Wednesday. 15:00 Track and Field Complex

“Only three more days to spring break Andern. You can do it.” John said as he lapped his friend on the track.

“It should have already happened.” Andern hollered back.

John wasn’t running with anyone. He set his own pace and was going to run it for ten minutes. He had already lapped their group twice and he’d very likely lap them at least once if not twice more. No one was dumb enough to attempt to match his pace. They learned that the hard way once in the fall semester.

Five minutes later the running portion of PE was done. They had about an hour’s worth of lifting weights before they were let go. Thanks to advances in medicine over the past two centuries it typically only took between one and two weeks to recover any lost bone mass from spending time in reduced gravity. This was the last day of mandated PE since coming back from training at Armstrong station. The truth of the matter was everyone had been recovered for the last five or six days.

The group hit the weights hard and before they knew it, their workout was over. John was putting on some clean clothes after a shower and was ready to walk back to the dorms. The others still hadn’t showered.

“Chow at 17:00?” John asked.

“You bet.” Andern responded in the affirmative.

“Roger that, cya y’all in a bit.”

John headed back to the dorm. When he got back to his room, he tossed his dirty clothes in the laundry and started it. He verified a few things about their spring break trip and was searching for a few restaurants and golf courses around the rental house they were staying at.

His phone rang. John walked over to his tablet and answered the call. “Sup, John here.”

A computerized voice spoke. “Come to Spa Creek at 8 pm. Come alone.” It hung up after that.

“The fuck was that?”

John slightly worried but more annoyed than anything else. He didn’t know who wanted to chat. He had certainly pissed off, embarrassed, threatened, or stole from a large number of people that would like their chunk of flesh from him.

He put those thoughts behind him and got ready for dinner. John sat next to his friends and finished dinner quicker than planned and excused himself. Alice gave him a worried look, he kissed her cheek and said everything was alright. He’d come back to his room and pick up his sidearm, which technically wasn’t allowed in the dorms, but he had anyways just in case. Then he’d head over to the Spa Creek area and meet this mystery man.

19:45 Spa Creek

There was still a bit of a chill in the air. Though nothing like what it was like outside before they spent nearly a month at Armstrong station. John was at full alert and scanning his surroundings. There were some people that he recognized there but none that he had done anything too. His tablet rang.

The same voice came on. “White Lincoln on your left, get in.”

John looked over and a Lincoln Ultra Navigator pulled up. There were three people in the SUV. He knew one of them. He walked over and opened the door and got in the vehicle.

“Vito, what the fuck is with this black op bullshit your pulling. Oh, nice to see you again too. Been awhile.”

Sitting next to John in the backseat was Vito Colombo. The newest boss of the Colombo family. “John, it’s been a while. Sorry for the deception but this had to be kept quiet.”

“Alright. So, what’s up.”

“It has come to our attention that there’s an open hit out for you.” Vito waived his hands. “Don’t worry, I’ve already talked to the other families and we’re all in agreement that we want nothing to do with it. All five families have turned it down.”

“This isn’t exactly the first time this has come up you know.” John was annoyed.

“I’m aware. I’m also aware that you saved my ass once and kept me out of jail. I’m giving you this warning and some additional information as a means of balancing our ledger.”

“I saved you because it was the right thing to do. But I’m also not going to say no to intel. Especially since I need to deal with bullshit like this.”

Vito laughed. “I presume you aware of the Ricci family.”

“Intimately. Luca or Marco? And is there a hit out on Alice Robertson as well?”

“There was a request to kidnap her. Marco is the one that set this hit up. And yes, the families agreed to do nothing to her.”

“You know all I did was emasculate him and kicked him once. Alice shot him in the dick with a stun round.”

The mobsters started laughing. “Ouch. Marco is offering five million dollars for your hit, and ten million dollars for the acquisition of the girl. The younger Ricci also happens to be in town.”

“Driver, drop me off at the warehouses off thirty fifth avenue and Industry Street please.”

The driver looked in the rear-view mirror at Vito. Vito nodded. They’d be to the warehouse in about fifteen minutes. John pulled up his tablet and did a couple searches. He found out where Marco was in the city.

The ride to the warehouse was generally a quiet one. Vito and John exchanged pleasantries. Vito knew what was going to happen next but didn’t want to know anything more. When they got to the warehouse Vito grabbed John’s arm.

“John, I tell you this as a friend. Be careful about your next move. The five families have generally given the Ricci’s a wide berth.”

John reached out his hand and shook Vito’s. “Appreciate the heads up, but I got this from here on out. Stay safe bud.”

John hopped out of the vehicle and walked over to the side door and opened it. Inside the building there were several shipping containers. He placed his hand on one of the containers, shortly afterwards there was a pop and a hiss then a small door was sucked into the container and off to the side allowing him to walk in. Inside it were some of John’s spoils from his time as an agent.

