Seeing the eager expressions on Mitzi’s and Tara’s faces, Hailey knew she’d have to say something. She took a deep breath and prepared to recite her well-rehearsed version when she saw another of the DC women rush in and join her friends. Their excited whispers and shocked expressions made it clear something was up. When all of the Goth girls jumped up and headed for the bathroom, Hailey was afraid their news might concern Jared. Excusing herself from her companions, she headed for the side door of the ladies room and ducked unseen into one of the stalls. The heated conversation she overheard confirmed that her instincts were on target.
“Listen up, bitches, I don’t give a flying fuck what Janko will do if we crash the party.”
Hailey recognized the angry voice. It was Brittany Kramer, the woman that according to Mitzi, Jared had “dropped on her ass” when he chased Hailey out of the bar.
Brittany’s voice was contorted with anger laced with anticipation. “If you think for one minute I’m going to stay here and wait for Janko to show up, when he and the men are taking down that arrogant cocksucker Jared Justice, you’re crazy. I just hope they don’t finish beating him to death before we get there. I want to hear that conceited motherfucker scream.” She confirmed gleefully, “I’m telling you, bitches, between Janko and Dinks, I don’t know who is better at inflicting pain.”
Hailey waited until she was sure the women had left then snuck out of the bathroom and dashed to the parking lot. Hiding in the shadows, Hailey watched the women pile into a white van with tinted windows. Darting between parked cars she got close enough to slap a patch onto the rear bumper of the van as it peeled out of the lot. Running to her trusty Corolla, Hailey jumped in and prepared to follow them.
***
Sgt. Solberg rushed into Jake’s office, his ruddy face dangerously flushed. “Fucking Christ, Commander. Something’s way wrong. Agent Thomas just called. Jared called for the exchange, told Agent Thomas to activate Scorpio NOW. Thomas said they had no choice.”
At that moment Jake’s personal line squawked. Agent Thomas’s voice was taut, his message curt. “Jake, it’s done. On Jared’s order, we made the exchange. Our guys have the shipment and Jared just wired the funds.”
Jake stepped back in shock. “Holy mother of God, what happened?”
“Not sure I know, Lieutenant, but for some reason your DC bad boys got antsy. Jared didn’t have a choice. And neither did we. Someone or something put a bomb up Janko’s ass to make him change the timing. My Bangkok team confirmed that the DEA has the drugs and have captured the BOC criminals. That’s the good news. But I don’t have to tell you that in a matter of minutes Janko and his DC guys will know that they’ve been had. I sure hope you have a bead on that brother of yours. This can’t bode well for him.”
His heart pounding, Jake turned to Solly. “Get hold of Jared. Find out what the hell happened
and
where the hell he is.”
Solly’s red face had paled considerably.
“I tried, Jake, while you were talking to Agent Thomas. Jared’s phone is dead.” He added, his voice tight with fear, “Which means that we don’t have his GPS, Jake. Fuckin’ Christ, how the hell are we going to find Jared?”
Before Jake could answer, Carrie Seagraves, his desk sergeant entered. Her worried expression confirmed she expected his grim response.
“Lieutenant, I’m sorry to interrupt but Officer Michels says it’s urgent. She says she
has
to talk to you now.”
Reaching in his weapons cabinet and yanking out a Glock 42 and a Salient Arms AR 15, Jake punched on his speaker.
“Officer Michels, I can’t talk now.”
Hailey’s shrill response sent a wave of fear riveting up his spine.
“Commander, it…it’s Jared. They have him.”
“What the hell, Hailey?”
“Lt. Justice, I heard Brittany Kramer…and the others. They said Janko is going to kill Jared, beat him to death!’
“Jesus, Hailey, we know they have him. We just don’t know
where
.”
“I’m following the women, Jake. Brittany said she wanted to watch Janko kill him.”
Jake exploded. “What the fuck, Hailey, how are you
following
—?”
She interrupted him. “I…I slapped a tag on their bumper. It’s a white paneled van, tinted windows, no plates. They just pulled off HWY 2 on a dirt road. I’m right behind them. You’ve got my coordinates…. Hurry, Jake!”
Jake shouted to Solly, “Sound the alarm! I want every available man on the road, now!”
He spoke into the speaker, “We’re on the way, Hailey. Great work. Thanks to you, I know they’ve got him at Finnegan’s Field.” He added hoarsely, “You stay put, you hear me? Stay where you are and wait for us.”
