After putting his vest and carbine away, Tyler waited in the kitchen. He brewed a quarter-pot of coffee. If one of his neighbors farther up the street heard the commotion and called the cops, he’d need to go out and talk to them. The Jeeps ended up close to Mister Thompson’s house, and Tyler figured he’d keep quiet. He may have even spread the word. The older man was both nosy and chatty, and while Tyler didn’t always appreciate the combination, he thought it could be useful now.
His phone rang while he sipped some hot caffeine. Sara called. “Keeping late hours,” he said. “The Pentagon got you burning the midnight oil?”
“It’s barely ten,” she said in a light tone. “It’s not like either of us go to sleep early.” She paused. “Especially not when we’re together.”
Tyler smiled at the lascivious comment. “If you want to come over, I’m just drinking coffee.” And I just shot four cartel men on my street, he added in his head.
“I don’t think I can tonight,” Sara said. “I was wondering what you were up to this weekend.”
“I don’t know. Let me have my girlfriend get back to you.”
“Tell her not to take too long. I’m popular.”
“I’m . . . sort of in the middle of a situation.”
“Do I want to know what it is?” Sara asked.
“Remember the guy you said I shouldn’t take on?” Tyler said.
“Yes,” Sara said after a moment.
“Well, I’m kind of taking him on. I don’t want to get into the specifics right now, but let’s just say recent events have made me very unpopular in his house.”
Sara took a deep breath, and the exhalation whistled in Tyler’s ear. “You know I worry about you. Don’t get into more than you can handle.”
“So far, I haven’t.”
“Yes,” Sara said, “but I know you and your sense of obligation. You helped me out when three men were in my house despite me being nothing more than a voice on the other end of a phone. It sounds like the dead girl made quite an impression on you. I know you’ll see it all the way through.”
“I’m glad you understand.” Tyler swirled the black coffee around in his mug. “And I’m sorry it’s thrown a wrench into making any plans.”
“These are the things a woman finds out when she gets involved with a knight-errant.” They both chuckled. “Maybe you should call Rollins. I’m sure he could lend a capable hand.”
“Officer thinking, Lieutenant.”
Sara snorted. “Please. I’m a senior executive. I passed lieutenant equivalency ages ago.”
“A simple retired warrant officer like me doesn’t understand these things,” Tyler said.
“You should talk to your girlfriend more,” Sara said. “I hear she’s pretty smart.”
“She is,” Tyler said. “And patient, too, thank goodness.”
After hanging up with Sara, Tyler called Lexi next. Her voice rose in concern, and she even admitted sending her to stay with Zeke for a few days was a good idea. “Nice shooting, Dad.”
“They kept me around all those years for a reason,” he said.
“You need to call Rollins,” Lexi told him.
He didn’t divulge Sara said the same thing a few minutes ago. Lexi might be salty at not being his first call. “I had the same idea.” They hung up a moment later, and Tyler dialed his old acquaintance from the service. Rollins was retired despite being about a decade younger than Tyler. The man was reliable, selfless, and stealthy enough to break into a lion’s den with a pocket full of catnip.
“Little late for someone your age to be awake,” Rollins said when he picked up.
“Good thing I already drank my prune juice,” Tyler said.
“What’s going on? I know you’re not making a social call.”
Tyler filled him in on everything starting with Alice sashaying into the shop and concluding with four dead men riding out in a pair of bullet-riddled Jeeps. “What’d you do with Lexi?” Rollins asked.
“She’s with my dad for a few days. Between the location of his unit and the arsenal he keeps there, I think they could hold off a few men.”
“Agreed. What’s the next move?”
“I figure Héctor’s going to be pissed,” Tyler said. “He knows who I am, sent six men to take me out, and two-thirds of them went back dead.”
“You don’t want to go after him now?” Rollins said. “He’s depleted.”
“I don’t know enough about his operation yet. He could have two dozen men standing by. I think we’re in reaction mode for now while we gather some more intel. Then, we make a plan and take the fight to them.”
“All right. I’m in.”
“Thanks.” Tyler paused. “I can’t really pay your rates, but we’re liable to take out a few men with fat wallets.”