In addition to the Mark 6 stealth suit that he had back at the academy, John had a Mark 5 suit that was extensively modified here in this shipping container. Its modifications brought its functionality to near Mark 6 levels. He put on the suit and took a small briefcase off the wall. He opened it to verify all of the components were there. Inside was a customer made rifle complete with a suppressor and 40 power scope. It wasn’t as accurate as a couple others that hung on the side of the container, but it would be much more discrete. He grabbed a leather coat and helmet on his way out.

Had it been earlier in the day he would’ve had to put the suit on at his location. But because it was dark and overcast out, he looked like a leathered-out biker to most people.

When he walked out of the container the door closed behind him. Another container door opened, and he walked in and drove a motorcycle out of it. The motorcycle helmet he had was giving him the directions to Marco’s location. He tapped into the hotel’s security system and could see what’s going on in his room.

John called Luca. “Evening asshole. So why did your son open a hit order with the mafia on me today?”

“I don’t have anything to say to you. I hope the hit is successful, you’ve embarrassed this family too much.”

“Do you remember what I said would happen if you assholes came after us again? I know you were there paying attention.” John took a breath. “But tell you what, he calls the hit off and we can go back to normal. If not shit’s gonna get very real very fast.”

“This call is done.” The line went dead.

John was wondering how long it would take for daddy dearest to call Marco. John hadn’t finished that thought before Luca had Immediately called his son. He noticed in the security feed he had co-opted that Marco was on the phone with his father. Luca was unimpressed with his son’s actions and demanded he pull the order; this wasn’t a man to trifle with. Marco told his father that he knew what he was doing and that he would get revenge for their humiliation at the hands of a commoner. Marco hung up on his father when he tried to insist on coming home immediately.

John rolled his eyes and kept getting closer. He pulled up a Navy Intelligence dossier on Marco. He didn’t really learn much about the rotund asshole that he didn’t already know. He was about ten minutes away from the building. He began looking at the surroundings and it looked like a long-range attack wasn’t going to happen.

John placed another call, this time to Marco. “Hey no dick. Heard you put out a hit on me. Was that wise?”

“You. You have no right to talk to me like that. I’m your superior.”

“Yeah, I don’t think so. How’s your dick, that healing alright big guy?”

“I cannot wait until they deliver your body to me.”

“Well, fatass, I wouldn’t hold your breath if I were you. Tell you what, call it off and we’ll call it even.”

Marco ended the call. John just parked the bike in an alley behind a corner store that was next to the hotel building that Marco was in. He climbed up to the roof of the corner store and took off the helmet, jacket and hid them in a dark corner. He opened the suitcase and screwed on the suppressor to his handgun. If push comes to shove, he at least had that.

He activated the stealth suit and began scaling the side of the building. It didn’t take him that long to get up to the twenty fifth floor. He discovered that he was on the wrong side of the building, which mean he now had to get to the other side of it. He cursed himself for climbing up the wrong side and started bouncing from patio to patio. Eventually he got to Marco’s patio. John jammed the security system and caused the cameras and voice recorders to record nothing but static.

He was hoping Marco would’ve seen reason but that clearly wasn’t the case. John knew it was only Marco in his hotel room. John got the lock to disengage and crept into the hotel room. John slowly walked into the living room and behind where Marco was sitting. He flicked off the stealth suit and activated the voice modulator. Marco didn’t know he was there.

“Marco Ricci, stand up and turn around slowly. You’ve placed a hit on a secure asset of ours and we cannot allow that to pass.”

“I didn’t do a fucking thing. You know nothing.”

John played back the call he had recorded between father and son earlier in the evening.

“It appears that you are lying. Move into the bedroom.”

Marco complied reluctantly. “Now what?”

“Grab the sheets and pull them off the bed.”

Marco complied but as he did so John’s arm reached out using his telekinesis rolled up the sheet into a tight roll. He hooked it to the giant wooden beams running across the ceiling. An ethereal blue began emanating from his eyes and it appeared as if it was phasing through the suit.

“What are you doing. Why can’t I move.”

John stood there still, he gestured at the chair next to the table which was then pulled next to Marco who then grabbed it with both his hands then stepped on it.

Marco was slowly coming to the realization what was happening. “Nooo, don’t make me do this. I’ll undo the hit. I’ll undo the hit.”

The sheets were now in wrapped around his head.

“You were given an opportunity to undo this. Your false belief in you inherit superiority has caused all of this.” John spread his arms out to gesture this. “If you were superior to me or John, this wouldn’t be possible no would it?”

John made Marco kick the chair from under him. John released his telekinetic grip from him at the same time. Marco’s arms and legs began kicking wildly. He would be unconscious within a minute and dead in five. Marco’s eyes were bulging, he now knew true fear. Forty agonizing seconds went by. John stood their motionless watching his struggles slow down. Then he rose his arm and mercifully using his telekinetic powers caused the rope to loosen around the pillar and Marco fell down onto the ground.

