Slaughter (The Agency: Young Guns Book 5), page 9
“We’ve got to get out of the club,” said Glen. “We’re in a huge fuckin mess.”
“No way out,” said Dean. “Do what I’m telling you and make the best of it.”
“There is no best, and I ain’t killing Reefer for my blood-in. Figure something else out.”
Ross Harley-Davidson. East Austin.
Sitting at the kitchen table with his first cup of coffee, Farrell asked, “How long will it take the property owners to decide about our offer?”
“There’s a timeline written into the offer to purchase,” said Laine. “They have until noon today to accept it or sign it back at a different price. I’m sure Mister Bennett will call as soon as he hears from them.”
“How high are we going to go if they reject our opening bid?” asked Farrell.
“We talked about this already, Donovan. Are you already waffling on your own bottom line?”
Adam smirked and turned his head to see what Farrell was going to come back with.
“Maybe a little. That place is perfect for us and I’m going to live there, even if I have to go up a bit. You, me, and Adam.”
“We can only qualify for a certain amount of mortgage money based on our combined income,” said Laine. “We have to be approved by the bank.”
“Mom said to take some money out of my trust if I needed to.”
Laine raised an auburn eyebrow. “You have a trust?”
Farrell shrugged. “You’re making it sound dirty.”
Adam laughed.
“It’s just money, babe. It’s not a disease.”
Farrell’s cell rang and it was Kevin.
“Good morning, Farrell. We have action from the vendors.”
“Good, I was hoping they wouldn’t take too long.”
“They aren’t accepting your three seventy-five. They have come down to three ninety and that’s as low as they are willing to go.”
“Okay.” Farrell turned to Laine and said, “Three ninety.”
She nodded her head.
“We’ll go for the three ninety, Kevin.”
“Great. I’ll drop by and get the changes initialed and I’ll call and tell them they have a deal.”
“Fantastic.” Farrell ended the call and let out the breath he was holding. “I can’t wait until Blacky sees the place. He’s going to go fuckin nuts.”
Coulter-Ross Ranch. La Grange.
Over coffee, Annie and Declan sat at the island talking about how busy the roadhouse would be on the weekend and they’d be without Tyler and Scarlett to help them with the workload.
“I called in everybody who had the weekend off and told them they had to work,” said Annie. “Some of them weren’t too happy about it.”
“Too bad,” said Declan. “We’re going to be swamped.”
“I also put an ad online to get a couple more servers and one more bouncer to replace Shane.”
“Any replies yet?”
“Not yet, but I’ll go look in a minute. Another thing I have to do is replace Montana and Laine on the squad. Lily has the applications from the last round, so I’ll call her and get that rolling.”
“I’d like to have a look at Tyler,” said Declan. “Are you going to the Neurological Center?”
“Yes, we’ll go this morning. After what Jesse said, I want to see if Tyler knows who I am.”
“I’m worried about the lad,” said Declan.
Violent Crime Squad HQ. Airport Road. Austin.
Blaine started the briefing and talked about the latest kid who had gone missing from the Brookdale facility.
“Do you think he’s gone to meet up with the first kid, boss?” asked Jimmy Jeff.
“I have to admit that’s a possibility, Jimmy. Why else would he break out right now?” Blaine pointed at Gene. “What did you and Caleb get from the hospital security people?”
“Not much. They swear the property is secure, but we know it isn’t. The property is huge. Several acres and we must have been parked on the wrong side to see the second boy escaping.”
“Maybe Casey can help with how they escaped.”
Casey held up the evidence he found in the back of Tim Pinard’s closet. “This is exactly how the boys are getting out and depending how many copies of this little map to freedom there are out there circulating, more kids might be ready to try it.”
“But you alerted Mrs. Gamble to what had been going on?” asked Blaine.
“Yep. Did so. I made a copy for security too,” said Casey. “They should have made the repairs to the cameras and to the fence by now. The security guys should have gone out to the fence and searched inch by inch when the first camera stopped working. They are negligent in their duties and should be held responsible for the boys getting out.”
“Maybe Brookdale should consider hiring a different company,” said Blaine.
“For sure,” said Casey. “If the security team had been on the ball, Malcolm Lewis never would have escaped in the first place.”
They finished up and Blaine said, “This is Montana’s last day with the squad. Let’s wish her well at her new home in Arlington.”
After saying goodbye to Montana, everybody headed out on their individual assignments. Blaine was last to leave and he received a call on his cell. He figured Tommy and Montana were the closest to the scene and he sent them.
Tommy rogered the call and flipped on the siren. He turned on the strobes and mashed the gas pedal to the floor.
Montana grabbed onto the holy-shit bar as they turned a corner with a squeal of tires. Robbery in progress.
A liquor store in the east end of Austin was being robbed and shots had been fired.
“In progress,” hollered Tommy. “We’re got to get there fast.” He zoomed past traffic and a lot of drivers pulled over to the side to get out of his way.
They arrived at the package store, jumped out of the truck, and found that First Responders had the store locked down and it had turned into a hostage situation.
