Rose Bk. 02 (The Novel)

I counted the seconds it would take judging by their speed and frowned as the police car came around the other side of the block.

"Where are they?" Jones asked.

I nodded, "Something's up."

As the police car approached, the dark sedan reappeared. Seeing the cop coming, it veered hard, taking the corner much too fast for comfort. Then, while not exceeding the speed limit, it powered hard down towards us, before turning down a side road heading back towards town. The police car was only a moment behind them, activating its lights as it went past us.

"What is this, amateur hour?" Jones sighed.

I nodded slowly, before shaking my head. "I keep wondering about how this all worked for so long. Do the authorities know and did nothing, is there some conspiracy? Or is it literally just the only people put in charge are dumb enough to chase ghosts and never end up finding anything important?"

"Could be both," Jones nodded at the smaller sedan that pulled out of the alleyway. "Maybe whoever's in charge puts the less than competent in charge of investigating it, knowing they'll fail."

That was something to think about. It would also mean that the police, or at least the upper echelon of them were involved somehow. The sedan we suspected had the gang member turned down a road just in front of us. I pulled out and followed around the corner. Unlike the cop, I kept my distance. The roads this far out were more standard. Fewer places to vanish or twist around to lose a pursuer. At least without a distraction and a change of vehicles, anyway.

We followed them for another twenty minutes before the sedan pulled into a warehouse. I switched off the lights on my car as I followed them. Pulling up, I kept us obscured, but within sight as the doors of the car opened. Picking up my binoculars, I heard the snap of the camera as Jones photographed the situation. Jones knew what he was doing and so I looked at the situation. The guy we were after was yelling at someone who looked like they were about to shit themselves. But there was a lot more going on. There were people there. Most looked like they wanted nothing to do with the guy.

One walked past and knocked on a door and I glimpsed light as a peephole opened. A moment later, the door opened, and the guy stepped inside. I frowned.

"You see that?" Jones asked, snapping another photo.

"He was armed," I nodded, recognising the sight of a kalashnikov. The world's most common rifle and just about unique in looks. Except for the Type 56 at least.

"How do we wanna do this?" Jones asked.

I frowned and thought for a moment as the guy I wanted went up to the same door with his people, including one who looked like he was about to keel over. He bashed on the door and the flash of light illuminated for only a split second before the door opened and the group headed inside.

"Let's pull in, wait for a calm moment and see if we can get that guy to open the door."

Jones nodded, "Frontal assault?"

"Almost," I nodded. "Try to keep it quiet, at least for the meantime."

"Got it."

I drove around to the entrance and pulled in, just a few spaces down from their leader's car. The vehicles in the lot were of all sorts. But more often than not they were expensive.

"So have we got a name for this guy, or not?"

I frowned, "Y'know, I never asked. Lori didn't mention anything."

Jones snorted and pulled out his phone. He tapped away and paused for a few moments. Then it buzzed.

"Adrian."

I raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Do you want to be the one to ask her that?"

I snorted and shook my head, before pulling out the keys. "No way in hell. I'm just surprised he has such an ordinary name. Figured this asshole would change it to something and just, Adrian, is so ordinary."

Jones shrugged, "Ordinary people can be bad guys. Besides, you think Alexander the Great went by that name in person?"

"Probably not," I admitted.

"So what are we waiting for?"

I glanced around the parking lot and shrugged, "Technically nothing. It's quiet enough now."

"Let's go then."

We climbed out of the car and headed around to the back. We opened the bags and got our weapons ready. The HK's we both carried were already fitted with the suppressors. The M4's, not so. Leaning back, I looked over the building.

"No cameras anywhere."

"Cameras can be subpoenaed," Jones mumbled.

I frowned and thought that was probably likely. If there were illegal things going on inside that wouldn't be good for business.

"I'm thinking I get the door, you hide and when he opens it, we drag him out."

"Fair, make sure your knife is handy then."

I nodded, before freezing as I heard the door open. Two men stepped out, mumbling something to the door guard.

"Fuck I love to make em squeal like that," the first laughed.

The second shook his head, "Perfectly good pussy and you cram it into their arse."

"What's wrong with an arse?"

"I'm not a poofter."

"You think I am?"

"You're the one prison fucking a dry whore's ass, you tell me."

