Corps Justice Boxed Set: Books 1-3: Back to War, Council of Patriots, Prime Asset (37 page)

Getting back to their suite, each man split
off to their respective rooms to shower and change.

Brandon was putting his pants on when his
personal cell phone rang. He looked down at the caller ID.

“Hey, Dad.”

“How are things going, Son?”

“We got in last night. We’ll be meeting Cal
soon.”

“Good. Any progress on their investigation?”
the Senator asked.

“I’m not sure yet. I’ll know more after we
meet, I think.”

“Now you remember, Son. Let those boys do
their job. From what I hear, they’re very good at what they
do.”

“I know, Dad. I’ll behave.”

“Call me when you know more,” Senator Zimmer
instructed.

The line went dead. Brandon tucked the phone
into his pocket and finishing dressing. Zimmer hoped it would be an
uneventful day.

+++

MSgt Trent led the way down to the lobby. He
scanned the area and ushered the Congressman toward the main exit.
Just as they were about to step into the revolving doors, someone
called out.

“Brandon!”

Trent and Zimmer turned around. Ishi
Nakamura approached with a pair of security guards. Zimmer
plastered a happy look on his face and waved to his old friend.

“Hey, Ishi.”

Nakamura walked up and hugged him. “How come
you didn’t call me when you got in? I would’ve sent up some
champagne or something.”

“It was late when we got in last night. I
didn’t want to bother you.”

“You’re never a bother, my friend. Remember,
you are MY responsibility.”

Trent detected a slight flare of a threat in
Nakamura’s tone.

“God, I’m sorry, Ishi. I forgot to introduce
you to my new bodyguard. Willy Trent, this is my old friend, Ishi
Nakamura.”

The two men shook hands. “Good to meet you,
Mr. Trent. Can I call you Willy?” Ishi asked pleasantly.

“Mr. Trent would be just fine, sir.”

Ishi’s face fell for a split second. He
recovered and said, “Once a Marine, always a Marine, eh, Mr.
Trent?”

“That’s right, sir. You can take the man out
of the Marines, but you can’t take the Marine out of the man.”

Ishi laughed. “Ha! I like that. Either way,
welcome to Las Vegas and let us know if the hotel’s security team
can help in any way.”

Ishi turned to Congressman Zimmer. “Brandon,
I’ve got some people I’d like you to meet later today. They’re big
donors and are helping with the planning for the Democratic
National Convention. How about we grab dinner tonight?”

Zimmer looked to Trent who nodded. “Sounds
good. What time should we meet you down here?”

“Let’s make it seven thirty.”

“Alright, we’ll see you then.”

The two men shook hands again and went their
separate ways. As Nakamura passed the concierge desk, his phone
buzzed. He picked it up.

Ishi answered in Japanese. “Did you see your
target?”

“Yes.”

“Good. Make sure he’s taken before my dinner
with the Congressman. I want no mistakes.”

“Yes, Nakamura-san.”

Ishi ended the call and
continued to his office.
It’s time to
teach Brandon a little lesson.

+++

Trent hailed a cab and held the door open
for Zimmer. Five minutes later, they were getting out in front of
Caesar’s Palace. During the ride, Trent spotted two vehicles
following them from the hotel.

“Sir, I’m gonna need you to do exactly as I
say,” Trent murmured to Zimmer.

“Huh? What’s going on?” he whispered
back.

“Just keep walking toward the main entrance
over there. Don’t look around. We’ve got a tail.”

“Is it someone from the hotel?” Zimmer asked
calmly.

“Yes. Now we’re gonna do a little extra
walking. Follow me.”

Trent slipped in front of Zimmer and started
weaving his way through the morning crowd. Brandon followed
closely.

Willy pulled out his phone and dialed
Cal.

“Yeah?” Cal answered.

“We’ve got extra friends trying to wreck the
party. Let’s move to the backup location.”

“I’ll see you there.”

Trent pulled his phone away from his ear and
walked faster. Zimmer was having a hard time not running just to
match the Marine’s long stride. They walked quickly around the
curved drive. Trent walked up to a cab and hopped in, Zimmer right
behind.

Willy instructed the driver to go to Circus
Circus at the north end of the The Strip.

