“A trap,” said Carlos.
CHAPTER 43
As soon as they entered the dead-end dirt road, Clay saw the SUV shooting out of the canyon, speeding toward them.
Mario stopped the pickup. “Now what?”
Clay didn’t like it, but they had no choice. “I’m guessing their windows will be bulletproof. The Rattler can probably punch through, but we still might not stop them. Pull up a hundred yards, stop broadside, and we’ll get out and shoot out their tires.”
Mario gunned the engine and sped toward the hurtling SUV. A quarter mile away he wheeled the truck broadside, stopping in a swirl of dust.
Clay grabbed the Rattler at his feet and handed it to Mario, who raised his eyebrows. “I’m good with the SIG.”
Clay jumped out of the cab and ran behind the tailgate.
Mario exited and crouched behind the front fender.
Clay wondered if Christie and Steel were hurt, if Harry was alive, and if Diego and Angel were in the SUV. He had tried to call Steel and Christie to no success. All of it tightened his hand on the Glock and made him determined to stop the SUV. It brought back memories of Dale’s death. He settled his palm on the tailgate and aimed at the front driver’s side tire.
Fifty yards from them the SUV veered off the road on Clay’s side. Mario let loose a spray of bullets at the front passenger tire. Clay did the same. The tire went flat, but the SUV kept going, quickly broadside to them.
The passenger windows came down and machine guns fired at them, their staccato loud.
Diving to the ground, Clay fired into the front passenger window. Mario fired into the rear window. Clay emptied his gun and loaded another clip. The SUV was pulling away.
Rising to his knees, Clay fired at the rear passenger tire, hitting it.
Slumping down onto one side, the SUV hit a bump, tilted and rocked to a stop. The engine whined as the driver gunned it, but the two flat tires spun on the dirt and couldn’t get traction.
Both passenger doors opened on the near side.
Mario ran out into the desert, loaded another clip into the Rattler, and fired.
Clay saw it was too late to run for cover. Falling to his belly, he fired at the two men coming out of the SUV. Mario did the same. Bullets hit the truck near Clay as he kept shooting.
The two men went down.
Clay lay there, shaken. Slowly he pushed to his feet. Mario still had his cheek glued to the stock of the Rattler. Keeping his arm outstretched, Clay aimed his gun at the SUV as he slowly approached it.
When he could see inside, he stopped. Four bodies. Two on the ground and two in the vehicle. It was over.
He let the gun fall to his side and took another look in the cab.
Mario was soon by his side. “Good shooting.”
“You too. But bad luck.”
Mario raised an eyebrow. “Why?”
“I don’t see Diego or Angel.” Clay swung to face the canyon. “We better get in there in case they need us.”
They ran for the truck. Clay noted that the distant gunfire from the canyon had ended. Worry for Harry and Christie made him run faster.
CHAPTER 44
Steel retrieved his belt from Carlos and put it on. He then climbed down the shaft, stopping above the bottom rung. The phone could be wired to explosives.
While hanging on to a lower rung, he reached out and gently felt around it. Nothing. It was attached to the ladder rung with a simple wire twisty. He undid it and hastily climbed back up. The shaft reminded him of his own tunnels on his property in Virginia.
Once out, he backed up with the others to the side of the house. Then he answered the phone, putting it on speaker.
No explosion.
“Jack Steel, that fight was magnificent. You were excellent, as was your team. I assume you are out of the tunnel entrance?”
Steel’s hand tightened on the phone over hearing Angel’s voice. “We are.”
“Excellent. Cover your ears. I am going to remotely detonate a small explosive to cave it in.”
They covered their ears as an explosion occurred. When they looked, dust and smoke rose out of the shaft. Angel’s concern for them made no sense to Steel. The man must need something.
“I have a deal to discuss with you, Jack Steel.”
He kept his emotion out of his response. “What do you want?”
