Shoot First(Stone Barrington #45)(78)

“Of course, sir,” Bugg said. “Will you be calling again?”

“When the transaction is complete and the person has left, follow him out and get a description of his car and the number plate before he drives away.”

“Yes, sir. Are you sure you don’t wish me to capture the man?”

“Not necessary, just call me back with the car’s description and the number plate.”

“Yes, sir.”



* * *



—

MEG MANAGED to maneuver into a sitting position, with her back against the rear of the SUV’s backseat, and her handbag near her hands. She managed to unzip it and find the sewing kit, then unzip that and find a small pair of scissors. Cutting the duct tape that held her hands was harder than she had expected, but she managed to free her hands, then her feet. She then opened the handbag, found the small pistol, pumped a round into the chamber, and set the safety. Now she examined the latch of the rear door of the vehicle and decided she could open it from the inside. She tried to relax while she waited for the car to stop for a traffic light.



* * *



—

“WHERE WAS the last fix on Fred’s cell phone?” Stone asked.

“While you were talking to Bugg they seemed to be heading for the FDR Drive,” Dino said. That highway ran along the East River, north and south.

“All right, time to call them again,” Stone said.

Dino made the call. “Hi, Mr. Beria,” he said. “It’s me again, remember? Well, sure I’m hard to forget. I just wanted you to know that Major Bugg has arrived at Mr. Barrington’s house and is waiting there for your man to come and get the thumb drive. No, no, he’s unarmed. He’s happy to give your man the drive. He won’t be a problem. How are you doing? Are you making progress toward where you’re going to let Ms. Harmon out of the car? Thanks, I appreciate that.” Dino hung up.

“He hung up again, but that should have been long enough for a fix. He says he’ll let Meg go as soon as his man in England calls and says the drive checks out.” Dino’s phone rang again. “Bacchetti. No shit? All right, I want every unmarked vehicle you can muster there as soon as possible. No sirens or lights, and don’t bunch up in a pack. Go!” He hung up.

“Where is Meg?” Stone asked.

“Apparently Beria left the FDR Drive and drove onto Randall’s Island, in the East River, and now he’s on Wards Island, where the garbage collectors’ school is.”

“The garbage collectors have a school?”

“Well, sure, they’ve got to learn to make the truck work and how to load it properly and how to empty it, and all that.”

“Who knew?” Stone said.



* * *



—

THE SUV had not stopped, but it had slowed down a lot. Meg decided not to wait for it to come to a halt; she would just roll out onto the ground and hope for the best. She reached for the door latch and struggled with it, but it didn’t work. She tried to retract the cover over her head so she would have access to the rear seat, but that didn’t work, either. She would have to wait until someone unlocked the rear hatch from the outside.

The SUV had made a turn and was now on a rougher road with lots of potholes. Where the hell could she be? Then she heard brush scraping along the sides of the vehicle.

The car stopped, and she could hear the two men arguing, still in Russian. She wished she knew what the hell they were talking about.

She heard the two front doors open, then slam shut. The two men continued to shout at each other as they walked along the two sides of the vehicle toward the rear hatch.

Meg scrunched down with her feet against the hatch and her head against the back of the rear seat, then flipped the safety with her thumb and held the weapon in both hands, pointed at the hatch.

Then the hatch opened and daylight flooded in.





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The rear hatch swung up, and two men stood there, staring at the gun in her hand.

“Kill her,” the slim one said to the gorilla. He took a step toward the car.

Meg recalled something Stone had said: “Shoot first, think later.” She aimed between his eyes and very deliberately squeezed the trigger. Her aim was off; a hole appeared over his left eyebrow, and his legs seemed to collapse. He fell below the tailgate, out of sight. Meg swung left to fire at the other man, but he was not there. She heard a scrambling in the bushes beside the car. Still holding the gun, she got herself out the rear door of the SUV. The gorilla was lying on his back, blood pooling in his left eye socket. The other eye stared straight ahead, looking surprised. She thought about putting another bullet in his head, but thought better of it. He seemed dead enough.



* * *



—

BERIA RAN STRAIGHT through a thick line of tall shrubs and heard vehicles coming closer. He plunged into more bushes on the other side of the road and kept going, flailing at the brush to keep from putting his eyes out. He kept on and on, then, exhausted, collapsed and fell, still in thick brush.



* * *



—

MEG PATTED the big man’s pockets, looking for a phone, then found it on the ground near his body. She picked it up and dialed Stone’s number.