Hard Case VII - Red Waves (John Harding Series Book 7) (27 page)

“Listen closely, Francois,” I told my buddy. “I’m going to take the restraints off your hands. Strip right here on the floor where you stand. You can leave your underwear on. Do anything else and I will break one of your fingers. Do you understand?”

Francois nodded sullenly, thinking this was also an extended portion of our so called game. I took his plastic restraints off. He stripped to his underwear. Tonto inspected him, sniffed to make sure he was still marked and then returned to Gus as I guided Francois to our interview room. Lynn, Clint, and Nick accompanied us. By the time we reached the room Lynn used for her unauthorized podiatry clinic, Francois was shivering and it wasn’t from the cold. I pointed at our special gurney.

“Hop aboard, Francois. Do anything else and I’ll break something on you before I put you on it. You have a chance here to avoid pain as my associate advised. Once I get you situated in place on the gurney start telling us everything. We’ll check what you say. If we get needed insights about the threats we face, it’s possible Dr. Crue won’t have to show you her incredibly painful techniques in foot therapy.”

Yaman wanted no part of instant physical pain he knew he could not escape. After submitting to placement on the gurney, Francois did not, unfortunately for him, take advantage of the opportunity to avoid Dr. Crue’s therapy. Sometimes these guys don’t understand what they’re facing in reality. We normally show them videos as Jess and Dev were doing with the rest of our guests. We needed Yaman to be helpful without being primed or we’d have a believability problem right off the bat.

“I am a dead man. I know that now. You murderers will kill me no matter what. I will tell you nothing. I have faced beatings and torture before.”

“You’re in for a real shock in more ways than one, Francois.” Lynn patted his cheek. “I wanted to teach a class anyhow. C’mon, Muerto. Let’s have you insert our implements of information.”

For the next ten minutes Lynn instructed Nick on how and where to insert the needles, allowing him to practice at each step, making sure the depth and angle were correct. Francois didn’t know what was in store for him but he was certainly allowing anticipation of pain to prep him without any help. He was wise to get prepared because his ship bypassing the pain port sailed already.

“I think you have them perfectly positioned,” Lynn said. “Now we hook these special clips to the needles which keep them in place with the elastic band. It’s a rough ride so without foot restraints and some way to assure the clips stay attached the tools would have to be readjusted constantly.”

“What do you usually start them on,” Nick asked.

“I charge their neurons first. I use the heat for a very effective variation. Shall we begin, Dr. Muerto?”

“Of course, Dr. Crue.” Nick stepped away while still in close observation range.

I stuffed a mouthpiece into Yaman’s mouth. “You’ll need this.”

Lynn waved at Francois. “You’re a tough guy, Francois… or at least you think you are. I’m going to give you three minutes of hell so we don’t have to waste time demonstrating what you’ll be getting if I don’t hear all my questions answered without hesitation.”

Lynn turned on the power. Lynn found through experimentation that three minutes of her new information extraction technique was the maximum without risking a mind meltdown from pain. Sometimes we don’t care. With Yaman, we needed him coherent enough to answer questions. When she shut off his introductory phase, Francois croaked in a high pitched squeak, the only sound he could manage after screaming for three solid minutes. For all the rancid deeds perpetrated because of his identity mill, my friends and I didn’t get upset with his reeducation process. We planned to save six to eight thousand lives from being held hostage, terrorized, and used as a club against our country. Lynn waited until sanity returned somewhat to Yaman’s features to the point where he stopped squeaking.

“Welcome back, Francois. Can you hear me now? I need you to be a good little helper or Dr. Crue will have to go back into action.”

“Any…anything! I made… background identities and passports for fifteen infiltrating the Starlight! I…I can show you. They have more on board. We felt between thirty and forty crewmembers would be necessary for an easy takeover of the ship once it is stopped. The information about the total infiltration is unknown to anyone but the men in Chabahar who sent them: Ali Khan and Joram Mannan.”

“What about weapons,” I asked. “How will those be brought aboard?”

