End of Days (Pike Logan #16)(119)
She did so, saying, “I thought we weren’t going to kill him until we had answers.”
I put the light on her wound, saying, “That was before he tried to murder a member of my family.”
She whipped her head to me and saw I was serious. She smiled and said, “I always knew you were sweet on me.”
I chuckled and said, “Hold still.”
The wound was a puncture, and it was deep, but it was all muscle and tendons. Nothing vital had been pierced. I ripped the shirt on Garrett’s body, making some bandages. I patched her up as best I could, saying, “You’ll need some stitches, but you’ll be okay.”
She said, “What about the mission?”
I turned my phone to the body, aiming the light. I dug around his pockets and found a cell phone. I opened the Zello app the same way I’d done from the phone we’d found in Bahrain, and saw a history of voice chats, all talking about the Temple Mount. I pulled up the geolocation function for the person on that chat, and saw it was inside the Old City.
I shook my head. She said, “What?”
“I’ll never question your visions again. That fucker is in Jerusalem, just outside the Al Aqsa compound.”
Chapter 77
Racing down Highway 1, Aaron behind the wheel, Jennifer saw the interchange approach for the turn south to Jerusalem, along with a healthy blanket of police vehicles on the side of the road, like they were waiting on something.
She said, “A lot more police on the road today. What’s going on? Any idea?”
Aaron said, “Nope, but it’s not good. The only time they do this is because of an indistinct threat. If it was something they’ve penetrated, the focus would be on that specific location.”
He took the interchange to Highway 60, the road leading straight into Jerusalem, and she heard her Taskforce phone ring.
She answered it, Aaron glancing her way. She said, “Stand by,” and initiated an encryption feature on the cell phone. She returned, saying, “I’m secure, do you have me?”
She heard Pike say, “I’ve got you, I’ve got you, listen, the final Turtle is outside the Temple Mount. We have no idea what he’s planning, but it’s not going to be good.”
“He’s there now?”
“Yes.”
“Pike, we’re still at least ten minutes out. If he’s doing something soon, we can’t stop him.”
“He can’t do anything right now. I’ve got the Zello chat logs. Apparently, the place is blanketed with Israeli security and they’ve closed the gates to the mosque compound. He’s not in yet.”
“We’re seeing that here on the road as well. Police are everywhere. Why? What’s going on?”
“I have no idea, but you need to get inside and find that guy before he’s allowed to enter.”
“What do you want us to do?”
“Take him off the board. I don’t care how you do it, but don’t let him enter the compound.”
She looked at Aaron and said, “Can’t Israel do this? If he’s a known threat?”
“Fine by me, like I said, I don’t care how you do it, but they’re not going to find him by his name. From the chat logs in Garrett’s Zello app, he’s operating as a Palestinian. He’s not going to surface at any entry point as a Knights of Malta guy.”
She thought through the ramifications, then said, “Which means he can get in through any gate to the Temple Mount. Muslims can go through them all. We can only enter through one, the Moors Gate. How am I going to find him?”
“I’m sending the grid to his last known location. If he moves, I’ll let you know. I have Garrett’s phone, and it’s tracking him like Apple’s Find My Friends. The phones are tied together. When he moves, I see it. Right now, he’s in the Muslim quarter outside of the Temple Mount, next to the Tribes Gate.”
She said, “Send me the grid location, and send his passport information from immigration. I need a face.”
Pike said, “Coming your way. Look, I’m at the Lebanese border, and Shoshana’s been wounded. We’re leaving here, and when we do, I’m going to lose cell coverage. Get inside the Old City and get it done.”
Shocked, she said, “Wait, what? Shoshana’s wounded?”
She saw Aaron’s head snap to her at her words. Pike said, “She’s okay. Tell Aaron she’s okay. She just needs some stitches. She’ll be fine.”
“What happened?”
“Garrett tried to fight, and she eliminated him.”
“Pike . . . we were supposed to bring him back to Lia. Have him stand trial in Rome. You told me you wouldn’t let her do this. You promised you’d not let that happen. It’s going to hurt her. It’s going to bleed in her soul.”
She heard nothing for a moment, then, “She didn’t kill him out of vengeance. She wanted to, but she stopped when I asked. I killed him.”
“You?”
Pike said, “It was pure, Jennifer, I promise. He stabbed her, trying to murder her after we’d told him to surrender. Shoshana wanted to kill him before, but she didn’t. If she had, she wouldn’t have a stab wound right now. When he attacked her, I got him off her and onto me. And yes, I had Shoshana kill him, but it was my call. She was just the tool. Now get your ass to the Temple Mount. Pictures and grids are on the way.”