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Mick's eyes were on the horizon, where the first signs of movement started to show. "It's all in motion," he said with a confidence that Harry hoped wasn't misplaced. "Kenan will do his part. And if the loyalty we've banked on around here holds, it'll pay off. We just have to deal with the rest as it comes."
They moved into position, the airstrip sprawling before them, a chessboard on which their fates would be decided. Harry could feel the tension coiling in his muscles, the calm before the inevitable storm. Mick's plan, whatever it was, was their best shot.
"Now," Mick said, his gaze fixed on the figures beginning to emerge in the distance, "we talk our way out of the rest. Stick close, and follow my lead."
Harry nodded, his hand resting on the gun at his side. The drove toward the other SUVs and dark sedans parked by the hangar.
“We’re just going to drive right up?”
“They don’t know it’s us,” Mick reminded them. “We need to get close enough to talk. To make sure they believe the story.”
The men, armed and alert, clustered together, unaware that the leader they awaited was no more.
As they stepped from the SUV, Harry assessed each element before them. The men's hands hovered near their weapons, their eyes narrow slits of suspicion. Harry's pulse quickened, knowing that the next few moments were critical.
"We're here to talk," Mick announced, his voice steady and authoritative. "Everyone just take a breath and relax."
One of the men stepped forward, the unofficial spokesman of the group. "Where are the others? Where's the boss?" he demanded, his stance aggressive.
"They're dead," Mick stated bluntly, and Harry's stomach dropped.
He couldn't believe Mick's approach. The truth, so raw and unguarded, felt like a provocation in this standoff. Harry braced for a violent reaction, for the air to erupt with gunfire and chaos.
But Mick held his ground, his face an impassive mask. "Listen," he continued, "there is still time to put this back in the box. Just take it easy.”
The men exchanged uneasy glances. The hesitation on their part was a good sign. They could have started firing their weapons already.
“Where’s Topeka?” The man kept his hand hovering over his gun as he demanded answers.
“We don’t know,” Mick explained. “She hired us to protect her but when shit started going down, she bailed. We have the same intel as you, that she was heading for this airstrip. Now we can be hotheads here and just start a shoot-out. Maybe some of us will make it out of here, but a lot won’t.”
“You won’t,” the man scoffed.
“I’ll make sure I take you with me,” Harry bit back.
“Easy fellas,” Mick cautioned. “The way I see it, we’re all doing someone else’s dirty work. No reason to die for theircause. Topeka is what they want. Let’s figure out if she flew out of here or not and where she’s headed. You guys take that intel to the man who wants her and take the trouble you brought to town with you. We’ve both had losses here.”
“I’m down men now,” he barked. “That’s not going to go unanswered.”
“We’re even,” Mick snapped. “The woman your guys took from town, Rose. They killed her in the crossfire when shit went down. She was a young mother with a beautiful smile and big family. A noisy family. They’ll want justice. You’d be as good as any to pay for that crime in their eyes. We all need this to go away. So let’s make that happen.”
“How?” he asked, clearly spooked by the thought of being blamed for killing Rose.
“We go in there and get intel. We find out from the guy working if any planes took off and if Topeka was on one. Get the manifest, and you guys continue chasing your prize. I head back to town and tell them you’re all dead. I’ve avenged Rose’s death, you keep hunting the girl you’re looking for.”
“He’ll want to know you are dead,” another man chimed in. “He doesn’t do loose ends. How do we know you won’t come knocking with the same evidence she had?”
“Because we don’t give a shit,” Mick laughed. “The only god we pray to is money. And we’ve already gotten paid by her. She was a pain in the ass and didn’t do what she was told. Brought a cell phone and was tracked. I don’t need the headache, and I don’t care what she was running from or why. Like I said, I need this finished, and you need a new lead.”
“We can kill you and still get the lead.” The man unholstered his weapon.
“More bloodshed, means more attention. Take a look.” Harry gestured up to the cameras on the side of the building. “Don’tcomplicate this. The smart move is we all put our guns away and get what we need to put this in the rearview mirror.”
For a moment, the airstrip was silent but for the whispering grass and the distant call of a waking bird. Then, slowly, the men began to lower their weapons, their posture shifting from combative to resigned.
“I’ll talk to the guy in there,” he asserted, more forceful than he needed. Mick just shrugged a reply, indicating this guy was the boss. “No games,” he continued.
“No games,” Harry said, reluctantly holstering his own weapon. He hated to be doing so, but he knew he could outdraw most of these men.
