Assassin

By David P. McMullan

There’s an assassin on the loose that appears to be hunting average middle aged Americans with abandon.

The clues left behind suggests terrorism but the victims appear to have no connection to anyone or any organization that could explain why they are being targeted.

This mystery has Jake Patrick and his team chasing shadows as they try to catch the elusive killer who seems to always be one step ahead of them.

The one thing they know for sure is the killings will continue until they solve this mystery and end the carnage once and for all.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Jul 28, 2023
• ISBN: 9798823011754

David P. McMullan

David P. McMullan is the author of the successful non fiction book Common Sense: Does it Still Exists in America? When first released 2012, the book received nationwide attention for its unique approach to the role Common Sense plays in our daily lives and how little it was being used by government leaders and political operatives. He has also written critically acclaimed adventure novels that follow his lead character, Jake Patrick, on numerous challenges facing his anti-terror team. David lives in Florida with his wife Patricia and he enjoys both the weather and the fabulous golf courses that keeps him busy when he’s not working on his latest book.

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© 2023 David P. McMullan. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or

transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 07/28/2023

ISBN: 979-8-8230-1176-1 (sc)

ISBN: 979-8-8230-1175-4 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2023913023

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in

this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views

expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the

views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Contents

List of Characters

The Author’s Writing Style

Acknowledgement

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty-One

Chapter Twenty-Two

Chapter Twenty-Three

Epilogue

Disclaimer

Assassin is a work of fiction.

While there are a number of places and locations in the story that are real, the events depicted in the book are fictional and have no connection to anyone, real or imagined.

Any association with actual people or events are purely coincidental.

David P. McMullan

Assassin

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List of Characters

NJ Special Projects Task Force

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Jake Patrick - Director

Ava Matthews

Tricia Highland

Kent Baldauf

Gary Ceepo

NYC Anti-Terror Task Force

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Madeline Hampton - Director

Mark Moorhead

Dennis McCollum

Mary Ellen Tremblay

Billy MacDonald

Primary Characters

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Linda Ventimiglia - FBI Agent

Bill Arison - FBI Agent

Joanne Norris - Professor from Rutgers University

Andrew Hart - Private investigator

William Greger - Northeast Regional Director of the FBI

Peter Gambino - Captain of the Vernon NJ Police Dept.

General David Andrews - Secretary of Defense

David James - Governor of the State of New Jersey

Keri Ann Vernon Patrick - Professor from Rutgers University -

Jake’s Spouse

Elaine Franks - United States Marine Veteran

Marc Scheuer - United States Coast Guard Veteran

Robert Hansen - United States Navy Veteran

Peter Brown - United States Air Force Veteran

Ray Loudis - United States Army Veteran

Terrorists

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Malik Jabir

Ahmed Hadid

Nasir Kashif

Abdullah Ghulam

Mohammed Kouri

Farid Mousassa

Persons of Interest from Aleppo, Syria

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Hadir Amin - Syrian Minister of Agriculture

Amirah Amin - Spouse

Abdullah Amin - Oldest Son

Nasir Amin - Youngest Son

Fatima Amin - Daughter

Assassin

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The Author’s Writing Style

Being an avid reader, the author composed a list of his common complaints when reading certain novels, things he needed to avoid in his stories.

Here’s a clue to his writing style

• All dialogue needs to provide the reader with a clear understanding as to who is doing the talking. In order to accomplish that, their name appears to the left of the dialogue, as if you were reading a script or a play.

• Being a novel about the search for a killer, the stories are time sensitive and follow the process in real time, just as those investigating the crime are doing. Research tells us that anti-terror units have just a few days to track down their suspects if they are to capture them. The reader is following that critical time line right along with the characters.

• The author laments that too many times the stories end without providing the reader with satisfactory disclosure by tying up all loose ends, thus the inclusion of an EPILOGUE to do just that.

• Because of the number of characters in the story, keeping track of everyone can be a bit daunting. The author includes a complete list of characters in the beginning to allow the reader to mark that page as a reference point, if they need to refresh their memories from time to time.

