Read Online Judgment Day (Templar Chronicles Book 5) by Joseph Nassise - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Joseph Nassise
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told him the restraints hadn’t been put on well, for he had at least six inches of slack that he could use to cause trouble if he was so inclined. Sitting across from him on the other bench was a Templar soldier, MP5 in hand. The name tag on his ballistic vest read Dalton.
Upon seeing that Cade was awake, Dalton shifted position, bringing the muzzle of the gun not so subtly in line with Cade’s chest.
“Don’t even think about trying to escape, asshole,” the guard said.
Cade sized him up with a glance and was unimpressed with what he saw. He didn’t know this man; he suspected that he was one of the new recruits brought up through the ranks after the war with the Chiang Shih. That meant he was most likely one of the Preceptor’s cronies.
Which explains the hostility.
With nothing to do but wait until the van reached its destination, most likely the commandery in Westport, Cade decided he’d been pushed as far as he intended to be pushed. It was time to push back, starting with the idiot sitting on the bench across from him.
“Why not?” he said. ”You think you’re up to stopping me if I tried?”
The guard licked his lips and slid his finger inside the trigger guard.
“The Preceptor doesn’t care if you’re dead or alive when you’re brought to justice,” he said with a smug grin, leaning forward to make his point. ”All I have to do is pull this trigger and claim it was an accidental discharge. That would stop you all right. When all is said and done, I’d probably get promoted and you’d be right where the Preceptor wanted you to be. Deader than a piece of roadkill in the Texas sun.”
Cade looked away and said something beneath his breath.
“What was that, asshole?” the guard said, rising to his feet. “You got something to say to me, say it to my face or I’ll beat it out of you.”
Cade let his shoulders roll forward a bit and ducked his chin even lower, as if cowed by the other man’s threat. He mumbled again, keeping his gaze on a certain spot on the floor in front of him.
Dalton took his hands off his weapon and let it fall to his side on its sling. He balled his hands into fists and took a few steps forward, bringing him across the spot that Cade had been watching.
Almost…
The guard leaned down and thrust his face and finger toward Cade.
“Listen to me, you stupid bastard! No one disrespects...”
That was as far as he got.
Cade reared back and then whipped his head forward, slamming the crown of his skull into Dalton’s forehead right about at the point where his eyebrows met. There was a loud smack of impact and the other man’s eyes rolled up in his head and he dropped to the floor, unconscious.
Cade kicked him a few times, just to be certain.
Satisfied that Dalton was down for the count, Cade leaned back against the side of the van to wait for the ride to be over.
It didn’t take long.
After another twenty minutes or so the van began making a series of short, sharp turns that Cade recognized as the roads leading to the entrance to the Ravensgate commandery. They stopped briefly a few moments later – guard booth at the gate , Cade thought – and then continued for another ten minutes before the driver parked the van and turned off the ignition.
Cade heard the front doors open and close, then footsteps approaching the back of the vehicle. When the door opened, he was sitting on his bench, hands out in front of him, and an innocent smile on his face.
Riley and another man he didn’t recognize stared in at him and the unconscious guard at his feet.
“What happened?” Riley asked.
Cade shrugged. ”He wasn’t wearing a seatbelt. He fell and hit his head when you went around one of those turns a while back.”
The man standing beside Riley sneered and said, “You expect us to believe that?”
Cade laughed. ”I don’t really care what you believe,” he said. ”If you think I’m capable of knocking him unconscious while I’m chained and handcuffed
Upon seeing that Cade was awake, Dalton shifted position, bringing the muzzle of the gun not so subtly in line with Cade’s chest.
“Don’t even think about trying to escape, asshole,” the guard said.
Cade sized him up with a glance and was unimpressed with what he saw. He didn’t know this man; he suspected that he was one of the new recruits brought up through the ranks after the war with the Chiang Shih. That meant he was most likely one of the Preceptor’s cronies.
Which explains the hostility.
With nothing to do but wait until the van reached its destination, most likely the commandery in Westport, Cade decided he’d been pushed as far as he intended to be pushed. It was time to push back, starting with the idiot sitting on the bench across from him.
“Why not?” he said. ”You think you’re up to stopping me if I tried?”
The guard licked his lips and slid his finger inside the trigger guard.
“The Preceptor doesn’t care if you’re dead or alive when you’re brought to justice,” he said with a smug grin, leaning forward to make his point. ”All I have to do is pull this trigger and claim it was an accidental discharge. That would stop you all right. When all is said and done, I’d probably get promoted and you’d be right where the Preceptor wanted you to be. Deader than a piece of roadkill in the Texas sun.”
Cade looked away and said something beneath his breath.
“What was that, asshole?” the guard said, rising to his feet. “You got something to say to me, say it to my face or I’ll beat it out of you.”
Cade let his shoulders roll forward a bit and ducked his chin even lower, as if cowed by the other man’s threat. He mumbled again, keeping his gaze on a certain spot on the floor in front of him.
Dalton took his hands off his weapon and let it fall to his side on its sling. He balled his hands into fists and took a few steps forward, bringing him across the spot that Cade had been watching.
Almost…
The guard leaned down and thrust his face and finger toward Cade.
“Listen to me, you stupid bastard! No one disrespects...”
That was as far as he got.
Cade reared back and then whipped his head forward, slamming the crown of his skull into Dalton’s forehead right about at the point where his eyebrows met. There was a loud smack of impact and the other man’s eyes rolled up in his head and he dropped to the floor, unconscious.
Cade kicked him a few times, just to be certain.
Satisfied that Dalton was down for the count, Cade leaned back against the side of the van to wait for the ride to be over.
It didn’t take long.
After another twenty minutes or so the van began making a series of short, sharp turns that Cade recognized as the roads leading to the entrance to the Ravensgate commandery. They stopped briefly a few moments later – guard booth at the gate , Cade thought – and then continued for another ten minutes before the driver parked the van and turned off the ignition.
Cade heard the front doors open and close, then footsteps approaching the back of the vehicle. When the door opened, he was sitting on his bench, hands out in front of him, and an innocent smile on his face.
Riley and another man he didn’t recognize stared in at him and the unconscious guard at his feet.
“What happened?” Riley asked.
Cade shrugged. ”He wasn’t wearing a seatbelt. He fell and hit his head when you went around one of those turns a while back.”
The man standing beside Riley sneered and said, “You expect us to believe that?”
Cade laughed. ”I don’t really care what you believe,” he said. ”If you think I’m capable of knocking him unconscious while I’m chained and handcuffed
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