In The Line of Fire Boxset 5 Books in 1 (Thriller Stories To Keep You up all Night)

by Rhiley McCabe

  “Spit it out!” Leo snapped. Thomas’ gave him an annoyed glance.

  “They’re at the same location, just outside of town. If you move now, you could have time to surprise them.”

  “You heard him,” Leo said, turning to Badrick and Carlos. “Get on with it.” He turned back to Thomas, “Get dressed. You’re coming, too.”

  Thomas burst out in laughter, “I’m not going anywhere.”

  He crossed his arms. He was no longer scared of Leo.

  Seeing him with his wounded shoulder, being nervous all night, made him realize that Leo was just a big fish trying to get away from an even bigger fish.

  “You can clean up your own mess.”

  Badrick and Carlos looked at Thomas with shock. Leo stood up; the other two got up slowly after him.

  “What did you say?” Leo asked in a reserved but sinister voice.

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  “This is not my problem. I gave you everything you needed to get rid of Jason Williams,” Thomas pointed a finger at Leo, “but you screwed it up with every chance you got. Now, you and I,” He motioned between himself and Leo, “we have a deal. I get you out of tight spots and share relevant information. I will not do your job, too.”

  Leo charged forward, his hand already in the air to hit Thomas, but he halted as Thomas grabbed a gun from underneath his gown and pointed it at his face. Instinctively, Badrick grabbed and pointed his own gun at Thomas. Carlos stood next to him in silence, waiting for the situation to play itself out.

  “Come on, Martinez. Take one more step…” Thomas said, breathing rapidly.

  “WOW. Look at the Chief!” He gestured toward Thomas with open arms, laughed, and turned to Badrick and Carlos. Carlos let out a little smile. Badrick just kept his gun aimed at Thomas.

  “When did you grow a pair?”

  Thomas smirked and put his finger on the trigger. Leo raised an eyebrow. “Carlos!”

  “Yeah, jefe?”

  “Get the coordinates from this fool.” He turned his back on Thomas and walked toward the door, “I'll start the car. Badrick, come with me.”

  When Leo and Badrick had gone outside, Thomas walked to the table where they had been sitting before and threw the gun down in frustration.

  “You shouldn’t have done that.” Carlos said calmly as he waited for Thomas to write the coordinates.

  “He has no right treating me as if I’m the problem. I’ve only ever covered his ass.”

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  Thomas’ frustration made sense to Carlos. If there was one thing he could not tolerate, it was disrespect. And he didn’t like the way Leo had been treating Thomas, either.

  If he had the Chief of Police on his side, he’d treat him as an ally rather than a lapdog. It would make better business sense.

  “He’ll send Badrick after you.” Carlos said as Thomas handed him the paper.

  “Why are you telling me?”

  “I don’t think he appreciates the asset you are…”

  Thomas chuckled, “And you do?”

  “Of course. Men like us, we need men like you. I’m not too proud to say it.” Carlos shrugged his shoulders.

  “Thank you.” Thomas said, observing Carlos cautiously.

  “Watch your back, man.” Carlos said as he walked away.

  Leo was fuming when Carlos climbed in the car. He ignored Leo’s deadly stare and confidently proceeded to enter the coordinates in the GPS. As they drove off, Leo noticed Carlos glancing at him.

  “What?!” He exploded, “What is it?!”

  “I know you’re upset about that asshole, jefe.” Carlos said, “but we can’t be bothered about him right now. It’ll be light in a few hours, so we need to focus on getting this job done.”

  “Do I look stupid, that you’re telling me what needs to be done?”

  “I apologize. Now, about Romero.”

  “What about him?”

  “What will we do about him? He’s dangerous…”

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  “They don’t know we’re coming, so we can surprise him.

  When we get there and confront them, everyone must focus on him first. Once he’s out of the way, taking care of that cop will be easy.” Leo glanced in the rearview mirror, “Did you get that, Badrick?”

  “Yes, mon.”

  “I don’t want you to be a liability. Do you feel all right after the whiskey you enjoyed so thoroughly?”

