by Delta James
“Shit!” said Croft as he and John reached Noah who had a cab waiting for them with the promise of a very large tip for breaking every speed limit on the Vegas strip to take them the short distance in the least amount of time.
They were back in the chopper and in the air in record time. Croft was up front with Avery.
“Everybody hang on. I’m going to see if we can’t spot them. There are field glasses back there,” she said as she headed down the strip in the last known direction of the town car that held Finn.
Quietly, Avery signaled Croft to switch comm channels. He did so.
“We’ll find her, Croft. She’s tough, and she knows you’ll be coming. We’ll get her. I promise.”
He nodded, and they switched back to the main comm channel.
“Christian, I’m Billy Crofton. How are you doing?”
“Physically much better. But that madman has my sister.”
“We know,” said John quietly. “I don’t know if you know who we are, but this is what we do, and we’ll get your sister back. As soon as we can, we’re going to ask our old buddy Fariq here a few pointed questions about what the fuck is going on, and he’s going to tell us.”
Croft turned in his seat and watched Fariq Abdal, one of the most notorious arms dealers in the world, try to shrink into as small a space as he could. He was no fool. He knew Wild Mustang by reputation, but more importantly, he knew Croft. And the first hostage’s sister who was now being held was Croft’s woman. Croft knew that Abdal knew him well enough to know there was nothing Croft wouldn’t do to get Finn back.
Chapter 10
It was all Finn could do not to shriek in terror as the man who had kidnapped her snatched her comm unit and crushed it underneath his foot.
“I take it you do not have the flash drive?” he said.
“No. One of the men with Wild Mustang had it. You and Fariq were to have sat with him, and he would have given it to you. If you wanted the evidence …”
Her sentence was cut off as he backhanded her. “You only speak when it is necessary, and you do not question me. That old man,” he spat, “should never have allowed this. He should have killed the man you hired at the original meeting, found and killed you, and then disposed of your brother. Instead, my brother is dead, and Fariq’s operation is compromised. Now they have both your brother and the flash drive.”
“But you” — he silenced her again with another stunning blow — “have me,” she continued. “They will trade the flash drive for me. My brother and I will keep silent in order to stay alive.”
“Perhaps,” he said. “But Fariq still lives. It won’t take him long to ferret out those who are loyal to me and dispose of them … as he did my brother. I’m not sure you’re worth the trouble to keep alive.”
“Of course, I am. You know Wild Mustang by reputation. You kill me, and it won’t be Fariq who will keep you looking over your shoulder for the rest of your life.”
He raised his hand again, and Finn couldn’t help but flinch. She also couldn’t take her eyes off him. It wasn’t that he was handsome, but there was something about him. Something she couldn’t quite put her finger on, something familiar.
“This has all gone so wrong,” he muttered. “If my brother hadn’t gotten greedy and impatient. He always was impatient. Had he just waited, he never would have exposed Fariq’s flank, so to speak, never have been so stupid as to kidnap your brother and force Fariq’s hand. He’d still be alive.”
“So, your brother was the one behind all this? The one I’m assuming Fariq killed?”
“Yes, but you know I don’t blame Fariq, not really. He had to kill him, but perhaps I can use that as a more acceptable reason to take over Fariq’s business than just wanting the old man out of the way. Now, be silent. I need to think.”
Finn cringed internally. The man sitting next to her didn’t mourn his brother’s demise, only the fact that what he had done had accelerated his own plans in a way that had put a serious dent in them. The car sped down the strip and out of Las Vegas headed to where, Finn wasn’t sure.
***
The Wild Mustang helicopter landed at their headquarters. Avery reached over to squeeze Croft’s hand but said nothing and took off as soon as everyone was clear. The men all went into the office and were greeted by Thom.
“I’ve been on the phone with both the Four Seasons and the Las Vegas cops. The hotel was amenable to staying out of it when I told them the firm would pay for all damages, including allowing them to comp the hotel bills of the few guests who were in there. The cops are pissed,” said Adam.