The robbers were locked inside the store with two clerks and several customers.
Tommy and Montana got all the information they could from the uniformed officers watching the front door. “How many customers and staff are in there altogether?” asked Tommy.
“Don’t know. No way to tell,” said the officer.
“How many shots have been fired?” asked Montana.
“Two since we got here.”
“Did y’all call for a tactical team?” asked Tommy.
“Not yet. We just got here. Same as y’all.”
“We’re suited up,” said Tommy. “We’ll go in and try to flush them out to y’all. The main thing is to separate the robbers from the customers and the clerks.”
“Got it,” said the copy in uniform. “We’re ready.”
“Once we get inside, we’ll try to clear the civilians out of the store first.”
“Roger that.”
Tommy tried the front door and it was locked. Not the kind of lock he was able to pick. “Let’s check the back entrance.”
They ran around to the back of the store and that was locked too. Locked and bolted.
Montana ran around looking for a way in and spotted a small window that wasn’t closed all the way. Probably a washroom. “Boost me up. I can get in that window and let you in the back door.”
“Yeah, maybe. Looks like it might be tight. Good thing you don’t have a fat ass.”
“Good thing.” Montana gave him a look.
“Okay, here we go. Let’s try it.” Tommy gave Montana a boost up to the window and held her up there until she fiddled and managed to get the window open wide enough to crawl through.
She disappeared inside and Tommy heard her thump down on the floor. He ran around to the back of the building and waited at the door for her to let him in.
The door opened and Tommy nodded. Silent mode. They moved quietly forward towards the front of the building where they could hear women crying and male voices yelling.
The robbers were shouting out orders and threats and a couple of men were yelling back at them.
“Don’t let them know we’re here,” whispered Tommy. “Ease in and assess the situation before making any moves.”
“No,” said Montana. “I want to run in and surprise them. That’s our best chance.”
“That’s the best chance of getting one of the hostages shot,” said Tommy. “We’re not doing that.”
“Who made you boss?”
“I did,” said Tommy, “so choke on it. We’re going in silent. We will ID the robbers and take them out. We are not going to initiate random shooting by surprising the assholes with the guns.”
Sneaking down the hallway, Montana was right behind Tommy. They entered the store from the back corner and Tommy pointed with his Smittie which way he wanted to go—towards the yelling and arguing.
He eased around a row of Italian wines thinking Montana was right behind him—exactly where she should be.
One of the robbers turned, spotted him, and fired a shot. “Cop. There’s cops in here.”
The other robber came running down a different aisle and Tommy could hear his footsteps but couldn’t see him. The robber fired at Tommy from an oblique angle and the bullet hit Tommy in the leg.
The impact of the bullet knocked him down. Tommy hit the floor and there was no Montana to back him up. She should have been right there returning fire and covering Tommy off. She wasn’t there. He was on his own.
Tommy rolled and fired. His first shot hit one of the robbers in the head and killed him. The second robber fired again and he was coming closer but Tommy still couldn’t see him. The guy had ducked down behind a huge stack of Bud cases.
All Tommy could do was fire at the flashpoint and hope he hit the guy. He heard the guy fall and some of the beer cases crashed down with him.
Montana came running. Saw Tommy on the floor and she ran to cuff the second robber who wasn’t dead. She kicked his gun out of reach and ordered the guy to lie face down on the floor. Once that was done, she came around to check on Tommy.
“Where the hell were you, Montana? You left me uncovered, you stupid bitch, and I got shot for chrissakes. Should never have been two on one. I ain’t forgetting you did that.”
“Sorry, Tommy. I’m not thinking straight today.”
“Have you called for an ambulance? I’m bleeding all over the fuckin floor. Did you even notice that?”
“I’m calling now.”
“I’m glad this is your last day. Tell you one thing, girl. I would never be your partner again.”
Saint Michael’s Hospital. Austin.
Farrell got the update that Tommy had been wounded and was on his way to the hospital by ambulance. Farrell left the job he was doing and arrived at the hospital shortly after the ambulance got there.
Tommy was lying on a stretcher in Emerg being evaluated when Farrell rushed in.
“What happened?”
Montana was leaning on the wall in the corridor crying. “It was my fault Tommy got shot. I forgot the rule and I left him uncovered. It shouldn’t have been two on one. I’m sorry.”
Farrell glared but he held back and didn’t shout at her like he wanted to. Instead, he said, “Go home, Montana. I’ve got this.”
She turned and walked away.
Austin Neurological Center.
Annie and Declan entered Tyler’s room together. He was lying on his back, his eyes open but not focused on anything in the room.
Annie leaned down and kissed him on the forehead. “Tyler, it’s me. It’s Annie.”
His dark brown eyes stared up at her. No hint of recognition. No smile.
Declan conducted his own examination of Tyler and then left to find Doctor Kaplan.
Pecan Creek.
After hanging out at the Sidewinder bar and observing the club members, Lukas and Travis drove home to Pecan Creek.
During the visit to the bar, Travis had seen Dean and Glen Donovan. Easy to pick them out from the other bikers. Blond hair, broad shoulders. They were Donovans, no doubt about it. He didn’t know which was which but that would come later.
