Nowhere Safe

CHAPTER 17



The Chessmaster stood on top of a ten-story building and waited for a sat phone call to go through. The view of downtown Miami sprawling in all directions beneath overcast skies included the DEA task force offices two blocks away.

When The General answered his phone, the Chessmaster first made sure they were on secure lines before addressing the coded message The General had sent an hour ago. “What do you want?”

The General’s rough voice complained, “Is that electronic filter necessary? It’s not like I don’t know who you are and I hate listening to it.”

“Yes. It’s necessary.” Because The General would be taping this conversation in hopes of using it as leverage or blackmail. Not happening. “The sooner you get to the point, the less you’ll have to endure the sound.”

With no choice, he moved ahead. “There’s a contraband shipment coming in tonight. We have to insure that High Vision’s product makes it through this time.”

“I know. One of our people in the agency caught word of it on the street.”

“What about the distributor?”

“I thought Salazar had been grabbed. He disappeared for two days, but came back on my radar last night when he moved product for someone else. He must have gotten spooked after that last bust went down and he barely escaped. High Vision could make this easier on all of us if they chose better people.”

“They won’t need Salazar after the next two shipments.”

That sounded like a change in plans the Chessmaster hadn’t expected. “Why?”

“Don’t ask questions about things that are not your concern. You just need to implode the task force. How’re you coming along with that?”

You don’t want to be insulting me, General. “Everything is on track. I told you, the key to taking down the core group in the task force is discrediting Zane Jackson and pointing the evidence in his direction. That’s working.”

“It’s taking too long. Can’t you come up with a more expedient way?”

“Not if you still want the core group destroyed without any suspicion of a set-up. Jackson’s not an agent, but he’s close to two agents. Been best friends with one since childhood. Between that and his military black ops experience, he’s privy to enough of the operations to make him the perfect patsy. Especially once I finish breaking his sister. She has no idea who is stalking her.”

“You don’t think she’ll fold and run to him for help?”

“No. She loves him too much to risk his life. And she’s stronger than I expected, which plays into my hand. The more I toy with her, the more determined she is to protect her brother. She’ll keep dancing to my music with no idea that I’m leading her to her death and that Zane will be held responsible for killing his sister.”

“An ambitious plan, if you can pull it off.”

If had never been part of the equation. “I can do my part as long as your man does his to get the information to Salazar. Speaking of your man, when will I hear from him?”

“He can’t help with tonight’s contraband shipment.”

“You told me when Colbert was snatched that your man could fill in.”

“I’m telling you differently. If you have a problem performing, say so.”

The Chessmaster considered several responses before choosing one that had a payoff. “Nothing a future favor can’t fix.”

“We can work that out.” The General coughed and grumbled like a bear in pain. “My man will be in touch to discuss shipment number six. As soon as that unit clears customs, he’ll contact you about plans for activation.”

“How soon?”“Days.”

“Good enough. Anything else?”

“Just one more thing. I had checks run on all the agents in the task force again after Colbert was caught. I wasn’t convinced Zane Jackson fingered Colbert on his own. I think one of them could be there undercover, maybe still hunting for the leak.”

The Chessmaster hadn’t been any more convinced than The General, but Zane had played a part in drawing attention to Colbert. Could someone be inside the task force in a covert position? Besides present company, of course. “Who?”

“Josh Robertson. That’s all I have. He checks out as FBI, but I know a false identity when I see one. He might be an agent pulled out of black ops just to find you. Regardless, he has to be dealt with but not until after this unit is tested.”

Damn. The General was right, because eliminating Robertson now would upset the Chessmaster’s carefully arranged game board. “I should be able to come up with a way to take him down with Zane and Trish Jackson.”

“You’re one of the more clever Orion Hunters I’ve met,” The General commented with a hint of admiration in his voice. “Impressive strategic planning.”

“Clever? At my IQ level, that’s an insult. This isn’t about impressing you, but getting what I want.”

“Hand me a successful operation and I’ll hand you the keys to the kingdom.”

He’d better, or The General would suffer the consequences of disappointing a clever opponent.