Ryker walked over to his own vehicle, a black pickup truck. His movements were sure but there was a limp to his gait. Vivian climbed in beside him while asking a question.
“What do you think the chances are that Begley will actually kill them?”
“Not very good, but he might do enough damage to bring Spenser Hawke around, which is all I care about.”
“It’s surprising that Hawke hasn’t shown yet. You’d think he’d want to see his friends in their new homes.”
“That’s why I’ve been so patient. I assume it would just be a matter of time until he traveled here, but they’ve been in Robbin’s Cove since last year and he’s yet to visit.”
“I’ll be making contact with Zane and Slade again tomorrow. I’ll try to find out where Hawke might be.”
“No, Vivian. That would be too risky. We’ll just stick to the plan.”
“All right, but they won’t suspect me of anything, not after Emma Hart vouched for me in England.”
“They might find it strange when you show up in California.”
“Emma’s told me about their new home when we’ve talked on the phone. I’ll just say that I grew curious and decided to come and see it for myself.”
“Be very careful around Hawke’s apprentices, they are deadly.”
“Maybe so, but soon they’ll just be dead.”
Ryker laughed, started the truck, and drove away from the Citadel.
113
Fancy Meeting You Here
ROBBIN’S COVE, CALIFORNIA, JANUARY 2004
Cody and May Ling left their house on a bright Sunday morning and walked a hundred feet to reach the home of Romeo and Emma. It was Emma’s turn to cook Sunday breakfast. Afterward, they were going into town for a day of shopping that would begin with a trip to the marina.
Romeo was buying a boat. He wanted to look it over one more time before he made his final decision, but he was ready to take the plunge. Romeo discussed the boat while eating his breakfast of blueberry pancakes, eggs, and ham. They were gathered together at the kitchen table.
“I figure we’ll take her on a long trip sometime during the summer. It will be great to be out on the open sea.”
“We could visit my parents in Indonesia,” Emma suggested.
“That would be cool,” Romeo said. “Cody and I have friends there too, remember Nadya and her father, Bagus?”
Emma’s hand flew to her mouth. “Oh, yes, and I have sad news.”
“What is it?” Cody asked.
“That man, Bagus, I’m sorry to tell you this but he died. It happened shortly before my parents and I left for England.”
Romeo pushed his plate aside. “Bagus is dead?”
“He had a heart attack just as he was bringing his boat back in to the dock. He was already dead when they found him, and the boat was wrecked when it crashed into the dock pilings.”
“Oh man, I wonder how Nadya is dealing with that?”
“Not good, I would guess,” Cody said. “Nadya loved her father.”
“I ran into her on the beach one day and she looked so sad,” Emma said. “She told me that she and her mother were moving to Jakarta to stay with relatives. I don’t think she was happy about the move.”
“I wish I could talk to the little chick, she must be devastated,” Romeo said.
“We’ll make a point of stopping in Jakarta to see her when we go visit my parents.”
“You won’t mind?”
Emma smiled. “Of course not. I know you and Xavier were close to the family.”
They finished the meal. While discussing happier topics and sipping on their second cups of coffee, they heard the sound of a perimeter alarm chirping. To mitigate against surprise visitors, Cody had set up a pressure-sensitive sensor at the mouth of their long driveway. Moments after it was activated, through the open kitchen window they could hear a vehicle approaching.
They left the table and went onto the front porch as the car was parking. It was a blue sedan. Cody assumed the car was a rental since he could see no dealership markings on it. Behind the wheel was a familiar face and someone he’d thought he might never see again.
“Vivian?” May Ling said. “What is she doing here?”
Emma was smiling wide at the sight of her friend.
“I don’t know why she’s here, but I talked to her on the phone several times and told her all about our new homes. I guess she’s decided to visit.”
Vivian left her vehicle and waved at them while grinning. When Emma walked over with Romeo to greet her, the two women hugged and exchanged kisses on the cheek.
“This is a pleasant surprise,” Emma said. “What are you doing here?”
“I broke up with Eddie in London and decided I needed to see some new sights. That’s when I thought of you. And I’ve missed you, Emma.”
“Oh, I’ve missed you too, and I’m glad you came for a visit.”
Vivian looked over at May Ling and Cody.
“Hello, you two, and May Ling, Emma says that you’ve become quite the domestic goddess.”
May Ling smiled, but Cody could tell it wasn’t genuine. May Ling had never liked Vivian, although she kept that opinion hidden from Emma, who adored Vivian.
“I’ve been enjoying the house, yes…and how long will you be in the area?”
“I’m not sure, and I still need to find a place to stay. I’ll find a hotel when I leave here.”
“No, you won’t,” Emma said, as she wrapped an arm through Vivian’s. “You can be our guest, right Romeo?”
Romeo shrugged. “We’ve got plenty of room. Are your bags in the trunk? I’ll carry them in.”
Vivian smiled at Romeo. “Thank you, handsome, and the car isn’t locked.”
“We have to run out for a bit,” Emma said, “and you can join us. We’re going to look at a boat Romeo will be buying.”
“That sounds like fun. I love boats.”
