The Export by J.K. Kelly (read along books txt) 📕

“Or you can follow me tonight when we’re to meet up at a little beach bar that closes early and take her out on the spot. I will lead you to the prey, and you can do what you want to her, and then to me, whatever you want, I accept it.”

“Really?” Matt asked. “Promise?”

“Yes,” Sam said in a sincere tone. “When the NSA identified her as Helene’s killer, she was dead to me. All I wanted to do was see that she paid for it.”

“Bullshit,” Matt charged back. “Why the hell didn’t you tell Claire and me all of this when we first identified the bitch back in Jackson? Your silence makes you look guilty as hell.” A knock at the door interrupted their confrontation. Sam walked over and opened it to find the housekeeping staff wanting to come in.

“Not today, we just arrived. Not next door either,” he said, pointing in the direction of Matt’s room. He thanked the two workers and closed the door, then turned to Matt – who was back in his seat. Only this time, he was holding a gun.

“Damn, you’re fast!” Sam complimented.

“Apparently, I need to be these days,” Matt replied. “So go on with your story, Sam. Convince me this isn’t a setup.”

Sam came back into the room and sat down in his chair.

“I was scared. I thought I was going to get sucked into it and charged with aiding and abetting a murderer. I needed time to close things up with my wife, and then I needed to take care of the office before I left, possibly for good.”

Matt laughed. “We could only charge you with that if you met all three elements of the charge, one of which was you had to have been aware that criminal intent was in place.” Matt paused. He locked every ounce of his special talent and instincts onto Sam. This would be the moment Matt would know if he was going to kill one or two people today.

“I didn’t, Matt,” Sam declared. Matt placed the gun on the table, stood up, and walked to Sam.

“I believe you, Sam,” Matt assured him. “But don’t ever lie to me again, ever.”

“I promise,” he replied. It’ll be his last if he does.

“Goddamn dudes and their dicks,” Matt said as he shook his head. “See how much trouble that thing got you into!” Matt outstretched his arms. “Now give me a hug but keep that thing off of me!” he joked. Hours later, they hugged again and separated into the darkness.

The beach bar Sam had referenced was indeed quiet and off the beaten path. It belonged to a hotel that sat back into the tropical trees and brush that dressed the edge of the Thai beach. At this late hour, the last of the tourists and lovebirds had wandered back to their rooms or cottages. The lone bartender rested his head on the bar as tiki torches lit up the beachfront. The sides and back of the bar were dark and thick with trees and indigenous flora as the sound of gentle waves brushed the beach. There was only one customer left, and as Sam approached the bar, the patron turned and jumped up to greet him.

It was Susannah – Anika to most. She was as stunningly beautiful, as Sam and so many others had always regarded her. She ran to Sam and wrapped her arms around him and whispered how happy she was that he had finally made it there. It took a while, but she must have realized that he wasn’t hugging her back. Looking startled, she stepped back and looked up at him.

“What’s the matter, my love?” she asked, reaching for his hands, but they fell back to his sides.

“Could be jet lag or just a headache, like the one you’re about to have, sweetie,” he said softly.

Matt saw passion in his friend’s eyes, but it wasn’t love, it was the cold stare of a man who had been used by a woman. Matt stepped out of the brush and pressed the tip of the gun barrel against the base of her skull. Without a word, Matt pulled the trigger, and she dropped dead in the sand. The waves and the silencer had covered any hint of a gun being fired. The bartender didn’t even look up.

Sam appeared stunned and stood frozen as he watched Matt drag his lover’s body by the arms into the darkness of the trees and brush. Not long after, Matt stepped out and took a seat at the bar as if nothing had happened.

“I think I just stepped in elephant shit,” he said with a laugh and then called to the bartender, who was half-asleep, his head resting on the bar.

“Two beers, my friend!” He turned and handed a cold bottle to Sam, who took a seat beside him at the bar.

“Claire has a team that will take out the trash after we leave,” Matt advised. “You okay?”

“To Helene!” Sam said somberly, clinking his raised bottle against Matt’s.

“To Helene!”THE END