My keepers dropped me off where I started. It felt like it in more than one way. I realized I needed a fresh angle on this and I needed it fast. Why wasn’t there any information on these guys? Even in wrong circles there was always information to be had, but not for these guys it seemed. I knew the mob knew more, but they couldn’t tell me. That in itself spoke volumes.

  I knew I had missed something. I had a feeling that I knew something and that it was important. It annoyed the hell out of me. I decided I might as well buy myself a coffee in the first café I found and see if I could remember something about the last two days. The cafe’s name was Re-Flect.

  Just my damn luck.

  Well, it wasn’t really a café. It was more of a restaurant, and a nice one at that. I ordered a classic Caesar Salad and some water. The place was typically chic, with oiled wood and linen napkins, but the prices weren’t bad and the service was very, very good. I didn’t get the waitress phone number, even though I asked. But she told me I was welcome to try to get it another day.

  The waitress, whose name was Jenny according to her name tag, was a cute dark-haired girl with really dark brown eyes, sharp eyebrows, and an eyebrow slit. She was tall, close to a hundred and ninety centimeters, if I guessed right, but well-muscled and graceful. I would guess she trained either some kind of martial arts or she was a dancer. She had a no-nonsense attitude and gave brisk service with a small smile for those who showed some manners. She was stunning, and those dark, dark eyes caught mine every time I glanced in her direction.

  Not that this was a good time to start a relationship. And going for pity with I-will-soon-be-dead line would have been too embarrassing. I shook my head and tried to concentrate on my little problem.

  Why the hell couldn’t I find anyone connected to this group? Why did they not have the usual I’m-so-fucking-good-I-don’t-need-to-be-careful attitude. Or any other ego-deficiency that would let me find some information. I would settle for anything at all.

  I spent a couple of hours at the restaurant drinking copious amounts of coffee. Or rather Espresso. Funny thing is that the amount of oil and tannic acid is much lower in an espresso than in a regular cup of coffee. Something about the time it takes for the water to go through the coffee, I think. But I still drank so much my hands shook and my breasts got tics.

  I had looked at my problem from every angle. But I felt like I was missing something. Then it hit me. I understood why John had been so damn afraid. He had met these people! John was scared shit-less of these people and he would only be that scared had they actually scared the shit out of him in person. The only way to scare John, was to show him that he didn’t stand a chance – face-to-face. And the way these people had scared him shook him to the bone! They must have done something really nasty, because John didn’t have enough imagination to be this scared of anything but what he had seen with his own eyes.

  None of that matter though I smiled evilly. I was going after Forrest Gump and his accomplice. I was really looking forward to meeting up with me’ old mate, John Goosan. Maybe I would get to hit over the head again. That would be a blast.

  Then there was Terrence, whoever he was. I needed some info on him, but if John really was in charge, which I doubted, I would find him in a couple of hours. John was a creature of habit, so he always set things up the same way. Same type of hotel. Same type of car. Same type of whore. And so on. Always the same, without fail.

  Terrence was probably a whole ‘nother kind of duck, and I knew I might have to break my promise about him walking away from this one. It bothered me, but not enough to stop considering it. Terrence own actions would see him dead or alive. But whatever happened I would not feel sorry for someone who set out to become a contract killer.

  I paid my bill and left a healthy tip. I didn’t have to, but since Jenny the waitress was kind enough to give me something to look forward to, a tip was the least I could do. I stepped out of the place with a big smile on my lips.

  I wondered why the hitter group here in Chicago would have met up with John in the first place. John follows orders for the most part and can be trusted to a point, but he has got the IQ of basketball and he can be scared to give up everything. It didn’t seem like a safe thing to do, and these guys always played it safe. That I knew of, anyway. And that was the operative word, ‘knew.’

  This might not be the first time they fucked up. It might be that Mike Sunderland, being in the same business, convinced them to meet with John. Or John already knew something about this group.

  There was another much more plausible explanation. John Goosan came from Chicago to Phoenix over ten years ago. He had lost a client and had to relocate. The client put himself in harm’s way, as John described it. He never admitted to losing a client, but everyone knew anyway. He might have done more than lose a client – he might have turned his client over to the opposition.

  So maybe John wasn’t just stupid. Maybe he was even more of a coward than I thought. Damn, but it did make sense. This group would never have let John run around on his own, unless he had done something to warrant his get-out-of-death-free card. He must have bargained with them and persuaded them that he was more worth to them alive than dead. They had no idea what a stupid mistake they had made. I started whistling as I walked away.

  It didn’t take too long for my contacts to find information on John and and the new guy Terrance.

  Terrence Sinclair, now there is an evil name if I had ever heard one, was a former Hong Kong police officer. Young Terrance had left Hong Kong some ten years after it had reverted back to China, only working one year in the Honk Kong Police. After that, he had worked for a Seattle Security firm, doing mostly on-site security planning and some CPO work. He had no priors and no military record. He was well trained and had some experience in field work, but mostly it was planning and building security. Terrence was branching out, so to speak.

