Hollow Point

  Hollow Point

  The Silencer Series

  Mike Ryan

  Copyright © 2018 by Mike Ryan

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  About the Author

  Also by Mike Ryan

  1

  Recker had just arrived at the favorite meeting spot of his and Vincent’s. Though he was a few minutes early, he looked over at the door and saw the burly man at his usual spot, indicating his host for the meeting was already waiting inside. Recker got out of his car and walked over to the front entrance, opening his coat to remove his gun. The guard put his hand up to stop him.

  “Boss says you can keep your guns from now on,” the man said.

  “Oh?”

  “Guess he figured since you saved his life you get a free pass now.”

  “Well I suppose I’m entitled to some benefits from it,” Recker said.

  Recker walked through the door and was immediately greeted by Malloy. Though a mutual respect had grown between the two men over the years, they still weren’t on handshake terms upon seeing each other. It was the same as always. They gave each other a slight nod, then moved on to their business. Recker went down to the usual table, sitting across from Vincent, who had just finished his breakfast.

  “Mike, how are you?” Vincent asked.

  “Fine.”

  Vincent pointed to his plate. “Can I offer you something?”

  “No, I’m good.”

  “Had a feeling you would be. I know you usually don’t join me in these little excursions, so I took the liberty of eating beforehand.”

  “My eating habits have changed a little bit lately. Eat more healthy, home cooked stuff.”

  “A wise decision on your part,” Vincent said, patting his stomach. “I think I may have put on a few extra pounds from all these outside meals I’ve had.”

  The two men shared a laugh at his self-depreciation, though Recker was still in the dark as to what the meeting was about. When Malloy called him to request it, he didn’t give any indications as to the topic they’d be discussing. And Recker couldn’t figure out on his own what Vincent may have wanted. It’d been three months since Recker and Haley took out the assassin who was gunning for the crime boss. Since that violent day, they’d kept their distance from each other, though not necessarily on purpose. They just had no other business that required their cooperation in that time.

  As far as Recker knew, nothing major had happened recently that would cause either of them to need assistance on anything, so he was at a loss as to what he was really doing there. And Vincent wasn’t one to always get straight to the point. Sometimes he liked to run in circles for a little while until he reached his destination. Something Recker would just as soon avoid.

  “So what’s this about?” Recker said, hoping to speed things up a bit.

  Vincent smiled, always appreciating how his guest liked to skip the formalities and get down to business. “Always the straight shooter.”

  Recker shrugged. “I dunno, I just figure we’re both busy people, have a lot on our plate, why prolong things? Plus, we’re on good terms, no need to beat around the bush, right?”

  “Indeed,” Vincent said, wiping his mouth with a napkin. “I just thought we might chat about a few things that have happened over the last several months. Some things that I’ve been hearing.”

  “Such as?” Recker asked, not having the slightest idea about what he was inferring.

  “Well, I’ve been hearing that business has picked up quite a bit on your end.”

  “It’s been pretty steady. That’s really nothing new.”

  “No, but you must be tired. You seem to be spreading yourself pretty thin lately.”

  Recker shook his head, knowing there was something else Vincent was leading up to. “I’m holding up just fine.”

  “I’m sure. You have broad shoulders, a passion for this line of work that never dies or wanes.”

  Recker grinned and scratched the back of his head, still waiting for the purpose of the meeting. He wasn’t yet irritated by the runaround, but was growing a little impatient. He tossed his left hand in the air to indicate he didn’t have any response.

  “Very well, I’ll stop this little charade that we’re having,” Vincent said, picking up on Recker’s clue that he wasn’t partaking in the game anymore.

  “I’d appreciate it.”

  “There’s been some rumors, some rumblings, that you’ve expanded your operation lately.”

  “There has?”

  Vincent nodded. “It’s been brought to my attention that there have been witnesses to you working with another man. Word seems to be getting around.”

  Recker looked stone-faced, as he knew Vincent usually picked up on visual clues to his questions as much as he listened to the actual responses. And this was a question he really had no interest in answering.

  “You know you should never believe everything you hear,” Recker said.

  “A very good business practice.”

  “So, is that it? That’s what this is about? The possibility of me having more assistants out there?”

  Vincent nodded, and looked at the ceiling, measuring his words carefully. “We have a good relationship that we’ve built up over the years. Whether you have other people you’re working with or not isn’t really of my concern. You’ll do your business in whatever way you see fit.”

  “Then what’s the issue?”

  “Well, as you know, a man in my position has to be well aware of what’s going on around him. Has to know all the possible players in the field, who’s on the same side, who are enemies, what might be some possible situations that could have to be dealt with at some later date in the future.”

