Desmoterion, page 11
Kipper looked over at Trent before answering. “We were about to fine-tune it. Trent discovered that if Girish stands inside the shrub on the corner of the next-door property, he’ll have a clear shot of the backyard.” He turned to point at the backyard on the screen. “All we need is for Rourke to walk in this area at any time, and we’d have a shot. The problem is waiting for said shot to appear. It could be minutes or hours. Or even days.”
“Then we’ll need to send out a reconnaissance team ahead of time. The weather is clearing up at the end of the week. If we plan it on a sunny day or even one without rain, it might tempt them to gather in the backyard. Once they do, we will move into action.”
Trent gaped at their leader. “You want us to go within a week?”
“Yes. A week. We have the opportunity to take down Stefan Rourke, and it needs to happen before he leaves.”
“Girish isn’t ready for it. Besides being good at shooting in our range, there are other variables to consider, like wind speed, which we can’t replicate here. You might as well use Arden, as he could figure out all of that in a couple of seconds.”
The leader’s eyebrow rose. “Why are you so resistant to using Kannan?”
Trent hesitated before answering, knowing full well that any answer he gave would be scrutinized later.
“Why is Kannan so important to you? Any other recruit, and this wouldn’t be an issue.”
“It just seems to be a setup for failure like this. Girish has the training, but not the experience. And what happens if he fails? Is he eliminated?”
Their leader smiled widely at Trent, making his skin crawl at the sight of it. “You have little faith in Kannan. I’ve seen the target practice footage. He’s a damn near-perfect marksman, almost on par with Arden. Sure, he needs training in the field, but we can replicate that, too.”
“We can?”
“Yes, we can.” The leader moved over to Kipper. “Pull up the area behind the decontamination building.”
Kipper said to Delgado, “Do as he asks.”
Delgado pulled up an image of a small metal building on the screen. He manipulated the image to make it turn the other way.
The leader pointed at the grassy overgrowth behind it. “There, have Arden take Girish to that field to get used to crouching with the rifle and aiming in weather conditions.”
“Is that wise aiming into an open field?”
The leader turned to Trent. “We own the surrounding lands. No one will see anything. Especially since Arden will be taking Girish at early dawn.”
Trent folded his arms across his chest. “I want to be there while they’re doing it. Armed and an open field might give him ideas about escaping.”
“Do what you feel is necessary, but I believe he’ll successfully take out Rourke.”
* * *
Trent headed to the crew quarters to find Girish sparring with Rowland while the others watched. He raised an eyebrow when Girish took Rowland down with a move he hadn’t seen in a long time. Mike tried it on Trent years ago, and it fooled him at first, but once Mike used it again, Trent could block it.
One of the other recruits noticed Trent standing there and tried to intervene in the fight.
Rowland and Girish turned around to face Trent. Girish scoffed, “How appropriate that you show up.”
Trent motioned to Rowland. “You’ll have to spar with Kannan later. He needs to be briefed about a new mission.”
Girish blinked. “Another one?”
“Yes, come with me to discuss it.”
Rowland moved toward Trent. “Why him? I’ve been here longer than he has and have more training than he does. Why is Girish so special now?”
Trent turned to look at Rowland. “That’s not my decision to make; our leader asked for Girish specifically. Trust me, I would have preferred to use someone else for this mission. Don’t worry about not being chosen. You’ll have a chance soon.”
Rowland shuffled back with the others and said, “Good luck, Kannan. You’ll need it.”
* * *
Girish sat down in the chair opposite Trent’s desk. “So, a new undercover mission?”
Trent booted up his computer and started to type. “No, this is an optimizing mission.”
“Optimizing? Is that supposed to mean something to me?”
Trent typed more into his computer before swinging it around for Girish to see. “This is the man you will take out.”
“Who the hell is that?” Girish stared at the grainy image of a man in his late sixties. “
“Stefan Rourke. Among other things, he’s known for running slave rings, prostitution, and selling kids to the highest bidder.”
“What an asshole.” Girish’s face twisted in anger.
“Indeed, and that’s why we want you to take him out. We’ve had many chances, but he’s always slipped through our fingers. At the moment, he’s visiting his daughter, which means he’ll be distracted and therefore easy to pick off.”
Girish looked up from the photo. “Pick off? I don’t understand.”
“I shouldn’t have to explain it any further than that. You know what I mean, Girish.”
“Assassination?” Girish sat back in his chair.
“You got it. And you’ll do it without alerting attention to your position. This will be a long-range assassination with a rifle. Arden has been training you, so it should be an easy mission if we get the right opportunity.”
Girish stared down at his hands, frowning at them. “I don’t know if I can take a life that way, even a waste of space like that.”
“You don’t have a choice here. The leader specifically asked for you to be the one. Me, I would have picked Arden in a heartbeat, as this is his bread and butter.”
“Why me? Did I do something to piss him off?”
Trent turned the screen back toward him. “That I don’t know, but when he asks for someone, there’s usually a reason. Maybe he feels you’re ready to make your first kill. Once you’ve done it the first time, it gets easier the next time. It’s not exactly a pleasant job, but what is here?”
