John smiled. “I will help him stuff you.”
Handal’s body sagged, and John released his ear. “The briefcase contains my notebook computer and flash drives. The metal case contains the biological strains I have been working on.”
“Good,” Nick said. “Show us around your lab, and we will take you to where we are holding Yuri. Do you know the combination to the safe in the weapons storeroom?”
Handal shook his head no while leading Nick and John inside the lab. “I have never went inside the weapons room. Yuri is the only one who knows the combination to the safe there. He has brought me money when I needed to travel after going in there.”
Thirty minutes later, Nick took Handal into the room where Yuri still hung from the hook they placed him on. John went to the vehicle entrance to allow Gus to enter with the GMC. Unlike John’s silent endurance, Aman sobbed, screaming out weakly when he balanced from foot to foot. When he saw Nick enter with the now restrained Handal, he began to beg.
“Please… I will tell you anything you want to know! Take me off this hook! I will tell you all!”
Nick plastic tied Malik to a chair in the room at the ankles, hands behind the chair. Then duct taped him in place at his waist, shoulders, and calves while Aman continued to plead. He then walked over in front of Yuri with a smile.
“I’m glad you want to cooperate, Yuri. I was afraid I’d have to get tough with you. Let’s start with the combination to the safe in the weapons room.”
“Yes! I will tell you. Take me down!”
“Nope. That’s backwards, Yuri. First, you give me the combination, then I go open the safe. Then I come back here and take you down. The longer you keep asking in this backwards manner, the longer it will be before you are off the hook as it were. Let me show you how it feels to be moved slightly just to get you on board.”
Nick gripped the chain holding Yuri’s wrists on the hook, and began yanking on them, causing the frantic screaming man to dance in agony. “Are you seeing this, Payaso? If only I had some white face paint. This would be a true Kabuki dance moment.”
“I see it. I just puked in your Giants cap, but I won’t seal it in plastic yet. We’re heading towards you. I have my tablet on with your psychotic prisoner handling on screen, Muerto. Let the man tell you the combination! I swear… every cell in your body is rotten… every cell!”
Nick could hear John’s appreciative chortling in the background. Nick stopped shaking the chain. “Fine! I’m sorry I upset your delicate nature, Payaso. I hope you brought the bag with you I told you to bring from the GMC.”
“I have it. We’ll be with you in a couple minutes. You’re lucky the ventilation is still working in here.”
“Luck had nothing to do with it,” Nick lied. He bopped the sobbing Yuri on the forehead. “You should have had a V8, Yuri. Okay… calm down and tell me the combination.”
Nick passed Gus and John on the way out with Malik’s briefcase and metal containment case. “I’m opening the safe. Don’t take whiney down until I see if he gave me the right combination. By the way, get your uniforms on they’re in the bag Gus has in his hand. The Unholy Trio strikes again! For now… El Muerto… away!”
Nick danced out of the door with Gus waving a fist at him. “You’re damn lucky I don’t have your Giants cap with me!”
Nick returned with his pack bulging. “Oh my. This has been a profitable assault. Get my buddy Yuri down while I become El Muerto. We’ll film the ending to our mission, and get the hell out of here. I called Paul, and told him to give us a two hour window. He knows about the lab. I left Malik’s gear inside the door of the lab. Yuri, my hanging man, tell me what all this buildup is for. What the hell are you guys training to attack?”
Yuri sobbed nonstop now, unable to endure any position on the chain. “We have not… received our orders for anything. Please… I’m telling you the truth! The safe opened, did it not? Let me down!”
“He is telling the truth. We know you will kill us. What happens now matters little. We are dead men,” Malik said. “We won’t be receiving orders for another month, because of delays in the East from strikes on our cells there.”
“That fits.” Nick went over and lifted Yuri off the hook. “I liked the contents of your safe, Yuri. Very nice.”
John took charge of Yuri with rough enthusiasm.
“We could just skip the cartoon movie, Muerto.”