by Matt Rogers
The surrounding area erupted into bedlam. Screams of shock sounded from all levels of the motel complex as the entire building vibrated on its foundations.
Kate scrambled out of bed and threw her clothes on, her motions jerky and panicked. King followed suit, diving into the outfit she had bought him earlier that morning. A pair of jeans and a long-sleeved cotton shirt. Both tight fits. They gathered their things, speechless, reeling from how close they had come to getting blown to pieces. He sensed that she was unsure as to what exactly had happened.
‘What’s going on?’ she said finally, scooping up her bag, ready to leave.
‘Someone just threw a grenade through our window.’
Her eyes boggled. ‘Was that what it was?’
He nodded. ‘Let’s go. Right now.’
They threw the door open and headed out into the street. On the way to Billy’s sedan they passed Yvonne. The old woman had staggered out of reception, tears in her eyes, staring vacantly at the widespread destruction across her motel. Repairs would be expensive. King took one look at her, then reached into the windbreaker he carried in one arm and took out the remaining stack of bills from the biker’s clubhouse. At least ten grand, maybe more. He peeled off a couple to get them through the next few days, then handed the rest over to Yvonne.
She met his gaze. ‘What’s this for? Did you do this?’
‘No. But there’s people who want to hurt me, and I stayed here knowing they might target me. So it’s on me. You use this money to fix it all up. I’m sorry, Yvonne.’
‘It’s not your fault.’
‘Everyone’s telling me that, but I’m starting to think it is.’
They left her and took Billy’s sedan out onto the main road. Kate averted her eyes from the grisly remains of Brandt’s imposter, lying in pieces next to the smouldering police car wreckage. A surreal sight when contrasted with the peaceful country town around it. King stared at the scene as they passed, knowing every police officer for miles in any direction would be on their position in no time. They had to get out of Jameson, at least for the time being.
‘To Rafael Constructions?’ Kate said. Her voice shook, probably from the shock of seeing such a grisly death up close and personal.
King nodded. ‘There’d better be something significant there.’
They passed the chemist, and the post office, and the convenience store, and the cafe, and a swathe of other buildings. Already shopkeepers and customers alike were out on the street, their eyes searching for the source of the almighty racket they’d heard before. King kept his gaze fixed on the road ahead and in no time they were out of town, heading north.
Kate turned to him, as if to say something. She stopped. Decided against it.
‘What are you thinking?’ he said, aware there was something on her mind.
‘It’s about time you told me what you used to do. Specifically.’
‘Why now all of a sudden?’
‘Because that was insanity. I heard the window smash, and I paused for what couldn’t have been more than a second … I think just to register the noise. And in that time you jumped out of bed, picked it up and threw it back. Before I even realised what was happening. No-one is that fast. I’ve never seen anyone react the way you do. You’re an anomaly.’
King sighed. ‘I made it to the Delta Force at twenty-two. That’s where I met Cole. He was one of the only people I got along with. He and another man named Dirk. Everyone else hated me. I was at least five years younger than any of them. They accelerated me through the ranks quicker than most.’
‘Was that all?’
King shook his head. ‘I only spent a couple of years there. In training drills I was noticed by a few higher-ups. They watched me. Ran some tests. Turns out I have close to the fastest reaction speed on earth.’
‘Jesus.’
‘And these men were right at the top of the food chain. Four-star generals, that sort of thing. They were already in the planning stages of an unofficial operation. They called it Black Force. I was their first recruit. And there’s zero evidence that anything I did ever happened. They sent me into the worst hellholes on earth. Often alone. I was their freak science project. I saved a lot of good people, killed a lot of bad people. I was Black Force’s main operative for eight years. I don’t know how many others there were. No-one told me anything. I was a ghost, a secret independent contractor. They paid me enormous sums of money to do the things that never would have ordinarily been sanctioned.’
‘When did you retire?’
