Chapter 41
Steve quickly briefed the team and they split up into the Camaro and Kono's Cruze. Steve knew Kono would keep up, she drove just like he did. They set off down the rough track, keeping the speed of their convoy down until they reached the main road. As soon as their tyres hit the smooth tarmac, Steve and Kono both elected to use their blue lights and sirens to warn the other road users and wasted no time in flooring it towards the private airstrip.
Greer had driven Daiyu back to Dillingham, telling her that Wo Fat would be brought to them and they needed to be ready to leave in a hurry. She relayed a message from Miller to the other woman, "They've breached the building where your fiancé is being held and are searching for him. They have the blueprints and so they know where to look. It won't be long now." The soon-to-be Mrs. Fat smiled nervously in relief,
"You'll let me know the minute they find him?" Greer nodded and kept driving. On arrival at the airfield, she parked up and hopped out of the car,
"Grab your stuff, let's board the plane. We can't afford any delays." She stepped back from the car and readied her gun. The minute that Daiyu got out of the vehicle, Greer trained her gun on the woman, "Hands where I can see them, you're under arrest." The other lady looked shell-shocked and just stood there with her mouth open. Greer commanded, "I said let me see your hands. Right now." Finally she complied and lifted her arms above her head. Gabrielle moved in closer, expertly spinning the confused lawyer around and securing her hands behind her back with zip ties. She communicated with her CIA team via her in-ear comms, "Package is secured. Ready to move out."
Another agent confirmed that the CIA transport was ready and at the same time a truck came out from behind the buildings and stopped next to the two women. The passenger jumped out of the pickup and grasped the prisoner firmly by both arms. He steered her into the back of the truck and Greer climbed up into the passenger seat. She turned to address the driver and froze in place - sitting there in the driver's seat was Jonathan Kray. She stared at him before speaking, carefully weighing up all her options, "While I think you're a complete piece of shit, I wouldn't mind some of the money. Give me a cut and she's all yours - we've got what we need out of her anyway. I'll still get my promotion."
The other agent in the back of the truck caught Kray's eye and gave a subtle shake of his head, he just assumed that Greer was bluffing to get them off-guard. He knew that she had her gun on her, he had watched as she stowed it safely back into her holster before she got in the pickup. He reached forward and very carefully extracted the weapon thus leaving her unarmed and completely vulnerable. The corrupt Chief stared silently at her with what looked like sorrow before shooting her once in the stomach. Gabrielle cried out in pain as the bullet ripped into her body, clutching her stomach with both hands. The blood seeped out from between her fingers as she tried in vain to staunch the bleeding.
Her ragged breathing was the only sound in the truck until Kray turned to Daiyu Mei and spoke, "Your fiancé is dead. He was killed in a Navy SEAL op and they destroyed his North Korean bunker as well as the Dark Sun base of operations. The Navy and CIA have access to all of the data on the computers from his command room. You know where all the money is and you're going to get to it before they do – Wo Fat once told me that he had over $200 million stashed away. I'll let you keep half of the money and you can go and live in luxury and have a wonderful life. You'll need it to stay under the radar, they've got enough evidence to put you away for a very long time." He didn't wait for an answer and slid the transmission into drive and drove the short distance to the plane. He ignored the CIA jet and instead pulled up alongside the Gulfstream G550. The pilot and crew member whom he had freed from the custody of the CIA were more than willing to fly him wherever he wanted to go, already making plans to disappear themselves when they landed - the large amount of cash that they had been offered for their services would certainly make it that much easier.
The agent in the back of the truck pushed out the bound woman in front of him and manhandled her up the steps and onto the plane. Kray turned to his passenger, "I'm sorry, Agent Greer – it wasn't meant to go like this. I just wanted enough money to have a nice retirement." Gabrielle choked out a reply,
"I hope you rot in hell!" she couldn't manage any more, blood bubbling out of mouth as she spoke. Kray looked away,
"I didn't kill the agents who were waiting on the plane, they're tied up and stashed in the luggage hold. You'll be okay when you get to a hospital, just like the other two agents I had to shoot on Maui." The man quickly grabbed the two suitcases and awkwardly lugged them up the plane steps. The other agent leaned out of the door to grab one and pushed it into the cabin. The pilot had started the engines and signalled the other crew member to secure the plane door.
