Chapter 8
Meanwhile on the other side of the city.
A fresh layer of snow fell, covering the road I was on. The line of black SUV’s stood dormant by the side of the road, hidden away from the industrial compound in the distance, waiting for my arrival. In the distance, stood an old factory warehouse. The site was abandoned, or maybe they wanted us to believe it to be that way. We were outside of any known clan territory, which made the location unpredictable.
As I stepped out of my car and fetched a cigarette out of my pocket, one of my guards offered me the flame of his lighter. With the first inhale, I could feel the smoke filling my lungs and numbing my nerves.
“Was the drive here difficult?”
“Cut the crap, Quentin. What’s the status?”
“We’ve circled the area and there are no civilians in a two mile radius. They have guards at the gate to the north and west, and sout-east is only accessible by the river. It’s not frozen solid so that could be an angel. Felix is still trying to find security footage but these old buildings rarely have anything high tech if I’m perfectly honest.”
“Any word from the inside?”
“None since the first call and we lost contact with the scouting team ten minutes ago.”
“Fuck. So we’re going in blind?”
“I don’t know-”
“Then find me someone who does!”
“Yes, boss.”
Idiot. Watching him scurry off to gather more intel, I made a mental note to have him moved to desk duties till the foreseeable future. I couldn’t afford to have a weak link on the field, but for now I let it slide. Half of my men were on other duties across the seas so I had summoned any able body I could on such short notice.
“Speak.”
Felix didn’t even lift his gaze off the laptop he was working on as I climbed to the back of the van. Monitors, tablets and other equipment lined the walls. The air was filled with a static buzz.
“Working on it.”
“You gotta give me something. ”
“Just gimmi a minute.” The tapping intensified as he stared at the monitor.
While waiting, I scrolled through my phone to peek into the home security system. Katy was still in the living room watching the movie. I wasn't particularly thrilled having to leave her alone, but I was pleased she didn’t make a fuss about it either. She understood. She knew our lifestyle and the risks and consequences that came with it. Any other regular woman would have thrown a fit for abandoning her on our date night. But not Katy, and that’s what I liked about her.
“Boss? I’ve got something.”
“Show me.”
A fuzzy black and white live image flashed on the screen. The warehouse was dark with only a few spotlights from parked cars illuminating a group of people huddled in a circle with their guns ready. Though the image wasn’t clear, I could still recognize the silhouette of my father in the middle. Nobody else would be wearing that ridiculous fedora.
“What the hell are they waiting for? Are they expecting us to just waltz in there guns blazing? Zoom in on that.”
“Sorry. This is the best I got. The camera is ancient. I was lucky to even pull this feed.”
“Alright. Keep an eye on it. Find out everything you can in the meantime. I want to know exactly who we are dealing with.”
“You got it, boos. Imma need radio silence to operate this in these conditions. The signal can only handle so much.”
I nodded and proceeded to give a briefing to the other men. Our mission was to rescue my father and any other members still alive with as little casualties as possible. I wasn’t opposed to simply gunning the place down, but I couldn’t risk my father getting injured in the process.
We switched off our phones, screwed on the silencers and started moving towards the compound, using the high snow banks as cover. Once we reached the fence, the wire was cut to create a hole for us to crawl through and proceed closer to the warehouse.
My breath created a cloud of vapors in the air as I inspected the exterior of the building. The concrete was cracked in various places, many windows had shattered over time and the walls were heavily tagged with spray paint. It was clear that the property had been neglected for a long time, which made it the perfect cover for illegal activities.
Approaching cautiously, we scaled the side of the building and entered through the fire escape on the second floor. The door swung open to a pitch black hallway, filled with eerie and hollow sounds. Frost had laid a glittering blanket over the filthy grime covered floor that crunched under my feet as I moved in slowly.
Motioning to the men to split up, I carried on further into the building, lightening my steps. I had instructed my men to secure our position before making a move on the targets. I was surprised they didn’t have anyone patrolling the offices in the upper floors as I found them empty.
Making my way down a set of stairs, I found myself on the ground floor. The space was crowded with rows and rows of shelves, though not entirely empty, the contents left behind had a significant amount of wear and tear. Crouching down behind one tall box, the smell of mold and petrol made my eyes water in the narrow space.
