Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 91452 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 457(@200wpm)___ 366(@250wpm)___ 305(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 91452 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 457(@200wpm)___ 366(@250wpm)___ 305(@300wpm)
“Which I appreciate.”
After a moment, Darius cleared his throat. “Okay,” he said, moving around the car as the plane we came in on sped by us before making its ascent farther down the strip. “Let’s go.”
Darius had water for us in the Range Rover and ammunition for my Beretta and Dante’s Sig. He insisted we put on Kevlar, at least for the entry, and I didn’t argue with him. There was no arguing with Darius.
The massive two-story villa was located in the wooded hills above Clear Water Bay, a world away from the city beat of Hong Kong. The ultra-modern construction, with its white facade, multiple terraces, and huge square windows, clashed with the tranquility of rural, unspoiled coastline.
Twelve bodyguards patrolled the outer perimeter of the property. Dante went around the side and took his targets down quickly, without noise. Darius too, using his knife, dispatched the four assigned to him. I had two down, and I’d just put two shots into the third man’s chest. But as he slumped down, his weapon fell from his hand and clattered to the ground, alerting the last guard, who looked up to see me closing in. He raised his weapon to fire, but it was too late. I lined up the muzzle and put two quick rounds into my target, then moved on quickly toward the house.
I entered from the back of the villa. Like the build of the house, the furniture was extravagant and aggressively modern. I did a quick sweep of the first floor, Dante checked the second, and Darius kept watch. When they were satisfied that no one else was in the house, they both went out on the deck while I took a seat in an overstuffed armchair in front of the cold fireplace and waited.
Ten minutes later, as Darius’s intel had told him to expect, I heard a car pull up and stop before driving off again. I listened as the home’s sole occupant entered and moved through the rooms to the living room. As the Asian woman entered, she stopped abruptly when she saw me rise from the chair.
“Colonel Colter, what a surprise,” she said, her composure returning fast.
“Who are you?” I asked, needing to know.
“I’m Ming Gray.” She dropped her Prada handbag on the couch and crossed her arms as she stared at me.
I found myself studying her face, trying to place her. But there was nothing, not a sliver of recognition. She was a mere slip of a woman, beautiful, willowy, her Chanel suit fitting her perfectly, and her hair and makeup were immaculate. I was guessing she was in her midfifties, but I really was shit at telling how old people were.
“Would you like a drink?” she offered.
“No,” I answered, studying her. “I don’t think us drinking together is prudent, and honestly, when I looked around earlier, there weren’t any labels I knew.”
“Yes. Just blended whiskey in my cabinets,” she said with a sigh. “Personally, I prefer the Glenlivet Winchester single malt, but the cheap ones, they were my late husband’s favorites. He always had…simpler tastes.”
“Won’t you sit?” I said.
Opening her jacket, she sat down on the end of a couch near the armchair I occupied, and crossing her legs, she waited. Her gaze bore into me, the hatred palpable.
We sat there in silence, just staring. It was eerie. The day before, Dante had basically told me to exorcise my ghosts, but now I felt like I was looking at one.
“May I assume you’ve killed my men?”
“I have, yes.”
“So, not a social call, then?”
What was she playing at? “You weren’t expecting me?”
“No. I was expecting a video of your death.”
“You thought they were still torturing me? For nearly a month?” I was surprised. “I don’t know whether to be horrified or humbled that you think I could withstand that kind of treatment for so long.”
“I told them to draw it out. I assumed they were.”
“You didn’t check?” That seemed odd.
“I have other pursuits, Colonel, and just the idea that you were being slowly killed made my sleep peaceful.”
“Still, you should’ve checked in.”
“I like to think I employ an excellent caliber of killer.”
“Your man Suwan was a nasty enough piece of work. He didn’t disappoint.”
“Up until the point where you managed to kill him.”
The woman understood kill or be killed. “You overplayed your hand with Suwan and his enforcer. They took their best shot and came up short.”
“Suwan was a fool, a thief, and a traitor who thought his skimming went unnoticed. He had to die for that, whether by my hand or yours, matters little to me. As a soldier, I’m sure you recognize the necessity of keeping discipline in any chain of command. His dishonor followed him to the grave.”
“How do you know? You haven’t checked.”
“I assume as you’re here, and he’s not, that he’s no longer among the living.”