The bleeding agent looked out of the truck window and caught a glimpse of the Five-0 cars speeding towards the airfield. She smiled to herself, "Her knight in shining armor to the rescue - go get him, Steve." Her head lolled against the window as she slowly lost consciousness, her last thought being that she really hoped Steve put a bullet right between Kray's eyes.
The two cars entered the airfield at high speed, the Camaro sliding sideways as Steve gunned the engine. Danny grabbed the 'oh shit' handle, "Steady, we're no good to anyone if we die in a blazing inferno whilst trapped inside a massive car wreck." Steve gave him a grim smile, his face a picture of intense concentration,
"Not gonna happen, not if I'm driving," he saw the luxury jet taxiing towards the single runway, "shit, they're getting ready for take-off . . . hold on, Danno."
"No, no, no. I don't wanna hold on! What the hell are you doing?" Steve stamped down on the accelerator pedal and chased after the plane as it started to rumble down the runway. Steve edged alongside the moving plane and when he was in front he violently turned the wheel to skid the car to a halt directly in its path. Danny scrunched his eyes shut and started to pray aloud as the pilot anchored on the brakes and brought the jet to a complete stop, just inches from the Camaro. Steve was already out of the car, his gun drawn and trained on the pilot. He motioned to the man to cut the engines and open the plane door.
Kono screeched to a halt near the jet, leaping from the car with her weapon raised. The Five-0 team took cover under the plane while Steve gave them orders. Nodding in understanding, they took up their respective positions. Kono slipped back to her car and took her rifle from the lockbox. She smoothly assembled the weapon, sliding each component into place with practiced ease, then laid down behind the car; if she twisted slightly then she had a clear view of the Gulfstream's windows. She steadied her breathing and waited to take the shot. She was soon rewarded for her patience, the figure of a man visible through one of the rear windows. Exhaling, Kono lightly squeezed the trigger and the crack of the rifle shot echoed around the airstrip. Panicked yelling could be heard from inside the private jet.
Steve had instructed Danny and Chin to take cover with eyes on the plane steps, but not to try and board the jet, "They'll pick you off the second you go near those steps. I'll gain entry via the luggage hold and herd them your way." Danny just stared at him,
"What, you're gonna get your massive Rambo knife and saw your way through solid metal?" Steve rolled his eyes,
"Don't be ridiculous, Daniel. I'll just undo the access hatch bolts with this . . ." and with that he extracted a comprehensive Leatherman's multi-tool from one of his many pockets. He brandished it in Danny's face and then disappeared with a smirk. The detective couldn't help but smile as he turned to Chin,
"And of course he comes prepared for a little light aircraft maintenance." The two teammates waited in place and after a few minutes heard a commotion coming from the plane, followed by gun shots. The occupants of the jet came clattering down the plane steps and whirled around in panic when Chin and Danny showed themselves and shouted at them to surrender. The three men threw down their weapons and dropped to their knees as instructed.
Danny barked orders at them, "Hands behind your head, interlock your fingers and cross your legs." Between him and Chin they soon had the men zip-tied and laid face down on the tarmac. Danny waited with the prisoners and gestured towards the plane, "Go finish this, Chin."
The older man nodded and cautiously made his way up the steps. He dipped his head into the cabin to clear the area before he entered. Steve had secured Kray and was wrapping a towel around his shoulder to stem the flow of blood from the bullet that had been fired from Kono's rifle.
Daiyu Mei was slumped in a seat, her hands still fastened behind her back. She had been shot in the head and stared forward with lifeless eyes. Steve provided his teammate with a concise report, "Kray killed her in his panic when I popped up behind him. I put him down with a shot to the leg." It was then that Chin noticed a second towel wrapped around the rogue Chief's leg. Steve continued, "I need him to be in almost one piece for the CIA, I imagine there's some critical intel that they want to get out of this piece of shit. I'd put money on him still getting help from someone inside the agency."