Sooho

Chapter 212: < Protect – Side Story – Logan’s Adventure [7] >

“I think they put off the arrest warrant until nighttime on purpose.”

In response to the law firm’s lawyer, Richard looked at her as if he was asking if there was any other way. Kate of Smith & Heard of New York shook her head and then sighed.

“Okay. I’ll look into it.”

There probably wasn’t a judge who could dismiss the warrant, but if a law firm disappointed a big client, the backlash was bound to be huge. He and Ahn Soo Ho brought it a lot of profits for a law firm. Ahn Soo Ho was a big part of how Smith & Heard became what it was today.

Logan’s party at the hotel got arrested by the New York police. The charge was child confinement and kidnapping. It was ridiculous, but no matter how much Hannah protested, the word of child welfare was above that of a child. If even Christina was charged with child abuse, it was highly likely that the child was going to be taken away.

‘Is that how it’s going to be?’

It was not difficult for the direct troop to flip a police station upside down. But going against governmental authority yielded serious side effects. On top of that, Ahn Soo Ho wasn’t there.

‘If Boss was here, this wouldn’t have happened in the first place.’

Issuing a warrant in front of Ahn Soo Ho? Not even Prosecutor Roberto Aquilan had the guts to do that. It wasn’t a matter of having evidence.

‘No one truly wanted to die.’

Blood isn’t the only evidence for murder. Ahn Soo Ho was capable of making all deaths into what he wanted. Some could die while sleeping, while having sex, or while taking a shit in the washroom.

Kate returned with her phone.

“Three of them have been freed.”

“Who?”

“Rosaline Young, Jake Young, and Ethan Young.”

Only the Young family were freed.

“Why?”

“All three of them are powerful in Texas. The legal circles are smaller than you think.”

Rosaline was a lawyer who represented the west, Jake was a commissioned officer, and Ethan was a Texas Ranger. They were far from Texas, but the legal circles were quite small.

“What about the charges?”

“Child confinement and kidnapping were withdrawn... but in order to be freed, you need the command of a judge. One moment... Ms. Young is coming.”

Rosaline showed her face.

“Richard.”

“Rosaline.”

She looked very tired.

“We submitted a petition to the welfare state, but we won’t know until court tomorrow.”

“Do you even know where she is?”

“She’s still at the police station. There are just many documents that need to be signed.”

“What a relief.”

They had to fight against the child welfare center in order to get Hannah back.

“Anyway... you guys are in trouble.”

“Is it because of the weapons?”

“It’s illegal in New York to have unregistered firearms.”

The firearm laws were different in each state, and New York, in particular, was strict especially after the numerous terrorist attacks it faced. Regardless of how Ahn Soo Ho looked down on the police, governmental authority was powerful.

“But what’s funny is that it doesn’t look like the prosecution wants to indict anyone. It’s as if...”

“As if?”

“I think they’re dragging on time.”

Richard froze in response to Rosaline’s remark. The direct troop had been disarmed. What if someone decided to make a surprise attack? They were split up and weren’t armed on top of that.

Richard stuck out his hand.

“Can I borrow your phone?”

Rosaline gave him her phone without hesitation. Since it was a regular phone, it wasn’t secure, but he was in a rush. Richard pressed the emergency call buttons of every direct troop member.

“We are under attack.”

******

“We’re here, Carol.”

“Update.”

“The Young siblings have been freed.”

“What about the underlings?”

“They’re in a detention center for possessing illegal weapons.”

“They’ve been disarmed, huh? I don’t know who it was, but it was a good idea.”

If the judicial authorities decided to attack, no one was going to get out easily.

“Wasn’t it the vice president who did it?”

“Parmer isn’t capable of doing that much. It was Jackson.”

“The chief secretary?”

“A lot of thugs from Arkansas advanced. But just because they dress well and drink nice alcohol doesn’t mean their thug ways will disappear.”

Those who benefited from doing bad things were always caught up on the temptation. And in stressful situations, they tried to find the easiest way out. That was human instinct.

