Alpha dogs, p.21
Alpha Dogs, page 21
part #6 of Witness Protection Series
Kirk and Monroe appeared in the entrance with their assault rifles aimed. Kirk immediately covered the man beneath the dog. Darth seemed to know he’d been relieved from holding the prisoner and jumped off the man. The man stared up the barrel of Kirk’s weapon then noted the big man holding it with his finger on the trigger.
“Please don’t shoot me,” the man announced.
“Who the hell are you?” Kirk demanded. “What’s going on here?”
“I’m Tucker Simpson,” he announced nervously. “I don’t know what’s going on here. I had nothing to do with any of this.”
Tucker Simpson was possibly in his late twenties with a few days’ worth of stubble on his face. Although he acted and dressed like the average, twenty-something male traveler, he had attempted to brain Mac with an oversized wrench.
“Any of what?” Monroe demanded while cautiously maneuvering through the hangar, noting the makeshift beds and the recently lived in look.
Mac searched the opposite end, again looking as if she were taking a walk through the park. Holden, Bogart, and Gil entered last. Gil took a lookout position by the entrance while Holden searched the hangar for signs of his wife.
“Whatever happened to those onboard the plane,” Tucker explained in a trembling voice.
Holden suddenly spun toward the man on the ground. “After what happened to the people on the plane?” he suddenly demanded.
Tucker nervously eyed Holden from several feet away. “The plane was attacked, and nearly everyone onboard was killed,” he replied.
The entire team suddenly stopped and cast looks at the man on the ground with his hands in the air. Holden lunged at him. Kirk immediately backed off allowing Holden to snatch the man by his shirt and practically pull him to his feet.
“What happened?” Holden suddenly demanded. “Were there any survivors?”
Tucker stared at Holden with the same concern he had when Kirk had aimed his weapon at him. “It was during the hurricane,” he responded. “We were seeking shelter in the fuselage when these canisters were thrown into the plane. A few of us ran for the rear exit to avoid the gas. That’s when these men came charging in and started shooting everyone. A bunch of us ran into the woods.” He stared at Holden with concern. “I don’t know what happened to the others, but I didn’t stop running until I realized I was lost and alone.” Tucker held his breath a moment. “I considered going back, but I started hearing gunshots within the woods. I didn’t know where they were coming from, so I just stayed away.” He shook his head. “Honestly, I have no idea what’s going on. I’m just trying to stay alive.”
“You said others escaped,” Holden growled in anger. “Who were the other survivors?”
“I don’t know,” he insisted and vigorously shook his head. “It happened so fast.”
Holden removed his semiautomatic from his shoulder holster and aimed it at the man’s forehead, surprising the others. “My wife is out there,” he snarled. “You better remember something.”
“Your wife?” Tucker asked with surprise and seemed to consider the comment. “She wouldn’t happen to be that crazy lady piloting the plane, would she?”
Holden’s expression nearly dropped. “Yes, that’s my wife,” he announced. “Did you see her?”
“Not since we first crashed,” he replied. “She went with some of the other passengers to an old town to see about finding help. I don’t know what happened to them. They weren’t on the plane when we were attacked.”
“She went with other passengers?” Bogart suddenly asked and appeared curious. “Was one of them a short guy with short light hair?”
“I really don’t know,” Tucker replied.
“Slightly unbalanced,” Kirk casually added and shrugged. “Mildly menacing.”
“Glued to the crazy lady’s side,” Mac remarked while raising a brow.
Tucker’s eyes suddenly lit up. “Yeah, he was with her,” he announced. “They argued a lot.”
Holden lowered his gun and released the man. “Yeah, that’s them.”
Darth sniffed around the deflated raft containing some clothes and a few blankets from the airline. Gil looked back from his lookout position.
“Darth found something,” Gil informed them.
Kirk kept his weapon aimed at the stranger while the others approached Darth by the deflated raft. Monroe picked up one of the blankets.
