by Hawk, Nate
“Tell me where Niko is.”
Abbas shook his head in agreement as if to ask for the tape to be removed. That worked well for Kelly because he was ready to leave. Kelly flipped his knife open and cut a small slot in the tape for the man to speak through.
He said what sounded like, “De moos-k een Hom-bug”.
Immediately, shots rang out from behind. The bullets weren’t aimed well but Kelly and Brooke understood the meaning.
Kelly quickly opened the fasteners of the wooden shipping crate in the truck bed and swung the top on its hinges.
“Get in.”
“Me go there? Expect me to…”
Kelly interrupted the man’s mumbling, “Now. Or I start up again with the pliers,” he threatened.
He looked the man deep into his eyes while he held the tool up for him to see. Abbas, who was used to being the one giving the orders, looked at his fingers. He was not accustomed to being talked to this way. He thought back to the man that Niko had killed for him in the mosque, months before. Abbas was wishing a similar fate on Kelly but he had lost the capacity to inflict his will. Abbas complied, albeit with a vengeful fire burning in his eyes. Kelly had previously rigged the container so that the lid could be secured with two strong sliding latches. In an act of benevolence, he’d even drilled a couple of air holes.
“Faster,” Kelly said with growing irritation.
The man climbed into the bed and wiggled himself into the box. He was furious for the conditions that he found himself in. Kelly slid the bolts home while standing on the ground. They tossed the rest of their gear in the truck and then climbed into the cab. He had two calls to make so he got out his cell phone and dialed as they loaded in the truck and sped away.
“Hello?”
“It’s Kelly Maclean. Is your offer still good?”
There was silence on the phone for a moment as the speaker contemplated the question. Almost like the person on the other end thought it might be a joke.
“Yes… Of, course. Can you drive?”
Kelly was impressed that the nurse Megan had enough wherewithal to ask. She had said it routine-like. As if she went through this procedure often.
“It’s not me. It’s my friend. It will be about ten hours before we can get there. It’s a grazing gunshot wound to the shoulder and fragmentation through the ear lobe. Doesn’t look too bad but we can’t go to the hospital.”
Despite Kelly bringing a stranger into the situation, Megan was at least pleased that the injury didn’t sound too severe. She’d worked on much worse injuries.
“All right. Just slow down or preferably stop the bleeding and make sure that he gets plenty of liquid.”
“Ok. I’m clear on the liquids. But there is one thing.”
“Yes?”
“It’s not a he, it’s a she.”
There was another pause. Megan figured it was that cop friend of his. What was her name? Megan asked herself with a slightly jealous thought. Oh yeah, Brooke. Megan knew there was no going back and besides, helping Kelly, in any way, made her feel good. She thought of all those blast damaged bodies she had taken care of in Boston. This would help even up things.
“Of course. Bring her in. I’m at 763 Cartwright Road in Framingham”
Kelly locked the address to his memory.
“We’ll be there around six in the morning.”
“You know I’ll be ready.”
“Oh, and Megan?”
“Yes?”
“This means more to me than I can express. Thanks.”
“You’re welcome. I just hope you were successful in your pursuit.”
Kelly thought about how the operation had gone. They had taken out fifteen or twenty guys and had captured one of the FBI’s Top Ten guys.
“It went well,” Kelly said as he hung up the phone. He just wished that he had gotten Niko’s location out of Abbas.
Then Kelly dialed the second number.
***
Chapter 47
“Steven, you sure your guy is gonna call? It’s getting late and I’m pretty sure I could be getting laid somewhere.”
ASAC Steven Lynch stared back at Hands Wheeler. For an enormous guy with an extra helping of charisma, you are kind of a pussy, he thought.
“Six times, Hands.”
“Six times? Is that the number of times you’ve been laid this year?” Hands prodded with a smirk.
“That many?” Steven joked, knowing damn well that Hands had him beat on that front.
They both laughed.
“Six times is how many times you’ve asked me that same question since I’ve been here. This guy is good. If he survives, he’ll deliver.”
Steven said this as fact, which it was, but even Steven was nervous that night. It was going on ten p.m. Not a good sign, he thought. His patience did pay off though. Just then, his phone rang before Wheeler could ask for a seventh time.
“Talk to me, Kelly.”
“Steven. Listen. There is a UPS Store off of Buford Rd in Richmond.”
Kelly paused for effect. He wanted Steven to later recall what it felt like right before his career was back under his own control.
“Yes?”
“A box behind the dumpster. It shouldn’t be hard to find.”
“Ok,” he said, wondering what all of the cloak and dagger drama was about.
“Oh, and Steven?”
“Yes?”
“I put your name on it.”
Kelly hung up the phone and concentrated on the all night drive he had ahead of him. His adrenaline was back under control so his left foot had begun to ache. He had a long drive and he knew he’d have to deal with it. Generally, he would have pushed the upper limits of his speed but that night was different. Cop or not he couldn’t get pulled over with a gunshot victim riding in the passenger seat.