“I’ll bet they are,” said John. “Junior, don’t you have friends high up in their department?”
Junior nodded. “Sure do. I’ll get on the horn and get this smoothed over. I’ll assure them we thought it was a simple information exchange.”
“What the fuck is wrong with you people,” cried Christian. “This bastard,” he said grabbing Abdal by the suit lapels, “almost got me killed and now he has my sister.”
Croft reached up and pried Abdal from Christian’s grip. “Fariq’s a nasty piece of work, but he may have information that will help, and I suspect this is part of some kind of internal power play. Noah will get to the bottom of it, won’t you, Noah?”
“You bet I will. We’ll get your girl back, Croft.”
Baez and Noah took Abdal by either arm and started toward the back of the building. John followed.
“What does he mean, your girl?” Christian accused Croft.
“Why don’t you and I step into the conference room? Junior and I will debrief you when he’s done with the LVPD. You and I will use the time to get to know each other a little better, and I’ll catch you up on what you’ve put your sister through.”
“Put my sister through? Who the fuck do you think you are?” said Christian angrily.
“Well, I’m not the guy who stumbled upon whatever it is that has Fariq so worried. I’m not the guy who didn’t go to the authorities with that information. And I’m sure as hell not the guy who allowed Fariq’s men to think they might be able to use my sister to get whatever it is you have on them. I’m willing to make allowances that you got in way over your head way too fast, but you need to suck it up and get a rein on your emotions. We need to know everything you know in order to get Finn back as quickly and as unharmed as possible.”
Croft could see his words had knocked the wind out of Christian as surely as if he had punched the guy in the solar plexus. He escorted him into the conference room, poured a whiskey, and handed it to him. “Drink it.”
Christian crumpled into the chair Croft pulled out on the long side of the table, lifted the glass, and threw back the whiskey.
“How do you know Finn?” Christian asked in a voice just above a whisper. “How well do you know her?”
Croft sat down at the head of the table. “I know your sister well enough to tell you that you and I are going to have to figure out how to get along so she isn’t stuck in the middle. I can forgive you for getting her involved if you can forgive me for bringing her along this afternoon.”
Christian searched his face. “You have feelings for Finn.” It wasn’t a question, but a statement of fact.
Croft nodded. “Not just feelings, Christian. I’m in love with Finn. I plan to make that legal in pretty short order.”
“No shit? Does Finn know? How long have you known her?”
Croft smiled. Her brother’s love for his sister negated the shock he had to be feeling.
“No shit. I’m pretty damn sure she does, but it tends to freak her out if I say it. And not long.”
Christian laughed and then shook his head. “Must be one of those weird reactions to trauma.”
“Are you hurt? Fariq said you’d been cared for.”
“Physically, I’m pretty good. But I’m a banker, not some kind of superhero. So, Finn hired you guys?”
Croft chuckled. “Yes, but only to track you. Your little sister wasn’
t exactly forthcoming with the entire truth.”
“Ah, yes. Finn was always fond of the lie by omission. From the way Abdal reacted when he found out he had to deal with you, I’m awfully glad you figured it out.”
“Christian, you need to know if we hadn’t gotten involved …”
“Abdal would already have killed us both. You’ll get her back, right?”
“Nothing in heaven, hell, or anything in between will stop me.”
Christian stared intently at him. “I believe you. What can I do to help?”
“What did you find? And how?”
Christian shook his head. “You were right when you used the term stumbled. I was doing an audit on a hedge fund we’d invested in. We were considering increasing the size of our investment when I saw something that just didn’t make sense. I had no idea what it was and started to pull on the little thread I found. By the time the thing unraveled, I’d discovered they were linked to Al-Qaeda but only through a bunch of off-shore accounts and dummy corporations. You were also right when you said I should have gone to the authorities, but I was afraid I’d expose our other interests in that region. I amassed all the information, not to help put those bastards in jail, but to quietly get our investors and the banks we represent out of that hedge fund.”
