PIPER'S, INC. 2 - JUDAS KISS. Joaquin De Torres
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from the voice inside him.
Your work is not done, Dale. Not by a long shot. He lifted his eyes from the animals reluctantly and sighed.
“What’s left for God’s sakes?!” he spat in frustration. “What more can I do?!” The voice answered immediately. . .as it had done faithfully each time he asked himself such questions.
Utopia, Dale. Utopia.
CHAPTER THREE
Uncharted Territory
PIPER’S, Inc. HQ
Northern, California
Temujin looked deeply into the woman’s eyes as she smiled despite her exhaustion. He lightly grazed his hand over her cheeks, forehead and neck, gliding over the sheen of perspiration that had exuded from their last two hours. His hand snaked beneath the comforter and felt the moisture all along her naked torso. He liked the feeling. Beads of sweat induced by vigorous physical activity had always been a secret turn on for him, and Katarina always provided it.
Katarina Valero, callsign Stroke, was not only PIPER’S, Inc.’s chief combat medical doctor, but also Temujin’s living breathing heart. He’d been in love with her since they met over three years ago, completing no less than 40 missions together. But no one in the organization would know it by the strict adherence to professionalism they demonstrated on a daily basis at the meetings, at functions and on the urban battlefield. It was this secret relationship that brought their private excitement to greater and greater heights.
He brushed aside a swath of her thick raven-black hair and beheld her face. That hair, her slender cheeks, sharply-chiseled nose, full lips, strong dimpled chin and dark brown eyes were the features of a Croatian supermodel, and not that of a front-line combatant who had saved as many lives as he’d taken.
She looked at him with those penetrating eyes and subtle smile full of admiration, expectation and desire. She propped herself on one elbow to give him full view of her still glistening naked body. It practically took everything he had to turn over onto his back and look at the ceiling.
“What’s wrong, baby?” It took him a moment to answer her, his thoughts conflicting like synapses firing in his brain.
“The mass exodus,” he finally responded. “It’s going too quickly, too easily.”
“Draven, we talked about this,” Katarina soothed. “It was bound to happen. When Dr. Turnbull reported our successes and predicted the massive downtime, how was he to keep them in?”
“I know, but we’re losing good fighters and we still have missions.”
“The public is on our side, the country is changing for the better, Baby.” She turned his face towards her with a delicate hand and gave him a smile. “People like you gave this country a chance. We have a new Constitution, we have a brand new Congress, we have new Supreme Court justices and we’ve broken up several banks and corporations. Turnbull’s dream is fulfilled, Draven, and you should be proud of all these monumental accomplishments. You’ve changed the rules of the corporate game. You’ve permanently nailed establishment politics to the cross. What more do you -”
“It’s not enough,” he replied suddenly.
“What?”
“Dale wants to explore furthering our influence. He has this vision of a Utopian nation with us as its overseers. I don’t like it. It’s not what we are. It’s not what we signed up for.”
“You mean he wants us to stay on duty? But so many have already left PIPER’S, Inc.”
“Yes, that’s why I worry. We’re getting weaker physically as an organization. So many of our friends, great warriors, have left; and now he has delusions of an unattainable goal. It’s nothing more than his legacy project. A project that I don’t subscribe to. We’re Ghosts, not gargoyles. We’re not going to stand watch for a perfect society.” He sneered. “America, a perfect society? What a fucking joke!”
“Have you talked to him about your concerns?”
“I’ve let him know, but I don’t know if he’ll listen to me. In the meantime, I’m worried about something else.”
“What’s that?”
“With so many Ghosts leaving, I’m afraid of possible betrayal.”
“Betrayal?”
“Without PIPER’S, Inc. guarding the nation in sufficient numbers, there’s bound to be other organizations – organizations aligned or created by corporations or politicians we’ve taken down – that will want to hit back. They’ll want to know our secrets, our weaknesses, our plans. And they’ll pay any price for any information to strike back at us.”
“And you think one of our people might be bought,” Katarina alluded. He nodded.
“It could be devastating if something like that were to happen.”
“Do you have any leads or suspicions about who could do such a thing?” she asked nervously.
“No. And what’s worse is that I don’t have the time nor the manpower to do any kind of pre-investigation or surveillance. We still have active missions going on right now, critical missions, and I can’t pull anyone off them at this point. Let alone, myself.”
“Have you mentioned this to Dale or anyone else?”
“No, but I will after I analyze the results of the last few missions and the ones coming up. But I can’t shake it, Stroke. A betrayal from a Ghost can be dealt with. They only follow orders. But a betrayal from one of the senior members or commanders would be catastrophic.”
“Do you have any people in mind that you’d suspect?”
“Not yet.” He exhaled in frustration.
“Then don’t worry yourself about things that haven’t happened or have a chance of happening,” she advised. “Do the missions. Do them the way we’ve always done them, with the greatest detail and vigilance. And don’t worry about the ravings of an old man. Dale will be fine, and in time he’ll understand that what he wants is unattainable and could only lead to disaster.”
Draven turned to her and managed a semi-comforting smile.
“How did you become so wise?”
“I fell in love with a wise warrior,” she quipped and snuggled up to him.
“You have to know that there will come a time when I ask you to pack up and leave, too,” he said. She smiled slightly at his new line of concern. “As missions drop off, I will leave it to the newer members to accomplish them.”
“Keeping me out of harm’s way, I presume?” she said.
“Of course. You’ve done your part for the country; you don’t owe anyone anything.”
“I owe you.”
“Then, Baby, pay me back by preparing to leave. You have three houses in Croatia, you have tens of millions in the bank and your family is secure. You don’t have to fight anymore.”
“As long as you fight, I’m not going anywhere.” Her steadfast answer concerned him even more.
“No, Katarina. You have to walk away. You’re training new combat doctors and medics, let them prove themselves.”
“So, you’d have me walk while you continue fighting? Seriously?” Her eyes were now accusatory.
“This is what I do, Stroke. This is who I am. I have to see it through to the end. In time, I’ll leave, too. I have a few people in mind to replace me.”
“Really? Who?”
“Dave Spatz, Gary Kent, Jason Heung, David Ramirez, Tai Chang. They’re all -”
“Tai is gone,” she reminded. “She retired,