Chapter 8
Patterson radioed Weller to tell him that she and Tasha were alright, then helped Tasha to her feet and escorted her out of the building. When they exited the hotel the street was teaming with people. Weller, Jane and Reade were waiting for them. Weller had Tasha checked out by the paramedics, and then assembled the group. “We need to find out where Liz and Powell went”, he said.
“I think I know”, Patterson said. “While you guys were here I looked into possible escape routes. There’s a cargo ship called The Shamrock that’s owned by a shipping company based out of Belfast. It leaving New York Port for Belfast in an hour. Guess who one of the shipping company’s customers is?”
“Colleen”, Weller said.
“Liz did say they would be ‘sailing away into the distance’”, Jane remembered.
“Yeah, I heard her say that over the comms”, Patterson said.
“We need to get going”, Weller said. “We can call the Harbor Master on the way over.” Then he looked at Tasha. “You okay?”
“I’ll be fine”, Tasha nodded, looking at her bandaged arm. It still stung from the knife wound from Liz, but it wasn’t debilitating.
“Okay”, Weller nodded back, then looked at the group. “Let’s move.”
“Wait”, Patterson said. “All of us? Like, me too?”
Weller looked at Patterson for a moment and then said, “Yes. You too. We may need help if we encounter another bomb”, he said, then smiled slightly. “Nice work, Patterson”, he said. Patterson smiled slightly back, and Tasha looked at Patterson. She’s amazing, Tasha thought. She wanted to reach out and wrap Patterson up in her arms, but now was not the time. The group piled into the suburban and pulled up to the harbor twenty minutes later.
“There’s The Shamrock”, Tasha said, pointing to the right. A few men were walking the deck. Weller parked the suburban behind a group of shipping containers, and the group crept their way behind the containers towards the ship. They were about two hundred feet away when they saw Powell and Colleen loading a crate up the walkway onto the ship. A moment later, they saw Liz stride up the walkway as well.
“We gotta move, now”, Weller said. He checked his weapon. “Everybody ready?” Everyone nodded, and then he looked around the group, eyes settling on Patterson. “Be careful”, he said, then nodded and rose to a standing position. “Freeze!” he yelled, as he and the team popped out from behind a shipping container.
“Shite!” Liz swore, then opened fire. Powell and Colleen dropped the crate they were carrying and opened fire as well, scrambling up the rest of the walkway. Then the men on the deck opened fire as well, as Weller and the team scrambled towards the ship, firing back. Three of the men went down. Tasha reached the walkway first and started up.
“Tasha, wait!” Weller yelled, but Tasha was already halfway up. “Shit!” he swore, then started up after her. “Cover us!” he yelled to Reade, Jane and Patterson. He reached the top of the walkway, pivoted and saw Colleen. She squeezed of three rounds just after Weller was able to duck behind a column. He returned fire, hitting Colleen twice in the chest. She went down, and Reade walked over to her and kicked her weapon away from her. Then he bent down and checked her neck pulse, as he heard Jane, Reade and Patterson reach the top of the walkway. “She’s gone”, he said, then turned to Reade. “Check the rest of the ship. Patterson – stick close to Reade.” Then he turned to Jane. “Let’s find Tasha.”
Tasha was moving towards the aft deck when she heard commotion. She whipped around a corner. Two men were coming towards her. She fired four times and put them both down, then flinched as a bullet pinged a pipe just above her head. She whirled around and saw Powell duck behind a pole. “Shit!” she swore and headed in Powell’s direction. Powell headed towards the port side of the ship when she saw Reade and Patterson coming towards her. She raised her gun and fired, missing both but sending bullets between them. Reade scrambled left as Patterson scrambled right.
“Patterson!” Reade yelled. “Go! I’ll hold her off!” Reade returned fire, driving Powell back. Powell retreated, fired two bullets, and then turned around, and ran right into the butt of Tasha’s gun. She went up, like a jester slipping on a banana peel, and then fell back down, head hitting the deck hard. Tasha rolled Powell over onto her stomach and slapped on the cuffs as Reade ran up, then she hauled Powell up and handed her to Reade. “Take her. I’m going after Wells”, she said, and Reade nodded.
Patterson was still running as Reade had instructed, but she slowed her pace as she approached a corner. She paused, then rounded the corner, leading with her gun, and ended up in a hallway. The coast was clear. She walked a bit further down the hallway, then heard a noise from behind her. She whirled around. Nothing. She exhaled, relieved, then turned back around, and found herself face to face with Liz.
“Hello Blondie”, Liz said with a smile. Patterson gasped, then went to yell, but Liz put her hand over Patterson’s mouth and then kneed Patterson hard in the stomach. Patterson doubled over, and then Liz grabbed Patterson’s hair, yanked her head back, and slapped Patterson hard in the face. Patterson went down limp, and then Liz picked Patterson up from behind and hauled her down the hallway. She pushed Patterson through a doorway and out onto the starboard rear deck. “Ahhhh…lovely, isn’t it?” Liz said, smiling. “Fresh sea air, warm breeze. Perfect day for a swim, don’t you think?”
“No, please…” Patterson whimpered.
“Don’t worry love, you’re right at shore. You’re probably survive the drop”, Liz said, then pressed her lips to Patterson’s ear. “You’d better. I want to pay you a visit in the future, after I kill your bitchy little girlfriend”, she said, then smiled and licked Patterson’s neck. Patterson squirmed, and Liz bit her neck. She held on for a couple seconds as Patterson squealed. “Something to remember me by, until next time. Now, off you go”, she said, and moved to throw Patterson overboard when she was hit very hard in the side of the head by an incoming Tasha. Liz screamed and let go of Patterson, and then Tasha kicked Liz in the side, sending Liz sprawling.
“Tash!” Patterson said.
“Go find Weller and the others!” Tasha said. Patterson stared at Tasha, not wanting to leave her. “Go baby, now!” Tasha yelled. Patterson stared for another moment and then ran off.
“C’mon, copper”, Liz said as she got to her feet. “Let’s see what you got.” She charged Tasha and threw a roundhouse blow, but Tasha ducked it and drilled Liz with a solid punch to the gut. Liz doubled over, and Tasha followed up with a knee to Liz’s face. Liz went down to one knee, and Tasha went to grab her, but Liz lunged at Tasha, putting her on the ground, then landed three solid blows on Tasha’s face. Tasha went to claw Liz’s eyes, but missed, grabbing Liz’s ear instead. Liz yelped in pain as Tasha tore part of the cartilage, but then grabbed Tasha’s neck with both hands. Tasha squirmed, feeling her breath go short, as blackness started to creep in around her periphery. “There you go”, Liz hissed. “I’m going to strangle you, and then I’m going to strangle your little blonde girlfriend as I fuck the shite out of her.”
“Noooo…!” Tasha gritted out, then grabbed Liz’s wrists. She couldn’t break the hold, Liz was too strong, but she was able to maneuver Liz into her guard. She brought a knee up into Liz’s chin, and then grabbed Liz’s left wrist with both hands, and putting her right leg under Liz’s chin, leveraged Liz onto her back and into a painful arm lock. Liz screamed as Tasha applied pressure, snapping Liz’s arm at the joint.
“Tasha!” Weller yelled, as he, Jane, Reade and Patterson approached.
Tasha got to her knees, flipped Liz over onto her stomach, and put her knee on Liz’s back. “No one threatens my little gnome cleric”, she said to Liz, as she slapped a pair of handcuffs onto Liz’s wrists. Weller, Jane and Reade looked at her and then at each other, and Patterson, while still reeling from her encounter with Liz, managed the tiniest of smiles.