Starting Over Pt. 10 Ch. 02

Starting Over X, Part 2

This is the tenth section of the continuing saga "Starting Over".

In Part I, LTC (Retired) John Jackson had moved to Seattle after being widowed. He ran into some trouble and some decent people (okay, and a few strippers), while working towards getting his private investigator license. That took place between Sep and Dec 2012.

In Part II, he got involved in a ring trafficking in young women. The main perpetrators were captured, but the hired gun/enforcer slipped away. That took place in Apr and May 2013.

In Part III, which took place in 2013 and 2014, John managed to find the enforcer in Key West and was planning to kill him, but changed his mind. He really didn't know if he could kill someone in cold blood, but the man was living with a woman and had decided that he was retiring. John let him go with a promise to do intelligence work for him and returned to Seattle, where Maggie gave indications that she wanted a serious relationship. Then he used that enforcer from Key West to assist in capturing an assassin. The assassin had been hired to kill him and the detective who helped him break up a leg of a human trafficking chain.

In Part IV, it's 2019. John and Maggie couldn't work things out and now John was working on a case that, at first, involved someone who had assaulted Luke's wife Maria. John then had two men try to break into his apartment to attack him. The authorities caught the two men by tracking them to a strip club, but John got beat up by them before the police got there. When he woke, he found that Vanessa, his waitress at the strip club, was an undercover officer. There were several events that were taking place and it was being done by an anarchist group. However, funding for these events was tracked to someone in human trafficking in Singapore by a hacker that John found through Bob in Key West. He returned to Seattle with the information on a thumb drive, and the FBI and others started tracking him. Finally, the master of the human trafficking ring had his son try to soft sell John's daughter into visiting Asia with him, primarily to kidnap her. John found out, he and his buddies stopped it, and then John, feeling the rage, flew to Singapore and, with the backdoor assistance of a government person, was armed and killed both the leader and his son of this trafficking ring.

In Part V, Yvonne, the young hacker came to live with John. She had nowhere else to go and felt so alone during the pandemic that she was craving human interaction. She also admitted that she was attracted to John, even though there was 19 years difference in their ages. A bad guy was hired to hit him due to his involvement in some operations being run by a rogue CIA manager and some disenfranchised CIA members. John and company got them in the end and Yvonne got shot in the leg. She decided to stay with John.

Part VI involved a woman, going by the name Julie, who had been "hidden" by a woman called a "guide". She had been given a new identity and moved to Seattle to get away from a potentially fatal relationship. That was back in Tennessee. This led to the woman's guide, Dani, discovering that the brothers of the husband that Julie had killed, were running meth labs out of the woods of the land that Julie and her husband had owned. They were worried about losing the land and the labs. This ended up with the labs being pointed out to the FBI, and then one of the brothers and one of their dealers coming to Seattle to get revenge on John and the FBI agent in charge of the case back in Tennessee.

Part VII involved John and the others getting involved with a Romanian gang out of Chicago. It turned out to be more than that, including Maggie and others getting shot. A party at the Bradford's was interrupted by gunmen shooting randomly into the gathering. Finally, in the end, law enforcement got the bad guys and the good guys got someone who turned evidence. Maggie was recovering quickly, and as summer arrived, John was hoping for good weather and a calmer life.

In Part VIII, John got involved in a kidnapping that turned into an international trafficking ring, and included a place where people could abuse young women. It was led by a billionaire, Lucas Berenson. John lost his wife, Maggie, when Lucas sent people to kill John, Maggie, and all the members of the detective agency John worked for. They tracked down Berenson in Canada and he was captured. Yvonne went to work legally and is living with John.

In Part IX, John and his partners are asked to protect a woman that Dani had hid, who had run away from one of Berenson's operations in Miami. Two bad FBI agents attempted to intercept them, but Deputy Director Smothers was ready. The two were captured, the woman returned to her former life, and John and friends got information that Berenson escaped to St. Martin. They followed him there, with assistance, and then to Guadeloupe to get the authorities to recapture him.

Recurring Characters

LTC (Retired) John Jackson, 5'11", 180, 56 years old.

Marie Jackson, John's dead wife, 5'8", 140, 44 years old, died 15 Jan 2012

Angelica Jackson (Angel), John and Marie's daughter, 5'5", 125, 29 years old.

Mary Bradford, bartender, 5'5", 120, 44 years old.

Margaret (Maggie) Bradford, Mary's sister, 5'6", 115, 45 years old.

Madeleine (Maddie) Bradford, Maggie's daughter, 16 years old.

Samantha (Sam) Walker, 5'6", 130 pounds, 49 years old, John's former neighbor.

Joyce Walker, Sam's daughter, 5'4", 120 pounds, 29 years old, and now an exotic dancer using the name Lily

Marion Walker, Sam's daughter, 5'4", 115 pounds, 27 years old.

SFC (Retired) Craig Smithson, 6', 190, 56 years old, NCO from John's Army unit.

Captain Jeff Smithson, 5'11', 185, 54 years old, SFC Smithson's brother and a captain in the Seattle Police Department.

Luke Cole, 5'10", 180, detective in the Seattle Police Department.

Maria Cole, 5'6", 135, Luke's wife.