“What about Hannah?”

“A child welfare employee came to the police station to draft the documents.”

“What about our guys?”

“They’re on standby.”

“Avoid any armed clashes.”

“That all depends on those lawyers’ mouths.”

How would child welfare react if she suddenly insisted she was the girl’s grandmother? They would probably see her as crazy and kick her out. But if the crazy grandmother brought a legal army with her, the story was different. Not everyone had the power to call upon the judge once more.

The way Caroline dressed made it obvious that she was wealthy. The command of the mayor and the judge’s issue of a warrant was impactful, but what topped it off was a call from the governor. The agents that surrounded the police station knew her but couldn’t stop her. That was because the people at the top were too scared to mess with Caroline. She had the same kind of bomb that Hector Garcia had.

Caroline looked through the window at Hannah, who was drawing something at the table. She looked different from the photo. She looked lovable in the photo, but it was no comparison to real life.

An angel.

She was a true baby angel.

The pain of never being able to see her son again alleviated a little bit. She had similar traits to Kenneth. Why didn’t she see it through the photo? She was unable to recognize what her subordinate could. As soon as Caroline’s gaze grew calm, Fisher clicked his tongue.

“Are you blaming yourself, Carol?”

“If I knew earlier, she wouldn’t have gone through all of that... It’s all my fault.”

“It’s not certain until the DNA test.”

“No, you’re right, Fisher. Hannah resembles Kenneth.”

She didn’t care if she was biased. She wanted to hug that child in her arms. She wanted to protect her.

“Madam.”

A man in a clean suit approached.

“It’ll take some time, but by tomorrow morning...”

“We don’t have that kind of time.”

Caroline cut off the lawyer.

“Where’s Kaplan that he left a rookie here with me?”

“Kaplan is in D.C.”

“Why? Oh.”

She was about to protest when she realized it. Caroline was currently a wanted criminal in some States, and with judicial assistance, she could be arrested even in New York. Since only the defense of a lobbyist could protect her wealth, allowing her to seek her revenge, it was obvious why some of the reputable lawyers were dispatched to Washington D.C.

Caroline looked at Fisher.

“How much time do we have?”

Fisher focused on his earpiece and then knitted his brows. He took out his gun and undid his safety equipment. It was a waste of time to discuss why he brought in weapons to the police.

“It’s too late.”

******

“Caroline Burn! Isn’t she wanted? Can’t we just arrest her?”

“After going through that legal army? They’ll probably make every step difficult. It’s not hard for them to get government workers like us fired.”

The agents of the FBI weren’t almighty. America’s judicial authorities were relatively refined and progressive, but that wasn’t bad for those committing crimes either. That was because depending on the lawyer’s competence or the mistakes of legal authorities, a murderer could get away with it.

The fairness of the legal procedure and who it was actually carried out were two different things. This was the best safety equipment that exempted investigative authorities from being held responsible. And from the standpoint of the victims’ families, it was understandable that they hated the judicial authorities for not punishing the culprit.

“The law should be punishing the culprit, but they actually protect them.”

That was, unfortunately, the true nature of the judicial system. And it was uncivilized to just kill someone for committing a crime. Intelligent people had to practice patience and self-control. But for those with power, violence was more than permitted.

“We’ll have to wait until tomorrow morning...”

The lips that kept on babbling away inside the car parked near the police station was forced to shut. That was because a bullet flew through the car window and hit him in the head.

Bang, bang-

The agent who was sitting beside him also groaned and collapsed.

Clear!

All clear!

Snipers have been dispatched!

Defense has been dispatched!

A mask covered half of the men’s face.

The men were dressed in all black along with bombs and bullets dangling on them. It was hard for an ordinary person to spot their dark shadows moving about.

Trained soldiers.

If the seasoned assassins happened to show themselves, it was most likely going to turn into a bloodbath. The head looked at the police station and then held his walkie-talkie.

“Secure the goods.”

How many would have been capable of attacking a police station in the middle of New York? Those who wiped out the agents surrounding the polices station were ruthless.