‘Two months ago. Everything was beginning to catch up to me, and I couldn’t take much more of it.’
‘All the killing?’
‘Not so much that. Partially, but not all. It was how close I kept coming to death, over and over and over again. I knew it wasn’t sustainable. Sooner or later, I’d be too slow. I’d get caught from behind. I’d find myself in open ground, with no cover. Something like that. It ate away at me until I finally mustered up the nerve to call it quits.’
‘How did the higher-ups react?’
‘They knew I meant it. They had enough goodwill to let me go.’
‘Maybe not.’
King turned to her. ‘What do you mean?’
‘Maybe that’s what this is. They want you out of the picture. They don’t want someone so dangerous roaming around. Maybe they think there’ll be peace of mind if you’re eliminated.’
He shook his head. ‘I already considered that. But this is something else. If they wanted me dead, they could have done it as soon as I gave my notice. No-one would have ever known. They didn’t need to follow me here. Construction workers and police officers and civilians didn’t have to die. This is something I’ve stumbled upon. I’m connected in some way. I don’t know how. But it’s bigger than just me.’
He stared at the trees passing by, rustling in the mountain wind. The cold sliced in and beat at their faces, chilling them to the bone.
‘It’s up here,’ Kate said, motioning to the forest on the right-hand side of the road. ‘The head office. We’re close.’
As they drove further out of town, a section of the forest cleared up ahead. They began to pass large industrial sites; factories, warehouses, farmland. Dirt trails branched off in many directions, inter-connecting the facilities. She beckoned to a path slicing between two enormous metal warehouses and King swung the sedan over its rocky surface.
They pulled up to a long low building made from polished timber planks. An old home that had been converted into an office. A wooden deck ran round its entire perimeter, much similar to Kate’s house. Behind the building he could see a sprawling industrial complex home to a concrete plant and an array of mixing trucks, lined up in orderly fashion. Beside Rafael Constructions’ land, an abandoned factory sprawled into the sky. A lot of potential vantage points. Many places to hide a marksman.
King got out of the sedan, wondering if he would make it to the head office without catching a bullet in the brain.
As his feet touched the gravel surface, the door to the office opened and a small rotund man dressed smartly in a pair of slacks and an oversized dress shirt hobbled out onto the patio. His name badge read Bernie.
‘What brings you two all the way out here?’ he said, an overly false smile plastered across his face.
CHAPTER 25
Bernie led them through the main reception area. A pretty receptionist sat behind the desk, but apart from that the building was entirely devoid of people. The rest of the room consisted of a few waiting chairs, with various magazines strewn across a coffee table. Nothing out of the ordinary. Bernie strode into a small interview room and beckoned them through. This room was smaller, furnished with a conference table and a handful of rickety chairs.
King shivered involuntarily. The whole place made him feel uneasy. Everything was too clean, too unimposing. He looked at Bernie’s greasy comb over and awkward gait and soulless black eyes and couldn’t help but find the man suspicious. Neverthele
ss, he and Kate sat down without a fuss. On the front porch, he’d simply explained to Bernie that he wanted to ask a few questions about the company. Bernie had ushered them into this room. Now, he sat down on the opposite side of the conference table and clasped his hands together.
‘What can I do for you?’ he asked with the same over-the-top smile.
‘My name’s Jason.’
‘American?’
King nodded. ‘On vacation.’
‘Ah! Of course.’
‘I’m just passing through and I thought I’d drop in here to visit an old friend.’
‘Is that so? Let’s see if I can go find him for you.’
‘His name’s David Lee.’
A split second of hesitation. Unnoticeable to the average civilian, but in that moment King knew that Bernie was a lying piece of shit. The man cocked his head to pass off his surprise and said, ‘Well, Jason, I’m sorry to inform you that David actually stopped working for us a few weeks ago.’
‘Oh.’
‘Yes, very unfortunate.’
‘May I ask why?’
‘He was just a contractor. Came into town looking for some temporary work. Nothing more.’