“What the hell is going on?” Zimmer
whispered.

“I think your friend Ishi sent some of his
goons after us. Not sure if it’s just to keep an eye on us or what.
I didn’t want to take any chances.”

“Should we even go back to the hotel
later?”

“What choice do we have? Let’s focus on
getting to this meeting first. Maybe Cal will have something for
us.” Trent continued to watch behind them. He couldn’t pinpoint
anyone following, but that didn’t matter. He’d learned long ago to
trust his sixth sense. Right now it was blaring like a foghorn.

Ten minutes later, the cab pulled out of the
congested corridor and pulled up in front of the aged Circus
Circus. Trent paid the driver then followed Zimmer over to the
front entrance.

“We’re supposed to meet Cal and Brian in
front of the Krispy Kreme stand in the Slots of Fun side of the
casino. Stay close now, Congressman.”

No sooner had they stepped off towards the
entrance that they both felt a pinch on their necks. At first,
Trent thought it was a horse fly bite. That was until Zimmer
collapsed to the pavement. A large limousine pulled up beside them.
The last thing Trent saw before he fell unconscious was the rushed
steps of four men running his way.

+++

“Where the hell are they?” Cal thought out
loud.

“Have you tried calling him again?” Brian
asked.

“Yeah. Three times. There’s no way Top left
his phone in the hotel room.”

“Want me to go outside and take a look?”

“No. Let’s both go. Maybe they just got
caught in traffic.”

As they walked, Cal texted Neil to track the
GPS locator in Trent’s phone. All SSI phones were rigged for
tracking.

They stepped out into the sunlight and
looked around. No sign of Trent and the Congressman. Cal’s phone
buzzed.

“What did you find, Neil?”

“The locator says Trent is standing right in
front of the main entrance to Circus Circus.”

“Hold on. Let me walk that way.”

Cal pushed past a group of drunken gamblers
and headed to the front of the casino.

“Do you see him?” Neil asked.

“Not yet. You sure you’ve got it right?”

“I’m showing a full signal. No way this
thing is wrong.”

Cal started jogging. His anxiety increased
as he reached the sidewalk leading into the building. Both men
looked all around.

“Cal, look!” Brian was pointing at the
ground.

Lying on the ground next to a pair of broken
sunglasses was MSgt Trent’s cell phone.

“Holy shit. Neil, message Trav and have him
send in the contingency team.”

Cal ended the call and sprinted to catch a
cab.

Chapter 18

Camp
Spartan, Arrington, TN

12:16pm, September
17
^th

Travis Haden addressed his three closest
advisors: Todd Dunn, Marge Haines, and Dr. Higgins, SSI’s resident
psychologist. He’d just run through the details from Cal.

“So, Cal just called for the contingency
team. I think we better prep for the worst. Any questions?”

Marge Haines started, “What do we have on
books as far as Trent’s security with Zimmer?”

“I can answer that,” Todd Dunn said. “We
tasked him out as a VIP security contract. By the way, I just got
confirmation that the contingency team is in the air.”

“Good,” Travis nodded. “What else?”

“Who else knew about the security
arrangement?” Haines asked.

Dunn shrugged. “We’ll have to assume that
Zimmer’s immediate support staff knows. Senator Zimmer is also in
the loop.”

Dr. Higgins raised his hand. “Have you
thought about a possible leak, Travis?”

“I’ve thought about it, but don’t have a
clue who it could be.”

“I think it’s fair to assume that the
operation has been compromised and we’re dealing with a larger
threat than we initially believed,” Higgins intoned
professionally.

“I think you’re right, Doc. First, Cal tells
me about getting attacked by these giant Russians. Now, Top and
Zimmer are gone. I think we need to alert the Council and start
putting some more pieces into play.”

“Is it time to involve the authorities?”
Haines asked.

“Let’s give Cal a little time. I find it
hard to believe that this Japanese group would dispose of Zimmer so
soon. I think something else is brewing,” Travis said.

“I concur,” agreed Dr. Higgins. “It looks
like our new enemy is taking extreme measures to keep us out of the
picture. Do we have any thoughts on their motive other than to
blackmail Congressman Zimmer?”

