Veterans Code by John Walker

Author:John Walker [Walker, John]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-08-15T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 10

Mason stood behind the Nightingale Club keeping an eye on the mouth of the alley. No one seemed to be back there, but the amount of trash made it clear plenty of people took their breaks in the general area. Litter often acted as a marker for an established settlement rather than a colony.

Vin let them know about the extremists hanging out in the front of the building. Mason wondered if they were clever or merely blunt instruments bent on murder. If the former proved true, they might know about any alternative exits out of the building. A guy like Aidan must’ve had an escape route besides the doors.

Did anyone know about them? And if so, would they talk?

If the extremists only showed up for some quick and dirty murder, they’d be hoping to charge in for the kill before Aidan escaped. Why did they stop just inside? Did they have an operational support person? Finding and neutralizing that individual promised to make the whole operation easier.

Mason checked the area. The alley cut a path between two sets of tall buildings. The one directly across from Nightingale appeared to be four stories up. The others were much shorter. It gave him an idea. But it meant splitting up with Pierce, letting him go off on his own. The thought brought on some cold chills.

“Hey.” Mason tried to fend off his nerves. “We need to make something happen.”

“Uh… what?” Pierce asked. “Weren’t we just asked to watch this place?”

“And we will,” Mason said. “Sort of. I need you to work with Anson to find a comm signal nearby. The enemy support. Find them and take them out.”

“Alone.” Pierce scoffed. “You gotta be kidding. Why wouldn’t it be guarded?”

“Obviously, you can do a risk assessment.” Mason clapped him on the arm. “Good luck.” He hurried across the way to the first door, an old style type with a knob. A stiff kick brought it down, revealing a dark room with a flight of stairs off to the left. The place appeared to be deserted.

“This is insane!” Pierce called after him. “Just throwing that out there. See you soon.”

“Good luck,” Mason muttered. He took the stairs, stopping at the fourth landing. There, he placed a proximity alarm. His comm beeped twice, indicating it established a connection with the device.

The door to the roof was unlocked. Mason headed outside, hurrying over to the edge overlooking the Nightingale alley. He setup his long rifle, checking the sights before settling into a crouching position. The moment he stopped moving, his heart started racing. He took several deep breaths.

They didn’t help.

Damn it. Mason reached in his jacket for his flask. He hesitated… then took a heavy swig. The booze burned on the way down. The familiar sensation deadened his nerves. His heart returned to normal. Don’t think. Just do. The last part, he repeated over and over. No one’s coming up behind me.

Paranoia worked him over, screaming that someone might be on a different roof looking directly at him.

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