  So why was John in charge? This guy was more experienced. More competent and certainly better trained than John, so why the hell had Mike done this setup? To monitor John? Make me feel secure that I would make mistakes? To kill John? Perhaps to kill Terrence? Maybe all of the above. But whatever the reason for his presence, Terrence Sinclair would have to be taken care of before I had a chat with my good old friend John.

  I didn’t even make it to my garage before I had a real lead on John. It seemed that he had, true to his nature, parked his behind in a small inn near an airport. In this case only ten minutes from Greater Rockford. He had placed himself a bit further from downtown than I had expected, but otherwise it was all the same.

  Thanks to a friend in Hertz and their NeverLost system I found John’s probable whereabouts after forty-five minutes. Rental cars is not a good way to go these days if you’d like to remain unnoticed, unless you had a good false identity. Doing things the way you always done it in combination with natural stupidity will get you caught. John had used one of his old aliases and false driver’s licenses. One that I knew of from Phoenix. He thought that John Goodman was a good alias. Probably because if he changed too many letters, he wouldn’t remember it.

  Always check the most stupid and improbable alternative before anything else, because if it is one thing that is consistent in this universe; it is stupidity! Never mind the speed of light.

  Problem number two, after finding John, was finding Terrence. I had no images on him, and there should have been some on the internet. I suspected that wouldn’t be as easy to find Terrance, unless I got lucky.

  The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  As I looked at the setting sun, I decided to go and find John anyway. Sooner or later, someone would spot me and let the hitters know, and then the shooting would start. If I survived this day, tomorrow would see more killers on my trail if I didn’t do anything. Day by day the number of dedicated and ambitious killers would grow. With the current price on my head, I wouldn’t be surprised to see some international freelancers.

  But to get away, I needed information, so I would go and see John Goosan. I was planning on squeezing him until he bled to get the information I needed. I took two knives and two guns with four extra clips. If I couldn’t take care of Terrence and John with that, there wasn’t much that would help me. Other than backup, and right now that wasn’t an option. Anyone who sided with me would be fair game and there weren’t that many people that I hated that much to expose them to that.

  A pity John was the opposition.

  I actually took a cab out to Rockford. It cost me a good bit more than it should have, because the cabby wasn’t that pleased about my destination and needed convincing.

  I had not called ahead to see if John ‘Goodman’ was in. In the movies people always do those stupid things and get away with it. In real life, the phone and any incoming phone lines would be tapped, the porter bribed, the door man bribed, and a lot of other things. On the other hand, you shouldn’t rent a car with a state of the art GPS tracking system either. You shouldn’t but thank the gods John had.

  I got off the cab a couple of blocks away. I had studied the maps on my smart phone before deciding where to get off. I scanned the area as I walked towards a bar I had looked up before arriving, just to have a place where I could spend some time waiting. It didn’t seem like there was much of anything, as I walked down the street. A pizzeria, a church, a bar, some stores, and a small inn. It was a rundown neighborhood.

  It was getting dark. I was going to wait for a couple of hours before I paid John a visit. If he was in, of course. Everything was dead quiet and only a few cars passed now and again.

  The place John had chosen wasn’t bad actually. The inn was isolated and in this community outsiders, in cars or on foot, would be noticed. I knew I was already tagged as “does not belong here”.

  The bar was in an old run-down building. There weren’t many windows, and the only thing that gave it away as a bar was a neon sign that said ‘Kitty’s’ with a stylized cocktail glass as the Y.

  I knew it was opened, but I saw only two cars and no one in sight. This wasn’t the busiest hour for a bar.

  Just when I was about to open the door someone stepped out.

  It was a chubby guy in a dark suit about forty-five years old. Had a crew cut and heavy boots, but the suit was a Boss. That and the surprise in his eyes as he saw me gave him away.

  It had to be Terrence. No-one else here would react to my face in this dump.

  Damn blind luck! Someone up there must like me.

  Terrence might have been fast on the draw once, but he only got his hand as far as the holster.

  I triggered the knife release as soon as I understood who he was. I hit him with the knife handle on his shoulder joint. That made him scream, so I broke his nose with my elbow on the follow-through. Now the sounds were more muffled.

  No one came running. I didn’t expect it really, but you never knew what could happen. And people sometimes made unexpected things.

  I pocketed Terrence's gun and motioned for him to walk in front of me. “Walk around the back, Terrence. We need to have a little talk.” I said looking around to see if any had noticed anything. It seemed clear.

  “Why should I?” Terrence asked holding his nose.

  With a swift move I cut the tendons of his right index finger. Terrence swore and switched hands on his nose.

  “Okay. Okay!” He cried as I raised the knife again.

  I kept him three or four paces in front of me. He might be chubby and slow, but that didn’t mean stupid or weak. His strengths might be judo, wrestling or something, and he out-massed me with fifty sixty pounds. At least. Muscle isn’t everything, of course, but it always helps. Weight is important in a fight. Especially if you can pin someone down.