Jeanne (aka Jasmine) Welch, 5'5", 110, 31 years old, exotic dancer.

Olivia, 5'4", 120 pounds, 31 years old, called Livy, exotic dancer.

Max Meridian (real name Harold Johnson), Mark's lead kidnapper and enforcer. Now changed his name to Bob Thomas and is married to Susan. They own and operate a bar in Key West.

Susan Thomas, Bob's new wife.

George Watson, a new member of the detective agency.

Vanessa Williams, 5'6", 130, detective in the Seattle Police Department.

Yvonne, 5'2", 105, illegal hacker who helped find the human trafficker who had funded the anarchists in Seattle.

Danielle (Dani) Parker, 5'8", 120, known as a "guide". She takes cases where an individual is in mortal danger and "hides" them by giving them new identities and teaching them how to lay low.

Benjamin Smothers, Deputy Director of the FBI.

Allison June, 5'7", FBI agent in Seattle.

---------------- Previously, Wednesday, Sep 27, 2023, Tullahoma, TN -----------

Finally, about 7pm, Bob called. "Hey. Online now. Pretty good WIFI here at the Chanticleer Inn B&B on the mountain."

"That's great. I was there with my first wife and daughter many moons ago."

"Yeah, it's fun." There was a pause. "Okay, here's something. One job was posted about two weeks ago for someone near Huntsville, Alabama. Additional information would have been provided separately. I can see that someone with the username of StrikesFast took the job. It paid... let's see... $30,000. That's about all I can tell you."

"Listen, how well is that website monitored for people logging in?"

"It's not. If you know where it is and have a userid and password you can get in. But they purposefully don't track anything or anyone. No logs or anything. In another week, this job will be removed and never seen again. They don't want any kind of trail. Oh, wait!"

"Yes?"

"A new job just popped up. It's for a woman and two men in Meridianville, Alabama. There's a little information and a picture of the three. It's you and two others. Someone wants you dead and is willing to pay $100K for it."

---------------- Thursday, Sep 28, 2023, Meridianville, AL -----------

John and George had discussed who might want them dead after learning about the contract from Bob. This morning, John called Robertson and told him about it. Robertson wanted his source, but John demurred and told him it was a confidential informant. Robertson wasn't happy, but agreed to put some surveillance on Carla Rivera. He didn't say anything about protecting John and George.

John continued to think about it. What reason would anyone have to put out a contract on the three of them? Maybe there's something that Carla knows that she is unaware of. Or maybe Enrique put something away and she knows where he hides or stores things, but isn't aware of the importance. She certainly didn't seem like someone who would hide something related to her husband's death. And her daughters could be collateral damage, which she wouldn't want.

But John and George? Why put out a contract on the them? They knew nothing about what was going on, although they found the stripper informant. But if it was related to her, then why put out a contract on the three of them? John was confused.

John called Yvonne and she answered immediately, "Be there shortly."

John was puzzled. "What do you mean?"

"I just arrived and got in my rental car. I'll be at the hotel in about 30 minutes."

"Why did you come down here? Aren't you supposed to be working?"

"I can do that from anywhere that I get a decent signal. I checked, and your hotel lets you hook up via ethernet for $15 per day. If I need any classified support, I can get on a SIPR machine at Redstone Arsenal."

John grinned. "Okay. I'll wait here."

"Also, I got the pictures of the three people under contract. George is not one. It's Carla, you, and Craig. I called Craig and passed along the information. He is taking steps to stay safe in Seattle."

"Okay, good. See you soon."

John sat on the small settee of the suite he was in. He had plenty of cash stashed from a couple of previous cases, so he wanted to be comfortable. Now, he was glad he got the suite, with Yvonne coming it would be nice to have room. Especially since she came, usually, with two laptops and a large suitcase. He turned on the TV and watched the local news.

Yvonne arrived about 45 minutes later. She called and got his room number and came up.

When John let her in, she pulled her large suitcase over to the side, put down a computer bag, and surprised him by leaping into his arms. He caught her, grinned, and kissed her. "I'm glad to see you, too."

When John put her down, Yvonne looked over at the bed. She headed that way and started taking off her clothes. "First things first. I've really missed you and I need a quick bout of sex or I can't think straight."

John chuckled and started undressing. He looked at the clock. "We have to meet George downstairs for lunch in an hour."

Yvonne, now naked, jumped onto the bed. "Oh, this won't take that long." John admired how her skinny frame from when he first met her, had filled out. She was still thin, but had a great ass and tits.

And it didn't take long. John lay on top of Yvonne and kissed her. She put her legs around John as they kissed, waiting for him to get hard. It didn't take long. Yvonne was a beautiful woman, a great kisser, and John was in love with her.

John slowly worked his way down her body, past her nice tits with big rosy nipples, to her pussy, where he proceeded to lick her to two quick orgasms. Yep, Yvonne was definitely horny.

John then crawled up over her, Yvonne seated his cock into her opening and they fucked until they both came.

John rolled over and looked at the clock. He turned his head toward Yvonne and said jokingly. "Well, that took 20 minutes. What shall we do with the rest of the time we have before we go to lunch?"

Yvonne rolled against John putting one arm and leg over him. "I'm going to bask in this feeling of having great sex that sated my horniness. I might even nap."