“In a shipping crate. Replacement parts and gear stowed away for emergencies were talked about. Also… medical supplies were discussed as an adequate cover to get them aboard. A final decision had not been reached. We have always had infiltration on the docks where the ship will be leaving from whether in Dubais, Sohar or Muscat.”

“Nice start, Francois,” Nick said. “What have you heard about the Chabahar port host country being involved in this?”

“Will…will I be tortured if I am wrong in this speculation?”

“No, but make your case carefully,” Lynn said.

“Iran hosts every Islamist movement in the world. They do not care what is done as long as it is not traced back to them. The launching of pirates from the Port of Chabahar is the first major action they have gambled on. How…how did you know about the Starlight assault?”

“Never mind how we know,” I told him. “Did Iran really think this Starlight assault was foolproof?”

“Yes… they thought… the takeover of the ship was assured with so many infiltrators aboard. They planned to allow the ship to be brought to the Port of Chabahar after the takeover where they could magnanimously broker the release of the ship’s crew and passengers. They would have some cover in that India helped improve the port and expand it.”

I exchanged knowing looks with my cohorts. This was golden. Terror acted in an effective manner in the short term but usually provoked a hard stomping when discovered. If Iran could volunteer to host the Starlight while it was held in pirate hands and act as an intermediary supposedly of peace, their influence in the world at the expense of a helpless USA would be a gift that kept giving. In addition to the ransom the pirates would simply disappear to be used again in timely fashion. Resources would be redirected away from the mainland once again, split into countless ways, especially on the high seas. Protection would be demanded on a worldwide basis and granted in the short term thereby redirecting warships guarding important military ports and bases overseas.

“We have to get this to Denny,” Clint said. “I see in your eyes how much more sense this makes if we think of this as a long term plot instead of a one shot terror attack. The prestige Iran would gain in a successful intermediary action could upset the tenuous hold we have in many of the sand countries.”

“If we don’t stop them, this would act as a recruitment tool the bastards haven’t had since 9/11,” Lynn added.

“Anyone else feeling the burn to do some Chabahar damage?”

“You’re not kidding, Clint,” I replied.

Lynn turned to Francois immediately. “You’ve been very helpful. I need some corroboration on some info I gained from another of your cohorts. Have you been to Chabahar to meet with this Khan and Mannan?”

“Yes… I can help. I was there only weeks ago. I am done. You know I cannot refuse… but could I keep from being tortured by this hellish device?”

“I believe that to be very possible, Francois, my love,” Dr. Crue said with a gentle stroke of her hand along his cheek. She then cupped his chin, leaning very close to his face. “You do understand any deception on your part will be greeted with an ending where you will be screaming to die.”

Yaman tried to put his head through the gurney to put space between him and Dr. Crue. “I…I understand completely! Let me get to the names you want on my hard drive first, and then I will confirm any information you have on Chabahar. I know a name too. Ali Khan used him several times in years past as an assassin. He asked me if I knew where he was but if you could find him, it might be an inroad you could exploit.”

He had our attention on that one. “Give us the name.”

Yaman looked directly into my eyes without blinking. “Claude Chardin. He is thought to be the foremost assassin in the world. I have not heard his name mentioned in recent months. If you could find him, he knows both Khan and Mannan. It would take your expertise to make him do as you wish, but he could be invaluable.”

“Damn… Claude Chardin.” I sliced his Achilles tendons in both ankles and he made a deal with us to live and save his daughter from being hunted down by the people he worked for.

Nick smiled at me. “I have heard that name, but by the look on your face I would say you’ve more than heard his name, Cheese.”

“The Dark Lord spared him for another mission before we joined his crew,” Clint said. “Do you have Claude on your Fave-Five, DL?”

“You…you had Chardin in your hands.” Francois was impressed. “Khan thinks of him as untouchable, a killing machine no one could catch.”

