Hard Man to Kill (Dark Horse Guardian Series Book 4) (19 page)

But Lara knew -- if someone wanted to kill a person, having extra security would not necessarily prevent it.  And, she constantly worried about what might happen next.  She had deep concerns about losing Ben to a well-aimed bullet, or any of the others, for that matter.  She had grown to love this extended family much more than she could have imagined.

Her friendship with Monique deepened, as well.  It was a wonderful diversion when she and Monique left to do design work at the bungalow.  Often Rusty or Bettencourt would go along with them, plus Lara carried her firearm religiously.  Lately, business had taken off.  Home renovations were trending in favor of moving. 

“I wonder when we will be able to move about freely and not be afraid.” Monique asked as they rode in a different vehicle every day.  Today it was an older Chevy Suburban with peeling paint and a dent or two, but it was fitted with bullet-proof windows and plating.

“I don’t know ” Lara stared out of the window watching the outside world go by, remembering there was once a time when she was in the driver’s seat.

The problem, Lara knew, wasn't Madi's men.  It was the next million after him who were the problem.  With Ben's cover blown, he and Lara would have a target on their backs for their rest of their natural lives.  From that day forward, they were one bullet away from planning their own funerals, or several funerals, for that matter.  This was the one constant worry cycling through her mind day and night.

As they waited in the parking lot, Bettencourt went inside the bungalow, checking to make sure all was well.  He spoke on the com and told them to come inside. 

“I’ll make coffee.” Lara volunteered.  She went into the kitchen and noticed something was not right.  The cupboards had been opened and several items were askew, including the coffee maker. 

“What’s up?” Bettencourt said, leaning against the kitchen door casing. 

“Nothing much.  Just some things seem messed up here.” Lara said.

“Like what?” Bettencourt asked.  “Give me details.”

Lara showed him, and he spoke on his com to Rusty, “Look around.  See if it looks like someone might have been here….stuff in the kitchen has been messed with…” 

Lara watched Bettencourt as he went through every square inch of the tiny kitchen looking for anything he could find.  He took a plastic bag from the drawer and used two toothpicks to pick up a few items and put them into the baggie.

“What was that all about?” Lara quizzed him.

“Just some fresh mud and a couple of other things.  I have a feeling someone has been in here, but they didn’t want us to know.” Bettencourt gazed into her eyes, all business-like.  “You know what that means…”

Lara’s eyes locked with his.  “We’ll not be able to work here any longer.” 

“Yup.” Bettencourt exhaled.  He waved to Monique and asked her to help pack up everything they needed.  They were heading back to the farm.  Lara’s heart sank.  She knew what was coming, more restrictions, with more lockdown time.  There was only one way to end this.  It would be violent, but necessary.

~ Abdul ~

The student visa idea was a good one.  The three men were now in an apartment near the campus where Ben Keegan was teaching.  Ibrahim followed Keegan on a regular basis, and some days he followed his wife, Lara. 

“What did you find in the bungalow the other day?” Abdul questioned Ibrahim.

“Nothing, really…it was a waste of time.  There were some items in the kitchen.  It looks like they work or eat there on a regular basis.” Ibrahim reported. 

“Good.  We could place some C4 there and detonate when she’s there.”

Then his attention turned to Saleh.  “How about you?  What have you found out about the layout of Clearwater Farm?” Abdul asked pointedly.

“Here’s the map from city hall.  I told them my father is looking at purchasing an adjoining property.  They gave me this information willingly.  I flew a drone over the place and captured this video.  Here, I will send it to you on your phone, if you’d like.” Saleh offered. 

“No, keep it on your phone.  I can watch it there.” Abdul commanded.  After viewing the footage, he had to admit, he hadn’t thought of buying a hobby drone and flying over Keegan’s property.  The thought might have come to him later, but Saleh was proving to be very helpful and useful.  Maybe he had underestimated him all along. 

