Twelve

by Dustin Stevens

  Winston extended a hand for him to stop.

  Chester kept pushing forward anyway.

  Winston again waved him off, this time pointing to him and dragging a finger across his throat.

  Chester retreated back against the wall, still clutching the printouts.

  “Ladies and gentlemen!”

  The crowd erupted into applause as Winston pulled the grid of fighters up to the main screen. In order, he crossed of Kekoa, followed by Maake.

  With each new X, a loud cheer went up from the crowd.

  “And as I’m sure you all know, that means we have our champion!”

  Winston pulled the photo of Will up to the screen. He then brought up the live feed of Will and Heath approaching the door for all to see.

  “Would you all like to meet our new champion?”

  A cheer went up again from the room, mixed with fervent applause.

  Winston reached under the podium and tugged on a narrow silver switch. He could just make out the sound of the door’s locks snapping open as he did so.

  On cue, the doors swung open into the large banquet hall.

  Ninety-Nine

  Will and Heath stood side by side. Their bodies were tense, their weapons at attention in front of them. For a moment, the sound of the door unlocking hung in the air.

  The doors swung open.

  Bright lights poured from the banquet hall into the hallway, washing over them. A deluge of sound erupted as the collective cheering of a hundred people rushed to greet them.

  “What the hell?” Will asked.

  Heath kept the bat poised in front of him. “I think we’re done. I think we did it.”

  Will kept the knife at the ready as well. “We may have won, but I don’t think we’re done. Not just yet.”

  The brothers walked towards the double doors and could see Winston standing behind the front podium.

  “Agreed,” Heath said.

  They passed through the double doors and into the room to find every single guest standing and cheering. Around the edge of the room, servers in vests and bow ties clapped as well.

  Will and Heath watched for several long moments as the crowd continued to cheer. Neither lowered their weapons even a fraction of an inch.

  They turned their gaze back towards the podium where a smaller man with close cropped grey hair and wire rimmed glasses joined Winston. Both gave polite applause.

  “Who’s the new guy?” Heath asked.

  “Must be a second in command or something.”

  “Which one you want?”

  “Winston," Will seethed.

  Without a single care for the hundred pairs of eyes watching them, they set off for the front podium.

  Weapons in hand.

  One Hundred

  Will and Heath only made it a few feet.

  The enormous applause in the room muffled the sound of the charges in the back, but it was impossible to ignore the bright light that flooded in the moment the doors opened.

  The brothers each stopped cold and stared as a handful of soldiers in black spilled into the room. Several men in ties came in on their heels.

  It took a moment for the guests to realize what was happening. The soldiers were all in place, spread across the back of the room, before the applause began to fade away.

  “The guy in the middle left is Stone. That’s who I talked to in the parking lot,” Heath whispered.

  Will nodded and watched as a man with dark hair and a rumpled shirt and tie entered. He stepped from between the middle two soldiers and held his credentials above his head.

  “Ladies and gentlemen! I am Special Agent Mike Manus of the FBI. You are all hereby under arrest and instructed to remain where you are.”

  A collective gasp went up from the room and several people retreated back into their seats.

  Along the left side of the room, a waiter tried to duck through the kitchen doors. McMichaels put a bullet through the door in front him, throwing shards of wood into his face and stopping him in his tracks.

  At the podium, Winston turned his head and leveled a penetrating glare on Chester.

  Chester met the stare and held up the printouts in his hand. He dropped them on the floor at his feet and shrugged his shoulders.

  The entirety of the crowd sank into their seats, leaving a clear line of sight between the front and the back.

  From the podium, Winston lifted his hands into the air. “Gentlemen! There must be some mistake. This is a private party for business associates. Nothing more.”

  As he spoke, Nixon’s team arrived.

  A full tactical team accompanied by two dozen agents poured in. They slid around the back and down the sides, forming a solid horseshoe around the room.

  Manus watched the agents file in. A smug expression grew on his face. “Really? Business associates have gatherings that last all night?”

  He motioned to the waiters and the televisions around the room. “Complete with full food and beverage service and closed circuit viewing of the grounds?”

  He pulled up next to one of the tables in the back and slid a gambling machine over in front of him. “And machines that allow guests to bet over one hundred and forty million dollars? Is that how things are done at Mjollnir Industries?”

  Winston’s mouth dropped open for a second.

  “Yes, that’s right Mr. Winston. I’m the one that raided your office tonight and I’m the one that’s been on your ass for months now. I know all about who you and your business associates are. So don’t bother lying to me about it, okay?”

  “Agent Manus, I’m quite certain—“

  “Shut the hell up!” Manus bellowed before Winston could finish his sentence.

  A hollow silence hung in the hall.

  Manus turned to the agents around the room. "Let’s get these people out of here. I want every last one of them processed and questioned!”

  The agents swarmed into the room and began moving guests out the back doors.

  Manus motioned for Nixon and Stone to follow him and moved for the front of the room. They cut through the tables, guests filing out of their way as they went.

  The three of them reached the front of the room simultaneously.