***
The pilot had been waiting for the agents in the Bell. He had completed his pre-flight check quite some time prior and was beginning to wonder if there would even be a mission that night. Much to his satisfaction, he saw the men emerge from the building and walk towards the bird. Hands gave the pilot the twirling-finger sign meaning get the rotors fired-up. The large helicopter had a full tank of fuel and was immediately fired up and taken to altitude. The pilot and the two agents soon put the glow of the Washington, DC area lights behind and continued south, navigating to Richmond by following Interstate 95.
The trip was quick and there was enough civilization along the way that they never seemed to stray far from the lights. At some point the agents flew directly over the truck that Kelly and Brooke were driving northbound in. Of course, neither party was thinking about that. The pilot knew he would have trouble touching down in the Richmond suburbs, especially with a helicopter the size of his. They hovered at three hundred feet once they located their desired building. There was a ball field nearby but it was full of light posts. That would not work. The men scrutinized a couple of other landing zones but ultimately decided to put the bird down on the far side of the buildings that shared the UPS store’s alley. The aircraft set down and its whine adjusted downward in pitch as the pilot waited. Hands and Steven had their bearings and they quickly located the dumpster. Behind it was a shipping container with a big red bow on it. Someone was obviously inside as he could hear banging and muffled shouts coming through the air vents.
There was a package taped to the top. As Steven picked up the package he realized there was a gun in it. He opened it and eyeballed the piece. It was clearly some version of a Makarov. Then he pulled out the wanted poster and understood the depth of the gift that had been given to him. Steven opened up the box while Hands covered him with his duty Glock. When the lid hinged back, the tall man nearly got himself shot. He had somehow found the energy to leap up and out of the box in a single bound. He looked like some kind of bloodied OBL jack-in-the-box. The man’s unpredictable movements momentarily tested the agents’ ability to rapidly assess threats. The two Special Agents were abl
e to keep their cool. Neither fired; Hands simply punched him in the gut. After their dramatic introduction, the man was taken into custody without further incident.
“Man, what the hell happened to your fingers?” Hands asked, as they were loading their prisoner into the chopper. “They look like they’ve been through a garbage disposal.”
***
Chapter 48
When dropping off their captive, Kelly and Brooke had changed back into more civilized clothing. Kelly accomplished this smoothly but was forced to assist Brooke with her blouse. Her shoulder had begun to tighten up and it was causing her some piercing pain. She was pressing a gauze pad on the wound to stifle the bleeding, which was working. The two of them loaded up on coffee and Kelly kept her alert by chatting as they drove on. The drive was geographically opposite from the one they had taken just hours before. Their morale was inverse as well. They were satisfied with the capture of the fugitive and what it would do for Steven’s career. Still, there were two other items that brought them down. Obviously, there was Brooke’s injury. They were sure she would recover fully but she would own some new scars. The second disappointment was that all Kelly had really learned was that Niko was in ‘a mosque in Hamburg’. He’d already known the man flew into Hamburg. The city was home to millions of people. There had to be dozens of mosques. He felt like he was getting nowhere. A mosque in Hamburg, he continued thinking. As they drove, Kelly kept replaying what the man had said.
Where was Niko and how could Kelly find him? His leads seemed to point to a dead end. Where could Kelly even go to acquire more information? Was he out of leads? He wasn’t sure. Had he missed something that would tell him where Niko had gone? He didn’t know that either.
Although the information hadn’t aligned in his mind yet, he did in fact have enough details to locate Niko. There were so many additional thoughts clouding up his mind that he wasn’t focusing. A mosque in Hamburg, he said to himself again. Four words. What was he missing?
Kelly had to stop and fill up with gas again about halfway into the trip. The late hour left them few choices for food. They weren’t in a position for a sit-down meal anyway so they scrounged up some fast food. Kelly made sure that Brooke kept hydrated. It seemed like she had to pee every hour so he figured the hydration was going well. He didn’t know any other women that would pee on the side of an entrance ramp to a highway. Kelly summarized the situation in his head. Brooke was shot, she was urinating in the bushes on the side of the interstate and she was filthy from crawling around in the woods. Surely, Brooke would prefer to be doing just about anything else. Yet, Kelly had not heard her complain one time. She was all caught up on sleep so they kept the chitchat going. All things considered though, the drive back to Boston was mostly uneventful.
They exited interstate 90 and headed east on Worcester Road. Then they turned south on Union Avenue and headed towards Framingham. As they passed through the small town, Kelly dialed the number one more time to announce their impending arrival.
“Pull in the garage when you get here and stay in the car until the door is closed,” Megan instructed.
They made a couple more turns on the outskirts of Framingham and then arrived at Cartwright Road. Kelly saw the number that he was looking for on the illuminated mailbox as he made the turn through an enormous open gate. Kelly couldn’t believe what he was seeing.
“So she pays for this house working as a nurse, huh?” Brooke said in disbelief.
