Cold Blooded Assassin X- Hell's Half Acre Read online

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter: Future Story

  Cold Blooded Book X

  Hell’s Half Acre

  (The Nick McCarty Series)

  by

  Bernard Lee DeLeo

  *****

  PUBLISHED BY:

  Bernard Lee DeLeo and RJ Parker Publishing Inc.

  Cold Blooded Book X: Hell’s Half Acre

  Copyright © 2018 by Bernard Lee DeLeo

  Cover Illustration by: Colin Matthew Dougherty

  *****

  License Notes

  This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This eBook may not be resold or given away to other people. Please respect the author’s work. This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to real life persons, events, or places is purely coincidental.

  *****

  The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of a copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by fines and federal imprisonment.

  Nick McCarty’s Unholy Trio and Dependents (Main Characters)

  Nicholas McCarty – Delta Force – 6’ – Nicknames: Terminator, Muerto, Dead-Boy, Delta Dawn, Gomez

  Rachel Hunter McCarty

  Jean Hunter McCarty – Nickname: Danger Girl, Daughter of Darkness, Viper

  Deke the Dog - Dekester

  Gus Nason – Nickname: Payaso

  Tina Nason (Wife of Gus Nason) – Nickname: T-Rex

  Ebi Zarin/Johnny Groves – Nicknames: Johnny Five, El Kabong

  Cala Kadir Groves (Wife of Johnny Groves) – Nicknames: Cala the Cleaner, Reaper

  Jian Chen – ex-terrorist – recruited to help Nick’s crew – Nickname: Dark Dragon

  Sonny Salvatore – Nickname: Cracker - Parents: Phil and Clarice Salvatore

  Quinn McCarty – Nickname: Kong

  Justin Rivers – Nickname: Jay, Predator – Parents: Dale and Beth

  Neil Dickerson – Pacific Grove policeman – works with Nick’s crew

  Paul Gilbrech – Director of the CIA

  Clyde Bacall – Assistant and driver for Paul Gilbrech -works with Nick’s crew

  Ben McCarty – Adopted son in future Nick and Jean bonus story – Nickname: Benny

  Sammy – McCarty family’s dog in future Nick and Jean bonus story – Nickname: Sammy the werewolf

  John Harding’s Monster Squad and Dependents (Main Characters)

  John Harding – Force Recon Marine - 6’6”, brown haired buzz cut, 250 pounds – Nicknames: Hard Case, Cheeseburger (Cheese for short), Recon, Dark Lord, DL

  Lora Radcliff Harding – John’s wife, 5’7”, long auburn hair, 130 pounds

  Alice Radcliff Harding – John’s stepdaughter, long auburn hair, ten years old – Nicknames: Al, Beeper-Girl

  Lucas Blake – Force Recon Marine - 5’8”, Black, buzz cut, 155 pounds – Nicknames: Ahab, Pappy – Wife: Sarah, Children: Casey (named after Casey Lambert) and Linda

  Casey Lambert – Delta Force - Nickname - Night-shot – Wife: Anna – Children: Lucas (named after Lucas Blake)

  Tommy Sands – Nicknames - T, Snow White Sands – Wife: Rachel

  Devon Constantine – Nickname – Dev – wife – Rosalie Maria Clairmont Constantine

  Jesse Brown – Nickname – Jess – Wife: Rochelle

  Florence Brown – Jesse Brown’s mom

  Jafar Kensington – Nicknames - Achmed the Dead Terrorist

  SAmara Karim Kensington – Jafar’s Wife - Nickname – Sam - Children: Mia

  Dennis Strobert – Marine - Nicknames - Denny, Spawn – Wife: Maria – Children: Brewster

  Gus Denova – Cruella Deville minion – former Cartel enforcer

  Silvio Ruelas – Cruella Deville minion – former Cartel enforcer

  Quays Tannous – Cruella Deville minion – former Cartel enforcer

  Clint Dostiene – Air Force SOCOM– Nickname: Man from Nowhere – Wife: Lynn Montoya

  Lynn Montoya Dostiene – Nicknames: Cruella Deville, Crusader Crue, Dr. Deville – Children: Clint Jr.

