A Blued Steel Wolfe (14 page)

Whether or not God heard her pleas, she didn’t know. She could only hope that he heard her impassioned prayer for help.

Elsewhere, things began to happen beyond her control.

Chapter 5

Vengeance for the Vanquished

Deck sat on the back of his Harley Sportster, his helmet visor down to obscure his features. He looked at the house in Calabasas with all the cars parked in the driveway and on the street out front. He knew it wasn’t enough to go on, all by itself. Years of experience taught him that he had to be thorough.
Time to go see if these assholes are speaking Russian,
he thought with a snort.

He hid the bike on the side of another house with a For Sale sign in the yard, out of view of the probable mob hideout. He removed his helmet and put on a ball cap and dark sunglasses. It wasn’t much of a disguise, but he was banking on getting in close enough to confirm or negate his suspicions. He also counted on being able to exit the area before they spotted him. It was a simple plan. He knew that the more complicated his plans, the more likely he would have to improvise as the situation developed.

How the fuck does Mac make those damn plans and they always work perfectly?
He wondered with a shake of his head.
Oh, well. Looks like it’s time to go to work.

The sun had just set, so he crept silently across the yard, staying low. He moved silently, slipping up to the closest window on the side of the house. He didn’t hear any voices from inside, though. He then moved towards the backyard gate, keeping an ear and eye out for any sign of movement.

He pressed the latch on the gate quietly, and winced when the hinge squeaked as he pushed it open. He moved forward cautiously, staying low as he closed the gate behind him. As he neared the kitchen window, he caught a muffled conversation in Russian-accented English. He concentrated, listening as best he could.

“I do not like sitting around, Leo,” said one voice. “I need to be doing something.”

“Then do something, Ivan,” Leo replied with a chuckle. “Grab a feather duster and start cleaning!”

Raucous laughter erupted as Leo gave Ivan that “order”, but it died down quickly when Deck heard another voice interject.

“We
are
doing something,” the voice growled in a New York accent. “In half an hour, we are going to hit these clubs. I discovered where our enemy does business.” His declaration led to a light slap sound as if a large manila envelope hit a table.

“Strip clubs?” Ivan asked with a laugh. “We are going to hit strip clubs?”

That was all Deck needed to hear. He tapped his ear to activate the earbud that Ray gave him.

“Ray,” he subvocalized. “They’re going to hit some strip clubs. They’re leaving in three zero minutes.”

“Good copy Shepard,” Ray replied. “Let me contact Mr. Wolfe and let him know. Stand by.”

“Stand by? No way, man. I’m going to fall back to my bike and await reinforcements,” Deck whispered. Then he heard a twig snap on the lawn to his left towards the back of the house.

He didn’t move, as if he hadn’t heard the twig snap. He did swivel his eyes in that direction. He couldn’t see much as the last gray of evening started to fade into the black of night. Deck heard breathing as the man tried to move silently towards him.

Ex-KGB or FSB,
Deck thought wryly.
They always try to sneak up on someone instead of alerting their comrades.
The man would probably try to force his surrender with a gun to his head. When Deck realized that the man was coming even closer without challenging him, he saw his opportunity.

Deck wore a dark gray t-shirt under his black and dark gray motorcycle jacket. His jeans were also black, as were his boots. Motionless, he figured that the man was coming closer to ascertain that he wasn’t just a shadow.

The Russian stopped only two feet away and Deck acted. He pivoted smoothly on the balls of his feet and came up, grabbing the barrel of the AK-47 with one hand and the Russian’s trigger finger with the other. He bent the finger back, snapping it. As the Russian inhaled to scream, the ex-Green Beret chopped him hard in the throat, cutting off the man’s scream before it started. As the Russian fell backward, Deck clapped a gloved hand over the man’s mouth.

“What was that?” asked a muffled voice from inside.

“Isn’t Anton in the backyard having a smoke?” Another voice asked. “He probably stumbled over something in the dark.”