The house before them was well off of the road. Its Tudor architecture was displayed with warm exterior lighting that brightened many areas and cast long shadows over others. The exterior was constructed mostly of stone with steep arches two and three stories high. There was ornate wood trim that boxed off areas around two balconies. One protruded from the house on the front and the other on the same side as the driveway. The front door itself was made of heavy solid wood and the entire entry way was a rounded turret. The curtilage was surrounded by a thick forest that provided as much privacy as one could find in a Boston suburb. Kelly found himself intimidated by the grand scale of the home before him. Not only was it large, it had a lot of character. Character and space, he thought thankfully. He couldn’t see any of the neighboring homes. Kelly pulled into the 3-car-garage and the door closed right behind him. Then he helped Brooke get out of the truck as Megan greeted them.
“Come in.”
Megan held the door for Brooke and offered her a friendly enter gesture to show some added good will. As Kelly walked by he winked at Megan and smiled at her. She smiled back but there was something in her eyes. Something that was partially hidden but Kelly thought it was edgy. Something that seemed to imply the offer had been for Kelly and Kelly alone. He shrugged, as if to say, what else could I have done. He put his hand on her shoulder and squeezed.
“Thank you,” he said.
Megan could feel his sincerity. She was happy to see Kelly, even with another woman in tow.
“Megan, this is Brooke. You met at the hospital,” Kelly said with a yawn. “I’m sorry,” he added, trying to control the symptoms of being up all night.
“Your home is amazing, Megan,” Brooke offered. “Thanks for agreeing to patch me up.”
“You know,” she began, choosing her words carefully. “I took an oath to ‘devote myself to the welfare of those committed to my care’. I have an idea of what you may have been doing and it is my pleasure to commit my own resources to the cause.”
“Well, we’ll try not to wear out our welcome.”
After confirming that the shoulder and ear would be an easy fix and explaining to the pair how she would proceed, Megan motioned Kelly to the hallway.
“I’ve got guest rooms, Kelly. I’m sure you two are exhausted. You’ll find a room at the end of the hallway,” she pointed. “Towels and soap, everything you’ll need. Take a shower and get some rest. I took the day off of work so I’ll be here when you wake up. Once I get Brooke fixed up she can get some rest too.”
Kelly was too tired to think much about how generous her offer was. He thanked her and walked down the hallway. The first door he passed was cracked and he glanced inside. He saw something he had never seen in a residential building. He had seen many similar set-ups in military field units, but that was to be expected there. This was something different. There were two gurneys set up with mesh beds to allow blood to drain away from the patient into a catchment below, and behind those was a surgery unit set up in what looked like a germ-free isolation chamber. Why did Megan have her own surgical area? What was with the house that was clearly out of a nurse’s budget? He was too exhausted to piece things together so he pulled the door closed and took a shower. The shower was unmemorable, really just a custom for him before going to bed. He wasn’t even sure if he had used soap, nor did he care. He left the tape on his left foot. It had done its job. Although sore, there didn’t seem to be much leakage. He would apply a new piece of medical tape when he had more energy. He put his underwear back on and collapsed into the bed.
***
Chapter 49
The PAG team was able to put together a trail of digital footage that followed Niko all the way to Saarbrucken. Past that, he had presumably taken a taxi and disappeared. So far, the agents had been unable to piece together what his next step had been. Laura had tracked down several strategically placed, municipality operated surveillance cameras. Sure, there were ample cabs that had passed throughout the streets but nothing that was helping them locate their man.
Saarbrucken was an average sized European city. Like all of the other similar sized cities there, it was built on a river to enable commerce and provide a water supply for its residents. The buildings were made of stone and brick and the town was illuminated beautifully during nighttime hours. They had their own soccer team and stadium. There were numerous church steeples and a historic district that dated back hundreds of years, as well as modern architecture that added character to their skyline. By any standard it was an absolutely gor
geous city. The type most anyone would like to call home. So where in this city had Niko gone? Laura called her boss in a moment of uncertainty.
“Rick, we’ve traced him through a maze of missed connections and layovers all the way to Saarbrucken.”
“WWND?”
“I’m sorry, sir. I don’t follow,” she said.
“WWND,” he said again. “What Would Niko Do? Keep thinking like a transient on the run. Where did he stay last night?”
“Well, we’ve checked hotels and looked at passports,” Laura reported. “I doubt he would sleep there anyway. The guy is from Dagestan. Who knows? It was warm enough, maybe he slept on a park bench.”
“No. I doubt that. It would be too visible and too risky. Especially the way he was dressed when he was last seen. He wouldn’t fit in there. See if there are any youth hostels in that city,” Rick Quinn suggested. “Niko is a chameleon. He could blend in anywhere, certainly with backpackers.”
***
“This will hurt some,” Megan said, as she stripped off the old dressing and began to clean Brooke’s wound.
Megan was right; it did hurt. The nurse considered Brooke very fortunate. She’d seen plenty of other gunshot wounds. More often than not they were very survivable. Many of them healed up with no major issues other than a scar. Most of the patients she’d worked with talked about their scars like it was a rite of passage into manhood.
“You and Kelly must go back a ways,” Megan inquired.
Brooke squeezed her eyes in pain as her heart rate increased and some stray tears rolled down her face. She wiped them away.