“I have decided to end my career with the cartel. They don’t know this, of course, but I am through. Just as you are committed to care for your daughter, I have someone that needs my care and attention. The vendetta of Diego includes all of your family, and also all of the family of the Aguilars. It will not be difficult to track down Isabella’s family members.”
Carlos winced.
“You said you had an offer,” snapped Steel.
“I will kill Diego for you and reveal another attack he has already set into motion against your families, if you agree to allow me to disappear.”
“You’re killing Diego for your own protection.” Steel had no intention of letting the assassin walk after killing Dale.
“Yes, but Diego’s death benefits both of us, because the Alvarez vendetta dies with him. And learning about the other attack benefits only you.”
“Why should we trust anything you say?” Christie said vehemently. “You killed my brother, Dale.”
“So Clay lived? I am glad to hear that. I also made sure Diego couldn’t harm Isabella or Harry. With my help we can end the vendetta. I saw things were not going our way so I deliberately avoided shooting anyone. I could have easily killed Harry and Isabella.
“Diego also wanted the explosive attached to the shaft’s outer lid, but I told him it would be easier to track you to your family if we didn’t do that. I don’t kill people with bombs. I also left the phone. Think about it. I can kill your family members with a sniper rifle at my leisure if I want to. Why would I bother with all this drama? My past promise to Diego to kill all of you dies with him.”
Steel still didn’t trust him, but some of his statements rang true. “Your word is meaningless.”
“And if I kill Diego, end the vendetta, and tell you now about a future attack on your family, what is my word worth then?”
“You’re lying. You might have killed Diego in the tunnel.” Christie sounded bitter.
“He left before me. You had me pinned down.”
“How can we trust someone who raped and tortured Marita?” snarled Carlos.
“I have never raped a woman, nor tortured one,” said Angel. “Diego and his men did that, not me. I could not deliver Isabella to him for that very reason and decided to kill her here instead of turning her over to him. I’m even happier that she is still alive.”
Carlos gazed at the dirt, his face livid.
“Hang on.” Steel muted the phone. “He’s a killer, but I think he wouldn’t be talking to us unless he meant this.” He shrugged. “We can go after him, but like he said, he’s good enough to pick off our family members any time he wishes.”
“He killed Juan.” Carlos said it softly, his head still lowered.
Christie touched his arm. “He’s a murderer, but he could have easily put bullets into Harry and Isabella. I was surprised he didn’t. We don’t have to trust him, but maybe he can help us. We can kill him later.”
Steel agreed with Christie’s assessment, but kept silent.
Carlos lifted his head. “If there is any chance he can help end this, then I say we take his offer.” He looked at Christie. “As you say, we can always kill him later.”
Christie wiped sweat from her face and looked at Steel.
Steel put the phone back on speaker. “All right, we’re listening.”
“You agree to the terms?”
“Yes.” He had no problem lying to a killer.
“Diego has a group hunting for your wife
and child. They are very, very good, and are used when Diego wants his victims to suffer before they die. They are called La Manada—the pack. I used to lead the pack, and I trained them. They are waiting on Diego’s orders to attack, and he’s waiting on me to give the signal.”
Steel felt immediately on edge. Perhaps the pack was already close to Rachel and Carol. Carol had said she wasn’t followed, but she wasn’t a professional. “How many are they and how much time do we have?”
“Seven men. I can give you a twenty-four-hour warning.”
Steel considered that. “If you kill Diego, will the pack leave my wife and child alone?”
“Even if they hear Diego is dead, their reputation demands they finish the job. But I can delay killing Diego to give you more time.”
Steel thought about it. “All right. Wait for our decision. Call us in twenty-four hours.”
“One more thing. I want you to call your military. A trade. I will give them the ISIS targets in exchange for your military forgetting about me.”
“I can’t promise anything, but I’ll see what I can do.” He hung up. Something else occurred to him. “Carlos, I injured a sniper on the south canyon wall. Did you see him?”