“Why the thumb drive?”
“Because it was easier, and I thought more secure, than taking my laptop places. I mean, I had it in an encrypted file on my computer as well, but I stashed the thumb drive at Finn’s, in one of her riding boots. Ah, shit, Croft, I not only exposed my sister, I might have signed her death warrant.”
“Take it easy, Christian. Finn could have gone to the authorities, too.”
“They told her they’d kill me.”
“And your sister has been around long enough to know better than that. Individuals can’t deal with these bastards. They would have killed her in the Grand Canyon, taken the drive, and then killed you. And she should have known that. She’s smart enough to have known.”
“She was protecting me, wasn’t she? She was afraid I might be more involved than just a schmuck who found out by accident.”
“Perhaps she was looking after the family firm.”
The last thing Croft needed was for Christian to start down the guilt trail again.
Christian laughed bitterly. “If you know Finn at all, you know better than that. No, this was Finn trying to protect me, but you’re right, she should have gone to someone she trusted for help.”
“She did … only she didn’t know it at first. And it blew up in our faces any way. My hope is that Fariq knows enough about whoever this guy was to give us enough intel that we can move against him and get her back sooner rather than later. Is there any chance at all she’ll just sit and wait to be rescued?”
Christian smiled at him. “I wish, and I suspect you know better. If she thinks she has a chance to escape, she’ll take it. Finn’s never been much on waiting for her knight in shining armor on a white steed to save her.”
“As I recall,” drawled Junior as he joined them. “Croft here was sitting atop a big ole black mule by the name of Sam. And last time I checked, hadn’t no one accused Croft of being a knight in shining armor. Sorry it took me so long to join you gents. The LVPD was none too happy with us, but I think I got them settled down with a reminder that nobody but bad guys got hurt, they’re getting the credit for putting a dent in Abdal’s organization, and I sweetened the pot with a generous donation to their widows’ and orphans’ fund.”
John and Noah joined them.
“Baez is taking first watch with Abdal. Do we have everything we need from Christian tonight?” said John.
Croft nodded. “And what he didn’t have a chance yet to say or doesn’t know may be on the thumb drive.” He nodded toward Christian. “If you can give us the encryption code, our people can start taking a look to see if there’s anything useful.”
Christian wrote it down and passed the note to Croft.
“Good,” said John. “Junior, I want you to take Christian to the hospital in Mesa and get him checked out then …”
“Wait a minute,” interrupted Christian. “I’m fine and I’m not going anywhere until I know my little sister is going to be okay.”
The three other men turned to Croft.
“I appreciate that. But when we get her, we need to be able to assure her that you’re safe and well on the way to recovery. We have living quarters here in the building. If you want, we can bring you back here to use as a safe house until this is over, and you’ll be in the thick of things.”
“Good idea,” added Noah. “That way, if we have questions, you’ll be right here.”
Christian nodded and stood up. He started to follow Junior out and then turned back to Croft. “But you will get her back, right?”
“Or all die trying,” Croft reassured him.
They watched as Junior led Christian out to one of the firm’s armored SUVs and headed into town.
“What do we know?” asked Croft.
“The man holding Finn is Gerold Springer. His brother, Timon, is the one who started this whole mess and that Abdal killed. Abdal wanted you to know that while he knew that someone was beginning to stage a takeover, he had no idea it was Springer. In fact, he doubts Timon knew. He believes Timon planned to use the information as leverage for some kind of bonus.”
“Was Abdal’s organization ripe for a takeover?” asked Thom.
“According to Abdal,” continued John, “he was beginning to think of an internal transition. His plan was to engineer a peaceful retirement for himself and a passing of the baton to one of his lieutenants. Springer only had a marginal chance of that being him. When Timon staged this fiasco, Abdal had him killed. Springer assured him his brother was a fool and that he shouldn’t have to pay for his foolishness. He must have been very convincing as Abdal said he never saw it coming.”
“Do you believe him?”