"Not now. We have work to do, so get dressed." He gave her a playful smack on the ass.

Yvonne sighed. "A few more smacks like that and I might be ready for another round."

John stood and looked down at her with a smile. "You forget you're working with someone in his mid-fifties."

Yvonne got a salacious grin. "Yeah, but I know how to wake your libido."

John laughed. "Yes, you do." He leaned over and kissed her quickly. "But, for now, we need to get dressed and meet George. We need to go over how we stay safe and protect Carla."

Yvonne slowly rolled to a sitting position and stood up. "Slavedriver," she said with a childlike pout.

They got ready and met George for lunch. They went over what might be going on, but could come up with no reason John and Craig were on the kill list other than spite. Of course, that's always possible. Some criminals are not known for logical thinking. They tried to take precautions as they moved around and studied everyone around them. John and George were armed.

After lunch, they headed over to the FBI office to meet with Robertson. The meeting didn't go well.

Robertson, Nicholson, and a couple of others, who were rudely not introduced, met with them in a conference room. It had the same décor as the last one they were in with pictures of the chain of command and some tired looking furniture.

Robertson started. "We have two men watching Mrs. Rivera at this time. I have a lot of cases going on right now, so I don't know how long we can continue this."

John took a deep breath. "Well, have you gotten anything out of the guy who was selling the secrets?"

"No. He completely clammed up and asked for his lawyer. His lawyer is some high-priced guy from Nashville. We've gotten nothing from him."

"Who's the lawyer and who's paying him?"

"Name's Clinton Magnuson. Real expensive, very accomplished. No idea who's paying him."

"Have you tried finding out?"

"Can't right now."

"Wait. This is a national security case and you can't get permission to find out how some high-priced lawyer can be afforded by a fairly low paid government civilian?"

"No."

"Well, I can find out. I'll get the information and pass it along." John said it matter-of-factly, not trying to raise anyone's hackles. But it did.

"You can't do that. It's illegal." Robertson was raising his voice.

John gave Robertson a scathing look. "Did I say I was going to do anything illegal to get it? It's probably not that hard to find out. I'll let you know."

"No, I can't let you do that. Stay away from this case or I'll arrest you for obstruction."

John was getting pissed at Robertson now. "I'm sorry, but are you forgetting that someone put a contract out on me and Craig as well? We are going to do everything we can to protect ourselves."

"How do I know that other than you said so."

John was getting a very rankled now. He stood up. "Well, I can see that this meeting is over. My friends and I will do what we have to do to stay safe. You guys plod along and see if something important falls in your lap, but I doubt it."

Robertson stood quickly, his chair falling backwards onto the floor, and raised his voice some more. "I'm serious. I'll arrest you."

"As soon as you can prove I've obstructed anything, you go ahead. Until then, just keep Carla safe and we'll worry about ourselves."

Robertson was breathing heavy now. "And I only have your word that Carla needs to be protected. I can't protect her forever."

John was livid now. He walked over and stood directly in front of Robertson, no more than a couple of feet from him. "If you want to keep your job, you'll do your job and protect her. If I find out that something happens to her because you dropped her protection, you'll never be rid of me. I'll make it my life's work to ruin you."

Robertson stared directly back. "Don't threaten me. I can arrest you right now for that."

Suddenly, Nicholson was moving. He faced John and worked his way in between the two, holding his hands up. He said, very calmly. "John, take it easy. I think it's best if you leave right now and we'll work on this case. Just go."

John stared over Nicholson's shoulder at Robertson for a few more seconds and then turned on his heel and headed out. George and Yvonne were right behind him.

When they were gone, Nicholson turned to Robertson. "What's the matter with you? I know this is a difficult case, but we do have to do our jobs, and one of them is protecting Carla."

Robertson rubbed his hand over his short brush cut. "I know, I know. He just rubs me the wrong way."

Nicholson grinned. "And vice-versa. But remember it's our job to protect people like that. No matter what you think, we protect Carla."

John, George, and Yvonne went back to the hotel. They had some more research to do.

Yvonne started checking out the guy, Clinton Magnuson, who was representing the government worker selling secrets. She was able to find out some information, but not much. She then called Deputy Director Smothers and asked him to put someone on it. She had to explain about Robertson and Smothers was definitely pissed. She asked him not to call Robertson and make things worse; just to get their experts on it to find out the information they needed about the government worker and who was paying Magnuson.

While Yvonne was on the phone, John was reviewing the area surrounding the Rivera residence on a map and satellite photos. It would give him an idea of where to check it out on the ground to find the access points. Then they could plan some kind of defense if the FBI deserted her.

Smothers called Yvonne back with the information on the government worker, and Yvonne started using the accounts she had at the same banks where she had created backdoor entries to see if she could find any payments to the government worker, John Chen. While the government was looking, so was she.

John Chen was of Chinese descent, but the family had been in the U. S. for three generations. Was he working for the Chinese? Being blackmailed? Did he have too much debt or something that was being used against him?

She couldn't get into all his accounts, but she had set up back doors at the banks where she had set up personal accounts for herself. She found one strange entry for a deposit of $10,000, but that was it. There had to be more. The transfer came in from a small company in Belize. She found that it appeared to be from an LLC owned by a Chen Li. Hmm. That, in itself, was suspicious for a government worker.

