Blowback, p.11
Blowback, page 11
part #2 of Bear Logan Series
Maria folded her arms across her stomach and began sobbing. Bear wanted to comfort her, but he didn’t move. The last thing she needed was another man to touch her, even if it was to help.
“These guys who grabbed you… Did you recognize them? Do you know who they were? Who they worked for?”
She shook her head, her cries coming in waves now. She kept apologizing, and Bear kept trying to reassure her. But it was no use. She was getting herself worked up. She leaned over to the side of the bed and threw up. Nothing but water and a little phlegm came out, but it was obvious the effort had drained her of nearly all her strength.
“All right, we’ll talk later.”
Bear made Maria take another sip of her water before he set the bottle on the nightstand. Then he helped her under the covers and told her to sleep. She was still shaking, and he was sure she’d throw up a few more times before the night was over. There was nothing they could do but ride it out.
He sat back into the overstuffed chair and opened up the laptop. He wasn’t surprised to find that it was locked, but a glimmer of hope had existed that the thugs he took it from might’ve been too stupid to put a password to it. No such luck.
Bear drummed his fingers on the armrest and stared up at the ceiling. It had water damage in one corner and what looked like dried blood in the opposite. They couldn’t stay in the place for too long, but he also didn’t know where he could go.
He considered calling Jack again, but he already knew that number was out of commission. Besides, if Thorne tracked him last time he’d tried calling Noble, chances were someone else would too.
Thinking of Thorne led Bear to think of Sadie. How were the two connected? Had Thorne gotten Sadie mixed up in this mess too? Sadie had wanted to take it easy after Costa Rica. Wanted being a loose term. She was being brought in. She was an adventurous woman who wouldn’t be content with run-of-the-mill jobs for long.
Had Thorne reached out to her and promised her a more exciting mission? Sadie was smart enough to stay away from him, but Thorne was also smart enough to pull on her heartstrings. That’s how Bear ended up here, after all. The guy had a knack for it.
Maybe he was one of the good guys.
He resisted the urge to call Thorne. Talking to him now would only allow him to spin the facts in his favor. It was better if Bear could look through the laptop first and then reach out. Maybe he’d be able to catch the man in a lie. That would be more revealing than anything Thorne could come up with on his own.
But that still left him the problem of the laptop. He didn’t know anyone in Hong Kong well enough to trust them with the information that potentially resided on the device, especially if Maria was along for the ride.
He wracked his brain and landed on the name of someone he hadn’t seen in quite some time: Ernest Neumann.
They hadn’t spoken in years, not since his early days in the program. But Neumann was trustworthy. Better yet, he was close. He’d retired to the Philippines a few years ago. As far as Bear knew, the guy was still there.
Now Bear just had to hope that Neumann was willing to get himself mixed up in whatever Bear was slowly uncovering.
Chapter Twenty
It took several calls and multiple burner phones, but Bear finally tracked down a number for Ernest Neumann. His old buddy wasn’t too happy about being found after all these years, but he was a good soul and couldn’t resist helping a friend.
Especially after Bear told him what he had potentially uncovered.
And it seemed the universe was throwing them a bone. Neumann was already in Hong Kong on some business with the government. He was packing up to leave when Bear reached out to him and was willing to delay his departure by an hour so they could meet him at the docks.
Maria felt better in the morning but still weak and nauseous. The worst had passed though. She insisted on showering before they left, and Bear didn’t disagree. It zapped her of her remaining strength. When Bear went to rinse off he found the hot water used up. Didn’t matter. A cold shower would bring on his third wind. Afterward he called a taxi and paid the man extra to get them to the docks in record time.
Neumann was just tossing the mooring lines back onto the boat when Bear stepped foot on the dock. He looked older than Bear remembered, but it had been close to seven years since he had seen him last. In that amount of time, his salt and pepper hair had turned completely gray and he had grown a thick mustache that covered his upper and lower lips.
