Drakes POV
I trust Charles, I really want to believe that everything he just said is the truth, but I just couldn’t shake off the feeling that this is a trap. It feels like I’m being set up, and no matter how I wish for it to be true, it just isn’t. Austin is up to something, and I intend to find out what it is before he takes me unaware. I drove downtown to the suburbs where I visited him earlier, but I did not rush to the rescue like everyone expected me to. I took my precious time to investigate properly and make sure I was not walking into a trap.
It’s a good thing that I took precautions, if I had rushed into that house to save Charles and Raymond, we would all be dead by now. I parked my car a few blocks away, then we got down from our cars, leaving the drivers in the cars to watch our backs and keep a close eye on our exit route so they don’t seal off every entrance. They were warned to stay alert and report back to me if they notice anything suspicious. The rest of the guys disguised themselves as street urchins and moved around freely, with their comms in their ears that they used to report back to me. I also went in disguise and I went around his building, searching every street and corner for anything out of the ordinary.
It took me only a few minutes to realize that he was right, after all. The Russians were lurking around his building, but they weren’t only two guys like he had reported to me, they were way more than that, and they were scattered throughout the area, keeping watch of his building and its environment. With the number of Russians I saw in the area, I was forced to believe that he is lying to me as I suspected.
No doubt, the black van was parked in front of his house as he reported to me, but my boys found Russian thugs, working on his premises, installing something we do not recognize. And at the same time, we saw many more Russian thugs, hanging around the area, pretending to be doing something else when in reality, they were just carrying out their mission, watching the house and keeping a close eye on Charles and Ray.
From the setup and their strategy, it seems like they were setting a trap for me, and I nearly dismissed Charles Harvey as a traitor, then one of my guys reported that he could recognize what the Russians were doing in the building. They were not installing something as I thought, rather, they were tampering with the gas installation and trying to set a bomb that would set off a huge explosion in the building, a bomb that would kill not Charles and Ray, and also anyone within a few blocks.
And that is not even the tricky part here. The trick part is that they are going to make it look like a gas explosion. It can never be traced back to the Russians, and if a serious investigation is carried out, they will only find tools and some part of the materials used for the bomb. These materials could be traced back to the Osborne cooperation, it’s part of the materials that were recently ordered in by our science and technology department, and it is supposed to be used to create something that could benefit the whole city or the entire world at large.
But here it is, being used to kill almost ten thousand people, simply because one man refused to do the bidding of a desperate Russian idiot called Austin Foster. He must have gone bonkers because I destroyed his operations and put a stop to his smuggling business. He has no sense of direction anymore, and he has lost all sense of reasoning. That must be why he wants to destroy an entire town with all the people in it.
I’m sure he wouldn’t want to kill all his guys as well, no matter what happens, he still needs them to protect him from me, so there is no way that he would set off these charges while they are still here. He would probably hit the trigger button a few minutes after his guys evacuate the blast radius. If I want to do anything about this bomb, I’ll need to act now that they are still setting it on us, and that means that I have only a few minutes to get Charles and Ray out of here and also diffuse a bomb, or at least stop them from finishing the setup. One thing is certain though, I’m not letting them leave this place until I’m sure the bomb has been diffused successfully.
“Okay guys, it’s been confirmed. These guys are going to blow up these innocent civilians. We have two jobs here, and then we are out of this dump. We get Charles and his son out safely, and at the same time, we deal with the Russians and diffuse the bomb before the charges are completely set. Show no mercy, and be extremely careful guys!
Let’s go!” I instructed them firmly, then I split the guys into three groups, I sent the first group to sneak around the area and take out all the Russian freaks hanging around, then the second team were going straight into the building to get Charles and Ray out. I would lead the second team because Charles would not open up to anyone he doesn’t trust. The last team had the most important task, they were going to hijack the Russian dudes that are fixing the bomb, and they will force them to diffuse it or lose their lives on that spot. I’m sure they can bully them into submission, I just hope that they aren’t a bunch of suicidal folks that would go for the death penalty instead. If that is the case then we are so fucking dead.
I gave the order, and we all went our separate ways, going to can’t out the different operation. The guys going around had silencers on their guns, so I don’t know if they were doing okay over there. I was not hearing gunshots being fired, and I didn’t get a report on our communication device, so I assumed everything was going as planned. I maneuvered to the building and I found myself in front of Charles door once more. I tapped softly on the door, whispering to him that I was the one so he can come over and open the door.
“How could you let this happen, how could you do this to me, Drake?