Bang, bang, bang-

They pulled the trigger at anyone that got in their way. This was pretty much another terrorist attack. The police only fought back once they took over the lobby, 1st floor, and 2nd floor.

Once they secured the way to the detention center, they installed the explosives. Their objective wasn’t to fight against Richard or the direct troops.

Two allies are down!

Who?

Star Fox!

Bitch!

The head looked at his watch. The police stations nearby only started to come 3 minutes later.

“Caroline Burn!”

He screamed toward the 3rd floor stairs.

“Let’s make a deal! If you hand over the child, I’ll share my information regarding Holland!”

He thought she would respond immediately since she wanted revenge, but there was no answer.

“Fine! Holland is all up to you! But give us Christina McQueen!”

There was still no answer.

“Caroli... Shit!”

As soon as the head saw a grenade bounding down the stairs, he threw his body to the side.

Bang-

The debris flew everywhere.

“Shit! Attack!”

He realized there wasn’t going to be a deal.

Fisher collected weapons from the assailants and didn’t mind the lawyers who were hiding on the ground. The welfare employee tried not to hand over Hannah, but as soon as she saw Caroline, she opened her arms. Did she recognize her grandmother? She just realized instinctively that she wasn’t going to harm her.

“Stop them.”

“Yes, Ma’am.”

Once Caroline had Hannah in her arms, she issued the command, and he summoned the subordinates that were standing by. At the police station, there were just assailants and no police officers.

Bang, bang, bang- Bang-

They used their heavy weapons.

“Crazy bitch!”

The head grinded his teeth.

Heavy fire!

Unknown enemy! Unknown enemy!

We’re being attacked! We can’t keep up the defense!

The defense line that was set up was in the process of getting attacked.

“Defend! Defend!”

Most of the organizations that had the Ultra Program in their hands accelerated the fostering of the brainwashed soldiers. They normally lived ordinary lives, but when keywords were inputted, they transformed into killing machines.

Fisher and his team members who pushed out the assailants to the entrance heard the sound of sirens approaching. There was no good in running into the police, but they were better than the assailants.

Bang-

Fisher, who was about to yell something at the police officer getting out of his car, heard bullet sounds from behind him.

Bang, bang, bang-

Every time a sound went off, a police officer went down. Fisher tried to pull the trigger, but he couldn’t. He saw a familiar face.

“Richard?”

“Fisher.”

“Why are you shooting the police?”

“You’re old, too, Fisher. Look around.”

Fisher kicked over a dead police officer and then flinched. The police officer had a strange tattoo on him.

“Einskrauz.”

One of the top 3 evil monsters of the mercenary world, Super K.

They were a third-rate mercenary organization that could even kill women and sell children if it made money. The myths about German mercenaries being loyal were no longer true. Even the Swiss mercenaries were treated like lowly butchers.

In contrast to America, which introduced civilian-military organizations as cool, the PMCs active in Europe were nothing more than thugs. One mustn’t fantasize about Europe. That place was hell where they used the face of history and tradition to let barbarism take place.

After all, not all Germans apologized for World War II and hated Hitler. It wasn’t just England that dreamt of the revival of the empire by putting forth a special talent like Barbara Huxley. France, Germany, Spain, Italy, and even Ukraine were in on it as well.

They all wanted power.

“Hannah!”

Rosaline, who was right behind Richard, saw Hannah being embraced by a lady. Hannah heard Rosaline’s voice as well and turned her head, but Caroline whispered something in her ears.

Caroline then let Hannah go.

“Rosaline!”

“Hannah!”

People would have thought Rosaline was Hannah’s real mother. Richard greeted the boss woman with a stiff face.

“Carol.”

“The little boy I remember grew up well, Richard.”

“I received Logan’s call. Let’s join forces.”

“Sure. When is he coming?”

“Soon.”

“Soon...? Is this it?”

She looked around at the underlings around her.

“Yes, this is it.”

“A weak troop, a Texas Ranger, and a useless commissioned officer... Fisher!”

