HOSTAGE
Part One
By Sean Lennon
They came in fast and hard. The seven men dressed in black from head to toe rushed into the bank in the middle of lunch hour. The quiet bank became a chaotic scene as customers were knocked to the floor and threatened with their lives. The head of the seven pointed in several directions while the others spread out. The men had planned this to perfection. There was no way the police were going to win in this battle.
Alpha stood in the center of the bank, watching his best six men run frantically setting up their barricades and keeping crowd control. A pair of headphones covered his ears, playing the hard thrash sounds of Disturbed. The adrenaline rush of the music was just the thing for a job like this. The music put him in that killer frame of mind, for he knew that he would be forced to take a life or two before this was all over. It was all part of the plan. And he knew from experience just how stupid the New York Police Department was. But before this was over, they would look even worse. All thanks to him.
Operatives numbers 1 to 4 scrambled to hook up the semi-transparent plastic sheets to all the windows and doors in the bank. Each sheet was cloudy, preventing anyone from seeing into the bank. The sheets would strengthen their hold on the hostages within the bank. Once the police found out about it they would stay far back from the building as they would have no idea what or how many were hold up in the bank. Meanwhile, an eighth man covered all rooftop access. That included any air vents and back doors that SWAT could take advantage of. Alpha thought the plan through to the most minute detail.
Operatives 5 and 6 shoved their guns in the faces of the customers and the bank employees. One security guard tried to be the brave and courageous one of the crowd and attempted to take out one of the operatives. Number 6 saw him going for his gun and swung the barrel of his shotgun in the direction of the stupid guard. He fired and watched as the buckshot knocked the guard off his feet and into the wall behind him. A red smear followed the guard down to the floor.
Alpha did not hear the gunshot over the Disturbed CD but saw the flash of the shot from the corner of his eye. He then saw another from behind the teller counter. Number 5 raised his head into view and made a throat slashing motion. This told Alpha that the silent alarm was hit. Alpha smiled, knowing that it would be a matter of minutes before the street outside the bank was covered with a blanket of uniformed officers. He welcomed the onslaught of pigs. The fun would soon begin.
Alpha removed the headphones from his ears and walked over to the cowering group of hostages. He stopped before them and paused for dramatic effect. Right then he was an actor, dreaming of outdoing Al Pacino in one of his greatest roles from Dog Day Afternoon. But this was the year 2009. The use of high technology and cute little gadgets made robbing banks much more fun.
“Greetings, ladies and gentlemen. As you can tell, this is a bank robbery. Now, let me tell you that we do not plan on killing any more of you. But I cannot comment on the New York Police, of course. If they don’t care about our demands and needs, then they will cause your deaths as well as others. All we ask is that you do not try to play hero and be a John McClaine. We will kill you if we don’t like you. That is a guarantee. Do you understand?”
The majority of the hostages nodded in frightened agreement. Alpha bowed before them and walked back over to the windows.
“#1, let me have the bag,” he asked. Operative 1 pulled the strap of the bag over his head and tossed it to Alpha. He opened it and pulled out the police scanner, the portable TV, and a Nextel walkie to contact his outside man. He turned on the scanner and immediately heard chatter. It was as if an entire party line was talking on the police frequency. Alpha then plugged the TV into a wall outlet and turned it on. He walked away from it, knowing that it would be at least twenty minutes before they received any airtime.
“#8 how are we up in the sky?” Alpha spoke into the Nextel.
“In one minute, all rooftop access will be wired,” squawked the walkie.
“Excellent, you’ve done a fine job. When you’re done, I want you on the street watching behind the scenes Keep a close eye on our cameras too.”
“Understood.” The walkie died after the response. Alpha placed it on the desk beside the small TV. That was when he saw the bird’s eye view of
“As you can see, while we were checking traffic on the FDR, our pilot, Chuck, noticed the heavy police activity on and about
Alpha laughed. He was impressed with the New York Police. It wasn’t even two minutes and they were already at the door, ready to make the biggest mistake in the history of the NYPD. They were going to try and screw with him.
* * *
“You’ve got to be friggin kidding me,” FBI Assistant Director William Parker said into the cell phone. He had walked outside into the March air to enjoy the weather as he ate lunch at the local café off of
“No, sir,” Stacy Zimmerman, his secretary answered. “Captain Todd just called in for help concerning the situation on
“Give me his number and I’ll contact him myself,” Parker sighed. He didn’t know exactly what was going on with
“Who is it?” the Captain asked.
“Captain Todd, this is Assistant Director Parker. What can I help you with?”
“A.D. Parker, glad you could call me back.” Parker knew it was going to be a terrible day now that Todd was involved. Captain Mitchell Todd was known for his arrogance towards his fellow cops. No one was good enough to even converse with him. Of course, Todd was a man that would look normal if he could turn the extra pounds into extra hair. But Parker would take the punishment for the sake of whatever was going on
“We’ve got a bad situation. Some men had taken over the Integrity Bank on Sixth and Forty-seventh, just a few blocks from
“Any word from the takers, demands?” Parker asked, curious.
“I would have told you if they had given us any,” Todd replied, “Not a peep from them yet. But it’s only been 20 minutes since the silent alarm went off. We’ve already got the place surrounded. And SWAT is on it’s way. But we’re short a negotiator so I wanted one of yours.”
Parker was damned if he’d allow one of his men to be pushed around and degraded by Todd. He would help supervise his negotiator while Todd barked orders.
“I’ll get a hold of one of my men and will meet him there to assist you in this.”
“What? You don’t think I can handle this?” Todd barked.
“I never said that Captain. I’m sure you and your force are fully capable of handling the situation.” Prick, he thought.
“Good, cause we can. It just so happens that our negotiator transferred up to
“I’ll call ours now and we’ll be right over.” Parker hung up the phone before Todd could respond. He sighed and rubbed his balding head. He dialled the office again and got Stacy on the phone.
“Miss Zimmerman, I need you to call Will Duffy and let him know there’s hostage situation on the corner of Sixth and Forty-seventh. I need him there immediately.”
“Um, Assistant Director? Agent Duffy is currently on vacation, sir.”
Parker sighed even harder. How could he have forgotten? This was bad. He didn’t know who else to call in on the problem.
“Well, who is available?” he asked, holding back the desperation. He wasn’t planning to look bad in front of Todd on this one.
“I’ll have to check, sir. Most of the agents are involved in the sting operation at Battery Park. I’ll look into who is qualified for negotiations and available. Then I’ll call you back with the results.”
“The sooner the better. We have a hostage situation and we can’t go lightly on it. They sound like professionals.”
“Yes sir. I will call you as soon as I find out.” Stacy hung up and began searching the database on available agents with negotiation experience.
Parker headed up to the Integrity Bank during the time. Ten minutes later, he pulled through the barricade and parked the car on the side. He got out and walked over the small crowd huddled around Todd. He listened to the captain and heard the comments that he was giving.
“Yeah, these guys aren’t gonna push around Mitchell Todd,” he said, “They think it’s funny to cover all the windows in plastic so that they can hide from us.”
“Captain Todd,” Parker called out. Todd turned around and smiled at the Assistant Director. Just like he wanted, Parker came running. But Parker was not running because Todd called him, he came to save the lives of the twenty people inside the bank. Todd could have kissed his ass for all Parker cared.
Assistant Director Parker, glad you could make it,” Todd said, ignoring the extended hand that Parker held out. “Where’s your negotiator?”