“So, there’s no way of getting out of this?”
“Yes, but you’d have to die for that to work.”
Girish’s frown deepened.
“Think of it this way: you’re doing many people a favor. He’s a thoroughly nasty piece of work. The more we eliminate these types of men from the world, the fewer people will be trafficked in slavery.”
“I’m in a fucking hell hole prison here where it’s kill or be killed, and you make it sound like we’re the good guys.” Girish shook his head. “You make it sound like a public service announcement, but it’s straight-up murder, and you know it.”
“Well, yes, but this man doesn’t deserve to further his agendas. He’s already murdered or enslaved over a thousand people over the years. Those who survived initially are probably dead now at the hands of their owners or died trying to escape. It’s all about taking someone out that offers nothing of value to anyone other than his despicable customers.”
Girish got up to pace around the office.
“If it makes you feel any better, there will be a few practice runs for it with Arden. Mostly to get you used to shooting with the elements like sun and wind. Since it will start at dawn, it’s the best time for it.”
“Practice runs?” Girish stared at Trent. “So I’m killing others?”
“No, just targets in the distance. I’m guessing Arden will bring a dummy or something else to simulate a living target. It’s a shame we don’t have moving targets, or you’d be able to practice lining up the rifle for the best shot.”
“I can’t do this.” Girish slumped down in the chair.
“You don’t have a choice. Refusing an order by the leader marks you for death.”
Girish looked Trent square in the face and said, “I’d rather that than kill someone in cold blood.”
Trent got up from his desk, moving around it to kneel beside Girish’s chair. “Look, I know it’s not ideal, but it’s not like you’ll be doing this full time. It’s only a test to see if you can do it, not to set you up for a career as an assassin.”
“Why are you so desperate for me to do this?”
Trent bit his lip. “Because I don’t want you to be bumped off. Because it has to happen for other things to occur later. Just do this for me, Girish, even if you don’t want to. It needs to happen for it to start the process.”
“What things?”
“Things that will come later.” Trent got up from the floor to look down at Girish. “I know I’m not giving you much, and we’ve had our differences, but I’m begging you to trust me. Go forward with this mission, even if you don’t think you’ll be able to finish it.”
The look of desperation on Trent’s face and in his tone of voice surprised Girish and made him want to help the man far more than any straightforward command would compel him to do something against his will. “I’ll do it. Though you owe me later.”
Trent sat down at his desk. “I know, trust me, and I will deliver on that when the time comes.”
CHAPTER SEVEN
There was no one else around as Girish leaned against the cold, concrete wall, wondering why he had to endure this early-morning torture. You just line up your sight and fire; why practice outside at the crack of dawn? The dawn’s pale light barely trickling in through the high windows illuminated the bare corridor where he waited by the door to the outside world.
He wasn’t to wait alone for long. Girish looked up at the sound of footsteps to see the ever-irksome Trent approaching in a sleek black outfit.
Girish scowled at the unwelcome interruption. “I didn’t even see you coming, and why are you here?” He asked as Trent unlocked the door.
“I’m here to make sure you don’t decide to make a run for it outside with a weapon in your hand.”
Trent gave Girish a nudge, pushing him forward through the door. “Arden’s already in the vehicle. Get going.”
Girish brushed off Trent’s hand and moved toward the waiting vehicle, a small manual-drive truck. “Where the hell would I go? I don’t even know where we are.”
“You should know by now we’re in the middle of bum-fuck nowhere with no hope of escape. Good morning,” Arden greeted him. He was already outside, standing beside the vehicle. “In you get.”
Girish climbed into the back. “Yeah, I’ve figured that out. All I know is we’re still on earth. We might be thousands of miles from the prison I was in and I don’t know what direction we traveled in.”
Arden smiled and sat next to Girish.
Trent closed the door and sat down. “There’s no hope of escaping, so I don’t want you to try anything stupid.”
* * *
When the transporter stopped after only a few minutes, Girish frowned. “That was fast.”
The three men climbed out and paused for a moment to gaze out over the vast expanse of grassy plains. A thin mist swirled across the ground in the early morning sunrise adding to a sense of eerie beauty.
“This is our training ground? Won’t someone notice us shooting bullets out here?”
“Nope, Desmoterion owns all this land in the middle of nowhere. Plus, who’s awake at this hour, anyway?” Arden handed Girish a small rifle.
Girish followed Arden through the damp morning grass.
Hanging back, Trent trailed behind, feeling the dew soak into his pants. They stopped when Arden found a spot for Girish to crouch.
Trent stopped a short distance from the other two and surveyed the trees surrounding the area. One swift dash and he could be gone through the trees and escaping. Except they would find him. And he’d have death as the ultimate escape.
They’d find him in time, no matter how far he’d run. If they could find the lairs of some of the most wanted criminals, they could find a rogue operative.
Trent knew he was just as trapped as the recruits he supervised. He couldn’t easily escape. He’d been thinking about it too much lately and it worried him that he might try something stupid, like walking away from a mission.
The leader expected recruits to try something foolhardy but not seasoned veterans like Trent. It would sign his death warrant if he even hinted at wanting to leave. They’d hunt him down until his last breath. If Trent wanted out, he needed a watertight plan of action.
