It wasn’t the Noctem guy. His voice was grittier, definitely older, and familiar.
“It’s Luke.”
“Boy, you asked me to call you if I heard something interesting.”
“Quincy? Is that you?” Luke was scrambling now. “Yes, yes, I just didn’t think you’d call me so soon.”
“If the deal is off…”
“NO! No. The deal is on. If you have something for me, I’ll take it.”
It was impossible to know if it was a curse or a cough, but he didn’t seem happy at being doubted. “Take it or leave it. But I’m not standing here like a fool, waiting for you to make up your mind, son. Especially since…”
“My mind is made up. What’s the information?”
“One of my pals told me about a strange car going in and out of a hotel underground parking lot, and from what I heard, it’s not the only place there’s been activity.”
The anticipation he’d felt quickly deflated. “Don’t take this the wrong way, Quincy, but hotel parking lots tend to be busy, especially in downtown Chicago.”
“Don’t insult me, boy. I’m old, not senile. Same trucks, same men. All the time. Well, not all the time, but regularly. My friend Pauly confirmed it too. I’m waiting for him to tell me more about it. Should I call you back when I have the information?”
No way was he risking losing that lead—if it even was a lead.
“Tell me where you are. I’m on my way.”
One thing the old homeless man could do with amazing ability was to blend into the urban surroundings. Luke had that skill in the military, but in civilian clothing in the middle of the street, he was happy to follow Quincy.
Luke had donned the darkest clothes he could find, along with his cell phone and weapon, just in case before heading out in the truck. No doubt there would be some sort of GPS or tracking device in it, but he didn’t see it as a problem. And if he had to justify his actions, Sloane hadn’t outright told him he couldn’t leave the loft.
The rendezvous point had been at the outer limit of the original tunnel network, the known one at least. The hotel where Quincy had told Luke to meet him was a posh location, and unlikely to be their target in Luke’s opinion.
They were now crouched at the entrance of a nearby building, the two of them freezing their asses off. Luke ignored the discomfort, his eyes on the automatic garage door that had stayed stubbornly closed since they’d taken their post.
“Are you sure it’s the right place?”
After a series of puffs and snickers, Quincy burrowed into his coat even deeper. “Youngsters these days don’t listen to their elders, think we’re a bunch of fools. I swear, I almost thought you were different.”
Luke wanted to retort, but his attention was caught by a massive black SUV with tinted windows approaching the door. As expected, it opened.
“Told you, son. Pauly is a reliable source. He told me he saw trucks going in, strange cars, coming and going, two fleets. That’s the first one.” As Quincy spoke, the two dark cars entered and disappeared.
“Always the same place and the same cars?”
“On Thursdays. This is Pauly’s corner. He knows his beat.”
Luke took a quick look at his watch to check the time. “How long do they stay there?”
Quincy shrugged. “Don’t know. But not long from what I learned. Especially since two more will come after the first wave. I don’t know why you’re so interested.”
Four cars, two waves. Each night in a different location. Who were these men? And more importantly, why this particular location on this specific day?
Luke’s mind went over the maps he remembered, and from what he’d gathered, there weren’t any access points around there, and that made him even more curious. He quickly looked around and noticed the surveillance cameras, and there was the risk.
“Quincy, gimme your coat.”
The homeless man looked at him as if he’d lost of few marbles. “I like my coat, son. And I need it! You want me to freeze to death?”
Luke knew there was no time to waste, so he decided to let money talk. As he emptied his pockets and shrugged off his coat, Luke took some cash and handed it to Quincy. That set him in motion, and he abandoned his filthy oversized brown coat for Luke’s clean one, even putting the awful beanie over his head as a bonus.
“I think you’re mad, son. Hope you have some sort of training to go in there. I wouldn’t like to see you come out feet first.”
Luke buttoned the coat, already overwhelmed by the pungent stink filling his nostrils. “I’m a former Marine, and I’ve kept in shape, so I should be able to handle myself.”
Quincy froze as he was putting Luke’s coat on and lifted his sleeve, and there, on his forearm, was a USMC tattoo. Luke felt tremendous pride at being so close to a veteran, but also incredibly sad that one of his own, a man who’d dedicated his life to his country, was living in utter squalor.
Luke clasped his hand, unable to find anything more to say.
“Follow this building and only cross at the corner if you want to remain invisible to the traffic cams. Be careful, son.”
There were so many people on the sidewalk due to the shops closing an hour earlier. Luke hunched over and made sure to walk as slowly as he could, as to not raise suspicions or be noticed. Staying on the path indicated by Quincy, Luke finally reached the corner and was crossing just as the garage door opened. As he’d expected, the second lot of cars arrived. Luke memorized the plates as they turned away from him and blended into traffic. On the spur of the moment, just as the door was about to close, Luke hurried inside, the steel door clicking closed behind him.
Chapter 11
Sloane groaned in annoyance as she stalked a bunch of thugs that were clearly not as interesting as they’d all first believed. One of Chicago Street gangs had been rumored to be using the tunnels, but from what she could see, there wasn’t enough brain cells among them all to even come up with that idea.
From her vantage point, she was about to call it a night when Devin came through her earpiece.
“Just calling with an update...”
She cut him off before he even finished. “An update about the fools I’m looking at right now? They’re hopeless. If you want my opinion, this is a big, hairy dud. I don’t know who suggested them, but I’m going to pour arsenic in their coffee for that.”
“Sloane, not an update about your surveillance, but about the professor.”
At the reference, Sloane’s body went into battle mode, all thought of the thugs pushed aside. “Was the safehouse compromised?”
Devin snorted. “No, but he’d need to stay there to remain safe. And that professor of yours isn’t tucked up in bed. He took the truck and went downtown.”
“What?” She almost yelled loud enough to be heard from a distance, and if not for the mask, it would’ve probably been the case. She rushed to the car, revving it into gear and speeding away. It wasn’t discreet, but she was beyond the point of caring. “Talk to me, Devin.”
“If you’d allow me to, I would. The GPS in the truck pinged an hour ago, and it stopped downtown.”