  Badrick chuckled, “I’m an even better shot when I’ve had a few… shots” He roared of laughter at his own joke. Leo just shook his head and stepped on the accelerator.

  “Whoa… They’re moving!” Ruiz said, tapping on the GPS screen.

  “Where to?” Tate asked.

  “In our direction.”

  “Shit!” Tate slowed down and pulled the car off the road.

  The car that had been following them did the same. He reversed the car slightly and turned it around, “We’ll wait until they go past us. Tell your associates.”

  Ruiz took out his phone and dialed a number, “Be ready to follow when we fall in the road again.”

  After Tate had picked him up, Ruiz contacted four men to join them. The first was Philo, a six-foot soldier-turned-mercenary from Greece. He had been working with the Blood Brothers just over a year and had recently settled in the USA. Hearing of Rico’s death had outraged him, and he vowed that he would hunt the killers down with Ruiz.

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  The second man was Tobi, a reserved Nigerian who was smuggled into the country as a little boy. Shortly after arriving, his father died in a crossfire between two gangs.

  He was simply at the wrong place at the wrong time. A gangster lord took him in and taught him how to survive. As a young man, he too became a gangster lord.

  But the politics drove him mad. He took on an assassination project by chance one day and found it more satis-fying than dealing with unruly gangsters every day.

  Soon after, he changed careers and became one of the best—on par with the likes of Romero Sanchez. He didn’t know Rico, but he enjoyed revenge-type tasks.

  Then there was Philip—a Canadian without a past. Cold-blooded, expressionless and effective… That’s what everyone knew him for. He enjoyed a steady flow of lucrative assassination tasks because he never asked questions, never fussed and always got the job done. He went along for the reward.

  Matthew, a sadistic psychopath with an incredible apti-tude for knife-fighting, went along too. It shocked Tate and the other three men when they found out he was also on the team. He was a loose cannon that no one could trust—famous for killing more associates than any other assassin. When Philo, Tobi and Philip heard he was coming, they refused to ride with him, so he got in the back seat of Tate’s car. Ruiz told Tate to be calm. Apparently, he knew how to handle the crazy guy…

  “Wait…” Ruiz mumbled.

  “What is it?”

  “They’ve stopped.”

  “What?”

  “Yeah, they must’ve pulled over or something.”

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  “Damn it! If Leo gets away, we’re all done for.” Matthew gasped and started chanting something incoherent. Tate eyed him suspiciously before looking to Ruiz, who gave him a reassuring nod. “We’ll drive in that direction slowly; tell me when to stop.”

  “Mm.” Ruiz affirmed.

  The car behind them followed suit like a shadow. Ruiz called Philo and told him they should be on the lookout for any parked cars along the roadside.

  “There must be a hidden slipway somewhere here, that’s the only…”

  “There, there, there!” Matthew interrupted Ruiz with excited shouting, smashing a fist against the window. He roared like a Viking.

  Tate’s eyebrow shot up as he pulled over to where Matthew was directing, “Is he going to make a noise when we go after them?” He stared at Matthew with disdain in the rearview mirror.

  “Nope, nope, nope.” Matthew answered, “Nope!” He rocked backward and forward, scanning the outside frantically.

/>   Tate looked at Ruiz with concern.

  “You heard the man…” He turned around and smiled,

  “Silent like a hawk, right Matthew?”

  Matthew nodded, “Sh…” He smiled, put a finger over his lips and continued to rock.

  “If he gives us away, I’ll kill you.” Tate whispered in Ruiz’s ear and opened the door.

  He stepped outside and looked up into darkness. It was a clear, moonless night. The starts shone brightly, which made Tate feel good. The others got out of their car and 209

  approached. Ruiz had to tap against Tate’s car to coax Matthew out of it. As soon as he was out, the others were on edge, ready to pull out their guns in case he made a sudden move.

  “Let’s move,” Tate ordered.

  They had barely walked three yards when Matthew gasped dramatically. Everyone pulled out their guns. He pointed frantically at a black car parked in the long grass.

