Page 51 of Boss

Tarek Marshall loved his toys, and he possessed many. Cars and recreation vehicles were collected like rare stamps, and housed in an eight-car garage at his ranch. But his favorite by far, was his Ford F-150 Sema truck, with off-roading tires. He could drive it through an apocalypse and not feel a bump. It was wise of him to choose the Sema to drive today.

The snow surprised him. Even in his truck, he felt uncomfortable by the relentless way it covered and began to freeze everything in his path. Within ten minutes, he arrived at the tavern called ‘Busy Bee's’. There were only three cars in the parking lot. One vehicle had fogged over windows, and exhaust smoking out of its tailpipe. The windshield wipers on his truck swiped back and forth to clear his view of the vehicle. Tarek reduced his speed to a manageable cruise through the lot. He believed Cash told him that Kassidy drove a red car—a new one. He forgot the model. It was not among the ones parked in the lot. Had he arrived too late? No. He felt certain with the traffic congestion that he’d gotten around the cars stalling on ice along the roads. He backed into a parking spot. His dark tinted windows covered him completely. He considered that the meeting may not be scheduled to occur until maybe another day. He considered that Kassandra Turner had decided to go home instead. But he dismissed that speculation. He saw it in her eyes. She knew she was busted. And in this storm, it made sense for her to meet her accomplice here, now. It's what he would do. Tarek sat behind the wheel contemplating his next move, when a gift was offered to him.

The third car, parked closer to the front of the restaurant, door opened and a man stepped out. He wore a skullcap over his head and a heavy fatigue jacket. He closed the door and blew into his cupped hands as he began to pace. Tarek couldn’t see his face. He was patient enough to wait. And then came the final reward when the man looked directly at his truck. It was Daniel Messina, the founder and chief organizer of the E.P.U. Tarek smiled. Daniel couldn’t see him from the distance and angle of his parked truck. He itched to get out and make a proper introduction. He’d hated the fucking bastard for years. And here he was.

Tarek reached for the glove compartment where he kept his gun, but stopped himself. There was no need. Instead he reached for the car door handle when another car came zooming into the parking lot. A red car. Tarek’s brows lowered. Part of him was a little disappointed. Kassidy’s rebellion meant he underestimated her bravery. And Tarek was rarely blindsided by an opponent.

Kassidy saw Daniel. She drove across the freezing parking lot at a risky speed and in her excitement she nearly skidded into the parking spot. He smiled at her and she smiled back. It was over. At least this part would end rather cleanly. The fallout and ramifications hadn’t even begun. Kassidy glanced over to the black binder, and again considered the consequences of her actions. She knew she was in the right. She believed in the cause.

There was a knuckle tap at her passenger window. It appeared that Daniel was more anxious than she was. She sucked down a deep breath of courage, and grabbed the binder and then her purse. She got out of the car. He waited in the cold with his hands shoved down into his pockets. Daniel was tall and lean with a thick mustache and beard that covered half of his face. His glasses were pushed up on his nose and magnified his eyes. It was a definite turn off. She handed him the binder.

“Oh, God I’m glad to see you!” Kassidy said.

“C’mere,” he took her face in his hands. He kissed her brow. “Are you okay?”

“Yea, I think so,” she said and welcomed his friendly affection. In the past she discouraged any type of affection offered by him because she didn’t want to lead him on. But today she was shaking with fear and excitement. What they were doing wasn’t just criminal, but dangerous.

“This isn’t all of it?” he asked

“Oh, yeah the USB thing is —”

“Mind if I join you?” A man’s voice broke above the frosty wind. Daniel glanced left, and Kassidy’s head turned. Tarek Marshall approached fast. Stunned, Kassidy took a step back. Daniel didn’t look terrified. With a perplexed frown he glanced to Kassidy for an explanation. As if she had set him up.

“I-I-I—” she stammered.