The two men stared at one another for a moment before they both burst into laughter. Ignoring us completely, they moved down the line and climbed into a fancy-looking Mercedes. I exchanged a look with Jones, who had a dark look on his face. He'd seen the same shit I had, probably more since he served longer than I did. We knew that kind of talk, and we recognised this kind of place. Neither of us was looking forward to what was inside.

As the Mercedes left, Jones shouldered his rifle, before taking the strap for mine and adding it. I took my HK and attached it to my right hip. My knife, I strapped on the left. Flipping my oversized shirt over the gun, I tested how to stand to hide the knife. Then I nodded at Jones.

"Come on, you stand aside so he can't see you."

"Got it," Jones nodded.

We made our way to the door of the large building and I gave Jones a moment to press himself against the wall on the side the door opened. He gave me a nod, and I grasped the hilt of my knife to make sure it was comfortable. Then I knocked. The peephole was a metal plate that slid to one side. The man's eyes narrowed for a moment.

"Password?"

"Errr," I blinked.

The slider shut. I sighed and knocked again. The slider opened and the same man was standing there.

"Password?"

"Here to drop off some stuff for Adrian."

The slider shut, and I glanced at Jones, before the slider opened again. "How much?"

"A kilo."

The slider shut, and I shook my head slowly. There was a click from the door before it swung open.

"Fuck you guys are so late-"

My knife slammed into his throat as I hauled him out the door. Jones jammed his foot in the doorway and leaned in with his HK raised to check as I dragged the bouncer out into the parking lot. He struggled weakly, but he was both bleeding and unable to breathe from the piece of metal in his neck. I heard the clatter of something hit the ground and a pair of bloody fingers grabbed at my knife hand as I spotted a handgun laying in the dirt.

Spinning I dumped him in a heap between two parked cars, pulling out the knife at the same time. A spurt of blood came from his wound as he choked out a cough, gripping his neck to stem the flow. I raised my boot and tried not to feel satisfied about the dull thunk of his head bouncing off the concrete. A second kick and he didn't seem to mind either.

Looking back at Jones, he was waiting calmly. With a last glance at the mostly expired bouncer, I jogged quickly back over to Jones and followed him inside, only pausing to grab the handgun. The kalashnikov wasn't something we needed to haul around. It was a dark room with several doors that led further inside. There were signs on two doors to indicate staff and customers. But there was a third door unlabeled with a heavy lock on it. We stepped into the room and closed the door behind us.

"Here," Jones said.

I turned and took the balaclava he offered as he slipped one on himself. I nodded and did the same while Jones looked around.

"It's got a deadlock," Jones nodded as I got my balaclava comfortable.

I looked down and sure enough I could see the keys sticking out. Turning them, the bolt slid shut, and I pocketed the keys.

"Now nobody can sneak in behind us."

Jones smirked, "Sweep and clear?"

"Not quite. Anyone with their dick in something they shouldn't, or holding a weapon. I'm not about to shoot someone for coming in for a drink."

"Works for me."

I nodded and took my M4, tossing it over my shoulder. For now, I drew my HK to keep things quiet beside the knife.

"Staff or customers?"

I nodded at the staff door, "There first. Staff are most likely to be dangerous. Customers will probably just try to run."

Jones nodded and gave me the go ahead. Stepping up, I tested the door, and it opened without a lock. Pushing inside I could hear the beat of soft music through a long corridor. There were several doors on either side, but the ones on the left were much closer together. Strolling quietly into the corridor, I grabbed the first handle and was surprised to find it wasn't locked. Pushing the door open, I took stock of the space. It was mostly storage. A few large wooden crates big enough for a person and a few smaller. Otherwise nothing of genuine interest.

Stepping back into the hall, we moved to the next room. This one seemed like it was some kind of bunkhouse, crossed with a prison cell. One dim lightbulb in the centre of the room, a series of bunks and an exposed toilet at one end. Then there were the rows of dressers, makeup and perfume that were set out.

"I think they probably have more than just cows here," I growled.

Jones nodded, "Let's go."

I had heard that tone before. That was the tone he used when things were about to go wrong. When the lead would fly. The next door was on the right and it looked like whatever room was beyond was much, much larger. That also made us cautious. With Jones ready to follow me in, I opened the door and stepped in. Immediately my eyes were drawn to the sight of over a dozen, nude women of various ages. They turned with fearful expressions before shrieking in terror as they saw the guns.