Yvonne put all the information she found and forwarded it to Deputy Director Smothers in an email, and then sent him a text alerting him to it.

By then, it was 6pm, and John, George, and Yvonne all gathered for a quick meal. They did so carefully, in the hotel restaurant. They discussed some things there, and then the more sensitive items when they went back to John's suite. They were not sure where this was going, or why, but would continue to dig into it.

---------------- Washington, D. C. -----------

Smothers waited for his contact, Jake Rivers, over in the CIA to come on the line. It was a secure telephone call and he had requested Jake to call him at 6pm.

"Ben, how are you?" Jake came onto the line.

Ben got right to the point. "Not good, Jake. I have some disconcerting information and I need your assistance on it."

"Oh." Jake paused. "Well, what's the deal?"

"Jake, I have an operation going on in Alabama, near Huntsville, where a government civilian was stealing secrets from the Missile Defense Agency and selling it to a foreign entity. My folks found out this morning that you guys have put a Chen Li up, in exchange for him providing information on a human trafficking ring. This guy, however, is somehow behind the blackmail and purchase of these secrets."

"What? Are you sure? This guy, who is from Singapore, has provided us great information on some human trafficking rings and we've been keeping him under wraps."

"Evidently, a couple of analysts uncovered that he was paying this government civilian, and that he has been providing you plenty of information on human trafficking -- by his competitors. Some of that information you have passed on where it dealt with stateside rings, but he is basically cleaning up the competition."

"Okay, send the information and I'll get back to you on how this could be possible."

"Roger. We have a very short time to get this done, as he has now killed the informant we had reporting on the traitor, and put out contracts on three other people."

"Damn it! I'll get back to you shortly."

---------------- Friday, Sep 29, 2023, Meridianville, AL -----------

The next morning, it was 6:30am when John's phone rang. He was partially awake already, so he quickly grabbed it.

"Yeah?"

"Smothers here. Be at the FBI office at 9am for a meeting. I'm stuck in D. C. for now, but I've set up a secure telecon with the FBI office there. We have some things to discuss."

"Roger. Anything you can say now?"

"Only this: watch your back." He hung up.

John stared at his cell for a moment and then put it down. He turned to see if Yvonne was awake, and she was.

"What was that about?" she asked.

"Smothers set up a telecon at the FBI office for 9am. Sounded urgent. Told us to watch our backs."

"Doesn't sound good."

"No, it doesn't."

Since they were awake, Yvonne attacked John again. She just climbed on top, started making out with him, then inserted his cock into her, and rode him until they both came.

When it was over, John grinned at her. "You know I'm going to have to get another physical to make sure that I can handle all this hard work you require of me."

Yvonne slapped him good-naturedly on the shoulder. "You can still outwork most of the guys I know over 20, so I don't think it will be a problem."

"We'll see."

---------------- Washington, D. C. -----------

Smothers received his 8am call from Jake Rivers.

"Ben, we found out that Chen Li has had two burners that he got passed from someone to conduct the business that you are describing. Not sure who his accomplices are, but they've got to be close. We are looking for how this is possible. He took over the business when his uncle and cousin were killed in Singapore several years ago. They all went by Lee, L-E-E, when conducting business with westerners."

"Fuck!" Ben's mind was whirring with all the things he was thinking about. "I worked on that case with a private investigator who discovered a side of the ring in Seattle. He's retired Army, and was in Alabama to attend the funeral of our informant, who he served with. This PI is one of the individuals who has had a contract issued on him."

"Jesus, Mary, and Joseph! This is crazy. What a coincidence. Okay, we are taking Li off the board. He's being secured and isolated already. Let me know if you need anything else."

"Roger. I have a telecon in a couple of minutes, so give me any updates you can once you investigate his phones and any other actions."

"Will do. Later."

Deputy Director Smothers sent word to his assistant to get in touch with Agent Brad Washington and Angelica, John's daughter, to ensure they were aware of what was happening and were sent somewhere safe, if they wanted.

---------------- Meridianville, AL -----------

John, George, and Yvonne, who were being careful leaving and driving from the hotel, arrived at the FBI office at 8:45am and were escorted to the conference room where the secure teleconference was going to be.

Robertson and Nicholson were there from that office, and Whitson and Wallings from the one in Tullahoma. The conference room was air-conditioned, but it didn't account for the chill between the people in the room.

Finally, at about 9:10, Smothers came on the screen.

"Sorry about the delay, but things have gotten very convoluted. I wanted all of you there to ensure you were clear about my instructions.

"First of all, I wanted to tell everyone that you'd better play nicely together. I will not tolerate any animosity amongst anyone to affect this investigation. We have to get this done, and it's a real mess.

"John. I wanted to tell you that the CIA has a man named Chen Li, spelled L-I, who they grabbed overseas and who was supposedly assisting them with cleaning up some human trafficking rings while being held and asking for some leniency for his own crimes. Unfortunately, this man had managed to secure burners, which he used to conduct some illegal business. This included his trafficking ring, since the ones he was providing to the CIA were his competitors, and his purchasing of government secrets, which is how he is included in this operation. I hate to tell you John, but it was probably just a coincidence that he saw video of you and your friends visiting our informant's residence, who he had killed. He put out a hit on you guys because the Lees you helped us roll up several years ago were his uncle and cousin."

