Encountering Evil: Dark Horse Guardians Book Two (4 page)

Ben could keep his eye on the motorcycle from that vantage point, but he had a difficult time taking his eyes off Lara. She was absolutely glowing tonight. "Salmon!" they both said it simultaneously and laughed. With a serious tone, Ben asked, "Are you really okay with me putting that down payment on the bungalow for you? Or, were you just trying to make me feel good?" Gently, he took her soft feminine hand into his noticing the contrast to his broad paws. His finger touched the beautiful diamond ring on her hand. Lara smiled, "I am shocked you did it, but thrilled at the same time – sort of like when you brought me to St. John and took me for a beach walk and we ended up getting married…on the beach. Shocked and thrilled…those are the feelings I always have with you!"

Ben smiled and his ego swelled with the knowledge that he could delight her. "Oh, one more thing…when I sent you a text, you said you'd stopped off to see Bettencourt…what was that about?" She explained the suspected abuse of the young woman next door to Diana Farrington's house. Ben felt his smile fading, "Damn, I wish you hadn't told Bettencourt about it. I wish you would have come to
me
." Lara looked confused, "Why?" Ben leaned closer to her, "Bettencourt is bound by the law. He will have to get a warrant and jump through hoops. I could've checked it out in a more clandestine way, if you know what I mean."

The meal came to the table and Ben finished eating first, as usual. But he was fine with that. It gave him a few moments to observe everything about Lara as she finished her meal and sipped water through a straw, in her oh so feminine way. He wondered how long this feeling would last – being smitten with her like this. His heart skipped a beat when he saw her. He couldn't make love to her enough, yet when he did he was satisfied and physically drained. He slept like a rock lately. He wondered if he would ever wake up in the morning and
not
study her beautiful face and admire her feminine curves and enjoy a lingering kiss over breakfast. No. He decided at that moment
he would never stop loving Lara
. She stirred something in him that had never been awakened before. It wasn't just the run-of-the-mill type of love; it was something extraordinary, that once-in-a-lifetime love. It truly defied words.

~ Lara ~

The next morning at breakfast Lara noticed Ben’s attempt to sound casual when he mentioned a Dark Horse mission in the works. "All I can say is the target is in Connecticut. Elvis will be lead man on this one. I really can't say more about it." She knew he was omitting a great deal of information. But he turned on his Irish brogue…and he seemed to know
just
when to use it to melt her heart a little. Hesitant to do so, Lara shared her anxieties with him, "I worry about you. I know, I
promised not to worry
when we got married. But do you know how hard that is for me? I was filled with anxiety before I ever met you; so now it's really awful sometimes." Her eyes were pleading with him, hopeful she would get through the hard shell he put up when the subject of his Dark Horse missions came up. But she could tell he was in already in battle-mode.

She knew the mission was already sketched in his mind. She was familiar with the look on his face and the vacant stare in his deep blue eyes. "I'll be off to Connecticut for a week or so, but I will call and text you …and, if you need me for anything…I'll drive home as quickly as I can. Oh, my darlin', don't worry." He embraced her and she knew she would miss the familiar safety of his muscular arms. Lara sighed noticeably. "I'll keep myself busy with work." Ben handed her the realtor's business card. "Call Claire and have her show you the bungalow…
your bungalow
. Let her know I'll make the payment in full upon your approval."

Lara smiled as she took the business card. She knew this was Ben's ploy to distract her from worrying. But she went along with it to please him. She knew she wouldn't sleep a wink while he was gone. Connecticut…of all places…what the hell was brewing there? She would not stop thinking about Ben while he was gone, even though she would try to go on with her life as normal.
Her not
worrying?
That would be a charade. Truth was, she
couldn't
stop worrying about him when he left for a mission. If anything ever happened to him she would crumble. She never felt this way about any man. Ben was different. She needed him. And, for the first time in her life she felt loved.

