Bishop's War (Bishop Series Book 1)

by Rafael Hines

  He stared down at the table, and noticed the dark red wood was embedded with a swirling pattern of rings from the original tree. The rings looked like a current flowing under the hard surface. A river of blood.

  “Why am I here, Tio? I should be out there with the soldiers,” he said angrily.

  “John, your face is on every channel and on the cover of every paper. You could compromise the missions. If you think our troops can’t handle the job then say so and we will find more competent men,” Gonzalo said sternly.

  “No Tio. They’re excellent. The best. And I’m sorry. I wasn’t thinking.”

  “Well, you better start. I taught you chess, not checkers. You selfishly want to go fight a battle when we need your help to win a war? A war on three fronts?”

  “I was being selfish and stupid. It won’t happen again, Tio.”

  “Good. Every one of us here wants blood for blood by our own hand. We don’t have that luxury … Yet.” Gonzalo’s voice remained calm; his hands steady as he spread them wide to include everyone in the room.

  “We have to protect the family and win all three wars in order to survive. To win, we must all think and plan strategically. And in the end each of us will taste the blood of our enemies. That I promise you.”

  John nodded at Gonzalo. His respect and admiration for the man was greater than ever. He served under many fine officers in the Army. None had the command, clarity, and vision of his own uncle and surrogate father. Gonzalo was a rock. As the head of the family, John knew he was as angry as any of them about Chris’ death, but he didn’t let his anger cloud his judgment.

  They all sat up straighter and John, along with everyone else was now keenly focused. Even Fiero stopped his prowling. He took a seat at the table and waited for the presentation to begin.

  Kevin Mitchell and Ed Taylor were the only members of the Pro KEDDS team attending the meeting. Their partner Danny Jones was backing up the troops, out with Christmas and Chepe’s soldiers who were attacking the enemy. Kevin and Ed worked quickly and quietly. They set up the laptop, connected it to the seventy inch flat screen on the wall and passed out information packets to everyone.

  “Don Valdez, Macho, before we get started please accept our condolences. We are all very sorry for your family’s loss,” Kevin said.

  “Thank you,” Gonzalo said. His voice was flat, without emotion, but his yellow eyes glowed bright and hot. “Now please begin.”

  “Yes, of course. This presentation is in three parts. The first being Michael Meecham. The second is Amir Khan. And part three is his uncle, Aziz Khan.”

  “Why are we starting with Meecham?” John asked.

  “Good question. The reason is you.”

  “Me?”

  “Yes, you John. Don Valdez, I’m sure your sources would have informed you of this very shortly, but we just found out they’re re-opening the investigation into the death of the Yale student. Mike Meecham must have some serious dirt on Fishman. The DA’s planning to indict you on murder one once they find or fabricate enough evidence.”

  Felix slapped the table with a powerful blow. “Murder one?! What the fuck is that about!? They attacked us!”

  “Felix, calm down,” Gonzalo said. “The witnesses? Where are they?”

  “We received this information only a short time ago and Danny is out with the troops. So, at this moment we only have addresses for three of the four witnesses. They are listed on page two of your packets. One is in Boston, another lives in Connecticut, and the third is right here in New York on the Upper West Side. Danny will find the fourth witness and we will provide a more detailed bio on each one later this evening with photos, bank records, family and medical histories.”

  “Your recommendation?” Gonzalo asked.

  “Honestly, this one’s a tough call. Meecham is also pressuring Fishman to get RICO indictments on every one of you, and that includes Felix, Carlos, Sesa, Antonio, Macho and Calixto. John is the exception, that’s why they’re going for the separate murder case against him. They’re going to use his military record against him. Say that he’s always been a killer and the army just let him run free with it. They’ll say it was a racially motivated killing and he used depraved indifference. Meecham’s ultimate goal is for all of you to be in prison for the rest of your lives. That said, if four civilians suddenly disappear off the face of the earth it’s going to make Meecham’s and Fishman’s job that much easier. So, first we need more intel on the witnesses. Bribe them or scare the shit of ‘em and see how they react. We recommend holding off on anything past that at least for the next few days,” Kevin said.

