“You think they’re here because of you? That they followed you?”
“Looks like it.”
“Where are they? I don’t see anyone!”
The words were barely out of her mouth when there was a horrendous explosion in an adjacent parking lot. Susan saw the back of a van lift off the ground before bouncing back down. An orange fireball of flame filled the inside and she could see the silhouettes of two people in the front.
The passenger instinctively grabbed at his blown eardrums before slumping over. The driver clawed at his door, but the van had buckled from the explosion and the door wouldn’t open. His body writhed inside the van and then fell from sight.
“My God!” Susan screamed. “Danny!” she said, pointing to the van.
“That’s them!” he replied. “They blew themselves up!” He gazed at the van momentarily and then sped out of the mall lot. “They were planning on killing us! You, Tiffany, and me!”
“What are you saying? I don’t understand! What’s going on?”
“They’re the same two guys who murdered Crystal. One guy is a bomb expert.”
“A bomb expert? But why?”
Danny glanced in the rear-view mirror and said, “Guess he wasn’t an expert, but you can bet it was intended for us.”
“Why aren’t you waiting for the police? Why —”
“I’m getting you and Tiffany the hell away from here! There could be others! You’re going to pack, and I’m putting you on a plane. Call your brother in Calgary and stay with him.”
“But why? What are you going to do?”
“They probably know where we live! Jack told me to move in with him while we sort things out. He’s going to make a few calls.”
“To who? What for?” said Susan, starting to cry.
“This is against the rules. The bastards have just declared war and they’re going to get it.”
Wizard answered his cellphone.
“We’ve got a problem!” Rolly’s voice was high-pitched.
“What the fuck are you talking about?”
“Find a television! It’s on right now!”
Wizard and Damien went into one of the airport’s lounges and saw live coverage of a breaking story on television. An explosion had ripped a van apart. Two bodies were recovered, but the broadcast said they were burned beyond recognition.
“I don’t get it,” said Wizard. “Rolly saw them put the package on the pig’s car!”
Damien looked at Wizard for a moment, then said, “This being the same Rolly who the cops know killed the little boy and later the Indo? Who else knew he whacked them two?”
“He said he hasn’t told anyone.”
“So only you know … and the police.”
Wizard didn’t respond.
The two men walked back to where Vicki and the children were waiting.
“You gonna cancel their flight now?” asked Wizard
Damien shook his head. “There could still be retribution. The fact that you failed won’t make a difference.”
“But…”
“Shut the fuck up and listen! We’ve got a rat in-house! It could be Rolly or someone else in your chapter.”
Wizard was about to defend Rolly, but Damien gave him a long, hard look, and he decided it was in his best interest to stay quiet on that subject. “What about the two pigs?” he asked.
“Unfortunately, because of your stupidity, now I have to deal with them immediately before any more shit hits the fan. Then we’ll find out who the rat is. In the meantime, nobody in your chapter is to go anywhere near them. It’ll strictly be the east-side boys. Understood?”
“Understood.”
“And that means you, too!”
chapter thirty-two
Jack and Danny made sure they were not being followed, then checked the area around Danny’s home. Nothing aroused their suspicions. Six hours later, Danny kissed Susan and Tiffany goodbye and watched them go through security at the airport to board their flight. Jack had taken another car and followed them to the airport.
Jack and Danny were walking back to their cars when Danny’s cellphone rang.
“Danny! It’s Sid Bishop. I just saw the news! Did you hear what happened?”
“About what?”
“Two bikers were blown up in a van this morning near Willy’s Restaurant! It had to have happened right after we left. That’s no coincidence!”
“Oh, that. Yes, I heard.” Danny covered the mouthpiece on the phone and whispered to Jack, “It’s Sid Bishop!” He then held the phone so they could both hear.
“What do you mean, oh, that? How did they know we were there? They tried to kill us! Christ, I don’t want to go home!”
“Sid, relax. If they wanted to kill you, they could have shot the both of us when we were leaving.”
“That’s not very comforting! I called Marvin at home and —”
“Marvin?” asked Danny.
“Sorry, Superintendent Wigmore. He gave me the home number for Assistant Commissioner Isaac. He’s not home yet; I keep calling. I want to hear what he says about this!”
Jack rolled his eyes, then took the phone from Danny and said, “Sid. This is Jack Taggart, Danny’s partner. I’m positive that your life is not in danger. If you think about it, the bikers would have nothing to gain by killing you. In fact, they would have a lot to lose. We don’t think this is connected to us. We have intelligence that a drug war is starting. Getting the wire hooked up is the best thing we can do right now.”
Sid sounded surprised. “You think it’s a drug war? That it was a coincidence?”
“I’m certain of it. We heard that Satans Wrath killed a speed dealer by the name of Bobby Singh. This is probably retaliation for that.”
Sid paused, then calmed down. “So you don’t think I’m in danger?”
“No.”
Jack heard Sid turn away from the phone and say, “Oh, God, thank heavens.” He then spoke to Jack: “I must admit, this incident has shaken my composure. I’m glad to hear you say that. It took me a long time to get
