Jason Steed Royal Decree

by Mark A. Cooper

  “So it was dropping off something, not picking up a bottle of wine,” Cameron said.

  “Exactly,” Jason said.

  Cameron took off her shoes and pocked them down the front of her dress. She lifted her dress where it split up the side and tied it high to her waist.

  “What are you doing? I can see your panties,” Connor said. “Not that I was looking.”

  “Connor you’re a pervert,” Cameron said.

  Connor nodded. “Well I’m fourteen and, last time I looked, male. So what’s your point?”

  “Ugh. Boys are so disgusting. Keep an eye out, I’m going to see what it just unloaded,” she said, cocking her leg over the brass rail.

  “Why do you hate me?” Connor asked.

  “I don’t hate you Connor.” She smiled. “I just wish you didn’t exist.”

  “Dexter said we are to report back, nothing else,” Connor said.

  “We can close this mission quick if I can see what they unloaded. And then we can go back to the Infinity campus, and I won’t have to share a bathroom with you two gross boys again,” Cameron said. She looked at Jason and waited for his reaction. Despite his younger years, she valued his experienced opinion.

  “Be careful. Just take a peek and come back. We will keep watch,” Jason said, trying to divert his eyes away from her underwear.

  She paused and looked at Connor who was still staring at her with her skirt around her waist so she could climb. “Connor, I bet your birth certificate is really just an apology letter from the condom company.”

  Jason grabbed Connor’s arm and pulled him back. “Don’t stare at her. Your mind is just like your underwear—dirty, stained, and stinky.”

  Cameron was a fantastic climber. She had grown up in Alberta, Canada and often climbed the Canadian Rockies with her father. Her slim body with long legs and arms gave her an advantage for climbing or descending a sheer rock face.

  It took her no longer than ten minutes to climb down the cliff. She gently lowered herself onto the small jetty that was cut out of the rock face. She let her dress back down and crept along the jetty. She glanced up and could just see Connor and Jason up on the balcony looking down at her. Once she walked passed the speedboat further and deeper along the jetty, they lost sight of her.

  She noticed a guard gently moving heavy crates from the dockside. These were just delivered by the boat with the dolphins painted on the side. Gently, he placed one a time on a trolley and wheeled the crate inside the cavern. He stacked it and came to get another. When he was picking up another to take in, Cameron made her move into the cavern.

  It was colder and darker as she got deeper into the cave. Her bare feet made no sound as she crept along the damp stone surface. She noticed an illuminated area ahead and could hear voices. A large room was built into the cave. A guard smoking a cigarette sat in a chair. Across his lap was a semi-automatic rifle.

  To avoid the guard, she climbed up into a large cavity in the rock face and discovered an opening. A whole underground warehouse the size of a movie theater was revealed and in the corner sat an office. What she saw next stunned her for a few moments. She had to stop to take it all in. Crate after crate stacked forty foot high. Many had Russian writing on them. She didn’t need language skills to read AK-47. The Russian automatic rifle was what filled over four hundred crates.

  She climbed into the opening and crept up to another pile of crates. One was open. She checked inside and found it was packed full of Russian RDG5 hand grenades. Another huge stack of crates contained Kalashnikov grenade launchers. More crates contain land mines, Gelignite, and anti-tank rocket launchers.

  Cameron tiptoed to the office. She peered inside and was relieved when it was empty. It contained file cabinets and maps on the walls. She spotted a telephone in the corner. Gently, she opened the door, praying it would not squeak, and crept inside. Using the phone, Cameron called Dexter. After four rings it was picked up.

  Cameron gave Dexter all the details of everything she had seen. It was more than Dexter needed to raid the castle. He told Cameron to meet up with Connor and Jason, make up an excuse, and leave immediately. Dexter made a call to Infinity, who contacted Turkish Special forces and the Turkish National Police. They were dispatched to the castle immediately. Dexter himself would also go and arrest Weinstein. He would be handed over to the CIA and interrogated.

