“So, who is he?” Ryden asked.
“Martin Smith. He and his Marine pals are consultants for Bullard Business Import and Export Solutions, an internationalshipping corporation based in Luxembourg with offices in Tampa Bay, Fort Pierce, and Miami.”
King frowned. “Some of the biggest shipping ports in Florida.”
It was all starting to come together, and Ryden didn’t like the picture forming one bit. “So we have a bunch of Marines who just happen to be in town for the same wedding who work for a company with offices in major shipping ports, and then yesterday, the owner of Gibson Global, a major import-export company in St. Augustine, gets blown up.”
“Martin mentioned that he knew the groom through mutual acquaintances,” Jay said. “How they all met once a week to play basketball and have a few beers.”
Jack nodded. “That mutual acquaintance is the groom’s brother-in-law, Drew, whose boyfriend, Kyle, works for—drumroll, please—Gibson Global.”
“Well, that sure as hell isn’t a coincidence,” Joker said.
“Did I mention,” Jack added, sounding very pleased with himself. “That Drew is a Marine? That’s how the groom met his bride. She’s Drew’s sister. Drew wasn’t at the wedding because he’s on deployment, but Kyle was there.”
Jay sighed. “So itwasthem. Martin said, ‘This would have been so much easier if that asshole had just agreed.’ and then the other guy replied, ‘He didn’t, so we need to improvise, adapt, and overcome.’ They must have tried to get Gibson to agree to something, and when he didn’t, they killed him.”
Lucky nodded. “It fits. Especially with how desperate Gibson was for a meeting with us about executive protection.”
Joker pursed his lips. “Do you think Kyle is working with them?”
“I don’t think so,” Jack replied. “I’ve been looking into his financials, checking security footage of him at Gibson Global, and following his digital footprint. Nothing suggests that he isanything other than a regular guy who works in the loading dock. When Gibson was killed, Kyle was at work, and he gave no indication he knew what had just gone down with his boss.”
“That doesn’t make any sense,” Ryden said. “If Kyle isn’t workin’ with them, there’s gotta be something else. You said Kyle works in the loadin’ dock. Has there been any weird activity with his access? Could they have stolen his access code or card?”
Jack shook his head. “I checked the company logs, and he was on site every time his access card was scanned.”
“What do we know about Bullard?” King asked Jack.
“You mean other than the fact that the company doesn’t exist?” Jack tapped the screen, and what almost looked like a stock photo of a building appeared. “They did a damned good job making it look real, but it’s a front for whatever shady shit they’ve got going on at these shipping ports. I wouldn’t be surprised if they were looking to expand.”
Ryden frowned. “But St. Augustine doesn’t have a cargo shipping port. It’s mostly air cargo and small marinas.”
Jay threw his arm out and grabbed Ryden’s wrist. “Oh no.”
“What?” Ryden asked, covering Jay’s hand with his. He could feel everyone’s eyes on him, but he didn’t care. Something had Jay freaked out.
“St. Augustine might not have a cargo shipping port, but there’s a big one not far from St. Augustine.”
The blood drained from Ace’s face. “Shit. I need to call Colton.” He darted from the room without another word.
“What just happened?” Saint asked.
Ryden cursed under his breath. “JAXPORT. Joshua said that Gibson had a contract with Connolly Maritime, and Colton had lunch with Gibson the day before he died.”
“JAXPORT is the largest container port in Florida,” King said. “It’s also the nation’s largest vehicle-handling port.”
“Why wouldn’t they go for Jacksonville first?” Lucky asked, confused.
“Good question,” Ryden murmured. They were already involved with the other major ports in Florida. Why leave out one of the biggest?
Jack shook his head. “Connolly Maritime is a huge, global shipping company. It’s worth billions. You can’t just call and schedule an appointment with the CEO and owner. Not to mention, the companies that Connolly Maritime works with are heavily vetted. These guys have been operating under everyone’s radar long enough to have established themselves in three major ports. They’ve done their homework, and they’re careful. A simple online search will show Colton Connolly is married to a former Green Beret and co-owner of a large security company with government contracts. Gibson was an easier target. I bet they tried to use Gibson as a way in, and when Gibson refused, they took him out.”
“Oh my God,” Jay gasped, his eyes filled with fear. “What if they weren’t trying to kidnapme?”
Everyone turned their attention to Jay.
“Joshua was with me. Next to Colton, Joshua is the most important person at Connolly Maritime. Most people don’t know that.”