  Laredo Sawyer – Nickname: Laredo – Wife Sybil Moore

  Danessa Moore - Nickname: Dannie – Lynn Dostiene’s live in assistant

  Amara Nejem – Lynn Dostiene’s live in assistant

  Earl Taylor – Oakland Policeman

  Enrique Rodriguez – Nickname ‘Rique – Oakland Policeman

  Jeff Furlong – Oakland Policeman

  Alexi Fiialkov – Former Russian Mob – Shipping Magnate – Handles UFC matches

  Marla Tomlinson – Favorite Waitress at The Warehouse Bar – Fiialkov’s Girlfriend

  Claude Chardin – Former Terrorist and Assassin – Nickname – Bad Penny.

  Della Sparks – John Harding’s neighbor – Children: Lebron, Jim, and Kara

  Hollywood Bounty Hunters – Kensy (Buffster) Talon, Kevin Halliday (ex-felon), Les Tavor (ex-Hell’s Angel), Jet Lemarkus (ex-gangbanger), Daniel Atkins, Jerry Sooner, Calvin Douglas, Sigfried Kandelus, Charlie Dubrinsky (Lawyer/Manager)

  Tom Wilder – Commander of a Seal Team – works with John Harding’s crew

  Janie Labrie – FBI agent who works with John Harding’s crew

  Sam Reeves – Janie Labrie’s partner – FBI agent who works with John Harding’s crew

  Chuck Buchholz – Force Recon Marine – Red Dragon Security – Lucas Blake’s friend

  Sal Sallaz – Force Recon Marine – Red Dragon Security – Lucas Blake’s friend

  Thom McGaffey – Force Recon Marine – Red Dragon Security, with his dog, Lando

  Jonus Curlain – New assistant to Clint and Lynn Dostiene

  As it will be with every novel I write from now until my own End of Days, I dedicate this novel to my deceased angel, wife, and best friend: Joyce Lynn Whitney DeLeo.

  Chapter One

  Camp Calamity

  Rachel shifted Quinn on her lap as she, Tina, Joan and Cala, waited for Nick to speak from where he and Johnny watched the laptop screen. Gus and Jian stood behind them. “Are you guys putting it on the big screen or not?”

  “We’re clarifying the scan from space through our network, Rach,” Nick replied. “I don’t like to say this, but you have the patience of a-”

  “Don’t say it!”

  Tina and Cala, sitting on either side of Rachel, enjoyed the brief interaction. Tina nudged Rachel. “Muerto’s right. We’ve only been sitting here three minutes. Calm down.”

  “The kids didn’t call or anything this whole week. The daughter of darkness needs watching. Jean nearly caused a disaster, barely avoiding getting killed the last time they attended summer camp. The Dark Lord’s daughter, Alice, and their friend Jay, do whatever Viper tells them to do.”

  Nick put the summer camp setting on the big screen. Their supercomputer satellite network with towers in the Western Sahara’s City of Hope, the Virgin Island Isle of Hope, the Monster’s Pain Central in Oakland, the Monster’s mountain compound, Nick’s Las Vegas estate, and Johnny’s Carmel Valley home, could pinpoint nearly anything on earth. The network was now striving to find four eleven-year-olds at a Carmel Valley summer camp only minut
es away. It took only moments more to locate the four playing in a softball game with other kids and camp counselors.

  “I don’t like that group watching them play,” Gus said.

  “They do not look like parents,” Johnny added.

  Nick shrugged. “With Jean and Sonny on the job, I doubt we need worry some gang of thugs invaded their summer camp. They’re not wearing masks and hoodies. They seem dressed in some official capacity.”

  “Really? What if those four noticed these camp visitors before and kept their mouths shut so they could investigate, led and coerced by the daughter of darkness.”

  “We’ll keep an eye on them, Rach. I need to work on Paris in Darkness. I’ll sit here and write, sip a beer, and watch the camp. Deke’s outside, running his butt all over. If anything weird happens, we’re only minutes away. I’ll watch Quinn if you ladies want to go shopping for Cala’s maternity clothes.”

  “The Unholies can handle this,” Cala said. “I need clothes and good opinions on what ones will not make me look like a sack of wheat.”

