Brady Hawk 18 - A Deadly Force Read online

  Black’s eyes widened. “You don’t sound like you need to practice English. In fact, if I didn’t know any better, I would’ve thought you attended school in the U.S. Your pronunciations are flawless.”

  “I’ve had a little help from one client in particular,” she said. “I think he was a general in your army.”

  She laughed softly as she poured some anti-septic onto a cut on his side. “Well, that’s what he told me, at least. I’m not sure if some of these old men are lying just to try to impress me.”

  Black reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. He quickly swiped to a picture of Fortner. “He didn’t happen to look like this, did he?”

  Liling leaned over and peered at the image for a second. “That’s him all right. You must know him.”

  “I’m looking for him, and apparently he has some less than hospitable friends down at the docks.”

  “I would’ve never helped him if I knew that,” she said.

  “Well, apparently he’s not at his home or at the docks, at least from what I could see tonight before I got beaten. Got any ideas as to where he might be?”

  Liling took a deep breath and stared at the ceiling. “He was always so drunk that I never knew if he was telling the truth or not, but he did talk about how he loved to go to his place in New Orleans. He said he loved Mardi Gras and partying on Bourbon Street.”

  Black glanced at the date on his phone. “Mardi Gras starts next week.”

  “Maybe that’s why you haven’t been able to find him.”

  “I have to start looking somewhere.”

  CHAPTER 3

  Dubai, UAE

  HAWK INSERTED ANOTHER earbud and turned it on as he exited the Burj Al Arab Jumeirah hotel. Amidst the chaotic scene of everyone fleeing, Hawk hailed a taxi and gave the driver directions to a restaurant three miles away. Once they reached the destination, Hawk paid the man and got out.

  “Are you in your office?” Hawk asked over the coms.

  “Affirmative,” Blunt said.

  “I just want to state for the record that I don’t like doing this,” Hawk said. “Keeping secrets from Alex is something I loathe.”

  “That’s only the seventh time you’ve gone on record as saying that during this trip,” Blunt said. “I think that fact is abundantly clear now. But the truth is, you’re both spies and you’ll always have some secrets that must be kept from each other.”

  Hawk held up his phone and acted as if he was talking on it. He detested people who walked around with Bluetooth ear buds and carried on conversations like it was normal. Despite doing it often on missions, Hawk wanted to avoid the appearance of looking like Mr. Businessman who acted as if he was cooler than everyone else because he was on an important phone call.

  “I don’t have to like it,” Hawk said.

  Blunt chuckled. “After a while, secrets become burdensome. They’re also lucrative, which is why you’re over there in the first place—to make sure Littleton doesn’t fork over secrets just so he can cash in with a big payday.”

  “I still think you’re being overcautious in keeping Alex in the dark on this,” Hawk said as he walked into the lobby and waited for the elevator. “She’s loyal to her country over her family.”

  “That’s an assumption you shouldn’t make.”

  “I hope she’d choose me over country,” Hawk said.

  “That’s not what she signed up for—and you either,” Blunt said.

  “It’s hard to go against human nature.”

  “But that’s why you’re such a good agent, Hawk. You defy natural instincts and do what’s best for the mission and your team, holding it all in light of what’s the right thing to do in terms of national security. Don’t ever change.”

  “I don’t think you’d let me,” Hawk cracked as the elevator doors swung open and he stepped inside alone.

  Hawk hit the button for the terrace. That was the supposed location of the meeting between Andrei Orlovsky and Shane Samuels, Alex’s half brother.

  “Good luck, Hawk,” Blunt said.

  Hawk reached into his pocket and applied the mustache to his face. Next, he put on a pair of dark sunglasses. Upon entering the restaurant, he requested a newspaper and scanned the room for Orlovsky and Samuels. They were seated in the far corner up against the large plate-glass window overlooking the water. Hawk asked to be seated in the opposite corner against the wall.

  Once Hawk was situated, he turned on his directional mic. He placed it stealthily between the paper, which was positioned on the edge of the table and aimed toward the two men.