Which was obviously when my arms were tackled down by the guard in the room. He was big and snarled as his weight slammed into me. I flailed and fell back before I heard a pop and the man stiffened. Jones's boot slammed into the side of his head, causing him to tumble off me. He groaned from his spot on the ground. I raised my gun and put another between his eyes, silencing him permanently.

"Please don't hurt us!" one woman begged.

She was older than most of the others. Her face looked like it was a little swollen on one side and she had a scar on her cheek. She was standing between us and the other women who were pushing themselves against the back of the room. The room itself had several tiers like steps for the ladies to sit on, with the opposite wall made of perspex. I could see a door on the other side of the window and frowned when I realised that was where the customers entered. This was a slave brothel on top of a drug den.

"I'll be good to you, I swear. There's no need for more violence. I can keep you very, very happy."

I glanced at Jones. The look in his eyes was the one I recognised. We'd found victims before and I feared how many more we'd find.

"If you want to help," I told the woman. "Drag him to the back and keep him out of sight."

She blinked and looked down at the corpse. "What will you do with us?"

"After I kill every motherfucker in this building, I'm going to open the front doors, let you out and leave."

The woman blinked, "What?"

"I can go home?" One of the younger women asked.

"We're leaving?"

"Where are we going?"

"Shut it!" The first woman snapped. Then she turned back to me. "What can we do to help?"

Reaching into my pocket, I pulled out the handgun I'd taken from the bouncer. The woman held her nerve as I stepped closer and frowned when I held it out to her.

"Take it," I hissed.

The woman blinked and gently took the gun from me. She held it with an odd confidence, before she ejected the magazine and cleared the chamber. Then re-seated the magazine and looked at me.

"Why did you give me this?"

"I'm guessing there's still girls out in those rooms?" The woman nodded. "Then I'm going to be sending them back here one by one. Is there a secret-"

The door opened, and a man stuck his head in. "Harry, I'm taking this bitch to the basement, she bit her client and... Who the-"

BANG!

I flinched as the shot went off. The woman was breathing heavily and a woman's scream came from out in the hall. As the corpse hit the ground, Jones darted out and the sounds of a woman crying made way to a terrified, bruised young woman being dragged back into the room.

"NO! Please!?"

"Candice!"

The woman looked up, seeing the older woman with the gun. "Harper? What's going on?"

Jones, with the woman inside, let her go. She gave Jones a frightened look before running past me into the older woman's arms.

"It's okay dear, they're getting us out."

"You have a gun," Candice mumbled. "You... You shot Dan."

"I did dear, yes."

"Adrian is going to be mad."

"Adrian isn't going to live out the night," I growled.

The old woman looked at me and nodded. "He's probably in his private rooms. They're in the basement and..." She frowned for a moment.

"A woman, but not quite? They have four nipples, little horns and hooves, right?"

The old woman frowned and nodded her head, "You're here for them, aren't you?"

I nodded, "You have access to the television, or the news?"

"You're him," she blinked. "You're the one they've been worried about."

"Probably," I shrugged. "I've been hunting the assholes keeping slaves. Cows come home with me where I can look after them properly. The rest," I gestured at the mostly silent women in the room. "I'm sure once you call the police and explain the situation, someone will be by to look after you."

"When you say looked after..."

"I literally have a farm. I pretty much treat them like my wives," I shrugged. "I accidentally found Rose and rescued her, then I rescued her sisters and now it's a bit of a thing. I've been tracking down owners and if they're abusing their cows, I take them away."

"And if they're not?"

I smiled, "It only happened once so far. She was going to try and kill me if I wanted to take her. So I left well enough alone. I will not force compliance if it's going to hurt a cow."

"They're innocent," she nodded.

"Innocent," I agreed.

She huffed for a moment, "Right, well. You... do what you need to do I suppose."

"You keep that gun out of sight. That perspex probably isn't bulletproof." She frowned and nodded. "Probably also wanna get this guy out of sight as well."

With that, I gave Jones a nod, and we made our way out. Behind us, chatter sprang up, but we ignored it. The next room down was the same as the second. Just more bunks and space for the ladies to dress themselves up. The fourth room however, had noises coming from it. Opening the door, I froze at the sight of a pale woman laying in the middle of the bed. There was a needle in her arm and her eyes were glazed as a man thrust between her legs.