  “C’mon, you’re right, Nick and the un-drunken hand can handle it.” Rachel put the sleeping Quinn into his padded playpen. “If you need us, we’re only a call away. I feel better with you guys watching the camp. It looked like Al mowed down the camp counselors and their other camp advisors.”

  “I do wonder why Jean never texted us,” Gus said. “She always reports in when they do something on their own at the beach or school. We will be watching. Have fun shopping.”

  After the women left, Johnny brought four beers in from the kitchen, while Nick typed and watched the game. With Al pitching, and all four kids hitting everything the counselors threw to them, they were coming close to a lopsided win. The counselors had no answer for Al’s pitching with decent fielding behind her. Nick smiled, watching the celebration after seven innings. He stopped smiling when one of the counselors started yelling and pointing at Al. His companions tried to calm him down, but he was joined by the thug mob.

  As the counselor moved on Al, Jean, Sonny and Jay were at her side, hiding what Nick knew were knives held low behind their legs. The threat dissipated as Nick pushed away from his chair. The other counselors played hold me back games as John Harding mentions often, with the kids remaining grim, silent and ready. Older kids at camp stayed back, afraid of authority, even when wrong. Nick zeroed in on the counselor causing trouble from the main controls. His friends picked up on Nick’s lead. They ran scans on the counselor and each one of the visitors. Johnny began the identification process.

  Nick relaxed slightly when the groups separated. “Something’s wrong there. Rachel was right. The daughter of darkness noticed these thugs before, showing at other events. Their key into the camp is the hothead who couldn’t stand Al beating them like a bongo drum. I’m a little disappointed in Sonny. He’s more in thrall to my daughter than I thought. I know Sonny gathers intel before moving against Viper, but he may be moving too slowly here.”

  “It is as you fear, Muerto,” Johnny said. “Chad Montenegro is a fake. Good credentials, but all fake, created three years ago. His name is Saad Quasimi, an Algerian by birth – he fought for Isis in the Syrian civil war. The faces of his visitor invitees have begun popping up on the screen without a single legal reference. Some, like Saad, came into existence recently. Others have no identity showing yet. If they carry IDs, they’re fake.”

  “We know where to find Saad. Let’s follow the others to their base. I see they’re getting into three different vehicles. Stay alert in case we need to follow them to different places. We could never do this before with just access to DC.”

  They watched the men make their journey a caravan to Carmel Valley Lodge & Resort. The eight men had four separate rooms. Nick hacked the registry for their names and room numbers. He compared them with everything Johnny noted. Nothing matched on five of the eight.

  “The main guy, Saad, may be known to Claude Chardin.” Nick phoned Claude, who answered on the first ring. “Muerto… my old friend… tell me you missed me.”

  “I did. We have a group of unknowns and a lead guy who is Algerian, hanging around a Carmel Valley summer camp. His name is Saad Quasimi.”

  Claude choked a bit, taking a drink before answering. “You say he is hanging around a summer camp for kids?”

  “Yes. Jean, Al, and Sonny, along with one of their friends are at the summer camp. Please tell me this guy means nothing to you.”

  “I cannot. Quasimi deals in human trafficking. He fills orders and he makes a lot of money at it. The last I heard of him, he worked at the border between Guatemala and Mexico, collecting girls and boys to be traded into sex slavery.”

  “I’m glad I called you. He’s working as a camp counselor.”

  “I will call John. We will fly the UH-60. How many in his crew?”

  “Eight. We will hit the camp right now and collect Quasimi, arresting him on a federal warrant. Bring Crue if she wants to join in. We will need Quasimi to help us take the crew prisoner tomorrow for the FBI and ICE. I will call Sam and Janie now to alert them for tomorrow.”

  “I will get this in motion immediately. See you soon.” Claude cut away.

  “I’m glad we keep our MIB garb here as well as at our own homes,” Nick said. “Suit up. We need to take Quasimi right now and keep him incommunicado here at horror house. It will look more professional if we appear at the camp with four well-dressed US Marshals.”

  Nick’s companions did not question or delay what they needed to do. In twenty-minutes they drove with Quinn to meet briefly with Rachel. Nick handed Quinn over. “Your instincts were right, Rach. We’re heading to the camp. Deke is still at Johnny and Cala’s house. I will call you as soon as I can.”