John closed his eyes and groaned. "Jesus."

Smothers continued. "Exactly. Pure circumstance. I guess he had decided it wasn't worth it immediately after the Lees were eliminated, but this looked like a happy circumstance to him. Well, anyway, he's been isolated now. We are going to take custody of him and the CIA will be out of it. We are investigating how he got the phones, but the supposition is that it was in a food delivery. As far as the contract on you, Craig, and Carla, I don't suppose there's much we can do about it except try to catch whoever accepted it. We have you, Yvonne, and a couple of others trying to find out more, but the dark web is the dark web for a reason."

John nodded and then spoke. "Thanks, Ben. I'll work with the guys here to make sure that Carla is protected and that they help me watch my back. I'm sure they'll provide any updates as we find anything out about the contract killer or his plans."

"Yes, I'm sure they will. Robertson, get your plans together to protect Carla 24/7 until we can figure this out and provide any assistance John needs for his guys. Whitson, send a couple of your agents to Robertson to assist with the manpower. Oh, and one other thing, John. I sent a note to Agent Washington and your daughter about this so that they can take any precautions necessary."

They both answered with "Roger", and then Ben disappeared from the screen.

Whitson spoke before anyone else. "I'll send Agent Wallings," he pointed toward her, "and another guy here immediately after I get back."

Robertson nodded. "Okay. Nicholson will head up the coverage of Carla. Wallings, I'll put you in charge of coordinating whatever John, George, and Yvonne need. We'll meet again at 1300 to go over the plans."

John was glad Robertson was all business now. "Sounds good. Do you need me here for that?"

"No, we'll go over the plans with the agents."

Wallings then spoke, a wry grin on her face. "Does that mean that your daughter married an agent?"

John grinned and chuckled. "There's no accounting for taste."

Everyone got a kick out of that and left the meeting.

John and Yvonne went back to the hotel, circuitously.

"What do you think?" John asked Yvonne.

"We've been here for too many days," she said, pointing around the room, indicating the hotel. "The contractor has to know where we are. And we need some help. The FBI is not going to watch us for too long. They need to concentrate on Carla and find out why the guy wants her dead. There has to be something that Enrique left that he is worried about. I know the FBI knows that, but maybe they haven't made it clear to Carla. She needs to know that there is something that Enrique left behind that may be incriminating to someone. We know who the guy was who was stealing the secrets, and we know that Chen Li was the guy buying it, but who else could be involved?"

John thought for a few seconds. "It has to be someone with a lot to lose. Otherwise, they'd just let it go and whatever it is may have never been found. Just by all these actions it makes all of us certain that there's something there. Even if it was meant to be sold by Li overseas to one of our enemies, there has to be something dangerous for someone important here."

"Yeah, not smart, tipping their hand like that. Okay, I'll keep poking around and see what I can find. I have all my internet and dark web tools with me. I don't think I'll need any classified network access."

"Right. Now, about our location. I think we should find another location and move there early in the morning so that we can check for anyone following us. We'll use another credit card if we have to, since I have a couple with some false names. If we can use cash, that's better. We'll leave your rental here and check mine for any trackers. I'll get in touch with Wallings."

"Sounds good. I'll do a little work. Then, before we pack up, I need another installment of sex."

John grinned. "What? Again? You're so demanding! What a slut!"

Yvonne stuck her tongue out at John. "You love it."

"Abso-fucking-lutely."

---------------- Saturday, Sep 30, 2023, Meridianville, AL -----------

After coordinating with Agent Wallings, John and Yvonne had worked out a movement method with, hopefully, a chance to spot the assassin. They would pack up, check out, and walk down to John's car. It had been swept by the FBI yesterday evening and a camera was placed to watch it all night. They would then use it to do the move to a new hotel. There would be agents watching everything.

The plan was for John and Yvonne to get in his rental and drive to this hotel and get out, but not really check in. They had FBI surveillance watching for anyone following them, and anyone checking them out at that first hotel. They would wait for some sign that the FBI either spotted a tail, or not. If they did, they would wait for that guy to be taken down. If not, then they would go back to John's car and move to a second hotel to check in. The second hotel had agreed to use cash and keep it quiet after a visit by the FBI.

John and Yvonne got in his rental and took off. It was only a five-mile drive and they took their time and strictly followed the speed limit, hoping the assassin would reveal himself. They got to the hotel and they were told that nobody was spotted. They puttered around in the gift shop for a few minutes until they were told things were clear.

Just as they were about to exit to John's car, John's phone went off with a particular ring he had set up. It was Wallings. "Don't come out and don't move. Stay there for a while. We just got word that one of our rooftop spotters noticed a drone that seemed to come into the area of that hotel just as you did and hovered over the hotel for a few minutes. We are trying to track it down and determine where it came from. It may or may not be the assassin, but we need to be sure. Just chill there."

"Got it," John responded. "We will eat something here in the hotel bar and restaurant. I'll get a decently protected and remote table and you can send a couple of guys in to keep an eye out, too."

"Roger. Let's do it." Wallings hung up.