John nodded.
“It makes sense,” said Noah. “In general, arms dealers don’t grow old, they get taken out. Abdal has always been smarter than most and tends to see the big picture. With the right man at the helm, his organization could go on without him. His plan was to retire in luxury in Morocco.”
“Unusual,” added Croft. “His people have always been loyal to him. I wonder if there wasn’t something more at stake than just the arms running.”
“Like what?” asked John.
“Gerold Springer once had ties to the Red Army Faction. If they sent him to get close to Fariq, they’re looking to bring themselves back to being one of the major players in global terrorism.”
“I thought they broke apart in like 1998 or 1999,” said Noah.
“They sent out a press announcement that they had, but there have always been rumors that they, or some kind of splinter group, were simply exiting the main world stage while they regrouped and got a more stable funding base. If either or both of the Springers were RAF, this takeover of Abdal’s organization could be the first major step in a comeback,” said Thom. “I’m going to go see what I can find out behind the scenes. I still have some good contacts at the CIA, Mossad, and NATO Intelligence.”
Thom left the room. Noah, John, and Croft looked at each other.
“Croft? You and Noah hit the bunks and try to get some rest.”
“No way, John …”
“Finn’s going to need us all at our best. Right now, there’s not much either of you can do but worry. Thom’s going to do his techie thing, and I suspect Adam will be here shortly. He was skiing in Colorado, but I’m sure he’s on his way back. Baez is looking after Abdal, and Junior has Christian. You two get some sleep, and you can take over in a few hours while the rest of us do the same. Until we have more concrete information, there’s nothing else to be done.”
Both Croft and Noah nodded and headed for what passed as the barracks for the team. Both men hit the communal shower before picking a bunk. Croft heard Noah settling down and
then got up to look out the window.
“We’ll get her back, Croft. We’re the best at what we do, and it’s all hands on deck.”
Croft turned to his friend and nodded. “I know, Noah. But she’s out there all alone.”
“She’s got to know we’re coming.”
“I’m sure somewhere in the back of her mind she does. But, as Christian pointed out, waiting around to be rescued isn’t her style. I just hope to God she heard me and doesn’t make things worse.”
Chapter 11
Finn wasn’t sure how long they had been in the air or where they landed. Once she had been herded onto the plane, she was injected with something that put her out and, when she woke, she was in a small bedroom. It was nicely furnished, and the windows, though barred, showed a rolling landscape of lush green pastures. She was happy to see there was an adjoining bath. It didn’t have windows but did have a skylight directly above the small shower stall.
She was just reentering the room after washing her face when she saw the door handle turn. There did not appear to be anything in the room she could use as a weapon.
“Good morning, Ms. Reid. I am Gerold Springer. You will be my guest for the next few days. You will be confined to your room unless one of my men is with you. Your meals will be brought to you. If you choose, you may join us for dinner.”
“Mr. Springer, why have you brought me here? And how did you know I was awake?”
“We have been checking on you every few hours. There are no cameras or listening devices in your room, but the halls, exits, common areas, and grounds are heavily guarded and under twenty-four-hour electronic surveillance. I’m afraid bringing you along wasn’t necessarily part of my plan, and I have yet to decide your fate.”
“I think you will find that my brother is still willing to complete the transaction and exchange the information for my safe return.”
“If I wanted the information, I would already have it. Your people seem to think the issue was the information. It wasn’t. Your family’s financial concerns have never been ours. The withdrawal of your capital from the hedge fund would have been a minor inconvenience. My brother was inept and vastly underestimated the depth of loyalty Fariq commanded. I have not. Unfortunately, what happened at the Four Seasons forced me to show my hand. My brethren and I were moving toward seizing Fariq’s organization and all of its assets. Timon was a fool and got greedy. Once Fariq had time to examine this entire affair, he would have found the real threat and had me eliminated. I tried to take him out at the hotel but failed. I needed you as a hostage to ensure I could get away. Now, the question is, what do I do with you?”