“These are blankets from the airline,” Monroe announced. “The remaining passengers came through here.”
“Darth must be picking up either Jackie or Zack’s scent,” Gil announced from the doorway. “He wouldn’t react that way otherwise.”
“Think he can track her?” Holden anxiously asked.
Mac and Bogart continued to search the hangar for any clues to their friends’ welfare.
Gil remained by the open doorway and nodded. “I think so,” he replied. “We need something with either of their scents on it.”
Darth trotted across the hangar and paused by a discarded blanket. He sniffed the blanket and became excited. He woofed playfully.
Bogart hurried toward the dog and picked up the blanket. “I think we found something.”
He tossed the blanket to Gil by the doorway. Gil caught the blanket and extended it to Darth. He said something to the dog in German. Darth became excited, ran to him, and sniffed the blanket. He again woofed and wagged his tail. They watched as the dog spun excitedly in circles and attempted to rub the blanket. Gil looked back at Holden.
“I’d say we have a winner,” Gil announced.
“Guys,” Mac suddenly called out from across the room. “This isn’t good.”
Everyone except Gil joined Mac by the open cage. She indicated a large amount of blood on the floor then eyed the others.
“Someone’s been injured,” she informed them.
Kirk straightened near the center of the room and sniffed the bullet casing between his fingers. “There’s been some recent gunplay too,” he announced and cast a look at the others. “These casings are only hours old.”
“The blood too,” Mac added.
“We need to find them,” Holden announced with concern. “We need to go now.”
Gil placed the hand radio near his mouth and spoke into it. “Sal, you copy?”
“Still here,” came Sal’s response over the radio.
“We’re on our way,” Gil announced. “Meet us outside the plane. Seal her back up.”
“Copy that,” Sal replied.
Gil said something to Darth in German. The dog took off out the hangar door. Monroe motioned Tucker out the door with his assault rifle.
“We’re going on a little hike,” Monroe informed him. “Let’s go.”
The team hurried after the dog with their potential prisoner in tow. They collected Sal, who waited by the plane, as well as their gear containing extra guns and ammo then entered the woods together. Darth was sniffing the ground just ahead of them. The team approached the area cautiously with their assault rifles aimed. To their surprise, they saw two men sprawled on the ground lying in bloody heaps. They’d been shot numerous times with large caliber weapons, essentially tearing their bodies to shreds. Monroe visually inspected the bodies but didn’t recognize either man. Tucker appeared alarmed and took a step back.
“These injuries are fresh,” Monroe announced to his teammates. “This happened earlier today.” He then indicated the man dressed in gray camouflage and combat boots with his thigh wrapped, revealing an earlier injury. It was Jail Bait, the man Jackie had shot in the leg. “This man was wounded before they were gunned down. Someone shot him in the leg with a 9mm pistol.” He eyed Tucker, who stared at the two men with wide, horror-filled eyes. “Do you know these men?”
“I’m pretty sure the one was a passenger on the plane,” he announced then indicated the dead man with the wrapped leg. He was wearing something similar to combat gear. “I don’t recognize that man.”
“By the way he’s dressed, I’d say he was here on a hunting trip,” Kirk announced and indicated the combat gear and telltale boots.
They heard a plane flying overhead and moved to the edge of the woods attempting to spot the plane through the trees. The slightly larger plane was heading for the runway as its landing gear lowered.
“That can’t be good,” Sal announced while straining to see the plane.
“It’s landing,” Gil informed them.
“Someone searching for the missing plane?” Bogart asked while staring through the trees.
Gil motioned for everyone to move. “No, it’s a private plane, which could be trouble. We need to move.”
Everyone hurried through the woods to put as much distance between them and the airfield as possible. They didn’t know if the passengers on the private plane were friendlies or hostiles. Gil once again sent Darth on his mission. The dog took off through the woods.
