Chapter 55

55

Back at the post office, Garner and Travers helped Shaw out of the truck.

"What happened?" Garner said.

Shaw, still in shock, was only able to make half the stairs on the loading dock before he collapsed in a sprawl on the concrete.

"Water. I need water."

He sat up as Travers handed him a bottle.

"Could you take off the cap?" Shaw said, holding it out, his hands still shaking.

He drained half of it and took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

"What happened?" Garner said again.

Shaw took another long sip and poured the rest over his head and shook it off with a shudder.

What an overconfident ass he had been.

Playing Van Halen , he thought. He should have tried AC/DC instead. Because his ass just got shook all night long.

"It was the breach," Shaw said. "They were about to... I'm not sure. A faulty wire maybe."

He thought of the roof debris that had smashed into the hood like Dorothy's house from The Wizard of Oz .

"They must have hit the gas line or something," Garner said. "Because it sounded like a nuke! The side of the damn restaurant collapsed."

Thank goodness for the armored truck , Shaw thought.

"So, we're talking men down here?" Travers said.

"Men down?" Shaw said, gazing at him. "Men gone is more like it. My guys are all gone."

"And the target?" Garner said.

"I have no clue."

"Maybe if you brought me in on what it is you're actually doing, we'd be done by now," Garner said. "This is turning into a freaking disaster! I've got the head of the town council demanding answers and a state senator on her way. So, what do we do now?"

Shaw stared at him, still trying to get his bearings.

"I need to regroup here, Chief. I need more time. Make something up. Tell them the wind is shifting with the tanker spill or something. I can't think right now."

"What if they call the real FBI?"

"We've got people there," Shaw said.

Which was completely true. That was why Vance Holdings was so expensive. They had the juice in the Bureau and the Department of Justice to make the feds look the other way. The juice to get away with just about anything.

Like Shaw wouldn't be up here running amok without a Never Go to Jail card in his back pocket? What did he look like, a schmuck?

"This is over. We're running out of time," Garner said.

"It's over when my boss says it's over," Shaw said. "Let me give him a call. In the meantime, do we have eyes on the restaurant still?"

"Of course."

"Monitor what they do," Shaw said, taking out his SAT phone. "We're going to need more SWAT officers. Can you put that together?"

"I'll see what I can do," Garner said as he left.

Shaw told Control to put him through to the big enchilada, Vance.

Vance was the guy who ran the outfit, some rich little shit. Very smart but a shit nonetheless.

Shaw had started in the business working for Vance's father who was a rich shit, too, but at least he had been a marine.

"Four of my guys are down? Four?" was the first thing Vance said.

"Uh-huh. I'm sure you've seen it for yourself by now. All blown to bits but me. Thanks for asking if I'm okay. Your unwavering support and concern is touching as always, boss. I'm actually not okay, by the way. I think I have a serious concussion."

He wasn't even joking about that. The door slamming him against the headrest had rung his bell. He was nauseous and dizzy and his ears were still ringing.

"How is that possible?" Vance said, ignoring him. "All four gone?"

"Carpenter screwed things up and they hit the gas line is how."

"How could he have screwed up that bad?" Vance said. "He was a wizard with that stuff. Those soft hands of his were way too good. That's why we hired him."

Shaw stifled a sigh as he thought of all the men who were better than Carpenter, better than even Shaw himself, who were rotting in graves on foreign soil because some jackass tripped or farted or sneezed at the wrong time.

"I just don't understand," Vance said.

If you were ever in a war you'd know , Shaw thought.

"Whatever," Shaw said. "The game has changed. No more extractions. No more bullshit. You want me to finish this, I can. But I'm tired of washing my feet with my socks on. Unless this is full bore, I leave now. The natives are getting restless up here after that firecracker. There's too much heat now even for me."

"I get it," Vance said with a sigh.

"You want to call the client and talk about it?"

"Screw that. I don't need to call. Do it. Take the woman out. Wrap this up."

"The wife or the investigator?"

"Both. They said if push comes to shove, by any means necessary, wipe it up. I'll handle any problems."

"How do you like that?" Shaw said in sudden happy surprise.

"Like what?"

"You making a command decision. I didn't think you had it in you. Maybe the apple didn't fall that far from the tree after all. Your old man would be proud."

"Screw you, Shaw."

Shaw smiled.

"That's it. Now you even sound like dear old dad." Shaw stood, feeling the cobwebs start to clear from his head.

"No more screwups, Shaw. Just get this disaster over with."

"Sir, yes, sir," he said, getting his second wind with a deep breath.