“Well, look who finally decided to show up.” Neumann reached over and shook Bear’s hand. Then he turned his attention to Maria. “This her?”
“No, she’s arriving via chopper. This is her body double.”
Neumann rolled his eyes and reached his hand out. “Maria, I presume.” He helped her step up onto the boat deck. “Come on, dear. The sea’s a rockin’ today. Won’t be too kind to you. I’ve got a good bed and a big bucket waiting for you downstairs.”
Maria cracked a smile. Bear could tell it was forced. “Thanks.”
Neumann led her below deck while Bear boarded. The boat was older, but well taken care of. The paint was a little faded, but she still shone in the sunlight. Neumann was of a different generation. He pinched a penny—even when he didn’t have to. Bear respected him for that. Among other things.
When Neumann emerged from down below his face betrayed his concern. “Surprised she’s walking.”
“Tough girl.” Bear watched as Neumann raised the anchor and got ready to push off. “I don’t envy her.”
“Me neither. If she’s been drugged for weeks her symptoms aren’t going to go away any time soon. And these waters aren’t exactly smooth sailing.”
Bear stepped up next to Neumann while he navigated out of the port. “How’d you end up getting a free pass to sail across the open ocean between Hong Kong and the Philippines?”
“I do some odd jobs for the government here and there.”
“Thought you were retired?”
“I am retired.” Neumann glared side-eyed. “But I still gotta make money.”
Bear chose his next words carefully. “And all of this is…”
“On the books. C’mon, man. You know me. You really have to ask?”
Bear held up his hands in surrender. “People change. It’s been a while. Making sure, is all.”
Neumann pressed a couple buttons and turned around, arms folded across his chest. “Besides, shouldn’t I be the one worrying about you?”
“Me?”
“I may not have kept tabs on you, but I’ve heard murmurings through the grapevine.”
Bear shifted from one leg to the other. He had always considered Neumann more of a friend than a father figure, but the reprimand was clear, even if it wasn’t verbal. “I do what I gotta do.”
“I know.” Neumann’s voice was even. “The girl is evidence of that. But you didn’t reach out to hear me lecture you.”
“As much fun as that would be—” Bear opened the duffle bag and pulled out the laptop, “—I need your help with this.”
Neumann set them up in the kitchen below deck. The smell of brewing coffee filled the air. After a quick breakfast sandwich and a healthy dose of java, he cleared off the table and set up his equipment. It didn’t take much to crack the laptop with his gadgets. The system wasn’t military-grade or anything near that caliber. It was just a run-of-the-mill computer with a simple password. No match for the guy. He broke through in a matter of minutes and then lit a thick cigar. Bear declined when offered.
Neumann hovered his hands over the keyboard and looked up at Bear. “All right. What’re we looking for?”
Bear pulled out the file folders, waved the smoke out of his face with them, and then opened to the first sheet of paper. “Anything to do with shipments like these. This is full of rosters and schedules, but it’s all in shorthand and code. I’m hoping the real documents are on there.”
“Got it. Go sit over there. Can’t concentrate when you’re hovering. I’ll call you over when I’ve got a full picture.”
Bear couldn’t stand the idea of doing nothing. The only reason he complied was because his body was starting to give up on him. Lack of sleep and all the adrenaline that had been running through his veins in the last couple days had left him exhausted. A few days ago he had been locked up in jail on St. Lucia. A few weeks before that? Living the life in paradise.
It felt like a lifetime ago.
He’d shut his eyes when he heard Neumann calling his name.
“Rise and shine, Sleeping Beauty. I’ve got answers.”
Bear rubbed the sleep from his eyes. “How long was I out?”
“Three hours,” Neumann said, his bushy mustache twitching as he smiled. “You look like you need about thirty more. Ain’t gonna get them today. Come check this out.”
Bear rose to his feet with a groan, rubbing the back of his neck and trying to loosen up the muscles. The chair was shit for sleeping. Most were.
“How’s Maria doing?”
