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CESARE
“We waitfor Matteo’s signal. We don’t move an inch, until he gives us the green light.”
With those words, I dismissed my boys and told them to take up their positions.
It had been a long time coming.
A rough ride, full of ups and downs.
The most recent one would have to be Leonardo’s injury. He’d been lucky to get out of that one alive.
Now, somewhere in the middle of a fucking state forest, the three of us had one more chance to carry out our biggest plan to date. The plan that had set the mob against us.
Just ten yards from the road, standing between a couple of cedar trees, I pressed my index finger to my ear.
“Talk to me, boys.”
“Leonardo here. Copy loud and clear.”
“This is Matteo. In position. Target’s five minutes out.”
“What about company? Can you see any?”
“Not yet. I’d bet everything I own, though. They wouldn’t let one of those trucks without a chaperon. We’ve seen it before.”
“Roger.”
Without a doubt, this would be the trickiest part of the operation. Taking care of the tag team. Making sure that none of them survived to go back and tell his handlers what had taken place out in the wilderness. We had failed to do that once. After our arrival at the hospital, it had been impossible to track down both of the enemy’s men.
Still, that night was a whole different story.
We had planned this better.
We had taken into account every single detail, including the two fuckers that would try to mess with our plan.
I tapped my boot into the moist soil in impatience, holding my rifle across my stomach.
“Cesare, Leonardo,” I heard Matteo’s voice on the intercom. “I’ve got eyes on that chaperon. One car. Black Escalade. Half a mile behind the truck.”
“Copy, Matteo. Can you get to them?”
“Nope. I’m positioned on top of a branch about fifteen feet from the ground. I can’t aim at anybody in that Escalade. I can hit its roof, but that’s about it.”
“I hear you. Take care of the driver and come back down, then. We’re going to need your help.”
“Will do. Target in sight in thirty seconds.”
At that point, my arm dropped, my breath quickening. My boots squashed a small pile of brush as I started off towards the road. With the distant noise of a diesel engine in my ears, I peeked my head from behind a balsam fir tree. I made out the headlights of a tall vehicle, well down the twisty road. Casting its light across the asphalt, it continued along the road, my heart pounding like a war drum. Just as it was about to take a left turn, two, almost simultaneous clicks filled my ears.
I rushed off and stayed parallel to the road, my gaze not leaving the dark road up ahead. Just past a steep hill, that truck was serving right and left.
“Driver’s down.”
Matteo’s voice confirmed my suspicion. The armored truck’s tires screeching in protest, it snaked along the asphalt, losing speed as it did. The uphill road it encountered slowed it down further. I barreled down the hill, Leonardo bursting out of the forest to the left. Closing in, I came to a disturbing realization. The truck still had quite a lot of momentum. Its steering wheel hard left, it jackknifed in the middle of the road, revealing the bright shade of silver of that cab. Smoke rising from all six tires, the truck rolled over, its cab smashing down into the asphalt. The ground underneath my boots vibrating, a sheer cacophony of noise dominated the atmosphere. Metal slammed into asphalt. The windscreen shattered to pieces, chunks of glass spreading out into the road. Aluminum grinding into the surface of the road, I spotted Leonardo’s figure just past the vehicle. His pace slowing to a jog, he came to a halt, his ski mask pulled down his face.
“What are you waiting for?” I said, trying to catch my breath. “Set the charges.”
“No need,” he spoke, gesturing me closer. “Look at that.”
