Free JARED: The Justice Brothers Series by Taylor Lee Page B

a laugh, “Which in this crazy new world of ours is as close as the phone in my hand.”
    “Sweet, man. Almost unbelievable for a backwoods cop like me. But you gotta know, Jared, the only part of this gig that makes me nervous is that at least in the beginning you’ll be alone with Janko and his animals.”
    “Yeah, but you’ll be there in the shadows, Jake, rushing in to ‘save’ me. Like you always have, big brother. I can see it all now: Just as our DEA team sweeps in and captures the BOC guys in Thailand, the Duluth PD—led by their indomitable Commander Jake Justice—will saunter in and take down the Dragon’s Curse. Like a flock of mallards a half hour before sunrise on opening day of duck hunting season, the sorry bastards won’t know what hit them!”
    ***
    Jared was confirming the final details of the exchange with his team in Thailand when there was a knock on his door.
    “I have to sign off. Someone’s at my door. But, everything is copacetic, correct, Agent Thomas?”
    Jared’s point man in Thailand responded in his usual outrageous manner.
    “Absofuckinglutely, Big Guy. We’re in the back of the sluttiest titty bar you’ve ever seen. Our UC confirms that the BOC marks are half a block away. They’ll deliver the stash to us when they confirm that the money has been sent. Now if I can just keep these randy guys of mine sober, with their hands off the bar girls and their dicks in their pants for the next four hours, we’ll be ready to rumble.”
    Jared laughed. “Are the rest of you as ready as your scandalous commander is?”
    At the chorus of “Copy that, Agent Justice” from the members of the Thai-based team, Jared said, “Thanks, men. I’ll check back at 2300 hours for a final sit rep.”
    At the second sharp knock, Jared closed his phone and walked to the door. To his surprise, he saw Janko and five of his goons standing on the balcony. Striving for nonchalance, he stepped back and frowned at Janko.
    “What the hell, man. What’s up?”
    Shoving past Jared, Janko and his glowering men entered. Turning to Jared with a sly grin, Janko said, “Not much, Bro. It’s just that me and my boys decided we couldn’t wait to get this rodeo started. We want to do it now. ”
    Jared managed to mask his surprise.
    “What’s that supposed to mean?” He added threateningly, “Don’t tell me your BOC pricks are pulling back?”
    Janko shook his head. “No way. They’re in place and ready to hand over the crystal when I give the word. But I wanna move up the timeline.” His frown tightened. “We’re gonna do the exchange now.”
    Jared started. “Now? What the hell, Janko?! I arranged for the exchange at midnight our time.”
    “Change it.”
    Seeing Janko’s fierce expression and wondering what the hell was going on, although the snakes crawling up the back of his neck confirmed that he was in deep shit, Jared said carefully, “I don’t know that we can, buddy.”
    Janko sneered. “What? You saying that you, a Justice Brother , can’t make somethin’ happen? Fuck it, man. You know goddamned well that in ‘Justice land’ the sun doesn’t rise or set without permission from one of the golden boys.”
    Jared glared at him, assuming an aggrieved tone. “What’s going on, Janko? Has something happened on your end? Christ, man, we’re four hours away from closing the biggest deal of a lifetime. This isn’t the time to start fucking around. My buyer doesn’t tolerate ‘problems.’ ”
    Janko shook his head. “Relax, Jared. It’s just that, like you, I prefer to be in control. You know I trust you. Or as much as I can trust a Justice Brother. Humor me, Dude. I wanna be sure you don’t have nothin’ up your sleeve.” He nodded at the surly men surrounding them. “As do my boys.” He added with a foreboding smirk, “C’mon, Jared, how about you pull strings the way you always do? We’ve alerted our team in Thailand that the timing has changed. I told them to meet your