  Manus turned his gaze to the right. “You boys must be the Honeycutt’s.”

  Will flicked his eyes between the three of them.

  Beside him, Heath nodded to Stone. “Yes, sir.”

  “Glad to see you boys made it out alive. I know you’re on our side, but I’ve got to ask you to drop those weapons.”

  Will and Heath both glanced down at the weapons they forget they were holding. They opened their hands and dropped them to the ground with a clatter.

  Neither broke eye contact.

  Manus turned to Winston and Rosner.

  “Gentlemen, really," Winton said. "I think there’s been some mistake.”

  “I told you to shut the hell up,” Manus growled.

  Winston feigned fear for a moment. Arrogance soon replaced it. “So that’s how it’s going to be?

  “What do you think, Agent Manus? That you coming here tonight accomplished anything? Every person in this room will be breathing free air by noon at the latest. By that time we’ll all be doing what we were going to be doing and your father and your agent will both still be dead.

  “So go ahead, lock us up. I promise you that all of you-“ he looked in turn at Manus, Will and Heath, “—especially you three, will wear the scars of tonight long after we do.”

  Manus raised a hand to respond, but was cut off.

  Instead, Will took a step forward and leveled his eyes on Winston. “This son of a bitch lured us here tonight. He and his cronies sat in here and watched as my brother and I fought for our lives. Please look the other way for the next five minutes.”

  Manus glared at Winston. “You have no idea how much I want to, but I can’t. This son of a bitch has to answer for what he’s done. Death is too easy.”

  Heath stepped alongside Wil
l. “You know what he’s saying is right. These guys have teams of lawyers that will have them out in no time.”

  “These guys aren’t going before any judge," Manus said. This time, the look of arrogance was his.

  “We have a very special place for people like him. A place where nobody hears the screams and nobody makes it out to tell stories.”

  The brothers both smiled.

  Heath took another step. “Can we at least give him a few scars to remember us by as well?”

  Manus paused a moment, then the corner of his mouth turned upward. “What did you boys have in mind?”

  Will and Heath both stared at Winston. Neither said a word.

  Manus reached into his back pocket and pulled out his wallet. He removed the postcard from Santiago and flicked it towards the podium.

  “You boys go right ahead. None of us will see a thing.”

  One Hundred One

  It took over two hours to process the scene.

  Will and Heath answered every question Manus and Nixon could think of.

  Twice.

  By the time they were done the garage and driveway was too congested to get out, so they made their way to the kitchen. They discovered mountains of untouched steak and lobster and wheeled it all out into the dining room.

  They found Stone standing at the front of the room, watching the scene unfold. Nixon’s team had secured most of the guests and several of the Marines sat dozing against the wall.

  “Lieutenant Stone,” Heath said, “what are your thoughts on steak?”

  Stone’s gaze stopped in the middle of a sweep of the room and slid to Heath. “Steak is a religion where I come from.”

  “And where's that?”

  “Oklahoma. Little town called Warner.”

  “No shit? Our old man's from Muskogee.”

  “Boomer Sooner.”

  “Boomer Sooner,” Heath agreed. “The reason I ask is we just found a whole mess of steak and lobster in the back. Any chance you boys could help us with it?”

  Beside them, the other Marines had sat up and were listening close.

  Stone looked past Heath’s shoulder to the cart of meat and placed his weapon down on the table beside him. “Well then, I think the FBI has things under control here for the time being.”

  Together the eight of them sat and ate until they were all stuffed. After that, they even managed to chase it with a couple of cheesecakes and a platter of Bananas Foster.

  By eight-thirty the scene began to clear. The brothers rose and shook hands with each of the Marines and wished them well.

  Before leaving, Heath turned and said, “Can I ask you guys one question before we go?”

  All six of the men stared back in silence. A few made motioning gestures with their hands.

  “In my line of work, I’ve seen death. Tonight though, tonight was the first time I've ever taken a life. How do you get that out of your head?”

  Beside him Will stood quiet, his eyes moving from Heath to the men.

  In the middle of the table, Stone rocked his head up and down a few times. “Yeah, I can only imagine what you guys are thinking right now.

  “In the Marines, we go in knowing that we may be asked to take a life. We’re trained in how to handle a weapon, how to engage in combat. We’re even given counseling after the fact to help us through.

  “You guys though, you went in cold. Twelve hours ago you were like anybody else walking the street.”

  He paused for a moment and raised his eyes to them. “I can offer you two things that might help. First, know that you did what you had to do.

  “Survival is the strongest of all of nature’s instincts. You didn’t seek out death and you didn’t obtain pleasure from it. You just did what you had to do.

  “Second, don’t try to pretend it never happened. It’ll eat you alive. Just be careful who you talk to about it. Most people have never been in that situation. They wouldn’t understand.

  “Talk to each other. Talk to a professional. Talk to a soldier. It’s not perfect, but it helps.”

  Heath and Will both weighed the words and nodded. They waved another goodbye and backed their way out of the room.