Chapter Thirty-three
The cruise ship’s deck nine, panorama lounge made for the perfect safe haven for the remaining Flight 316 passengers. It contained three outer deck entrances among its wall of windows, which offered them a spectacular view of the now filthy pool at the ship’s bow. The windows also allowed them to see any danger outside. A short journey down the interior hall took them past the internet cafe, the wine lounge, and the library before reaching interior stairs. There was a set of fire doors before the stairs, which was easily blocked off to keep them safe from an inside assault. The massive lounge contained seating for one hundred guests. It had a huge, circular bar in the center and another smaller bar on the port side. The smaller port side bar had its own entrance to a storage area that connected the lounge to the wine lounge on the other side of the wall.
The lounge contained three deck entrances that were easily blocked off. The lounge provided comfortable chairs and sofas, and, surprisingly, the bar remained mostly stocked with booze and bottled water. Jackie and Zack had rigged the hole in the ship’s hull, so they would be alerted to anyone attempting to sneak onboard. Since their little party had gotten smaller, they had a plan in place in the event they were discovered by hostiles. Each exit came with a backup plan, so everyone would meet up in the same location if something happened.
In the event of an attack, chaos was to be expected as was being separated. Briefing everyone on what to do in the event of an emergency would ensure they’d meet at the designated rendezvous. Four of the remaining survivors were given passkeys that would manually unlock any stateroom, allowing them a safe place to hide. With the sheer number of staterooms, anyone looking for them would have to break down many doors to find them. Their safety plan was now in motion. Unfortunately, they now had little to do but wait for a rescue or an attack.
Their collection of weapons had grown since Zack’s overthrow of the helicopter. Jackie and Zack had successfully armed four of the passengers, although their ammo was still limited to a few rounds each. Sid, Bill, and Conner were now armed, although Jackie had reservations regarding giving Sid another weapon. In the heat of battle, he couldn’t hit shit. Conner was grateful to have a weapon to protect Lindsey, but Lindsey was feeling a little left out since she wasn’t trusted with a gun. The fourth gun was given to the remaining woman in their group, Kate, who was a retired Air Force veteran, which meant she had weapons training even if she hadn’t fired a gun in years.
While the remaining survivors had a drink or two to settle their nerves, Jackie and Zack left the lounge. They took lookout positions within the bridge, which was only a short journey up a set of interior stairs from the ninth floor lounge. The magnificent, panoramic view also gave them the ability to see the entire beach and woods. Anyone attempting to cross the beach for the ship would be spotted. The location of the bridge and the tinted glass also kept their position hidden from anyone sneaking around the woods with their eyes on the ship.
It was a little after ten o’clock in the morning. Zack was comfortably seated in the captain’s chair. Although he appeared relaxed, he spent nearly as much time watching Jackie pace the length of the bridge as he did the beach.
“I’ve never seen you this fidgety before,” Zack remarked. “I’ll admit; it’s unnerving.”
“This entire situation is unnerving,” Jackie informed him while only briefly glancing at him. “We usually carry the element of surprise, but this whole thing seems almost orchestrated with the odds against us.”
“The attack on the plane and the one in the hangar?” Zack asked with a curious look.
“A commercial airliner is shot down and crash lands on an abandoned island,” Jackie announced. “There’s no rescue, yet Cicco’s merry band of thugs found us, infiltrated the plane, and are hunting us?” She shook her head. “It’s too orchestrated. Lindsey’s problems began just two days ago. There’s no way Cicco’s men knew she’d be on that plane before we did. Conner only just purchased the tickets after she fled our protective custody. How could Cicco put all this together that fast?”
“Why would he do it is also a very good question,” Zack remarked. “No matter how badly he wanted the girl, shooting a plane from the sky and murdering all the passengers seems a bit extreme.”
“I’m glad you didn’t think I was crazy,” she announced then fidgeted. “It’s been bothering me since we were shot down.”
“Nothing personal against our mobster friends,” Zack remarked, “but the men in the woods were a little too organized for the average henchman.”