“I’m going to take her on one more test run,” Romeo said. “But yeah, I’ll be buying the boat.”
As Vivian entered the house with Emma and Romeo, May Ling shook her head in disapproval.
“Romeo and Emma have barely moved in and now they have a guest, an uninvited guest.”
“They don’t seem to mind,” Cody said.
“I just think it’s strange that Vivian has followed us here.”
Cody narrowed his eyes. “It is a bit odd at that. I think I’ll give Eddie a call soon and find out what happened between them. They seemed happy together when we left for Ireland.”
“Maybe Eddie Quinton realized that he could do better than Vivian. The man is a minor celebrity in England, and Vivian, well, she’s just Vivian.”
Cody smiled. “You really don’t like her, do you?”
“No, I do not.”
“Emma loves her, so play nice, hmm?”
“I will, for Emma’s sake, but I’m telling you, Xavier, there is something off about Vivian.”
114
Out To Sea
THE CITADEL, OREGON, JANUARY 2004
Rubin Knox entered Jack Begley’s office after realizing the door was unlocked. He thought he would have to pick the lock, but no, Begley was as lax with his office’s security as he was with his computer’s.
Knox had gotten inside the office once before and looked through Begley’s computer files. Knox had no plan or nefarious intentions, he was just nosy and loved to get away with things. However, he did have a definite purpose today.
Knox hoped to learn the location of the men Begley wanted to kill. Begley was willing to pay a hundred grand to anyone who put down the two men, who were named Xavier Zane and Romeo Slade. Knox wanted that money. He saw no reason why he should take a chance on losing it.
Begley planned to attack the men with a force of twelve, with Knox among them. With that many other shooters involved, Knox might not kill even one of the men. No, it was better to go after the two alone and claim the bounty on each of them. Knox knew he possessed the skill
to get the job done, for he had been trained as a sniper.
Despite his boast that he had killed a score of men, Knox had only chalked up a total of seven confirmed kills while in the Marines. It was a respectable number, although Knox had an unfortunate habit of missing a shot when under pressure.
Still, he’d discovered that he liked killing from a distance. Knox thought hand-to-hand combat was for fools. Why risk getting hurt when you could shoot a man from half a mile away?
Once he had gained access to the computer, he checked Begley’s email account. He was disappointed when he failed to find a missive from Vivian giving the location of Zane and Slade. That was okay. Knox would just keep checking until the email came in. Once it did, he’d leave the Citadel on some pretense and head off to kill the two men.
Knox had turned off the computer and was leaving the office when he heard someone approaching from around the corner. After closing the door quietly, he knocked on it, as if he had just arrived.
Irina Devoe came into view dressed in her white nurses’ uniform. The exotic beauty was Jack Begley’s lover.
“Jack isn’t in his office, Knox. He’s in the mess hall having breakfast.”
“Thanks, I’ll go find him.” Knox moved closer to Irina. “Where are you off to? And would you like some company?”
Irina smirked. “Jack gives me all the company I need.”
“It never hurts to make new friends, baby.”
“Jack might hurt you if he knew you were hitting on me.”
Knox looked Irina over. “If you ever change your mind come find me, and call me Rubin.”
“I won’t change my mind, Knox, and you’re not my type.”
“Ouch, baby. You know how to hurt a man.”
“Goodbye, Knox,” Irina said while walking away.
Knox watched her, enjoying the sway of her hips.
She’ll feel differently about me when I come back here with Zane’s and Slade’s scalps on my belt.
Knox returned to his quarters within the Citadel, where he cleaned and readied his sniper rifle.
* * *
Romeo was smiling wide as he piloted the boat he’d decided to buy. It was a Monterey 262 Cruiser that had been kept in immaculate condition. The five-year-old boat had many gadgets, including an automatic pilot.
On board with him were Emma, Cody, May Ling, and Vivian. The boat’s current owner was present as well, his name was Sid Rodgers. Rodgers had lived in Robbin’s Cove his entire life. Sid Rodgers had been talking with Romeo as Romeo piloted the craft. They were several miles from shore when Sid pointed out a small island in the distance.
“That’s called One-Man Island.”
Romeo squinted as he studied the compact land mass.
“Why is it called that, because of its size?”
Sid laughed. He was in his fifties and a car salesman. He wore his dyed black hair a little long and dressed younger than his years. Romeo had met him when he and Cody bought their new trucks from Sid. When the subject of boats came up, Sid had mentioned that he was selling his.
“The island isn’t so small, and it even has its own dock on the other side. It’s called One-Man because legend has it that two pirates met there to settle their differences with swords. When it was done, only one man left the island.”
“Who owns it?”
“I’m not sure, but it’s rented out most of the time.”
“It looks private and isolated.”
“It is, but there’s just an old house on it. I was there for a wedding two summers ago and they had to hold the reception outside under a tent. The house was too tight to accommodate all the guests. You also had to stay out of the water on the dock side of the shore, and the rest of the shoreline was rocky.”
“Why no swimming near the dock?”
