his driver is always with the car. I never had a chance. That’s why I came in late—I was finishing up hiding it. Then I play the sad father, and you clowns eat it up.”
“I won’t make that mistake again,” Porter said. “And the storage unit? The body inside?”
“Just some asshole I met in group. Same as these idiots I have with me right now. I promised them the world if they help me. Told them I’d run Parabellum with Vance dead and I’d give them all fat, cushy jobs. Most of them have done worse overseas than snuff out a couple guys, so it was an easy sell. Between us, I’ll just kill them when they’re done with y’all.”
“Like you killed Strumpf?” Porter said, looking out of the small window in the door of the trailer.
“No, I killed Strumpf because I knew if you guys thought I was dead, it would kick you into high gear. Plus, I’d be free to move around without you guys wondering where I was, looking over my shoulder and babysitting me. I had to have the guys shoot at you at the storage unit to sell the story. I needed you to think it was Vance, trying to off you when you found my body. Worked well, don’t you think?”
“But why kill Cat?” Porter said. “All she ever did was try to help you, you piece of shit.”
“I may be a piece of shit, but I’m smart enough to know when I’m being played. You apparently aren’t. Cat was just another spur of the cattle prod. I did her myself.”
“She got you partial custody,” Porter said.
“I don’t want partial custody, I want the whole thing. That’s my son and he belongs with me. The courts don’t like that, so I guess I need to eliminate that cheating bitch and her new man. Then they won’t have a choice, it’s just me and the little man.”
“She’s his mom, dickhead. You can’t take that away from her.”
“So? You think I give a rat’s ass about what she wants? That cheating whore? No woman dogs me out like that. I go overseas and when I come home, she wants to leave? Take my son? No chance. No bitch does that to me.”
“You think maybe she wanted to leave because she found out you like to stick your dick in little girls?” Porter said.
There was a pause on the other end of Stacy Brown’s phone. “Pretty soon, you’re going to get a chance to say that to my face,” Kevon said, his voice dropping an octave.
“Looking forward to it.” Porter pushed the button to end the call. He handed the phone back to Stacy. “That went well.”
“You see? Two different people, I told you. He’s dropped the act now. He thinks he won, and he wants everyone to know how smart he is. That’s the real Kevon. That’s the man I lived with.”
“Pleasant,” Porter said.
“Who are these dead people you’re talking about?” she said.
“Never mind,” Porter said. “Sarge, can I talk to you for a moment?”
Porter and his cousin stepped away from the rest of the group and into a corner.
“Porter, I’m sorry. I had no idea we were stepping into a shitstorm like this. I thought I was helping a fellow vet out, you know? Trying to do my good deed.”
“Yeah, well, you’re a soft-hearted idiot,” Porter said. “We need to figure out how we get Trey out of here. I don’t really care what happens to the rest of them, but that kid is innocent.”
More gunfire outside, only now it was closer.
“We can’t sit here,” Badway said. “We’ll be sitting ducks. Let's go hunting. You and me out the side, the rest of them hunker down and protect Trey. Vance was a pil
ot, he’s no good in a firefight. You busted the shit out of the other guy’s face; I’d be surprised if he can see anything.”
“Fine. When we get out of here, you owe me so big,” Porter said. “I swear to God, you and Amy are naming your firstborn after me.”
“It would be worth it just to get a chance to sleep with her.”
Porter checked the radio receiver, finding it was still dead. “Okay. We hunt.”
Porter and Badway joined the rest of the group. “You guys just stay here. Barricade the doors, use these filing cabinets. Don’t come out until we come back.”
“If you get us out of here,” Vance said, “I’ll give you whatever you want. Any price, you name it.”
“Anything? I’ve never owned an airplane,” Porter said. He pushed the side door of the trailer open and stepped out into the middle area between the groups of trailers.
Porter jogged around the other group of trailers, the way Vance had tried to escape not so long ago. He moved down the length of all five trailers, coming to a halt at the corner of the last one, his cousin right behind him.
“Oh shit.”
“What?” Badway said.
“Now I know what Amy was trying to tell us before the radio cut out.”
“What?”
In front of Porter, some hundred yards ahead, the high grass was on fire. There was a thick wall of smoke, blocking his view to the guardhouse and, beyond that, the road. The smoke was rising high enough that he couldn’t see the water tower anymore.
“Kevon isn't going to try to find them,” Porter said. “He’s gonna smoke them out.”
Thirty-Eight
Badway peeked around the corner. “That grass is so dry, it’s going up like kindling.”
“It’ll be on top of the trailers in no time.”
“We gotta go back and tell them,” Badway said.
“That’s just gonna waste time. They’re grown-ups, they can get out of a trailer if they need to. We need to find these guys and take them out.”
“Fine,” Badway said. He pulled off his shirt, and ripped each sleeve off.
“Who are you, Rambo?”
He pulled one sleeve over his head, pulling it down until it covered his nose and mouth. Badway handed the other sleeve to Porter.