  Ed followed up by saying, “We really just need to delay them from potentially giving any harmful testimony against John in a deposition until Meecham’s gone. Once he’s dead Fishman’s motivation should rapidly diminish.”

  “Let me do it. I’ve already done time for murder and I’ve never killed anyone. I want Meecham to be my first,” Felix said.

  “You shot a terrorist last night,” John said.

  “He was already dead. You and Bunny hit him first. Anyway, Meecham is a piece of shit. He has to die. Please Tio, let me do it.”

  “Enough,” Gonzalo said. “You will not be the one to end Meecham. I have something very special in mind for him. As for the witnesses, I agree with your recommendation. We will talk to them first. Antonio, get our people to them tonight. Find out if they’ve given any statements. Let us know if they have, and persuade them not to if they haven’t. I want a diplomat to do all the talking, and two killers to stand there silently. Make sure our message is clearly received. Alive or dead, they will never testify against John. Next.”

  “Amir Khan. We’ve hurt him. We killed five of his men and captured two more in Redhook and we believe we have all his remaining explosives. Christmas and Chepe’s crews have just killed three more that were a direct result of the information we received from Benji and John’s interrogations. We have six more locations that we’re targeting tonight.”

  “The facts are that he’s wounded, thanks to John. We have his C4 and TNT. He’s lost a lot of men and safe houses. That’s thanks to our own efforts, that of the FBI, and John’s buddies in Special Ops. The actions against the taxis also resulted in four of Amir’s men being arrested by the NYPD. He’s being hunted by us, by every branch of law enforcement, and more than likely has been sentenced to death by his own uncle’s hit squad. All these facts make Amir Khan more dangerous than ever,” Ed said.

  “Yes, I agree,” Gonzalo said. “He will not run and hide. He proved that last night.”

  “We’ll hit the six safe houses and we may find him there if we’re lucky. If not, we keep tearing down his organization man by man, house by house. John’s guy with broken arm gave us the name of their money man. He’s an Imam that never leaves his Mosque in Brooklyn. We are looking at the structure to see if we can take him alive. If we get him, he’ll know a lot more than the foot soldiers we’ve taken out so far.”

  “Anything else on Amir?” Antonio asked.

  “Yes. Two things. One, beef up your security. While our guys our out hunting him, we have no doubt he’s actively hunting you. Amir, despite his losses, is aggressive, resourceful, and takes quick, decisive action. We don’t know how he tracked you to the bar, but somehow he did and he immediately went on the offensive,” Ed said.

  “Yes, after last night we have an army protecting us. No one’s gonna be jumpin’ out of a cab again. What’s two?” Antonio said.

  “Two is, you bring him here and finish him on your home turf. Give him a public event, like a memorial for Chris. It’ll be hosted by John, in the middle of Campos Plaza. Even if he knows it’s a set up, we think he’ll bite. His life expectancy is a matter of days, so he’s not gonna pass up on a final shot at revenge.”

  “Yeah, that’ll work,” John said. “No way he doesn’t come for me. I want his ass and I’ll gladly be the bait.”

  “Yes, he will come. Set it up,” Gonzalo said.
<
br />   “Now, if you turn to page six of your packets you will see what we’ve put together on Aziz Khan. There is no way we can get to him directly, or even find him in his mountain stronghold. So since we can’t hunt him he has to want to see us. We make him schedule a meeting, inviting us for a face-to-face,” Kevin said.

  “How?” Fiero asked.

  “Business,” Ed replied.

  “Business? What business?”

  “Drugs,” Gonzalo said.

  “Yes, Don Valdez. Exactly. He’s a warrior, but he’s also a businessman. Therein lies his weakness. He sells dope to buy weapons. And we know where his next arms delivery is and what ship it’s traveling on,” Kevin said.

  “Where?” John asked.

  “Yemen. And it’s a big one. Fifty-million dollars’ worth.”

  “We take the ship,” Fiero said.