“Riptides, some guy got carried away in one a month earlier. By the time he broke free he was too far away from shore to swim back. The poor bastard drowned. His friends said it looked like he was riding a missile as the rip carried him out. People still swim there sometimes, I’ve seen them, but I wouldn’t risk it.”
Romeo offered Sid his hand. “I definitely want this boat.”
“Cool beans,” Sid said. “Come back tomorrow when the Motor Vehicle office will be open, and we’ll handle the paperwork. I’ll be by the marina at noon.”
“Sounds great,” Romeo said.
They kept the boat out for several hours as Sid discussed the local seaways with Romeo. It was a beautiful day and the rest of Romeo’s group enjoyed the trip as well. As he was docking the boat, Romeo saw the man in the next slip wave to them. He was about Sid’s age and bore a resemblance. However, the man was muscular and had expressive blue eyes.
“That’s my cousin, Bart. He fancies himself a ladies’ man and throws a lot of parties. He can be obnoxious sometimes, but he’s harmless.”
“What’s he do for a living?” Romeo asked.
“Bart’s retired. He made some money as a bodybuilder then hit it big by investing with one of those dot-com startups. Bart cashed-out just before the company went bust.”
Bart met them at the dock. He ogled Emma and Vivian, then practically drooled on himself when he saw May Ling step off the boat.
“Aren’t you going to introduce me to your friends, Sid?”
The introductions were made. As he shook her hand, Bart held on to May Ling longer than necessary.
“You are a true beauty, May Ling. If you ever want to go on a boat ride again, come see me.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” May Ling said, while pulling her hand free.
Vivian was busy taking pictures of Romeo’s boat. She had also come up with an idea that would help Ryker keep a low-profile.
* * *
After leaving the Marina, the two couples and Vivian went to a book store where they wandered the shelves for over an hour. At one point, Cody decided to browse the magazine rack. He came across Vivian holding a periodical dealing with firearms.
“You have an interest in guns, Vivian?”
Vivian looked up from the pages as if she’d been caught reading a porn mag. After setting it back on the shelf, she smiled at Cody.
“I was just curious.”
“There’s nothing wrong with curiosity.”
“No, I guess not,” Vivian said, as she picked up a fashion magazine.
After leaving the bookstore, the group decided to stop at a restaurant for lunch.
When Emma expressed sadness over Vivian’s breakup with her boyfriend, Vivian said that it was all for the best.
“Vivian,” May Ling said. “If you’re looking for a new boyfriend, Bart seemed to be available.”
“He’s a bit old for me, May Ling. Besides, there’s a man in my life already.”
“What’s he like?” Emma asked.
Vivian smiled. “He’s wonderful. I hope the four of you will be meeting him very soon.”
115
Attacked
ROBBIN’S COVE, CALIFORNIA, JANUARY 2004
Cody and Romeo were at their construction site, seated inside a trailer, where twin desks faced each other. The home’s concrete foundation had been poured weeks earlier and a large crew of carpenters had been busy ever since the concrete had cured. They were moving so fast that the framing would be completed within a week.
The home would be over five-thousand square feet and three stories high when finished. Although it was a Saturday morning and no workers were on site, the boys were there to do an inventory of supplies and go over the invoices received during the previous week.
It was boring work. Cody found it tedious while Romeo didn’t mind it. However, both of them were becoming restless after having gone months without working at their real trade of assassination.
“We should give Roy a call soon,” Cody said. He was speaking of Roy Hutchins, the man who acted as a go-between for themselves and the clients. “He might have something we can work on.”
“It would have to be a quick on
e,” Romeo said. “We can’t get off the site for more than a day or two.”
“Maybe we should hire a general contractor to do the everyday construction manager tasks soon. Otherwise we’ll never be able to get away until the house is completed.”
“Yeah, dude, that’s a good idea. I love building this house, but I don’t like being tied to it.”
A beeping sound came from a gray box sitting on a wooden table. It was alerting them that someone had come onto the property. The jobsite was in a secluded location; there were concerns about thievery and vandalism. Cameras had also been installed and were pointed at the trailer and the piles of lumber used in the framing process.
Romeo looked over at the box. “Someone’s coming along the road.”
What would become the home’s driveway was still a wide gravel-covered surface. It had grooves in spots from where heavy trucks had traveled across and crushed the gravel deep into the soft, sandy soil beneath it.
The boys smiled as they watched May Ling and Emma come bouncing along the road in May Ling’s sporty new red BMW.
Cody left the trailer with Romeo and greeted the girls with a smile.
“This is a surprise.”
May Ling went to him and fell into his arms.
“I missed you.”
“I only left the house two hours ago.”
“I know, but it’s Saturday. We should be spending the day together.”
Cody kissed her. “I won’t be here much longer, I promise, and besides, didn’t you two have plans to go shopping?”
May Ling made a sour face. “That was Vivian’s idea, but I’d rather spend the day with you at home.”
“Speak of the Devil,” Romeo said, “I think I hear Vivian coming now.”
The sound of a motorcycle grew louder, and Vivian appeared riding her bike. She had it shipped from Europe; it arrived a day after she had moved in with Romeo and Emma.
Young Guns Box Set Page 51