  “Excellent, Matthew.” Tate whispered; he put his finger on his mouth and said, “Sh,” Matthew smiled and mimicked him. Tobi rolled his eyes and mumbled something in Yoruba, and Philip put away his gun without a word.

  Tate glanced at Ruiz, who nodded with a smile. The group advanced in complete silence. Tobi’s attention was drawn to a structure a few feet away. He approached it cautiously while the others continued on their path.

  “Guys,” he called out softly, “come look at this.”

  “What?” Tate said, exasperated, as he rambled impatiently toward Tobi. The others followed him.

  “That rock looks like it could be a dwelling of some sort.”

  “Seriously?” Tate grumbled, “Now is not the time for sightseeing. Come look at it as long as you want after we’re done taking out Leo.” He headed toward the direction they came from.

  “What if they’re hiding out there?” Tobi insisted, “It’s worth checking out.”

  “Ruiz! What the hell is wrong with you?!” Tate exploded,

  “You brought a degenerate,” he pointed to Matthew, who turned around to look behind him, “and a kid who 210

  thinks he’s on a field trip…” He gestured to Tobi with his pistol.

  Everyone stared at him, and he knew what they were thinking. He’d probably just given their presence away.

  He took a deep breath and looked up to the sky, wishing Leo could just fall from somewhere up there so he could kill him and get it over with.

  Mathew smiled at him and put his finger on his lips, “Is he going to make a noise when we go after them?”

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  CHAPTER THREE

  “W hat is that?” Beatrice squeaked.

  “What’s what?” Romero asked.

  “That dull beeping sound… Don’t you hear it?”

  “Shit!”

  He rushed to another room. Jason stood up. The pain was subsiding. He eyed his phone and his mind mauled over what Romero had said about Tate being a Syndicate member. Beatrice stared at him, wide-eyed.

  “Don’t look so concerned,” He smiled, “You’ve got an assassin willing to put his life on the line for you.” She smiled back.

  “I’m not concerned about me.” She looked in the direction where Romero had disappeared.

  “Oh?”

  “Are you going to arrest him?”

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  Jason looked at her in silence for a moment. “Beatrice, if he killed my daughter, this world will not be big enough for both of us.” Beatrice’s gaze fell to the floor. “And if he did, will you stand in my way?”

  “No…” She whispered. She looked up suddenly, her eyes beaming, “But if he didn’t, are you going to arrest him?”

  Jason clenched his teeth, “He’s a criminal. A murderer.”

  He said dryly.

  “I don’t think he kills innocent people, though…”

  Jason burst out in laughter, “And what am I guilty of, eh?” He pressed his index finger against his chest, “What was your...” He sighed, pinching his nose bridge until it hurt. He let go and opened his eyes, “Did you forget the reason we’re here? He was on a contract to kill me, Beatrice.”

  “We’ve got company.” Romero reappeared with guns and ammo. “That sound you heard was a parameter breach.” He said to Beatrice and put his haul on a large table standing against the wall, “How the hell did they find us?”

  Beatrice stared at Jason, wondering what he wanted to say.

  Jason’s attention shifted to his phone; he walked over and picked it up, lifting an eyebrow, “What, a world-class assassin doesn’t have signal jammers around his hideout?” He walked to Romero and dangled the phone in front of him before slipping it in his pocket.

  Romero sighed and disappeared again. Jason approached the table to examine the weapons.

  “You wanted to say something, before.” Beatrice said.

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  “It was nothing. Forget about it.”

  Are you protecting Beatrice or Romero? He has a soft spot for her… But will she help him become a better man? And why the hell are you even considering letting that asshole get away, idiot?

  Romero appeared again and eyed Jason hovering over his weapons. Jason had one of the guns in his hand. He looked at Romero quizzically.

  “Sara Jane Moore fan?” He held up the .38 Smith & Wesson revolver.

  Romero approached and held out his hand, “She had guts.”

  Jason handed the gun over, “She was stupid.”

  “Your boss is outside with five top-rated assassins. You still want to put that call through?” Romero replied with an indifferent tone.

  “Five top assassins? For one cop?” Beatrice interrupted,

  “I don’t think they would want him that badly…” She and Romero shared a quick smile, “No offence, Jason.”