“Heard her puking her brains out about an hour ago. Checked on her after that and she was asleep. Sweaty and pale, but she drank about two bottles of water. She’ll ride it out. Us too I suppose”
“Easier said than done.”
Neumann shrugged. “She looks tough. Besides, she doesn’t have an alternative. Would’ve been better to wean her off, but that’s not really an option.”
“Not even sure what they were using.” Bear circled the table and came to stand behind Neumann. The laptop screen was full of tabs and pictures and text boxes. He couldn’t make heads nor tails of it. “What am I looking at?”
Neumann sighed. There was a weight to it that made the hair on the back of Bear’s neck stand on end. “It’s not good.”
“I had a feeling. Sex trafficking?”
“One of the biggest operations I’ve ever seen.” Neumann clicked around until he brought up a satellite image of a house. “I started off easy. Didn’t even bother going through the computer’s documents before I knew what I was looking for.”
“That’s the house where I found her.” Bear pointed toward the screen.
“I Googled the address.” Neumann laughed, but it was hollow. “Amazing what you can find on the internet these days. Remember when we had to work for this shit?” His smile faded as his gaze drifted back to the screen. “Anyway, I found the owner of the house.”
“Who is it?”
Neumann switched tabs and a picture of a man Bear had never seen popped up. “Joon Yi. On paper, he’s just another businessman living in Hong Kong. Deals in real estate. High rises. Commercial. Some housing complexes. This house is marked down as a business expense. They use it as a meeting room when they want to get out of the city.”
“It looked more like a pleasure house,” Bear said.
“It’s surprisingly easy to get away with shit like that, especially when you have as much money as Joon Yi. But that’s not even the most interesting part.” Neumann tapped the screen with the tip of his finger. “Our friend here is Korean. From the North.”
“Now I’m paying attention.”
Neumann smoothed his mustache before continuing. “His story is a little too squeaky clean. Basically boils down to him becoming a rising leader in North Korea and being granted leave to Hong Kong to continue to grow his business. He’s doing a pretty good job of it too. In the last few years profits have continued to grow at an astronomical rate.”
The boat rocked to the side and Bear had to grip the table to stay upright. He waited to speak until he was sure they weren’t going to capsize. “Coercion?”
“Likely. But it’s still a legitimate business as far as I can tell. You can solve a lot of problems with money.”
“And those that can’t be solved with money can be solved with intimidation.” Bear watched as Neumann scrolled through the website, including a page on all of Joon Yi’s employees. “Wait. There. Go back.”
Neumann scrolled back up the page until he landed on a face Bear knew all too well.
“The man in the burgundy suit,” Bear said. “He was at the house that night.”
Maria appeared in the doorway, holding tight to the frame to remain upright. “His name was Seung Kim.”
“You shouldn’t be on your feet.” Bear hurried toward her.
Maria held up her hand. “There’s something I have to tell you. I was supposed to be there, at that house. But things didn’t go the way I planned them. I failed my mission.”
Bear’s arms dropped back to his side. He felt his gut tighten. “Your mission?”
“My mission was Seung Kim.” She grimaced as she swallowed. “I was there to kill him.”
Chapter Twenty-One
For a solid minute all Bear could hear were the waves crashing against the stern. His ears rang with Maria’s words. His entire perception of the girl had just been flipped on its head leaving him blindsided and dizzy.
“How old are you?” He didn’t know why this was the first question he decided to ask, but in that moment it seemed important.
“Twenty.” Maria tried for a smile, but it looked more like a grimace. “I look younger, right? That was sort of the point. Most of the girls there were younger than me. A lot younger.”
Bear’s thoughts settled as the reality of the situation set in. There was nothing to turn back to. They could only move forward. “Who are you?”
Maria made her way over to a chair and sat down with a groan. “My name is Maria Thompson. I didn’t lie to you, Bear. I just left out a few details.”
“Some pretty important details. Who do you work for?”
