Fallen Pride (Jesse McDermitt Series) (30 page)

I shook hands with the man and said, “Pleased to finally meet you, Jim. Follow me.”

“Likewise, Jesse. Real sorry about what happened last fall. But, I was happy to hear one of the guys died slow, choking on his own blood.”

Changing the subject I asked, “What’s in the case?”

“Oh this? Just one of my toys. It’s an interface for cell phones. Uses a real sophisticated algorithm to locate a specific cell phone signal, by sort of connecting the dots between one or two other signals. You’re heard of the ‘Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon’? How any individual is connected through other individuals to just about anyone within six steps? This
baby does that with phones.”

We stepped aboard the
Revenge
and I was pleased to see that Jim was actually wearing sneakers with his business suit. He caught me looking down and said, “Travis insisted. Said you were kind of particular about the decks.” I opened the hatch to the salon and as he entered he let out a low whistle and said, “Yep, I can see why.”

“Right over here, Jim,” Scott said. “On the end of the settee. Julie and I are set up to monitor everyone’s comm and location.”

“As I was saying, Jesse,” Jim said placing the case on the counter and opening it. “If I enter two phone numbers in this baby, it’ll run through every number both of them called and find any that are in common. Then it’ll use that data and locate any phone that was within a meter of any other that was called more than once. That finds any accomplices and any burn phones the target might have. Deuce said you were going to do a manhunt on foot. By the time you guys get spread out, I’ll be able to tell you where your target is within two meters.”

“That’s a cool toy, Jim.”

He lifted what looked like a giant laptop computer from the case and gently placed it on the table and looked around. “There’s a power strip inside the cabinet, Jim. Hope you find him, it’ll make our job a lot easier.”

Deuce
and Kumar were on the dock as I stepped off the boat. “The other two Feebs are at the Sheriff’s office with the Watch Commander,” Deuce said. “They’ll will meet you and Kumar when you get there. Our two shooters with their spotters will be driven to their locations by a pair of Deputies and everyone else will spread out from there. I hope Jim can locate Darchevsky fast, otherwise the search could take days.”

“He seemed to think it wouldn’t take long,” I said.

“Once you hook up with the Watch Commander, since you know the island, I want you to assign everyone a section. Use the vehicles to move the teams as the two of you see fit. You can split the teams north and south of Truman.”

Kumar and
I headed toward the parking lot and joined the others, climbing into the two large vans. A few minutes later we were crossing the bridge from Boca Chica to Stock Island and then on into Key West. It only took ten minutes to get to the Sheriff’s office and the two vans parked in the main courthouse parking lot. Two men in FBI jackets waited with a uniformed Sheriff’s Department Lieutenant.

I climbed out of the passenger seat and told the others to stay close, we’d be leaving in the van in a few minutes. Kumar and I walked over and introduced ourselves to the two agents and the Lieutenant.
Four more Deputies stood behind the Lieutenant.

The Lieutenant was a stocky man by the name of Dwayne Breece. “I’ve been briefed by these two agents and have two squad cars
and four Deputies at your disposal. We’ve called in every available Deputy and they’re already out in the streets.”

I stepped up a little closer to the Lieutenant and said, “The man we’re after is the one your department wrote off as a ‘biker gang’
shooting yesterday, Lieutenant. The so called ‘biker’ that was shot at is one of my men.”

“An unfortunate mistake, Gunny. I know Doc very well, but wasn’t on duty at the time of the shooting. The Detective that took his and Nikki’s statement has been reprimanded and the report revised.”

I studied him closer. His attitude and bearing spoke volumes. “Semper Fi, Eltee.”

“Oohrah, Gunny. We’re down to a skeleton crew in both our offices here and over on Stock Island. Every available badge
from both the Department and Key West PD is out looking and ready to help in any way we can. Sobriety check points are being set up every ten miles all the way to the mainland. A contract killer is something we want off this island even more than you.”

“Thanks, Eltee,” I said. Then turning to the group I shouted, “Williams, Hinkle, get over here!”