“I can’t, Jake. I…I don’t think you can get here in time.” Her voice rose shrilly, “They’re going to kill him. I have to stop them!”
As he and his fellow officers charged out to the waiting squads, Jake roared, “Goddammit, Hailey. Stand down. That’s an order, Officer Michels! Do. You. Copy?”
Her refusal was barely audible. “I can’t, Commander Justice. I have to stop them.”
***
It took every ounce of strength Jared had not to scream at the double sucker-punch, followed by another crushing blow to his ribs. Who would have thought that this homegrown bunch of sadists could out-torture the best of the Afghani freakos? At least Jared had managed to do serious injury to the gonads of more than a few of the Dragons when they hauled him out of the car. It helped that most of them were hopped up on crystal, but outnumbered twenty to one, he was fighting a losing battle. Now hanging from his bound wrists from the overarching limb of a large Maple, his arms blessedly numb from the strain, he could only hope that the unconsciousness gods would get their asses on site soon. He didn’t want to imagine what Janko and his animals intended to do with the red hot pokers resting in the blazing bonfire lighting the dark field.
For a distorted moment he’d thought that the van he heard was Jake to the rescue. Jared knew that if anyone might intuit that Janko would head for Finnegan’s Field, it was Jake. More times than Jared could count, Jake and Jude had tracked his inebriated teenaged gang to the FF. But the shrill laughter signified that it was Brittany and her slutty pals who’d come to revel in Jared’s demise—not Jake and his officers.
With the arrival of the women, Janko stopped kicking Jared’s ribs long enough to preen for the ecstatic spectators. Prancing back and forth like the drama whore he was, Janko crowed.
“All I can say is I shouldda known. Fuck me for the sentimental trusting asshole that I am. My men warned me. Did I listen? Hell no! I did something I never should have done. I trusted a Justice Brother. Fuck you, Jared.”
Janko slammed his fist into Jared’s gut. “Goddamn you to hell, you murderous, double-dealing traitor! After they saw the picture I sent of us high-fiving it, it wasn’t three minutes before my BOC contact called to say that his boss knew you—met you at a high level DEA function no less. It took them less than six minutes more to confirm that the ‘money’ you sent was studded with tags.”
Pacing across the field, Janko jerked out his phone, his voice thick with anger. “You need to hear this, Jared, hear what you’ve done.”
A silky accented voice echoed across the warm night air.
“Unfortunately, Mr. Jankosky, you have cost the Balkan Organized Cartel $30 million of the finest heroin available today. Worse, you’ve led the DEA to our offshore accounts. Not to mention that six of our top men are headed for a high security prison.” There was a dramatic pause then the soft voice concluded, “You may expect to hear from us, Mr. Jankosky. Soon.”
Janko stopped pacing and strode to the raging fire. He yanked a leather glove out of his back pocket then reached down and extracted one of the glowing pokers from the fire. Moving slowly toward Jared, his eyes blazing with demonic hatred, Janko said, “Look around, Bro, while you can. I’m going to start with your eyes, and then stick this poker into every orifice you have, ending with your fucking traitorous mouth. I want to hear you scream as long and loud as possible. And then, Buddy, like I used to do with the neighbors’ cats, I’m going to gut you with my trusty Bowie.”
“Not with a 9mm slug in your brain, you’re not.”
The only thing that shocked Jared more than the unexpected threat was its origin. Horrified, he acknowledged that the apparition emerging from the dense forest was Hailey. A formidable Athena, but terribly alone, she stood tall, her arms stretched out in front of her, pointing her Glock at Janko’s forehead. For a split second Jared reveled in her daring arrival; then seeing Dinks skulking up behind her, he screamed a tortured warning. But it was too late. In seconds the massive brute had knocked Jared’s avenger to the ground, her Glock skittering uselessly across the field.
Janko’s surprised shout was triumphant. “Fuckin’ A, I must be living right. Hell, to think all I intended to do, Buddy, was to blind you then burn you to death piece by piece. How much better that the last sight you’ll see is the little cop cunt being gang raped.”
Dropping the poker, he yelled at Dinks. “Bring the bitch here! Next to the fire. I want Jared to get a good look at her before we take her on.” Surveying his men, he chortled with anticipation as the burly muscled man dragged Hailey by her hair across the rough field and threw her at Janko’s feet.
