Chapter 26
White climbs out of the SUV at the top of the estate. The rain is coming hard but his revenge heats him to the point where he barely notices.
Thunder and lighting will hide their advance. He indicates for 4 men to take the outbuilding where the faint glow of a lantern can be scene.
Her security no doubt.
The other 8 men will guide him into the house. Only the security is to be killed. They are the only danger White expects other than Bond and he really doubts the man could have make it back this fast.
His men never contacted him and that leads White to believe they are dead at the hands of James bloody Bond.
White wants M before he has the chance to get back to her. He will make her suffer and take one of her children into custody to ensure her future cooperation. White will rebuild Quantum from within the halls of Whitehall and MI6.
White receives a text from his niece Clare.
Is the troublesome one taken care of?
I am in the process of insuring our future in that matter right now.
So you took care of the young stallion and are making your way to the old mare now?
Yes
Keep her alive.
That was my plan. She will be less dangerous and extremely helpful in our pocket.
Good. Say hello to M for me.
Team one heads to the out building as they approach the front door. They test it and it is locked.
They brought a door buster to crash through and they do.
A woman screams...M?
One man lies unconscious on the floor of the front entrance way from the force of the door hitting him.
The torches further light up the sitting room and a man and woman.
"You six...the rest of the house. Bring me M!"
White moves into the room leaving two men standing by the door waiting for further orders.
By the glow of the fire to see two terrified people approximately late 30's. The woman is short with dark hair matching the man's but the eyes...it is all in the eyes.
White smiles a vicious smile.
"Well...well who do we have here? M has two children? This is good...although I am surprised the bitch was married at all. Your hair colouring must come from the father. I cannot picture M with anything but white, blonde hair, perhaps with a tinge of ginger."
Ryan tries to keep between the man and Judi but neither of them say anything.
"What? Not talkative? Not arrogant and as self assured as dear old mummy?"
"Where is the old girl? I owe her a bullet and she owes me whatever I want to take from her."
"Screw you...whoever you are!" Judi spits out.
"My god...I have found her...the younger version." White walks around so that he has a better view of Judi. "My but don't you look and sound like your dear mother. You my dear...you are going to be my leverage. I cannot think of a better hostage than the daughter who so reminds me of the wicked witch of a mother."
"NO!" Ryan shouts.
White raises his gun to the tall handsome son of the head of MI6.
"You...do not make any rules here and would be wise to remain quiet because I only need one hostage...and you can be dead for all I care. Let the bitch deal with seeing the blood run out of her son's body on her young lover's floor."
The two men come in to stand beside White.
White yanks Judi away from her brother and hands her to his men as he moves towards the stairs. He frowns wondering where the other men are...the house is large but not that large.
White's leg throbs where the bullet hit him in the dampness of the storm. Thunder and lightning continue. White turns to Judi very close to her.
"I wonder if I should just go up to the bedroom and spend some quiet time with your dear mother before I take you away. If you behave...I will be kind."
"Oh and I suppose threatening to rape my mother and shoot her is considered kind where ever you grew up...bastard!"
"Your mother owes me!"
"As if!"
"Christ you do have her spirit...as well as looks."
The pop pop sound of gunfire rings out from the back of the house. Grunts and smashes can be barely distinguished over the gusting wind and thunder.
Two men run in from the open front door with guns in their hands. One is bleeding from an arm wound. Their eyes widen as they take in the man on the floor and the woman in the older man's arms.
White holds the gun to Judi's head and places her in front of himself. There is shouting and fighting coming from upstairs now.
Judi and Ryan look shocked...there was no one up there.
Judi notices Tanner's shoe move slightly and his arm flop to his head. Thank god! Bill is coming around.
More crashing is heard as a man tumbles down the stairs to the bottom dead.
Daniel and Steven gave up their guns to White's men and move to help Tanner up.
"Everyone into the sitting room….now!" White orders. He waves the two remaining men to go try to close the door just as another body lands at the bottom of the stairs.
Shouting and gunfire continues in other parts of the house.
Tanner is placed barely conscious on the sofa and Ryan checks on him as Steven stands between them and White. Daniel is hurt and Ryan has his sit at the end of the sofa Tanner is on. Ryan then helps him tie up his bloody wound.
