DOUBLE-CROSSED HEARTS

Chapter 2: The blacklist

Moments after seeing off Maya Detective Stewart was called to a high-profile meeting in one of the boardrooms on the twelfth floor. When he arrived, he was surprised to see other security officials from different law enforcement departments already seated some attending in person while others online their angry faces visible on the screen.

"Good evening everybody!"

"Detective!" The police director bellowed angrily, "There's nothing good about this evening. Take a seat we have a lot to discuss"

He should have read the room. His inability to solve a series of bank robberies over the past two years was beginning to put a taint on his illustrious career. Once a Sherlock Holmes kind of detective, the best in the country, his superiors were losing their trust in him and he was beginning to doubt his abilities to stay on top.

"This has gone on for far too long," The director started, there was no need for preliminaries, he was attending online, "today's robbery has not only been an embarrassment to the police division and the entire justice system of this country but also happens to have angered a lot of higher-ups"

He paused to let it sink in. All the men and women in the room had their heads hanging in shame.

"Stewart! Brief us"

"Sir, these attacks seem to be connected. Carried out by the same sophisticated gang led by this gentleman..."

"For Christ's sake tell us something we don't know already" The director interrupted, there was a picture of Knox on the screen with his scream mask in a blue suit. Gloves in his hands, carrying an M16.

"They are targeting specific kinds of people"

"Which people?"

"Rich People. City Billionaires who have acquired their wealth through shady means"

It was Stewart's turn to command the room, he paused to let them contemplate on what he had just said. No one said a word, they had his attention and he was free to continue.

"I believe this man is a victim of the system, he has had a lot of time to prepare. These banks they are hitting it's not about the money..."

"But they leave with the money"

"Not all of it or at least the amount they can carry. Some banks have been used to send a message while others like today went for safety deposit boxes"

"Those don't hold much stuff, don't they?"

"Well, they do. It depends on who is looking" Stewart got on his feet controlling the monitor with a remote, "they hold secrets, leverage, and evidence that can bring cases back to life. They hold intellectual property, wills of prominent people"

Another pin drop silence ensued. Stewart moved to another slide showing the properties that were hit, pharmaceutical company trucks, real estate buildings bombed to hell and banks & utility stores robbed. It was hard for most of them to know the owners since most used proxies to acquire property, but not for Stewart.

"Do we know these billionaires..."

"That's not important" the director interrupted.

"But sir. If we know them we can as well plan our offense"

"Some of them are public figures, very powerful men in the government" Stewart saved the director unprecedented explanation, "we try to implicate them without hard evidence it can backfire on us"

"let me get this straight, we are going to let a criminal enterprise to keep operating and disturbing the peace because of a few rich men?".

"We should work together. All departments, our friends at the National Intelligence Service are working on it too but we should try to get this solved before they do. The sooner we nab this criminal the sooner all this goes away. No Questions asked. You're all dismissed" the director said before his screen went dark.

All the other screens of dignitaries attending online went dark too. Stewart and a few others attending in person were left having a light banter. Discussing their failure and pointing fingers at each other instead of blaming the system.

****

Knox and his team changed cars three times before they took the final ride back home in the SUV followed by two motorbikes. It had registration this time, he was seated in the co-driver’s seat lustfully staring at the picture he had taken with Maya. Even in a near-death experience she still looked great, there was something special about her, something he couldn't tell by just looking at her. The only way was to get to know her.

"You're still looking at that picture man that was a mess back there" the driver noticed him drooling.

"I know. She is so hot man"

"Not the hottest you've seen bro. You almost cost us the mission back there the Uncle had to know"

"No hard feelings man. Although you have to run it by me before it gets to him. It's the first time I've f****d up in a mission and it even didn't cost us"

"Yeah. You make it look super easy"

"Not as it seems. Takes a lot of research and practice"

Their base of operation was in the cool suburbs far from the hustle and bustle of the city. An ancient manor seated on a ten-acre piece of land, with a manmade lake and forest. It was where the uncle, godfather, and founder of their crime family could be found if he was not in his popular club scorpion in the city or one of his numerous penthouses. Many people knew him as a successful businessman, for Knox and his crew he was a guardian angel and a role model. The tall iron gates were manned by guards dressed in military regalia armed with guns and sniffer dogs. They all seemed to respect Knox so much from the body language as he walked past them without a word. Atypical, because he was always in a jovial mood, fist bombs and compliments flying in from everywhere. It couldn't have been the mission because it was a success, something else was bothering him.

"Knox!" The uncle called out rather loudly as he made his way upstairs. It was the intervention of Knox Lima.

"Yes boss" he froze on the flight of curved stairs.

"A word please"

"Like right..."

"Now!" There was a lot of anger in his voice and Knox hadn't thought about the consequences of his actions until that moment. The uncle took seriously his line of work, a craft he had perfected so much that he had passed it down to the likes of Knox, then his right-hand man an equivalent of a caporegime in a mafia family.

"It was a mistake"

"A good soldier always puts the mission first"

"But we're not soldiers, aren't we? We're fuckin gangsters stop pretending, I'm sick and tired of your bs" Knox shouted angrily. The entire room went silent even others stopped breathing, no one talked to the boss like that, not even Knox whom he considered a son to him.

"Are you done? You’re one ungrateful son of a b***h you almost cost us the mission..."

"But I didn't"

"You can't do that in the middle of a job. You not only put yourself at risk but the rest of us. I expected much better from you Knox I'm so disappointed"

It took a couple of minutes to dawn on him. Knox exhaled sharply and raised his gaze. The uncle was fuming with rage he couldn't even look at him.

"I'm sorry boss…"

"Apologize to them. I don't need your apology" he collapsed on the couch and took a sip of his whiskey. The loot was on the table in six black bags.

"Guys, I'm sorry. I put the mission above everything and I love you guys. That won’t happen again"

One by one they gave him a thumbs up. The five of them and within minutes they were laughing and hugging as brothers they were. A bottle of champagne was brought to celebrate their success. But he needed to get forgiveness from a man who had given him everything. He knew where to find him.

The uncle had left the room, he was on the balcony with his whiskey and his walking stick, a cigar in his mouth blowing off smoke like an old diesel engine. From there he could see the sprawling city, lit up like a distant galaxy and a breathtaking skyline.

"Boss," Knox said coming from behind with a glass of his own. He had gotten rid of the blazer and rolled the sleeves of his white shirt showing his hairy arms.

"What came over you? There are thousands of women in this city you can have anyone you want"

"She is special," he said straight up staring blankly into the dark skies with a few stars sneaking out, transmitting their celestial glow.

"How special"

"I don't know for sure but there is something special about her. Enough of that, it won't happen again. I promise. I'm sorry"

"Just assure me she is not going to be a problem. And if you like her so much you know our life, you can't have that"

"I'm fully aware Boss. She is not going to be a problem"

"Good, I forgive you. Cheers," their glasses clanked and they drank to more life. Together the two men had achieved more than they could have done on their own as individuals. When they started it was just the two of them, and they met in the most awkward of ways. Still, that didn't stop them from breaking the barriers and finding a way to work together.

However, the bells of an unceremonious end of their long working relationship were tolling and the cause of their looming breakup was nothing they ever thought could break them apart. A woman. Knox had never lied to the Uncle and vice versa but that night he did exactly that. Lied through his teeth. The girl was going to be a problem. Fact. But another interesting fact was, she was just a trigger, a cue. What was going to be their end was a desire to change. In life, there are only two certainties, death and change and sometimes we meet people who just make us feel the need for change. Knox had met his. But was he ready for the friction?