Grabbing her by the arm, Janko yanked Hailey up before Jared. His expression was twisted with hate, his eyes gleaming blood red in the light of the fire.
“Whadda you know, Buddy? Looks like I’m going to get the cop cunt first after all.” Janko roared a hideous laugh. “And we didn’t even have to flip a coin. Fuck no. The only coins that’ll be flipped are by my men to see in what order they get to fuck the blonde bitch. Hot damn! For once the gods of blood and pussy have abandoned a Justice Brother.” At the seconding roar from his men, Janko crowed manically, “Who says the devil never wins?”
The excited shouts from the crowd of agitated men and women were shattered by a volley of gunfire.
“I do, for one.”
Jake stepped forward, his heavily armed men rapidly closing in around the shocked DC circle. His voice was as calm as his glare was fierce.
“Drop your guns, assholes, or the next bullet will be in Janko’s brain.
Or
don’t drop ’em. Nothing would please me more than making good on Officer Michels’ warning.”
Epilogue
H
ailey wished she could make herself invisible. At least long enough to sneak by the formidable group of men in the center of St Vincent’s Emergency Room. Not just one Justice Brother, but both of Jared’s brothers—plus the patriarch himself, Judge Justice—were holding forth in the crowded anteroom. Hailey thought with a groan that the Earp brothers and Doc Holiday striding through the OK Corral had nothing on the three impressive men filling the room with their powerful aura. As much as she wanted news of Jared, Hailey didn’t dare invade the tight circle of concerned Justice men and the cordon of uniformed officers surrounding them.
In the melee at Finnegan’s Field, Hailey had hovered on the side as four SWAT members freed Jared from his hideous bonds. The most Hailey could tell from her distance was that Jared was conscious. A team of medics had him strapped to a gurney and hustled into an ambulance within moments. The wailing siren sounded through the dark night as they raced away to the hospital. Lt. Justice was commanding the arrest of the cowering DC gang members when he saw Hailey standing forlornly to the side. He shouted to Sgt. Solberg to get Hailey to the emergency room and see that a doctor checked her for injuries. When she got the all clear from the chief resident, Hailey returned to the waiting room, startled to see the crowd that had gathered.
Intending to slip by them unnoticed, Hailey was horrified when a brusque voice called her name.
“
There
she is, our heroine. Officer Michels, don’t think for a minute you’re getting out of here without our thanks.”
Looking up to see Judge Justice striding toward her, Hailey knew there was no escaping the crowd who’d all turned to stare at her.
“Ladies and Gentlemen, please show your appreciation to this courageous young woman who is responsible for my grandson being alive!”
A voice from the back of the cheering crowd called out, “Not only alive, your honor, but with all my body parts intact!”
The crowd turned as one to see a nurse pushing a grinning Jared down the hallway in a wheelchair. In the free-for-all that followed, Hailey joined the amazed crowd marveling that except for heavy duty bandages on one shoulder and a sling on the other, plus myriad bruises decorating his face and neck, Jared looked reasonably well. When he got to the center of the crowd he insisted that his oldest brother Jorden help him from the wheelchair.
“C’mon, Brother, help me stand. I don’t give a damn about rules that say a patient has to leave the hospital in a wheelchair. Hell, anyone who knows me knows there ain’t a rule I haven’t broken.”
Leaning now against his grandfather whose face was damp with tears, Jared grinned at his brothers.
“Damn, men, did you ever think you’d be tracking me down to Finnegan’s Field when I’m thirty years old? Wouldn’t you think that Janko and I had left that shit behind at eighteen, not fuckin’ thirty!!”
The crowd roared with delight as his brothers clasped Jared in a bear hug and whispered grateful thanks.
Jared surveyed the uniformed cadre of men and women crowding excitedly around him and shook his head in wonder.
“I gotta tell you, fellows, if I’d done something to get all of you coming after me when I was in my teens, I don’t think even my Gramps coulda busted me out of that one.” He paused for the laughter. “Okay, okay. But lemme tell you. I’ve never been happier than I was tonight to have my brother Jake and half the frickin’ DPD on my ass.”
When he spotted Hailey hanging back in the crowd, Jared’s voice dropped and tears welled up in his eyes. Motioning her forward, he murmured “C’mere, you.”
Hailey walked unsteadily toward him, knowing her face was firehouse red. When he pulled her up next to him she buried her face against his chest to hide her tears.