John relayed the information to Yvonne, so they went into the restaurant and found a table in a corner that had excellent sight lines and nothing at their back. Of course, it also meant it would be hard to get out of there, if necessary. In this place, the kitchen door was in the back, but on the other side of the room. But that was how John always did it. Back to the wall and nobody behind him.

John and Yvonne sat and ordered some food. There were only a few people in the hotel restaurant, so their service was fast. They were almost finished eating when Wallings entered.

She came and sat at their table. "We were able to get our drone tracking equipment here eventually, but by then the individual had left the area, with the drone. Based on the way it was flown, and how the piloting individual left, we have to assume it was to track you. Whoever this person was, they appeared to follow you two to this hotel, then packed up and left. I can't say what his plan might be for getting to you. He didn't show himself at any time during the drive as a sniper. Is it right to think that he believes you are staying here? I don't know. But I think we definitely need for you two to move along. Then, I'll put a couple of agents into the room you reserved and the connecting room. We'll see if the guy makes a move."

John thought about it. "I agree. We'll move along. We have a fake reservation at the second hotel and are going to use cash, as you know. We just need to get out of here under cover. Unless, of course, you have another idea."

Wallings looked at them. "Not right now. I don't feel it's safe enough here or in this area to set up some sort of perimeter and catch the guy trying to get to you. There are too many ways that he could get through. So, yes, go to the next place, but not in your car." Wallings stood and said, "Remember, we will continue to have loose coverage on you, but not enough to hopefully give away your location. We'll have an SUV outside the service entrance at 8pm and you will jump into the back for the ride to the new hotel. It will be dark and the light over that door will not be working. See you then."

John and Yvonne went up to the room they had reserved in this hotel and napped for a little while. At about 6pm, they watched some local news. They were both getting antsy. They knew the FBI was watching everything, but they were still concerned that one guy could find a way through.

"Why don't we get something to eat before we leave. We may not be able to get something at the new place without having a credit card on file. I don't think they deliver room service without one."

"Good idea." Yvonne got up and got dressed. She had napped in just a t-shirt and panties. She saw John watching her. "See anything you like?" she asked with a grin.

"Absolutely," replied John. "But I think I'll wait until we get to the new hotel for any hanky-panky."

"Hanky-panky? Are you from the 60s?"

John laughed. "Almost. Just trying to inject some humor into the conversation."

"Well, you did that -- poorly."

They finished dressing and went down to the restaurant. There were many more people there now, and John and Yvonne got a table near the hallway to the restrooms. This also led to another kitchen entrance and the back exit. They ordered something decent for them and had a slow leisurely dinner.

John was quietly surveilling the patrons in the restaurant as they ate, and so nothing untoward appeared to be happening. They were still wary of everything since they hadn't left the hotel where they had a reservation with their name on it. But nothing appeared, and so they finished their dinner in plenty of time before they had to leave. They continued to sit and wait.

When 8pm came, they quietly left the table, went toward the restrooms, and then immediately past them, continued down the hallway past the kitchen to the service entrance. They opened the door and the SUV was backed up to the exit just enough to allow the back hatch door open. One FBI agent stood there and helped them dive into the back. They curled up together on the floor, the agent threw a blanket over them, and slammed the hatch door. The SUV took off.

It was about 15 minutes to the other hotel, and arrangements had been made for them to sneak in the back similarly to their recent escape. The agent in the back seat slipped them their room card. They went in, up the service elevator, and were in their room in just a few seconds. They waited and barricaded the door so that they could relax a little.

They were awake for several hours after that, the adrenalin taking time to wear off. John received a call on a new burner that he had been given by Wallings that all looked good.

Finally, when it got to midnight, they both fell asleep.

---------------- Sunday, Oct 1, 2023, Meridianville, AL -----------

StrikesFast, the assassin, was now using identification that showed him to be Gregory Findlay. He had had several names over the years, but he had some excellent IDs as Findlay. He was looking at the front of the hotel where John and Yvonne were supposed to be. The guy named George had not been seen since he arrived two days ago to Alabama. But he wasn't on the kill list, so he was not concerned about that.

Greg had surveilled the Rivera residence and was able to find the places where the FBI agents were posted. Mrs. Rivera was the primary target and, as such, was where he concentrated his surveillance. As the primary target, he was supposed to kill her first. All the others were secondary to getting her. He left there to check on John Jackson, but found that they left the hotel the second day, and were not to be seen anywhere. Well, he'd come back to that. He knew John's home address in Seattle and he had to take care of Mrs. Rivera.

He cursed that he had had a problem getting here, and that this had slowed his arrival. He was in Chicago when he took the job, and left Chicago late at night to get here in the morning. However, he was just south of Bowling Green on I-65 when he had a blowout at highway speeds. He managed to control the car, but he was in the middle of nowhere at 4am with a shredded tire and a wheel that got damaged. He changed the tire, but the impact and force of slowing down had done something to the brakes. He had to call for a tow. That took four hours, and then the place where he was taken said that something called a tie rod had been damaged and it would take a while to find one. It wasn't until Friday that they fixed his Honda.

He had arrived in Meridianville on Saturday to start his surveillance.

