Free Cold Blooded Assassin Book 6: Red Horizon (Nick McCarty Assassin) by Bernard Lee DeLeo

John Harding. Johnny loved that robot movie, called-”
    “Short Circuit… Johnny Five?” Neil took a moment to enjoy that piece of information. “That…that’s good stuff. I’ve seen John Harding fight in the UFC. Is it the same guy?”
    “The very same, and Cala requested a more active role. She’s taking piloting lessons. Cala also has a few other impressive skills.”
    “Things seem to be heating to a boiling point around here since you all went on that ill-fated cruise. Did you partner with Harding’s crew on that action? I read where it was heavy combat with pirates.”
    “It was heavy combat with Iran backed Isis assholes. There were no survivors… at least on their side. I have a morning’s relaxation to get back to, Neil. Thanks for letting me know about the two ‘bangers being released.”
    “No problem. They gave us an address in Salinas. It’s a known gang hangout. I’ll text it to you. They had money for a taxi, so no one met them when they left. I didn’t know if you’d want them followed or not. Now that I know about Carone, maybe I should have.”
    “We’ll stay alert. Until Carone’s taken care of, we’ll have to be on guard 24/7. See you later, Neil.”
    “Until then.” Neil gave Nick a small wave before getting in his squad car.
    Nick rejoined his crew, relating to them the news about Calista and Morgan. Johnny had finished the bird feeding. Jean and Sonny were walking along the coastal path with Deke as Nick sat down. Gus indicated he had the kids on com. “The cops found the lawyer already. I warned Neil to be on his guard until we fix the Carone problem.”
    Rachel handed Nick a refilled Irish coffee. “We’re lucky to have Neil.”
    “Or he’s lucky to have us,” Gus replied. “Nick’s already saved his bacon numerous times. He’s on the pad.”
    “There’s only so much he can do. He knows many times we have actionable intelligence about national security problems. Grace left a text wondering about fallout after the ‘Starlight’ at sea action. I’ll let her and Tim know about our Carone problem. It would be interesting to know if the DOJ has ears on Carone’s ship, Tempest.”
    “What’s on for the rest of the day, Muerto,” Johnny asked.
    “I’m thinking a cruise possibly tomorrow. With The Tempest parked only five miles off of Point Lobos, we could empty the freezer, and see if we can spot Carone’s pleasure craft.”
    Gus leaned forward in his beach chair with an earnest look. “I’ve studied pictures of Carone’s super yacht. It’s magnificent. Is there any way we could confiscate it, Muerto?”
    “I don’t know, Gus. Mostly, we can’t spend what we do have without attracting the attention of our government. We have the money to buy one or custom make one of those super yachts. To stay under government radar we had to get special permission to get a helicopter through government channels beginning in the CIA Director’s Office, and that was with us paying for it. It’s the money that will be our undoing. I can talk to John Harding. They have an escape island. If we could pull it off, John might let us build a pier to accommodate it.”
    “It’s a waste,” Tina said. “You cartoons would turn it into a battleship anyway.”
    “Stay out of this, T-Rex,” Cala said. “It would be beautiful going on cruises in our own yacht. By the way… who are you calling a cartoon?”
    “Oh… I forgot you’ve become a cartoon too,” Tina retorted. “What was it they call you… Clammy or Crabby… something like that?”
    Cala giggled. “Good one, T. Let’s do it if we can, Muerto. Think of having our own super yacht. Gus mentioned it’s 240 feet long. Doesn’t that take a lot of professional crewmembers?”
    Gus nodded with a sigh. “That’s the drawback. Most are automated to a point they nearly run themselves. A full crew would probably be about seventy members and more, depending on if the yacht can be chartered to the wealthy or not. On a