Page 25 of Peaceful Chaos

Ford set up his office to meet with several people at once. It'll be a tight fit, but we will all be able to sit together in there. Better than sitting on the mats in a circle like some kind of summer camp for killers.

Javier takes the position of power behind the desk. "If you were a prospective client, I'd sit here and have you tell me what you wanted the Soldiers of Chaos to do for you. What the client wants is seldom what they actually need from us. How about we skip that part, and I move straight to telling you what I know and what I think you need?"

Lucien crosses his arms, but says nothing, yet. He's always bristled under authority figures, but even his rebellious nature recognizes when he needs to exercise patience.

Seeing that no one is going to interrupt him, Javier begins. "I've had my eye on Damien for a long time. Longer than I was in Chaos even. When I was in the FBI, there were whispers, but he always managed to slip out of any case being built against him. I wish I had watched him closer, because if we had I'd have discovered my nephew sooner. Unfortunately, Chaos was never contracted to intervene in his organization, so my father didn't catch him either."

"Why were you watching him, if you weren't being paid to do so?" Brett asks the question we're all thinking.

Javier cocks his head to the side. "You know I was an agent. There's no way an investigation of Damien Blackthorne hasn't come across your desk from time to time. I also freelanced with my father when he needed me."

"But that's—"

"Against regulations? C'mon, Marks, you strike me as a guy who can color outside the lines from time to time."

Marks shakes his head. "Not like you're suggesting."

"I'm suggesting that you aren't a pompous, self-righteous boy scout like your partner. You can see the whole picture and realize that when dealing with criminals, you aren't going to be able to escape without a tiny stain on your soul. I'm suggesting that if it meant preserving the letter of the law or saving a life, you'd save the person and deal with the consequences. Unless I'm wrong about you?"

Marks's defensive posture relaxes. "You aren't wrong."

"As I was saying, Chaos ran across Damien from time to time. He runs one of the largest criminal organizations in the western hemisphere. We aren't a law enforcement agency, so we didn't have a reason to act. The government tends to frown on vigilante justice, as I'm sure you are aware, Agent Marks. I did try and use evidence I would dig up when I worked for Chaos, but there was always someone around to shove it under the rug. Deep pockets will buy a lot of second chances."

Marks chews his lip. "Yeah, it's been hard guarding these guys when you have to second guess the motivations of everyone you work with."

Javier gives a slight tip of his head before continuing with his story. "It was the guns that brought him to the attention of Chaos. We were hired to break the supply chain of guns down to the cartel in South America, so the military could continue their covert operations in Columbia. Damien was almost solely responsible for arming them, and we made sure to interrupt his smuggling routes. He ran a shipping company that was legitimate on the surface, moving agricultural goods. We were able to infiltrate the docks and delay them long enough for the military and a few of our units to launch an offensive."

"How did that work out?" Ted asks.

Javier shrugs. "We took down one cartel only to have it replaced by another in short succession. Organized crime is like fighting a fucking Greek hydra. Cut one head off and two more grow in its place. But I'm not telling you anything you don't already know am I, Mr. O'Brian?"

"If you know so much you'd know I go by Reese now. But, you're right, as long as there's a demand for guns, drugs, or sex, there's going to be someone willing to sell it." Ted tries to appear unaffected, but it's clear he's angry the Soldiers of Chaos didn't end Damien when they had him in their crosshairs.

"I can see you passing judgment. Not going after Damien Blackthorne has always haunted me. I told myself I was confined by the law, and I was. Chaos didn't do it either, because we usually don't take on a fight unless there's a benefit to the men. I don't like asking them to take risks without a reward."

"A safer world isn't a reward?" Lucien speaks for the first time.

Javier leans forward, his arms pressed flat against the desk. "Don't kid yourself. This is never going to be a safe world. Did I imagine there would be a time I'd have to act and take out your father? Yes. But I knew that even if I did, there would just be someone else to take his place. Organizations like his need to be dismantled from the inside out. Which is precisely why Chaos started working with Martin Gerrick, the current one, to get as many of the players off the board before we ever even considered making a move."

"Then, why now?" Lucien pushes.

"Because Damien went after my family. He broke my sister, just as sure as he broke your mother. I suspect Jackson isn't entirely whole either. I've always sworn off personal vendettas, but some promises aren't meant to be kept."

"Are we getting to the part where you tell us what you know and what you think we need?" I say, trying to move the conversation forward.

"Okay, I'll make it simple. You need protection. No more of this hiding in plain sight bullshit. The only reason you have made it this far is because Damien Blackthorne has a plan in motion that doesn't involve coming after any of you, yet. It's coming, and rather soon if what I'm hearing is true," Javier says.

"What are you hearing?" I ask.

"I know charges are coming against Damien any day now," he says.

Brett jolts upright. "How did you hear that?"

"You feds always seem to forget that information can be bought. I've seen it too many times to forget that lesson."

Marks jumps from his seat and takes his phone out of his pocket. "I've got to make a call."

As soon as he leaves the room, Javier comes around the desk and closes the door. "Now we can talk. Arthur told me I needed to gather a legal team. He tried, but my contacts are better. It's too late for them to meet you tonight, but you can speak to them in the morning. We're going to leave through the back right now and get in the cars that I brought. GPS coordinates are loaded into the cars' navigation systems." He tosses keys to Shane and me.

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