Greg was able to find a vantage point from which he could watch the two FBI teams. It was an Airbnb that he had found unrented. Not sure how much use it got in this area or neighborhood, but he didn't care. He knew that he had it now, and it was only one block over and a little down from the Rivera residence. He had gotten the plans for the Rivera house and knew the layout. But he didn't know how he was going to get in yet. He would have to plan something spectacular. Greg smiled. He was known for that, so he just had to put his analytical mind to work and figure it out.

His goal was to be able to distract the FBI teams enough to get in and out. He pondered this and kept thinking about it for a couple of hours. The places where they were holed up had a pretty good vantage point of the Rivera residence from the second story of those local houses. They probably had someone inside, too. He had seen the shift changes for the two outside teams, but nothing inside the house, except for Mrs. Rivera. He had seen her pass by a sliding glass door that had a gauzy curtain. It was double-paned and would be very difficult to shoot through, so he had to get very close or inside.

Greg thought over all the options. There was only one he could come up with. He had to execute some sort of attack on the two teams simultaneously and be ready to infiltrate the Rivera residence immediately. It wouldn't take them long to contact each other and realize it was a diversion. But it would give him a couple of minutes to do the job. That should be all that he needed.

Greg prepared his two charges. He had brought enough of his equipment with him in several bags to create some small charges that could be set off by remotes. He was going to place them in one of the cars the FBI was using or maybe someone else's car, that was on the opposite side of where the teams were facing the Rivera residence. That should pull their attention away long enough for him to get inside.

It was now 4pm. He had everything ready to go. He had two charges with remotes, his one flash bang grenade, and a Glock.40 with plenty of ammunition. His plan was to set off the two charges simultaneously, then rush to the back of the house, toss the flash bang through the doggy door, and do a forced entry. If the doggy door had the safety panel inserted, he would force entry and then toss the flash bang in. He had to get this done tonight. Time was a wasting, and he was on the clock to fulfill the mission.

During their Saturday in the hotel, John and Yvonne did nothing but sit there, going over scenarios, searching for clues on the internet, and ordering food that was secured by a credit card belonging to the FBI travel services.

---------------- Monday, Oct 2, 2023, Meridianville, AL -----------

At 2am, Greg slipped quietly out of the house he was staying in and made his way to the location of the first FBI vehicle. He placed the charge behind the passenger rear tire and turned on the receiver. He walked down several blocks away from the Rivera home before turning and going about 6 blocks over to make his way back to the other FBI team. This team was the one overlooking the back of the house. This was Greg's entry point. He set the second charge and turned on the receiver. He then made his way to the end of the block and into the alley and crawled along the back fence that was nearer the FBI team to stay out of sight. He got into position just behind the six-foot wooden fence and looked around. No sign of anyone. He waited for five minutes to make sure. Nothing.

At 2:45, Greg got his weapon out and chambered a round. He got into a squat to make his run and jump over the Rivera fence. He took out the switch that would blow both charges. He took a deep breath -- and pushed the button.

Simultaneous explosions went off to either side of Greg. The one for the guys behind him, was close, but the other sounded far away. He couldn't wait to see what happened. He knew that everyone in the neighborhood would be up and about quickly. He took off. He went over the Rivera fence in a second and was at the back door in about six seconds. He looked back up at where the FBI watch team was and only saw darkness. He felt the doggy door to see if it was open. It was. It was a small one, for a small dog, so they probably thought it was too small for anyone to use.

Greg pulled out the flash bang, pulled the pin, and tossed it into the room with some force so that it went partially past the kitchen island that faced the open floor plan of the living room. He stood there and as soon as he heard it go off; he kicked in the door.

Greg dove into the room to the right, where he knew the living room was. No activity. He then low crawled along the living room floor toward where the flash bang had gone off to look down the hallway that led to the bedrooms. There was no sign of anyone. How could that be? Surely someone was here, although maybe they were holed up in one of the bedrooms.

Greg got to the hallway and still saw no signs of anyone. He looked at his watch. It had been three minutes since the explosion. He had to get out within another three. He started to slowly make his way down the hallway when he saw it. There was a mannikin that had been knocked down in the open area. It had been set up on a track and he could see that it was meant to look like Mrs. Rivera was moving along in front of the windows. Fuck! She wasn't even here.

Greg got up and ran toward the door. He took a quick glance, saw no one for the moment, and bolted out the door to the fence. He got over the fence and down the alleyway quickly, trying to keep mostly hidden, but prioritizing speed over concealment.

Greg got to the end of the alley and slowed to a walk. There were signs of life in a lot of the houses. People were awakened by the explosions and lights were coming on. He walked as quickly as possible to his rental.

Once Greg got inside, he took his boots off and put them outside the back door, between some planters. He rushed upstairs, stripped, bagged his clothes and shoved them under the bed, and took a shower. His shower was very short, but he wanted to wash off any residue from the attack.

Greg put on a pair of pajama bottoms and a robe and went downstairs. He opened his front door and walked outside, acting as curious as the neighbors. It had been about 20 minutes now and people were congregating in small groups and discussing what might have happened. Greg didn't join any group since he was not a known neighbor, just checked out the area, then went back inside. He sat in the easy chair, turned on the TV, and pretended to be watching a movie.

The FBI personnel were scrambling. The two teams watching the house reacted immediately to the explosion of their cars. They called the police and fire departments and one member checked out the area while one member from each team continued their overwatch. Team A called Wallings.