  Tying the audio feed into the coms, Blunt listened in as Orlovsky and Samuels exchanged pleasantries and talked about inane things like the weather and recent sporting events.

  “What does Samuels look like?” Blunt asked.

  Hawk watched as the man who had once served with the old Firestorm team dined with one of the most notorious arms dealers in the world. Samuels shifted in his seat, constantly checking over his shoulders. He had already downed one glass of what appeared to be bourbon in the short time since Hawk started observing. Perhaps as a nervous tic, Samuels dabbed the corner of his mouth after every pull on his glass.

  “He looks jumpy to me,” Hawk said, holding his phone up to his ear again. “He keeps looking around the room as if he’s expecting someone to arrive.”

  Blunt chuckled. “He’s waiting for you.”

  “I could give him what he’s looking for and just toss the traitorous bastard through the window,” Hawk said.

  “Hawk, simmer down. You’re only on an intel-gathering mission. We’re just fortunate that this is going on at the same time as Littleton’s shenanigans.”

  “Two birds, one stone,” Hawk said. “That’s the J.D. Blunt way.”

  “Efficiency is a highly underrated skill. That’s why we can do so much with so little.”

  “Are you trying to make me mad with that insult?”

  Blunt grunted. “Since when did you become such a snowflake, Hawk?”

  “When I found out it grates on your nerves,” Hawk said with a grin.

  “You’re smiling right now, aren’t you?”

  “Can you hear it in my voice?”

  “One day I’m going to hurl one of those bourbon bottles you get me right back at you.”

  Hawk laughed softly. “I’ll be getting you alcohol served only in soft wineskins from now on.”

  When the waiter returned with another drink for Samuels, Hawk sat up in his seat. “I know good and well that these two didn’t come here to talk about sports and the weather. This ought to get interesting if Samuels can stay sober.”

  Hawk focused again on the conversation happening just across the room.

  “I think you can provide me with a valuable service,” Orlovsky said. “I’m missing an entire piece of the market due to Americans’ reluctance to purchase these weapons. The seeds of chaos are sown by men determined to see change and who expect to reap a harvest of peace.”

  “If you replace the word peace with power, you might have just nailed what most of those groups are really about,” Samuels said.

  “And you and I will reap the greatest rewards available—financial prosperity.”

  “I’m not looking to get rich,” Samuels said. “I’m looking to disappear forever.”

  “That’s something you can only do with enough money. And you’re going to need lots of it, my friend.”

  “I’m confident that I can work with these groups to purchase your products. However, I want to make sure there are no ties to me. Can you assure me that I won’t be linked to your operation?”

  “Of course,” Orlovsky said. “We try to keep our digital footprint to a minimum, so in the unlikely event that someone does steal information from us, they’re not going to end up with anything valuable. I have a decryption key that keeps most everything neat and tidy.”

  “I do have one final question,” Samuels said.

  Orlovsky gestured for his new
potential business partner to continue. “Go ahead. Better to get it all out now.”

  “How do you intend to get these weapons into the country without being detected? Our ports are some of the most strenuously patrolled in the world.”

  Orlovsky laughed. “There are far more efficient ways to sneak weapons into a country than using freighters. But don’t you worry about that. You get the clients to part with their money and leave the logistics me.”

  “It looks like I’ll have to trust your judgment,” Samuels said.

  Orlovsky smiled and opened his arms wide. “I’m still here, aren’t I? If the CIA could eliminate me, I’m sure they would’ve by now.”

  Hawk stifled a snicker. “Are you getting all this, Blunt?”

  “Loud and clear. That asshole has no idea that we’re using him to remove all his clients one by one.”

  “I like how this is playing out,” Hawk said.

  He watched as the two men returned to their banal banter once their food arrived. However, just when Hawk didn’t think anything else interesting was going to be said, Samuels wiped his hands on his napkin and leaned back in his chair.

  “I know some potential targets if any of your clients are searching for some,” Samuels said.