Travis got beer from the fridge and handed Lukas one. “I need an in. I have to know one of the guys well enough to get him to sponsor me in.”
Lukas finished his beer and took the dogs for a run to the river. While he was gone, Travis called Farrell.
“Blacky and I are working on something, Farrell, and what I need from you is the names of any of the guys you used to know in the San Angelo Devils.”
“Okay. I only know a couple who are still there. Dougie Grecko has moved up and I think he’s Sarge now. The only other one I know is Sawyer Kidd. He’s getting up there in the ranks and could be fourth or fifth by now.
“Thanks a lot, Farrell. I’ll be in touch soon.”
“How’s Lukas doing?”
“He’s great and I like having him with me. He’s out with the dogs right now.”
“Keep an eye on him.”
“Yep. I’m doing it.”
Quantrall Ranch. Giddings.
Jesse had trouble sleeping. He lay in bed thinking about the ball club idea and wondered what Ace was trying to accomplish. She usually didn’t do anything without a valid reason. Would she spend millions just to have a voice in what happened to Neil? That was the reason she had given. Was that it or was there more to it?
What are you thinking, Ace? Wish I knew.
Central East Austin.
Montana couldn’t sleep. She made coffee and packed up her apartment. She was leaving in the morning as soon as she got up. Would Blaine be calling to ask her questions about Tommy getting shot? What was she going to type in her report? She couldn’t lie. She’d have to say she left her partner uncovered. She had been so worked up about leaving her job and today being her last day on the squad, that she didn’t do her job. She fucked up badly.
She didn’t listen to Tommy who had a lot more experience than she did and she broke the number one rule. Stay with your partner.
“Why did I do that?” she asked herself. “I don’t deserve to be on the squad. I made the right decision without thinking it was right. I’ll do better being a bored housewife.”
Chapter Nine
Saturday, June 3rd.
Fisher Lake Trailer Park.
“Do you think it’s gonna work?” asked Glen.
“Course it’s gonna work, dumbass. Do you think Reefer is gonna tell anybody that you didn’t kill him? No fuckin way. He’s long gone and thankful for the chance we gave him. He won’t rat you out. That would only get him killed too.”
“Santana will know I didn’t do it,” said Glen. “He can tell stuff like that just by looking in your eyes.”
Dean shook his head. “No, he can’t. Stop worrying and fry some eggs. I’m fuckin starving.”
“I think I’m too shaky to cook.”
“Walk over to the fuckin stove and cook,” said Dean. “I mean it, Glen. Pull yourself together and don’t be acting weird or Santana will be asking you a lot of questions you can’t answer.”
“I’ll be okay before tonight’s meeting. I’ll be right.”
“You’d better be. I don’t want my brother and my only kin dead.”
The Blackmore Agency. Austin.
Lily sat down in front of Blaine’s desk and shoved a list towards him. “I set up the top four people from our last round of applicants and made the appointments for Monday. Are you and Annie going to conduct the interviews together?”
“Sure. We can do it together. Call and let her know she’s all set up for Monday and give her the names of the applicants you chose.”
“I’ll do that. What about Adam?”
“I’ve been thinking about Adam,” said Blaine.
“If he is unable to return to the day shift,” said Lily, “we need a spot for him involving limited physical activity. I received his last report from his doctor and it would take months of physio before he could pass a physical, if he ever could.”
“Adam is too good a cop to shelve him, Lil. Let me talk to Annie and see if she has any ideas. She put Laine in the VCS office to lighten my load, so Adam can’t go there—but he would’ve been aces in that job. I’ll talk to her first chance I get.”
Blaine’s cell jangled and he made a face when he saw it was the Chief calling. “Morning, Chief. Good news?”
“Nope. Your boy whacked another victim and that’s the third one and the one that’s going to bring the feds down on us. Three’s the charm, son. Or not.”
“Where did it happen?”
“Buchanan Dam area. There is a victim in a ravine with an axe in his head.”
“Okay, Casey and I will head out there right now.”
“I know it’s a lot to ask and probably and imposition for her, but could you possibly take Misty with you? I’d like to get on top of this before my office is flooded with suits.”
“I’ll mention it to her, Chief. I’m sure she’ll come if she knows you asked for her specifically.”
“Thanks, son. I appreciate anything she can give us on the boys and where they might be hiding. She is so amazing in that area.”
“Yep, she’s amazing all right.”
East Central Austin.
Montana was up early to get dressed and pack her last minute items. She had slept poorly thinking of Tommy in the hospital because of her.
The previous day, she had been so upset being her last shift on the squad she loved that she wasn’t focused on doing her job.
She wanted to go see Tommy in the hospital before she left Austin but he was so mad at her and he wouldn’t want to see her face. They’d been getting along so well working as partners and then she left him uncovered and he got shot.
Shedding a few tears, she took one last walk through the apartment to make sure she had everything. Her cell rang. Neil.
Montana wiped the tears out of her eyes. “Hi, Neil. I’m almost ready to leave.”
