Jason paid the waitress and as he and his wife were leaving, they almost ran head first into Elizabeth Lansing. The atmosphere turned icy as she breezed by and Courtney brushed it off. I do not need to be annoyed right now, she thought as Jason took her hand in his and they walked out the door

They reached SUV and checked the clock on the dashboard for the time. Two more hours until the shipment was to arrive. Even so, they headed towards the warehouse so they could check things out for themselves. Neither were willing to take any chances, especially after Greg had shown up.

Jason wasn’t sure if Sonny wanted his new right hand man to be caught or if he’d sent him to spy, but he knew that the chances were good that the situations was the former. And, if that was the case, it was pretty much screaming to him that his old business partner was going to try something. The feeling in his stomach wouldn’t go away, as much as he told himself that Sonny wouldn’t be so obvious. But it’s not that simple anymore, Jason. You know that. Despite that knowledge, he didn’t want to think that his former friend would do something that irrational, take that type of risk.

It wasn’t that he felt sympathy for the man, not any more, he’d taught him what real betrayal was. But, it just didn’t seem like him to throw the notion that he just might have an ambush set up in their face. He would know that his former right hand man would suspect it. It would be crazy for him to do something like that, and he wasn’t crazy. No, he’s not crazy. He’s broken. He’s lost everything and has nothing. He’s completely sane, driven by revenge, like the rest of us. Or hatred. Probably both. The only difference is, he has no one to love him anymore, to keep it from going out of control. But, he did this, this time.

Courtney and Jason reached the warehouse and were met outside by both Marco and Max, who had a cell phone attached to his ear.

“Everyone here?” Courtney asked Marco.

“Yes, except for Danny, Rex, and Braxton. Braxton’s tailing Greg and Rex and Danny are still tracking Mr. Corinthos. They checked in about fifteen minutes ago.”

Courtney nodded her approval as Jason fired another question at the man. “Does everyone realize how serious this is? They understand that if this shipment comes in and Corinthos shows up, they’ve go their lives riding on it, if he gets a hold of it? Morales will not be happy and neither will I.”

His eyes spat fire and his wife’s matched. They had a lot riding on this shipment coming in without so much as a hitch. They didn’t need Morales breathing down their necks about it. Jason whipped his cell phone out of his pocket as the four of them walked into the building, Max still on the cell. He hung up when they reached the office door.

“Sir, that was Crinolis. He’s got a couple men on the roofs of each one of the warehouses, armed. With the outdoor lights on, they’ll be able to see anyone if they’re out there and moving around.”

Jason nodded and put the phone to his ear. He wanted to speak to Rex and Danny himself and get where Sonny was and what he was doing. “Yeah, where is he?”

“What is he doing?”

“I’m not surprised. Keep me posted if there’s any change. If he leaves, I want you to call me and keep following him.”

The call was ended and he stepped inside the office, where he found Courtney loading one of the spare guns with bullets. She didn’t look up at him as he watched her, so calm and confident with the weapon in her hands, and Jason’s mind shifted to a place and time where her reaction to such a thing had been the complete opposite.

The first time he’d placed a gun in her hands had been when he was protecting her from the stalker, who’d turned out to be AJ. She’d cringed at the sight of it and commented on how cold and heavy it was before hiding it in the kitchen so she wouldn’t have to see it. He remembered her taking her hand and wiping it on the side of her jeans when she came back into the living room, as if trying to get the sensation of the metal off her skin. And, the last time a gun had erupted while a shipment was being landed, she’d shot without thinking, to save his life, and had shocked herself when she pulled the trigger and saw Brian Beck slump over. But now, she was just as confident as he.

Finally, she looked up at him from the gun, once it was fully loaded and ready to be used. “Where’s my brother?”

Jason stepped towards her at the desk. “He’s at home. Apparently, he’s pretty calm. Greg saw him earlier and he wasn’t even angry, according to Danny.”

Her thin eyebrows arched above her blue eyes, a surprised expression taking its place over her features. “Really? I don’t know about you, but that doesn’t put me at ease.”

“No, it doesn’t me, either. But, Danny and Rex have orders to call me if he starts acting strange or if he leaves. That’s about all we can do right now.”

~*~

Two hours later, Jason and fourteen other men stood on the pier, including Marco, Juan and James. Each one of them had their guns in their waistbands, where they could be grabbed easily if something went wrong. Courtney and Max stood at the edge of the docks near the shipment entrance to the warehouse, just in case someone tried to get near it as the cargo was being unloaded. Their guns were out and cocked, while another waited at each of their waists, also.

The men Crinolis had placed on the rooftops couldn’t be seen, but Courtney hadn’t expected to be able to. Crinolis was good at the placement of the men during situations like these, among other things. He’d also placed men at every corner and side of the warehouses, so that every inch of the property was guarded. No one was to be let onto the grounds, even if they were one of the guards on Corinthos and Greg, until the shipment was checked and safe. Mrs. Morgan did not want to take the chance and Jason had ordered anyone who stepped foot on the property to be shot and wounded, he didn’t care who they were.

