Chapter Eleven

“Who would do this?” Sergey said.

He stood in the litter-strewn street and watched a crew of workmen repair the torn out window frame.

“Block it up completely,” Irina snapped at the crew foreman. “We need no window here.”

Vladimir Darko clasped his hands behind his back and rocked on the balls of his feet.

“Someone who knows your business,” he said. “They know where the warehouse is. They know exactly what they are coming for. They don't take anything except for the SAWs and some ammunition. They were fast and sure. They knew what they were doing. They were not the blacks. The gang men, they are not good shots. There were only two, and the one with the rifle was very good. So the question I have for you would be this: Who knows your business, is very good with weapons, maybe military, and would have either a specific purpose or buyer for the SAWs?”

Sergey studied his security man. “Those are good questions, Vladimir.”

“Yes,” Irina said. “Those are good questions. And how do we get those answers?”

“All our customers know our business,” Sergey said. “We have never had this happen before. No one dared to.”

“Yes,” Irina said. “But now that it has happened, it will happen again. We must show that we will not tolerate this. This requires blood.”

The men nodded.

Blood was called for.

And that was Vladimir’s skill set.

“Who are your competitors?” Vladimir said. “This would be a rival. They could have taken more, but they did not. But this shows you as weak. So others will try you. Chip away at your business. Bring more violence to your door. No one would go through this much effort to steal two machine guns from a warehouse full of them.”

Sergey nodded in agreement.

“There are not many. Only two I can think of that have military training. One man is a supply sergeant in the National Guard. Actually, he has provided me with product before. He has a sideline, though, and does well, even with some of my own established customer base.”

“The other?”

“A South African. Military. He has a local security company, sells legally on the side. Makes a good business from both, but has another business, off the books, like ours. Wide range of customers, some of them ours.”

“I need to look at everyone, not just those with military training. I’ll look at these first, but it’s possible that someone else hired the talent necessary. These two -- you’ve had problems with them before?”

“No,” Irina said. “They are good business men, both of them. This is not the sort of cowboy play they would try.”

“The South African…” Sergey said. “He has a reputation.”

“Yes?” Vladimir said.

“He likes to shoot…and he spends much time traveling, working as a mercenary. Also, in South Africa, I’ve been told he’s killed many people in gunfights. Security work.”

Vladimir stared off into the distance. “He’s good?”

“I don’t know,” Sergey said. “He has his reputation. His gun store, there is an indoor range there. He shoots there often, I’m told. I have never been to his store. Too many police frequent it.”

“Ah,” Vladimir said. “Perhaps I will go.”

“Perhaps I will go,” Irina said. “You have only a false green card, and no local identification. They will want to see your driver’s license to rent a gun or shoot.”

“We could go together,” Vladimir said. “Like a date.”

“You turn my stomach,” Irina said.

Sergey shrugged. “You are security, Vladi. Make up your mind.”

Vladimir turned away from the mocking smile Irina stretched across her flawless face. His mind filled with the images of what he would like to do to her.

“Where does this South African live? Where else can I find him besides his store?”

“There is a bar,” Sergey said. “Moby Dick’s. Not a good place to ask too many questions. But a good place to do business.”

“Moby Dick’s,” Vladimir said. “That is near the gentlemen’s club The Trojan Horse?”

“Yes,” Irina said. “Have you been shopping?”

“Yes,” Vladi said. “I have been shopping.”

 

 

Interlude

I like to read. Anything, really, but especially mysteries, thrillers, suspense novels. PI books, too. It always amuses me how much these writers try to make of the whole investigation thing.

Investigation is just asking questions.

The thing that cuts out the losers from the pros is the quality of the questions they ask and how they ask them.

Somebody much smarter than me once said, “The quality of your life is shaped by the decisions you make.”

I always thought that the quality of any investigation is shaped by the questions you ask. Military special operators have to ask questions, different ones from, say, cops or private investigators, or a couple of criminals figuring out who just ripped them off so they can hunt them down and bring doom down on their heads.

Any good hunter knows that there’s certain essential elements of information -- as we called it in the intel biz, or the military -- that you need to have in order to find your game.

To play the game.

Hunting humans is a game, one of the best there is.

Try it some time. Don’t sit at home.

Come out and play.