“I’ll manage.” For the first time ever, Tyler heard Rollins stifle a yawn. He wasn’t sure the man ever slept. “You said they’re in some fancy Bel Air neighborhood?”
“Yeah.”
“If the boss gets pissed, it’ll be a little while before they roll out on you again. You want me to keep an eye on your place?”
“I set up a couple cameras,” Tyler said. “Another gun couldn’t hurt, though.”
“All right,” Rollins said. “See you soon.” He broke the connection. Tyler went back to his coffee. He appreciated the weight of the Sig on his hip.
Héctor seethed as Danilo and Videl pulled the twin black Jeeps into his driveway. They’d called ahead and talked to Rodolfo, who relayed the bad news. Once the gate swung shut, Héctor and Orlan walked outside to meet them. Two corpses flopped at odd angles in each of the vehicles. Between the bodies and the bullet holes, Héctor was surprised they made it all the way from Baltimore without someone noticing.
“Sorry, boss,” Danilo said as he climbed out of the vehicle. “It felt like he knew we were coming. We couldn’t—“
Héctor cut him off with an upraised hand. “We’ll debrief inside. You and Videl head downstairs.”
Danilo gulped. Héctor enjoyed the fear in his eyes. “Downstairs?”
“You have a problem?”
“No, no.” Danilo jerked his head, and Videl accompanied him inside.
Héctor and Orlan briefly surveyed the Jeeps and the four cadavers. “I didn’t think we’d underestimated him,” Héctor said in a quiet tone. “Six men, Orlan. Six!”
“Let’s hear what they have to tell us,” Orlan said. They entered the house via the side door and took the carpeted stairs to the basement. The first room held a giant TV, a plush couch, and two next-gen gaming consoles. Danilo and Videl waited there. Héctor beckoned them with a wave. They walked through a door into the next room. It featured bare stone walls and an unadorned concrete floor.
Orlan closed the door once everyone was inside. Danilo and Videl cowered at the far end of the room. They stank of fear and failure. Orlan stood beside his boss and crossed his massive arms. “All right,” Héctor said. “We knew who this guy was. I respected him enough to send a half dozen men to kill him. Four came back dead. What happened?”
“I swear he was ready for us,” Videl said. “We stopped about a hundred yards from his house to go over the plan. All six of us would surround it. He couldn’t get away, and the numbers would get him if he came out.” He snorted and shook his head. “The next thing I know, two guys slump over in the front Jeep. I didn’t even see where the shots came from. They were quiet, too.” He ran a hand through his damp black hair. “Before I could do anything, the two men with me were both dead, too.”
“There were still the two of you,” Héctor said.
Videl laughed, but there was no humor to be found in it. “He’d just killed four men before I realized what happened. What good were the two of us?”
“What good indeed?” Héctor asked. “Orlan.”
The giant strode toward Videl. His eyes went wide, and he held his hands up. “Boss, wait a minute. I—“ Orlan’s massive fist walloping him in the face cut him off. Videl went down hard. He flexed his jaw and rose to all fours. Orlan glanced back to Héctor, who gave him a single nod. Another punch drove Videl to the floor again.
Danilo recoiled in horror as Orlan rolled the unconscious man onto his back, crouched over him, and rained hammer blows onto his unprotected face. Héctor enjoyed the reaction. Men needed to know the consequences of failure, and if he couldn’t inflict the suffering himself, watching his trusted enforcer dish it out came in a close second. Between the beating and the unforgiving stone, Héctor wondered how much longer Videl could survive. His answer came quickly. After several loud cracks, Orlan’s blows sounded wet as he pulped Videl’s face and burst his skull. The enforcer stood.
“Go wash your hands,” Héctor said. The giant nodded and left the room. “Danilo.” The man stared at his comrade, now beaten to death only a couple feet away. Héctor followed his gaze. The left side of Videl’s head was caved in, and the floor was a red mess. Danilo’s hands shook as he struggled to look at Héctor. He’d learned what it meant to come up short where the cartel was concerned. “Will you fail me again?”
“N . . . no, Héctor,” he stammered.
“Good.” Héctor pointed toward the corpse. “Clean this up. Then do the same with the other four.”
“Where . . . where do I put them?”
“Figure it out,” Héctor said, “or join them.”