Deck froze as the conversation went on. He checked Anton’s pulse and found none.
Chopped his throat harder than I thought,
he thought with a wince. It was time to un-ass the A/O.

While they were talking, they weren’t listening to anything other than each other. That worked to his advantage as he shouldered the body, slung the AK over his other shoulder, and exited the same gate by which he’d entered. He moved low and silently back towards the bike. Then Ray came back on the earbud’s frequency.

“Ok, I got ahold of Mr. Wolfe. Justin is bringing a security team to take them down. ETA is fifteen,” Ray said, giving him the veggies.

“Good. Had a minor complication, so tell them to step on it,” Deck whispered. “One of them almost got me, but I got him instead.”

“Ok that could get dicey,” Ray replied in a tense voice. “Take your earbud out and slide the little switch from the 1 position to the 2 position. Then you’ll have coms with the incoming team. I’ll let
you
explain to Justin what happened.”

“Gee thanks,” Deck smirked as he reached his Harley. He dropped the body behind a large bush. Then he unslung the AK from his other shoulder. He reached into his ear and retrieved the earbud, and slid the switch into the position 2. As soon as he repositioned it, he started talking.

“Justin, this is Deck,” he said. “Minor complication on this end. Had to eliminate one of the assholes, so I suggest you all get here ASAP.”

***** ***** *****

“We’re on our way Deck,” Justin said. He looked around at the multi-service team made up of fifteen of the deadliest shooters on Earth. “Give me a sit-rep.”

“I confirmed the Russians’ presence in the house,” Deck replied over the com system in Justin’s earbud. He took a deep breath and gave Justin the veggies. “I think your boy Salvatore was there too. I heard one of the tangos talking with a New York accent instead of Russian. Unfortunately, I couldn’t confirm numbers, but they’re planning to leave the house and hit some strip clubs in two-five mics or so. I suggest you light a fire under your asses and get up here. I’m on your side of the second house to your left once you enter the street. I also procured a weapon from the asshole I took down.”

“Was it completely necessary to take him out early, Shepard?” Justin asked with a grimace.

“Yes it was,” Deck replied professionally. “I had three options. Option A: Let him capture me. Option B: Try to make a break for it, and let him shoot me in the back. I went with Option C: Take him down quickly, before he could raise the alarm.”

“Roger that Deck,” Justin replied. He wasn’t happy about it, but he knew Shepard well enough. He knew that the man had a good reason. Declan Shepard didn’t make excuses. “We’ll be there ASAP. Let me know if the situation changes.”

“You got it boss man,” Deck responded.

Justin heard Deck tap his earbud to break contact, so he looked around at his team and let them know the situation. They all nodded in understanding, professionals to the hilt. Their infiltration plan was simple. They would rendezvous with Deck and move in from there. They’d breach at the back of the house and sweep through it, while a smaller team out front would watch for anyone trying to escape that way. All of the men on the team carried suppressed H&K MP-5 SMGs and suppressed Beretta sidearms.

Justin moved forward in the van and told the driver to step on it. The man behind the wheel nodded once and pushed the gas pedal down. He knew that given the situation, speed was extremely important. They had to stop the Russians and especially Salvatore from escaping.

“Gonzo, are you ready for this?” Justin asked, turning his head to look at his friend.

“Sir, I’m insulted that you’d even ask me that question,” Gonzo replied with a smirk.

“Good man,” Justin responded with a grin. Then he looked at the rest of his team. “The rest of you, you all know your sectors. We do this by the numbers, and don’t let any of the bastards escape.”

“Yes sir,” they replied in unison. Every one of them was a good shooter. They all knew war better than most. They knew that what they did was necessary to the greater good. Unlike Shepard, most of them didn’t work as mercenaries prior to joining the Wolfe security team. Technically, they still weren’t mercs. They were bodyguards. In this instance, the best way to safeguard their boss was to go after the people threatening his life.