“He’s on his way. Now what can you tell me about the situation?” Parker wanted nothing but the facts. He was already having a bad day and did not want Captain Todd to make it any worse.
“Well from witnesses, we’ve got seven guys in black jumping out of a utility van with a ton of shit under their arms rushing into the bank. They closed off all exits and covered all views into the bank with plastic sheets. No one can see in clear enough. I’ve got SWAT setting up posts all over the place and we’re still waiting for any contact from these assholes.”
“Have you tried calling in?”
“Have I? What? Do I look like a moron to you, Parker? Of course I tried. No one is picking up the phone in there. They think they can push us around like that, I’ll show them who’s in charge.”
“I think you should contact them first before taking any action. What if they have the hostages against the windows?”
Todd looked at him and sighed. He then turned and ignored Parker. Parker noticed this and shook his head. He found it amazing that Todd had made it to captain. Perhaps he did it by annoying his superiors, he thought. He looked over at the building and noticed a man in black crossing the rooftop. He stretched his arm out to grab Todd’s shoulder and stopped when the phone that Todd held rang. All the police officers around the two men froze at the sound. It could only mean one thing; the robbers were willing to talk. Todd looked at Parker and then pressed the Talk button.
“Captain Todd, who am I talking to?”
“This is the man in charge of the group inside the Integrity Bank. Good morning Captain. How are you today?”
“How do you think I am? I’ve got someone taking over a bank in my neighborhood.” Todd answered. Parker grabbed the phone from Todd’s hand and pushed him away. He put it to his ear and spoke.
“Hello? This is FBI Assistant Director Parker, who am I speaking to?” Parker said, giving Todd an angry and disappointing look. Suddenly the phone went dead. The person on the other line had disconnected. Why, Parker wondered. What the hell was going on in there?
“Hello? Hello?”
“Nice going Parker. I had the guy talking to me and you had to go and grab it from my hand. What the hell for?”
“Because that’s not the way to talk to a hostage taker! You get him pissed off and you endanger the lives of the people trapped in there!”
“Don’t you yell at me! This is my jurisdiction; I called in for your negotiator, not you. Now either you get your guy here now or get out of my face.” Todd took back the phone and waited for the call back. A few minutes later, the phone rang again.
“Todd here,” he said.
“Captain Todd, has anyone ever told you that you’re a horse’s ass?” spoke the man on the other line. Todd noticed that the voice sounded different.
“What happened to the other guy?”
“Never mind that. If you ever agitate me or any of my men, people will die. Do I make myself clear?” Todd answered yes and listened to the hostage taker, “Now, I want you to do the wise thing. Do not interfere in our business. If you behave yourself like a good little police captain, all the innocent people in here and out there will live. If you attempt to strike or try to enter, I can promise you that you will be responsible for a number of victims. Now, once we’re done, we will allow you to enter the bank and remove the hostages. But to show you how serious I am about this,” Todd heard the phone being moved. Then another voice came onto the line.
“Hello?” the voice said.
“This is Captain Todd of the New York Police.”
“My name is Barry Grey. I’m the bank manager here and these men are very serious about what they’re looking for.”
“What are they looking for?” Todd was hoping to get some kind of motive behind it.
“The leader has a gun to my head right…” The phone line became deafening from the sound of the gun going off. Todd jumped back in surprise. And even Parker had heard the gunshot through the phone. Moments later, the leader returned to the phone.
“Please let Mr. Grey’s wife and children know that he will not be coming home for dinner. As for you Captain Todd, please, call me Alpha. And sit tight, I will call back.”
“Wait, do you have any demands for the hostages?” But it was too late. The phone was dead. Todd returned the phone to his belt. “They hung up,” he told Parker.
Parker picked up his phone and dialled the number for Stacy. It rang twice and then she answered.
“Ms. Zimmerman, any luck?” he prayed.
“Yes, sir. We have one agent with enough experience and who’s available. I was just about to contact him.”
“Who’s that?” Parker wondered.
“Agent Carter, sir.” Parker smiled. Jack Carter was one of his best. He was ashamed that he didn’t think of him off the bat. Jack had succeeded in a few cases that the FBI was involved in at their
“Good job, Ms. Zimmerman. Please contact Agent Carter. Tell him we need him here immediately.” Parker hung up and hoped that Carter would get here before anyone else died.
TO BE CONTINUED………….
Part Two
By Sean Lennon
FBI Agent Jack Carter sat in Bryant Park with his trusted companion, Murray, and his chess-playing friend, Mr. Jacob Kociniak. Every Friday that he was off, Jack would meet up with Mr. Kociniak in Bryant Park and they would play a few games of chess. It kept Jack’s mind sharp and helped Mr. Kociniak in knowing that he had one more friend left in the world. Plus, it allowed
Jack moved his knight forward and took Mr. Kociniak’s bishop. Mr. Kociniak rubbed his bald head and sighed.
“How could I have missed that?” he said.
“An easy mistake, Mr. Kociniak. Bad morning?” Jack asked.
“My knees are acting up again. Something bad is coming.” Mr. Kociniak looked up at the sky and saw nothing but blue skies. He shrugged and looked back at the board. He scrunched his face in thought and held his hand over the pieces, thinking of the perfect comeback. Jack then noticed that he had left open his right side for attack. He wondered if his older playing partner would notice too. Jack chewed on the side of his mouth and sat back. Finally, Mr. Kociniak picked up his Rook and slid it across to the right corner of Jack’s side of the board.
“I believe that is Check,” he said, smiling.
“That it is,” Jack replied, smiling back. For an old man, Kociniak was smart. After all, he did fight in the Second World War and then worked as a supervisor in a car factory. Eighty-seven years old and still as strong as a fifty year-old.
“That’ll teach you to underestimate me. You think I’m a senile old man that you can swindle out of some money, huh?”
“Me? Nah, no way.” Jack laughed and looked down at Murray who happened to be watching a woman jogger with her
“You see what you like, buddy?” The dog chuffed and placed his head back down. Jack turned back around and looked over at the board again.
“Come on now, try and stop me this time.”
“You’re on, Mister.” Jack took hold of his queen and was about to move it right into the Rook’s spot but was interrupted by the cell phone on his hip. He placed the piece down and flipped the phone on.
“Carter,” he said into the phone.
“Jack, it’s Stacy.”
“Hey there, pretty lady. What can I do for you today?”
“Well, hate to ruin your nice day off but Parker is looking for you. There’s a hostage situation at the Integrity Bank on Sixth and Forty-seventh. Duffy is on vacation and you’re the only other agent available that can handle the case. Parker is there now with Captain Todd of the NYPD.”
“Captain Todd, the biggest pompous ass to ever walk the Earth, Todd?”
“That’s the one, so unless you want Parker mad at you for leaving him alone with him for so long, I’d get that cute ass over there pronto.”
“Gotcha. Oh, by the way, we still on for tonight?” Jack asked.
“As long as you don’t get yourself killed before then.”
“Deal,” Jack said, smiling. Mr. Kociniak giggled to himself, knowing how much of a charmer Jack was. He hung up the phone and looked over at the elderly man.
“Well, Mr. Kociniak, you win. Work calls and I’ve got to go save the innocent and fight crime and all that stuff.” Jack took his King piece and laid it on it’s side.
“That’s just because you know that you were going to lose anyway,” Kociniak replied.
“Can you watch
“Hostage taking? You be careful there. I need to make another twenty dollars and wiping up the chess board with you is the easiest way.”