The hesitation was obvious. If Bear were in her position, he wouldn’t want to betray his superiors either. But she was in deep now, and he and Neumann were trying to help her out of it. The trust had already been earned.
“A man named Thorne.”
There was a beat of silence before Bear threw his head back and laughed. It was long and loud and bordered on hysteria. By the time he finished, there were tears in his eyes. He swiped them away and chuckled one more time. All he wanted to do was sleep and pretend Thorne didn’t exist.
“I think I’m missing the joke,” Neumann said. “Who’s Thorne?”
“A pain in my ass.” Bear made his way over to the couch and flopped onto it. “And the reason why I’m in the middle of this shitstorm.”
“That sounds like him,” Maria said. There was no humor in her voice.
Bear turned to her. “How do you know him?”
“I was what you called a troubled youth. In and out of juvie. Mostly for breaking and entering, stealing. I wasn’t afraid to experiment with drugs. Landed in the hospital a couple times. But I was smart. I knew how to play the pity card. Never got into any real trouble. Moved around enough that no one really caught on to my longest con, which was pretending I was a lot more remorseful than I was.”
Maria took a couple sips of her water before she continued. “I don’t know how he found me. One day he just showed up. I was seventeen and he offered me a new life. Money, power, and best yet, the ability to truly take care of myself. He trained me to keep up the good girl appearances. Between my age and my looks, I was always underestimated. He and I ran small cons for about a year before he started using me for bigger operations.”
“So you became a spy? At eighteen?” Bear had heard stories like this, but he’d never met anyone who had lived that life. He didn’t envy her.
Maria shrugged. She looked sad. “A spy. A killer.”
Neumann’s voice was quiet. “That’s no life for someone as young as you.”
A flash of anger crossed Maria’s face. “It’s a better life than I had before. At least now I know where my next meal is coming from.”
“But something went wrong here,” Bear prodded. As much as he wanted to save Maria from Thorne’s grasp, she was an adult. She had made her choice. The best he could hope for was that she’d make a new one by the end of all this.
“I was there to assassinate Seung Kim. I don’t know why. Didn’t ask. Not my place.” She swallowed and winced but continued. “I allowed myself to be taken by the people who ran the house. According to Thorne, I was exactly his type. But I hadn’t counted on the drugs taking hold so strongly. When the time came, he chose me, but I was too powerless to do anything. There are a few hazy days in between there and the house where you found me. Don’t really remember much else.”
“Do you know a woman named Sadie?” Bear asked.
Maria shook her head. Bear got up and took over the computer from Neumann. He pulled up a picture of Sadie and spun the laptop toward the girl.
“Never saw her,” Maria said.
“So she never made it to the house?”
“I only saw a few faces here and there. They kept most of us apart.” Maria clutched her stomach and waited for the nausea to pass before speaking again.
Neumann pointed at the picture of Sadie. “Was she an assassin?”
“No, but she trained to get close to male targets. She’s one of the best. If she’s involved in this, I don’t think she’d be going after someone like Seung Kim. Her target would be someone like Joon Yi.”
“Or someone bigger.” Maria looked up at the two men. “Someone even more important than him.”
Bear moved around the table again to stand in front of her. “What do you know?”
Maria’s gaze flicked back to the picture of Sadie. “She’s older, right? Older than me.”
Bear nodded. “Why?”
Maria leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes. Bear could see the wheels turning, so he didn’t interrupt her, though he had an urge to shake the information out of her. He felt like Sadie was so close, even if he had no idea where she was. This was the kind of mission she had been trained for. If she was mixed up in this at all, it would be here. And right now Maria was their best chance at finding Sadie.
“Thorne told me there was another job going down at the same time as mine. It had to do with taking out a North Korean general. Someone very important. But he told me to steer clear. Said it was too big for me.” She opened her eyes, a wry smile on her face. “I was a brat. I tried arguing with him. Told him I could handle it. But he said it wouldn’t work. I wasn’t his type. I’m guessing now that I might’ve been too young for him.”
