Page 32 of Play Dirty
Az took his words for what they were. A threat. Don’t go snooping where you don’t belong. They were long past that. There were doors at the front and back of the building, and two shipping containers sat towards the front, just like in Rio. Girls and boys were being brought, one by one, to a wall where a plain blue cloth hung. A man photographed each one against the backdrop before another escorted them toward a hallway. Passport photos? Where did they plan to ship them? It didn’t matter. Az didn’t have any intention of letting them reach their destination.
In the small bathroom, Az pulled up the leg of his pants, unwrapping the package he’d smuggled in. After the raid in Rio, Carrington had managed to find him the blueprints of the original warehouse. It had been a long shot. Not every warehouse looked alike or even had the same type of industrial air conditioning unit. Luckily, this one seemed similar enough to Az’s naked eye. He needed a failsafe, a backup plan if all of this went sideways and Madigan didn’t appreciate Az’s gift.
He stood on the toilet and removed the vent to the air conditioning ducts, setting the package and setting the timer on both the canister and his watch before replacing the vent and stepping down. He could hear the gas dispersing, but it would take its time filling the large warehouse.
Az returned to find Ryan rummaging through Az’s black bag. “Find anything you like?”
Ryan gave him a shit-eating grin. Az remembered when he’d found that smile sexy. Now, he found it irritating. “Just being thorough.”
“You could have simply asked,” Az said, irritated despite knowing it was bound to happen.
“Okay, then answer this. What are the gas masks for?”
Az snorted. “When you work with the types of chemicals I do, it pays to be prepared.”
Ryan seemed to take Az’s statement at face value. “Have you decided how you want to take out your friend? It’s almost time.”
A sudden electrical charge lit up Az’s blood. “Almost time? Bennington has arrived?”
“Not exactly. Let’s go.”
Az followed Ryan back to the room where Madigan remained chained, pulse pounding in his ears as the distance closed between them once more.
The door opened with an ominous screech. Az watched as Madi flinched at the sound before his gaze shot upward, pinning Az in place. He looked mutinous, his lips curled in a snarl, his eyes far more alert than just moments ago. The epinephrine was clearly doing its job. Az was relieved to see the water bottles littering the floor were now empty.
Music began playing from Ryan’s pocket. He pulled the phone free and hit a button. “Hey, boss. Yeah, we’re all set here.”
Ryan turned the phone, allowing the red-haired man Az recognized as Bennington to see him and Madi.
“What’s going on? This wasn’t our agreement,” Az protested. “I thought the meeting was face to face.”
“You’ll forgive me if I’m a bit paranoid at the moment. After all, somebody did just assassinate my business partners. While I’m sure your intentions were nothing but pure, I’m afraid this is as close to two hired killers as I’m willing to get.”
Az’s nostrils flared as his gaze darted from Bennington to Ryan, who shrugged before flashing another grin. “Sorry, but things change. If you want to be part of our organization, you’ll have to think quickly on your feet. But the floor is yours. We can’t wait to see you in action.” He gestured with a flourish.
“Luckily, I work well under pressure.” Az dropped to his bag, taking his time to rummage around, like he was trying to decide which of his poisons would be the most effective. He just needed to buy some time, give the gas in the vents time to work. This would tip his hand to Bennington, but there was nothing to be done about that now. Az’s plan had failed miserably.
The timer went off on his watch, letting him know the gas was doing its job. He stood, bringing his arm up in one smooth motion, noting how Ryan’s smug smile turned to dread when he spotted the Ruger in Az’s hand. He cried out a split second before Az shot him in the temple, his phone flying from his hand. Az stepped forward and put another in his chest for good measure.
He pulled Ryan’s keys from his pocket, quickly unhooking Madi who fell onto his knees on the concrete. “Are you good,motek? Can you fire a weapon?”
Madi grunted, snatching the gun from Az before getting to his feet and pointing it at his head. Az swallowed hard, gazing up at Madi.
“Do it. I deserve it. But just know, I did it for us. For those victims out there. I was never going to hurt you.”
Madigan kept the gun trained on Az for a long handful of seconds, eyes hard as they roamed over his face. Then he let out a frustrated growl and indicated toward the door. “Go.”
Az shook his head, dropping beside his bag to grab another gun and throw a gas mask at Madi. “Put it on.”
This time, Madi didn’t fight him. Az placed his own mask on and detonated the package in the bathroom vent by keying in a code on his phone.
Madi was ransacking Ryan’s body, pulling his clothes off of him and making due with them being a bit too short everywhere. “What is that?” Madi asked as a green fog descended from the vents.
“Something to induce drowsiness.” Az didn’t have time to explain the chemical cocktail he’d created. “It’s going to put everybody who breathes it to sleep for a while. That’s the good news.”
Madi grimaced. “What’s the bad news?”
“We’re in a shipyard full of crane operators, dock workers, and security guards, and I don’t know how many of them are in Bennington’s pockets. Could be five, could be all of them. We just have to make it out of the shipyard. Then we should be free.”