Wallings was sleeping lightly, although things were dragging out and she was wearing down while waiting for something to happen. She answered her phone almost immediately. "Yes?"

"We had our cars bombed."

Wallings took a second to think about that. "Both teams, or just yours?"

"Both of us."

"Diversion! Both teams converge on the house immediately. I'll get things moving here."

"We are continuing to watch and will send one member each to the house."

The team who had called notified the other and one member from each team approached the house. They were too late and found the back door broken open, remnants of the flash bang, and nothing else. They looked at each other and knew they had been had.

One guy from Team A had thought he glimpsed someone heading down the alley, but in the dark and with everything going on, he couldn't be sure. Team A called Wallings again.

"He's gone, ma'am. He broke in, looked for Mrs. Rivera, and left when he realized the house was empty. I might have seen someone heading down the alley, but it was just a quick shadow and we didn't react to it at the time."

"Any sign of a vehicle leaving?"

"Nothing. One member of each team continued to watch while we responded. We kept a lookout for vehicle movement, and there was none. Nothing moved within a couple of blocks, and he couldn't have gotten far in the short amount of time it took us to realize what was going on. Police and fire are responding."

"Damn it! Okay, he can't have gotten far. I'll put a call in to the local judge to ask about the ability to do an exigent search of the surrounding cars and houses. We need to find this bastard."

Wallings hung up and immediately called for more FBI agents. She also called the ones who were putting up Mrs. Rivera. She finally called John and Yvonne. They were immediately on the way. She tried to dissuade them, but they ignored her.

By the time Wallings reached the Rivera house, there were police and FBI everywhere. They had set up a 6-block cordon to try to keep the killer in the box. She spoke to the one guy who thought he saw something and she took him along into the alley as they traced the route where he thought he saw someone moving fast.

John and Yvonne arrived about 10 minutes after Wallings. They were identified and let through. They managed to find Wallings a few minutes later, and she was organizing a house-to-house search. She said the judge gave them the power to request to look through the house, but not go too far. They could just check it out for anyone or anything suspicious. At that point, they would have to decide if it was enough to do a more detailed search.

Two-person teams then headed out on specific routes to cover the entire cordoned area. John joined one of the teams and Yvonne stayed with Wallings in the central location.

John was partnered with someone named Jason Stanton. They were making their way through the houses on their route when they got a radio call to join a team at a house on the next block. They hustled over there and the agents there had a guy on the ground in cuffs.

Wallings was arriving there just as John was. "What have you got?"

The one guy pointed toward the house. "This is an Airbnb. This guy said he was here and asleep when everything went off. When we checked inside, we found what he told us to be a lie. He had recently taken a shower. That led us to looking around more and we found a bag of clothes under the bed. They were dirty and smelled like powder, maybe from a grenade. Then, a pair of wet and muddy boots were found on the back patio, shoved between two planters. The footsteps leading up onto the deck were fresh. We then put him on the ground until you got here."

Wallings looked at the man. He looked too damn calm. "Okay, do a more thorough search of the house and his car. See what else we have."

They searched the house and found his stash of equipment that included his bomb-making materials and weapons. They found everything they needed to nail him.

John and Yvonne went back to the hotel and the FBI continued to collect evidence on the hitman they knew as StrikesFast.

---------------- Tuesday, Oct 3, 2023, Meridianville, AL -----------

John had Yvonne check, using Bob's credentials, the hitman site on the Dark Web. She found that there was nothing new on there yet, so they relaxed a little. They called Wallings, who was still working to put together everything for their case. She was much more relaxed now, and even thanked them for their help.

John and Yvonne made reservations to head home, and relaxed around the bar a little. They had a couple of drinks and were so tired, they ended up back in the room around 3pm for an afternoon nap. Not even the thought of sex could keep them awake.

---------------- Wednesday, Oct 4, 2023, Meridianville, AL -----------

John and Yvonne got to the airport early and were getting a little bite to eat when John's phone rang. He looked at the number, it was the FBI Deputy Director Ben Smothers.

"Hey, Director, how's it hanging?"

"Not well. Not at all."

"Uh-oh. What's up, and what does it have to do with me?"

"Well, we had a major problem with Chin Li." John sat up straight as Smothers continued. "We had him stashed in a supposedly secure location. The location was hit last night with about 12 armed men. They killed two of my agents and wounded another. My guys killed four of them, but they still got Li out of there. Here's the kicker. The guys my agents killed? We found that they are tied to the Sinaloa cartel. So, that means that we have verified the connection between the drugs that Chin Li is bringing out of Asia to one of the worst cartels. And, if they decide to come after you, they will come with overwhelming firepower."

"Well, shit."

"Yeah, my thoughts exactly. We don't know that the cartel is going to come after you for Li, or that Li will try to take you out again. But just in case, watch your back. I've contacted my folks in Seattle so that you will have some help initially, but I don't think we can do it for long."

"Okay, thanks."

"Well, I'll call later with more details."

"Roger. Later." John hung up the phone.

Yvonne looked at him questioningly. "Well?"

John relayed the news and Yvonne closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Their departure was being called, so they got up and marched toward the gangway like they were heading for a funeral.