  She put the phone down and crept out of the office. A guard noticed her and shouted. She sprinted towards the jetty, only to come face to face with another guard. He made a grab for her. Cameron lashed out with her foot. Her karate crescent kick to his abdomen took the wind out of him.

  Another guard ran towards her and tried to hit her. She twisted his wrist back and kneed him in the groin. Another guard appeared from the stairway. He caught her from behind. Cameron threw her head back, breaking his nose. She followed up, kicking his shin with the heel of her foot. He let her go and cursed at her in Turkish. This gave her the chance to throw a punch into his already broken nose. He yelled in pain and fell to his knees. Cameron ran out towards the jetty and straight into two more guards and Weinstein.

  “Cameron, what are you doing here?” Weinstein barked, looking at the three guards she had taken down trying to get to their feet.

  “Looking for the ladies room,” she said meekly, pausing and looking in all directions before coming to the realization that she was surrounded.

  “She was using the phone sir, and she opened a box of grenades,” the guard who first saw her said. He caught hold of her arm tightly.

  Weinstein looked her up and down and nodded. “It seems I have been foolish. You weren’t taking pictures of Bodrum, you were taking them of me. And now your two brothers become friends of my son and daughter. I’m either paranoid or it’s a coincidence, and where some people see coincidence, I see conspiracy.”

  “I was just exploring the castle,” Cameron said nervously.

  Weinstein looked long and hard at her. “Take her out and feed the sharks,” he said to the guard holding her arm. “Your fighting skills are not of a normal sixteen-year-old girl.” He looked at one of the guards. “Go and get her brothers. Bring them to me.”

  “So I know karate, is that a crime? Let me go. You can’t hold me,” Cameron said, struggling. “My brothers have nothing to do with this.”

  Another guard approached and drew his sword. He held it to her throat. He gestured her to walk out to the speedboat tied to the jetty. She raised her arms and submitted.

  “Looks like you and Ela are getting on well,” Jason said to Connor.

  “Why of course. She can’t resist my charm, good looks, and big biceps,” Cameron said, flexing his right arm.

  Jason looked back down at the jetty. To his horror, he noticed a guard was holding Cameron and another held a sword to her throat. They were leading her towards the speedboat.

  “They’ve caught Mosquito Bites,” Jason said.

  Connor rushed to the side and looked down. “That useless skinny strip of twenty-four-carat ignorance has got herself caught.” He cursed.

  “You boys need to come with us. Mr. Weinstein wants to talk to you,” a guard ordered in broken English. He had another seven guards with him, swarming onto the sun deck.

  Jason and Connor looked at each other. “What are you doing to Cameron?” Jason asked.

  “Come with us and you won’t get hurt,” the guard said. He purposely danced his fingers on the handle of his sword that was sheathed on his belt.

  Jason looked down at Cameron. They had led her onto the speedboat and started to tie her hands behind her back. A guard attempted to grab for Connor’s arm. Connor caught it and twisted it and threw the man across the sundeck. Jason lifted himself onto his toes and stood in a fighting stance.

  The guards drew their swords. The razor sharp blades glistened in the sun.

  “I’m going to help her. Will you be okay?” Jason asked Connor.

  “Sure. I’ll meet you down there,” Connor said.
>
  Three guards moved forward. Jason ran, ducked, and slid under them towards the table. Connor pounced forward and ducked as a guard swung his sword. Connor picked the guard up and sprinted forward, using the guard as a shield from the others. Several were knocked out of his way as he ploughed through them, his powerful legs pushing forward.

  More guards ran towards Connor and Jason. Connor was gaining momentum and speed. The guard he carried was working as a human shield. Connor threw himself and his passenger at the long table. The huge strawberry and bowls of strawberries were thrown into the air. Some of the guests screamed as the table and strawberries came crushing down covering Connor, most of the guards, and some of the guests in soft red sticky strawberry flesh.

  Three guards blocked Jason’s exit off the sundeck. A foolish guard stepped forward and tried to grab hold of the boy. Jason caught the man’s arm and twisted his wrist. He followed with a punch to the man’s stomach. The blow was enough to wind the guard. Jason followed up with a powerful roundhouse kick. The force sent the man back several feet into the other two guards, knocking them off their feet.

