Chapter 10: Hunting

It was inevitable that I would have to go back to work. My world was fantastic for a few weeks until a client in Houston called. He needed a fugitive picked up that was hiding in El Paso. He was in a bind and willing to pay a bonus for a quick recovery. That usually means it's going to be dangerous. I called Steve and asked if he was up for it. He was at my door in less than half an hour.

We said goodbye to the girls. Both women kissed us lovingly and sent us on our way. They were looking forward to being alone, with time to explore their own love.

Steve and I left hauling our gear in the back of my truck. My contact in Houston had faxed me mugshots with identifiers on our target. He was a South American drug dealer wanted for murder and trafficking. Steve and I studied the pictures and information until we knew it by heart.

We arrived in El Paso and checked in to a out of the way motel, then went directly to the address on the data sheet. We questioned why, if we knew where this man was, then why didn't the police? I guess twenty-five thousand a year will only get you shot at so many times. Why be killed protecting people from themselves. This guy was only supplying what the public wanted.

We knew why the police hadn't rushed over to arrest Adame when we did a drive by to case the place. It was a fortress. It was going to be impossible to penetrate without someone's rights being violated, or killed.

We took a vantage point on a overlooking hillside and watched. The Adame property was surrounded by walls and the grounds were patrolled by armed guards who were assigned regular areas to patrol. That was their weakness, they were predictable. We worked out a route and a timed assault that if all went well we should be in and out before anyone knew we were there.

It would normally have been a very dangerous case, but we had an edge. We didn't give a shit about their rights and we were not the ones who would be killed. The rumors are true, bountyhunters don't play fair. We backed-off and waited for nightfall.

During our wait we went over our plan in detail. We would have to disable two guards at a minimum. They were the key to our plan. Speed and stealth were crucial from the onset of the assault. The guards would be missed in a short time and that would bring other guards. It was a simple hit and run. Running was standard in the past. We knew on this trip we had other options.

We watched and thought until a decision was made. We wouldn't be changing a thing by simply recovering Adame. A quick promotion would keep everything going. The drugs would keep coming and Adame would live like a king in the joint...

We needed to send a message to South America. The kind that made grown men rethink what they were doing. We felt if we were going to risk our lives and possibly take the lives of others it had to be for a better reason than money.

Night came and everything was in place, our target was in sight, and the time had come. Steve and I crept to the first wall and listened for the first of our target guards to pass on the other side. He was right on time. He passed by our position slowly. We both heard the muffled yawn from our position. He was not expecting trouble.

I went over the wall first and silently took the guard by surprise. A sharp blow to the back of his head and he went down. The crack was louder than it should have been. I knew I had crushed his skull. I dragged him to the wall and tossed him over. Steve came over the wall and we went after guard number two.

He was positioned on top of a lower inner wall and came to his check point where he should have met the first man we killed. When he wasn't greeted as planned he dropped off the wall to look for his buddy. He jumped into our waiting arms. Steve nearly took his head off. We left him into the shadow of the wall and approached the house.

We moved as silently as a pair of ghosts. We were about to enter the house when our target and a beautiful woman rose from a meal and came to us. They were going for a late night swim. The guards were noticeably absent. The reason became clear when the woman stripped and waded into the pool up to her buoyant tits.

The man was taking his clothes off when we made our move. Steve moved into the light and drew Ramon Adame's attention for an instant. An instant was all I needed to turn out his lights before he shouted for the guards.

Steve had drawn his weapon and put a finger to his lips implying that the woman's life depended on her silence. She apparently didn't think much of her life. She screamed and splashed as though the pool was filled with piranha.

Steve being the gentleman that he is, and not wanting to waste such a nice pair of tits, pointed to the far wall and moved to cover me as I carried Roman to our exit point. The guards were quick to fill the void we had made but not quick enough. They were counting on two dead men, and that left us a way out.

We ran like cowards. Steve watched my back as we crossed the open yard to the outer wall. Steve went over the wall and I was about to toss Ramon over right behind him. We almost made it before the first shots were fired. Bullets from automatic weapons raked the ground and wall around me. They were trying to avoid shooting their boss, but once he was clear of the wall I would be a sitting duck.

Steve popped his Mac-10 over the wall and laid down enough cover fire to drive the guards to cover giving me the time to clear the wall with Ramon. We didn't get a chance to breath before we heard cars leaving the main gates and circling to our location.

Our escape route crossed a private dirt road that circled the property. I carried Ramon in a fireman's sling as Steve led the way. We crossed the road ahead of the cars and dropped into a deep ravine. It was cut up enough to give a person plenty of places to hide, and wait. They were going to have to split up and come after us on foot. We had them right where we wanted them.

Security swarmed the area where they lost sight of us. The unnatural speed and strength we possessed made it possible to circle behind them where we left Ramon with the first guard's body. They had rushed past that point after finding the dead man and were busy chasing shadows in the ravine. They didn't know they had become the hunted.