Page 91 of Gangster's Empire: Leeza & Havel

Ali didn’t hesitate, “Havel has been arrested.”

“Where?” she asked.

He named the country.

She sucked in a breath. “There’s a civil war happening there, right?” It had been all over the news and though Leeza had been preoccupied with the wedding and setting up home, she’d caught bits and pieces of the violent military takeover. At Ali’s nod, she continued, “So he was either hired by the military as an extra gun, or he was hired to get the President out of the country. Which is it?”

“The second.”

“Which means the military has him.” The lead ball in her stomach got bigger. This was bad. A mercenary captured by the wrong side in a country experiencing civil war was easily sacrificed. Havel might already be dead.

Bile rose in her throat, but she swallowed it. "I want to know everything." To her ears she sounded calm and collected, even though she was dying inside.

She pulled up a chair and sat, placing her coffee cup on the corner of his desk. She was going to help plan Havel’s escape. She had the skills, the background, and the ability to do this. She’d been born to it.

“Right…” He tapped on his keyboard and a set of images appeared across the screens in front of them. “These are satellite images for the closest military encampment to the city. They were taken an hour ago.” He pointed at the blurred image of several people surrounding the fuzzy image of a bigger person.

“Havel,” she breathed.

“I think so.”

They had proof he was taken alive! “Where’s the rest of the team? I assume they’re safe?”

He nodded. “Jozef contacted us. They made it out of the country with the President and his family. Everyone is safe and unharmed, but they were attacked while leaving and Havel was picked up. He was shot in the back, but he was wearing a vest so he should be okay.”

She heard the hint of worry in Ali’s voice. Bulletproof vests weren’t infallible. A bullet could find its way underneath or through if it was powerful enough. The impact could’ve broken Havel’s ribs. They wouldn’t know for sure if he was okay until they set eyes on him.

“Who’s in charge of the military?”

Ali brought a picture and bio up on his monitor. “Jean-Pierre Mbengue. Military General. He’s been running the army there for over a decade, playing nice with the palace until now. Apparently he grew tired of the President’s foreign policy of exchanging resources for money and keeping the money for himself.”

“I’ve heard of him,” Leeza said staring at the screen.

“You have?” Ali looked surprised.

She nodded. “When I was the Phantom I tried to scoop an arms contract Krystoff was vying for. I’ve never met Mbengue myself, but I know of his reputation for brutality. If he’s worked with the Kobas before then he probably knows Havel.”

“That’s worse for Havel,” Ali said grimly.

Mbengue would know Havel was a mercenary and it wouldn’t take him long to figure out why Havel was in the country. Havel’s actions would be seen as treasonous to the General who might decide to make an example of the foreigner to discourage others from entering the country to fight on the other side.

“Let me guess,” she said. “Jozef is planning on going in after him.”

“Yes. He was forced to leave Havel behind so they could complete the mission. Now that the President is safe, he intends to go back.”

“What’s his plan?”

“Smash and grab.”

“Of course.” She sighed and rubbed her temples, closing her eyes to think.

It wasn’t going to work, or if it did, there would be casualties. Jozef only had Ayaan and Cooper with him. Though all three were incredible in the field, they would be up against an army and Havel was being held in the jail, which would be the most secure building in the compound.

Why was it always smash and grab with these guys? If there was one thing she’d learned during her time as the Phantom, it was how to use finesse to get her way. She hadn’t needed to intimidate anyone or use violence. She opened her eyes. “I have a plan. Give me the satellite phone.”

Without hesitation, Ali handed it to her.

She found Jozef’s call sign ‘Guard Dog’ in the contacts and called him.

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