“I put a bullet into him. I’m going to check on my son.” He hurried away.
A vehicle entered the canyon and Steel ran with Christie to the front of the house. He was relieved to see Clay and Mario.
Clay jumped out of the truck cab. “We stopped the SUV headed out, but no Angel or Diego.” He hugged Christie, and the two of them hustled to see Harry.
Mario started to follow them, but Steel stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. “Isabella is fine. Let’s drive out of here, fast, and see if we can spot any vehicles to the south or north. Angel and Diego escaped through a tunnel.”
Mario frowned, but then returned to the truck, waiting for Steel to get in before wheeling it around.
Steel glanced behind the seat, and then at Mario.
“The terrorist," said Mario.
They shot out of the canyon. When they were clear of the cliffs, Steel scouted south and Mario north, but neither of them saw anything.
“They're gone.” Steel let it go. Angel and Diego could have had motorcycles waiting and perhaps ridden them west out of their tunnel.
Mario drove back to the canyon in silence and left him to see Isabella.
Steel walked toward Pedro’s destroyed sedan, wondering if the young man was dead. He didn’t see how Pedro could have survived the blast. Pausing, he called Jeffries and filled him in. He also asked for a medevac helicopter and cleanup crew. He finished with, “I want protection for my ex-wife and daughter.”
“We can do witness protection, but no bodyguard service.”
He wanted to punch Jeffries. Unwilling to put his daughter and Carol into hiding for the rest of their lives, he let it go. “All right, I’ll let you know. Angel wants to do a trade. The ISIS targets for the military leaving him alone after this is over.”
“I’ll call some people.” Jeffries hung up.
Striding past the burnt car, Steel found Carlos kneeling beside his son. Pedro was lying facedown with his eyes closed. A piece of metal stuck out from his right thigh and blood marked the dirt around the leg. Carlos had tied a tourniquet around his son’s thigh. Steel noted the Kevlar vest Pedro had on. Smart.
Carlos looked up. “He’s still alive, but he needs medical attention right away.”
“A medevac helicopter is on the way to take him to Nellis Air Force Base.” Steel saw the strain on Carlos’ face. What did the man expect to happen when he involved his children in this mess? “I hope he’s all right.”
Not wanting to talk to him further, he left to join the others. Mario was striding toward him, and stopped, still chewing a toothpick.
“Thank you for your help, Jack. After today, and after talking to Isabella, I’m less inclined to think you let Marita die.” Mario stuck out his hand and Steel grudgingly took it.
“Her face still haunts my dreams at night, Mario.”
Mario grimaced. “Mine too. I often ask myself if I could have helped her in some way.”
He left Mario and called Carol to check in with her. She sounded all right, so he called Wyatt.
Wyatt had met Carol and Rachel in Billings and had spotted someone following her. Wyatt allowed the tail to follow him to his place, intending to take Rachel and Carol out after dark through tunnels on his land to a friend’s house. The tail had gone by his driveway and disappeared. Steel told Wyatt about the pack. His friend thought luring them to his place gave them control over how they met. Steel agreed and thanked him.
Feeling better about Carol and Rachel’s safety, he hung up.
He found Christie on her knees at Harry’s side. Her hair was a mess, her clothing dirty—but she was still beautiful to him. That saddened him for some reason.
Harry had his eyes open, his head resting on Isabella’s lap, his shirt in tatters. Clay knelt nearby.
“Helluva ride, boss.” Harry had tears in his eyes as he looked up. “Dale died for me.”
“It’s not your fault, Harry.” Clay’s voice choked with emotion.
Steel rested a hand on Harry’s shoulder. “I’m sorry, Harry. I know he’ll be dearly missed by you and your family.” He took a deep breath. “I can’t tell you how good it feels to see you alive.”
Isabella stared up at him. “I’m sorry we did all this to you, Jack.” She wiped her eyes. “I believe what Harry told me about Marita.”