I trusted you!
I thought you were different from the rest of your family, but it seems I was wrong. An Osborne will always be an Osborne, no matter what. You betrayed me, Drake, and I’ll never forgive you for this, I’ll never let this slide, and I’ll never trust you again!” he let out furiously when I got into the house, banging his fist on the table and thrashing some things on the floor. I would have loved to explain my reasons for coming this late to him, but I don’t think we have the time for all of that…
“In case you’ve not noticed, Charles, there is a gas leak on this block. The Russians are trying to blow up this building with you inside. My guys are currently working on a plan to stop them, but I have no idea if the mission will go as planned. So I’ll suggest you pick up a few important stuffs and follow me out of here, rather than standing here and arguing about irrelevant things.” I told him sternly, earning a shocked gasp from him as he ran around like a headless chicken, trying to gather a few stuff.
“This is all your fault, Drake!
You fucking led them to my house and I blame you for all of this. You are the godfather, you know how these guys cooperate, yet you made yourself available to be tracked, you were ticking vulnerable, and they took advantage of your vulnerability!” He continued scolding me like a ducking child as he got his stuff together. I know I deserve his scolding because he is right.
I just made him homeless again because of my carelessness. When he asked me to come to get him and his son out of there, he didn’t bother to pack up anything because he thought he was going to get back home when all this is over. He didn’t know that the Russians would try to kill him and everyone else around. Now he has to go into hiding again until I handle these guys. In a few minutes, he was done, and we were set to evacuate the building.
As we got out, I noticed that the Russians weren’t ready to diffuse the bomb, just as I feared. They were ready to die along with the rest of us and I had no fucking time or energy to pamper anyone right now. I called one of my guys over and I instructed him to take Charles and his son to the car and drive them back to my house by the beach. I have enough space to accommodate them, and I know Mia wouldn’t mind their presence in our home. With them out of the way, I dialed the cops immediately to report the situation at hand, then I sent a few guys to alert everyone to the dangers and help to evacuate the buildings. When I was done, I turned around and faced the idiots squarely, and I gazed at them with blazing eyes, daring them to challenge me.
“Gotovy li vy dobrovol’no obezvredit’ etu bombu ili khotite yeshche raz ispytat’ moye terpeniye? – yarostno potreboval ya, vytaskivaya pistolet iz karmana.”
“Are you ready to diffuse that bomb willingly, or would you like to test my patience further?” I demanded furiously pulling my gun out of my pocket. I fired a few warning shots, hitting them at deadly spots that would cause fatal damage, watching them bleed and scream in pain. I could hear the device they were working on, it was beeping so and have no idea if it was about to go off, I could only yell and scream at my boys, urging them to hurry up with the evacuation so I can deal with these losers and give them what they truly deserve.
I got a message from one of the guys keeping watch on the road leading to this place. The cop cars just moved past them, so it’s safe to say that this entire surrounding would be surrounded by cops in a few minutes, and I’m pretty sure that the cops came with an expert to diffuse the bomb and someone from the gas company that can fix the gas leakage before it caused more damage than it already has.
I was asked to clear the area before the bomb experts diffused the bomb. I don’t want to leave these guys with the cops because they cannot handle them the way I want. They would probably send them to the hospital and that would work in their favor because they want to leave this danger zone as well. The moment they leave this place, they may set off the charges, and that is what they are aiming for.
We were in the compound, and the cops have surrounded the building already, and they were calling out to me and anyone else in the building, urging us to come out quickly before the bomb experts begin with the bomb diffusing. I decided to knock them out and leave the lying in a pool of blood as if they have been shot dead. That is the only way to keep them here without drawing attention to them.
I’m sure the guys won’t bother about a few dead Russians, they will leave them right there while they work on diffusing the bomb. But if they didn’t succeed and the bomb goes off, I’ll be happy to know that the fools who set this bomb were killed as well. I banged their head very hard with the tilt of my gun, and when I was sure that they have passed out, I cleaned my gun and hid it behind me, then I left the building, with my hands raised up in surrender. I know they weren’t going to shoot or ask too many questions because they know me already.
But I chose to come out this way just for mere formalities and to clear myself of all suspicion in case they later find out that the Russian guys are not actually dead. They must never know that I have a hand in any of this, it would Ruin my name and or family. I’m sure they won’t find out my involvement in all this, I made sure I left no clue, none at all. No matter what happens when I’m out of here, I’m still going to be glad because I managed to get Charles and Raymond out safely.