"Bayev, I remember you always talking about your two sweet daughters. I had no idea you also had a son…"
Fred hooted, and Silly Sweetie chimed in. Bayev laughed: "Daughters are Daddy's little cotton jackets. Boys don't need pampering—just regular roughing up."
Everyone shared a moment of silence for Bayev's son. With such a blunt and brutal dad, the kid's life was starting on nightmare difficulty.
After just a few lines, Ghost popped online too.
The screen lit up to a view of trees in the distance and several very obvious targets. Clearly, Ghost was off somewhere practicing.
"Bang, bang—"
Ghost hadn't shown his face yet; two shots cracked and two holes appeared in the far targets. Then Ghost's big mug filled the frame. "Fellas, where are you degenerates off enjoying yourselves?"
"Oh, Simon, you freak. You've made so much money and instead of figuring out how to spend it, you're hiding in the sticks shooting. Need me to teach you how to burn cash?"
"Who says I'm not spending? Look closely…"
Ghost preened. The others didn't get it yet, but Steve already saw through his stunt and explained, "You guys aren't wrong—he really is a freak. Check what his targets are."
Everyone peered at the targets. On closer look, the ten-ring on each had a Franklin taped dead center.
They were speechless—not sure whether to call him twisted or just rich.
"Hey guys, I'm here! Did you miss me…"
Heartbeat's window lit up. The guy still hadn't gotten out of bed, sunlight already pouring into the bedroom, and he was still under the covers.
"Oh, Heartbeat, you lazy bum—wait, oh my god, you bastard, what are you doing?"
Fred was the most excitable. He'd only meant to tease Heartbeat, but when a long leg drifted into frame, he couldn't help yelping.
Worse, another long leg slid into view—a different skin tone. One dark, one fair.
Shit. Heartbeat, you scumbag. Put that girl down—let me…
In an instant, every man wanted to reach into the screen and drag Heartbeat out. Too much. It's one thing to be rich and play around—none of their business. But two at once? And black-and-white? What is this, cold medicine? He was out of line. Did he realize he'd just casually lived out half the male population's lifelong fantasy?
On video, Heartbeat grinned like an idiot. He'd dreamed of flexing like this plenty of times; first time in reality. Silly Sweetie and Monica loudly cursed his piggish behavior. The other guys fell silent, hearts boiling with envy.
Heartbeat waggled the phone, offering more "perks." Their side whooped; the two women on his end, clearly professionals, weren't shy about being filmed—both blew kisses at the camera. A "men will understand" smile crept onto Steve's face—then his ear suddenly stung. On-screen, two women's angry roars sounded in quick succession, and Fred's and Bayev's connections cut off. Steve turned to meet Monica's blazing glare.
"Enjoy the view?"
"Uh… no. I… ow—"
A scream rang out in the ward. Far away in Hawaii and in some park, two other unfortunates were being thrashed by their women. As Balalaika laid into Bayev, she told the little boy, "Oleg, remember—this is what happens when you're unfaithful in marriage…"
Out in the hallway, Steve hid, quietly nursing his wounds. That bastard Heartbeat—daring to get them in trouble. This debt would be repaid. Fresh from his own "epic battle" and having just seen the professionals off, Heartbeat suddenly felt his hair stand on end.
Thinking of his two brothers somewhere in the world getting the same treatment made him feel much better. He wasn't alone.
After wasting two more tangerines, Steve finally soothed Monica. They watched TV together. It was peak TV season; every network had polished dramas on. Monica wasn't into romance. Her favorite was "24," which Steve also liked—it was about CTU. The counterterrorism methods were pure nonsense, but it was fun to watch.
One episode ended; they wanted more. Monica flipped channels—and a news segment grabbed Steve's attention.
"Reports have long circulated that CTU uses unreasonable force during investigations, but there has been no evidence. Moments ago, an anonymous source mailed us a video. It clearly shows current CTU Director Jack Bauer using violent interrogation on a suspect…"
Hearing that, the two, who'd been lounging comfortably, instinctively sat up straight.
The screen cut to a clip. The resolution wasn't great, but clear enough to see who was who. Steve was certain—it was Jack Bauer. On video, he was indeed beating a handcuffed man.
Steve and Monica exchanged a look. Allegations of CTU's excessive force had been around for ages; Congress had been watching closely. CTU had been careful—if they were going to do something like that, they'd shut off the cameras first. Industry practice—not just CTU, nearly all law enforcement.
But now there was video. That changed everything. This could be big.
Steve urgently called Jack Bauer—no answer. He tried the office line—busy. He thought a moment, then called Silly Sweetie.
"Becky, what's this video on the news—Jack using force on a suspect?"
Steve fired off the question, but Becky had no idea.
"Turn on the TV and you'll see."
The CTU director beating someone—anyone could tell that would be a media firestorm. No way the channels would pass it up. Practically every network was running the clip.
Ten minutes later, Becky called back.
"From the footage, it's not at Omega—and doesn't look like CTU HQ either…"
Steve snapped to it. In his rush he'd forgotten. Given Jack's history, that likely meant CTU Los Angeles.
He racked his brain over who might be targeting Jack; the more he thought, the more possibilities. CTU's rapid rise had blocked too many paths. CIA, NSA—even the FBI had motive. Jack had plenty of personal enemies too. And the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and Omega reported directly to the President. This administration's presidential power was unprecedented; Congress was unhappy and had been looking for ways to weaken those two. That's why they'd been riding CTU so hard.
______
(≧◡≦) ♡ Support me and read 20 chapters ahead – patreon.com/Mutter
Every 100 Power Stones = 1 extra chapter on Saturday.
Every 5 reviews = 1 extra chapter on Saturday.