  “That way.” I waved my gun in the direction of some sheds. I saw something close to panic in Terrence’s eyes as he glance at me. “Ease up, Mr Sinclair, we’re going to play twenty questions and while I might not be a cold-blooded killer, I have no qualms about putting you in a wheelchair for life. Which I believe you fear more than death.”

  “I…” Terrence swallowed.

  “Save it, Terrence. You picked the wrong time to branch out. I’m not that fond of John, but you I have no feelings for at all. And that is much worse.”

  We stepped around the corner of one of the wooden sheds. I moved so that my back was protected and had a free field of vision. I didn’t think that John was around. For one, he hated alcohol, and two he preferred scare people to give him information instead of buying drinks.

  But why take chances when you don’t have to.

  “So, Terrence…where do I find this group that picked up my contract?” Terrence kept his eyes on my face instead of the gun or the knife.

  “I don’t know,” he answered in a monotone voice. “And before you threaten to kill me, I’m only here as a favor to Mike. I have no stake in this.”

  I laughed. “Now, Terrence, the price on my head – even before it was raised – was the stake. Unfortunately for you, I hold a grudge. And I settle my debts. So before I get all messy on your ass, you tell me what you know, and I promise to only tie you up. But believe me, Terrence, I won’t regret cutting you into pieces. It’s not that you’re a contract killer, Terrence, it is that you’re trying to collect on my hide that makes my conscience a little more spacious than it usually is.”

  “I…”

  “Don’t even try!” I snapped when I saw the calculating glint in his eyes. “You tell me what I want to know, or I start cutting!” I felt a bit queasy about the prospect of cutting him to pieces, but it was my life, so I guessed I could live with being a bit queasy. “There is nothing else I want, so don’t even try.”

  “I can’t…but I can give you some other information if you promise to let me go. John met the people you’re looking for. And no, I wasn’t there, “ he hurriedly said when my eyes turned flinty, “ but John was wearing a wire, not that he knew, so I heard the whole thing. He gave up your Asian friend…”

  I froze. That was something I had not even considered. “You might just have bought yourself a life...When?”

  “Early morning two days ago, at around four o’clock.” He looked around.

  I could feel my face turning stony and my eyes must have shouted murder because Terrence started babbling.

  “I wasn’t there and I had nothing to do with it!” He said keeping his hands where I could see them. “It was John. You must believe me, Maria. Jesus Christ, Mike said no bystanders, but John owes these people, so he did it anyway. I…”

  “Enough!” I almost whispered it, but it cut through his tirade and he kept quiet. “I’m going to tie you up and gag you. You walk on this one, but if I ever see you again, I’ll just shoot you. No warnings, no talk – I’ll just blow you to Kingdom Come and not lose a minute of sleep over it.”

  I took out some cable ties. I never leave home without them, because you never know when they will come in handy. I tied Terrence’s hand, legs, and several fingers together. Then I sat him down and tied him to the shed’s padlock.

  “If you lied…I will come looking for you and I will hunt you down. When you get loose, Terrence, pack up and leave. If I ever see you again, you’re dead!“

  Terrence said nothing.

  I just looked at him. I was thankful for the information, but while I saw that Tony’s store was okay yesterday evening, this was today. What I knew of this outfit, made me scared for Tony, because they had killed more important targets that him. That made me all cold inside. With ice cold rage and nothing but murder on my mind, I started walking.

  I should have listened to my instincts and never befriended Tony in the first place. I should have left him and his family alone. There were a lot of should-haves that I hadn’t done. And Tony and his family might have to pay for it.

  But I needed friends! I needed to feel connected. But I should have left Tony out of it! I should have left them all out of it!

  I turned my eyes back at Terrence. “If you get back to Phoenix, tell Mike I will be coming for him.” There was no emotion in my voice now. “And if Tony is dead, I’ll bury the lot of you. You included, Terrence, if you’re there when I come calling. I. Will. Take. You. Out. Believe this, Terrence, if you ever believe anything in your life!”

  I searched Terrence’s pockets and found his car keys. There were only two cars outside the bar, and only one rental. I hoped that Terrence had skipped the extra insurance.

  I never glanced back as I walked away. There was nothing left to say.

  It felt like someone was crushing my chest and it felt like I was inhaling cold cold air. Adrenaline kept me sharp and on the edge, but the fear made want to weep. Fear for my friend and his family.

  I promised myself that if Tony was hurt, even a little bit, I would hunt them all down. I never really believed that Tony would be in any real danger because of me. And he shouldn’t have been, but for John. John, I would kill because he would give my friend to the wolves. He sanctioned the hunt for my friend who should have been safe, God damn it!

  The anger seared through me, but it was cold. Cold and calculating. Cold and hideous. I wanted their lives! I wanted John’s life, and there was nothing that would keep me from killing him. I wanted them to suffer. I wanted them to suffer the worst pain anyone had ever experienced. But he would have to wait just a little bit.

  First, I had to get to Tony’ store.

  After that, things were probably going to get ugly.