Page 89 of Master of Lies

“Tomorrow morning, early,” Clearwater said. “The team flying to Portland now. I’ll brief them as soon as they arrive, and we’ll get things in order right away.”

“Hurry,” Grifo bleated. “Please. Just hurry up with that.”

“As soon as possible.” Clearwater assured him. “Do you have the info?”

“Right here.” Grifo pulled a small silver flash drive from his pants pocket. “Bank account info, photographs. Data from the lab where the DNA and blood samples are kept. Other stuff, too. Financials that only Mickey understood.”

Boer sucked in a breath. “That lying prick was going to fuck me up. Maybe I will take his wife and daughters. Just on principle. Have fun with them while he watches.”

“We don’t have time for you to punish everyone who bugs you, Wex.” Nicole sounded bored. “Shut up and let me listen.”

He disliked her tone, but she had a point. They were on a tight schedule, and besides, punishing Rachelle Grifo would be tedious. He’d much rather punish Freya Masters. He’d bet good money that uppity little cunt wouldn’t be tedious at all. He’d get lots of fight out of her, lots of sass. She’d be all kinds of juicy fun.

Jed Clearwater’s response to Grifo was inaudible, but the flash drive went into the pocket of the man’s black jacket. They shook hands.

“It’s time,” he said.

“I know.” Nicole’s voice sounded faintly annoyed. She was already opening the app on her phone, and checked the settings. She activated the gas, which began silently blasting out of all vents in the room.

The bar display on the phone app showed the concentration of soporific gas in the room rising quickly. Grifo was the first to react. He staggered, catching himself on the back of one of the couches, even though Clearwater was actually closer to the nearest vent the gas was coming from. Predictable.

Ever since their Ranger days, the bastard had been boot-leather tough in any conditions. Heat, cold, dry, wet, noise, dark, nothing took him down. Fucking Unredeemable. Thought he was such a fucking hero, up on his high horse.

He’d die knowing he was nothing more than a worthless piece of shit.

Grifo was now sprawled on the floor, only his ass currently visible in the camera. Clearwater was visibly sagging too, but still looking around for the camera that he knew had to be there. He would never see it. The Grifos certainly never had.

“You always were a sneaky little prick,” Clearwater said, very clearly, as he thudded down to his knees, behind the couch, and then pitched over, out of sight.

He grabbed the two gas masks and handed one to Nicole. “Let’s go. Hurry.”

“What’s the big hurry?” Nicole said. “We have at least twenty minutes, and that’s a conservative estimate.”

“This is Jed Clearwater,” Boer said. “He’s like a fucking cyborg. Drive up as close to the front door of the house as you can get. He’s heavy. The less distance we have to drag him, the better.”

Nicole drove swiftly out of the concealing foliage and up onto the driveway. She pulled up behind Grifo’s SUV. They put on their gas masks, and pushed the door open.

Clearwater lay behind the couch, eyes still open, amazingly. Still conscious.

He stared up at Wex as he approached, blinking. His eyes watered. Wex aimed a hard kick to his ribs as Nicole wrenched his arms back and cuffed him.

“Hey, fuckface,” Wex said. “I’m going to get that Masters girl. I’ll make her scream like a little bitch. It’ll be very relaxing for me, after the stress you put me through. Maybe I’ll even let you watch. Think you’d like that?” He reached down into Clearwater’s pocket and pulled out the flash drive, waving it in front of the other man’s face. “You’re going to tell me where you stashed her. Don’t think you won’t. Everybody breaks eventually.”

Clearwater was gasping for breath, but his lips drew back, his teeth showing in a thin, dangerous smile that said everything without words. Arrogant fuck.

Nicole was busy securing Clearwater’s feet, so he left her to it and strolled over to where Grifo lay sprawled, his face squashed into the parquet floor. Out cold.

Wex looked over and saw Clearwater staring at him. Trying to speak, but failing. Just conscious enough to look horrified. Small pleasures.

“You know something?” he said. “I would’ve let the stupid fuckwit live, if you hadn’t gotten yourself mixed up it. So this one’s on you, Clearwater.” He raised his gun.

Bam.Grifo’s body twitched. A pool formed behind his head on the wood floor.

Wex watched it spread as Clearwater lost consciousness. At last, that arrogant bastard would learn who was boss. Not that it would do him much good now.

It was far too late for that.

CHAPTER31

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