Chapter 15
Hope arrived at Ali’s ten minutes after the first police car had arrived. Ali walked her through what had happened. She had been dozing in her bed when she heard someone trying to break into her place. She had grabbed her gun and had hid in her bedroom. She had heard the intruder open her front door and come into her living room, then she had turned on the lights and yelled “Freeze!” The man had gone for his gun, and Ali had been forced to fire in self-defense, hitting the man in the shoulder. The man had gone down, but he had tried to fire again so Ali had reacted, again in self-defense, this time hitting the man in the temple. She had stood there in shock for a few minutes, then had heard the sirens, and that’s when she had called Hope. Hope wasn’t convinced that was the whole story, and made a note to dig deeper later, but she took Ali’s statement, more as a formality than anything else. Then Ali had called Megan and Wambach while the police crime scene unit went through Ali’s apartment.
Now, Ali, Megan, Hope and Wambach were all in Wambach’s office. It was 9am the next day.
“So the Disciples sent a man to Ali’s apartment”, Hope opened up with what she already knew so they could brief Wambach and Megan.
“For what?” Megan asked.
“I don’t know", Ali said. "Maybe to scare me, to make sure we hadn’t found out about their meeting with the Maranos, or if we had, that we weren’t going to drop in.” She shrugged her shoulders.
“And, get this: three more Disciple bodies were found on the south side earlier this morning”, Hope said.
“What?” Wambach said.
“They were found in a car registered to one of them. Two were stuffed in the trunk. One was in the back seat.”
“Jesus”, Wambach said. “How did they die?”
“One had a crushed windpipe, along with a broken hand”, Hope reported. “Another had his neck snapped, along with a broken kneecap, a ruptured groin, and fractured skull. And, get this - Felipe Sosa was the third body.”
“What?” Wambach said again and stood up from her desk.
“Yeah. He was shot in the head at close range. He also had a broken wrist, a broken arm, and a broken kneecap”, Hope said.
“Jesus", Wambach said. "Crushed windpipe? Neck snapped? Shot in the head at close range? Broken bones everywhere? What the hell is going on? Are you telling me that someone took out two guys by hand, then crippled Felipe Sosa and then shot him at point blank range?” she asked, incredulous.
“That’s what it seems like”, Hope said.
“Well, who the hell did this?” Wambach demanded.
“We don’t know”, Hope said, “but the wounds indicate a professional carried this out. Especially the crushed windpipe and the neck snap. Very few people can do that. It’s the kind of stuff they only teach in elite military units. Like the Army Special Forces”, Hope said and looked at Ali.
“Wait”, Wambach said, “Is it possible that this damn sniper killed these guys? Maybe this sniper is ex-military? Army Special Forces? Is he now taking people out by hand and close-up shots to the head too?”
“We don’t know”, Hope said again. "Again - it could be a she." She shot Ali another look.
Wambach was silent for a minute and then said, “Well, I’m glad you’re alright, Krieger. Way to take care of yourself. I’d give you the day off, but we’re too close to this meeting. So, hang tough. Everyone – stay on task for the meeting. I want to review the tactical briefing tomorrow.”
********
“So, what the fuck happened?”
Kody Mitchell was sitting at table in a bar called Stones, on the near west side of Chicago. Flanking him on either side were Dominik Lancaster and Terrell Jackson. Across the table from Kody was Scout, the man who Ashlyn had shot from Ali’s balcony. The bodies of Felipe Sosa and two of the three men he had brought with him to Ali’s apartment had been found earlier today. The body of the fourth man had been found at the JOCT woman's apartment. Now, Scout was giving his report of what happened at that apartment to Kody Mitchell. He was nervous, and rightfully so.
“So, I was there, in the second car. Felipe and the boys went up to the woman’s crib, and then I see a light go on, and then I hear a gunshot. Then, like, thirty seconds later, I hear two more gunshots. So I get out of the car, and I shout up to the apartment, and then I see the woman come out. And then I see her raise her arm, and she fucking shoots me in the damn arm! So I high tail it back to the car, and she shoots at me again, and she misses, and then she shoots at me again while I'm startin' the engine, and the rear driver’s side window explodes, and then I took off.”