“You’re on,” Jack shook his hand and pet
* * *
He reached the area in a matter of minutes. Quickly finding Parker, Jack was brought up to date. He looked through the binoculars and saw that the plastic sheets were too cloudy to see through. Good idea, he thought. Without sight into the bank, the police could not figure out where the hostages were. So any attack would be dangerous. He wondered why they covered the windows with the tarps instead of closing the blinds.
“So why this bank and why in the middle of lunch hour?” Jack asked his superior, wondering the answer himself.
“You’ve got me, I thought that’s why I brought you up here. Sorry about ruining your day off.”
“Don’t worry about it, I blame the robbers for this. Anyone get close to the windows?” Jack asked his supervisor. Parker looked over at him and undid his tie.
“No, the leader inside the bank told Todd that he wanted the police away from the building or else the hostages would die.”
“Well, it’s pretty hard to see out of that sheeting. How would he know that I walked over to look? The media has been locked out of the area.”
“Well, SWAT noticed earlier that there was one of them on the roof that was well hidden. I think they have the outside canvassed. There could even be a guy on the street, blended in with the crowd for all we know,” Parker explained.
Jack turned away from the bank and looked around the neighborhood. The skyscrapers across the street held several dozen onlookers peering out of their office windows at the scene below. Anyone of them could be involved with the men inside. Parker did have a good point. But Jack would not know unless he tested them.
“I would have all the civilian onlookers on the street moved back to a half block away. We want to keep them guessing if we have to do the same.”
Jack stepped around the police car barricade on the opposite side and walked towards the bank. Todd was notified about this and rushed at Carter. He grabbed Jack by the shoulder and spun him around.
“And what the hell are you doing? This is a hostage situation. I’ll have your ass arrested just for crossing the barricade!” Todd shouted at Carter. Jack pulled Todd’s hand off his shoulder and reached into his windbreaker to retrieve his badge.
“Special Agent Jack Carter, you asked for a FBI negotiator, I’m here. Now if you don’t mind, I’m working.” Jack stared Todd in the eyes and refused to back down. He knew all about Mitchell Todd and would not tolerate his arrogance in this situation. It wasn’t allowed, especially when lives were at stake. Todd gritted his teeth and pointed at Carter.
“I am not going to let you screw this up for me, Carter. The moment I see your mistakes cost anyone their lives, you’re gone.”
“I don’t think so, TODD.”
“And why is that?”
“Because the moment you called us in to assist, the FBI took over control. You have no say.” Jack turned back and continued walking over the window.
* * *
Alpha sat at the bank manager’s desk with his feet up and watched as the news tried to report about the hostage taking but were banned by the police to film the area. Good plan, he thought. No view from outside would hurt their robbery. But Alpha planned for that. His partner was out there watching for him. He looked over to Operative #5 and saw that one of the hostages was agitated. He removed his headphones that were plugged into the portable TV.
“Alpha, one of the hostages needs to use the bathroom.”
“You know what to do. Just as we discussed. Pat the hostage down and then search the bathroom for any possible weapons. Then follow the hostage into the bathroom and wait for them until they’re done. If they need to use a stall, the door remains open. Do NOT let them alone for a minute.”
“Understood,” Operative #5 said. He turned and motioned the hostage over to the bathroom.
Alpha watched them walk away. Then he stood up and went over to the vault. There, Operatives 1 and 2 stood guard as three of the hostages passed money out of the vault and into large black duffel bags. He watched for a bit, noticing that the hostages were still scared out of their minds and were most likely praying that they lived through this ordeal. They had nothing to worry about. It was everyone outside the bank that should be cowering in fear. Alpha smiled at the genius behind the set up of the takeover. It was a plan without holes. All possible errors were covered. Their prize was inside the safety deposit vault and their escape was a brilliant plan. He’d make the New York Police the laughing stock of the month. To allow eight men to cause the havoc they had in store and allow them to get away would be shameful in the eyes of the public and media. That’s what you get when you screw with me, he thought.
“Number 1, find our treasure and bring it to me when you can. Take one of them with you to locate it. We have to remain on schedule,” Alpha told him.
“Yes sir,” Number 1 replied. Alpha turned back and wandered over to where the other hostages were. He rubbed his chin and wondered if he could have some fun with one or two of them. But his fantasy was interrupted by the squawk of the Nextel phone.
“Alpha, come in.” He looked over and recognized the voice. Number 8 must have finished with his part of the plan and was now behind the lines, watching the cops from among them. He and Alpha’s partner in this were his eyes outside the bank. Whatever happened behind the barricades would be reported to him before it was put into effect.
“Yes, Number 8,” Alpha said.
“We have a cop approaching the building. Plain-clothed detective going straight for the west side of the building.”
“Thank you, 8, eliminate radio contact until notified.” Alpha was puzzled by the courageous act. He had told Captain Todd to keep everyone away from the building. Why was a detective walking towards them? Or was he actually a negotiator willing to cut a deal? Nevertheless, he was not in the mood to negotiate. There was no need to, for he was going to take what he wanted and still get away before they even knew they were gone.
Alpha dialed the number to Todd’s cell phone and waited for him to answer. When Todd did, he noticed that his voice was stressed. A definite sign that things were not going according to plan for the police. Stress equaled mistakes. Mistakes equaled humility. He could not help but smile regardless of the approaching lawman.
“Captain Todd, did you not take me seriously when I told you that I want no one near the building? Do I have to kill more innocent people? You realize that their blood will be on your hands.” Alpha knew this would be a perfect time to show off his lovely creation. Things were going too good.
“I know what you said. I have the FBI here getting involved now and they’re being assholes,” Todd told him, “They won’t listen to me.”
“Then put our courageous federal agent on the phone.”
“What?”
“I want to talk to the man walking up to this building. Now, captain, before another hostage dies by my hand. And I WILL know if you’re lying to me.”
“Okay, okay. Hang on, I’ll go get him.” Alpha could hear Todd rushing over to the man. He picked up the small Swiss knife from the bank manager’s desk and walked over to the third window on the west side of the building. He listened to the rustling on the other end and could hear Todd yelling for the man, calling him Carter. Alpha made note of the name so he could later find information on the agent. Moments later, the brave man named Carter answered.
“Jack Carter here,” he said into the cheap cell phone.
“Mr. Carter, my name is Alpha. I am the mastermind behind this wondrous plan. But I’ve been told that you are not listening to my demands. I instructed Captain Todd to inform his men that no one is to approach the building under circumstances. But yet, you’re walking towards the building. Why is that?”
“Who told you that I was walking towards the building? Your guy on the outside?” Carter replied. Alpha was impressed. Carter had a brain, unlike the impolite Captain Todd.
“No, just consider me psychic, Agent Carter.”
“So Alpha, what exactly are your demands? What exactly is your motive?” Carter asked, hoping to get some information from the man who seemed overburdened by his huge ego.
“My demands are simple. I want no one near the building.”
“That’s it? We stay away and no one gets hurt?”
“Correct, Agent Carter. We know what we’re doing and we know how you negotiate. If you interfere with our robbery, we are going to be very angry. And you do not want to see what happens when we are angry.”
“Okay, I understand. I’ll see to it that no one else comes within forty feet of here. But I want your word that everyone else in that bank remains alive.”
“If you do as I say, they will walk out of here in two hours. But no tricks, Agent. I know how cops think. You’ll only say that you’ll back off but find another way into the building. And then, you’ll do exactly what I want you to do.”