  She smiled apologetically.

  “None taken.”

  “She’s right. I don’t think he’s here for you.” Romero continued arranging his guns, seemingly searching for the perfect one. “I have to go out there and make sure they don’t discover us. Catch them by surprise.”

  “I’ll go with…”

  “No. Your hand is useless. Besides, you won’t know how to handle them. This is no police chase.” Romero asserted. His gaze shifted to Beatrice, and Jason could see something in him soften. He put on a webbing vest, loaded two pistols and holstered them.

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  “Protect her.” He picked up an M16 and checked the cartridge.

  “Who is Tate after?” Jason wondered.

  “Leo Martinez. He’s probably out here looking for you.”

  “Why would he be after Leo, if not to arrest him?”

  Romero chortled, “Why do men do anything?” He smirked, “Power and greed, my friend.”

  Jason looked at him in disgust, “I’m not your friend. And that’s not the only reason men to things… You should know.”

  “Whatever, man.”

  “What are we waiting for, Shawn?” Ekong pressed, “The longer we wait, the more we’re at risk of being exposed.”

  “Are you questioning my judgement?” Shawn chided.

  He felt his hand shaking violently in his pocket. Ekong’s gaze fell, “We will be patient, is that clear?”

  “Of course.” Ekong said.

  “I agree.” Javier added, eyeing Ekong and giving him a slight nod.

  They took their regular seats: Shawn in the middle, Ekong to his right, and Javier to his left. Shawn lifted a finger and light flooded the immense hall. A crowd in suits stared up at them.

  “What the hell is going on?!” An aggressive voice sounded. Murmurs followed.

  “Is it true that we’re exposed?” Another voice boomed,

  “We’ll all be ruined!” The crowd became more unsettled.

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  “QUIET.” Shawn bellowed. Within seconds, everyone fell silent.

  “Why are you lending your ears out like little, naïve children?” He scolded, “Have we not had worse problems before? How feeble your little minds are…” He s
tood up and walked the length of the podium. “Friends, the matter is being handled as we speak. You have nothing to worry about.”

  The men and women seated in front of him looked at him with respect and reverence, which made them less fearful, but the thought of being caught lingered in their minds. Among those seated were sponsors of Boko Haram in Nigeria, ISIS in the Middle East and other criminal organizations. Countless people had died because of their actions, so they were fearful of what would happen to them if information about The Syndicate got out.

  “How are we supposed to believe you? Show us proof that something is being done!” A voice shouted from the crowd.

  “Have I ever failed you before?” Shawn retorted, outraged that someone would dare throw such a question at him. “The last time a crisis like this arose, who solved it? Huh?!” The room fell silent again, “Me! Now pull yourselves together.”

  What he said seemed to work. The tension in the room lifted and members started conversing freely—however, some were still doubting that Shawn would take care of it. He was well aware of the rumors that he was getting too old to be in charge. And being childless, his position was vulnerable. He had it in his mind to groom Tate Mike to take over from him, but after the mess with Leo Martinez, it would prove an impossible endeavor.

  Besides that, time was running out for him…

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  Tate’s phone echoed across the field.

  “Damn it!” He cussed. Matthew guffawed. At that, Tate threw a threatening glance at Rico, who immediately approached Matthew and tried to get his attention.

  “Who the f…”

  “I take it you haven’t found him.”

  “Shawn,” Tate sighed, “I apologize.”

  “Now is not the time to be courteous.”

  “Well then, I can’t talk now. We’ve located him and we’re at the same location. He’s just hiding with his worthless head in a hole, is all. When the sun rises, it will be over.”

  A silence followed that made Tate uneasy.

  “Shawn?”

  He belligerently motioned to the others to continue the search.

  “If that sun rises, and it’s not over, I’m sending in the second wave.” The line went dead.

  Tate had no time to be fearful or shocked at Shawn’s revelation. When he caught up with the others, Tobi was still eyeing the rock-like structure a few yards away. He looked at it again and wondered if, perhaps, Tobi was on to something.