  “Looking to make a little extra money?” Orlovsky asked. “What do you Americans call that? A side hustle, is it?”

  Samuels laughed. “We all must do what we can to make ends meet.”

  “If you’re able to secure clients for me, you won’t have any problems paying all of your bills and then some.”

  The waiter drifted by and asked them if they wanted any dessert before leaving the check. Orlovsky took the bill and slapped several bills on top of it before rising.

  “I will be in touch,” Samuels said.

  “I look forward to working with you,” Orlovsky said.

  With that parting comment, the Russian arms dealer strode toward the exit and then pocketed a handful of chocolate mints from the hostess stand on his way to the foyer.

  “They’re all wrapped up,” Hawk said. “Want me to nab this traitorous piece of garbage? I could beat some sense into him.”

  “Leave him alone, Hawk,” Blunt said. “We found out what we needed to know.”

  “Did we? He was spying on Firestorm, and now he’s offering to give up target information to Orlovsky. You know he’s talking about us.”

  “But he doesn’t know where we are now,” Blunt said.

  “Can you be sure of that?”

  “Can you be sure that he does?” Blunt fired back. “We need to let this play out. If Samuels is going to contact Orlovsky on a regular basis, we’ll have a much better way of keeping tabs on all his illegal activity than if we simply bring in Samuels.”

  “He betrayed all of us,” Hawk said.

  “That’s part of the job. Don’t let it affect your overall mission.”

  “We brought him in like he was family—and we later found out he was. But then we learned he was spying on us. And we’ve never been given an explanation why. It’s an unforgivable offense.”

  “Just stay focused, Hawk. No one is ever straightforward with you in our business.”

  “Doesn’t matter. He was Alex’s half brother, and now he’s threatening to give up our location to anyone who wants to attack us.”

  “Simmer down. Once we’re done using Samuels, I’ll let you bring him in and ask him all the questions you’d like to ask. Just get back to Carson and help him.”

  “He doesn’t need me. Carson can handle Littleton on his own.”

  “Hawk,” Blunt said, drawing out the name as his voice went higher, “I’m warning you to leave Samuels alone. We’ve already got our hands full.”

  Hawk didn’t say a word. He set his jaw as he watched Samuels walk out of the restaurant. But Hawk was determined not to let the former operative get too far.

  “Hawk, are you still there?” Blunt asked.

  Still silence.

  “Hawk, don’t be screwing around on this one. Leave him a—”

  Hawk turned off his earbud and followed Samuels out of the restaurant.

  Staying far enough back not to get made, Hawk used the people milling around in the lobby as a sufficient cover. His disguise likely would’ve sufficed, but he didn’t want to take any chances, especially since Blunt was adamant about leaving Samuels alone.

  Hawk watched as Samuels slid into a dark sedan that sped away. Searching for a cab, Hawk was shut down when he was directed to the back of the line by the concierge at a taxi stand. Unable to go any farther, he put his earbud back in and tried to reach Blunt over the coms.

  “You still there?” Hawk asked.

  “I swear if you have Samuels—”

  “Don’t get your knickers in a knot. He’s gone and didn’t see me.”

  “Get your ass back to Washington, pronto,” Blunt said. “We’ve got more important matters to attend to than your personal vendettas.”

  CHAPTER 4

  Washington, D.C.

  BLUNT PINCHED THE BRIDGE of his nose as he gnawed on his unlit cigar. He’d been poring over a series of files received earlier that morning and was awaiting the arrival of his team to discuss next steps in the multiple operations the Phoenix Foundation was running. In the two days since Hawk and Black were both in the field, Blunt had amassed a treasure trove of intel related to a hunch he was chasing down related to Obsidian.

  Alex appeared in the conference room, sporting a flowing navy-blue dress with her hair tightly cropped in a bun. She whistled a tune that Blunt couldn’t place but was sure he’d heard before.

  “What song is that?” Blunt asked.

  “I doubt you’ve ever heard it.”

  “Try me.”