Carter wanted to ask but was afraid of what Alpha would do. The ego the hostage taker had was dangerous because Alpha would do whatever he pleased, thinking he was unstoppable. What Jack learned in hostage negotiations was that the unknown factor played heavy with a personality like that. Carter would have to walk on eggshells before he could anticipate Alpha’s next moves.
“What exactly is it that you want us to do?”
“Look bad in front of the media as well as the public. You see, once they find out that you ignored our threats and ended up costing people lives, no one will be able to put their faith in the New York Police Department.”
“But you said that you wouldn’t kill anyone in there if we stayed back.”
“That I did, Agent Carter. But mind you, I didn’t give my word concerning the innocent civilians outside the building.”
“What? What are you talking about?”
“Watch closely to the third window here.” Alpha climbed up onto a chair and stood before the plastic sheet. He waved, knowing that Jack Carter could see his silhouette on the screen. Alpha held up the knife to the plastic sheet that covered the window.
“Now, to explain our covering of all windows, I would have to tell you all about the sheets. You see, in layman’s terms, the sheets contain a thin mesh inside it. The mesh is used to run a small current throughout the sheet. The sheet is wired to a battery and a frequency box. The battery sends a current into the mesh and then from the mesh into the box. If any part of the mesh is severed, say by a bullet hole or a tear, the current is interrupted. And when the box no longer receives the current, it automatically sends out a specific frequency to a receiver within two miles of the bank. When the receiver gets hit with the frequency, this is what happens.” Alpha plunged the knife into the sheet in front of him. The light on the frequency box came on. He jumped back with a smile on his face, waiting for the result.
* * *
Jack watched the silhouette make a small slice in the sheet with the knife and then fell back. Carter found himself out in the open and felt completely vulnerable. He quickly spun around and ran back to the line of police cars, unsure of what was going to happen next. As he crossed the open space, the air was overcome with a loud explosion. The police behind the barricades turned their attention to their left. Jack stopped short and stared uptown to three blocks away.
The souvenir shop next door to
The uniformed police left the barricade around the bank and hurried over to the blast site and quickly began taking care of all the victims. Jack looked up and saw the billowing smoke climbing upward.
“Shit,” he mumbled to himself, knowing this was going not going to be your typical bank robbery.
TO BE CONTINUED………
Part Three
By Sean Lennon
Jack stared at the horrifying scene that had just occurred three blocks away while the cell phone in his hand rang continuously. He was unaware of the electronic beeping because his mind was focused on one thing. He had to prevent Alpha from setting off more bombs in the area. It was time to get serious.
Parker followed the cops to the bomb site, in hopes that he could help any of the victims there. Jack stood by himself at the barricade of police cars and shook the cobwebs from his head. Finally realizing Todd’s cell phone was ringing, he answered it.
“Well, Agent Carter, are you impressed by our show?” It was Alpha again. He knew what had happened on the outside. Jack wondered if it was because of someone telling him or because he saw it on a television inside.
“Very,” Carter said, playing into Alpha’s game, “Good idea. I’ve never seen that trap before.”
“Well, I can’t take total credit for it. I had a small bit of help.” Carter’s mind ran through everything that Alpha had said to him up until that point. He thought of anything that could help him figure out Alpha’s next move. His motive was a major part of it and right now, that was as obvious as a number written on a piece of paper hidden behind a two foot thick steel wall. But what he did know was that Alpha was an egomaniac. And that could be used against him. Carter’s only present option was to stroke Alpha’s ego until he made a mistake.
“You mean financial help, don’t you? I can’t see anyone else coming up with something like that.”
Alpha caught on to what the FBI agent was doing. He paused, thinking of what he would do next to the lawman.
“Agent Carter, do not play me for a fool. Doing that would only make me angry. And I’m sure you do not want to see me angry. I will contact you later concerning the future of these hostages.” Alpha hung up the phone. But that was okay in Jack’s eyes. It allowed him to make another phone call.
* * *
Alpha stared at the Nextel, ignoring all other goings-on in the bank. The operatives would take care of the plan. He hired only those who he felt could abide by his rules without getting greedy or out of hand. It had taken some time but perfection normally does, he thought. His partner had helped to locate such lackeys. Plus, his partner was the one to help him access the information needed to pull off such a near impossible mission. But the prize was worth it’s weight in gold. Unfortunately, the only one in the bank that knew the exact location of the main prize was the dead bank manager. Alpha knew this and still murdered him. It cost him time but allowed him more time to play with the police and wave their stupidity in their faces. After all, they deserved it. His life would never be the same after what they had done to him.
But now this FBI agent made him concerned. Alpha had taken into account of such a chess piece, but anticipating his next move was something that he needed help with. And thus, the importance of his partner came into view. He raised the phone and hit the button.
“Come in,” he said, waiting seconds for a response. The phone beeped in return and his partner’s voice echoed out of the ear piece.
“What is it?”
“What can you tell me about an FBI agent by the name of Jack Carter?”
There was moment of silence before the man on the other line replied, “Carter? He’s nothing to worry about. Been with the Agency for four years. Known best for the help he provided on the Skin Man case two years ago. More of the profiling type. Don’t let him get too much information from you or else he’ll be able to think like you. If you keep him in the dark, he’ll be helpless.”
“I see,” Alpha said back, thinking of what fun taunting Carter would be.
“I mean it. No screwing up. Keep your mouth shut and your ego in check.”
“My dear associate, there is no need to fret. I’m not the one you have to worry about. I told you, I’ve thought of everything. Now,” Alpha’s speech was cut short by the screech of one of the female hostages. He frowned and sat up. Looking over at the corner where Operative #6 stood over a helpless female. His grip on her arm was one thing. But his grip on the female’s breasts caused Alpha to slowly shake his head like someone who had witnessed his pet peeing on the floor.
“One second please,” he told his partner. Putting the phone down, Alpha stood and walked over to the corner. Operative #6 sensed him and turned around. A fearful look in his eye told Alpha that he was sorry for getting out of hand with the hostage. But Alpha was not one for forgiveness. He raised his gun and shot Number 6 in the eye. The Operative collapsed to the carpeted floor, near the groped hostage. She screamed louder and scurried backwards into the rest of the hostages. Everyone stopped what they were doing. Alpha took the moment to address everyone.
“Let this be a lesson. I hired you to do what I asked, not to allow you to fulfill your demented fantasies. Anything like this will not be accepted and you will be dealt with in a similar fashion. Am I understood?” The remaining operatives all nodded their heads in a submitting style. Alpha smiled and returned to the bank manager’s desk.
“I’m sorry, I had a small problem that has been resolved. Now, I assure you that this Agent Carter will not become a problem to the plan. We will still have the Rod and will escape before the police ever realize that we’re gone.”
“Good,” said the partner, “I’m watching them right now and your little blow up has them scurrying around like cockroaches. Keep me updated on how it’s going in there. And I’ll let you know if there’s anything you should know about what’s going on outside the bank.”
“Agreed.” Alpha threw his hand behind his head and kicked his boots onto the desk. They were all going to be multimillionaires by the time the day was over. And it was all thanks to him.
* * *
Carter looked around as he waited for the line to be picked up. It was typical of Alex Wilmore to take longer than normal in picking up the phone. He was most likely sleeping or involved in other bed activity. Carter’s partner was the opposite of him, yet when it came to work, they both put their all into it.
“Yeah, Wilmore,” said the distracted voice. Carter wondered what he was getting into or more who he was getting into.
“Alex, it’s Jack. I need your help, hope you’re not busy.”
