~Chapter 11~

~Chapter 11~

Nathan and Josh split up and each skirted a side of the mansion, meeting up on either side of the front door. The door was guarded only by one merc, the New Yorker called Twitch. Nathan trained his S29 on the unsuspecting mercenary, but at a signal from Josh he didn’t open fire.
Josh drew his Sais and jumped up lightly on stone wall that enclosed the stairs, just behind the merc. Then he jumped and, landing just behind the doomed individual, drove the blades of both Sais into Twitch’s neck. Twitch fell without a sound, spurting his lifeblood all over the steps.
Nathan came out, keeping his S29 trained on the door.
Josh wiped his Sais on Twitch’s jacket and sheathed them. Drawing his Desert Eagles, he nodded to Nathan.
Nathan kicked in the door.
Inside stood three of the mercs Nathan hoped they wouldn’t meet, especially all at once.
Grenade was a demolitions expert who was currently located somewhere in Maryland, although Nathan didn’t know where. Basher was an ex-professional prizefighter from Chicago who was as good with a gun as he was his fists. And Voodoo used to be a bouncer in some club in New Orleans, until he killed the manager and seven patrons over a salary dispute.
Grenade adopted a high-pitched cartoon voice and hefted a AR-15 that was fitted out for more grenade launching than firing.
“Hey, what’cha doin’?
Nathan and Josh dived for the sides as Grenade squeezed the trigger. The entryway was rocked by the explosion of the merc’s concussion grenade.
Nathan was on his feet in a second and strafed the area Grenade was standing. The mercenary was already moving, but he managed to clip his calf muscle. It was a flesh wound, but enough to bring the man stumbling to the ground, where Josh promptly shot him in the head.
After dispatching Grenade, Josh turned to look for Basher, and found him. The ex-prizefighter kicked a pistol from Josh’s right-hand and tried to shoot him with his own small P.22 pistol.
Josh managed to dodge and took a step and-a-half backwards. Thinking Josh was retreating; Basher took a step forward and walked right into Josh’s killer right-hook. Stunned, the merc went down at Josh’s feet.
Meanwhile, Nathan had been forced to take on the hulking figure known as Voodoo. A sweeping punch from the New Orleans native knocked the S29 from his grip, and another knocked him to the ground.
Nathan managed to get to one knee before the big black man picked him up and threw him across the floor and into the wall. This time he made it to his feet and was ready for the next assault.
Ducking the first two round-houses, Nathan ducked in and landed four lighting-fast boxing jabs into the merc’s stomach. The punches just seemed to agitate the man, and he back-handed Nathan into the wall again.
Nathan watched the huge figure come towards him and an idea came to his head. He remained on the ground until Voodoo was right over him, then, levering himself up with his hands, he drove his boot heel into the merc’s nose.
There was a sickening crunch of bone and cartilage. Voodoo looked surprised at first, but then his eyes rolled up into his head and he fell backwards; dead.
Nathan retrieved his assault rifle just in time to decapitate one merc with a stream of bullets, while laying two others low.
Josh was leaning over Basher, who was still stunned, but conscious.
“Where is my security team?”
He held the tip of a Sai to the man’s throat as incentive to answer.
Basher swallowed hard, “They are holed up in the office and the two big rooms in the back.”
“The dance hall and game room?”
“Yeah, I guess.”
“Have you found the girl yet?”
Basher spit a tooth onto the floor.
“You mean the President’s daughter? Nah, our orders were to either kill you or capture her. We haven’t done either yet or we wouldn’t still be here. What are you going to do with me?”
Josh smiled coldly, “Put you to sleep.”
Nathan grinned as Josh knocked the merc out cold with the pommel of his Sai.
“Yeah, we’ll put you to sleep. Like a dog.”
Josh rose and collected his Desert Eagle from where it fell when Basher disarmed him.
“Let’s flash these clowns and check the upstairs.”
Nathan nodded and pulled a flash-grenade from the belt he had taken from the van. He tossed it through the doorway to the library and turned away to avoid getting stunned.
After the initial effects of the grenade had passed, Josh and Nathan headed up the stairs. Nathan knelt on the stairs and peered over the top step.
One merc stood outside the door to Matt’s personal library. Nathan adjusted the M68 scope to get the range, but before he could take the shot the merc noticed him and started jabbering frantically into his radio.
“Damn,” Nathan exclaimed, and promptly dropped the man where he stood.
Josh and Nathan ascended the stairs the rest of the way and peered up and down the hallway.
Josh motioned to their right, “Down there are guest rooms, the laundry, a storage room, servant’s quarters, and a breakfast kitchen. Lexy’s room is to the left, first door.”
Nathan nodded and looked back down the stairs.
“Roger that, I’ll cover you while you get the girl.”
