In the morning after half of the diner burnt down. Neshoba rolled up to examine the destruction brought by his target. A total of 12 bodies were found. All had military equipment and rolled up in armoured transport vehicles, all made by ProTech.
Police cars gathered around, taking pictures and gathering evidence of the brutal battle that had happened. Though most were unaware of Jackson, the entire country is on high alert to track him down and prevent further death. Even local news channels were starting to comment on murders of former mercs and hired soldiers.
Claire had already intercepted local police transmissions and brought them to where the previous engagement between Jackson and the mercs was a few miles away. However, that diner was the last place of his location.
Before the shootout, the police were notified of a deranged creature taking them hostage and forcing the worker there to give Jackson some food and a medical kit. Fortunately, no one was harmed by him. Instead, choosing to let his hostages go once he got what he needed.
However, that brought about a bunch of issues for the Order. Jackson, even during his retirement, was never meant to reveal himself to the general population or make his presence known at all. His disregard of established rules by the Order, even if he was not formally part of the organisation, was cause for concern and needed to be stopped as soon as possible.
To Neshoba, this gave him more reason to pursue him against the Order’s wishes. The knowledge of evil needed to be contained at all costs to prevent unnecessary complications. Which made him wonder, why did the Order give him the order to not go after the reptile? Something didn't make sense, and he knew it.
His hair beads hummed near the mutilated corpses of the mercs. The souls that witnessed the brutal battle, how their bones snapped and what caused their skulls to be caved in with a single blow. There was something tempting about looking into their deaths through the perspective of the souls. However, Neshoba knew better than to peer in and watch the slaughter. There was no point in it.
‘Target should be heading east.’ Neshoba said into his earpiece while he walked back to his car. ‘They are slowing down and shouldn’t be too far.’
Once he got into his car, he heard Claire give an audible sigh. ‘Nes, this is not a good idea. Going against the instructions of the council. For the last time, you should go back to base and report in.’
‘We both know I can’t let that happen. Jackson is a danger to everyone, and their existence is now known to the public. If we don’t stop them now, who knows what damage they will cause?’
‘So, you are dragging me into this mess?’
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‘Someone has to.’ Neshoba replied before driving away from the crime scene. ‘Look Claire, we both know there is something wrong with this assignment. First, we both have the order to hunt down Jackson, only to be told to leave them alone. People who left the Order were hunted down and killed for less. Jackson shouldn’t be given any sort of special treatment. Especially since they left the Order almost a century ago.’
‘What are you saying this time?’ Claire asked, unsure what he meant but still interested in figuring out what was going on.
‘There has to be someone within the Order who has an interest in Jackson living and wanting the people he is killing dead. Brian having old MODOC codes, Daniel being bludgeoned to death in his own home after watching 40-year-old daughter killed in front of him.’ Neshoba paused, remembering how Jackson would dispatch his enemies and move on to the next point. ‘The whole thing is wrong and at this point, it seems deliberate. Brian is directly involved; I just know it. First a private military and now an army of mercs? He and Jackson have history, there is no denying it anymore.’
‘But when I checked him, I found nothing!’ Claire pointed out. ‘He is as clean as a whistle. But I won’t lie. Even if he is clean, there is something about him that doesn’t make sense. I don't like where you are going with this, but perhaps you are correct. Someone else in the Order might be involved in this mess.’
Neshoba pulled up to park on the side of the road so he could pull out his phone. ‘Then we need to do some additional research. Look into Brian's history and come back to me soon. Go through classified files and maybe anything on Jackson's. If they are going at it, there should be some sort of evidence. Maybe look into previous MODOC locations as well. For now, I will go underground.’
‘Underground? Nes, don’t tell me you will…’
‘Go behind the Order’s back?’ He cut in before taking the battery out of his phone and getting out of the car to remove the other trackers embedded into his car. ‘I will stay in contact with you. But just in case, I need to get off the grid. If Jackson’s butchery is some sort of inside job, I need to make sure I am not tracked.’
Seeing no point in arguing, Claire relented and sighed. ‘Okay, I’ll look into him. Promise me you will keep safe. Once you go off the grid, I can’t promise to help you all the way through. You will be on your own.’
Neshoba groaned, he disliked the idea of going against the Order. Even if he had a good reason to justify his action. The Order would still consider him a renegade. Sooner or later, he would be put on trial. ‘Thank you, Claire. Keep safe on your end.