~ Ben ~

On his December trip overseas, Ben received actionable intelligence on jihad recruiters setting up shop in New Britain Connecticut. And, through careful surveillance, hacking with listening devices, and installing spy-ware on a few computers, Ben found out it was much worse than originally thought. The jihad group had obtained
sixty kilograms of radioactive material and planned to detonate a dirty nuclear bomb in a large shopping mall nearby. The discovery was made by Tom Wilson in East Hartford and Elvis Shaw in New Britain. Both men were former SEALs in Ben's platoon and were now Dark Horse Guardian operatives. The evil radical Islamists they were watching were not Middle Eastern in appearance. In fact, they were Americans, and were recruiting other Americans to join their sick twisted movement to kill innocent people. Many of the recruits were disenchanted felons recently out of prison, easy marks for the jihad recruiters. But it didn't matter to Ben or his team if these people were male, female, or what race or ethnicity they were. As far as he was concerned, if they were participating in evil, the consequences would be gruesome for them. He would personally guaranteed that.

Ben had already made the trip to Langley, presented the evidence, and received the green light from Kip Larson. That's all he needed. He remembered Larson's wry little smile, "You're the chief, make it happen. Let me know when it's over." It was that simple. Larson didn't want to know details. No one could know, not even local law enforcement officials. Ben and his team had to operate in complete blackness. Ben's team would take out the jihad recruiters, the sleeper cell, and make it look like
someone
else
did it. Not to mention the movement of a thermonuclear device from Point A to Point B. They had their work cut out for them.

The meeting with Tom and Elvis would take place at the Sandman Motel in a small suburb of New Britain that night at 9:00 PM. Ben had the mission plan drawn up, but needed the input of the other men. A week ago, Ben contacted Jake in Manchester New Hampshire and Gus in Newport Rhode Island asking them to arrive for the meeting, too.

Ben methodically packed his gear and left after a tearful goodbye. Parting with Lara was never easy, especially when she knew he would be gone for a week or more. He was beginning to realize it was harder for
him
to say goodbye even though Lara was the one with tears in her eyes. His heart broke every time he drove away from her knowing he would not have her to hold at night. He now focused all of his energy and attention on the mission while driving. The thought of pulling off the mission flawlessly got his adrenaline flowing and this was his stimulant. On the road he plotted and planned thinking through every detail. There were seven targets that had been under surveillance for weeks. Their movements were predictable. But, the neighborhood surrounding the mosque was filled with innocent people. And, there was always the possibility someone would step in at an inopportune moment and screw up his plan.

At the Sandman Motel, an older low-rise two-story, Ben checked in at 9:00 PM. The others all got separate rooms at the Twilight Motel and the Carlton a couple of miles away. The men staggered their check-in times, but met later in Tom's room at the Twilight. "Here are the details." Elvis slapped the photos and movements of the targets down on the cheap coffee table. The men huddled. Elvis offered, "What about taking them out one-by-one?" Ben responded, "No, it might get the local law involved. If we engage the local police, we need to be long gone before they even get a whiff of this…" Elvis was somber but offered another idea, "A coordinated strike." Tom agreed. Jake said, "Wouldn't it be perfect if we could get them all in the same place at the same time? You know, like the Worcester gig?" Elvis ran his hand over his long dark hair, "What in their daily schedule brings them all together?"

Ben looked at the information on the table, "They all go to the mosque at daybreak for morning prayers, right?" Elvis smiled, "Bingo! These guys meet
early
in the parking lot…and have their own little cabal going on as they walk toward the mosque." Ben looked at the men surrounding him, "We need to take out the security cameras around that mosque and coordinate a strike that is flawless. There are seven of them, five of us. We need another man. Let's get Nate O'Neal, he's in Springfield. That should be enough."