“Me? Busy on my day off? Never. This better be important. Otherwise, I’m hanging up on you and going back to my recreational time,” Alex joked.
“This is serious,” Jack told him. Alex knew at that point, joking was over. He sat up at his desk and rubbed his eyes.
“Go for it,” Alex said. Jack explained the hostage situation from the moment he arrived to a minute ago. Alex listened intently, absorbing all the information.
“Okay, what do you want me to do for you?”
“I need you to do some digging for me and I need it fast. There’s no telling right now where this Alpha guy is going with the robbery. But you can bet, if he doesn’t get his way, he’ll set off more bombs.”
Alex grabbed a pen, “Okay, tell me what I’m looking for.”
“I need to find out if there’s anything in the newspapers about an incident where someone was wronged by the police. Use the name Alpha in that search. I would look between two to four years ago. From the way he sounded, his hatred for the NYPD has been festering for a while now. Also contact the main library. I want any blueprints they have for the bank. I want to know if there’s some way that we can sneak in that he wouldn’t know about and didn’t wire to a bomb.”
“Gotcha. I’m on it. I’ll call you in an hour.”
“The sooner the better,” Carter said. He hung up, going over what he needed to do while Wilmore was searching for that vital information. Jack needed to figure out who Alpha’s financial backer was and locate him. Someone had to fork over a lot of money to create the sheets covering the windows. And he was sure that this man was the same one informing Alpha of all outside happenings. It made for a great plan. But Carter knew better.
He looked up at the buildings on the opposite side of
* * *
The man that Alpha had just spoken to stared at Jack Carter and smiled. Alpha would succeed in retrieving what they had been striving to obtain. And thanks to him, they already had someone to pay good money for it. But the best part was that nothing that occurred here could ever be linked back to him.
* * *
Thirty minutes later, Parker walked back over to where Carter stood. His face was covered in sweat and his clothes were spotted in smoky stains. He wiped his forehead and removed his glasses so he could rub his eyes. Once he regained his supervisor stature, he looked at the agent that was under his command.
“We have to stop this bastard. There are at least ten people dead with double that injured over there and God knows how many other bombs he has stashed throughout the city. Has he said anything else?” Parker asked.
“Not yet. But I have Alex looking up some things that may help us in capturing him. My main concern is that he has someone on the outside helping him. I’m thinking that this person has money to fund him but that wouldn’t make sense for a rich person to rob a bank.”
“It is if the bank is holding something that is worth more than this rich person has.” Carter’s brows creased at the mention of the bank’s holdings.
“Do you know something that I don’t?” Carter questioned his superior.
“Actually, I know something that very few know of. Have you ever heard of the Queen’s Rod?” Parker asked him.
Carter searched his memory and remembered a mention to an old royal staff that was created by an elderly blacksmith three hundred years ago for the woman who had currently been the Queen of England. He had even seen a picture of it and thought of it as an item that the best treasure hunters would search the globe for. It was said to be worth half a billion dollars.
“I’ve read about it, why?”
“Two days ago, the Queen’s Rod was brought here by an art dealer looking to have it returned to it’s rightful place in
“How many people know about this?” Carter’s brain turned. Things were starting to make sense. Alpha and his partner steal the Rod, hold it for ransom or sell it to the highest bidder and make off with a lot of cash. And like most money makers, you had to spend money to make money, thus the high tech traps.
“Very few know about it. The mayor, for one, wanted it kept quiet. I was told in case there was an attempt on stealing it. But as far as I know, only two others know about it and I doubt they would have anything to do with stealing it.”
“You never know, sir. For half a billion dollars, anyone will turn. Who else knows about it?”
“District Attorney Johnson and the Integrity Bank manager, Barry Grey. But Grey was just killed by that Alpha guy who’s in charge.”
“Do we know this for a fact? It could be an inside job,” Carter wondered. There could be the possibility that Alpha wanted them to believe that Grey was murdered when actually he was involved in the entire scheme.
“I heard the gunshot. Todd was on the phone with him at the time,” Parker explained. He looked at his agent, thinking the same thing Carter was. There was a strong chance that Grey had something to do with the robbery. And the supposed killing would remove him from the suspect list. That plan sounded like something that Alpha would have thought up, he concluded.
Just then, Captain Todd walked over to the two men and ran his hair through what little hair he had left. Carter saw the angry look on his face and knew that he was going to be scolded by someone under him in the chain of command.
“Are you happy?” Todd said loudly, “We’ve got seventeen people dead over there and it’s all because you think you’re so big.”
Carter did feel guilty about it but he knew deep down the one to blame was inside the bank. His involvement was just a reason for Alpha to detonate the bomb. He knew that Alpha would have done it regardless, he needed to show off. His ego told him to. But Jack was damned if he was going to allow Todd to berate him. Just as he was about to say something in defense, Parker chimed in.
“You listen to me, you son of a bitch! If anyone chews out my guy, it’s me, not some overweight balding prick like you! He’s doing his job to the best of his ability unlike you.”
Todd leaned back, surprised by Parker’s anger. Carter was too. He had never seen his supervisor explode like that before. Jack realized that Parker was under stress concerning the situation. He and one of his agents were involved in the case as well. If the NYPD went down for the chaos Alpha created, so would they.
The silence lasted a few seconds but was broken when Carter’s cell phone went off. Jack checked the caller ID and saw that it was Alex. He hoped his partner had good news. He pulled the phone off his belt and answered it.
“Alex, what do you have?” he asked, silently praying for some luck.
“I’m at the Library right now but I’ve got some candy for you. I can be there in five with the blue prints and the info you wanted.” Jack picked up on the slang that the two agents used between each other. Candy stood for good news and evidence. This meant that Alex had something useful for him.
“Great, get over here fast, we need to end this quick.”
“I’m on my way,” Alex hung up and Jack wondered exactly what his partner had found.
TO BE CONTINUED…………..
Part Four
By Sean Lennon
“Alpha! We’ve got it!” shouted Operative #2 from the vault. Alpha, who was relaxing, watching the news on the portable television, looked up with a surprised look. It was perfect for him because the find was ahead of schedule. This would allow them to get farther from the bank before his partner detonated the other bombs within the area. He jumped up from the chair and quickly walked over to the vault. Inside he found the two operatives standing before a wall of safety deposit boxes. Half the boxes were wide open and in the hands of Operative #1 rested an object wrapped in a thick blanket.
“Aha! We’ve hit the mother lode.” Alpha reached out and took hold of the covered object. He cradled it in one arm and unraveled the blanket. Inside was the most spectacular thing any of them had ever laid eyes on. It was a rod made of gold with a palm-sized ruby on the bottom tip. The handle was thin and had a small swirl leading up to the bulbous top of the rod. The top was decorated with a ring of sapphires and a ring of emeralds. Then on the top of the bulbous tip was one of the largest diamonds in the world.
“Amazing,” Operative #2 whispered. Alpha gleamed at the sight of his biggest win. It had all been worth the grief that he had been given in the last three years. Everything from the incident concerning his fellow brothers and his downfall to the crawling around in an attempt to redeem himself. His reward now lay in his hands. And his cut of the money would soon be loaded into the Swiss bank account that was under a false name he created. His partner had explained to him that his and Alpha’s cut would be one hundred and fifty million dollars each, leaving twenty-five million to each operative. It was all thanks to the Arabian oil dealer looking to possess the priceless treasure.
Alpha took the rod with him into the main lobby of the bank. He proudly climbed up onto the bank manager’s desk and held the rod high in the air for the operatives and the hostages to see. A smile stretched across his face in triumph.