Jason saw the shipment boat coming near and was relieved. He wanted to get his task done as quickly as possible, as to keep the chance of Sonny actually getting at it. Even so, the sense of tension in the air sent a surge of adrenaline through his body, which was one of the things he always loved about that job, ever since the accident.

Instinctively, he felt in his pocket for his cell phone before remembering that he’d given it to Courtney. He wasn’t expecting a call, but he’d still rather have it on her than him. If it went off while the shipment was being unloaded, there was the possibility that Morales’ men would think they were setting them up. Morales was paranoid, and he’d trained his workers to be the exact same way.

He looked back at his wife, over near the door, and saw her and Max, their guns in their hands, ready to shoot if they needed to. With close to 40 men around the small warehouse area, not counting the fourteen on the docks with him, he hoped that if Corinthos did try anything, if he managed to get away from Rex and Danny, that it would be after Morales’ men had left. If he wants to stay alive, that’s what he’ll do. Morales will kill him if one of his men get killed or hurt during this transport.

Fifteen minutes later, Courtney watched from the shipment entrance to the warehouse as Jason shook hands with one of the men who’d stepped off the docks boat. She could faintly hear them speaking in Spanish and then another handshake as Jason nodded to Juan and James. The two men, along with five others standing with them, got on board to help unload, while Jet, Carlos and four other men remained on the dock.

The crates were lifted carefully onto the dock and Juan picked each one up with a forklift, passing Max and the blonde as he drove it inside and placed the large cargo crates in the room. They watched each of the three crates carefully, and when the last one was delivered, Chriten, one of Marco’s guys who usually helped inspect shipments, entered with Robert and they set to work behind closed doors. Max and his boss remained outside, watching Morales’ transport boat leave the dock after forty five minutes of arriving. Thank g-d that was a small shipment, both Courtney and Jason thought, relieved.

A vibrating sensation came from Courtney’s pocket. Jason’s cell phone. She reached in and grabbed it, flipping it open. “Speak.”

Danny’s voice came over the device. “He got away. We were knocked out—“

Before he could finish his sentence, over the docks, a shot rang out.

Courtney and Max heard the gunshot from the pier and the cell phone that had Danny on the other line collided with the ground, shattering, as the woman threw it. She took of immediately for the docks, Max directly behind her, while two of the men on the roof leapt to the ground to guard the shipment doors. Gunfire resounded around the property but Courtney blocked the harsh sound out of her mind, even as she saw the bright flashes of light emitted from the guns. She focused on one thing, and that was getting to her destination; to Jason.

The brown haired man and several of the others ducked behind empty crates and the side of the adjacent warehouse as they heard the shots fired. Weapons were immediately draw as their eyes searched the ground and the rooftops for the attackers, but Jason had no doubt that either Greg or Sonny himself had fired the first shot. His piercing baby blues scanned the nearest rooftop, knowing that that was where the shot had originated. He couldn’t hear anything, couldn’t feel anything as he noticed himself shut down, watching his men fire their guns at the attackers.

Finally, he saw a shadow move on one of the buildings. Ignoring the bullets biting into the wood of the dock, he motioned to Marco to follow him, just as his blonde wife and her guard reached them

“What the hell happened? Did Danny call?” Jason demanded, looking around the compound. He quickly pointed the shadow out to Marco and he nodded, to show that he’d seen the mystery figure.

“Not until about ten seconds before the first shot. He called and told me he’d been knocked out then the gunfire started. I threw the cell and took off.” Courtney explained.

“Who’s protecting the shipment while it gets checked? This is a distraction to get at it!”

Courtney bore her eyes into him, telling him not to worry about it as she explained. “Two of the guards Crinolis had on the warehouse jumped in front of the door to guard it when Max and I took off. It’s fine.”

Marco rolled his eyes at the two. Here they were, in the middle of a gunfight, talking and who knows who the shadow he and Jason had just seen was.

“Fine. There’s someone on the roof and we’re not letting him off this compound. It’s either Sonny or Greg, and they’re up to something. The gunfire continued around them and Courtney could hear the bullets as they hit the ground, missing their targets. “Marco and I are going to get him, you and Max just make sure that no one gets to that shipment.” He kissed her forehead before following Marco, who had taken off just as he caught a glimpse of the shadow once again.

The blonde nodded and ran in the other direction towards the rest of the men, where the Morgan guards and workers were battling Corinthos’. Jason, you better get him.

Her husband and his close friend, and guard, burst into one of the warehouse doors, guns ready to shoot if they saw anyone. It took his eyes two seconds to scan the room and determine that no one was in there. Marco headed up the ladder that led to the roof as Jason waited at the bottom, watching the doors. “See him?” he asked.

