Next Exit, No Outlet Page 8

  After one last look around, Hawk strode to the front door, letting himself out as quickly and as silently as he had entered.

  Stephanie walked out of the bedroom into the living room where Blake was sitting on the couch with his feet propped up on the coffee table. He was glowering at the TV and she frowned.

  “What’s wrong?” she asked, moving forward.

  “The news.”

  She made a face and went over to sit on the chair.

  “I don’t know how you can watch it,” she said, glancing at the flat screen. It was a commercial break and white bears wearing tropical shirts were checking into a hotel. “They’re so full of crap half the time. What’s going on now?”

  “They’re talking about yesterday. They’re saying the shooting at the FBI building is connected to the stabbings in Independence Park.”

  Stephanie stared at him. “What? How is that possible?”

  He shook his head.

  “I don’t think it is,” he said, stretching. “Not unless you’re leading some kind of secret life I don’t know about.”

  “Do we know anything about what happened in the park?” Stephanie asked after a moment.

  “Only that two men were stabbed to death. I’m waiting to hear the latest on that. It’s coming up after these commercials.”

  Stephanie watched the commercial absently in silence. With all the events of the previous evening, she had completely forgotten about the attack at Independence Hall. The last she’d heard about it was before she left the city yesterday, and that information was sketchy at best. All anyone seemed to know was that two men had been stabbed while touring the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall.

  The commercial break ended and a female reporter dressed in a red jacket with a white blouse took over the screen.

  “Yesterday, in South Philadelphia, two men were brutally stabbed to death in the birthplace of our nation’s freedom,” she told the camera solemnly, her glossy red lips enunciating each word with trained precision. “Although their identities have not been released, more information is coming to light regarding the vicious attack. Speaking on the condition of anonymity, a source close to the investigation says that they are not ruling out the possibility that this was a hate crime. Both victims were of Middle Eastern descent and, while their nationality is still being determined, there is strong evidence that suggests they were members of the Islamic faith. There doesn’t appear to have been any reason for the attacks, and no threats were made on the security of the park. Anthony Corvero reports.”

  The camera switched from inside the studio to a tall reporter standing on the grass outside Independence Hall.

  “I’m standing here in Center City where, just yesterday, two men were brutally murdered while they were touring the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall,” he told the camera. “It was a normal spring day here, and the birthplace of our nation’s freedom was filled with tourists and school children on class trips. The afternoon ended in terror when two of those tourists were found stabbed to death in the middle of the crowds. One was killed inside the Liberty Bell building, while the other was found dead inside Independence Hall behind me. Both attacks occurred within minutes of each other, leading investigators to believe this was a coordinated assault. Nothing seems to connect the two victims aside from their ethnic origin, which points to the very real possibility that this was, indeed, a hate crime.”

  The alarm pad inside the door beeped as the front door to the condo opened silently and Blake was off the couch in an instant, his Beretta in his hands. Damon raised an eyebrow and closed the door.

  “At ease, gunny,” he said humorously.

  Blake’s shoulders relaxed and he slid the weapon back into his side holster.

  “You could at least have knocked,” he muttered, returning to the sofa.

  Damon strode into the living room, his eyes going to the TV.

  “ ...in light of the vicious attack, several area mosques are organizing a vigil for the unknown men,” the reporter said.

  The scene on the screen changed again to a clip from a man dressed in a white robe. The caption on the bottom of the screen identified him as a local imam.

  “There are no words to describe the sorrow at this terrible tragedy. Two men, visiting an iconic, historical monument, were killed like animals in the midst of children. Those responsible must be caught and brought to justice. This violence against my people must stop! We want to live in peace, and not fear to go out in our own city.”

  Damon’s lips tightened and the scene changed back to the reporter outside Independence Hall.

  “The leaders of several area places of worship, including Catholic and Protestant churches, are joining with the Muslim community to condemn these attacks. A vigil is being organized and will take place right here, at the scene of the senseless and unwarranted murders that have divided our city.”

  “Watching this garbage will rot your brain,” Damon said, his voice even. “Are you ready to go?”

  Stephanie nodded and stood up.

  “How are we going to do this?” she asked as Blake aimed the remote at the TV and switched it off. “Is Blake going to come with us part way, or will we drop him near a subway? He doesn’t have his car to get anywhere.”

  “Blake’s going with you.” Hawk turned to look at him. “It’s safer for you to stay with her.”

  Blake nodded. “Good. I won’t pretend that I was happy about leaving her alone.”

  Stephanie rolled her eyes.

  “I’ll hardly be alone. It’s going to be a full house. Besides, you’ll see when you get there: the place is Fort Knox. There would have been nothing for you to worry about.”

  Hawk turned to move toward the door.

  “Let’s move,” he said. “You can discuss it on the way.”

  Blake and Stephanie followed him to the door, watching as he set the security alarm before opening the door. They moved out to the hallway and he followed, closing the door firmly behind him. He nodded to the far end of the hallway.

