Vengeance

79 ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA

Darkness had fallen by the time Khalila’s car ground to a halt on Pendleton Street, just before the right-hand curve leading to Harrison’s destination, a warehouse built on the bank of the Potomac River. There were no pedestrians in sight, and no cars either at the moment, now that darkness had enveloped the city.

“Are you sure you want to do this alone?” Khalila asked.

“You heard Mixell,” he replied. “This is between me and him. Promise me you’ll stay out of this.”

Khalila nodded solemnly. “I’ll wait here. Call if you need me.”

Harrison pulled his pistol from its holster as he stepped from the car, then moved swiftly along the curve in the road, where Pendleton transitioned to North Union Street. Not far from the warehouse, he stopped in the shadows across the street from the building.

A single door and several multi-paned windows spanned the side of the building facing Union Street. Harrison checked the warehouse for evidence of a security system — cameras or motion detectors — but didn’t spot any telltale signs.

As he prepared to cross the street to engage Mixell, his thoughts drifted back to a scene in his house in Silverdale, Washington. Christine had just departed after offering him a job at the agency.

After he closed the front door, Angie leaned against the wall, tears in her eyes.

“I know you have to take this job,” she said. “Lonnie will eventually come after you, and the sooner he’s back behind bars or dead, the better. But be more careful this time. Maddy and I can’t afford to lose you.”

Tears fell down Angie’s cheeks.

Harrison wiped them away. “Nothing’s going to happen to me. We’ll find Lonnie and either kill him or put him in prison again, and this time he won’t get out.

“I’ll be safe. You and Maddy will be safe. I promise.”

The memory left a bitter taste in his mouth. He had failed Angie. He wasn’t going to lose Christine.

Harrison crossed the street and stopped against the building, then peered into the nearest window, hoping to get a clear shot on Mixell and end tonight’s ordeal quickly. The window was too filthy to see through, so he wiped most of the grime away with his sleeve, enough to get a decent look. The interior was filled mostly with stacks of crates, plus the blue Ford Taurus that Mixell had switched into while in the I-395 tunnel. There was no sign of Mixell or Christine, however.

He moved to another window, and then another with the same result. The only items visible were the stacks of crates and the Taurus. Mixell must have positioned himself and Christine, or perhaps the crates as well, so that Harrison wouldn’t have a clear shot from outside the building. While looking through the next window, however, Harrison spotted a rope tied to a ceiling beam, rising from behind one of the stacks of crates. The rope was taut and swayed slightly on occasion, and Harrison concluded that Christine was tied to the beam.

Harrison completed his survey of the warehouse from the remaining windows, and Mixell and Christine were hidden by the crates from every vantage point. He would have to deal with Mixell the hard way.

He approached the warehouse door and tried to open it, but it was locked.

Pulling the cell phone from his pocket, he called Mixell.

“I’m here,” he said when Mixell answered. “The door is locked.”

“I’ll call you when I’m ready,” Mixell replied, then hung up.