But did he want out?
The leader seemed to expect his loyalty, despite taking away his privacy and freedom. He considered the irony of longing to escape from an organization that provided him with food, clothing, weapons, and the opportunity for exciting missions and to pick and supervise new recruits. Why would he ever leave?
Trent turned back to observe Arden, placing something in the distance for Girish to shoot at. It appeared to be a dummy propped up against a wooden frame. Behind his dark glasses, he narrowed his eyes at the familiar face of the dummy. It was probably too far for the recruit to see clearly.
Girish lay on his front on the wet grass and aimed the rifle at the target while looking down at the sight. He called out to Arden. “Whose face is that?”
Arden yelled out in response. “You’ll find out later!”
Girish aimed for the head of the face and fired. The gun jumped a little in his arms.
Arden waved his hand in the air, moving over to inspect the picture. “Not bad! Though remember what I told you about wind and aiming. Make sure you’re accounting for it. Take your time to figure it out. Think; you’ll only get one shot.”
Once Arden had moved far enough away, Girish aimed again, tilting the gun to the left a little when he felt the wind blow a little behind him. The rifle fired again, this time not jostling him as much.
Arden waved his hand and inspected the picture again. “Perfect! Right in the temple, exactly where you should be hitting. You want to take him out as fast as possible, and a head shot is the best way.”
Trent moved over to where Girish was, kneeled down, and took the gun out of his hands. He looked through the scope to see what Girish had been shooting at. When he put the rifle back down, he glared at Arden. “Where the hell did you get that?”
Arden chuckled, removing the dummy from the stand, and called out, “Let’s just say Kipper is good with computers and always has time for some research!”
“Looks like you’re ready.” Trent handed the rifle back. “Though keep in mind, it might be sunny on the day. Ask Emyr for sunglasses to cut down on the glare.”
Girish got up from the ground. “Whose picture was I aiming at?”
“It’s me. When I first arrived here.”
Girish looked at the face of the dummy when Arden got closer to the vehicle. “I suppose it looks like you, wearing the glasses as ever. Why’s that? There's no glare from the sun inside.”
Trent tapped on one of his lenses. “My choice.”
“You don’t want to be gazing into his eyes, Girish. Trust me on that.” Arden chuckled. They’ll give you nightmares.”
“Your face was less hairy back then.”
Arden put the dummy in the back area.
From behind his shades, Trent glared at Girish. “Yeah, well, this hairy head has the power to have you killed. Don’t forget that.”
“Emyr said you don’t have the power to do that.”
Trent shoved Girish toward the open side door. “That he knows of. There are ways to make things happen that don’t go through the chain of command.”
Girish turned to look at Trent. “Somehow, I doubt you’d bother to go through the trouble. You strike me as a person who’d shoot me in my sleep because you could.”
“You don’t know me at all. There’s no fun in killing a defenseless man.”
* * *
It was the day before the mission, and Girish couldn’t sleep. Instead, he wandered over to the workout area, hoping to tire himself with the treadmill or weights. That was until he heard someone scream out in pain.
Girish raced toward the sound to find Trent kneeling down with hands covering his ears between the treadmills.
“Shut up! Leave me alone!” Trent shook his head and called out,
The out-of-character behavior from Trent, who usually showed no feelings, made Girish balk. He reached out to touch Trent’s arm, thinking maybe he was having some kind of sleepwalking episode.
Tears formed in Trent’s eyes. “Please stop. Please....”
Girish shook Trent’s arm. “Trent? Trent! Can you hear me?”
Trent removed his hands from his head, sat on the treadmill bed, and breathed deeply.
“Trent?” Girish kneeled beside him.
Trent glanced up, turning pale. “Girish?”
“What the hell happened? You were screaming out to stop. Were you having a nightmare?”
Trent pushed himself off the treadmill, trying to regain composure. “It was nothing. Don’t trouble yourself with it.”
Girish frowned at the fear written all over Trent’s face. “It doesn’t look like nothing. I know we’re not exactly best friends, but is this something I need to know about? My life in your hands and all that.”
“You don’t need to know anything, Kannan. Get back to bed.”
Girish groaned at the sound of Mike’s voice behind him. He motioned to Trent. “Something’s wrong with him. And I think I have a right to know if he’s gonna get me killed because of it.”
Trent shook his head. “It won’t interfere with that. Just do as Mike says, go back to bed. We have a mission tomorrow.”
The look of anger on Mike’s face surprised Girish, and he left the two men without another word.
* * *
Mike hurried over to Trent once Girish left, disappearing into the general crew quarters. He studied Trent’s failed attempts at trying to compose himself. “It’s getting worse, isn’t it?”
Trent swallowed hard and nodded.
“You don’t need me to tell you what will happen if this continues? Girish is right, it could very well cost someone their life if you break down during a mission.”
“It won’t happen on a mission. It only happens when I’m trying to relax and clear my mind. The ghosts sneak in when my mind is at rest, not when it’s busy. I can’t figure out who the voices are, Mike. Are they kids from school? Are they men from prison? Or somewhere else?”
