Chapter 82 Part 82
Asher
His phone vibrated in his pocket, and he headed for the entrance instead of the booth. He frowned as he looked at the number on his phone and answered it.
“Hello.”
“Bullseye, it’s Seeker,” Mark said.
“What’s wrong?” Mark was using their nicknames from the Army, which meant something was wrong.
“It’s a long story, might take me an hour to tell it. I need your help.”
“You’ve got my help, whatever it is. I’ll be waiting.”
The call ended, and Asher looked at the time. It was nearing midnight and he headed back inside. He paid his tab and said goodnight to everyone. Joey hugged him tightly, swaying a bit on his feet.
Outside, the quiet of the town was refreshing, and he headed to his truck with a slight frown on his face. It had to be serious if Mark didn’t want to talk over the phone. He hadn’t used his name, or his location, and goosebumps erupted over his arms as he got in his truck.
Asher took different dirt roads to get to his house, bypassing the road which led to the ranch entrance. He parked his truck in the shed, and locked the doors with the chain that was almost never used.
He left the lights off, and headed to the room off the living room, where he kept his safe. He took the rifle out, loaded it, and clipped on the infrared scope. Upstairs, in his bedroom, he exchanged his T-shirt for a black long sleeved shirt.
He left the front door unlocked, and surveyed the area with a pair of infrared binoculars. He couldn’t detect any heat signatures and he quickly ran to the bur oak tree. He slung the rifle over his back and within a few seconds, he was up in the tree, and making himself comfortable.
He scanned the area around his house, shifting quietly as he surveyed the open field leading to the woods, the road coming from the west and east. It was quiet and dark, and he was ready.
He spotted headlights in the distance, then they were shut off. He lifted the rifle to his shoulder and scanned where the vehicle would turn the corner. It came into view and he detected two heat signatures.
He followed the vehicle as it made its way to his house from the western side, the same road he had used earlier. He knew it was Mark. The road was mainly unused, and Mark knew exactly where it led.
The SUV parked at the side of his house, out of view from anyone entering from the east and the main house. He tracked Mark’s movements as he got out, looked around, and then walked around the vehicle.
When Mark and the unknown woman he was with reached the porch, Asher landed on the ground, and Mark instantly had his 9mm out, and aimed at Asher.
“Should’ve known you’d keep a lookout.”
“You were talking in code,” Asher said, and looked at the woman. “Is she the reason why?”
“Yeah. Let’s get inside, and I’ll tell you everything,” Mark said.
The woman looked afraid and in shock. Her hair was disheveled, her eyes were wide, and her face was pale. Asher nodded, and led them into the house. He closed the curtains and switched on the lights.
“Let’s talk in the kitchen.”
Mark led the way and switched the kettle on as Asher lowered the blinds and closed them. Mark had spent time in his house, Polly, too, and he busied himself making coffee.
“What do you need, Mark?”
“This is Emerson Reid,” Mark said.
“Hi.” Her voice was soft and afraid. She was young, her eyes an interesting mix of brown and green. She had waist length light brown hair but Asher couldn’t decide if she was pretty or not.
“Asher Fitzgerald,” he said.
“A few months ago, I started working for this company. We do some off the book work for the government. We help locate people, clearing out nests, that sort of thing,” he said.
“Okay.” It made sense to Asher. Lots of ex-military guys joined security firms in the private sector.
“Emerson is a material witness in the Balducci Crime Family case. She provided physical evidence, samples of drugs and recordings of their dealings to the Feds. She also witnessed Grover Balducci killing two men, and he knows it. We had her in protective custody after he was arrested,” Mark said.
“His lawyer got her name from the list of witnesses, and now he’s looking for her?” Asher asked.
“Yes, but…he escaped seven hours ago during transport, and he has her name, her address. Hell, Asher, they even dated, so he knows everything about her. The safehouse where she was, got shot up. Two of my guys are dead, but Nick got her out and called me. We made a switch in a safe location where there are no cameras. I’ve had her under a blanket on the back seat the entire way here. I don’t know where else to take her. It seems like we might have a leak somewhere. Nobody knows I’ve got her, except Nick, and he’s clean. You know our whole team was classified so nobody can connect you to me.”
“You want her to stay here?” The surprise in Asher’s voice had Mark smiling.
“You can keep her safe until he’s arrested again, and goes to trial. There’s nobody else I trust but you,” Mark said.
“It could be months, Mark. You know these guys go underground. He’s probably already left the country.”
“Yeah, but his men on the ground haven't. They will be looking for her.” Mark was looking intently at him.
“Fine, but this happens my way. There will be no contact with the outside until he’s behind bars again. No visits, no phone calls, no social media,” Asher said, as he looked at Emerson.
“Okay,” she said, and looked at Mark. It was clear that she trusted him.
“I’ll pick her up myself once we’ve caught this bastard,” Mark said.