Josh peered around the corner to the left, pistols at the ready.
“Hallway left is clear.”
Nathan checked the other direction.
“One merc at the far end of the hallway.”
Josh nodded, “He’s mine.”
Then, with one smooth step, Josh stepped into the hallway and, almost without aiming, dropped the man down the hall.
Nathan covered the stairs and the side of the hallway the man had been standing in while Josh opened the door to Lexy’s room and stepped inside.
“Lexy, you here?”
Holstering one pistols and taking a two-handed grip on the other, Josh proceeded to check under the bed and in the bathroom, softly calling Lexy’s name as he searched.
When he reached the walk-in closet and opened the door, he had to duck to avoid being hit by a flying shoe.
“Lexy!?”
“Josh!”
Lexy, dressed in tight jeans and a loose blue T-shirt, jumped him wrapped him in a hug.
“They came in from the front door, shooting and everything. I don’t know what happened to the other agents; I hid as soon as those men started firing.”
Josh disengaged her hug and patted her reassuringly on the shoulder.
“It’s Okay now. Nathan is just outside the room keeping an eye out, and Scarlet is somewhere around here reducing their numbers. Now get some tennis shoes or something on, we have to go now.”
Lexy nodded and rushed back into the closet.
Nathan’s voice sounded from the hallway.
“Josh, we have to go now. We have hostiles from down the hallway. Seems they were checking out the guest and storage rooms and got alerted by the sentry I shot.”
Nathan let off a few bursts with the S29, and then Josh heard angry cursing.
“What’s the matter Nathan?”
“I’m out of ammo, gotta switch clips.”
A few mechanical clicks, the sound of something clattering to the floor, and Nathan was keeping the mercs at bay with short bursts from the S29.
“Okay, I’m almost ready.”
Lexy emerged from the closet wearing a pear of pink sneakers. She hurried over to her desk and began stuffing things into her designer purse.
Josh didn’t pay attention at first to what she was doing.
“Where is Gwyn?”
Lexy threw some makeup and lipstick into her purse.
“She went off shopping, she won’t be back until late tonight.”
“Good, you can call her when we get out of here and tell her not to come back here.”
Josh finally became aware of what Lexy was doing. He grabbed her arm and pulled her to the door.
“We don’t have time, lets’ go!”
Josh poked his head out the door and checked on the mercs Nathan had pinned down.
“Lexy, stay behind me and Nathan.”
As they made their way down stairs Lexy greeted Nathan.
“Hey, Wolv.”
Nathan acknowledged her presence with a nod.
“Heya, Hon. Good to see you alive.”
“Good to be alive.”
Josh pulled Lexy down the stairs, “Come on you two.”
At the bottom of the steps the three of them came to an abrupt stop. Standing before them, P226 X-5 Tactical pistol in hand, stood Carl Mash.
Kaki slacks replaced by navy-blue canvas pants, and polo shirt exchanged for black under-armor, the European assassin looked like a blonde James Bond.
“You are a hard man to find, Mr. Taske.”
Josh trained his Desert Eagle on the man, his other hand keeping Lexy behind his back. Although he was coiled tighter than a spring, he kept his voice remarkably calm, his tone matching Carl’s.
“Mr. Mash, I heard you were looking for me.”
“And it seems I found you.”
“So it seems.”
Carl examined his P226 with a mild interest.
“I have a deal for you, Mr. Taske. Hand yourself over to me and I won’t kill the girl or your friend, Mr. Wolv.”
Josh pretended to think it over, “Nathan, you think I should give myself up to keep you alive?”
Nathan chambered a fresh round and shrugged.
“Your call, Sharky. Personally I don’t think my sorry ass is worth saving. But still, someone might see something in me I don’t. Besides, I still haven’t completed my goal of tasting every kind of liquor on the planet.”
Josh smiled apologetically at Carl.
“Sorry, he hasn’t tried all his liquors yet and I promised I’d go with him. So, maybe some other time?”
Carl laughed, “You Americans think you are so funny. You use bad jokes and sarcasm to hide your fear and delay the inevitable.”
Nathan cocked a smile, “Hey, it’s worked so far. We kicked your butt in the Revolutionary War, if I aint mistaken.”
Carl grimaced, “That was a mistake made by my ancestors. Regrettable, but unalterable now.”
Josh nodded understandingly, “I see your point, and I’m sorry. Tell me, Mr. Mash, have you ever been beat by a pureblooded American woman?”
The European looked confused, “What do you mean?”
“I think he means me.”
Scarlet had snuck in from the hallway and now struck the assassin across the back of the head with the bow staff she had taken off Apollos.
Dazed, Carl fell to one knee as Scarlet motioned Josh, Lexy and Nathan out the front door.
“Get going you three, I can handle this one.”