~ Saleh ~

Feeding information to Ben Keegan was the biggest challenge for Saleh.  For one thing, his cell phone was not secure.  Abdul frequently looked at his iPhone.  Keegan had supplied him with a burner phone, which he used.  He tucked it into the band of his underwear.  All of his communication with Keegan was done via encrypted texts and e-mails.  No talking.  Keegan had explained there were too many ears and eyes in the United States regarding phone calls.  They were all recorded, whether they needed to be or not.  The encrypted texts and e-mails would be a better idea.  But, Saleh was nervous that somehow Abdul would find the burner phone.  Even if he did, the words on it were encrypted.  Nevertheless, Saleh still had nightmares about it sometimes.

Today, Saleh was going to the far end of the parking lot to send a message to Keegan, letting him know about the drone footage and about Ibrahim’s breaking into the bungalow.  He hadn’t known Ibrahim was going to do that.  Saleh tried to get the women and children out of the picture.  He attempted to focus Abdul and Ibrahim on their prime target, Ben Keegan.  But they often argued it would be best to capture a family member, and then they could get Keegan.  Their focus was Lara.

The text today was critical.  Abdul was bringing another terrorist to the United States to help with the mission.  The new guy had a reputation for going off on his own.  He had a big ego, was unpredictable and had killed many Christians -- innocent women and children, posing for pictures with their dead mangled bodies and posting the photos on social media. 

Right now, it was Abdul, Ibrahim, Saleh, Aaron and Tim.  But, this guy was only known as Khouri.  Saleh had little information about him, except he was a wild one.  Saleh told Ben in the text, once Khouri arrived, he’d let him know as much as possible.  He did hear today from Abdul that they could not return to Pakistan until Keegan was dead or captured.  Their father was on a rampage.  He was grasping at straws, trying to kill Ben Keegan.  It was his major topic of conversation.  He had become obsessed with killing Keegan. 

~ Ben ~

Being home with Lara the last few months had been nerve-wracking for him.  It was as if he was on a mission and he had her with him to protect at all times.  The Dark Horse Guardians were in a state of upheaval, but acted with professionalism and precision.  Even though their families were stuck on the compound of Clearwater Farm, they made the best of it.  And, he noticed Lara was bonding with each person on his team.  There was some good coming of this awful situation.

But Ben could tell Lara was sometimes exhausted having that many people around all day and all night.  Their private life was no longer private.  One time a child walked into their master bedroom while they were making love.  Of course, he laughed it off, but Lara wasn’t too happy about it. 

Then there was mealtime and bedtime every night, filled with routines and rituals that seemed to intrude on his and Lara’s personal time together.  Lara always ended up helping one of the women with an unruly or sick child.  She was kind, hard-working, and generous, however, and he often wondered how she put up with him and all that was taking place.  She took it in stride and smiled. 

When she returned home from her design work in the late afternoon today, he would walk with her on the beach and kiss her, hoping for a tiny sliver of privacy.  Soon it would be their one-year wedding anniversary.  Monique and Bettencourt were planning their wedding.  They wanted to have it at Clearwater Farm, but it was on lockdown at the moment.  It seemed all of their lives were on hold.

The April sun was warmer now, and Lara would often walk with him after dinner for a short while with Einstein, just like when things were normal.  But things weren’t normal, and he wanted more than ever to get back to a semblance of their old routine.  Hopefully, Saleh would help him get there.

He saw the Suburban coming down the driveway and knew Lara was in it.  Einstein did, too.  The dog whined with excitement.  As Monique, Lara, Bettencourt, and Rusty exited the vehicle, within seconds, there was gun fire.  Not knowing the direction it was coming from, Bettencourt instructed Lara and Monique to stay in the vehicle, as he drew his weapon.  Rusty and Lara did the same, automatically taking cover.  The vehicle had been bullet-proofed, but they instinctively crouched as another round hit the Suburban.  The bullet lodged in the backside of the vehicle.  Then, more rounds hit it, all coming from the same direction.  Bettencourt spoke into his com, “It’s a lone gunman.  Got his location, south cliff.” 

Ben watched as Bettencourt took aim with his H&K M23.  The big man crouched near the edge of the vehicle, took careful aim, and got off ten rapid rounds in the direction of the ledge.