  “Understood. I’d say something stupid like be careful, but I know better.” Rachel kissed Nick. “See you in Carmel Valley.”

  “Absolutely.”

  * * *

  The bang at the door of their lodging startled the kids for a moment. They worked laptops and tablets, trying to trace identities and crimes. Sonny and Jay had snuck into the building with Jean and Al during the afternoon break. Jean went to the door. “Who is it?”

  “These doors are not to be locked,” a familiar strident voice told her. “Open it at once. I need to talk with you about your behavior this afternoon.”

  “Sorry, Chad… that won’t be happening,” Jean replied. “If you want to talk with us, collect the head counselor and come back. You’re too out of control to talk with kids.”

  “Open this door at once… you little bitch! I will-”

  The kids heard Chad yelp and the crackle of electrical arcs. Jean grinned. “Dad?”

  “It’s me,” Nick replied. “Where’s my disappointing informer?”

  “I’m here, Sir. We were getting ready for a conference call when Chad pounded on the door. Al and Jay are with us.”

  Jean opened the door. Nick, Gus, Johnny and Jian stood in the doorway, dressed in dark suits, ties and sunglasses. Johnny and Gus had the bleary eyed, vibrating Saad Quasimi in restraints. “Wow… the Unholy MIBs. All this for one pervert, Dad?”

  “Not exactly, daughter of darkness. This is Saad Quasimi, a human trafficker. The guys watching your game today fill orders for a human trafficking ring. We spoke with your camp counselors. They claimed Saad vouched for them and they inspected camps like this one for safety violations, programs and cleanliness. They even had American Camp Association and State Health Department credentials.”

  “Sorry, Sir. We really thought those guys were here to inspect the camp. We tried today to find something on them from the pictures we took but didn’t find anything.”

  “I understand, Sonny. Have you four had enough adventure camp for this summer?”

  “The momster will tear you out a new one if you don’t bring us home, huh?”

  “I’m leaving the choice to you kids. We’re only minutes away and we now have the camp under surveillance.”

  “Is m
y dad coming?”

  “Yep. John will be here soon, Al. He’s bringing the Monsters, so we can collect Saad’s crew tonight. If any of you kids want to go home, we’ll take you right now. We’ll stuff dingleberry in the cargo bin.”

  Jean giggled, glancing at Saad’s fuming features. “I want to stay. I believe Saad thinks he’s going to Disneyland.”

  “Not for long,” Al added. “I want to stay too. I’ll bet Dr. Deville is coming for a visit.”

  “She is, indeed,” Nick replied. “How about you, Jay?”

  “We’re having a blast. I don’t want to go home.”

  “Okay then, keep your phones charged up, and give your moms a call at least once a day.”

  “We will, Dad. Thanks for letting us stay.”

  “Great game today,” Gus said. “Good pitching, Al. We streamed the game to your dad because Saad and his crew were being recorded too.”

  “Cala and I are only minutes away, even tonight,” Johnny reminded them. “We will have the phones on as well as our network.”

  “We’ll be careful, Uncle Johnny,” Jean promised.

  Nick hugged Jean and waved goodbye to the other kids. He grabbed Saad by the back of the neck, forcing him away from the camp building. “C’mon, dingleberry. We have a special place, so you can help us gather your crew.”

  “I will help you with nothing. I…I am having trouble breathing. I need a doctor.”

  “Uh oh…” Gus, Johnny and Jian muttered together.

  The kids laughed as they saw Nick’s fist pump in the air, accompanied by, “Dr. Muerto is in the house!”

  * * *

  “I love this setup, Muerto!” Lynn could not keep from inspecting the horrific black-lighted bunker where Nick did interrogations. “I’d forgotten how great the bunker looked.”

  Nick and I finished strapping the screaming Saad into the gurney. “We sometimes need to make up a reason to use the tools, because the perp like old Saad here start talking before we even get them strapped on the gurney.”

  I smacked Saad across the face. “Shut up! We’re trying to have a conversation. What’s he all worked up for? We haven’t even started yet.”