Holding my breath, I inched my way further into the warehouse, staying close to the wall as possible and blending in with the shadows. The small movements above me let me know my men were making their way into their position on the railings. The darkness swallowed them entirely; you wouldn’t be able to see them unless you were looking directly at them.
A guard stood by the door, facing away from me, unknowing he, just like his compatriots, would be taking their last breaths tonight. Another guard shuffled in place on the other side of the shelves. It was over in a blink of an eye. I pounced from my hiding spot, tackled the first guard and silently rang his neck, silencing him forever just as Miko did the same to the other one. He laid the guy down gently avoiding the sound his limp body would have made hitting the ground.
We crept further, taking out the roaming guards one by one without raising the alarm. It was easy. Almost too easy. None of them had any insignias on their clothing, no distinguishable tattoos or other marks that would indicate to their clan. As if all of them were nameless mercenaries, hired by someone to act like initiated crew members. My suspicions grew as the last one that I killed didn’t even have their identification in their pockets. Something wasn’t right.
“Listen buddy, I’m tired of waitin’ around.” A murmur broke the deafening silence once I settled behind the parked cars. The speaker’s silhouette remained dark and unrecognizable even from this close proximity. Quietly observing, I let my eyes adjust to the spotlights. “I don’t think anyone’s coming.”
“Oh they’re coming. I made sure of it.” Another man spoke, keeping their voice low, almost inaudible beyond their circle of cronies. The irritation in their voice was clear though.
“Tis’ better be worth it, man.”
As on que, I saw my men closing in on the circle, pistols in hand. Like a well orchestrated symphony, all acted at once and pressed the barrels at the back of their heads as I stepped into the light. With a quick glance, I had made the unnerving discovery that the man in the fedora was not in fact my father, but someone else entirely. Someone who resembled my father almost too well to be a coincidence. My pistol rose to greet the imposter .
“You have exactly two minutes to explain yourself.”
“Ah, Mr. O’Hara. So glad you could join us.”
“You already know my name, how bout you tell me yours.”
“Lee MacCoy.” He smiled and extended his hand, being obnoxiously casual, like we were already old friends. My hand did not waver, keeping him staring at the barrel of my gun. “A pleasure to meet your acquaintance.”
“Minute forty-five. The feeling is not mutual. Where is my father?”
“Where’s the rush? We’re all gents here rite’?”
“Answer the fucking question or I’ll start dropping bodies.”
“Such hostilities. Perhaps we could-”
Bang! The first body dropped as a result of one of my men delivering a silenced bullet to the head. MacCoy didn’t even flinch but the disgusting smile fell and he stopped talking immediately.
“I wasn’t kidding, so stop the theatrics and answer the goddamn question.”
“Fine. Seems like you are all work and no play.” He spread his arms in mock surrender. “Mr. O’Hara the senior is not here.”
“Obviously.” I gritted my teeth, finger itching on the trigger.
“But he was never here in the first place. So, you needn't be so feisty. This isn’t necessary-”
Bang! Another body hit the ground with a thud. MacCoy held his gaze, the bright lights reflecting in the continuously irritating stare he had squared on me, alarmingly unblinking. His demeanor was getting more fidgety, more unstable as the seconds ticked by.
“I decide what’s necessary. One minute left.”
“I told you I-” Bang! My patience had run its course and I snapped.
Placing a bullet neatly in his knee socket, he fell to his side, huffing and roaring out of pain. I knew exactly where to aim, high enough to render him immobile but low enough to avoid the major artery, lest he bleed to death before I had my answers.
“Motherfucker!”
“Unless the next words out of your mouth aren’t ‘Mr. O’Hara is located in this address’ I’m going to put a bullet in your shoulder.”
“Urgh, you son of a-”
Bang! I was getting really tired of this whole ordeal. Scolding myself for not going with my initial thought of just gunning them down, as it would have saved me a ton of time with the same result. I still had no clarity on why I had been summoned here in the first place.
“Next one goes to your head so answer quickly. Where is my father?”
“A-alrite’ alrite’ calm down.” His breathing came out in shallow rasps as he rolled on the ground, all playfulness stripped away.
The men that had accompanied him made no move in attempts to retaliate. They stood rigid, frozen to their spot, waiting for the inevitable. MacCoy spat out blood, staining the ground between my feet.
“H-he’s not here. Wait wait wait don’t shoot!” He spat as I pressed my gun to his temple. “I mean we don’t have him. It was just a lure. A decoy to get you out of the house. I swear. That’s all.”