  “Whether these so-called rumors are true or not isn’t really something you need to be concerned with,” Recker said, still not giving in.

  “Well, that might be something that we disagree on,” Vincent replied, motioning with his hands for emphasis before folding them together on the table.

  “You should know that whether I do or do not have help out in the field isn’t something you need to worry about. It has nothing to do with our arrangement.”

  Vincent nodded, knowing he was unlikely to pry out of his visitor the information he was seeking, though he still felt the need to ask the questions. “So, if these rumors turned out to be true . . .”

  “Then, presumably, it might be something as simple as just having someone out there to watch my back. Hypothetically speaking,” Recker said, sticking to his guns and not revealing what they both knew to be true.

  It wasn’t necessarily that he was trying to hide the information from Vincent. Recker always knew he’d probably be among the first to find out, especially with his contacts all over the city. It was more of a personal thing with Recker. He just didn’t want to admit to anyone there was a new member of their operation before it was necessary. For Vincent’s part, he wasn’t going to continue to force the issue. He felt he had the answer to his question, whether Recker admitted it or not.

  “I can see how, hypothetically, something like
that might be a good idea,” Vincent said. “Especially with some of the situations you wind up getting placed in.”

  “Yeah.”

  “I hope you don’t mind the probing questions. I’m sure you understand my position, always having to be aware of any new players in town.”

  “No, I get it. But as far as you and I are concerned, nothing changes.”

  “Good to know. So how has David been these past few months?”

  “Good. Busy.”

  “I can imagine. An operation such as yours must take a lot of time to maintain.”

  Recker shrugged. “We make do.”

  “I guess if you ever did take on another partner, it’d enable you to spend more time at home with your girlfriend.”

  Recker’s eyes almost bulged out of his head hearing him talk about his girlfriend. It wasn’t something he’d ever mentioned in any of their conversations. He hoped Vincent wasn’t about to strong-arm him the way Jeremiah tried to, putting Mia in the middle of things. Vincent could see his guest looked a little unnerved with his statement and tried to put his mind at ease.

  “Relax,” Vincent said, putting his hand out. “I’m not trying to dig into your personal life, or create some type of friction or anything. I’ve already heard how that turns out.”

  Recker lifted his head up, not saying a word. But he didn’t have to. His facial expressions did all the talking for him.

  “Yes, I’ve heard about how Jeremiah tried to use her to get to me.”

  “How?” Recker asked.

  “You forget, there are still a few of Jeremiah’s men roaming around,” Vincent said. “I’ve been able to have the pleasure of speaking with a few of them.”

  “And what’d they have to say?”

  “Just how they tried to use the girl to persuade you to do their dirty work. Obviously, that was an epic fail on their part.”

  “It would be an epic fail on anyone’s part,” Recker said, trying to give a warning without making a direct threat. Nobody would ever use Mia to get to him again.

  “I would agree. She was the, uhh, the nurse that I helped to rescue, wasn’t she?” Vincent asked with a smile.

  Recker shuffled around in his seat, just about ready to light into his host with a bunch of words he probably shouldn’t say. He somehow could put those thoughts aside for the moment and remain diplomatic.

  “And just what do you plan to do with all this newfound knowledge of yours?”

  “Nothing,” Vincent answered. “We’re just two friends sitting here, discussing our lives like regular people do.”

  “Except we’re not regular people.”

  “True. But I think it only serves to strengthen the bond between us. There are rumors that there is another dangerous person in town, perhaps working with you, perhaps not. But I’m not worrying about it because you have told me there’s nothing to worry about.”

  “Yeah?” Recker said, knowing he wasn’t done with his speech.

  “And I know you have a girlfriend who works at a hospital. A woman who has been caught up in a dangerous game before by a man who was obviously losing his grip. And it’s not something you should worry about because I’m telling you there’s nothing to worry about.”

  “I think I see where you’re going with this.”

  “We’ve been through a lot together these past few years, haven’t we?” Vincent asked, almost happily recalling memories most normal people would rather forget.

  “Yeah, I guess we have. So, how’s it felt being the only main player in town these past few months?”

  “Well, there’s always going to be minor nuisances here and there. People who want a bigger piece of the pie. Nothing that’s really at a threatening level though.”

  “And are you satisfied with that? The power and territory that you have now. Or is there still more you’d like to accomplish?”

  “Well, as you know, my enemies disappearing these past couple of years has happened at a surprising and breakneck speed. There’s still much to do just maintaining and growing the business of what I now have. I’m quite comfortable in that for now.”

  The two men continued talking for another twenty minutes or so, neither saying anything of much significance. It was mostly just small talk, passing the time. As they both got ready to leave, though, Vincent dropped another little bomb in Recker’s direction.