“Ladies and gentlemen, your time of terror is almost over. We have found that which we’ve been looking for. In a short while, we will leave you, alive, here in the bank. We ask that no one try anything to stop us between now and then. A hostage that cooperates is a hostage that lives to see tomorrow.” Alpha bowed and hopped down off the desk. He motioned one of the operatives for the case to put the Queen’s Rod in for safe transport. Once he had the rod safely tucked away, he contacted the outside operative via the Nextel.
“Yes, sir,” the operative replied.
“Number 8, ready the car. The prize has been recovered and it’s time to go.” Alpha smiled when he said it. Soon, it would be time to rub this is all their faces. It felt good being evil.
* * *
Jack dialed the phone company and hoped that his idea would work. He believed that there was a chance that the phone Alpha used was purchased at the same time that the phone his partner used was. The one problem was finding out which phone carrier it was purchased from. Jack could get the number from Alpha’s phone thanks to Todd’s phone. Even though the number was blocked, the phone company would have to give him the actual number. It was a start and definitely something to work with.
“Nynex, Operator Nancy speaking, how can I help you?” the woman answering said.
“Hi, this is FBI Agent Jack Carter, Badge number 8101121. I need information on a cell phone. Can you give me the number of the phone that last called this one?” He could hear the operator punching in the information on her keyboard. A minute later she returned to the line and repeated the information that appeared on her screen. Jack thanked her and called Nextel. He repeated his name and badge number and asked about information for the number and if any other phones were purchased at the same time.
“Um,” the Nextel operator said, looking it up, “My computer says that two other phones were bought along with the phone, all with a two-way radio option.”
“That means they have a specific frequency that another phone could be modified to, correct?”
“Yes, sir. But it would also have to be a Nextel phone as well,” the operator explained.
“Okay, can this be done over the phone?”
“Yes, sir. All I need is the number and I can change the phone so that it also has the ability to intercept the two way transmissions from those phones.”
“I’ll call you right back.” Carter hung up and wondered how long it was going to take his partner to get there. Just then he heard the roar of a racing engine.
Carter watched Alex speed up
Alex climbed out of the driver’s seat and walked over to Jack and Assistant Director Parker. Under his right arm were the blueprints to the Integrity Bank they camped out in front of and in his left was a thin folder containing papers. He smiled and Jack knew that it was good to know that he could rely on Alex.
“Where are the party hats and streamers?” Alex asked jokingly.
“Very funny, Agent Wilmore. But this is no time to make jokes,” Parker rebutted.
“Before you start giving me what you found, give me your phone,” Jack said. He held out his hand and Alex looked at it. He placed the folder in his mouth and unclipped his phone from his belt. Jack took it and read the phone number off the screen.
“Good to see you too, by the way,” Alex remarked.
“Thanks,” Jack said with a smirk. He called back Nextel and requested that Alex’s phone be added to the two-way frequency that Alpha’s phone was on. The operator told him that the phone would be added in several minutes. Jack thanked him and hung up.
“Okay, what have you got?”
* * *
Alpha’s partner stood watching the three-man group huddle together, talking about something he could not hear. Yet, he knew that something was up from the things the new agent was holding under his arm. Using a pair of binoculars, he noticed the object resembled blueprints. What was Agent Carter thinking, he wondered. The partner was unsure of whether or not he should be worried. He continued to watch them, ready to inform Alpha of any danger as they escaped the bank. The partner knew that Alpha and his men had found the Queen’s Rod. But they were still in the bank. They only had to escape out the secret exit. But if Carter found out about the exit route, Alpha could be stopped. He stared at the cell phone in his hand, debating in warning Alpha as a precaution. The partner then looked up and continued watching Carter, Parker and a newly arrived Wilmore.
* * *
“Okay, first things first,” Alex said placing the blueprints on the nearby police car. He flipped open the folder and pulled out the first sheet, handing it to Jack.
“I’d like to introduce you to EX-police officer Victor Watts.” Alex pointed a finger at the photo on the copied newspaper clipping. Jack read the headline of the article.
NY OFFICER EXPELLED FROM FORCE
DUE TO ASSAULT CHARGES
The article continued to tell the story of
“How do we know this is Alpha?” Jack asked.
“Because when he was a cop, his ego was that big, he nicknamed himself ‘Alpha-Cop.’” Alex explained, “Kind of lame, if you ask me.”
Jack realized why Victor hated the NYPD. His way of getting revenge against them was the robbery. Carter now had his motive. It all began to fall into place. But the missing piece of the partner’s identity still remained. The article did not say that there was a friend or relative that helped Victor in overcoming the charges. Their main concern was still up in the air.
“Okay, but is there anything on who this partner of his is?” Parker asked after finishing the article himself.
“Nothing that I could find on
“What are we looking at?” Carter questioned. He was not familiar with reading blueprints.
“At first, I didn’t know either but the girl at the library explained to me what I was looking at. This page here is the basement of the bank. And this spot here is a little piece of historic
“Can you please get to the point, Agent Wilmore?” Parker barked at him. Alex apologized and continued.
“Anyway, this building used to actually be a mansion up until about fifty years ago. And the owner of the place was a paranoid old coot by the name of Thomas Bradshaw. And Bradshaw had a few of his men dig under the mansion and create an escape access route in the case of war or jealous business enemies. The route actually links with a shut down train station that followed a route, running from the
“And the plastic sheets on the windows would prevent anyone outside the bank from knowing that the robbers were still in there,” Carter added.
“But how do we get into the bank without them setting off more bombs?” Parker wondered out loud.
“We don’t. We go under it.” Carter looked at the other blueprints and found that Alex thought ahead and looked for access points into the tunnel that ran under the bank.
“Don’t bother, I looked,” Alex told him, “The nearest point of entrance is the train station across from
“How did you know that?” Parker asked him.
“Agent Hardy, one of the guys downstairs, mentioned it. He said someone else told him, why?”
“It was a hush hush thing. Only A.D. Parker, the mayor and two others knew about it,” Jack explained.
“Well, it’s not so hush hush now,” Alex shrugged.
“There’s nothing we can do about it now. We’ve got to get down there and stop them from escaping,” Jack said.
“Todd!” Parker yelled. Captain Todd walked over casually in a defiant manner and looked at the Assistant Director.
“What? You gonna act all big man on me again?”
“Get your head out of your ass. Act like a police captain, for Christ’s sake. We need some of your men to come with us. My men have found a way into the building from below and they’re going to need backup.”
“You want me to take my men off the bomb scene over there to follow you in the sewers?”
Jack had had enough. He pushed Todd out of the way and walked past him towards the train station across from
“That’s my boy,” Alex said to Todd. He rushed past Todd, giving in to the urge of patting him on the head as he passed, and caught up to Jack.
* * *
Victor watched his men pile the large bags of money in front of the trapdoor on the floor of the basement. He kept the case containing the Queen’s Rod at his side, carrying it in his right hand while his left held the main frequency box that was tied into all seven bombs spread throughout the neighborhood. He still had the power to bring the NYPD to their knees and planned to do so. The moment he climbed out of the subway tunnel, he would hit the switch and detonate all seven at the same time. By then, the police would be too busy saving the lives that would be killed due to their ignorance, to realize that they were no longer in the bank.
“We’re ready to go, Victor,” Operative #1 reported.
“Good. In minutes, Number 8 will arrive with the train car and will transport us to the west side and from there, we’ll take the van back up to
“It was good working with you, sir,” Number 4 added.