“Neil’s working on it right now. I think Cal
said he was close to getting into the Ichiban system,” answered
Travis.

“Seems like a long time for Neil to crack
the code,” Dunn noted.

“Yeah. I think these Ichiban guys have some
serious horsepower under the hood. I’m not liking it,” answered
Travis. “Let’s meet up again in an hour. Maybe we’ll have some good
news from Vegas by then.”

+++

Congressman Zimmer woke up
to a splitting headache. He tried to open his eyes but realized
they were covered by a blindfold. His arms were numb and bound to
the chair he was tied to.
Where the hell
am I?

He tried to shift into a more comfortable
position and heard a chair squeak.

“Hello?” Zimmer croaked. He noticed his
throat was bone dry.

“I thought we talked about expectations,
Brandon?”

“Ishi?”

“Yes. I don’t think you understand the
position you’ve put me in. We saved you from public embarrassment
and possibly life in jail. You repay us by ignoring our rules and
taking advantage of our friendship,” Ishi explained smoothly.

“What the hell are you talking about,
man?”

“Let’s start with your bodyguard. If you
were worried about personal security, why didn’t you contact
someone within your government?” Ishi asked.

“No one listens to a first-term Congressman.
They’d think I was just being paranoid.”

“Okay. So why didn’t you ask us for
additional security?”

Zimmer almost laughed. He might be a little
naïve, but he wasn’t stupid.

“Look man, I know I owe you guys a lot, but
this is ridiculous. I’m sorry if I broke the rules. If I’d known
how much of a problem it would be, I wouldn’t have hired
Trent.”

“Well, you won’t have to worry about Master
Sergeant Trent anymore.”

Brandon’s stomach went to his throat.

“What did you do with him, Ishi?”

“Oh, you’ll see him soon enough. He’s being
employed in a more…entertaining way. Are you almost ready for
dinner?”

“Tell me where Trent is, Ishi.”

“ENOUGH! I’m not the little
punk you knew at Harvard,
Congressman
. You can’t push me around
anymore. From now on you do exactly as I say. Is that
understood?”

Brandon knew he couldn’t win
this fight. He decided to keep his mouth shut and bide his time. At
the moment, his own safety didn’t seem so important. His main
thought as Ishi untied his arms was:
Where
is Willy Trent?

+++

MSgt Trent opened his eyes.
Where was Zimmer? He quickly surveyed his surroundings. His prison
cell was a small windowless room. The space was about ten by ten,
the floor concrete. They’d laid him on an old cot with a thin,
musty mattress. Trent struggled to his feet. His head pounded. What
the hell had they knocked him out with? He remembered the last
seconds before passing out. He remembered Zimmer going down.
Where the hell is he?

Once his mind cleared, he
realized they’d taken his clothes. The only thing covering his
extensive frame was a stylish loincloth. His captors had also
attached a thick collar around his neck.
What the hell?
He flexed his neck and
felt around the edges of the leather collar. It felt completely
locked in place. Trent thought he detected a small antenna on it as
well.

Take a deep breath and think, Willy.

Over the years he’d been in
some strange situations. This one was definitely taking the cake.
He must look like an overgrown Zulu warrior right now. What was
next? A spear and shield?
Someone’s gonna
pay for this shit
.

As he pondered payback, a robotic voice
sparked to life from a hidden speaker.

“In ten minutes, you will be escorted to the
weapons room.”

“Say what?” Willy yelled back at the
faceless voice.

“Prepare yourself.”

There were no further instructions. Trent
stood baffled. What the hell was going on?

+++

Congressman Zimmer’s clothes were waiting
for him. Following Ishi’s instructions, he changed and used the
bathroom to clean up. They’d given him five minutes.

Five minutes later a Japanese man, dressed
in a butler’s uniform, entered the room.

“Congressman Zimmer, Nakamura-san has
requested your presence.” The man bowed waiting for a response.

“Okay. I’m, uh, I’m ready to go.”

Zimmer followed the man through a short maze
of doorways. He occasionally glimpsed a window. The night outside
was pitch black. The building felt part industrial part high-end
hotel. Where were they? He never saw an exterior door. No easy way
out.