Chapter Two
“Iknow exactly wherethey went,” Bane informed him.
“How is that...possible?”James stammered.
“You forget, this is my playground.I know every path, every bush and every road around this area.I grew up in this house and my grandfather had his own exercises and lessons that he would put me through.Starting at just eight years old, he would drag me out of bed in the middle of the freakin’ night and throw me outside.He did this often too at all hours of the day and night.He would tell me he left something out there for me and I couldn’t come home until I found it.He wouldn’t tell me what it was or where to even start looking for it.”
“What the hell?”James growled.“That sounds cruel.”
Bane shook his head.“No, not really.He wanted me to know my own backyard.To know how to extract myself from any situation I might find myself in.He wanted me to find my own way around any terrain.Those lessons were just one part of my education and I learned skills from them that he knew I would never get anywhere else.How to move on my own, how to read the land, how to hide from anyone I didn’t want to notice me.He always left me instructions as to what I was looking for and hints of where it might be.He would tell me right from the beginning that I had to find what he left for me.That it wouldn’t be easy but the prize would be worth the hunt.And it always was.”
James just shook his head.“Hell of a lesson there, brother.”
Bane nodded at him.“Those lessons showed me a smaller world in the bog world.I found out later that the skills he gave me kept me alive when I would have been dead without them,” he said softly.“My grandfather taught me everything he knew so I would survive.That was just the way I grew up.”
James just stared at him for a long moment then he nodded.“Ok I get it, but how the hell are we gonna find Shay and Stone?We don’t even know where they went down.”
Bane just smiled and curled his finger at him.“Follow me.”He led the way to yet another secret room.One filled with file cabinets and wall maps.He pushed some of the maps to one side until he found the one he was looking for.
James studied the map for a long moment then he began to see it in a new light.He snapped his head up and stared at Bane.“This is a map of this area, isn’t it?”
Bane nodded.“Yes, it is.”He pointed at the land around the mansion.“This is where we are right now.”Then he motioned to another area.“This is the Owens place.”Then he motioned to the far right of the map and tapped the map with his finger.“I have a feeling this is the area where Shay and his copter went down.”
“How can you know that?”James asked.
Bane sighed hard and said, “Because that area has scrub enough to camouflage someone with a ground to surface missile which is what they had to have in order to bring down Shay’s copter.They would need the scrub to hide the debris of the copter.That area is thick enough to hide a lot of sins.That’s where I’d start looking first.”
James thought about this then asked, “Is that where you sent the others?”
Bane nodded.“Sam said their IT guy reported that was where they lost Shay’s copter.Apparently, Shay and Stone were on their way to New York City and they would have had to go right over that area.”
James shook his head.“Do you think they’re still alive?”
Bane shrugged and sighed heavily.“I don’t know.I hope that Sarah hasn’t lost a bother.I hope that none of us has lost Shay either because the world would literally be a darker place full of dark forces without him.We need to go and help with the search.”
“What about Jasper and Charlie?”
Bane chuckled.“No one would ever miss those cretins.”
James rolled his eyes.“You know that is not what I meant.”
Bane actually smirked.“Yeah, I know.They are going to be spending some time in that room.They’ll scream loud and long when the walls start moving.They will have time to realize just what they did and when we get back, maybe they’ll be in more of a mood to tell us who they hired.That’s when the real game begins.All we need is a name and then the hunter turns into the prey.”
James stood there and studied him then he asked, “You are enjoying this little game, aren’t you?”
Bane nodded in agreement.“Yeah James, I am enjoying this because that’s what it is to me.A game.This is me pitting my brain against another man’s.A man who has no idea just how far I will go to find him.Or how far I will go to get my pound of flesh.A game I used to be very good at.One in which I could always walk away from.However, this is going to challenge every move I’ve ever made in my past and I will have to decide just how far I’ll go before this is over.I have a feeling whoever shot down that copter will test every boundary I ever had before this is over.”He shrugged.“The world will never miss that kind of man but the longer I’m with VIM the longer I realize that the world will miss men like Shay and Stone.Besides, how can I look my Sarah in the eyes if I don’t try to find her brother?I can’t let her down...no, I won’t let her down.I would die for that woman and I would kill for her as well.”
James went quiet.This might be the first and only time Bane ever shared a personal emotion.James felt like he needed to soak this in.But he knew better than to say a damn thing.If he did, Bane would clam up and not share anything for a while.James really felt like a lot of progress had been made with Bane.Yes, Cane had helped to get him where he was.But he also realized that Bane cared about more people than ever before.Not that James wouldEVERtell him this.
Bane turned and walked to the front door.He looked back at James, “Are you coming with me?”
James got his wits back together as he shook his head and limped down the hall to the front door.“Yeah, yeah, I’m coming.”
An hour later...
They reached the place where Bane thought they would find the wreckage of the copter.Before they even got out of the vehicle, Bane texted Sam to let them know they were out looking for any sign of the two missing men.He did add that he believed there might be killers in the area that meant to finish off any survivors of the copter wreck.
Bane exited the vehicle and went to the back of his SUV.He took out a large backpack and then picked up a smaller duffle.