  “Yes Fiero, we take the ship. Once it hits international waters. Then, through your contacts overseas you make an offer. A truce. His weapons in exchange for a guarantee that there will be no more attacks on the family. Perhaps a distribution agreement as a sign of good faith and that all is forgiven.”

  “He will suspect a trap. I would. Whoever is sent will not return. Not unless he is very lucky,” Gonzalo said.

  “Yes, Don Valdez. It is a suicide mission. But we can’t see any other way to get to Aziz. And you can’t send an assassin to do this. As you said, he’ll already be suspicious. An inner family member, one of you here in this room needs to go do it. And it can’t be John since the whole world knows he’s a trained killer. Also, this opportunity with the weapons may not present itself again for some time. We have to take the ship in three days or else we have to pass on Aziz for the foreseeable future,” Ed said.

  “Yes, we must act now. The ship is the key. Such a cargo will be well protected. How do we take it?” Carlos asked.

  “It will be very well protected. So it must be taken at night, by air.”

  “Won’t they just shoot down the planes?” asked Felix.

  “We come in stealthy. Parachute onto the deck and commandeer the ship before they know what hit ‘em,” John said.

  “Exactly,” Ed said.

  “Parachute at night onto a moving ship? You’ve done this before?”

  “Me personally, no. But, it’s been done. With the new laser guidance systems we can illuminate the ship and follow the green glowing line right in.”

  “I know I’m no soldier, but don’t they have radar to see the planes?”

  “Not from that height.”

  “What height?” Carlos asked.

  “Thirty-five thousand feet,” Bunny said.

  “Hold up. Le’me get this straight. You’re sayin’ you’re gonna jump out of a plane at night, seven miles above the ocean, land on a heavily defended moving ship, and kill all the bad guys,” Felix said in disbelief.

  “Sounds pretty thin when you say it like that, but yeah, that’s basically what we’re gonna do,” John said.

  “As long as it’s not too windy, and there’s no heavy rain we’ll be fine,” Bunny said.

  “We checked. The weather forecast looks clear. Scattered clouds and winds at five to ten miles per hour. Only downside is the moon is going to be shining big and bright,” Ed said.

  “John, you think your pals on Team Razor will roll with you on this?” Kevin asked.

  “Yeah, they will,” Bunny said. “And so will I.”

  “How many years since you jumped out of a plane, Bun?” John asked.

  “Like riding a bike, Johnny. If I don’t land on the ship just make sure you turn it around and come get me before the sharks do.”

  “Then it is settled. Our friends at CIA will provide travel and equipment,” Gonzalo said.

  “We have several options for killing Aziz, once you’ve decided on who’s going,” Kevin said.

  “It is already decided,” Macho said. “I claim the right to kill him.”

  “Yes, it is your right, hermano. No one will oppose you. First we bury Chris. Then you will kill the man that’s responsible.”

  Antonio left to assemble the teams that would meet with the witnesses. He was gone for less than five minutes when he ran back in with Grasiella following behind. Her hair was crazy, matted down in the front from the sweat on her forehead and sticking out in all directions on the back and sides. Her eyes were wide and she could barely catch her breath. Everyone stood up. They all knew that something was very wrong.

  “What has happened?” Gonzalo asked her.

  “Ma, ma, ma…” was all she could manage to choke out.

  Felix poured her a glass of water and she drank it greedily. She looked first to her husband Gonzalo and then turned her eyes to her beloved adopted son, John.

  “Maria! They took Maria!” she screamed.

  “How? How could they get to her?” John asked, his voice almost a whisper.

  “A policeman came to the hospital. He said he worked for your friend the Captain. He said he had some papers for you. She went with him.”

  “Pretending to be a cop!” Felix shouted.

  “No, no. He was a cop. A lieutenant. All the other policeman there knew him. That’s why we thought she was safe. We didn’t think… we were all so sad about Chris and we just didn’t think. I’m so sorry, John. I should have gone with her,” Grasiella said, tears streaming down her cheeks.

  “I’m glad you weren’t with her, Auntie. Otherwise you’d be dead now,” Felix said.