Kody looked concerned. He wasn’t concerned that Scout had been shot in the arm, but something else was bothering him. “Wait – you said the woman shot you in the arm. Where were you parked?”
“Across the street and a few houses down.”
“So, you were like several hundred feet away", Kody said, in a statement that was more of a question.
“Yeah, I guess so”, Scout said.
“And the woman, she scored a shot on you, a moving target, that far away?”
“Yeah, I guess so.”
“At night? With a handgun?”
“I guess. I mean, it wasn’t like a rifle or anything.”
“Damn.” Kody said and thought for a moment.
“Bitch is a good shot”, Dominik said. He was a good shot himself. He had risen through the gang ranks by being the go-to drive-by shooter for years until he was promoted to management. He could reliably hit moving targets with a 9MM up to a hundred and fifty feet. But several hundred feet…damn...
“Alright”, Kody said to Scout, then took out his gun and pointed it right at Scout. Scout froze, and Kody said, "Don't ever run again." He kept the gun pointed at Scout for another moment and then said, “Now get the fuck outta here.” Scout got up and left as quickly as he could.
"I thought you were gonna waste him", Dominik said. A Disciple never runs.
"We can still use him", Kody said. Kody knew that Scout served as a confidential informant for some of the local police and sometimes fed him information to pass along to them.
“What I want to know is, how the fuck did that federal woman take out Felipe and the rest of his boys, and then score a shot on Scout from that far away as he was running for the car?” Terrell asked as Kody put away his gun.
“She didn’t”, Kody said, as he got up and started pacing. It wasn’t the JOCT woman. There’s no fucking way she would have taken out four large, mean gangstas by herself, and then been able to hit Scout in the arm from several hundred feet away as he fled the scene. I would have had trouble taking out Felipe and his three boys, Kody thought, and there’s not many people who can make a shot like that, several hundred feet away on a moving target with a fucking handgun. Dominik can’t even make that shot, and he’s the best shooter I know, Kody thought. And then there was the fact that Felipe and the two other bodies had been taken out by someone who knew how to execute with his- or her- hands. Crushed windpipe. Neck snapped. Broken arms and legs and hands, and then the single shot to Felipe, point-blank in the face. This was not the work of some federal agent. This was the work of a professional killer. Maybe the same muthafucker that had shot Cruz, Chang and Williams outside of Mother’s. Sniper…crack shot…hand to hand combat skills...Yeah, this was a military trained soldier. Probably some kind of Special Ops. And Scout had said that the woman had fired at him. A woman. Well I’ll be damned, Kody thought. “This was not the work of the federal woman”, Kody said. “She had help. It was the sniper”, he said to his men.
“Wait, what? Are you sayin’ that the feds are working with the sniper?” Terrell felt an involuntary shiver.
“I don’t know”, Kody said, “but the federal woman knows the sniper, somehow. And that sniper was there, at the apartment last night. And apparently, the sniper is a woman.”
“What?! Another bitch?” Dominik said. "Jesus". Bitches were ruining the world, man.
Kody thought for a minute. There was a connection here…he was about to make it…he thought some more..and…and…and there it was. He said, “I know what to do. I need to talk to old man Marano. Tell him the meeting at the Park Warehouse is off. We're canceling it, for both of ours safety. Set up another meeting. A small meeting. Set it up quick, and keep it on the real DL. Just the top dogs. I got a plan.”