They slept for six hours and were disguised as they slipped into New Britain. Dressed as drug dealers, complete with fake tattoos and gold chains, the men loitered with a swagger around the proximity of the mosque but not too close. They didn't want to piss off the
real
drug dealers who had already claimed that turf. Ben wanted to get an idea of where the security cameras were. Elvis already had them mapped out, but Ben wanted to give it one more look to make sure he could hack them. They made a trip around the parking lot and found good cover. Then the group returned to their respective motels for another night of tactical planning and sleep. What worried Ben the most was the fact that a thermonuclear device sat in the basement of the mosque locked in a safe. His mind raced as he tried to think of a way to get it out of there while eliminating the targets. His greatest concern was meeting up with someone or something that was not in the plan. There were always variables in every mission and he tried to think through each possibility, but they were endless.

~ Lara ~

Lara was filled with
eagerness as she pulled her red Fiat into the driveway of the bungalow Ben had secured for her business. As she got out of her car she stood on the front lawn of the property with wide eyes. She felt like a child at Christmas. Claire, the realtor, was due to meet her at Noon. Lara stepped onto the front porch of the 1918 building admiring the lovely carved details of the trim. It had some of the gingerbread style similar to the Victorian and it was perfectly painted so that it appeared to be a snapshot from another era. She noticed the building retained its original doors and windows and was pleased. Claire rolled up in her Mercedes and joined Lara. "Sorry I'm late…the traffic is worse now with all the tourists…"

As Claire unlocked the door Lara stepped
into a formal entryway and faced her image in a lovely Victorian mirror surrounded by coat hooks and a bench. The house was filled with historical charm with all original floors, moldings, baseboards and wainscoting. The bathrooms needed work, but that would be a small project. The parlor was in the center of the building and would serve as a meeting room. It retained the original fireplace with a mantle that was hand-carved and had a unique tile inlay, "Oh my goodness – Claire – the fireplace has Batchelder tiles!" Claire did not notice the prized architectural feature, but Lara was elated. As she eyed the original stained glass windows, still intact, she realized Ben was right. He knew her taste. She fell in love within minutes. Even the tall cast iron radiators painted white added to the charm of the décor. The kitchen was a wonderful bonus. She could have lunch there every day instead of eating on the go. And, she could even serve catered lunches for special clients.

"I
love
it," Lara gushed to Claire. "Well, it's yours." Claire smiled. "Ben said if you loved it, he's already signed a purchase agreement and paid me in cash." Tears welled up in Lara's eyes as she realized the depth of Ben's generosity. He wanted her to be successful and this was his contribution. She sent him a text, "Thank you, the bungalow is perfect!" but got no response. She knew while he was on the mission he would not communicate with her. Lara hugged Claire and thanked her. Claire said excitedly, "Now you've got to see the farm…" Lara tilted her head, "Now?" Claire frowned, "Oh, I hope I didn't spoil some sort of surprise, never mind." Claire laughed. "I'm just thrilled that you love
this
place."

Eliot Stone called Lara as soon as she left the bungalow. "I know you're coming over to check my renovation, but you might want to take the rest of the afternoon off to go sailing with me…and have dinner at the club afterwards. For all of your hard work, I feel I owe you at least that." Lara was tired and the sunny June afternoon was calling to her. "That sounds great. I've always wanted to go sailing on your boat. I was hoping Ben could go, too, but he is out of town for the week. Let me take Einstein out beforehand, then I'll meet you at the yacht club." She sped home and took her beloved Einstein for a walk around the neighborhood. Lara wondered, what does one wear sailing? She stuffed a sweatshirt and shorts into her leather backpack and grabbed her sunglasses.

~ Lara ~

The Falmouth Yacht Club was bustling with activity on the warm summer day and Lara squinted as her eyes scanned the dock. She knew Eliot was waiting for her on his boat. "Lara, come on down…" Eliot was waving to her from the end of a long dock. His 40-foot Hinckley sailboat was at the very end of the wharf and she gasped a little at the splendid beauty of the vessel. With the name "Resolute" stenciled in gold letters upon the stern the sailboat seemed to loom larger as she approached. The gold lettering stood out against the gleaming Navy blue hull.