"What the fuck is this?" He grumbled, getting to his feet.

I shot him in the head and ignored the thump as he went down in a spray of gore. Rushing over to the woman, I pulled the needle from her arm. Checking her pulse, it was steady, and she murmured as I touched her. Scooping her into my arms, Jones growed furiously as he stepped back into the hall. Carrying the woman back, the old woman jumped in fight as we came back in. But when she saw the woman, she frowned.

"Cindy..."

"Her John is dead," I growled.

The woman nodded coming over to help, with one of the other women a step behind. They took her and brought her back to lie down.

"Maybe take her and one more to keep an eye on her, into one of the bunk rooms?"

The woman nodded, "I might do that, yeah. Nobody will check on us for a while yet."

"Good," I nodded. "We'll keep going then."

Jones led the way to the next room. It opened to a rather empty room, with a shower running. Before I could ask the plan, Jones stormed in and yanked the door to the bathroom open. Inside was a man being fellated by a woman. She pulled away with a squeal of fright as Jones grabbed the man by the hair and hauled him out.

"Fuckfuckfuck! What, what'd I do?"

Jones threw him to the ground and kicked him in the ribs. I left him to his stress relief and went into the bathroom where the woman was staring at me in horror.

"Please! No!"

"I'm not going to hurt you," I said, turning off the shower. She clearly didn't believe me as she struggled as I took her by the hand and directed her out into the hall. "Big viewing room. The older lady has a gun, we're getting you out."

As I released her, she ran. Whether or not she believed me, the sounds coming from inside told me it probably didn't matter. I glanced back, seeing a mix of red and yellow as the man pissed himself. Shaking my head, I stepped out of the hall as a man in a well-dressed suit stepped out of the room with his phone to his ear.

"-Bit me, can you fucking believe that?" He turned and spotted me. Freezing in place he looked at the gun as I raised it. "Look, something came up. I'm going to have to call you back."

I watched him go to put his phone in his pocket, but I held out my hand. He sighed and passed it to me, where I could see that he hadn't actually hung up. Tapping the button, I handed him back his phone.

"So... What now?" He asked.

"You the one that got bitten?"

He frowned, "Bitch, yeah. I only slapped her a few times, Adrian told me she was good for it."

I nodded slowly and lowered the pistol. I saw the relief flash through his expression before I shot him in the liver. He gasped and collapsed on the ground. Opening his mouth to yell, I shot him in the face, ending him before he could call for help.

"You good?" Jones asked.

I glanced back at him. He was standing tall and seemed to be under control of himself now. I nodded, "Let's go."

"You're on point."

I nodded and moved to the next room. Opening the door, there was a middle-aged woman giving an older man a blow job. She pulled back with a yelp and the man held up his hands. I looked at the woman and nodded at the door.

"Viewing room, now."

She scrambled to her feet and dashed out of the room. The older man sighed softly. I stepped up, and he gave me a confident smirk.

"Do you have any idea who I am, young man?"

"Nope," I shrugged, and backhanded him with my handgun.

His head snapped to one side as blood and teeth followed the movement. Grabbing him by the shoulder I yanked him off the bed and onto the floor. I looked around and spotted a belt, which I used to bind his hands behind his back.

"Wait here," I growled as he moaned in pain.

The next room down was empty, leaving one final door on the right. The music was coming from here and I exchanged a look with Jones who nodded. Slipping our HK's away, we brought our M4's around, readying them as I reached for the door handle.

Chapter Seven

There was no need to open the door with any measure of stealth. But from the sounds coming from inside, we figured kicking it open would do more bad than good. So I pressed down on the handle and nudged it open with my boot so we could see inside. The room was relatively dark with a few light machines pulsing to the beat of the music. There was a bar directly across where a nude woman was serving drinks. To the left was a large stage. On it was a bound and gagged woman. She was suspended upside down with her legs spread open, before a group of men and women who were drinking and enjoying the revelry. I watched as a man in a leather outfit came out from behind a curtain with a lit candle. The crowd laughed as he brought the flame closer to her genitals. Then screamed as his brain matter exploded out the back of his head.