********
Ashlyn was siting in her tub, head back, thinking. After she had left Ali’s, she had driven the tainted car to the Ridge Park neighborhood in the south side of Chicago. She had left it in a parking lot near an abandoned factory and then ran towards the nearest L station. It had taken her an hour to get back home. She had slept for a few hours but had woken up, thinking about Ali. It was weird – on the one hand, she had been so frustrated with Ali, and why Ali felt such a need to follow rules and laws, in such an emergency situation. But, at the same time, Ali had been right. I hadn’t needed to kill Felipe and the other man still alive, Ashlyn thought. I could have taken the two other bodies and let Ali take them in. I had let my emotions get the best of me, especially after I saw the contents of the gym bag, and I just lost it. Maybe I should have apologized to Ali right then and there, Ashlyn thought. But she hadn’t. She had been in survival mode, the mode that had saved her and so many of her Special Forces comarades so many times during the course of her six-year run in the service. It was like being in the field. You do what you have to do. Plus, she had still been a bit incredulous about Ali being such a stickler for following the law even in a situation like that. Then Ashlyn thought about Ali, and how she looked at Ashlyn after Ashlyn had killed the four men. She thinks I'm fucking nuts, Ashlyn thought. She's probably thinking that there's no way she can be with someone like me. Thinking about that made Ashlyn sad, and she slid down in her tub and submerged her face under the water, as if to wash away the tears that might come.
Ashlyn got out of the tub, dried off and put on a pair of jeans and a shirt. She picked up her phone. It was 1pm. She wanted to talk with Ali. She was hoping that Ali would have called her by now, but her phone hadn’t rang all morning. She had called Ali’s cell at 11am, but Ali hadn’t picked up. She thought about calling Ali’s office line, since she figured she may have a better chance of catching her there, but she knew that would be too risky, especially with what happened last night. I hope she calls me, Ashlyn thought, and then another thought came into her mind. What if she doesn’t call me? What if I crossed the line last night? An I truly out of control? What if she doesn’t want to be with me anymore? That thought made her sad, and she thought, who am I? Am I just an avenger? Is that all I am? Do I not belong in normal society? Am I incapable of having a normal romantic relationship? Maybe I need help. And, what good is avenging the love I lost when my parents were killed, if I'm so consumed by vengeance that I can’t keep a love to replace it? Ashlyn's thoughts started to spin in her head, and she thought, I have to get her back. I need Ali in my life. Ashlyn felt strongly about that, maybe more strongly than she had ever felt about anything. That’s why she had surveyed Ali outside of Mother's, and followed Ali to Marangos, and why she had arranged the meeting with Ali on that side street, even at the risk of Ali actually arresting her and bringing her in. She had bluffed with Ali about the feds not being able to find out who she was. If Ali had arrested her, they would have found out one way or another. But, she had been so drawn to Ali that she rolled the dice, gambling that Ali would be too intrigued and hopefully attracted to her to not bring her in, that she would see the good in Ashlyn, and understand the good she was going, and be able to look the other way at the fact that, yes, Ashlyn was breaking the law by killing criminals.
Sometimes, Ashlyn thought, there is someone in this world, who you just…well, you just have to be with. I can't explain it, she thought, but I’ve got to find a way to talk with her without putting her in suspicion or jeopardy.
********
Ali was sitting at her desk, drafting up the tactical plan for the meeting. She was still processing what had happened last night, but as the initial shock had worn off, she had found herself thinking more and more about herself being with Ashlyn. There were so many wonderful things about Ashlyn. She was smart, beautiful, caring, talented…in more ways than one. But, seeing her last night had been…well, eye-opening, was the only term she could think of for it right now. It was like, sometimes you just don’t know, until you go. I know Ashlyn’s not a Girl Scout, Ali thought. I know she’s ex-Army Special Forces. I know she’s killed at least five people in the last week and a half using a high-powered rifle at long distances. But, seeing her up-close as she brutally dismantled four people…well, it’s one thing to know that someone is sniper, but it’s another thing to see violence right in front of you like that. Especially from the woman you’re falling for, Ali thought. And, I know she did it to protect me, and I’m grateful. I truly am, and she has to know that. And part of Ali saw the value in being able to operate the way that Ashlyn did. But, to see her lose control like that and just tear those guys apart, with no regard for law and procedure, was just-
“Krieger!” Megan barged into Ali’s office, shaking her out of her thoughts. “Get down to Wambach’s office right now.”