The two men trotted over with their spotters, carrying their rifles in two unmarked fly rod cases I’d given them.

“Go with those deputies. They’ll take you to your nests and act as security while you’re there. Let Kumar and I know when you’re set up.”

The four Deputies walked with them to the squad cars and drove away in opposite directions. The Lieutenant walked with us to the group and handed out street maps of the island to each person. “Kumar,” I said, “Take your group in the van down Whitehead here to the Southernmost Point. Split up there and start checking restaurants and any places that rent a room, working your way east and north to Truman. My group will go up to Mallory Square and start working south and east. The island’s small, but there’s more than 350 restaurants and over 150 hotels. Use the van to drop a man off every few blocks along South Street and Atlantic Boulevard. We’ll do the same on the north side, along Eaton Street. The important thing is to get spread out fast. With so many places to look, we have to count on Jim finding his electronic signature first then converge on his location.”

“Roger that, Gunny,” Kumar said. Minutes later the two vans split up, heading north and south on Whitehead to our destinations. Within ten minutes everyone was on foot, working a grid. Chyrel kept us from overlapping and directed each individual
.

Within an hour, I was starting to get the overwhelming feeling that there were just too many places to hide. By 0930, I was certain of it. I was on Eisenhower Drive, near Garrison Bight and about to enter Harborside Motel when Deuce’s voice came over my comm.

“Jesse, Kumar, this is Deuce. Jim has a hit. The target is stationary at the corner of Olivia and Elizabeth Streets.”

“I’m nearly a mile away, on the east end of Olivia,” I said. “Headed that way.”

Deuce’s voice came over the comm again, “Jared, about 500 yards to the northeast of the lighthouse. You should have line of sight. There’s a restaurant called Seven Fish, can you see it?”

“Negative,” Jared said. “I can see up Olivia and counting the intersections I can see Elizabeth, but the structures on either side are obscured by trees.”

“This is Grayson, I’m on Elizabeth, two blocks away.”

“Roger Grayson. Julie says you and Sherri are closest, she’s moving north on Elizabeth and Jesse’s c
oming west on Olivia.”

Within seconds two more team members were converging on the restaurant, from the east and west.

“Target is on the move,” Deuce said. “Heading west on Olivia.”

I heard Charity say, “It’s Darchevsky. No doubt about it. He’s wearing tan slacks, a light blue shirt and a dark blue windbreaker. He’s walking straight toward us.”

“Hold your fire, Jared,” I said. Grayson and Sherri will be turning the corner behind him any second and I’m less than two blocks away.” I turned up the speed as I passed the cemetery. Halfway down the block between Windsor and Elizabeth, I saw Sherri stop at the corner of the restaurant and peek around.

“This is Fallon,” she said. “I have eyes on the subject.”

Across from her, Grayson crouched next to a low stone wall and said, “I have eyes on him, too. He’s crossing north across Olivia now. Continuing west on the north sidewalk.”

“I got him” I said. “
Grayson, you and Sherri start down the sidewalks on either side. Quick, but quiet. I’ll be in the middle of the street between you in ten seconds.”

“This is Williams. I have him ranged and sighted. I’m standing by.” Jared sounded like the consummate professional, no fear or panic in his voice at all. I knew that this was his element. And I also knew he wouldn’t take a shot unless ordered to. He’d finally come to grips with who and what he was and had conquered his demons, if only for a little while. I felt emboldened, knowing that he was perched up there and had our backs.

As I crossed Elizabeth Street, I slowed to a fast walk. I could see Darchevsky now, not even a block ahead. Grayson and Sherri were just a few yards ahead of me and fifty feet behind him. He stopped at the corner of Simonton Street for a second, then crossed over and continued down Olivia, just two blocks from Duval Street. Even though it was still early, I could see that Duval was already active, people crossing in both directions on the sidewalks.

Just then a
Key West Police cruiser turned off of Duval onto Olivia. It stopped and the blue lights came on. Darchevsky stopped in his tracks halfway between Simonton and Center Street. I drew my Sig as I came abreast of Grayson and Sherri and out of the corner of my eyes I saw them draw their side arms also.