  “We’re taking the stairs.”

  Blake raised his eyebrows and glanced at Stephanie.

  “Is that really necessary? With her leg, the elevator would be better.”

  Hawk didn’t even glance over his shoulder as he moved towards the stairwell door at the far end of the hallway.

  “Would you rather be safe, or sorry?”

  Blake glowered at the back of his head, but followed obediently. Stephanie hooked her arm through his and leaned on her cane as they followed Damon.

  “I’ll be fine.”

  Damon reached the door and opened it, then stood aside for them to pass through. Once they entered the stairwell, he sent one last searching glance toward the door of Viper’s safe house. Was the stairwell really necessary? Probably not, but he was not about to find out for sure. He followed them through the door, all his senses alert. Viper was expecting him to get Stephanie and Blake safely to Medford, and that was just what he was going to do.

  The door to the stairwell had just clicked closed when the elevator doors slid silently open. Four men stepped out and considered both doors in the hallway. One of them glanced down at his phone before nodding to the door on the left.

  “It’s that one,” he said softly.

  “Are we sure about this?” another asked, his voice just as soft.

  The first man shrugged and reached behind him. He pulled a Sig Sauer from the holster at his back with one hand and reached into his jacket pocket to pull out a silencer with his other.

  “Alpha has camera footage showing them entering this building. This is the only condo in the whole building whose owner we can’t trace. I’d say the odds are pretty high they’re in here, wouldn’t you?”

  The second man shook his head and reached for his own weapon.

  “Let’s hope you’re right.”

  The first man shot him a small grin. “If we’re wrong, then it’s empty. No harm, no foul.”

  He motioned wit
h his hand and the two men behind them moved forward. One of them pulled a small box out of the bag over his shoulder. Moving to the side of the door, he moved the box along the wall parallel with the door. He started at the top of the door jamb and steadily moved the box down. About a third of the way down the wall, the box vibrated in his hand and a light flashed. He nodded to his companion and pulled the box away from the wall.

  The other man reached into his pocket and pulled out another box that resembled a scrambler. He moved to the side as the first man bent over the door handle. A moment later, there was a soft click, and the door swung open. The fourth man slipped inside and the others followed, waiting while he attached the scrambler box to the alarm pad inside the door. Five seconds later, the alarm switched off.

  By the time he pulled the box off the alarm pad, the first two had already moved down the hallway into the living room. They moved swiftly and silently, their weapons ready. At the end of the hallway, the first one went into the galley kitchen while the second turned right and moved toward the bedroom. The other two followed, watching as their companions cleared the condo.

  “They were here,” the one called from the bedroom. “The shower’s still wet, and there are damp towels on the rack.”

  A moment later they all converged in the living room, looking at each other. The first one out of the elevator holstered his weapon and pulled out his phone. After dialing, he held the phone to his ear. It connected after the second ring.

  “The nest is empty,” he told the person on the phone. “They were here, but now they’re gone.”

  There was a short silence on the line.

  “What makes you think she was there?”

  “Someone had a shower, and it was recent.”

  The man on the other end of the line let out a soft curse.

  “Keep an eye on the place in case they return,” he instructed. “I’ll let Alpha know.”

  The man disconnected and slid the phone back into his pocket. He looked at his companions and motioned them to the door.

  A minute later, the alarm was set again, and the condo was empty.

  Viper slipped through the door and closed it behind her silently. The automatic lock clicked back into place and she glanced around the tiny alcove she found herself in. The entryway was little more than a five-by-five square, with a narrow stairwell leading straight up into the condo above. She moved up the steps silently, her ears tuned for any noise, taking the stairs two at a time.

  Cresting the top, she stepped into a large living room. The alarm box was on the wall next to the stairs, and she glanced at it to ensure that the light was green. It had taken just over an hour to break through the security and disable the alarm, but in the end, it was easier than she’d expected. She would have thought the traitor would have a more advanced alarm system than he did.

  Looking around the sparsely furnished living room, she took a moment to study all the vents and cracks visible to her. The security system indicated cameras, and she had disposed of them appropriately. However, Mr. X was no fool. He would have backups that were closed-circuit and not looped into his security. After scanning the large room, her eyes lit upon a single vent above the door leading into the hallway. Her lips curved faintly.

  Moving across the living room, she went into the dining room and grabbed one of the chairs flanking the messy dining room table. With one hand, she picked it up and carried it over to place it beneath the vent. A moment later she had it open and was extracting a wireless camera. She pressed the button on the side, powering it down, and tucked it into her jacket pocket before replacing the vent grid. Then she got off the chair and turned to survey the condo.

  The living room was spacious but contained only a recliner, a side table, and a loveseat. A large, flat screen TV hung on the wall above the mantle, and on the far side of the living room a console took up half the wall. Laid out on the console were variety of bottles and glasses, along with an empty ice bucket. Viper picked up the chair and carried it back into the dining room, looking at the table. It reminded her of Stephanie’s dining room table, or even Michael’s. It seemed like she was the only one who didn’t use her dining room table as an office.