Soon, the van pulled onto the street and the driver immediately saw Deck’s flashlight. The two flashes showed them where he was, so the van pulled over. Justin exited the back of the van with the rest of his men, and the driver got out too. Deck came trotting up to them, carrying an AK-47 slung over his shoulder.

“I presume that you secured that weapon from the enemy soldier?” Justin inquired.

“You presume correctly sir,” Deck replied with his easy smile in place.

“Well, we brought some toys for you too, so throw it in the van,” Justin said. “There’s a duffel bag in there with your gear, a suppressed MP-5, sidearm, and some body armor.”

“Thanks, boss man,” Deck said with a nod and went to change.

Justin sent two men to watch the house for any signs of activity. They reported that the Russians were gathering weapons and loading magazines in preparation for something. Justin knew that that “something” was, of course. He knew that they needed to hurry. Two minutes later, Deck emerged dressed in a tactical helmet, black body armor and BDU pants. He carried his MP-5 as if it was a part of him.

“You’re with us Deck,” Justin said, motioning the man to join him and his team. Deck only nodded in reply and moved to join them. Then Justin looked at the rest of his men. “Gentlemen, this is Deck Shepard. Gonzo and I worked with his team on a mission in Afghanistan four years ago.”

His men nodded in reply, but one of them spoke up. “We don’t know this hippy, sir.”

Justin started to reply, but Shepard held up his hand to stop him. “I got this, sir,” he said. Then he looked at the man with the high-and-tight haircut. “You’re a SEAL, right?”

The man blinked. “Yeah, Team Two. How did you know that?”

“Just a hunch,” Deck said with a shrug. “Look, I’m here to help, same as you are. We do this job, take these commies down, and I’m gone. No muss. No fuss. Hooah?”

“Fuckin’ Army,” the former SEAL muttered under his breath. Then he shrugged too. “Fine, whatever.”

“Ok, now that we’re done comparing sizes, let’s get to work,” Justin snorted. He looked at the SEAL. “Johns, your team is going to watch the front while we go in at the back. If
anyone
comes out that front door, you put them in the ground.”

“Aye, aye sir,” Johns replied professionally. He took his men to the hedge separating the properties. Then he directed them to set up fields of fire, in order take down anyone leaving the house by the front door.

Meanwhile, Justin led his team into the backyard of their staging house. He found a good spot where the fence couldn’t be seen by the Russians in the target house. At his command, they all went over one at a time. They took cover immediately, aiming silently at the house. Then the rest of the team came over the fence behind them. When everyone was in position, Justin tapped the earbud.

“Ray,” he whispered. “Do you have that satellite image yet?”

“Got it boss,” Ray’s voice came back. “Thermal imaging shows twenty-seven men inside the house as of this moment.”

“That isn’t right,” Justin whispered back. “Where are the rest of them? Ray, scan the other house across the street.”

“Already on it boss,” Ray said. “Hold on.”

Justin didn’t like this. From the information that Ray had gathered, ninety-four men came in from New York. With twenty-seven men inside the house, that left sixty-eight men for which they couldn’t account. That included Salvatore. Granted, the black sheep of the Salvatore clan
might
be in there. They needed to be smart about this, though.

“Hey boss,” Ray said over the earbud. “No signatures in either of the other houses. I’m still scanning, so I’ll let you know if I find anything else.”

“Thanks Ray,” Justin whispered back. “Let me know as soon as you find anything. We can’t wait any longer, though.”

“I’ll let you know boss,” Ray promised. “Just keep the line open.”

Justin turned to his team and whispered, “Let’s go.”

They moved quickly and quietly. They stayed low, crouching and keeping their weapons up as they watched the windows. Light shined from the windows of the house, but they didn’t see any silhouettes. That meant that the Russians were not in the kitchen or dining room.

When they reached the safety of the shadows under the windows, they lined up with their backs against the wall. Justin crouched closest to the sliding glass door on the porch. He looked at his team and motioned for them to follow him.