  In the foyer they answered a few final questions to Manus and Nixon and left their contact information. Each side wished the other well and thanked them for all they had done.

  Finally, by nine they were on the road for home.

  One Hundred Two

  The morning was full and bright by the time they reached the highway. The morning traffic had thinned and Heath pushed the speed limit as he wound through the scattered cars around them.

  They rode with the windows down and the radio up, both to keep them awake and affirm that they had made it out alive.

  Twenty-five minutes after leaving the compound, Heath pulled to a stop in front of Will’s house. He put the car in park and let the engine idle by the curb.

  “I know I told you this already, but I can’t begin to tell you how sorry I am that I got you into that mess last night,” Will said.

  “Don’t be. Seriously.”

  Will motioned to Heath’s face and clothes. “We’re lucky to be alive. If something had happened to you, that’d be on me. Forever.”

  “And if I hadn’t gone and something had happened to you, that’d be on me. Forever.

  Will nodded, then smirked. “Yeah, you would have one pissed off sister-in-law and niece to deal with. They tend to be a little protective of me.”

  “Hell, that’s nothing compared to mama. You know how protective she can be of her baby.”

  “You’re still the favorite.”

  “Not a chance in hell, brother.”

  Both of the brothers laughed. It was a debate would ever relent on.

  “What’s your plan now?” Will asked. “Go home and go to bed?”

  Heath shook his head. “Naw. I’m supposed to be back on the floor in about three hours.”

  “There’s no way they’ll let you operate is there?”

  “Definitely not. I’ll stop by and tell them I’m out of commission for the next couple of days.”

  “How’s that going to go over?”

  “Like a fart in church, but they already control most of my waking hours. What more can they take from me?”

  “Very true," Will conceded.

  “After I go see my boss I’m going to get my ribs checked out. You should come by too. Get some stitches in your arms, have a full once-over.”

  “Naw, they’ll be alright.”

  “Don’t make me call Jenna. Or mama.”

  Will cracked a smile. A moment of silence passed as somber looks fell across both their faces.

  “You know, I’ve been thinking about what Stone said," Will said.

  “Yeah, me too.”

  “What say for the time being, we just tell people we got into a few scrapes, did what we had to do. They don’t need to know any more than that.”

  “Agreed,” Heath said. “Right now, I’m not even sure I know everything that happened last night.”

  Will raised his eyebrows a fraction of an inch and bobbed his head. “Alright man. I’m going to go see my wife and hug my daughter. Maybe take a nap. Then I’ll be by.”

  Heath shook his head. “No nap. Not yet anyway. Let us check you for a concussion first.”

  Will nodded his head and looked up towards his house. “What’s your plan for tonight?”

  “Sleep. Don’t ask me to do anything else. Sleep.”

  Will coughed out a laugh. “Alright, tomorrow night?”

  “Tomorrow night I’m free.”

  “Why don’t you come by? Red Sox are playing, and I do owe you a carnivore from Bellagio’s.”

  Heath smiled. “You better order two, just to be safe.”

  Will smiled, bent his left arm at the elbow and held his hand in the air. “Thank you. For everything. I’m sorry as hell you got dragged in, but I’m glad you were there. I couldn’t have done it without you.”

&nbs
p; Heath grasped his brother’s hand in return. “You’re welcome.”

  The front door of the house burst open and Jenna spilled out onto the concrete steps. “Will? Will!” she cried as she leapt down and started across the yard.

  Heath released his brother’s grip and slapped him on the thigh. “Go hug your wife and daughter for me. Poor Jenna looks like her night was as rough as ours.”

  “I’ll see you at the hospital later.”

  Will bounded from the car and met Jenna halfway across the yard. He lifted her high into the air as she buried her face in his chest. A moment later the front door swung open again and a ball of golden curls waddled down the front porch steps.

  Heath watched them from the curb for a moment. A smile grew across his face as he put the car into drive and eased out into the street.

  From the yard, Will raised a hand toward the departing car.

  Beside him, Jenna and Maggie did the same.

  Epilogue

  One Hundred Three

  Forty-eight hours after landing in Portland, Manus boarded the plane to head back to Washington. Nixon dropped him, Briggs, and Heller off at the airport personally.

  The Marines had caught a military plane home the day before. Once the grounds were secure, they were all too happy to be on their way back home.

  Manus was fine with that arrangement. The inclusion of Kelly’s coffin put space at a premium onboard anyway.

  Manus surveyed the inside of the cabin with a foul taste in his mouth.

  Winston had been right. Most of the people in that room had enough wealth and connections that within minutes of reaching the Portland field office the place was swarming with lawyers. Hours later many of them were put on planes to head back home.

  Winston hadn’t been so lucky. Most of the guests were guilty of gambling and maybe a few counts of racketeering. Relatively minor charges, all things considered.

  Winston they had for a dozen murders, including the death of an FBI agent. The bodies of the defeated fighters were pulled from the mansion as evidence and Nixon’s men had done a full workup of the crime scene near Idiotville.