Page 38 of Lulu
I threw back my drink and savored the slow burn as it coated my throat before it settled in my gut. Better than a sleeping pill, I hoped. A long, hot shower might help, too. All I knew was that I needed some serious shuteye. I could fill in my report to Sanford in the morning, though I was pretty sure that he already knew the outcome of the hit. The man’s name had been all over the fucking news the last two days.
I set my glass down and turned to leave the kitchen when my phone vibrated. Yawning, I dug it out and checked to see who was calling. Huh. Sanford. I hesitated from answering it, but instinct warned me that something must have happened for him to be calling me this late. My thoughts instantly went to Spider’s murder, wondering if he had information about it.
“It’s fucking late,” I grumbled.
“There’s been another hit!” Sanford said, and I could tell by the rushed sound of his voice that he was slightly panicked. “
“Who?” I scowled.
“Wolf. He’s not dead, but it’s not good. Same MO as Spider, only Wolf caught him sneaking up behind him before he got a head shot.”
“Fuck!” I swore, already forming a plan in my head. “Any witnesses?”
“A bouncer at a nearby bar saw it go down. Pretty much described the same thing those kids saw when Spider bought it. Someone all in black.”
I didn’t believe in coincidences. “Sounds like someone’s put out a hit on us.” I’d made it to my bedroom and went to my closet for my bug out bag. “How the fuck are they finding us?” The silence on the other end of the line was revealing. “Fuck, what aren’t you telling me, Sanford?” I set my bag down on the bed and waited.
He exhaled loudly. “There’s been a data breach.”
The fuck!?Everything was supposed to be kept in encrypted files, but I didn’t bother to point that out. No one was supposed to have access to our information except for Sanford. If someone had breached that information, it was likely an inside job. And if that was the case, the killer could very well be one of us.
“There’s something else.”
He was beginning to piss me off.
“Shortly after Spider was killed his bank accounts were wiped clean. Millions just disappeared. We have to assume that whoever broke into the system got everything. The list of field operatives, bank account—”
“This shit just keeps getting better and better,” I snarled, angry that this kind of thing had happened in the first place. My mind raced. The more I heard, the less I liked. If Sanford weren’t the one telling me this shit, I’d have worried that he was the one behind it all.
Thank fuck I’d moved my money as soon as it showed up in my account.
“What do you think?”
I snorted. “You’re asking me? Since when do you give a fuck what I think?”
“I value your opinion.”
It was the first time in my association with Sanford that I’d ever heard apprehension in his voice. Was he worried about us, or himself? I ran my hand over the bottom half of my jaw. “My gut tells me you’d better hope that you didn’t piss someone off. They might go after you before this is all over.” I was sure that wasn’t what he wanted to hear. “Start looking for answers and stick close to home. If it’s one of us, we’re all in trouble.”
There was a pause, and then a heavy sigh. “Just got a text. Wolf didn’t make it.”
Fuck. Two down. Who was next? I’d purchased several places over the years to be used as safe houses if the need ever arose. They’d be hard to connect to me considering I’d used aliases to buy them. The closest one was in Santa Fe. Another option would be to reach out to the Desert Rebels.
“Listen, I’m getting out of here. Keep me informed.”
“Will do.”
The next second I made it impossible for Sanford to get in touch with me by disconnecting the call and throwing the phone across the room, where it shattered into several pieces against the wall. Looked like I’d be the one to keep in touch with him but that was okay, his number was tattooed in my brain.
Who the fuck was behind this? Someone from the government? When I’d been hired on to do their dirty work, I’d been assured that my identity would be protected. It was one of the reasons we were only known by our aliases and only dealt with one man--Sanford. I was sure that Spider, Wolf, and all the others had been told the same fucking thing. None of this should have happened, and if I were Sanford, I’d lay low for a while, too.
I reached for my bag and opened it to confirm that it had everything I’d need. I’d never had to use it before, but I’d kept it updated with new documents for traveling. A spare gun, burner phones, passports, cash, and a few other essentials were all there among some clothes and toiletries. Each of my residences had a similar bag stashed away for emergencies.
Satisfied I was good, I zipped the bag up and headed out, my thoughts on Lulu. Damn. I’d had plans to show up at her place tomorrow night to relieve some of the tension my work always brought on. Getting lost in her tight little body a few times would do the trick. I’d thought about her a lot while I’d been gone, and had discovered that I’d actually missed her. That novelty would wear off once I got her out of my system.
I should probably call her. I didn’t owe her any explanations, but I didn’t want to leave town without giving her something. No telling how long I’d be gone. Until we identified the killer, we didn’t know who to go after, and right now we were all suspects. I thought back to Crazy’s phone call after Spider had been killed. He’d called to warn me, but that didn’t mean shit. He could still be the rotten egg. What was that fucking expression?“Keep your friends close; keep your enemies closer.”
As I walked through my house toward the garage exit, I decided to leave my truck and take my bike. I knew it left me exposed as an open mark, but I could maneuver it in traffic easier than a truck if someone were chasing me. I set the house alarm and then hit the control for the garage door to close, and knew instantly that something was off. Instinct warned me that I wasn’t alone, but it was too fucking dark to see anything but the small, red laser dot moving over the descending garage door.