John drew his side arm and stood over the barely conscious Marco. He pointed the gun at him. The modulated voice said. “Listen here fatass. We don’t take kindly to assholes like you targeting our assets. You are going to do the following things in short order. You’re going to pull the open hit and kidnapping orders on John Lief and Alice Robertson. Then you’re going to head back to Mobile. You had best stay there too. The standing order on you is being changed to a kill order should you leave Earth.”

John stepped over him and walked away.

Marco pushed himself off the floor and was resting against the bed. “You don’t get to command me. I will have my revenge on him, and she will be mine.”

John stopped, turned around and took two quick steps towards Marco, leaned down and picked him up by his neck.

“All I have to do is squeeze asshole. You are not in charge here. I am.” John squeezed a bit more. “Once again, I wasn’t requesting, I was telling you. The other option is I throw you out the window behind you. Choose wisely.”

Marco’s sense of self-preservation finally kicked in and he relented. John released his grip on his neck. Marco fell into a pile on the floor.

“You have thirty minutes to cancel the orders and leave the city. Pray that you never meet another agent. You won’t survive the next encounter.”

John engaged the suit’s stealth field. There was a brief crackling of electricity and then he disappeared from sight.

“John was aware of the hit, we got to him before he got to you. We talked him off the proverbial ledge. Were I you, I’d avoid him. He’s not nearly as lenient as I am.”

He walked out to the patio and began scaling down the hotel. Ten minutes later he was on the roof of the corner store. After grabbing his stashed gear, he hopped down to the alley and got on his motorcycle.

On his way back to the warehouse John received a message from Vito. Marco had cancelled the orders. That led John to cross-check private flights and discovered he was at an airfield getting on a jet his family owned. It had filed a flight plan back to Mobile that evening. At least the fatass got the message. Whether or not it would stick for good is open for debate. John was determined that leniency would not be given if there was a next time.

About an hour later John was strolling into the dorms like nothing happened. He wandered over to the lounge and saw his friends playing some cornhole.

“John, where the hell have you been?” Andern shouted.

“Had some business to attend too. Got the situation undercover.” John smiled as he sat down next to Alice.

“Who’d you rough up.” Jessica laughed as she asked. “Wait, don’t answer that!”

“Ah hell, it’s best y’all don’t get the details.” John looked over at Thomas and Andern. “I got the winner.”

“Are you going to tell us where we’re heading for spring break yet? We leave on Friday.” Alice asked.

“Ohhh, yeah my bad. I meant to tell you guys that yesterday. We’re going to Hilton Head Island, twenty or miles from Savannah. It’s a mansion kinda like the one we were at in the fall. And on a golf course. Which is fucking sweet if I do say so myself.”

“What kind of tricks did you do with our tickets?” Jessica and Alice said in near unison.

“What?”

“Don’t give me that shit John.” Alice pointed her finger at him.

“I paid for first class for everyone. And I couldn’t get a security bypass for us this time.”

“So, it’s legit.” Jessica asked.

“Yes, y’all are funsuckers.”

The group gave an awkward laugh. Only John would find messing with corporations to get free things fun. They all breathed a collective sigh of relief knowing they wouldn’t get in trouble for the flight to the rental house.

“So, we fly out Friday afternoon and come back a week later on Saturday morning?” Thomas asked.

“Friday night. Ah hell, how is it this late already. Shit I don’t get a game tonight.” John was annoyed.

The lights began dimming. There was a message to everyone that the dorm curfew was about to be recognized.

“Well in that case I’m heading to bed. Cya in the morning.” He kissed Alice good night and headed up to his room. When he got there, he noticed there was an incoming call for him,

“Director LeCroix, pleasure to talk to you tonight. How can I help you with?

“Evening John. I’m hearing reports about a Marco Ricci was assaulted by an unnamed Naval Intelligence officer. Wouldn’t happen to know anything about that would you?”

John smiled and pulled up the information Vito gave him and forwarded it to him.

“Looks like someone in the Navy may have played dress-up and made him believe intelligence was on to him after he ordered a hit on me and a kidnapping on Alice Robertson. Looks like it was resolved without loss of life.”

“And you don’t know who would’ve done this?” LeCroix was rubbing his forehead.

“Well, it appears that Marco took his money, cancelled the orders and headed back to Mobile. So, mission accomplished right?”

“John, I can’t protect you when you run off halfcocked in an unsanctioned job.”

“Aware of that sir, but he’s also led to believe it wasn’t me that did it, so what’s done is done. Besides his group of people don’t exactly work with law enforcement.”