Tarek locked eyes with her, and her explanation clogged in her throat. The anger and hatred aimed at her, was as intense as the frigid air whipping snow around them. Daniel saw the look and stepped in front of her to shield her. But it was too late. Tarek had made her, and she knew that neither of them would escape his wrath.

“Back off Marshall. Now!”

“What do you have there?” Tarek asked Daniel.

“It’s none of your fucking business. Last I checked, it’s a free country,” Daniel said.

“Free?” Tarek arched a brow. “This country may be free, but Texas ain’t, especially if you’re stealing from me.”

“Everybody calm down,” Kassidy said.

“Don’t worry, Kassidy, he’s a bully, but he’s not crazy."

“Ah, so it's not Kassandra, it's Kassidy? Pretty name,” Tarek winked.

“It’s over, Tarek. Finally, we got you and your dirty family. My advice to you is to turn around and not make a scene—” Daniel said. But his words were cut short by a hard punch to his jaw. Daniel spewed blood out across the snow-slicked concrete. The binder flew out of his hand, and glided over ice and snow several feet away. Shocked, Kassidy stumbled back as Tarek began to savagely beat Daniel with his fists. Daniel's face became a bloody mess. Tarek stood and kicked him several times in the gut then he got down on one knee and held Daniel by the throat as he hit him with a tightly clenched fist, again and again.

The shock wore off at the sight of Daniel’s blood and the gurgling sound he made. Kassidy sprung into action. She leaped onto Tarek’s back and fought him with all her might, trying to scratch out his eyes. It was as if he felt nothing. He just kept pounding on Daniel with his leather-gloved fists.

“You’ll kill him! Stop it!” she screamed. “Help! Help! Someone help us!”

The snow and ice made the fight harder to manage. Tarek turned on her. She wasn’t sure when, but he did. He threw her off, and hard. The counter attack sent her flailing back toward her car. Her head hit the side mirror, and then darkness descended on her mind.

Tarek looked back. Kassidy was out cold in the snow. Her face was turned away from him. She’d taken a hard hit to the head and Daniel was unconscious from the beating. He looked down at the blood covering his gloves, and flashed back to the blood on his fists when he fought Yegor Kovalevsky. He realized how badly his rage had a hold of him. It was only the sight of her, that made him regret his actions. Tarek turned to Kassidy and rolled her to her side so he could look at her. There was a tiny cut above her brow. He checked her pulse and it was strong. She was alive. Relieved, he then got up and went in search of the documents in the black binder. Thankfully the binder was tied shut, so none of the documents escaped. He had what he came for. He opened the binder and stood over the two thieves, flipping through the thin sheets of paper that detailed his every sin over the past six months. He found contracts with his signature, and confidential financial records with expenses he’d approved. Most incriminating, were the things he kept from his father and brothers as he liquidated stocks to cover one debt after another. It was worse than a Ponzi scheme. It was a total take down, and the beautiful sorceress had been doing her research.

“Fuck me!” he groaned.

The anger rose in him like a dark tidal wave. He trembled with the urge to be violent once more. Daniel coughed up blood as if he were coming to. He walked over and put his foot down on Daniel’s throat and pinned him to the concrete. The man gagged and his eyes stretched, bulged in their sockets with terror.

“Remember this moment. The moment I let you live. Remember it’s the only reprieve you get. A word of this leaks to this press, and I won’t need to be merciful. Men a lot scarier than me will pay you a visit.”

Daniel gasped but couldn’t speak. Tarek sensed rebellion in the man, even now. Fucking idiot! He pressed harder with the silver pointed tip of his boot on Daniel’s jugular. “There are worse things than death, my friend. When I am done with you, everything you ever wanted or believed in will disappear. And I’m not talking about the fucking environment. You can put that promise on YouTube.” Tarek stepped back and kicked Daniel hard enough in his side to crack his ribs. He turned to leave and stopped. He glanced over to the unconscious woman again. How much damage had she done? How much information had she given up to this jackal about his family? How much more evidence did she have? And who the fuck was she to come into his life and try to break him?

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