“What’s going on?” Ali said, as she rose from her desk.
********
"The meeting between the Maranos and the Disciples has been cancelled”, Hope said.
“What!?” Wambach said, incredulous. She was already standing. Bad sign, Ali thought.
"I got the tip from a source", Hope said. “Kody Mitchell found out about Felipe Sosa and his boys."
“What?!” Wambach said again. Her eyes bulged out of her head. “They cancelled?”
“Yup, that’s our latest intel”, Megan said.
Wambach was quiet for a moment, and then addressed the room. “So, let me get this straight. Krieger gets attacked in her home by a single Disciple, which is weird, because they usually travel in packs. Then, some other mystery person, maybe this damn sniper, Special Forces, whatever, takes out three more Disciples, the first two guys by hand, and a point-blank shot to the head of the lieutenant, and then piles their bodies into one of their own cars and dumps it on the south side? And now the meeting is cancelled?” Wambach was growing irate.
“Yeah, afraid so”, Hope said.
"Can someone tell me what the hell is going on here?" Wambach raised her voice. Ali, Megan and Hope remained silent. “Fuck!” Wambach yelled, and pounded her fist on the desk. “We’ll never get another meeting like that again!” Ali, Megan and Hope remained quiet, while Wambach ran her palms through her hair. She stood there, seething for another moment, and then said, “Alright, listen up. If another meeting is scheduled, I want to know about it ASAP. In the meantime, I want you guys to find this damn sniper, Special Forces, whoever-the-fuck this person is, and bring him, her, whatever, in. Until we get word of another meeting, that is your number one priority. Got it?”
Ali, Megan, and Hope all nodded.
“Now get out of my office”, Wambach said, and pointed towards the door.
********
Giusseppe Marano sat at a table in Volare, his favorite restaurant, located in a small Italian enclave called La Grangia, near Little Italy. Next to him were his son, Frankie, and Carmine Lippenzo, his new underboss. Across the table were the heads of his arch-rivals, the Disciples: Kody Mitchell, Dominik Lancaster, and Terrell Jackson. The Disciples had asked for this meeting. It was urgent, they had said. They had asked for principles only, and to show good faith, they had offered to come to the Marano family’s territory. Frankie had offered up the suggestion to have them whacked once they arrived. Giusseppe had considered it briefly, but, seeing as how there was already someone out there, running around whacking everyone, regardless of which law-breaking team they played for, he figured that, unfortunately for now the best way to stay alive was to join forces with their rivals until they found this damn sniper and put a piano wire through his neck.
“Four of my guys got hit last night”, Kody began. “One of them was Felipe Sosa. His body and two others were found dumped in a car this morning on the south side. The fourth body was found in the apartment of the JOCT agent in charge."
“How did this happen?” Giusseppe asked, his eyes narrowing.
“We sent some guys over to her apartment", Kody said.
“And why the hell did you do that?” Frankie asked.
“In case she knew we were meeting, we wanted to send a message: don’t show up.” Kody explained.
“So, what happened? Did this JOCT woman take out four of your men all by herself?” Giusseppe asked. At that, Frankie chuckled, and Kody gave him a hard shut-the-fuck-up stare.
“No. It was someone else. Someone else was there with her, in her apartment.” Kody leaned forward. “It was the same muthafucker who’s been snipin’ off our asses.” He moved his finger back and forth between Giusseppe and himself. “Both of our asses.”
“How do you know?” Carmine asked.
“Because whoever did this killed two of my men by hand. One had a crushed windpipe. The other one’s neck was snapped. Felipe was crippled – broken leg, broken arm, and broken wrist. Then, this muthafucker popped a cap in his head at point-blank range. Pigs don’t do shit like that. This shit was done by someone else. Then,” Kody kept going, “this muthafucker shot a fifth man that we had waiting outside the JOCT woman's apartment. Scored an armshot with a 9MM from over two hundred feet away, while this dude was running for the car.”