  Jason made his way to the table. He pulled out the parasol that was used for shade and sprinted to the wall. Without a second thought Jason, leapt onto the wall, stepped over the brass rail, and jumped off the side of the sundeck. He held tightly to the parasol, hoping it would act as a parachute and slow his decent. It worked, not as slow as he would have liked, but enough so he wouldn’t get hurt. Cameron was tied up and thrown into the speedboat. She and her captors looked up in disbelief as they watched Jason sailing down from the sundeck, hanging from the Parasol.

  Jason plunged into the sea. He swam towards the jetty and started to climb out.

  “I’ll deal with him,” Weinstein said, pacing towards Jason. “Well if it’s not Mary Poppins. Nice of you to drop in, Jason. You seem to enjoy jumping off rocks into the sea. You can take a trip with your sister to feed the sharks.”

  Jason stood and pushed his wet, long blond bangs away from his eyes. He forced adrenaline into his system. He knew he was going to need every advantage he had if he was going to take on Weinstein and his guards.

  Weinstein charged him with a roar and pace of a raging bull. Jason sidestepped and whirled to face him. His attacker lunged. Jason avoided one flying fist and caught the other, twisting as he held it. Using Weinstein’s momentum, Jason threw him across the jetty.

  A guard paced towards the boy. Jason noticed him in the corner of his eye and pulled his head back just in time to avoid the blow that was meant for his jaw. Jason could see a blur of knuckles. The guard was fast he attacked again. Jason ducked this time and felt his hair ruffle with the force of it.

  Jason dropped to the floor, rolled clear, and sprang up to his feet. Weinstein had recovered. He came from Jason’s left side. The guard came again from his right. Jason was surprised. The guard moved fast, so fast that Jason nearly missed seeing it. Jason’s body seemed to react on its own, without conscious thought. He slid to his right, opposite to the direction he had been circling, as the guard rushed him. Jason’s vision blurred as the battle resumed.

  The guard threw a block with his left hand, tried to hook Jason’s left leg with his own, trying to throw him to the ground. Jason turned forward and to his right, smashing his left fist against the middle of his opponent’s back as he slid past. The blow caught his opponent between his shoulder blades. Jason brought his foot up and caught the guard from behind between the legs. The guard gave a high pitched yelp like a puppy before falling to his knees holding his groin.

  Jason had no time to recover. Weinstein grabbed his hair and pulled him back with one hand and punched Jason in the face with the other. Jason spat out blood and cursed at Weinstein. He stepped outside himself, and an anger that should never see the light of day had broken free. Jason pupils fully dilated. He instinctively took several deep breaths, saturating his blood supply with oxygen. His reaction was extreme. Jason threw a vicious punch into Weinstein’s windpipe. His knuckles buried themselves deep into Weinstein’s throat, crushing his trachea.

  As soon as he delivered the near fatal blow, Jason knew he caused serious damage. Weinstein collapsed, holding his throat. He squirmed on the ground, trying to catch a breath. Jason leapt onto the speedboat with a single stride. He threw a side kick at the guard holding Cameron, sending him into the sea.

  Jason paused and looked at Cameron. It took him a few seconds to take in his surroundings and calm down.

  “Are you just going to stand there or are you going to untie me?” Cameron tutted.

  Another guard raced towards him along the jetty with his sword raised. Jason leapt back onto the jetty and ran towards him, As he got close he fell to hip with legs forward and slid towards him, taking out one guard’s legs from under him. As the guard fell, Jason caught the handle of his sword and twisted it. The guard had a choice, either have his wrist broken or release his grip on the sword.

  Once he had let go of the sword, Jason caught it and threw it into the sea. Jason held the guard down with his arm behind his back. Jason’s right hand fumbled for the guard’s neck. His fingers found the man’s carotid artery and squeezed. The blood supply was blocked, and within a few seconds, the man was unconscious.