“Thank you, Number 4. I’m glad I hired the best. Well, except for Number 6, that is.” Victor got a laugh out of the operatives. He was feeling triumphant again. Nothing could stop him now.
“Victor,” spoke the phone on his waist. He looked down and picked up the phone to respond.
“Yes, my friend, how can I help you?”
“Hurry your ass up. Carter’s up to something. He just walked away from the barricade and is headed for the train station nearby.”
Victor felt fear for the first time since he was let go from the NYPD. Did Carter know about the tunnels? And if so, how did he find out? Victor was too close to freedom and a rich status to be stopped.
“Number 8 is on his way, we’re ready for transport. Do something, stall him. We need three minutes to load up the train and get out.”
“Me? Stall him? You know I can’t do that. My identity can’t be known.”
“Well, I’m trying as fast as I can. If he tries to stop us, we’ll give him something to consider,” Victor said, looking at the main frequency box in his hand.
“Fine, contact me if anything goes wrong.” The partner said, signing off.
* * *
Jack reached the stairs leading down to the train station. He suddenly remembered Alex’s cell phone. Carter turned it on and waited for it to connect to the signal. A moment later it beeped and on popped Victor’s phone number. Jack used the arrow buttons on the front of the phone to search the other numbers. There were two more. He picked the second number and pressed the side button to contact. The phone beeped twice and fell silent. Jack hoped that whoever it was would respond and give him some sign. Alex hovered over his shoulder, staring at the phone as well. Then the phone beeped back.
“What is it now?” the voice said. The phone beeped and yet again fell silent. Jack stopped short and his mouth dropped open.
“Wait, I know that voice,” Alex spoke, “Isn’t that,”
“It is,” Jack interrupted. He knew the man they had known as Victor’s partner. And because of that, things had become a lot worse.
TO BE CONTINUED………..
Part Five
By Sean Lennon
“How can it be him?” Alex asked. He couldn’t take his eyes off of the phone for fear of the surprise becoming real. Jack wondered how Victor and the man that was his partner met and came up with the plan that they were currently going through. Everything didn’t make sense anymore. Why was the partner involved? Was it for the money? Was it something else? Carter couldn’t figure it out. It blew his whole profile to pieces.
“I don’t know but if we get Victor, maybe we can figure out this whole thing.” Jack knew that it was the only way they would find out what really was going on. He handed the phone back and rushed down the stairs. He followed the path to the train platform. He saw the station worker sitting behind the bullet-proof glass at the counter.
“Excuse me,” Jack said, knocking on the thick plastic glass, “FBI, I need you to contact the next two trains coming through. They have to be delayed. We have reason to believe that there are several men in the tunnels near this platform. They’re armed and dangerous and I don’t want them to escape by forcing their way onto the train.”
“Are you serious?” the counterperson asked. Alex nodded and flashed his badge as well. The transit worker held one finger up and picked up the phone behind him. Carter could hear him talking to someone else. “Yeah, this is Hugo at Platform number 108. I’ve got two FBI agents here telling me that there are people in the tunnels nearby. I need you to contact anyone coming this way to pause for a moment while they go retrieve these guys…….Yes, they’re real FBI, I’ve studied their badges,” the transit worker rolled his eyes at the stubbornness of the person on the other end.
Jack knew that they didn’t have much time. Risking the chance of coming into the path of an oncoming train, he decided not to wait for the transit worker to give him the okay. He patted Alex’s shoulder and pointed to the row of turnstiles. Wilmore looked at him and read his partner’s thoughts. He smiled and nodded in response. Jack headed for the turnstiles, jumping over them as the transit worker shouted incoherent words at them.
“Damn that was fun,” Wilmore said. The agents walked to the end of the platform and looked down the tunnel for any oncoming trains. Seeing that there were none, Jack jumped down onto the tracks.
“This is crazy, Alex.”
“Yeah but who else can they say that they went hiking down a train tunnel for bad guys?” Alex’s amusing and optimistic attitude was welcomed by Jack on many occasions. It helped break the dark monotony of the job.
Normally, Jack would have done things by the book. But due to what they had heard on the cell phone, there was no time to lose. Victor and his men were well informed of Jack’s movements and thoughts. And because of this, he had to change his way of thinking. Impulsive acting was definitely a change.
“Shit, I can’t see a thing.” Jack slowly walked, trying to get his eyes used to the darkness of the tunnel.
* * *
“Alright, let’s move it out,” Victor told Number 8, who had quickly brought the escape train car that they had stolen from the train yard. The other operatives with the bags of money had piled into the train car and sat, awaiting their rich freedom.
Number 8 pulled the switch and pushed the car forward, down the abandoned tunnel towards the
“We’ll be at the drop off point in five minutes, Victor,” Number 8 reported to him from the open driver’s booth. Victor nodded at the Operative.
“Excellent,” he said to him, “Good job, Number 8.”
“Thank you, sir.”
“When will we receive our part of the commission?” Number 2 asked.
“In two days, myself and my partner will be meeting with the buyer. When the buyer is satisfied with the merchandise, he will then distribute the payment into the accounts that we have set up for everyone. The price remains the same for everyone here with a little extra now that we are minus one helper.”
“Um, Victor?” Number 8 chimed in. Victor sighed, annoyed by the questions from his operatives. He had explained this twice before and now that the job was done, they were pestering him again.
“Yes, Number 8, what is it?”
“You should take a look at this,” was all the operative would say. Victor’s curiosity was grabbed. He walked back to the front of the train car and looked at Number 8. The operative pointed ahead of him into the tunnel they were headed through. Victor turned his attention and saw the two figures two hundred yards ahead of them in the tunnel ahead.
“Dammit, Carter,” Victor mumbled to himself. The operative turned to him with a worried look.
“What do we do, sir?” Number 8 asked. By now, Victor could feel the entire group hovering over his left shoulder, interested in what had his attention. He had to do something and he was damned if he’d allow the agents stop him when he was so close. There was only one option.
“Run them over.”
* * *
“Um, Jack? He doesn’t look like he’s stopping,” Alex said to his partner. Jack stared forward at the speeding train. He guessed the speed was somewhere about 30 miles an hour. That gave them enough time to dodge the train car. And as soon as it passed them, he’d chase it and jump aboard. Victor was not getting away from him. If he did, their questions about the identity of the partner would remain a mystery. Carter couldn’t live with the question haunting him.
“Jack, I don’t know if you’d noticed but a train is coming right for us,” Alex told him, hoping to snap Jack out of the trance he was in.
“Check the sides of the tunnel for any little incoves that you can stand in without getting hit.” Alex ran his hands against the wall of the tunnel and fell forward when the wall gave in. He slid into the crevice and called out to Jack, hoping he found one as well. Carter did not reply. Alex called to him again and was cut off by the loud passing of the train car. He prayed that his partner was alive and in one piece. Wilmore poked his head out of the crevice and looked to the right at the diminishing train. That was when he noticed, Jack leaping onto the back of the train car.
“You crazy son of a bitch,” Alex said to the air.
* * *
Jack gripped a hold onto the handle on the back of the train car. He pulled himself up with all his might and was successful in boarding the moving train. As he got his balance back, one of the operatives saw him.
“It’s the fed!” Number 3 shouted. The other passengers of the train car turned to look at where the operative was pointing. Jack picked Victor out of the small crowd, thanks to the picture in the article that Alex had located.