“So, what are you saying?” Giusseppe asked. He was getting impatient.
“I’m saying that this muthafucker is a professional killer. Most likely military. Probably special ops. Sniper-trained, hand to hand combat, probably good with explosives and all that other shit. And, dig this”, he spread his hands, “it’s a fuckin’ woman.”
“What?” Carmine said, incredulous.
“I said, it’s a woman", Kody repeated himself. "My man outside said it was a woman who shot him.”
“No, no way”, Frankie said. “Ain’t no broad alive that's that good. Your guys just blew it."
Dominik leaned forward and stared at Frankie. “I bet this bitch could kick your ass, you scrawny, spaghetti eatin’ muthafu-” Kody put his hand up, and Dominik silenced himself immediately. Frankie started to say something back, but Giuseppe cut him off.
“So, what do you propose?" Guisseppe asked, looking directly at Kody.
“We need to waste this sniper ASAFP. And the JOCT woman, as well as that damn FBI girl and fuckin’ Hope Solo”. Kody and Hope had a long rivalry going back years, when Kody was making his way up the gang ranks and Hope was a cop on the beat. “I have a plan. We can draw them out, just them, and then waste them all.”
“How?” Carmine asked.
“Let’s meet again. Find a neutral territory and then get the word out on the street, that it’s just us meeting.” Kody motioned to just the six of them sitting at the table. "We put the word out right before we meet, and those three pigs will hear about it, but they won’t have time to organize a large raid squad. They'll come alone, or with minimal backup, maybe just a few unis. We’ll stack the place with soldiers, and when they come in, we’ll waste the unis, and then grab Solo, the FBI girl, and the JOCT woman.”
"How do you know those three will come?" Frankie asked.
"What, are you fucking kidding me?" Kody looked at Frankie. This guy was a fucking idiot. In all of the criminal world, only in the mob could you actually inherit power. Everywhere else, you had to earn it. Kody couldn't wait until old man Marano kicked the bucket. Once that happened, it would only be a matter of time before he would dismantle the Marano family under Frankie's sure-to-be clueless leadership, and then he would control the city. "You think that JOCT woman, the FBI girl and pig-face Solo are going to skip the chance to try to net us if they hear that the six of us are meeting?"
“I would agree with Signor Mitchell", Giusseppe said, and Frankie rolled his eyes at his Papa actually agreeing with these low-life street thugs. "The police and the feds will come. But, how do you know the sniper will show up?”
“Because of the JOCT woman.” Kody said.
“Like, they’re working together?" Carmine asked.
“No”, Kody said. He paused, and then revealed the connection he had made earlier. “It’s personal.”
“How do you know that?” Giusseppe asked.
“Because my boys went to the JOCT woman's apartment at 3am. They got there, and all the lights were out. Now, you tell me", Kody said as he leaned forward, "What kind of 'work' would the federal woman and this sniper be doing at the federal woman's apartment together at 3am with the lights out?” He smiled.
Dominik and Terrell smiled as well. Giusseppe turned up the corners of his mouth as he thought about that. Carmine smiled as well and said, "Good point. I know there's only one kind of 'work' I would be doing at 3am with the lights out." At that, even Frankie smiled, and in a landmark moment, for the first - and probably only - time in history, the head members of the two biggest rival criminal organizations in the city smiled together at the same time, at the same thing, sitting at the same table.
When Giusseppe's smile had cooled, he looked at Kody and said, “You’re sure this sniper will show up?”
Kody nodded. “I’m sure. If she thinks that federal woman is in trouble, she’ll show up. And believe me, we gonna put that federal woman in trouble. I'll put the fuckin' blowtorch to her, and she'll scream so loud that her sniping girlfriend would be able to hear her all the way in New York City. Her, and that FBI girl, and pig-face Solo. I'll fucking fry 'em all.” Kody smiled again. “Believe me, that sniper will show up. And when she does, we’ll fuckin’ waste ‘em all.”