  Viper went through the stacks of files on the table quickly and silently, replacing them in exactly the same spot that she had found them. None of them were sensitive, and none of them would help her. When she’d gone through the lot, she turned and made her way down the short hallway to the master bedroom.

  She only had a certain amount of time. There was no guarantee that Mr. X wouldn’t come back while she was still there. According to his PA, he was at a congressional luncheon right now, but Viper knew how quickly plans could change. One call from someone in his office and he would leave.

  Entering the bedroom, she glanced around and shook her head. This room was also sparsely furnished. With the exception of the queen-sized bed against one wall and a matching dresser on the other, the master bedroom was as empty as the living room. Clearly, Mr. X had never taken the time to settle in. He probably never thought he would stay that long, or at least, he probably hoped he wouldn’t stay that long. At least it made it easy to search, she reflected dryly as she moved towards the closet.

  There had to be a safe somewhere, and most people seemed to prefer the closet as the place to house it. Herself? With the exception of an apartment in Sorrento, she tended to hide her safes where no one could find them. However, Viper admitted that she was more cynical than most.

  She stepped into the walk-in closet and looked around. Suits and dress shirts hung on one side while the other contained more casual wear. The back wall was lined with shelves holding neatly labeled boxes. Some were file boxes labeled accounts, financials, and taxes. Others were plastic storage bins and clearly held off-season clothing. And there, on the floor under all the shelves, was the safe.

  How predictable, she thought as she went forward and crouched down before it. She reached into the inside pocket of her jacket and extracted a small box which she affixed to the outside of the digital pad. She pressed a button, and a moment later there was a click. Opening the safe, Viper peered inside. It was small and half of it was taken up with stacks of file folders. In addition to the folders and paperwork, there were a few jewelry boxes, a few large stacks of cash, neatly bound and labeled with the increments, and one external hard drive. Viper raised an eyebrow and reached for the hard drive.

  She opened the messenger bag that hung across her body and pulled out a Surface Pro. Moving quickly, she attached one end of a cable into her laptop and the other end into the external hard drive. In less than a minute, she was copying the encrypted contents. While the laptop worked, she reached for the top folders in the stack of paperwork.

  Flipping one open, she sorted through several passports, all under different aliases. After noting the various countries, she closed the folder and reached for the next one. When she opened it, a single envelope fell out. She raised an eyebrow and opened it unceremoniously. Inside was a printed out confirmation from an airline. Her lips tightened.

  It was a one-way ticket to Montenegro with an open departure date. The confirmation was dated three days ago.

  Three days ago, she and Hawk had killed sixteen of Mr. X’s men in Atlantic City. Obviously, he’d decided then that things were not going his way.

  The laptop beeped and Viper glanced at the screen. The copy was complete. She replaced the ticket in the envelope, and then put the folders back where they had been. Her fingers rapidly disconnected the cabling and she placed the external hard drive in the safe at the precise angle at which she had found it. Closing the safe, she stood up and left the bedroom swiftly.

  As she moved through the silent condo, Viper took one last look around the place Dave and John’s killer called home. Fury washed through her, catching her by surprise, and Alina felt her hands begin to shake. It would be so easy to wait for him to come home and end this all right now.

  Viper took a deep, calming b
reath and exhaled slowly. No. It wasn’t time yet. There was more to do. She had a plan, and her plans always worked.

  And in the end, when it was all said and done, he would die while she watched.

  Chapter Nine

  Damon looked up as a loud tone sliced through the silence in the living room. Stephanie had taken herself upstairs to the spare room to lay down, and Blake was stretched out in the recliner. Both men looked at the plasma screen above the mantelpiece at the sharp noise. One of the quadrants was flashing. Hawk was out of his seat on the couch and headed towards the sliding doors before Blake had even grasped what he was looking at.

  “What the hell is that?” Blake demanded, swinging his legs down from the recliner and standing up.

  “That is Viper’s security system,” Hawk replied over his shoulder. “Someone’s breached the perimeter at the back of the property.”

  Blake scowled and looked up at the screen again.

  “It’s a guy,” he said. “I can’t see his face.”

  Footsteps came stumbling down the stairs at the front of the house and Stephanie flew down the hallway as fast as her limping leg would go.

  “Already?!” she cried. “I just got here!”

  Despite himself, Damon felt a chuckle escape.

  “Stay here,” he said shortly. “I’ll be back.”

  With that, he disappeared out the sliding door, leaving Blake and Stephanie to stare at each other.

  “What the hell is he doing?” Stephanie demanded, looking up at the screen on the wall. “Is it just one person?”

  “That’s all I see, but I don’t know if we’re seeing the whole system.”

  Stephanie rubbed the back of her neck and sank onto the sofa. Staring at the quadrants displayed on the screen, she watched as the tall intruder moved through the trees swiftly.

  “What if he’s not alone?”