‘So he’s out of town?’
Bernie nodded. ‘He left almost straight away, I’m sorry to say. Did he tell you he’d be here?’
‘He said he’d be around.’
‘Well, I haven’t seen him for weeks.’
‘What about Miles Price?’
‘I’m sorry?’
‘Miles Price. He’s another friend of mine. Did he conveniently happen to leave a few weeks ago as well?’
Bernie coughed and laughed sardonically, a bad attempt to dissipate the tension in the room. ‘Give me a moment to just check my files. I’m not up to speed with everyone who works for this company.’
‘That’s a shame. You should be.’
Bernie shot him a glance, then pulled out his phone and flicked at the screen. He used over-the-top gestures, to make it look like he was scrolling through notes. Another poor performance. King had seen a lot better in his time. Sweat broke out across the man’s brow. A thin droplet ran down his forehead.
‘Ah yes, here we are,’ Bernie said. ‘Miles Price! He only worked here for a couple of days. Even less than David. That was weeks ago also. I’m afraid you’ve missed both of them. Are you able to contact them?’
‘No.’
‘You don’t have their numbers?’
‘I have their numbers.’
Bernie cocked his head.
‘I think you know why I’m not able to contact them, Bernie,’ King said.
‘I’m sorry, sir, but I can’t say I follow.’
‘I think you know they’re dead.’
He feigned surprise. ‘I’m sorry?’
‘I think you’re in on this whole thing.’
‘What whole thing?’
‘You know exactly what’s going on. You’ve done a shit job of covering it up, too. So you’re going to tell me the truth; you’re going to tell me everything you know about why Miles and David are dead, and who bought this place a month ago, and why people are trying to kill me, and what exactly is going on behind closed doors.’
Bernie shook his head. ‘I’m afraid you’re awfully mistaken, Jason. You must think I’m someone I’m not.’
‘Oh, I don’t think you’re behind this. You’re sweating and shaking. You’re shitting your pants. This isn’t your gig. But someone is paying you to keep quiet, or use your facility. You need to let me help you, or you’re just going to end up the same way everyone in this town is ending up at the moment.’
‘I beg your pardon,’ Bernie said. ‘Was that a threat on my life?’
‘Not from me. But I can pretend you talked.’
Kate said, ‘We know enough already.’
King said, ‘They’ll kill you slowly if they think you divulged important information.’
Bernie scoffed and rose out of his chair. ‘I think we’re done here. You seem delusional, Jason. And as for you—‘ he turned to Kate, ‘—I don’t know why you’re hanging around with this lunatic. Surely you have better things to do.’
King got up slowly and took a step toward the door. Putting his bulk in between Bernie’s means of escape. Making sure he couldn’t take off running. ‘I’m just about done with all this stalling.’
‘I’m just about done with your ludicrous accusations,’ Bernie said.
Movement behind them. From the reception area. Hurried footsteps, urgent. King’s reflexes kicked in and he spun rapidly, ready to explode, primed for combat.
He didn’t expect to see another pair of familiar faces. Guns up. In uniform.
Kitchener and Dawes.
The trio recognised each other simultaneously. Dawes nodded a greeting, despite the tense circumstances.
‘Been a while, King,’ he said.
‘What the hell’s going on?’ King said. ‘Are you two in on this?’
They both looked confused.
‘In on what?’ Kitchener said. ‘Someone just called us reporting an aggressive visitor. Guess that’s you.’
‘I told my receptionist to call,’ Bernie said.
‘We’ve only been here minutes,’ King said. ‘You must have done that before you came out to greet us. So you know who I am.’
‘Enough with your assumptions!’ Bernie said, raising his voice now that figures of authority were present. Now that the risk of violence had dissipated. He stepped in front of King and approached the two police officers. ‘This man is insane. He’s accusing me and my co-workers of some kind of conspiracy. Please get him out of here.’