Thunder crashes...lightning flashes and screams are echoing from the upstairs.
White has begun to look nervous. His men are not rushing in with the target. The four he sent to the outbuilding must be dead.
MI6 trains M's security well. Then again they trained Mitchell also and that almost cost them. It almost cost them the woman he is hunting for.
"Everyone remain calm. I am sure once the chaos settles M will see reason and she and Bond will come to see that I still hold the best piece."
"You idiot! Bond was not even here and nor is my mother! I have no idea what is going on but there were only three of us here when you rudely broke down the bloody door!" Judi screams at him.
Ryan is whispering to the security and Tanner over by the sofa. While White is distracted by Judi.
They have all realized that Bond must have arrived home. It is the only explanation.
Thunder covers most of the sounds as the storm rages above. The wind howls into the house and a solitary figure comes from the back of the house and quietly works his way through the darkness to the sitting room.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Bond enters through the back kitchen and finds two armed men. Bond hits them fast and silently with the knife. Slitting their throats with silent efficiency. There must be more...he hears people in the front...and upstairs.
White is having them look for someone upstairs. M.
James takes the back staircase up to the second level two at a time. There are beams from torches as four shapes move between rooms. He hears one say all clear.
James takes his gun and unloads on the two closest to him. The other two dart into different rooms.
This is where it is about to get tricky.
James pulls the body of one man off the floor using him as a temporary shield of sorts. As he reaches the grand staircase he throws him down sending a message to others.
One of the men in Ryan's room busts out gun firing at shadows, as Bond is plastered against the side of the wall.
It is so dark...only the glow from downstairs and the occasional lightning strike illuminates the hall.
The gun arm comes out firing and Bond lurches towards it in the darkness. He fights the man...breaking his arm and taking the gun. Rolling on the floor and pulling the man with him as the other comes from across the hall.
The mercenary comes out of Judi's room firing his gun hitting his comrade instead of Bond. Bond lies still as he comes to check. Bond shoots his gun arm and jumps out from under the dead man.
James hears a satisfying crunch as he punches him in the face...dragging him all the while to the top of the grand staircase. Bond takes the handgun out of the man's holster and shoots him kicking his body down the stairs.
James walks back down the hall and gathers the other two bodies. Tossing them down with their dead compatriots.
James darts into his room. "M...it's me. Are you here?"
He checks the bath, closet and under the bed...there is utter silence. More thunder but dissipating now the storm is moving off.
Bond eases back to the rear stairs and makes his way silently through the kitchen. His advantage being how well he knows this house and exactly how to travel silently.
James hopes M made it to the tunnel with the family.
Cautiously he moves forward...there are voices...Judi is yelling. She tells White that Bond is not here and nor is M.
Where the hell is M?
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Bond moves silently along the hall. The door to the sitting room is closed. Bond needs to see what is going on in there.
James moves out the slightly open front door and moves along the outside of the house to see what is going on in the room. If M is in there with White.
Bond checks his gun...there is only one clip and as he peeks into the room he see's White's hands all over Judi.
The priest hole...that is the only way that he can get the jump on them. He knows the way even in the dark. He spent enough time in there in as a child.
Bond jogs across the moor to the tunnel exit by the lake. The door is decrepit but is still opens for him. Bond makes his way cautiously through the pitch dark tunnel.
There is a latch on the wrong side of the door but there is also a release that he knows about on the inside, as long as it still works.
James climbs the last hill to the house. He can see the glow from the room through the cracks around the hidden door.
James pauses to listen and unlatches the door. He holds it in place until he can get a visual on the positions of the two men and where White is with Judi in his arms.
Now James has another reason to want that man dead. Perhaps he will remove his hands first. As the revenge fantasies flood his head he hears the stressed voice of White.
"I don't hear anything else...one of you go look at the door."
One of the men moves to do as he commands and James uses it as his opportunity. The now distant rumblings of the lessening storm will not help him cover his arrival. Bond catches the eyes of Tanner, Ryan and the security man...Daniel and Steven as he shoots the closest guard and the one by the door.
Tanner and Ryan's eyes are open wide in shock at the speed at which Bond did it. Not fast enough to grab Judi from White's arms as he growls and turns facing Bond.