Jack became nervous when he heard Victor give the order to shoot him. The operatives all raised their guns and aimed at the FBI agent. Carter held tight to the handle of the back door and swung himself to the side away from the front of the door. The window on the door shattered as the bullets shot through it and the metal door. The incident took only seconds but to Jack it was more like an hour. When the shooting stopped he paused and removed his gun from it’s shoulder holster. Then he swung back in front of the door and fired off all the rounds in his gun. He saw the bullets find their desired mark and managed to eliminate most of the operatives and wound all others.
“No!” shouted Victor, “This is not happening!” Victor grabbed the main frequency box and held it closely in front of him.
“Don’t come any closer Agent Carter. This one frequency box can detonate all the bombs left over. We’re still within the range of the signal. Can you live with the deaths of a hundred lives on your head?”
“Okay, Victor. You win. Just don’t hit the button.”
“You’re right, I win. I was born to win. My father used to tell me that all the time. And then they let me go. Me! Why? I didn’t do anything that the others didn’t do before me.”
“Victor, you shattered a guy’s jaw because he insulted you. He’s gotta eat through a straw now. Cops aren’t supposed to do stuff like that.”
“He deserved it! He’s the bad guy, not me. I was a good cop. I was the best!”
“I know you were,” Jack replied, “But doing things like this only makes you as bad as they are.”
“No. There’s a difference between them and me. They’re scum. I’m one of the good guys. I don’t kill people for fun or money.”
“Victor, you murdered an innocent man in cold blood. And for what? The Queen’s Rod? What are you going to do with it?”
“That’s of no concern to you. What I do with it is my business. And besides, the bank manager was involved the whole time anyway.”
“And your partner too, of course?” Jack needed to start talking about the partner in hopes of getting the truth about his identity.
“He did assist me,” Victor answered.
“I know him, don’t I?”
“I don’t know, do you? Do you know all of your kind? The little rookie cops, the annoying police captains, the brave heroes that are misunderstood? Do you know everyone?”
“Look, it’s over. Why don’t you put the box down slowly and I’ll see what I can do to help you get a lighter sentence.” Jack hoped to calm down Victor and get him to give up. That way, they could talk in a room instead of the speeding train car.
“Who do you think you’re talking to Agent Carter? I know the system. I’ll get nothing for the information you’re looking for. How did you figure out about my associate?”
“I hooked my partner’s cell phone onto your two-way radio frequency. I hit the button to talk and he replied.”
“I underestimated you. He said that I might and told me to keep my mouth shut. Maybe I should have listened to him. But it doesn’t matter. The bombs will go off, and people will die while you and the police force are blamed. And I will get out of this free and rich. Goodbye Agent Carter.”
Jack had no choice. He turned to his side and grabbed the emergency brake, yanking it down as he did. The train lurched forward, knocking Jack and Victor off balance. Victor fell to the floor, dropping the frequency box. Jack recovered quickly and rushed over to Victor. Driving his right elbow into Victor’s side, just below the rib cage helped to loosen Victor’s grip on the box. Carter watched it slip from the crooked cop’s hand and onto the floor of the train car. Carter followed the elbow with a left cross to Victor’s jaw. He could feel something crack when he made contact with it. Victor fell to the floor beside the box and lay unconscious. Jack stood up with the box in his possession and ordered the driver of the train car to slow down and stop. One down, one to go, he thought.
* * *
Victor’s partner stood by the van on the
“So it was you,” said a voice behind the mysterious partner. He turned around and saw agents Jack Carter and Alex Wilmore standing with their guns out by their sides. Victor’s partner froze and knew that it was all lost. Only he and Victor knew the location of the van’s spot. If Carter managed to find him waiting, then he had already gotten to Victor. And that meant all was lost.
“I knew he couldn’t keep that damn ego in check,” he told them, “That was the only flawed thing in his plan.”
“But why? Why go along with him? You’re one of the good guys.” Jack tilted his head, trying to understand his motive. But the partner knew that he would not be able to figure it out. After all, Victor’s partner knew exactly how Carter and his fellow agents thought when trying to profile. He made sure to hide all evidence of his motive and involvement in the entire crime.
“Why else, Jack? Greed. Money makes the world go round. You should know that, being the big FBI agent and all. A buyer came to me for help retrieving it.”
“Who?”
“Ah, ah Jack. A great magician never reveals his secrets.”
“But you should have known better. Victor’s ego was a crack in the plan. There was that possibility that you knew you could get caught.”
“Did he tell you the plan? It was perfect, Jack,” the partner explained, “It should have kept you busy while we got away scott free.”
“The one mistake you made was not figuring out who would be assigned to help negotiate for the hostages’ lives. What you didn’t know was that Todd’s guy had just transferred out, leaving him without a negotiator.”
“But I did know. I made sure that there was no available negotiator today. Todd’s guy was transferred with my referral and I, of course, was conveniently on vacation. But Assistant Director Parker called you in to help, Jack. It’s over and I lost.” FBI Negotiator Will Duffy held his arms out, waiting to be cuffed by Jack. Then in one quick move, Duffy removed his gun from his back and placed the barrel into his mouth. Jack felt everything around him slow down to a crawl. He shouted and lunged forward to stop the man he knew from pulling the trigger. But before he could get close enough, the gun went off, blowing a hole in the back of the man’s head. The partner’s body crumbled to the ground and Jack and Alex found themselves at the end of the case. The dead body of Will Duffy lay dead before them, revealed to the one man that he underestimated. Jack did not know what to do. He stood alongside of his own partner, staring at the puddle of blood that spread out from under what remained of the head.
Parker’s car pulled up behind them and their Assistant Director leapt out of the car and over to the two men that worked under his supervision. He looked down and saw the remains of what had just occurred.
“Oh my God, is that Agent Duffy?” Parker asked.
“Was,” Alex answered his boss.
“I don’t get it, I thought he was on vacation?”
“It was just a lie to give him an alibi for his whereabouts when the robbery went down. He was Victor Watts’ partner in all this. He helped Victor steal the Rod by giving him a step-by-step walkthrough of FBI negotiations. He provided him with information as well as money to build the sheets and buy the bombs,” Carter explained.
“But how does an FBI agent afford to supply funds for something like that?”
“I heard that his father died a few months back, leaving him a nice big inheritance check,” Alex added.
“So why steal the Rod if he had money?”
“I guess the check wasn’t big enough for him.”
“Well, that’s it then,” Parker said, “The both of you did well. I’m putting in a request that you both get compensated for working on your day off. Take tomorrow off too. You both need some time to relax before coming back to the office.” Jack thanked his boss and walked away from the sight next to the escape van. Alex walked beside him.
“Can I borrow your phone? I left mine in my car,” Jack asked.
“You can, only if you stop calling those 900 numbers on it.” Wilmore handed the phone over to his partner and Carter dialed Parker’s office. Stacy answered the phone.
“Hi,” the agent said, “Look about tonight, I think we should postpone it.”
“What? Why?” Stacy asked, concerned over the tone in Carter’s voice.
“I don’t think I’m up for a romantic dinner right now.”
“Is this because of the hostage situation that A.D. Parker put you on?” Jack told her it was and she dismissed the postponing.
“Look, if you’d prefer, you can come over to my place and we can just talk about it. I’m a really good listener, Jack. We don’t have to go out. You can even bring
“That sounds better. I’d like that.” Jack was glad he had met Stacy. She’d help to soften the hard edges that his job caused. He suddenly found a small smile on his face and knew that he’d be ok.