14
"Commander,I brought the package you requested.” General Rainier's bodyguard stepped into his office, leading a very frazzled looking colonel by the collar of his shirt. "He tried to hide out on post, like that would stopme."
The bodyguard shoved the colonel into the single chair in front of Rainier’s desk. The same faulty lightbulb from before flicked on and offoverhead.
"Not exactly the welcome I was expecting." Colonel Bradshaw straightened in his chair, trying unsuccessfully to appear dignified after he’d just been thrown around like an old dishrag. "My team has located the sister. The evidence will be destroyed tonight. I’ve cleaned up the mess youstarted.”
The general steepled his fingers together and stared thoughtfully at the man who used to serve underneath his command. "Watch your tone, Bradshaw." Rainier's voice remained soft but the colonel would have to be an idiot not to hear the thread of threat lining hiswords.
Bradshaw sneered. "I don't have to watch anything around you anymore. You don't have rank on me. You’re nothing. A fugitive. I could have you arrested and thrown in Leavenworth with the snap of myfingers."
"You mean like this?" Rainier lifted his hand and snapped hisfingers.
On cue, his bodyguard came up behind Bradshaw, wrapped his thick arm around Bradshaw's neck and began to squeeze. Bradshaw kicked and squirmed and clawed at the guard’s armunsuccessfully.
"You see, Colonel, I can snap my fingers, too. Only you won't have the luxury of spending the rest of your life in a federally funded jail cell.” Rainier snapped his fingers again and his bodyguard releasedhim.
Bradshaw gasped and fell to the floor, one bony hand around his throat, the other holding himself up. Rainier nodded and his bodyguard picked Bradshaw up, sat him in the chair and then stepped back in theshadows.
Rainier laced his fingers behind his back and strolled casually around the corner of his beaten-up metal desk, ignoring the roar of the subway train rolling overhead. He locked gazes with Bradshaw, letting the man see the warning in his eyes. "Where's mygold?"
"I don't know," Bradshaw sputtered, still holding onto what was going to be a very bruisedthroat.
"You don't know?" Rainier askedquietly.
Bradshaw scrambled back in his chair, the fear in his eyes growing as he began to realize this scenario wasn't going to play out the way he’d planned. "I had it set up perfectly. I even had that fucking piece of shit Rashid show his face to make it look like a terroristattack."
"And?"
Bradshaw glanced warily over his shoulder, rightfully frightened of the man standing behindhim.
Rainier grabbed Bradshaw’s chin and ripped his head around, squeezing his face between his thumb and fingers in a grip tight enough to leave a bruise. "If he wants to kill you, I promise you won't see it coming. But he works for me, so if you want to live for the next five minutes you better tell me the truth. What happened to the plan? Where is my fuckinggold?"
"One of the men on the team we sent as part of the distraction found out. He knew what we were doing, and he blocked us." Bradshaw yanked his face free, glaring up at the general with hate in his eyes. Hate andfear.
Rainier linked his fingers together behind his back again and turned, picking up his casual stroll as he fought to get his boiling rage under control. He didn't want Bradshaw to know how badly he needed that gold. The ignorant sheik they’d tried to steal from had no right to that amount of wealth, hadn’t done anything with it but sit on it and live in a tent in the middle of the desert. Rainier was going to put it to much greater use—to reestablish his lab, set up a facility, find researchers. As soon as he captured Dr. Averton and Team Mayhem, he wanted to be fully operational in the sameweek.
But that was something he couldn't do withoutfunds.
No matter how much he wanted to have his man snap Bradshaw's neck right then and there, he still needed the colonel. At least until they recovered hisgold.
"Give me the name of the soldier. My guard can handlehim."
The chair squeaked and Rainier turned to see Bradshaw getting shakily to his feet, turning so that he could keep an eye on both Rainier and the guard. "The bomb we had detonated to cover our tracks took out his entireunit."
"AndRashid?"
Bradshaw tugged at his collar, sweat beading his temples. "He – he'sdisappeared."
"With my gold. You lost a low-level terrorist and let some grunt steal mygold?”
Rainier glanced at his guard, who immediately crowded Bradshaw and pinned him against the moldy brick wall, one arm at his throat, the other holding a small deadly looking blade against Bradshaw's cheek. Rainier approached the pair, allowing a small measure of his anger to show. "We had a deal, colonel. I help you launder the gold after you give me myportion."
"Please –" Bradshaw's words ended in a strangled gargle as the guard shoved his meaty forearm against the man'swindpipe.
"John, let's remind the colonel of what happens to men who try to double cross me." Rainier took a step back. He didn't want his clothes to get splattered with Bradshaw'sblood.
John, his guard, released Bradshaw from the wall and then grabbed his arm, dragging him across the room to Rainier's desk. He shoved him down on his chest and drug his arms across the top. Then John shackled Bradshaw’s wrist to the table, pulled out his knife and buried it in Bradshaw’s hand, pinning him to thedesk.