  “He’s right. They wanted Maria. That means Amir wants to trade her for his explosives. It means she’s still alive,” John said, talking through the logic.

  “Yeah, you nailed it. He wants the explosives back. And one other thing,” said Antonio.

  “Let me take a wild guess. Me?”

  “Yeah, you, primo. He called Marci’s phone to let us know he’s got her and what he wants. He’s calling back in ten minutes to speak to you directly.”

  “Where’s the truck?” Gonzalo asked.

  “It’s close. Couple blocks away in a private garage,” Antonio said.

  “I’ll need some time to wire it all to blow on a timer. As soon as Amir gives us the time and place you gotta get me to that Con Ed truck on the double,” John said.

  “No problem.”

  “Auntie?”

  “Yes.”

  “Did you get the name of the cop that she left with?”

  “Yes, yes. He gave me his card,” Grasiella said, as she handed it over.

  “Lieutenant Adam Harbey, NYPD,” John read aloud. “I need a clean phone.” They had all handed their cell phones over to Antonio before going to the funeral home to avoid being tracked.

  Antonio left the room momentarily and then quickly returned with a new cell. John punched in Captain Ryan’s number. Ryan picked up on the third ring.

  “Hey Johnny, good to hear from you.”

  “I think you’re gonna revise that statement. Adam Harbey, lieutenant. You know him?”

  “Sure. Why?”

  “He abducted my fiancé from the hospital and handed her over to Amir Khan.”

  “There’s no way. Gotta be a mistake.”

  “You think I’d be calling if we weren’t sure? All your men knew him and he gave my aunt his card. He wrote on the back, ‘Bishop, Amir wants to meet you.’ Sound like a mistake to you?”

  “The guy’s a twenty-year vet. He’s about to make captain.”

  “That ain’t gonna happen.”

  “No shit. But if Harbey’s a terrorist mole then anyone can be.”

  “Yeah, well, let’s focus on him for now. You said you wanted to help. What are you prepared to do?”

  “John, I swear, this conversation stays between us. I’ll get you everything we’ve got on Harbey. You want to meet?”

  “I don’t have time. Where are you?”

  “Downtown, at One Police Plaza. The file will be waiting at the main information desk.”

  “Thanks, Cap. I’m sending a guy to pick it up.
Give me everything. Especially anything that’ll help me find him.”

  “Gladly,” Ryan said. “And Johnny…”

  “Yeah?”

  “When you see him, put one right up his ass and tell him it’s from me.”

  “Gladly,” John said before hanging up. He turned to speak directly to his cousin. “Antonio, can you send one of your guys down to One PP to get the Harbey file?”

  Antonio snapped his fingers and a Valdez soldier moved from his post against the wall and hurried out the door. The room became suddenly still. There was now only silence as everyone in the room stared at the phone on the table. They all tried to control their breathing, as every breath seemed amplified, disturbing the quiet. Anxiously, they waited for Maria’s kidnapper and Chris’ killer to call.

  Grasiella jumped when it finally rang. John flipped it open and put it on speaker.

  “Yeah?”

  “Is this Bishop?”

  “Yeah. That you Amir?”

  “It is. So you know I have your woman.”

  “Do I? Put her on.”

  Amir must have placed his hand over the phone because there was only muffled noise before Maria’s voice came through the speaker.

  “Johnny?”

  “I’m here, baby. You okay?”

  “That traitor cop tased me. My body’s still shaking.”

  “Just hang tight, sugar, I’ll be there soon.”

  “Please hurry up and kill these guys. I really have to pee.”

  Amir came back on. “Very brave and very beautiful. My compliments. Now, I don’t want to hurt her, but you know I will.”

  “Let me guess. You want a trade. Me and the explosives for her?”

  “Yes. You have my word that once I have all my C4 back, she is set free.”

  “Then let’s schedule a meeting. When and where?”

  “Midnight.”

  “Where?”

  “First, get in the truck and park between the orange cones on Ninth Street and Fourth Avenue. You will stay in the driver’s seat at all times. You have fifteen minutes from when we hang up the phone to get there. Once you are there I will call you back on this number and tell you where to go.”