“Case told me the story,” Clint said, chuckling at Yaman thinking of an untouchable Chardin. “The Dark Lord here sliced his Achilles tendons in as he described it ‘professional courtesy’. Then DL, Case and Lucas blackmailed Chardin into a mission and retirement. You have Claude on the pad, don’t you, Cheese?”

“No, I don’t. Claude played his part in the deal. He bought his retirement. We keep tabs on him. He is living up to his end of the deal. I can approach him with an option to join us for whatever I can give him he wants. I will not go back on my word to him though.”

“Let’s shelve that exciting addition to the story for later,” Lynn said while undoing Francois’s straps. “Francois wants to help us right now. I plan on letting him. Case and Lucas are in the viewing room. They were in on the Chardin deal. They’ll get a chance to mull over what a Chardin aspect to our mission could bring. I’m thinking after we figure out what to do with all the damn prisoners we have, I’d like to pick up my baby, and head over to The Warehouse for a glass or two of Beringers and a nice meal.”

“That does sound like heaven, Crue,” I admitted. “Let’s do it, but we’ll have to postpone it until tomorrow. It will be late before we finish today. We’ll call in everyone for a get together. I could use the Beam and Bud brothers to help me with a Chardin collaboration. We’ll be fresher tomorrow.”

“Yeah, it is late,” Lynn agreed.

I helped Yaman to his feet, steadying him. “C’mon Francois, I’ll let you shower and put on some sweats we have in stock. I hope a small amount of pleasantry won’t put you into a slant to the dark side again. That would be very bad.”

Francois began sobbing, putting his face in his hands. “If…if I can but be free… of pain, I will do anything you ask. Can I be kept separately from the others? They will kill me if they can.”

“Yes, you can be kept separately my good helper,” Crue promised. “They won’t be hurting anyone. You’re in a good place with us, Francois. We love your input. Go along, get showered, dressed, and we’ll put you somewhere nice for the evening by yourself even if I have to kill a few Albanians to get it done.

Chapter Ten

Closure and Overcrowding

One of the garage areas emptied for filming, lined with black curtains, and tarped for the mess to be made, served as the serial killer execution site. The serial killing cabal knelt in front of the Unholy Trio with Crusader Crue between Nick and Gus. The soon to be executed were hogtied at the back, their wrists and ankles joined. I joined them all together side by side too with cable through the loops made at their legs and arms. All we had them wear was their ‘Fawkes’ masks and thin cotton robes with the fronts open. Behind them on the curtains we hung enlarged pictures of the serial killers’ victims in their last horrendous state after the acid baths. Next to each picture we placed photos of how they looked before their deaths. Crue read off the names of each victim. Clint focused smoothly on each of the victim’s before and after pictures, explaining what the killers had done to them. She then moved in front of the killers wearing her Crusader Crue t-shirt and flag mask.

“The Unholy Trio invited me to join them in the apprehension of the ‘Internet Acid Bath Killers’. These six inhuman murderers entrapped unsuspecting teens in a ‘Dark Web’ hack site where they would learn their soon to be victims’ identities and addresses. The police and FBI couldn’t catch them because of the anonymity problems on the ‘Dark Web’. We infiltrated their site and lured them to where we captured the monsters attempting to take another victim with inside information. I administered a special pain punishment and now my colleagues, El Muerto and El Kabong will end their lives in a brutally justifiable manner. Please go away if you do not wish to see what serial killers can expect from us when caught. The families of the victims will get closure they cannot get from our justice system.

Lynn moved from killer to killer, tearing off their masks while at the same time stating their names and the charges against them. They were all gagged and wild eyed with fright. Lynn had found out the truth of what each of them did with the victims. The three women and three men took turns once the victim was caught. El Muerto and El Kabong stood ready with the scalpel and bleach. Lynn moved to the side.

“Please execute these snakes masquerading as human beings and provide the closure their victims’ families need.”

“Thank you for joining us in this dire mission, Crusader Crue,” Nick stated. He moved with expertise from one to the other, slicing down through skin for the disemboweling stroke needed to spill the untethered intestines out.