As Darchevsky started to turn, the three of us stopped and I shouted, “Darchevsky! Don’t move! You’re under arrest!”

He was next to a long wall, with a picket fence on top of it. He moved quickly across the street and behind a parked car. In a split second he raised up and fired two shots. Grayson and I returned fire, as we steadily moved forward.

I heard Sherri call out, “I’m hit.”

“Jared, shoot to maim,” I shouted. A second later, there was the thunderclap report of my M-40 and Darchevsky rolled out into the middle of the street, his weapon flying away from him.

I ran to the sidewalk where Sherri lay on
her side. Blood was already spreading across the front and back of her blouse, just above her right hip. I knelt down as she looked up and said, “Guess next week’s marathon is out of the question.”

I pulled her blouse up, exposing the wound
s. It was a through and through, the exit wound slightly larger than the entry. I reached into the pocket of my cargo pants and pulled out two packages of Quikclot and two self-adhesive bandages. “This is going to burn like all hell, kid,” I said as I ripped the first package open and poured the granules into the exit wound. I quickly pulled the backing off one of the bandages and pressed it firmly in place as she tried to muffle a scream. Then I ripped open the second package and did the same thing on her belly wound.

“Doc, get over here, riki tik. Sherri’s down, but okay.”

“Almost there, Gunny,” came his reply.

The sound of a siren split the air and the cruiser sped forward, stopping in the intersect
ion of Olivia and Center Street and the cop shut off the siren. Other sirens could be heard seemingly from every direction. Grayson had Darchevsky face down with his knee in the man’s lower back. Doc came running up, so I left him to attend to Sherri and went to help Grayson who already had flex cuffs on Darchevsky’s wrists and literally yanked him to his feet with one hand.

He didn’t stay on his feet long. As I strode toward him, I unleashed an overhand right that landed squarely on his jaw, dropping him like a back of concrete. “What part of
don’t move did you not understand!” I shouted down at the unconscious man.

I turned to the cop and said, “Get an ambulance here, now! Officer down!”

The cop ran to his patrol car and called it in. Several voices were talking at once over the comm. Suddenly it all went quiet and Deuce’s voice came over it, “Jesse, report.”

“Darchevsky’s in custody. Unconscious with a superficial wound to his right hand and a broken jaw where he fell. Sherri was hit, but is awake and talking. Ambulance is on the way.”

“Roger that. Everyone converge on the corner of Olivia and Center Street. The vans are on the way. Good job, everyone.”

The ambulance arrived and the paramedics agreed with Doc, that she didn’t need to be transported. She was up and walking around, but with a slight limp. The bullet had passed through the fleshy part of her waist. Within five minutes, the rest of the team had converged on the scene
with Hinkle, Mitchel, Charity and Jared the last to arrive by squad car.

When Darchevsky woke up, he was moved
into the first van to arrive and unceremoniously dumped in the back. I noticed that Jared’s bullet had entered his right forearm, just below the elbow and exited near his wrist.

As Jared got out of the squad car, Hinkle was the first to greet him. “Crikey, mate, that’s one hell of a shot. That bloke won’t ever shoot right handed again.” Several of the others slapped him on the shoulder as he made his way over to Doc and Sherri.

“Sorry I couldn’t have prevented that,” he said pointing at her waist.

“Don’t be,” she said shaking his hand. “You fired when ordered.”

“And not before,” I said with a grin as Charity took his hand in hers and led him toward the vans.

“Everyone mount up,” Kumar said.

Within seconds, the two vans were leaving the four Deputies and the Key West patrolman scratching their heads. Ten minutes later, we pulled into the parking lot at the marina and after shaking hands with Special Agents Sherman and Elson, we boarded the
Revenge.
Three Shore Patrol officers were waiting to take Darchevsky into custody. Although the shooting took place in Key West, since it was one of theirs that was injured they asked Key West PD to take jurisdiction. Key West was just glad to have him off the island and the case wrapped up.

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