  Jason ran back to the speedboat and untied Cameron.

  “I called Dexter. He’s on his way,” Cameron said. “Where’s Connor?”

  “He was on his way here. I’ll go and check,” Jason panted.

  He ran back up the jetty and made his way to the stairs that climbed up to the castle. He climbed a few steps and stopped in his tracks. Connor was walking down the steps. His face was cut, and his nose bleeding. His hands were raised above his head.

  Right behind him were two guards both carrying pistols.

  “Sorry Jason, I got overpowered,” Connor said glumly.

  “You boy, hands above your head,” one of Connors captors shouted at Jason in broken English.

  “You have two chances of that happening, slim and none. And slim just left town,” Jason said turning and running back down the stairs. Jason ran towards the office. Two shots rang out, narrowly missing him. Jason ducked behind a stack of crates and peeked out, trying to figure out what to do next.

  Connor was forced onto the ground and told not to move. One guard stood over him with a gun pointed at his head. The second guard slowly crept towards the stacks of wooden crates.

  Jason looked around for a new hiding place. He found a stack of drums full of fuel, and using all his strength, he tipped one up and rolled it towards the guards.

  The guard stopped it rolling with his foot and laughed with his foot resting on the top. He stopped laughing when the cap came off and gas gushed out, making a carpet of deadly flammable gas that started to cover the floor of the cavern.

  Jason came out from his place of hiding with a grenade in his right hand and the pin in his left. He was holding the spring trigger tight. If he released his grip, it would explode after a few seconds.

  The guard’s face turned white. He looked back at the other guard. Both looked terrified and unsure what to do.

  “You both need to leave now. If I drop this we all go bang,” Jason said stating the word ‘bang’ really loud for good effect. It made both guards jump.

  Connor stood. “He’s right. He’s crazy. You had better go,” he said.

  “You wouldn’t dare,” the guard said.

  “You have a gun pointed at me, I have nothing else to lose. If I put the grenade down, I’m shark food. If I let it go, we all go bang,” Jason said again making the bang sound loud and making the guard jump. “So, do you think it wise to dare someone who has nothing else to lose?”

  “Come on, I have a family. This kid is loco,” the guard said to the other. They both slowly backed away and made their way up the stairway cut out of the rocks. It led up to the castle.

  “There are more of his guards upstairs. They may come down,” Connor said.

  “Get out on
to the jetty with Cameron. I will hold them back,” Jason said.

  “They are armed,” Connor suggested.

  “I have an idea, go,” Jason ordered.

  Connor sprinted along the jetty. Cameron was checking Weinstein for a pulse. For a few seconds, Connor watched her, waiting for her diagnoses.

  “He’s alive but having trouble breathing,” Cameron said.

  “How did he get like that?” Connor asked.

  “Jason hit him,” she said softly.

  Connor looked at her in disbelief. “Just hit him?”

  Jason checked the stairway to ensure it was clear. He studied the structure. The stairs where cut out of the rock. They tunneled their way up to the castle. He found a small crevice and dropped the grenade in. Immediately, he jumped down the few stairs and sprinted out towards the jetty.

  “Start the boat,” Jason shouted as he ran. Cameron looked at the controls.

  The grenade exploded, sending shards of rock across the stairway. His plan had failed it didn’t block the tunnel as he had hoped. Far worse, some of the gas that had spilled from the gas drum caught fire and started to spread.

  “What did you do?” Cameron asked.

  “Blocked the tunnel. Let’s get out of here,” Jason said.

  Connor lifted Weinstein and dragged him towards the speedboat. They pulled his unconscious body and let him fall on the deck.

  “That’s strange,” Jason said, looking back at the cavern.

  “What is?” Connor asked.

  “Where is that smoke coming from and look flames? I only blew up the tunnel entrance,” Jason said.

  “Derrrrr. Maybe the gas that was everywhere from the huge drum you rolled across the floor,” Connor said.

  Flames started to come out of the cavern. Smoke billowed its way up to the castle. The guests panicked and left out onto the street at the back of the castle.