Gus and Tom were already awake inside.  Ben spoke on the com, “Get the Silver Shadows, we’re going to play laser tag from the upstairs windows.” 

It wasn’t long before Ben realized this wasn’t the greatest spot to be pinned down under gunfire.  There were rocky bluffs surrounding them and long stretches of sandy beach.  Not a lot of cover, except for the house, itself. The windows were hurricane-proof, but he didn’t think they’d stop a bullet and didn’t want to test them right now.  He dreaded the thought of bullets going into the house, killing someone randomly.  He spoke into the com, “Get everyone down to the basement in the middle of the house, now!” 

Crouching on the porch yielding his Glock, more bullets came toward Ben, one whizzed right by his head.  He held his breath for a moment.  The next bullet caught him in the left shoulder.  He winced and cried out in pain as it grazed through his clothing.

“Shit.  He breathed into his com.  “Damn it -- I caught a bullet in my shoulder.”

Ben trained his 9mm Glock19 on the south cliff and fired twelve rounds.  Within the course of two minutes, Ben heard the Silver Shadow let go above him, and the distinct sound of a bullet hitting its mark.  Thud, thud, thud.  The small cannon with a laser scope painted its target, as Gus dropped one guy from the cliff.  They frantically searched for any others, but Ben surmised they scurried away as the police siren grew louder in the distance. 

Ben waited under cover until the police arrived.  Once the area was secured, the Dark Horse Guardians emerged.  The police examined the body.  “He’s a young man by the name of Aaron Brown.  We know him; there’s a warrant out for his arrest.  We think he might have killed Officer Simpson.” the police officer spoke matter-of-factly.  “This guy has been in and out of trouble for a while.  Well, he won’t be bothering you any longer.  Hey, you’re bleeding.  We’ll get a medic here to take a look at that.” 

Ben sat down in the kitchen feeling defeated.  “Yeah.  Thanks.  But, we’ve got it covered.”  Elvis got the medical kit and pulled Ben’s jacket off, then his shirt. 

“Yeah, that’ll leave a mark.” He teased Ben. 

“Screw you, too.” Ben smiled, then winced as Elvis meticulously cleaned the gash in his shoulder.

~ Lara ~

Fawning over Ben’s bullet grazing wasn’t the thing to do; she found that out the hard way.  Ben pretended it wasn’t much more than a mosquito bite, in fact those were his words.  The men in the kitchen were laughing, as if it was no big deal.  Having seen the scars on his body, she suddenly realized it wasn’t much compared to some of the others.  But she winced thinking it had to hurt.  The fact that it even happened heightened her sense of worry, not only regarding Ben, but all of them corralled at the compound right now. 

“No drama, darlin,” Ben whispered after he was bandaged.  He kissed her forehead sweetly, but she could see his demeanor was serious.  As far as Ben was concerned, the incident was one of many.  But for Lara, she imagined all of the catastrophic things that could’ve happened in that split second.

Interrupting her apprehension, she scooped up two crying children.  Dinner was being prepared late, and the police warned them about stepping outside for any length of time.  Lara was gravely concerned about the shooting.  How did Aaron Brown get that close to the compound?  The security system would have gone off to alert them.  But, her answer came minutes later.  Ben noticed that somehow, someone had messed with the security camera that was covering that side of the compound, and the alarm didn’t go off.  He resynched it, and all was fine.  But he still wanted to get to the bottom of why it malfunctioned.  And she knew he would.

Aaron Brown was dead.  Lara was so angry, she wished she could’ve been the one to shoot him, but it was Gus who got off the lucky shot.  She felt fortunate that the dead man was a terrorist, and not her husband.

Instead of getting involved in the police processing, she sat in the weapons cache room and went over the fine points of using a Silver Shadow, the weapo
n
Ben’s team preferred.  It performed perfectly in the execution of Aaron Brown.  She pulled the double barreled AR15 up and studied the weapon closely.  Rusty was organizing weapons and ammo in the room silently.