  “Before we go, there was one more small thing I wanted to talk to you about,” Vincent said.

  “Which is?”

  “As you know, I have several members of the police department at my disposal.”

  “Yeah?” Recker asked, not sure where this dialog was going.

  “How would you feel about meeting one of them?”

  “I’ve already had the pleasure. If you recall, that was one of the conditions of Jeremiah’s demise.”

  Vincent feigned a look of ignorance. “Yes, of course. This would be someone different, though. Someone who is very interested in meeting you.”

  “I can’t say I share the same viewpoint,” Recker said, not sounding the slightest bit interested in the proposal.

  “I’ll pass it along.”

  “Just out of curiosity, who would this officer be?”

  “A detective.”

  “And just why does he want to meet me?”

  “He’s a fan of your work,” Vincent said.

  “Excuse me if I’m not all warm and fuzzy about being someone’s idol, but I don’t think I mix particularly well with those on the other side of the line.”

  “Understood, but he’s not looking to arrest you. I believe he has some business he’s interested in discussing with you.”

  “So why can’t you just tell me what it is?”

  Vincent shrugged. “Because I don’t know all the particulars. I believe it’s a police matter.”

  “And he didn’t share with you?”

  “Well, just because he’s on my payroll doesn’t mean he isn’t his own person. I don’t get firsthand knowledge of everything that comes across his desk.”

  “Just the things that pertain to you?” Recker asked.

  “Or things that I have a personal interest or stake in.”

  “I’m not sure that meeting with a detective is something I’m really interested in doing right now. I don’t think it’s too wise for me to play around too frequently with people who have the ability to lock me up.”

  “As you wish. I’ll deliver the news if that’s your final answer. I’m sure he could make it worth your while, though.”

  “No, it’s OK. I still think I’ll pass on the offer. The more I associate with the police, the surer I’d be that something would eventually go wrong.”

  “Always play things cautiously,” Vincent said.

  “No different than you, right?”

  Vincent nodded. The two men only talked for a few minutes more before Recker excused himself and left the diner. He called Jones as soon as he left to let him know there wasn’t anything that needed to be worked imminently. As he sat there in his truck, he looked over at the diner again, thinking about some of the things that were said. It was a strange request, he thought, Vincent asking him to meet with a police officer. Recker wasn’t sure what to make of it. There was obviously a reason for it. And it was probably a big one. But whatever it was, if it was as big as he imagined it was, he assumed he’d be hearing from Vincent again on the subject.

  When Recker got back to the office, Jones and Haley were sitting side by side, analyzing some information they’d been working on. Recker poured himself a cup of coffee and walked over to the window, not wanting to say anything to the pair and throw their concentration off.

  “Are you just going to ignore us, Michael?” Jones asked.

  Recker turned around to face them. “Looked like you were deep in thought there. Didn’t want to disturb you two lovebirds.”

  Haley chuckled as he kept his eyes glued to the screen. Jones, though, pushed his chair away from the desk to further engage his f
riend. Recker’s eyes danced around the room, like he was thinking about something. It was one of the clues Jones had picked up on in the time they’d been together. It usually was an indication something was bugging Recker. And usually, it wasn’t a minor thing.

  “So, what is it?” Jones asked.

  “What’s what?”

  “You know. That thing you’re thinking about.”

  “What makes you think I’m thinking about something?” Recker asked.

  “Do we really have to play this game? Whenever you have a problem or something on your mind that you’re not ready to discuss, you have that look on your face.”

  “What look?”

  “The look you have right now,” Jones said. “The one where you have trouble focusing on any one thing in particular. You look out the window, glance at the floor, sometimes the wall, perhaps the ceiling, or maybe a few other inanimate objects.”

  “Do you analyze me often, doctor?”

  “Just when the situation calls for it.”

  “Oh. Very scholarly of you, professor.”

  “So, would you rather just get it out now or do you wanna have a song and dance for a couple of hours first?” Jones asked.

  “Oh, I dunno. Who’s gonna lead?” Recker said, continuing with the joke. “I mean, I forgot to bring my dancing shoes with me today.”

  While Jones didn’t look very amused, Haley couldn’t help but laugh again, overhearing their conversation, though he was still typing away on the computer.

  “So, I take it you’re insisting on the ‘let’s talk for a while until I pry it out of you’ method?” Jones asked.

  Recker tried to keep a straight face and continue with the charade, but just couldn’t hold it in anymore and let out a laugh as well. Jones took a step back and took turns looking at his two Silencers and simply shook his head.

  “I was hoping your sense of humor wouldn’t emulate his,” Jones said, looking at Haley.