“I’m aware of that John. Given that the hit that was out for you I understand why you did what you did. But tread carefully. If you aren’t careful you may wind up in a situation where we aren’t able to help you.”

“Thank you, sir, well aware of that.”

“Be smart son.” LeCroix cut the communication short.

John just smiled and headed off to bed. Director LeCroix wasn’t wrong in that he needed to be careful. But the mission that John whipped up on the fly this evening resulted in successfully deterring Marco from pursuing John or Alice. At least for now, the jury is open whether or not he will try anything in the future. Hopefully Luca will talk some sense into him. John wouldn’t be surprised if he heard from Luca sometime.

Friday. 14:00 John’s Room

Classes had been over for about an hour. Spring break had officially started. John was finishing packing his gear. He already had his golf clubs brought out of storage and shipped them to the rental house already. John was reviewing everything to make sure he hadn’t forgotten anything.

A call was coming in for John. He transferred it from his tablet to the TV.

“Luca. Good afternoon. To what do I have the displeasure?” This was a conversation John didn’t want to have.

“My son made an idiotic decision without informing me. And you reminded me of what you intended on doing should he or I fail to live up to our side of the bargain.”

John kept a poker face, but internally he was laughing maniacally. The idiot son bought the stunt. He didn’t think it was John.

“Your right. Some contacts I had in the underworld gave me a heads up about the two contracts.”

“Two?” Luca looked confused.

John laughed. “So, he neglected to tell you about the ten-million-dollars order to kidnap for Alice. The hit on me was only an insulting five-million-dollars. Oh, by the way the mafia said, ‘fuck no’ to the orders by the way.”

“I wasn’t aware of the other one.”

“Well, I was told yesterday evening by an Intelligence agent after it was over. I was going to live up to my threat, but a pair of MPs tracked me down before I got off campus and brought me back to my room. When the op was finished, I was given orders to not to take any farther actions. So, consider Marco lucky that I was under watch.”

“Am I correct to presume you won’t be coming after him?”

“Sadly yes, I was given specific orders to avoid any retaliation for this incident. So, he lucked out. Make sure there isn’t another time Luca. There won’t be any more warnings or half measures.” John ended the call.

John smiled as he let out an evil laugh. That was a perfect mission. He put the fear of God into Marco and got him out of their hair. It also completely fooled him into thinking it was someone else. Then the old man contacted him just to make sure the status quo would be maintained.

Someone was knocking at his door. He walked over and opened it. Andern and Kevin were there with giant smiles on their face.

“Dude, you ready?” Andern asked.

“Right? This should kick ass.” Kevin added.

“Hell yeah. Let me grab my bags and let’s get down to the lobby.” John turned around and grabbed his backpack and suitcase. “The others down there already?”

“Think Thomas and Nathan were still packing their gear, they said they’d be done in ten. No idea about the girls.” Kevin was visibly excited and anxious.

The trio headed towards the elevator and got in it. It stopped on the eighth floor. Alice, Theresa and Jessica walked were there waiting.

“Well look who’s here. Almost like you’re going someplace.” Andern smirked.

The girls just rolled their eyes at his lame joke. Alice walked up next to John and kissed him on the cheek.

“Now be honest. When did you pack your gear?”

“When do you think I did?” John smirked.

“Thirty minutes ago. And it’s rude to answer a question with a question.”

“Not far off.” John started to laugh. Alice rolled her eyes.

They got off the elevator and found Thomas and Nathan already in the lobby waiting. The two cabs that were called to take the group to the airport were rolling up outside. It was about a forty-five-minute drive because of the traffic. Check in was fairly effortless and the security line to get into the secure part of the terminal was shorter than expected. There was about a ninety-minute wait before boarding was called.

John guided the unruly crew towards the Delta Lounge. Despite their first-class seats they didn’t get automatic entry to the lounge. John and Alice were members though so they could bring in one guest each. John paid for four guest passes for the whole group could go in. They sat at a couple tables and enjoyed the complimentary beverages and food offered there.

John got up to use the restroom. On his way back to the group he spied an activity area in the lounge that had a putting green, golf simulator, pool table and cornhole. He ran back to where they were sitting with an excited look on his face.

“Guys, come over here right now.” John was overly excited.

The group got out of their seats and followed him over to the rec area. The girls just rolled their eyes at the boys and went back to their seats. They didn’t share the enthusiasm that the boys did over John’s discovery. Nathan and Thomas started to play pool. Kevin started to use the golf simulator and John and Andern played cornhole. They switched between games until the attendant let them know their plane was about to start boarding.

They grabbed their stuff and headed down the terminal to their gate. Just as they got there, the boarding agent called for first class and military members to board the plane. They were all excited and couldn’t shut up as they walked down the jet bridge. The group found their seats, and all got settled into them. Spring break was finally here. In two hours, they’d be in Savanah.