Suddenly Kate perked up, talking to Kitchener. ‘You need to listen to us. It’s—’
The female officer raised a hand, cutting her off. ‘Right now, it’s best if we just take you both to the station. We’ll sort everything out there.’
‘But—’
King made eye contact with Kate. He knew it would do no good to cause a scene here. ‘At the station, Kate. We don’t have a choice.’
Dawes grabbed him by the arm and led him back through reception to the parking lot. He saw their police sedan parked next to Billy’s. He was forced into the back seat, and Kate ducked in beside him. The doors slammed on either side of them. King watched the pair of officers approach Bernie and speak to him, their mannerisms calm. Bernie nodded along, playing the victim. Tears appeared in his eyes.
‘Piece of shit,’ King muttered under his breath.
‘Surely those two know something’s afoot,’ Kate said. ‘Didn’t you break out of their station yesterday?’
‘They know. But they’re not going to discuss it in front of him. At least, I hope that’s what’s happening.’
The pair walked back to the car. They opened the front seat doors. They got in. Kitchener turned in her seat and faced King. ‘You’d better have some answers.’
He started to speak, but she held up a hand to stop him. ‘Save it for the station. We’ve had a lot of shit to deal with lately. Let’s just have some quiet for a while.’
Dawes drove them out of the industrial zone, beginning the short trip back to Jameson. It seemed that whatever he did, wherever he went, King was unable to escape the pull of such a small town. He feared he’d never leave it alive.
CHAPTER 26
As they trawled back through the town, King noticed much of the road in front of Yvonne’s motel cordoned off. A forensic team scoured the crime scene. They’d hid the imposter’s mangled body from view, obscuring it with a tarpaulin sheet. It seemed like half of Jameson had come down to check out the scene. He guessed it would be the talk of the town for months, if not years, to come.
‘I’m guessing this was you,’ Kitchener said, pointing a finger in the direction of the commotion.
King shook his head. ‘No idea what you’re talking about.’
‘Oh, I’m sure.’
They carried on. As King stared out the window, he decided he’d
seen enough trees for one lifetime. When he got out of here — if he got out of here — he would make a change of scenery as soon as humanly possible. Another forest would drive him insane.
They pulled into the Jameson Police Department. He and Kate were led through into a different room than the one he’d last been held in, this one much larger, much more open. A floor-to-ceiling window faced out onto the front yard. King noticed Dawes and Kitchener’s relaxed attitudes. There were no handcuffs. No hostility.
They sat down opposite him, and Dawes took a deep breath, as if releasing all the tension of the past twenty-four hours.
‘Let’s start from where we left off,’ he said.
‘I broke out,’ King said.
‘We know.’
‘I’m sorry.’
‘We know that also. It seems like you’re doing the right thing, at least.’
Kitchener pointed at Kate. ‘How’d you get her wrapped up in all this?’
‘After the whole debacle with Brandt, I figured that she would be the one to have answers. So I decided I needed to kidnap her. And you two wouldn’t approve of that, obviously. So I left.’
‘And?’
‘Dead end. She doesn’t know anything.’
‘I was paid to deliver a package to the post office,’ Kate said. ‘I don’t know who by, and I don’t know why. I swear.’
Dawes leaned forward. ‘Brandt’s imposter escaped.’
‘Wow, that’s news,’ King said.
Kitchener shook her head. ‘No it’s not. Because you would have been staying in that motel. He would have come after you. He stole one of our vehicles.’
‘How exactly did he manage to do that?’ King said.
‘We’re still trying to work that out. We found him dazed in the hallway. He refused to speak. Didn’t say a word. We put him in a cell and made the necessary calls. He must have slipped a key, or picked the lock, or something. That’s still unclear. But now he’s dead. That’s very clear.’
‘Do you have anything else on him?’ King said.
‘We ran him through the system. He flew in from America the day before last. Fake passport. We don’t know his real name. Now we never will.’