Her genuine concern made it easier to stuff the angry words he wanted to hurl at her. “I’m glad you’re okay.”
“Harry is a very good man.” Isabella stroked his hair.
“Stockholm syndrome.” Harry smiled, but then sobered. “Before he left us that maniac killer said, ‘Stay down if you wish to live. Good job, you two! You were fantastic prisoners!’”
Isabella waved a hand. “Sí. Está loco. He could have easily killed us.”
Steel exchanged glances with Christie.
Clay stood up. “We have to talk, Steel.”
Steel understood and walked with him to the pickup truck.
Clay led him to the passenger door and opened it. Pushing the passenger seat forward, Clay revealed the ISIS operative lying in back, staring at them.
Clay explained what had happened. They dragged the man out and carried him to the house.
Steel kicked the front door shut once they were inside. “Let’s take him to the back.”
Clay walked backward. Steel followed until they were in one of the rear bedrooms. It was bare like the rest of the house, save for one chair. They sat the man on it. Steel waited while Clay left and returned with duct tape, shutting the door behind him. Clay taped the man’s legs and chest to the chair.
Steel tore the tape off the terrorist’s mouth. Pulling the OTF knife from his belt-sheath, he held it by his thigh. “You either tell us what we want to know or we hurt you for as long as it takes until you do. Your choice.”
The man remained silent, hate evident in his eyes.
The door opened and Carlos entered. Striding up to the side of the prisoner, he faced Steel.
“I owe you, Steel. My daughter is alive because of you and Christie.” He eyed the prisoner. “I have experience with torture in my country. Give me the knife and I will get the information you seek.”
Steel wanted to, but he didn’t trust Carlos. “I’ll do it.”
“I know you can do it. Por favor?” Carlos held out his hand.
Steel hesitated, and then set the knife in his palm. Following Clay out, he shut the door. They returned out front, where Christie strode toward the house.
She walked into Steel’s arms and held him tightly.
“Everything all right?” he whispered.
“Perfect now that I can hold
you.” She rested her head on his shoulder. “I need a bath and massage and a few other things.”
“Ditto.” He heard a helicopter in the distance.
She touched his face, where the rock chip had cut him. “We’ll have to clean that.” She turned to Clay. “I’m going to say goodbye to Harry.”
Steel watched her walk away. “She’s tough, Clay.”
“Always has been. Three brothers, so you can blame us if you want.”
“I’m sorry, Clay. For everything.”
“You went through hell to rescue Harry, Jack, so I’m grateful.”
Steel noted the reservation in Clay’s eyes and voice.
They joined Christie and Mario and watched as Harry and Pedro were carried on stretchers by Jeffries’ men out to the helicopter, which had landed outside the canyon. Isabella elected to go with them in the chopper.
In twenty minutes Carlos came out of the house, striding past the burnt SUVs. He stopped in front of them. “It’s finished. It’s not good.” He held out Steel’s knife.
Steel took it, noting it was clean. “Let’s hear it.”
Carlos eyed all of them. “They want to remind America that you are not safe anywhere. They want to sow fear for five days in a row. The one in the house was supposed to take a rifle to a national park and kill as many people as he could with his partner. The park had not been specified, but he had chosen Yosemite.”
“People will say anything under torture,” said Clay.
Carlos waved a hand. “I agree. But I gave him a little hope. I told him that if he told us where the other targets were, and it turned out to be true, he would live. Diego was supplying them with logistical help and weapons, so this man had to know where his associates would attack and what they would need.”
Steel was impressed. “Do you trust him?”
“Of course you can never be certain, but based on twenty years of interrogation my heart says it’s true. I used the knife at the end to verify what I could.” Carlos looked at each of them. “There are two operatives for each site. Mario and Clay already killed one of the Yosemite operatives, the other is in the house. The Yosemite attack was for four-thirty p.m. today. Four more attacks will occur at the same time of day, one attack each day, to keep the country on edge.”
Steel Assassin Page 21