CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Cam, Luke, Eric, and Hex stood at the entrance of the Osprey, smiling at the women about to board.
“Thanks for coming, Grandpa,” smiled Joey.
“Anything for you and for Marissa. We’ll get them home safely.” The women boarded the aircraft and Marissa turned, hugging her father, soon-to-be father-in-law, and then reaching for Joey.
“Be careful. Please be careful. You know that Vasily isn’t going to give up easily.”
“I know, babe.” He kissed her again but as she tried to walk away, he gripped her hand. “Marissa. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner that I love you. Do what they say and stay safe. I’ll be home soon.”
“You’d better be or I’ll have Franklin haunt you for all time,” she grinned, kissing him again.
The group watched as the Osprey took off, nearly silent in the quiet of the cold winter sky. As she started her move southwest, she suddenly disappeared.
“What. The. Fuck,” muttered Bo. Joey just laughed, slapping his teammates back.
“Don’t worry, you’ll get used to shit like that eventually.”
“Brother, why don’t we have that shit?” asked Red.
“It’s a long story but the short of it is Uncle Sam wants to own the technology. We own it, which means we decide how it’s used. They don’t like our rules, we don’t really care about their money.”
“Fucking assholes. Do you know how many lives could be saved with this technology? What am I saying? Of course, you guys know better than anyone,” said Bullett.
“Come on, let’s get inside and talk about our next move.”
Back inside the hut with the others, they were able to watch their own radar on their phones to see the progress of the women headed home.
“The last intel from the bureau was that he was somewhere along the Washington coastline. It makes sense. He could easily fly out of there and into Russian airspace quickly,” said River.
“We have some intel of our own,” frowned Gator. “I’m not sure you even know, Wes, but you killed Vasily’s only son.”
“Fuck me.” He mumbled, turning in circles, running his hands through his hair. “The kid in Prague?”
“Yep. He was coming out of a house we were sent to, known for trafficking women and drugs. Local authorities actually called out to him to raise his hands but of course he didn’t listen. You didn’t have a choice.”
“Maybe not, except now my granddaughter is being chased down by him. If he figures out who I am, he’ll be even angrier.”
“There would be no way for him to know,” said Rush. “We don’t wear uniforms, we don’t advertise who we are, there’s nothing to tie you to him unless he had a camera shot of your face.”
“Then tell me why he’s trying to find you,” said AJ.
“He must have called in a favor from someone in the government. He’s sent a message to the secure e-mail line that he wants Marissa, or the man that killed his son.
If he doesn’t get one or the other, or both, there will be war. His words, not mine.”
“Fuck me,” muttered Wes.
“Does he think he’ll wage war on the U.S.?” asked Bo. “He doesn’t have the manpower for that. It’s why he wanted what those students had thought up.”
“That’s a fair point,” nodded Gator, “but it won’t stop him from trying. Believe me, the man is psychotic.”
“Then we find him,” said Moose. “We find where he is, get to him before he gets to us, and end this entire nightmare.”
“Let’s give him a call and see if we can pinpoint the location,” said Dan. Wes nodded at him and dialed the number he’d left in the message.
“Mr. Jordan, I assume?”
“You’ve got me,” said Wes.
“Not yet but I will. You killed my only son.”
“He shouldn’t have been dealing in drugs and women. I don’t like that and I have this nasty habit of sticking my nose into businesses like that.”
“I know you’re trying to track me,” said Vasily, his smile evident through the phone. “I have wonderful technology at my fingertips as well.”
“I’m sure you do,” said Wes.
Rush and Dan gave him a thumbs up that their tracking systems were functioning on the call. The firewalls and other blocks in place were working, while behind the scenes the team was tracking the exact location of the man.
“I deserve to have a life for a life.”
“No, you don’t. See, the difference is we’ve done nothing wrong. Your son wanted to deal in things he shouldn’t have touched. So, sorry to disappoint you but you won’t be getting anyone in return.
“However, I’ll give you an alternative. You and me, alone in a room. Winner takes all.” Vasily laughed.
“How is that fair? You must be ten years younger than me.”
“We are the same age,” said Wes. “I just live a better life than you.” The phone was silent for a moment and then he spoke again.
“I’m a businessman. You’re a man of violence and war.”
“Vasily, don’t bullshit me. You’re the man that’s into war and violence, and of course, let’s not forget that you want to recreate Mother Russia. If that’s not crazy, I don’t know what is.”
“It will happen,” he said through clenched jaw.
“No, it will not. Those countries that you’re so determined to control again are now aware of what your plot is. They are, as we speak, working with the U.S., the U.K., Canada, and Australia to beef up their borders, their weapons, and fighter jets.”
Wes and the others could almost hear the sizzle of Vasily’s anger. He wasn’t a man that didn’t like interference and definitely not interference that he knew would work.
“One way or another, I will kill you.”
“Dude, I’m an old man now, just like you. A good hurricane could kill me.”
“I truly hate you,” said Vasily. “I take great satisfaction in knowing that my technology has won out or you wouldn’t have kept me on the line this long. You don’t know where I am but I know where you are. See you soon, Mr. Jordan.”
The call ended and Wes turned to Dan and Connor who both nodded.
“We got him. He’s in a home near Clallam Bay. Spitting distance to Canada and a private runway at the back of the house. There’s a private jet parked there which means we need to disable that jet before we do anything.”
“Then let’s get a plan together and head to Washington,” said Joey. “River? Can you hold off on telling the feds anything for a while? I’d hate to have someone spoil our entrance.”
“I can hold off for a bit,” he smiled. “I’m not cut out for fed life anyway. I’m a SEAL and I’m ready to get back to doing what I do best.”
Joey smiled at his friend.
“Then let’s make this happen.”