Lady Death by Brian Drake (good e books to read .TXT) 📕

“The sooner we make Horn talk, the better.”

“And if we’re too late?”

“I don’t want to think about it.”

But think about it he did as they ate. The food was amazing, and their mutual glances of delight took his mind off the situation, but never for long. Misty’s messy spareribs left her fingers covered in sauce. Raven didn’t tell her some smeared on her chin. He ate his hot Irish stew slowly, savoring each swallow. The mix of lamb and fresh vegetables was rich indeed.

After dinner they sat with pints of Guinness because who doesn’t drink Guinness in a pub? Misty excused herself but came back glaring at Raven for not telling her about her chin.

They were so full from dinner they drank slowly, and Raven decided as boring surveillance jobs go, it wasn’t a bad one. Horn and his entourage presently made their job a little easier. Horn began throwing darts with a group of young women. The dart game then turned into a billiard challenge. By eleven o’clock Raven and Misty were getting tired, but by then Horn had made his choice. With a thin brunette in jeans and a pink tank top in tow, he paid his bill and the bill of the brunette’s friends. She joined the entourage outside.

Raven and Misty paid and hurried around the block to their rental. Traffic wasn’t too heavy, and Raven weaved through lanes to catch up with Horn’s vehicle. Misty told him to take it easy. “A rookie could pick you out,” she chided. When Raven finally had Horn’s car in sight, he eased off the gas and settled back three car lengths.

“Better?” he said.

“I should be driving.”

Raven scoffed.

Horn left the city limits for his home. Traffic thinned, but enough cars remained to provide cover for Raven’s rental. Once Horn turned up a two-lane road into the hills, the situation changed. They were the only two vehicles on the road. Raven cut off his headlamps. He eased off the gas. Forest surrounded them and Raven kept to the middle of the road to avoid going off the edge.

Misty called Mike Cutter on her cell and put him on speaker.

“We’ve already spotted you, Sam,” Cutter reported. “In 500 feet you’ll find a turn-off. Take it. Follow the dirt road until we stop you.”

“Copy,” Raven said.

The turn-off appeared as advised and Raven slowed. He turned the wheel to the right and the Ford left the pavement. Turning the headlamps back on, he proceeded carefully. More forest all around. The dirt road was clear of overgrowth suggesting its use wasn’t rare.

They drove almost ten minutes. When two figures in black stepped out onto the road, Raven stepped on the brake. The figures approached, one on each side. Raven powered down his window. The one on his side shined a blue light into the car.

The figure’s combat fatigues and chest harness showed the man was ready for business. Flash bangs and high-explosive grenades rode on vest straps. Sidearm on his belt. Suppressed M4 carbine in hand.

Raven said, “Nice night for a walk.”

The man examined Raven’s face in the low glow of the blue light. Raven had no idea what the man looked like. A helmet covered his head, a balaclava concealed his face from the nose down.

“It’s him,” the man announced to his partner.

“Follow you?”

“We’re not far.”

The two CIA commandos turned and moved off at a trot. Raven drove slowly behind them.

“Here we go,” Raven said.

“Our gear isn’t as cool as theirs,” Misty said.

Raven allowed himself a quiet laugh.

11

Raven stopped the Ford in an uneven clearing. He felt the car tilt a little on the slanted ground.

He spotted more armed CIA paramilitary operatives hanging around. Cutter spoke with a man Raven didn’t recognize. Two black Jeeps sat nearby.

Raven and Misty exited. Raven frowned. His first impression was off. He counted only four shooters. We need more than this!

Cutter approached with the other man. Raven cut him off before he could introduce the fellow.

“Four shooters?”

“Plus, you, me, your friend, and this man,” Cutter said. “Sam, meet Joe Hayden. We call him Tiger Joe.”

Raven and Misty shook Hayden’s hand. He and Hayden sized each other up with a prolonged look. He was shorter than Raven, but his grip suggested strength. He wondered what his background was. He turned back to Cutter. He wasn’t going to let go of his train of thought.

“This is all we have?”

“Relax,” Cutter said. “We have eight more coming in by chopper. The choppers are armed with machine guns and rockets, if necessary. We’re the ground squad.”

“What do the locals think of this invasion?” Raven said.

Cutter let out a short laugh. “They want Horn gone. He’s staying out of prison here the same way he stayed out of it in the United States. He’s got dirt on everybody who might charge him with anything.”

“Okay,” Raven said. He looked at Hayden. “What’s your story?”

Cutter excused himself. Hayden leaned against the Ford’s fender and folded his arms. It was hard to make out his features in the low light. Electric lanterns lit the area, but their glow didn’t extend far.

“I was in Syria,” Hayden said.

“No kidding.”

Hayden nodded.

“The drone strike?”

“Yeah,” Hayden said. “And Paris. After Paris, the Islamic Union tried to kill me. They missed but murdered my two teammates.”

“What happened in Paris?”

“You don’t know?”

“No clue.”

Hayden shook his head. “Ask Clark why he kept you out of the loop. We rounded up some IU players in Damascus and made them talk. They put Tanya Jafari and Omar Talman in Paris. The Agency sent at a team to get them and failed. She killed all of them.”

“The body count keeps rising.”

“And this may be our last shot,” Hayden said.

“Glad to have you here, Hayden.”

“Call me Joe.”

“Sam.” They shook hands a second time.

Hayden said to Misty, “What’s the British interest in this?”

“Any attack on the US hurts the UK,” she said. “If we don’t stop Tanya Jafari now, she may hit London next.”

Mike Cutter returned with a laptop. He put the computer on the hood of