Page 32 of Into the Gray Zone

Mr.Chin saw Peanut’s eyes squint. He said, “What? Dead how?”

Mr.Chin held up his hands and said, “We ran into some Americans. I didn’t know they were there, and I honestly don’t know if they were there on purpose, but they caused the death of your men. And I need to stop them from interfering in my mission. It’s still in play.”

“Why should I give a shit about your mission?”

“Other than the pay, you mean?”

Peanut moved closer, towering over Mr.Chin. He said, “Don’t toy with me. Those were two of my best men, and you got them killed. I’m not one to throw good money after bad. Or good men.”

Mr.Chin said, “I know, I understand, but the Americans are a concern. The local police have the bodies of your men, and the United States FBI might become interested. I regret it immensely, but their death might bring you more pain. That’s all I’m saying.”

“Pain how?”

“Well, my mission was thwarted, but I don’t believe they know what my mission was. All they have are the bodies. They were the only two who died.”

“So you didn’t get that fuck Thakkar, and instead just brought heat onmyorganization? I ought to throw you to the wolves. Nobody here likes the Chinese. Not me, not the Americans, not the RAW.”

Mr.Chin said, “But you like my money and my influence. You want to continue supporting your Muslim friends under the protection of Pakistan? You want to keep your business going here, in India and the UAE? I’ll allow that by having my country turn a blind eye, but if you threaten me again, I’ll make sure you’re crushed.”

Mr. Chin took a step toward him, and even through the discrepancy in size, Mr. Chin’s venom leaked out. He stared Peanut in the eyeand said, “You still function because we haven’t joined in the effort to stop you, but trust me, if we did, you would cease to exist. UAE is our friend now, and Pakistan has always played a double game. They care more about China than they do about your little business.”

Mr. Chin backed off and said, “Don’t ever threaten me again.”

Peanut took a breath and then said, “What do you want?”

Mr. Chin said, “I don’t need you to do anything for the mission. I have that. All I need is for you to interdict this group.”

He swung his backpack around and pulled out a file folder, opening it to a Grolier Recovery Services cover page. He said, “I’m not even sure if these guys are against me, but I need them interfered with.”

Peanut took the folder, saying, “Interfered with, or eliminated?”

“At this point, just interfered with. Give them enough trouble to be stuck with a police investigation. Mugging, robbery, whatever. Just trip them up. They might simply be tourists, so I don’t want them harmed enough to draw an investigation by the United States.”

Peanut flipped through the file, saying, “And if they aren’t tourists? How will you know?”

“If they follow my men, if they track Thakkar, then I’ll know.”

“Track to where?”

“Delhi. Thakkar is going to New Delhi, and then headed to Agra for a visit to the Taj Mahal. He’s basically rented half of the Taj for himself, under the rubric of ‘security concerns.’ If they go to Delhi, I’ll know. But you’ll prevent that, because I want them out of the hunt before they even have a chance to follow.”

Chapter20

Jennifer took a sip of her frozen daquiri and said, “We’re going to look out of place if we keep drinking virgins.”

Brett pulled the tiny umbrella out of his virgin piña colada and said, “You want to climb after a little juice?”

Jennifer said, “Not particularly, but I figured you’d at least get the real deal, being how this is supposed to be a walk in the park and all.”

He grinned and said, “There’s nothing that’s a walk in the park. That’s literally not a thing in our line of work.”

She smiled back and said, “You regretting coming with me or something? I could have asked for Veep or Knuckles.”

He took a pull through the straw and said, “I’m regretting having to sit in this bar for an hour, that’s for sure. But I’ll never regret playing backup for you. If you weren’t here, it would be me climbing, and I hate that shit.”

That brought out a full smile. Outside of Pike, he was the one she felt the closest bond with. On the surface they were an odd couple—an athletic blonde woman paired alongside a fireplug of muscle with black skin—but anyone looking would see only the cover of the book, having no idea what was inside the pages.

When Pike had introduced her as an equal to the team, Brett hadbeen the first to accept her, never questioning her sex and focusing only on her abilities. He liked to say it was because they both hated their designate callsigns, but she knew it was more. She wouldn’t admit it to Pike, but Brett understood her at a level different from the rest of the men. The closest before that had been Decoy, but he’d been killed right next to her on an operation. It still haunted her with feelings of guilt. She was constantly second-guessing what she should have done differently, and because of it she had built a wall. Brett had instinctively understood, which conversely made her connect with him. He never tried to penetrate her armor, and never played the man-card, respecting her skills simply for what they were.

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