The guard opened the ceiling cover that led to the roof just enough for his eyes to look out. He looked at all the warehouse tops, nothing to be seen, until the darkness shifted. A solid shape was standing at the edge of one of the warehouse roofs, two buildings away. The figure bent down low and seemed to be watching the gunfight that was taking place below him. Marco could identify the man from a mile away; it was his former boss, Sonny Corinthos.

“Marco?” Jason said again and the man jumped off the ladder halfway down, landing on the ground.

“It’s Corinthos. He’s on the warehouse roof, two buildings down. He’s not doing anything, just watching.”

Jason ran a hand through his hair. He’s waiting for me. “Okay, he wants me himself, that’s why he’s not shooting; I’m not out there. I want you to get to that roof and get him off it. Shoot him if you have to, but only to get him wounded. If you absolutely have to, shoot to kill. I’m going to find Courtney and try to keep his attention on us so he doesn’t turn around and you can sneak up on him.”

Marco nodded and both men took off out the door, separating once they got outside. Jason ran around the sides of the warehouse, watching the docks and looking for his wife among the others shooting. His eagle eyes scanned the area and he found her, using a crate as a shield near the shipment doors. Max stood next to her, shooting over the barrier as she shot over the side. He could see one of Sonny’s men, Cris, firing back at the two of them, but missing his target every time. He always was a bad shot.

Courtney wasn’t far from him, just about fifty meters, so he ran towards her, taking no mind of the bullets being shot at him. Few came close enough for him to really notice, but he ran. There was a piece of wood in his way just as he reaches his destination and he jumped over it, couldn’t get his footing and fell, rolling behind the crate as Courtney glared at him after she took another shot at Cris, just barely missing his head.

“This isn’t time to practice your gymnastics, Morgan.” She looked over the side and shot at the guard again, just as a bullet buried itself into the barrier. Thank g-d this thing is full of coffee.

Jason pulled her to the ground as Max continued to fire both of the guns in his hands at the trespassers. “What?” Courtney snapped at him, quite angry with his need to talk while they were being shot at.

“Sonny is on the roof of one of the warehouses. Marco saw him but he wasn’t shooting a gun, he was just watching the fight.” Another bullet tore into the side of the crate and he paused. “He’s waiting for me to show up or something so Marco’s going to get to the roof and incapacitate him. So, he’s got to see me to keep his attention focused here instead of turning around. She looked at him with wide eyes. Yay, let’s play moving target in a gunfight!

“So, was that why you felt compelled to fall over here, so he could see you and possibly shoot you?”

He gave her a silly grin, despite the shots being fired around them. “Of course not. I tripped trying to get to you, you look hot holding a gun.”

“Damn you, Jason, stop kidding around!” Courtney leaned over the side of the crate and fired at Cris, who was hit in the upper shoulder before falling to the ground.

Jason stayed behind the crate, watching the warehouse rooftops, trying to find the one that Marco said that Sonny was on. Courtney and Max continued to fire the guns, although most of the men had either been shot or ran. The majority were gone, traitors and cowards, but he could still see the few loyal men of Sonny’s employees either firing or lying on the ground. Nearly all of the Morgan’s employees were still around and he could see two that had been wounded. They didn’t look serious, thankfully, I don’t need to take anyone to the hospital because of a life threatening wound. He was already surprised that the cops weren’t there yet, but he didn’t want to think about that right then. He needed to focus on his former boss; he was a threat, a very real one, and none of them could take him lightly.

The gunfire finally stopped; the rest of Sonny’s men, the few who were loyal to him, had suddenly stopped shooting and so had the rest of them. Courtney and Max both lowered their guns and hid behind the crate.

“What’s going on?” Courtney wondered aloud. A feeling deep in her stomach told her that this was not what it seemed.

Jason scanned the area above the warehouses again and still couldn’t see anything. What the hell is taking so long, Marco? Very slowly, he stood up behind the barrier and brought his gun up and cocked it. I’m taking no chances. He saw the men who worked for him approaching the others who were left, taking them ‘captive’, almost like prisoners of ware. He tossed a look at Crinolis, questioning the status of the shipment and if it was okay. The guard nodded and gave him a thumbs up, which set Morgan at ease, but barely. He couldn’t be sure if Marco had already gotten to Corinthos or not, but he couldn’t see him.

Just then, the missing guard ran up to them. “I couldn’t find him anywhere. He was gone by the time I got to the roof.”

“Are you kidding me? He was on the roof and then just disappeared? How did that happen?” Courtney asked, evidently furious that her brother had gotten away from them.

“He wasn’t there, no. But, I don’t think he’s left the compound. He’s probably still here.”

Jason nodded his head in agreement. It wasn’t like Sonny to just leave when he’d been so close without firing a shot. No, he was still there, somewhere. “Okay, have all of his men put into one of the empty store rooms and lock them in. Then, we’ve got to find him.”

Movement flashed in the corner of the former enforcer’s eye and his gun was pointed at the object before anyone could blink. A split second later, two separate shots rang out.