by Alex Siegel
"That was quick," she said excitedly.
"My people are everywhere."
"Then I suppose it's time to discuss the specifics of payment. Do you want cash, gold, or diamonds?"
"Gold would be best," he said. "Come back to the garage..."
"No. I'm not doing that again. We'll meet in a location where you're not likely to get frisky. The security screening area in the San Jose Airport, terminal B, and don't bring a crowd. You can have one other man with you."
"You were brave last night. Now you're very cautious."
"I surprised you last night. This time, you'll be prepared for me. I'll see you in an hour." She ended the call and put away her phone.
Aaron smiled at her. "You were indeed very brave last night."
"Thanks." She smiled back. "But I knew you were right outside, and that helped a lot. Come to the airport with me."
He stood up.
* * *
The Mineta San José International Airport was beautiful. The high roof enclosed a vast amount of space, and floor-to-ceiling windows allowed sunlight to pour in. Everything was white, clean, and modern. Steel beams followed the sweeping, curved architectural lines. Fabric panels on the ceiling helped absorb the crowd noise.
Marina was standing in front of the security checkpoint. Even though the equipment was state-of-the-art, and the checkpoint was well staffed, there was still a very long line of travelers. Parents were struggling to keep their kids under control. At least half the people were messing with their phones or tablets. Marina believed the whole screening process was absurd. A serious terrorist could always find a way to cause destruction. It seemed like the real goal of the security was to convince travelers that they were safe, when in fact, it made little practical difference.
Aaron was keeping an eye on her from a distance of about thirty yards. She had also brought Hanley along, and he was stationed by the door. All three of them were wearing nice suits, and Marina had a briefcase containing four pounds of gold.
El Toro walked into the airport, and he looked spiffy in a brown jacket and slacks. The tall man at his side was wearing a blue sweat suit, sunglasses, and a baseball cap. Marina picked out several gun bulges on both men, but she wasn't worried. They wouldn't try anything in front of a small army of TSA agents.
El Toro walked over to her, but his companion stayed back several paces.
"I had a dream about you," El Toro said quietly.
Marina raised her eyebrows in surprise. "Oh?"
"You were different. Your skin was hard and faceted like a crystal. You flew across the sky in the blink of an eye, and wherever you went, death followed."
"I like this dream." She smiled.
"It seemed important. What did it mean?"
She shrugged. "I don't know. It was your dream. It's true that death does tend to follow me around though."
"How did you know about Lorena?"
"I'm in the information gathering business. I also know that Rafael Meza is buried under the new foundation they just poured for the Santa Clara Valley Medical Center."
El Toro stared at Marina with wide eyes.
"Don't worry." She patted his thick arm. "I can keep a secret, but the next time I need you to do some work for me, I'll expect a much better attitude. Where is Kelsie Green?"
"Let me see the gold."
She gave him the briefcase. He opened it discreetly and examined the contents with a passive expression.
"Satisfied?" Marina said.
"If it's real," El Toro said.
"It is. Where is the girl?"
He gave her a scrap of paper with some writing on it. "She works for a guy named Jerry Landers. He has several girls under his control."
"Prostitutes?"
"No, thieves. They steal things for him, and he sells the loot for money."
"Doesn't sound fair." Marina furrowed her brow.
"He makes his girls wear GPS ankle bracelets," El Toro said. "If they don't come back, he tracks them down and beats them in front of the others. He keeps them locked up in his house when they're not working. If they run away a second time, he kills them."
She had a tight feeling in her gut. She decided she would meet Mr. Landers personally.
"Thank you. That's all for now." She gave a gray business card to El Toro. "Call this number if you need to reach me."
He examined the card. "Why would I need you?"
"I pay for information. I'm particularly interested in stories about strange or unnatural occurrences. If something doesn't seem right to you, or there is a new kind of crime, I want to hear about it. If the intelligence is valuable enough, I'll reward you with more than money. I can also do favors such as delivering hated enemies to your door. What happened to Mr. Heung?"
El Toro smiled. "He's still alive... mostly." He stuffed the business card in his pocket.
"Have fun with your toy. Bye."
Marina walked off. Aaron and Hanley joined her, and they left the airport together.
"Did you get the information, ma'am?" Hanley said.
She looked at the scrap of paper and saw an address. "I think so. We'll go straight there."
"What about the rest of the team?"
"We don't need them. I got this one." She narrowed her eyes with anger.
Chapter Twelve
Hanley parked the car in front of a white house which was too small to have more than a couple of bedrooms. A solid, wooden fence enclosed the property, but the wood was rotting in spots. Short palm trees were growing in the front yard. The sidewalk was cracked, and weeds were shooting through the cracks. A large farm was across the street, but it was just bare dirt at the moment.
Everybody got out. They were in a southeast neighborhood of San Jose, an unfashionable place to live, but there were no obvious vacancies. In the San Francisco Bay area, even slums were expensive, and there was never a shortage of people looking for a deal on a home.
"When we're inside," Aaron said to Marina, "keep it under control."
"Sure," she replied.
"Don't be so flippant. You have a history with men who abuse and subjugate women. This is the sort of situation where you're likely to turn into a raving, homicidal lunatic."