She spun to face him. “Any thoughts?”
Zack drew a deep breath and shifted in his chair. “This degree of organization is usually found in military operations, mercenaries for hire, or government organizations specializing in assassination.”
“Why would any of those entities want Lindsey?” she suddenly demanded.
“You’re being a little shortsighted, Jackie,” Zack informed her and raised a brow. “Why does this have to be about Lindsey?”
“They attempted to abduct her back in the hangar,” Jackie replied while giving him an arrogant look.
“Just because one person was sent after Lindsey, that doesn’t mean everything that’s happened has necessarily been about her,” Zack corrected. “For all we know, they’re after us.”
She stared at him a moment with surprise which instantly turned to disbelief. “If someone intended to hunt us, they’d have plenty of opportunities to do so without shooting a commercial airliner out of the sky,” she remarked, almost insulted by Zack’s insistence that the downed plane could be their fault.
“Yes, they would have plenty of opportunities to go after you any other time,” Zack replied and shifted in his chair. “Some of us fly a little further beneath the radar than others.”
She suddenly stared at him with surprise. “You think they’re after you?”
Zack shrugged. “Several countries would love to see me dead,” he replied. “Especially if they knew I wasn’t really dead. They’re the sort of people who would have the organization, manpower, and resources to accomplish what we’ve seen. Government assassins are the reason I’ve killed off more aliases than I can remember.”
“How many times have you officially been dead?” Jackie asked him with a curious look.
“Government-sanctioned or since I retired from the military?” he asked then grinned.
Jackie rolled her eyes and shook her head. “Is Zack even your real name?”
“It’s my preferred name,” he replied then considered the question. “I’ve been so many people; even I don’t remember them all. The first time the government ‘killed me off’ was a few years after you were born. The Navy tried to retire me.” He frowned and sank into thought. “That didn’t work out so well. Returning to your father’s SEAL team seemed to be the best way to keep everyone safe.”
“Safe?” she asked with surprise.
“My past is always in my present,” he informed her. “If our government hadn’t killed me off so many times, everyone I ever cared about would eventually be dead. It was just safer to keep me away from the general population.” He let out a throaty chuckle. “A few times, I think they even tried to retire me permanently in the name of security. I guess we’ll never know since everyone who’s ever tried to kill me is dead.” He drifted out a moment. “I really need to consider interrogating people before I kill them.” Zack sighed, shook his head, and relaxed in his chair. “So many character flaws.” He seemed to be in his own little world.
Jackie finally sat on the control panel and stared at him. It was one of the few times he opened up to her about his past. Despite his closeness with her father and the rest of the team, she sometimes felt she knew him better than anyone did.
“Who was she?” Jackie asked delicately.
Zack shot a look at her and immediately stiffened. “There was never a ‘she’,” he scoffed. “You always do that. You attempt to humanize me. You want to believe there’s more to me than what you see. Get over it, Jackie.”
And so ended another brief moment into Zack’s private life. Jackie knew she should have kept her mouth shut. When properly motivated, Zack would let things slip, and she would be able to piece together parts of his past. When she attempted to extract information from him, he’d immediately shut her down. Jackie groaned and stood.
“You’re the one who needs to get over it,” she muttered. “You pull me in then push me away. I feel like a yo-yo.” She glared at him and raised her brows. “When I’m feeling better, we’re taking it to the mats. I need to kick your ass around a little.”
Zack suddenly grinned with enthusiasm. “Now that’s more like it.”
Jackie rolled her eyes and returned to staring outside. “We’re going to die on this rock,” she muttered.
§
The scenic lounge allowed the eleven remaining passengers to relax a little finally. Sid bartended while the others sat around the bar and had a drink or two to settle their frayed nerves. Ironically, it had only been twenty-four hours since their nightmare began. With everything that had happened, it seemed as if they’d been stranded on the island a week or more.
