Page 82 of Into the Gray Zone

The groom came back, drink in hand, and said, “Are you ready to meet the host?”

Knuckles nodded, saying, “Sure.”

The groom himself seemed to be nervous, as if meeting Thakkar made him skittish. He clearly didn’t want to be associated with Knuckles, but Annaka had forced him, and now he was worried that Knuckles could impact his future solely because he was the one to introduce them. Or maybe Thakkar had no idea Knuckles even existed, and the groom was just nervous about being in his presence.

It was his first indicator that the people here looked at Riva Thakkar as something more than simply rich. In a room full of people with just as much money as he possessed, his position was somehow higher. At least in the eyes of the Indians at the party.

The groom led him into the southern room, and Knuckles saw a line of people waiting to talk to Riva, the man politely greeting each party.

Knuckles waited his turn, studying him. He was about sixty-five years old and slight, but his mannerisms didn’t reflect that of an olderman. With a manicured beard and wearing a diamond-encrusted watch that was twice the size of his wrist, he clearly relished his position.

The groom left him, moving down the line talking to other people, and Knuckles thought about returning to the other room, convinced that Thakkar hadn’t asked to meet. The line inched forward and he felt his phone vibrate. He pulled it out, saw it was Pike, and answered.

“Hey, what’s your status?”

Pike said, “We’re in the air right now. We’ll be in Jaipur in about thirty minutes. What’s going on there? Did you lock it down?”

“Pike, trust me, it’s locked down. It has been since before you called. Nobody is going to attack this place unless they have an armored personnel carrier. There is security all over the place, and that’s just Thakkar’s guys. Everyone else that’s been invited has their own security. They’d be crazy to try anything here. How’s Veep doing?”

“He’s fine. Sitting here bitching about his sling. Look, I think those guys are up to something. They aren’t in Jaipur for the tourist sites. We’re missing a key somewhere. I don’t know what it is, but we’re missing it.”

“Well, it’s not happening tonight. Maybe they’re going to try to kill Thakkar after he leaves here, but they aren’t doing it at this party unless they’re crazy.”

“Did you tell Nadia what we found?”

“Yes, of course I did. She told the head of Thakkar’s security, and he’s taken appropriate measures. He’s a scary dude, Pike. He’s not going to let anything happen.”

“Does the RAW have anything to do with the security there?”

“No, they don’t. Wait, what? Do you think they’re involved?”

“I have no idea, but if those assholes are going to try something it’s because they have an insider, and the RAW is the only group that’s under suspicion. They have nothing to do with the security?”

“None at all. It’s all Thakkar’s men, and they don’t look like they’d tolerate any bullshit.”

Knuckles heard a pop on the other side of the building, then a woman scream loud enough for Pike to hear through the phone, followed by more pops. He said, “What was that?”

“I don’t know. I’ll call you back.”

Knuckles took one step toward the patio, saw a flash of light, and then felt the shock of an explosion. He hit the floor just as another explosion shattered the air on the patio. He saw multiple bodies thrown back by the force, the wounds glaring through the festive clothing, and then the gunfire started, sounding like firecrackers thrown by a child, but the damage wrought was anything but childlike.

He turned into the room, knowing they were coming for Thakkar, and saw the head of security dragging him toward a side door. He saw the groom grasping at a second security man, begging to be protected, the others in the room diving left and right, trying desperately to escape.

The security man aimed his pistol at the groom’s head and pulled the trigger, his skull splitting open like a melon. He then aimed his pistol into the room and began firing, hitting the guests who were running about. Knuckles dove behind a table and scrambled forward, not wanting to give the man a sitting target, and threat crystalized like he was staring at a three-dimensional painting, the hidden picture appearing like magic.

It’s not the RAW, it’s Thakkar’s own security.

The gunfire stopped. He rolled upright, seeing the men dragging Thakkar out the French doors at the side of the room. They disappeared in the darkness, other guests following them out the doors, and he gave chase, exiting on the run. He looked right, seeing a hodgepodge of people fleeing deeper into the Oberoi grounds, but didn’t seeThakkar. He looked left and saw the two security men fighting Thakkar, forcing him to run down a path to the rear of the building. One hit him in the head with the butt of his pistol and the other turned, hearing Knuckles coming toward him.

Knuckles dove into him like he was blindsiding a quarterback, slamming him to the earth hard enough to jolt his pistol free. He punched the man once in the head, snatched the pistol up, and heard the other man begin shooting. He rolled away, took a knee behind a small shrub, and fired back.

He saw Jaiden drop Thakkar and duck down, trying to find cover. Jaiden fired blindly toward where he believed Knuckles was and then began running, disappearing behind the building.

Knuckles scuttled to Thakkar in a crouch, keeping his weapon up, but checking on the vitals of the billionaire.

Thakkar batted his hands away, trying to sit up, saying, “I’m fine, I’m fine.”

Knuckles drove him back to the earth, saying, “Shut the fuck up and stay down.”

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