Marina had been secretly looking forward to that exact outcome, but he was right. She was a commander now, and flying into uncontrolled rages wasn't acceptable, not even a little. Those days were firmly behind her.
"OK," she said. "I get it."
Aaron stared at her.
"Really," she added. "Let's enter through the back."
Marina walked up to the fence. Even though it was taller than her, she had no trouble pulling herself up and over it. She dropped silently into the yard on the other side.
The backyard hadn't been watered in months if not years. It had reverted to clumps of native grass and weeds. The dirt was rock hard.
The back of the white house had just a few windows, and they desperately needed to be cleaned. She crept up to one and peeked inside. A skinny, teenage girl was sitting on the edge of a tub in a bathroom. She was just wearing her underwear, and it wasn't clean. A short chain bound her ankle to an exposed pipe, and there was enough slack for her to use the toilet and the sink, but she couldn't leave the bathroom. She was staring at a wall with a stupefied expression.
Black rage boiled inside Marina.
"Control," Aaron whispered in her ear.
She turned to him. Aaron and Hanley had come up behind her, and she hadn't even noticed.
"Yes, dear," she said through her teeth.
The group went around to another window, and Marina looked into a living room. An African-American man was sitting on a couch and watching television. He was only wearing boxer shorts, and his lean, muscular bare chest was exposed. Two teenage girls, one white and one Hispanic were on either side of him. His arms were squeezing them hard against his body. The girls were wearing underwear and GPS ankle bracelets.
"Must be Landers," Marina whispered.
&
nbsp; The white girl was Kelsie Green, and she had the same blonde hair as her mother. Marina had seen pictures of Kelsie from before she had run away from home, and she had looked healthy then, but now she was so scrawny all her ribs stuck out.
The only weapon in sight was a revolver on a coffee table.
Marina drew a gun from under her jacket. She stood up, broke the window with the muzzle, and aimed at Landers.
"Freeze!" she yelled. "Move a muscle, and you'll get a bullet between the eyes."
Landers looked at her with wide eyes. The girls screamed and scrambled to get behind a couch even though it wouldn't stop a bullet.
"Get him," Marina told Aaron out of the side of her mouth.
Aaron and Hanley busted into the house through a back door. A moment later, they were in the living room, and they quickly subdued Landers. When the situation was under control, Marina put her gun away and joined them inside the house.
"Search the house," she told Hanley.
"Yes, ma'am." He went into the next room with his gun in hand.
Marina stared at Landers. Aaron had him in a painful arm lock from behind.
"Are you cops?" Landers said.
She sneered. "You're not that lucky."
Hanley returned. The house was small, so searching it hadn't taken long.
"Two other girls," he reported. "The one in the bathroom and another in the bedroom."
"What's the condition of the last one?" Marina said.
"Chained to a bed and badly bruised."
She took a deep, shuddering breath. Maintaining control was getting increasingly difficult.
"Kelsie Green!" Marina bellowed. "Front and center! Now!"
Kelsie squealed in fear. Cowering, she stood up from behind the couch. Marina glared at her and pointed at the floor. The teenager was shaking like a leaf as she walked to the spot.
"You stole a phone," Marina said. "Specifically, the theft happened in an Alpha Foods in Sunnyvale around six o'clock at night. We have it on tape, so don't bother trying to deny it. We want to know where that phone went. Who did you give it to?"
"I gave it to him." Kelsie pointed at Landers. "He gets everything."
"And what did you do with it?" Marina asked Landers.
He raised his chin. "I ain't telling you shit."
She smirked. "I was hoping you'd say that, but before we get down to business, we need to take care of the girls." She nodded to Aaron and Hanley. "Put clothes on them, give them some money, and get them out of here. Kelsie, you're going straight home."
"But my parents don't want me back," Kelsie whimpered.
"Not true at all."
"They were mean to me."
"How?" Marina said.
"They refused to treat me like a grownup!"
"Right, and you've done so well since you left. You're a thief and a slave. You're living with a vicious psychopath who has you on an electronic leash. At this rate, you'll be dead or in prison before you can legally drink."
Kelsie's lower lip was shaking, and tears were running down her cheeks.
Marina went on, "There are only two people in the world who genuinely want what's best for you: your mother and your father. Free food, clothes, shelter, education, and love. Sounds like a great deal. Better than being beaten and raped by this asshole. Even an idiotic teenager like you should realize that by now. Suck up your pride and go home!"
Kelsie broke down and sobbed. Marina could almost see the walls of defiance crumbling. It was tough for the girl to admit she had been wrong all along.
Marina gave Landers a very light dose of venom so Aaron could help Hanley with the girls. Landers lay on the floor, paralyzed but conscious. The venom would wear off quickly, so Marina kept a close eye on him. She was ready to give him another dose as soon as he started to move.
Aaron used his corrosive saliva to free the girls from their chains and cuffs. They freaked out a little, but he refused to explain his supernatural ability. After about twenty minutes of fussing, he and Hanley had the girls ready to go back into the world as free women. They each received five hundred dollars in cash, and cabs were called.