"Let her go and I won't kill you White."
"Where is M?"
"You are no longer asking questions her White. I have killed all your men. Tanner...guns please."
Tanner moves towards the mans body by the door and Steven takes the one closest to the tunnel door.
The three of them now surround White.
Judi realizes that she is the last piece and she no longer wants to be held by this man. Judi lifts her foot and crashes down onto White's, pulling away from him at the same time.
White tries to grab her again as Tanner smashes his gun down on the back of the man's head.
White falls to the ground as Judi falls forward into James.
The six of them sigh in relief. Judi smiles up at James and hugs him tight.
"Christ am I glad to see you home, James!"
"Where is M?"
Ryan helps Daniel up. "He needs medical attention. Are the roads passable?"
"They are rough but should still be passable to town."
"I will take him to hospital then...what about the rest of them?"
"Tanner?"
"I will contact HQ and get a team here as quickly as possible. The storm seems to be stopping."
Tanner walks out of the room down the hall to the command centre.
"Could someone please tell me where the love of my life is before I shoot something else?"
Judi laughs as Ryan leaves with Daniel. Steven moves to check all the bodies after zip tying and unconscious White to the radiator in the corner.
"Mum is with Kincade at the MacKenzie's for dinner and the storm was so bad they thought it better if they stayed over."
Bond's face contorts from dismay to anger and frustration.
"Why...is she there? I mean I am glad she missed this but Callum is going to be all over her and Kincade will be too bloody busy with Katrina to care. I need to get her."
Judi grabs his arm. "No Bond! Leave her where she is. I am positive she is safe and you will just make everything worse...how will you explain barging in to get her dripping wet and desperate to get at her? You know how she will feel about that."
"Damn it! Yes...I know...she will be embarrassed...humiliated."
"James...please...don't be so sure about that. She was panicked all day with you missing. We insisted she leave in order to get her out of the house. Once she knew you were alive...the light in her eyes. She kissed Tanner...you should have seen it."
Bond looks confused.
"I know James, it shocked the hell out of me and made me run upstairs crying because I swore she was after my...Tanner."
"Tanner? Again! I really need to speak with him about that."
"I already did and so did Ryan."
Tanner walks back into the room. "Six will be here as soon as they can. What do you want to do about the bodies?"
"Let's take them out to the shed. Jude could you grab a broom and clean around the door."
"Sure...what about him?"
"He isn't going anywhere."
Tanner looks at White. "I will take first watch."
"Fine but for now let's deal with the bodies. I will go collect M tomorrow."
"No...Kincade will bring her home James...please be patient. She knew you would be returning home tonight and she really wanted to be here but the storm was too bad."
Bond sighs and sits down palming his face and running his fingers through his hair. He is bone weary and soaking wet.
Judi moves and puts her hand on his shoulder. "Go take care of the bodies and then have a shower and go to bed. Tanner, Steven and I will take the first shifts with White."
Bond weakly mock salutes Judi.
"Yes ma'am...J."
"Not with the nickname again...J...come on!"
Bond stands and pulls her into a hug. Judi looks up at him and Bond leans down and kisses her.
Tanner walks into the room. He freezes for a second as he sees Judi in Bond's embrace.
Bond sees Tanner as he releases Judi. "Turnabout is fair play?"
Judi laughs and Bond smirks at him. "Yes...I heard about your lips all over my love again Tanner."
"And now you have yours...well...where they shouldn't be."
"I am just kissing my future daughter. That is allowed right?"
Tanner smiles as Judi holds out her hand for him. Tanner gladly grasps it and pulls her into a hug. So very relieved that this incident is all over.
Then he looks to the groaning figure on the floor in the corner...it isn't over until that man is at MI6 in chains for what he has done here, or dead by the hands of Bond for his threats against M.
"Come on loverboy...we have bodies to move before I can sleep."
"I'm just shocked you're not off to get M no matter what."
"I need sleep and I would not want to disappoint M with my inability to perform due to fatigue."
"James! I don't need to hear that." Judi laughs, "But your right. She is going to jump you the second she gets home. I am sure you will spend the entire day in your room."
James smiles. "That we will J. Without a doubt."
To be continued…