Page 30 of Justified
He nodded.“Positive.Trust me, there’s no way I’d be making mistakes about these targets.I know what you’re going to do to them, so I would never make a mistake about who deserves your justice.”
Okay, I believed him.“Is there any way we can prove they are involved?I mean, it looks like it’s building up to be a long list of targets.What if we can turn them in to the police?”
Jordan shook his head.“That was the first thing I tried to do.Even if law enforcement found a way to log into the site, they wouldn’t be able to track who’s bidding.It’s like you told me, sometimes you have to work outside of the law to get justice.I’m a criminal hacker, so I didn’t go about gathering my information legally, which means there would be laws protecting them if we tried to use the information we have against them.”
“What about the money trail?”
“Foreign banks handle the transaction, which means they are not going to be working with the law to rat out their million and billion dollar clientele.They’re not under U.S.jurisdiction.Not only that, but from what I’ve seen, the money looks to be going into a legit, albeit dummy, business, which is owned by a ghost corporation.I even found a target who’s in France.He’s also a politician, so there goes your diplomatic immunity.That’s a bunch of red tape and a lot of untouchable shit thrown into the mix.”
“Okay, I get it.The law can’t help.”
“That’s why people like them, and sites like this, continue to exist.Don’t you think the government knows about the dark web?With all of the illegal shit that goes down on that thing, nothing to very little is being done.We’re in the major leagues with this one, Eric.Are you sure you want to do this?”
“If you think I’m flaking out, you’re wrong,” I told him.
He shook his head.“I don’t think that.But I’m concerned if you think we’re in over our heads.I mean, we’ve never tackled with people like this.”
I sat back in my chair.Of course, my plate was empty because that food had been good as fuck.“We are in deep, we may even be in over our heads, but like you said… we can make a difference, so it doesn’t matter.Just make sure you cover your tracks.I don’t want any of them to be able to track you down while we’re hacking their shit.”
“Oh, trust me, I am taking all of the precautions.”
“I’m sure they thought they were, too.Just make sure you’re doing better than they did,” I said.I stood up and approached him.“I don’t want anything to happen to you, or me for that matter.”
“I am doing my best and that has to be enough, Eric,” Jordan said, looking up at me.
I nodded.“It is.”I leaned down, kissing him.I pulled back and walked to my gun cabinet, pulling out my tranquilizer rifle and two dart cartridges so I could take out his security.They might not know about their boss’ evil ways.They might just be doing a job, so I would try the nice approach first.But if they got in my way, they would be dead.After I loaded up, I climbed into my car and headed out.Because of my plans for tonight, it was going to be a long one.
Chapter seven
Iwasbackinmysecret spot that gave me a great vantage point to see all of Walter’s property.I noted the rounds his security team made, and they hadn’t deviated from the way they had patrolled last night.So, things were looking good as far as my plan went.I aimed my tranquilizer rifle and looked through my night vision scope at one of the guards as he rounded the corner into my line of sight.I controlled my breathing, and then I made the shot, hitting the guard in the neck with the dart.He grunted, reached for the dart, but then lost consciousness quickly after.
I waited a few more minutes until the other guard came into view and I shot him before he could go to his friend.The tranquilizer that was in the darts was the good shit, so they would be out for hours.I climbed down off the wall I’d been hiding on and pulled out my EMP device.It would only give me maybe fifteen minutes to get in and do what I had to do.I got a little closer to his home and hit the button.Instantly, all of the lights went off inside the mansion.A few seconds later, the backup generator came on and the security lights sparked to life, shining their brightness over the yard and on the mansion itself.
Shit, I figured a rich bastard like him would have a backup generator, which was troublesome but nothing I couldn’t work around.I moved in closer to the house, peeking into one of the windows.This room was empty, but not a good point of entry.By this point, his security would be on high alert and I needed to get to my target.I crouched down low and then leaped up high, latching on to the ledge of the second story window.Again, I peeked inside and saw nothing.I lifted the window, using a bit of strength to break the lock, and climbed inside.
I could hear some commotion going on in the hallway and on the first level, but I didn’t let that deter me.I aimed my rifle as I stealthily stalked through the mansion, keeping to the shadows.Closer to the first floor, I heard two of the guards conversing.Apparently, their scumbag boss was hiding in his panic room until all of this could be sorted out.
Well, double shit!That wasn’t good news to hear.They knew they had an intruder, too, because the guards had been discovered outside.Okay, so maybe I didn’t have the best plan for extraction, but I wasn’t willing to give up.Not yet, at least.I hid in one of the empty rooms as one of the two guards made their way up the stairs to investigate.I wondered if maybe it was time to end the stealth mode and just go full on attack.One thing I needed to do was destroy that fucking generator.I was hoping my EMP device would have been strong enough to take out the generator, but I wasn’t that lucky.If I wanted to salvage this plan, I had to locate it and shut it down.
That was my strategy until I heard the sound of police sirens approaching.
Triple shit with a heaping helping of fuck it added on top!I had to abandon my mission… at least for now.I could hear the guards drawing closer as they appeared to be checking all of the rooms.There was mention of the broken lock on the window in the room I’d entered through.Best take them down and get out of there.I flung the door open and charged forward, kicking one guard in the stomach and sending him flying back into the other room, where he crashed into a trophy cabinet.The glass shattered and trophies fell to the floor, along with the guard who was grimacing as he coughed up blood.
His partner managed to get a few rounds off, striking me in the chest and shoulder, and I growled from the pain.Damn, that fucking hurt like hell.I didn’t let that slow me down though, as I ran towards him, snatching his gun away and breaking his arm good enough for the bone to come poking through his skin.
“Ahhhh!”he screamed, right before I rammed my head into his, knocking him unconscious.Two less guards guarding this asshole would be helpful for when I returned.
I looked outside the window after I’d opened it and saw that the coast looked clear.I really didn’t have time to survey for any hidden traps before jumping back down to the ground and sprinting off into the cloaking of the trees.One thing I needed to do was get off his property.I was sure the police would be doing a perimeter search and I didn’t need to be around when they did.
Motherfucker!I’d fucked up royally.Not only had I failed to get Walter, but I had alerted him to the fact that he was a wanted man.No doubt, he would be beefing up his security, making it that much harder for me when I tried again.I ran back to my car as fast as I could and drove off.I couldn’t help but think back to everything I had done wrong tonight.The first mistake I made was not having a backup plan to destroy the generator.
Without any bit of electricity, Walter wouldn’t have been able to hide safely in his panic room.They wouldn’t have been able to call the police or radio each other for help.I could have taken them all down and walked away with my target.When I had run missions in the military, it was always as a team, and someone else came up with the tactical plan.I just followed orders.This was different now, it was all on me, and tonight was a tough lesson to learn.I needed more practice.I returned home and Jordan watched me in silence as I pulled a beer out of the fridge and chugged it down in a few gulps.
Jordan sighed.“I take it things didn’t go as planned?”
I took my mask off, laying it on the table.“That’s a good guess.”I finished off the contents of my beer and in a fit of rage, tossed the empty bottle against the wall, sending bits and pieces of glass in all directions.“I fucked up,” I roared as I gripped the back of one of the table chairs.I’d squeezed the chair so hard, the leather split as the metal bent in my hands.I looked down, seeing the damage, and forced myself to ease up.
Jordan came over to me and started rubbing my back.“What happened?”