Marina had a final word with Kelsie. "I'm going to check on you. If I find out you're not at home, I'll come after you." Marina whipped out a knife and placed it against Kelsie's soft throat. "I don't like it when my orders are disobeyed. Do you understand?"
Kelsie swallowed. "Yes."
"Now get out of here."
Landers' young victims finally left the house. Marina was sure they would remember this lesson, and the Lord's work had been done today.
She went back to the perpetrator in the living room. She had given him a few more light doses to keep him immobilized.
"Now it's just you and me," Marina said gleefully.
Landers mumbled with a semi-paralyzed mouth. "Who are you?"
"All you need to know is that you have no rights here. There will be no legal proceedings. The jury of one has spoken, and you have been found guilty on all charges. The duration and severity of your punishment will be determined by how much you resist answering my questions." She crouched down in front of his face and nicked his lip with her knife. "And I hope you resist. I want this interrogation to take a while. I'm going to enjoy it."
Aaron cleared his throat, and Marina looked up at him with irritation. He gave her a look that didn't require words. They had much better things to do than torture a common thug for her personal amusement. He wanted the interrogation to be quick, and he was right.
She stuck her tongue out at him. Having Aaron around wasn't always fun.
"Who did you sell the phone to?" Marina said.
Landers shook his head clumsily. "I'm not a rat."
She went in with the knife. She started by cutting key tendons in his elbows, shoulders, and knees. The wounds weren't too serious, but they would keep him relatively still after the venom wore off. The sharp knife sliced through his tendons easily, and he moaned with every cut.
"Your days of tormenting young women are over," Marina said.
The effect of the venom faded just as she finished her initial round of cutting. He rolled around and tried to get up, but his limbs weren't working properly. The big muscles had nothing to pull against and had bunched into tight balls.
"Bitch!" he cried. "I'll never tell you anything!"
Watching him flop around was fun, but Aaron's looming presence reminded her that she needed to hurry up. They were on a mission.
"Hold him down," Marina told Hanley.
The legionnaire leaned on Landers' shoulders, pinning him down.
Marina began to take apart his right hand like it was a puzzle. She cut away the little muscles, tendons, and bones, one at a time. She worked around the arteries to avoid bleeding. The pieces went on the floor in roughly the right anatomical position. Landers grunted and groaned as she worked.
"I don't understand how you can be so cold, ma'am," Hanley said.
"We're on a mission," Marina said, "and this sick piece of shit deserves to suffer."
"That's true, but it's still disturbing to watch you work. The only expression on your face is a crazy, little smile."
"I'll admit I have issues. Pain and death have been a constant theme in my life since I was a kid. It seems normal to me."
Hanley looked up at Aaron. "Sir, are you the same way?"
"Not to an extreme like Marina." Aaron shook his head. "I like to think I have a more balanced outlook."
"Aaron is bent a different way," Marina said, "but he's still bent. He enjoys slaughtering his enemies in large numbers. It's like he's playing a video game, and he always wins."
Landers' right hand had been reduced to a stump, so she went around and started working on his left.
"Stop!" he cried as she made the first cut. "You win!"
"Then talk to me."
"I sell all the phones to a place in Taiwan. I ship them overseas. The guys in Taiwan clean up the phones and resell them, and I get paid fifty dollars
for each one."
Marina looked into his eyes. His forced smile and shifty gaze told her he was lying. In her experience, even the best liars did a poor job of it while under torture. The pain and stress made it too hard to get the little details right.
She cut off the tip of his left pinky, severing it cleanly at the joint.
Landers gasped in pain. "OK! I was just kidding!"
"You'd better stop wasting my time. After I'm done with this hand, I'll do your feet, and then your genitals. You'll be all bloody stumps by the time I'm done."
"You're a sick fucking bitch."
"I think we just had that conversation," Marina said. "Who did you sell the phone to?"
He paused.
"Well?"
"There's a phone repair place on Camden Avenue near Union. They buy stolen phones for fifty bucks if they still work. I do a lot of business there."
"Who, specifically, should we be asking for?" she said.
Landers closed his eyes. "Brian Altman."
"That wasn't so hard, was it?"
Marina stood up. She went into the kitchen to wash the blood off her hands and her knife.
When she returned, Hanley said, "What should we do with him, ma'am?"
"If it turns out he's lying, we'll have to come back. Let's just tie him up and leave him here."
"There was plenty of rope in the bedroom."
Marina flinched at the thought. "Get it."
They tied up Landers and stuffed him into a dark closet. If she didn't come back for him, he would die slowly of dehydration while suffering horribly the entire time. It was a fitting end for him.
The Spears went back outside, and the warm sun felt good on Marina's face.
"What now?" Aaron said.
"The phone store is on the way back to headquarters," she said. "We might as well go there next."
He raised his eyebrows. "When will you get your other legionnaires involved?"
"It's just a phone store, not some dark enemy fortress. We don't need the whole team."
"It seems strange that the commanders of Chicago and San Francisco are engaged in such mundane activity. Extracting information from common criminals is a job for a legionnaire. We should be home, enjoying our remaining time together."
She frowned. He was making a good point. The thrill of the mission was interfering with her judgment.