“The house?” What the fuck did they want with my house? Most of my valuables were secured in various vaults and safety deposits. Everything in my house was either insured or guarded by an advanced security system, not to mention my entire staff was highly trained against anything threatening my property. There was nothing they could be stupid enough to even attempt stealing. Unless.
Something in me stirred, making my stomach flip and bile to rise to my throat. Katy. She was alone, except for Petras, who I had ordered to not let her out of his sight. I told her to stay in the house. She was safe there. Wasn’t she?
I needed more answers but there was no time to question him. The need to know she was safe had me spinning on my heels. Digging my phone out of my pocket, I signaled to my men to finish the job. The loud thuds echoed in the warehouse, leaving only one whimpering soul, bleeding and suffering on the ground. I would have my fun later, but first I needed to get a hold of Katy. I needed to know she was okay and that nothing had aspired during my absence .
Turning on the phone seemed to take ages, and when it finally did, my heart deflated. At least a dozen missed calls, the first time stamped a mere minute after I switched off my phone. Inwardly I cursed at myself. If only I hadn’t been so hasty to get to my father. If only I hadn’t left her alone. If only I hadn’t switched off my phone.
An unnerving chill ran down my spine when the phone rang again. My heartbeat spiked as I swiped the screen and pressed the phone to my ear. A mixture of sounds flooded through. First it was the beeping of car horns, then police sirens, gunshots and finally a small breathy sob calling out to me.
“ Jax? ”
“Katy?”
“ Oh my god, Jax! Finally! Where the fuck have you been? I’ve tried to call you like a million times. ”
“What’s going on? Where are you? Sounds like-”
“ Like a fucking mess. I need help. Petras is going to die. I don’t- ” A sickening sound of metal being crushed and the choir of horns blasted through the phone speaker. I heard the wheels screeching and the engine roar, while Katy spat out every Russian curse word she knew. “ Ah. Shit! ”
“Where are you?”
“ Umh, I- hold on. I don’t know. ”
“Katy, I can’t help you if I don’t know where you are. Please. Try.”
“ Ahh. Move, dumbass! Sorry, I’m fine. Maybe. ”
“Katy!” My feet moved on their own, faster than ever before. I could feel the stress and anxiety in her voice. The sheer panic got my pulse to rise to a dangerous level. She was not safe.
“ Okay, wait- ” The gunshots and the sirens were competing to see which one was the loudest, deafening some of her cries as she made the car hurl once again. “ I think I’m close to the pasta place you took me. Yes, yes. I see the sign. Oh fuck, the cops have the road blocked. ”
“Take the next left if you can.” I instructed. I knew exactly where she was. An image of her smiling across from me in the candle lit room flashed before my eyes, but it vanished when I heard her groan. I was not far from her. “You need to head to the west to get across the bridge.”
“ Across the bridge? ” Stepping outside I could hear the distant blaring of the sirens carrying over the river. Though the night was murky, the flashing of red and blue against the sky was clear, even from this far away.
“Yes. I’m coming to you. Just hang on a little longer.” I picked up the pace and flagged down the men standing by the rendezvous point. Needn't to explain with more than a few words, they climbed in one of the vehicles while I jumped in mine and skidded away from the site.
“ I don’t think- Holy shit! Ah! Jax! ”
I didn’t know what was more terrifying; hearing the chaos echo in the distance knowing she was part of the chase or to witness the despair in Katy’s voice as she raced through the city. The road banked to the right and I gripped on to the steering wheel so hard I thought I might break it.
“It’s okay. You’ve got this.” The car whined in protest when I forced it into a higher gear, speeding towards the side of the river where the bridge ended.
“ Oh I see the bridge.”
I could almost see her. Stopping at the docks, I scanned the bridge above for any sight of her. The speeding black dot was certainly her, swaying through traffic, barely avoiding the collisions. The police cruisers stood unmoving, barricading the exit.
“Son of a- It’s blocked. They’ve got me. I don’t know what to do? ”
“Drive off the bridge.”
“ Are you insane? ”
“Do it now, Katy! You’ve got to trust me.” The dot got closer and closer to the blockade, barreling towards them at full speed. She was going to crash no matter what. “Now!”
“ Shit, shit, shit. ”
The vehicle hit the barrier, breaking it on impact and plummeted to the river, sinking to the depths below.