“They can be trusted. I think it’ll work out.”

“Haven’t you left yet?”

Richard butt into Caroline and Fisher’s conversation.

“What do you mean? New York is already in their hands.”

“Their hands?”

Simultaneously with Richard’s question, the lights went off one by one. It was similar to the blackout of the New York terrorist attack.

“The punks that got mixed up with Patrick Holland in a bad way.”

“What happened so far are just the previews, Richard. The main film hasn’t even started yet.”

This time, Fisher butted into Caroline and Richard’s conversation. In order to block Patrick Holland’s lips and find the ledger that he secretly drafted which Christina stole, they needed Hannah as bait. What was important was that there were multiple people who would put that into action.

“They’re not looking back. If this scandal gets out, everything will be lost.”

It was hard to tell who was an ally or a foe. The governmental branches, especially. The police and the FBI were both in chaos. They weren’t sure who they could trust either.

Richard lifted both of his hands in agreement to cooperate.

“What kind of scandal could it be? From what I’ve heard, even the vice president is involved.”

America’s national status was at rock bottom as a result of the Davis scandal. Could it get any worse? Caroline looked at Hannah in Rosaline’s arms and smirked.

“Do you really think Scott Davis acted on his own? America isn’t that easy.”

Scott Davis, who was revealed to have been behind the New York terror, died, and a dead person couldn’t stand in court. But the upper and lower house of America still dug up dirt on the Davis scandal. Since blowing up a political scandal regarding the US president was going to politically benefit them, they were more than willing.

Posthumous execution

The people’s court

The vigilance of America had died down a bit, but more guns were sold in the last few months than all of the previous 20 years combined. Americans had always loved guns, but even those who were against it bought some.

“Nothing just comes out of the blue. The public opinion today is a delusion that public opinion caused.”

“Are you saying only those in power can control popular opinion?”

“Isn’t it obvious seeing how they attacked the police’s station in the middle of New York?”

“And you’re saying a woman with a child avoided someone like that for this long?”

While Logan found Christina in a few days, other people with power couldn’t find her. Why? Wasn’t that strange? Caroline looked at Richard with a surprised face.

“You don’t know, do you?”

“Know what?”

“Christine is no regular girl. Why do you think I hated her so much? Because she was older than my son? It wasn’t just that. That wasn’t enough reason.”

She was family that she spent time with in Absent Morgan. They were in the same place. It wasn’t just her beauty that won over cold-hearted Patrick Holland. Those who lived in the upper class, love was a luxury.

“She’s a cold-hearted witch that eats up, men.”

******

“Richard and his underlings are free... and Caroline Burn joined. And Ipasha failed. What a headache.”

If the early response team failed, they had to go after all of New York to shake up the police.

“What about the negotiation?”

“She refused.”

“Tsk! What about everyone else?”

“They’re waiting. But do you really think she’ll appear?”

“She dared to drag Logan into this just so she could protect her daughter. Where’s Soo Ho?”

“He’s still in Hawaii.”

“I hope he stays still until the deed is done. I don’t want to be humiliated like the Davis’.”

“He’s known to love his subordinates. Do you really think he’ll just sit back?”

“That’s why we have to end this tonight. It takes time to fly from Hawaii to New York. Whether you negotiate or beg on your knees, we have to destroy that ledger.”

They couldn’t let even a part of the mission that took place with the New York terrorist attack get out. If it got out that they built influence in order to make money by using the tears of others, their reputation and honor were going to be ruined.

“All of New York is blacked out.”

He picked up the phone in response.

“Let me repeat. Avoid Logan’s guys as much as possible.”

“We’ll try.”

“That’s not enough.”

“Yes, Sir. We’ll do our best. Are we proceeding with it?”

If they killed even one of Logan or his underlings on the way to their objective, Ahn Soo Ho was going to retaliate. But unfortunately, they still had to continue.

“Go ahead.”

Nothing was going to stop them now.

< Protect – Logan’s Adventure [7] > The end. 123