  “Pehli Baar Dil Ye from the Bollywood film ‘Hum Ho Gaye Aap Ke’.”

  Blunt stared at her blankly. “You’re right. I’ve never heard of it, never seen it, never will.”

  “Not enough things blowing up for you?”

  Blunt chuckled. “I know you think that I live to make things explode, but I enjoy period drama pieces too.”

  Alex’s eyes widened. “Period drama pieces? You?”

  “Yeah, dramas from periods of war like ‘Tora, Tora, Tora’ and ‘Enola Gay’ and ‘The Dirty Dozen’.”

  “Might I suggest you broaden your horizons sometime?” she asked. “Hawk and I have an extensive collection of Bollywood films.”

  “I’ll pass. I can’t read subtitled movies. Makes my head hurt.”

  “We have a few that are dubbed,” she said with a wry grin.

  “Hard pass on that one too. Those Kung Fu movies where everybody’s mouth is out of sync make me want to punch somebody.”

  Black strolled into the room and settled into the seat across from Alex.

  “So, what rousing conversation am I missing out on?” he asked.

  “I’m trying to convince Blunt to expand his movie tastes, and he seems dead set against it.”

  Black shrugged. “If you’re pedaling those Bollywood films again, I don’t blame him.”

  “And what’s wrong with appreciating another culture’s film offerings?”

  “Because they’re crap, that’s why.”

  Hawk shut the door behind him as he settled next to Alex. “What’s crap?”

  “Bollywood films,” Blunt said. “I’d rather have my eyes taped open and be forced to watch that Ben Affleck disaster Gigli for twenty-four hours straight than watch fifteen minutes of a Bollywood flick.”

  “Harsh,” Hawk said. “Though I thoroughly enjoyed Ben Affleck’s Argo, despite it resembling somewhat of a normal workday around here.”

  “Well, speaking of work, let’s get to it,” Blunt said. “Lord knows we’ve got more terrorists crawling out from underneath rocks than we can shake a stick at it.”

  “All trying to get a piece of Orlovsky’s latest new technology, ripped off straight from Colton Industries?” Black asked.

  “He certainly must’ve advertised
the fact that he was getting some innovative designs from a major weapons company,” Alex said. “But thanks to Hawk and his new friend from the CIA, Orlovsky’s got nothing of substance.”

  “And what about Littleton?” Black asked.

  “We’re detaining him for now,” Blunt said. “And when the time comes, I might let you interrogate him.”

  “I think what we all want to know is if that backdoor we planted on the flash drive helped us connect the dots between Orlovsky and any Obsidian operatives,” Hawk said.

  “And the answer to that is a big fat maybe,” Alex said. “Since our database on who is involved with Obsidian is still relatively short, it’s difficult to tell. At this point, all I can say is that Orlovsky is only partial to money. If you’ve got it, you can be his client.”

  “We need to keep digging into that,” Blunt said, nodding at Alex. “I’m sure there are more avenues to explore since we’ve been able to get into his mainframe.”

  Alex shifted in her seat and sat up straight. “I’m still rummaging through every piece of data I can find on his machine. So far, I’ve found nothing definitive, but I’m not giving up yet, so don’t you worry.”

  “That’s my Alex,” Blunt said before grunting. “Like a dog with a bone.”

  “Speaking of dogs, I need to update the team about General Fortner,” Black said.

  Hawk shook his head. “Please tell me you’re about to show us photos of the bullet you put in his head.”

  “I’d never let that traitor off that easily,” Black said. “Besides, we have big plans to use him to climb the ladder with Obsidian and find out who’s calling the shots.”

  “So, what did you find?” Hawk asked.

  Black pushed a folder across the table toward Hawk. “Fortner has a place on Bourbon Street in New Orleans that he’s apparently living in these days.”

  “If you need help flushing him out any time soon, just let me know,” Hawk said. “I’d be more than happy to assist you.”

  Blunt raised his hands. “We’ll consider that as well, but we can’t lose any more leads. We need concrete connections to Obsidian’s upper brass. And I think we might just have one.”