Don Pendleton - The Killing Rule

“‘Gold does not find good soldiers, but good soldiers are quite capable of finding gold.’” Jennings was quoting Prince Machiavelli. “Or in this case, diamonds.”

“Just so, old man.” Lord William grinned. “Just so.”

“So…” Jennings frowned in thought. “You want me to recommend some men for you, then, is it?”

“I’d like to look at the current company roster. See who’s been where, what languages they speak and all that. There will be some aspects of this jaunt that will require some very specific skills. I want to put together a short list and begin interviewing as quickly as possible.”

“You need to tell me more, Bill.”

“’Fraid I can’t, Clive.” Lord William smiled slyly. “You’re something of a go-getter. I think if I told you too much about it, you might just go off and get them yourself.”

“Well, that is possible.” Jennings smiled slightly at the compliment. “But our list of associates as well as recruitment are my purview, and our associates depend on our discretion and respect of their serving in anonymity.”

“I believe most of the men on the roster would lose their little minds if they knew Red-Hot Willy was looking for a few good men.”

“That may be.” Jennings sighed in mock reluctance. “But I’m afraid I can’t do it.”

“I’ll cut you in for ten percent.”

“Ten percent of nothing is still nothing, Bill. You don’t have anything yet, and treasure hunts have a habit of turning out badly in my experience. As a matter of fact, most of them don’t turn up anything other than debt. It’s not a good investment in men or publicity. For that matter Aegis Global Security doesn’t need our associates being captured and rotting in some third-world prison.”

“Clive, I need this.”

“I can’t help you, old man.” The words were an insult coming off Jennings’s lips.

Lord William stared up into the clouds for long moments and reluctantly played his ace. “I’ll sell you my shares.”

An ugly light gleamed in Clive Jennings’s eyes. “Your shares aren’t worth that much, Bill.”

“Oh, I think they’re worth far more to you than what they’re listed at.”

Jennings shrugged indifferently.

“My shares and ten percent.” Lord William put a wounded look in his eyes. “It’s my last hurrah, Clive. Help out an old man.”

Lord William had built Aegis with his own sweat and blood. Jennings had stolen it with ones and zeroes. It was very clear that Jennings despised the old man. It was also clear that Jennings was very capable and shrewd. He smiled at Lord William. “Bill?”

“Yes, Clive?”

“You’re up to something.”

“Well, to be honest, yes.” Lord William dropped the act. “Clive, I really do need to have a look at the current Aegis roster of associates.”

“You can bring it up at the next shareholders’ meeting.” Jennings’s smile was sickening. “Now, I’m afraid I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”

“’Fraid I’m going to have to insist, Clive.”

Bolan cocked the Walther in his pocket. It was a small noise but noticeable in the sudden quiet in the courtyard. Jennings shook his head. “What? You’re going to threaten me with a cigarette lighter?” He started to reach under his jacket.

Bolan took the cocked PPK out of his pocket and pointed it at Jennings’s face.

The man’s eyes widened. He was clearly used to being in control of every situation. Being caught flatfooted was an alien experience. He nearly made a move as Bolan reached under his jacket and relieved him of his two-tone 9 mm SIG-Sauer P-239 pistol but apparently thought better of it.

“Now, let’s have a look at that roster, then,” Lord William cajoled.

Jennings slowly folded his arms across his chest. “No.”

“No?” Lord William took out his Walther and thumbed back the hammer. “Are you sure?”

“You’re not going to shoot me, and neither is your friend.”

Lord William frowned. “We’re not?”

“No, you need to get into the computer and only I have the access codes to Aegis operational files.”

“Hmm.” Lord William scratched his jaw with the muzzle of his pistol as he considered the problem. “Guess we’ll just have to beat it out of you.”

Jennings looked at Bolan in speculation and Lord William in open scorn. “Try.”

“Right!” Lord William cupped a hand beside his mouth. “Lunk!”

Lunk arose on the roof. It seemed he had scaled the side of the building. Jennings’s mouth dropped open as the giant Welshman slid down one of the courtyard’s drainpipes and landed on his feet without a sound. It was genuinely disturbing to see a man that large move with such silence. Lord William dropped all pretense of polite behavior and snarled, “Now, you listen to me, you poncey little git. I don’t give a good god damn what bloody dan-ranking you have in judo. You just aren’t ready for what Lunk is going to do to you, and he’s wanted a piece of you for a very long time. Now you are going to give me complete access to my company, or I’m going to fucking feed you to him.”

Lunk leaned down to nearly press his face against Jennings’s. “Going to beat seven bloody shades of shite out of you, mate.”

Jennings was reduced to stuttering. “I…I…”

Lord William prodded the man with his PPK. “Good lad. I knew we could work this out.”

Bolan vainly wished Kurtzman or Akira Tokaido was on hand. He sat before the computer in Clive Jennings’s office and knew he was a little out of his league. The room looked more like a command center than the executive office of a small, highly specialized consulting company. Lord William peered about with a frown on his face. “Made some changes then, have you, Clive?”

Jennings glared and said nothing. He sat in the chair opposite his desk with Lunk standing behind him. The Welshman held his .357 loosely in one massive paw and had made it very clear on the short walk down the hall and up the stairs to the office he would pistol whip Jennings repeatedly with the gun if he tried anything.

Lord William waved his PPK at the flat-screen monitor. “So, how are you and the old ‘devil in a box’ getting on, then?”

Bolan took out his PDA. Like his laptop, it, too, was a product of Akira Tokaido’s cybernetic skill and would qualify as a supercomputer. “This isn’t my strong suit. I can probably hack in, but I’ll have to be walked through it, and it’ll take time. Time we don’t have.” Bolan turned to Jennings. “Give me your passwords and codes.”

Jennings’s jaw set.

A second later his head rubbernecked as Lunk’s open hand slammed against his ear. Jennings’s defiant look turned into a grimace of agony. Bolan had to admire Lunk’s style. It took a deft touch to box a man’s ear that hard without shattering the eardrum.

Lord William sighed. “Clive, despite all you’ve done, this isn’t personal between us. You took my company from me, but as far as I can tell you did it fair and square. Easy come, easy go, the better man won. All that jolly rot. However, to quote your earlier remark, I believe you’re up to something. There’s something rotten afoot, and I think you are at least aiding and abetting it if not actively involved. I dislike torture, so, let me state for the record you will not be tortured. What will happen is this—Mr. Cooper and I will leave the room for a moment, and in our absence you are going to have a fight with Lunk.”

Jennings flinched and involuntarily brought a hand up to his ear.

“Keep your bloody hand down,” Lunk rumbled.

Jennings’s hand fell into his lap like a dead bird.

“It will be a fair fight,” Lord William continued. “Barehanded, man-to-man, as God intended. After a minute or two, Mr. Cooper and I will return to this office and ask you once more for your passwords and codes. Should you persist in your obstinate ways, you will have another fight with Lunk, and then another, and another. This process will continue until you come to see reason. Do you understand?”