Enjoy the story.

Assassin

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Acknowledgement

There are many people that form the necessary support network for any author. While my family plays a primary role in that network, they are not alone.

Many of my friends are instrumental in keeping my creative juices flowing, with their encouragement and enthusiasm, playing a critical role.

Everyone has a tendency to overstate their network of friends.

While we all have many acquaintances, we have only a handful of true friends during our lifetime. It’s these select few that form the core of our existence and deserve to be recognized.

Let me take this opportunity to tell all of you that you are cherished by me and that your contribution to my well being is not taking lightly.

I’m lucky to have you by my side and that’s why I so painstakingly try to add your names to my stories. It’s my way of recognizing you and placing you in a front row seat of my literary efforts.

Next to family, there is no one more important in my life than my friends.

David P. McMullan

Assassin

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Chapter One

Wednesday, January 4th

Vernon Valley Ski Resort

Vernon, NJ - 8:43AM

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Peter Brown and his family are beginning their annual ski trip to the mountains of New Jersey.

For the past five years, as soon as their youngest child Scott was able to put on a pair of skis, they have been starting off the New Year on the slopes of Vernon Valley while the kids are still on winter break.

Peter and his wife, Emily, along with their youngest son Scott, who is now 12 and Scott’s older sister Lisa, who is turning 16 this year, have been making the trek from their home in Wayne to the mountains of Sussex County, pretending that they are enjoying the Aspen trails that were part of both Peter’s and Emily’s childhood decades earlier.

When Lisa was just 8 years old, Peter was offered a promotion that was too good to turn down. The result had the family relocating from the mountains of Colorado to the New Jersey town of Wayne, located within an hour of New York City.

Today, as has been their family tradition, is all about enjoying the outdoors and skiing the mountain slopes. There is nothing else on their agenda but fun and enjoyment.

At this moment, Peter and his daughter Lisa are making their way to the top of the expert slope that few of the hundreds enjoying the day manage to attempt. Both of them are experienced skiers that have similar competitive personalities.

This is only the second time that Lisa has managed to make it this far.

Last year, on her first attempt at the expert slope, she came within seconds of beating her father down to the bottom, proving to herself that she was closer to winning than either of them expected. Coming in second place in this family was something Lisa was looking to change this year.

Emily is an experienced skier as well, but she chose to remain back with Scott, as he was trying to master the intermediate slope for the first time. Now that he is 12, the last thing he wants to do is spend another day with the beginners, especially in this family of highly skilled skiers.

As the chairlift finally makes it to the top, Peter and Lisa push themselves off the chair and prepare to begin their long journey to the bottom as their competitive juices start flowing once again.

Peter: Now Lisa, it’s more important to ski safely than trying to beat me.

Lisa: Sure Dad, nice try keeping your competitor from getting off on the right foot, or ski to be exact.

Peter: That’s not what I meant. I want us to have fun today and we can both do that without attempting anything dangerous or risky. Both your Mom and I have taught you from the start how dangerous skiing can be, especially if you do not take the necessary precautions. We don’t need to add a hospital visit to today’s agenda.

Lisa: I promise to take it easy on you, it that helps. First one to the bottom gets to pick the restaurant for dinner and I do not intend to be eating a Fu’s Asian Garden again this year just because it’s your favorite.

Peter: Well, we’ll see about that. I suggest you make sure your goggles are on tight so as to keep all of the snow I will be throwing your way out of your eyes when I’m out front.

Lisa smiles as they gently move themselves into position. She so enjoys their good natured bantering and knows that her father will be so proud of her if she beats him to the bottom.

While Peter’s competitive nature does not allow him to ease back, he knows the day will be coming soon when Lisa will pass him by as the best skier in the family.

Maybe today will be the beginning of that journey.

As they make their way into position, Peter begins to count down from three. As he reaches one, they both push off and the race begins in earnest.

Lisa gets out ahead from the start. She planned her trip in great detail. She knew what turns to take quickly and what turns required a little more patience. The longer she can stay out front, the better her chances.

Peter is so proud of her and enjoys watching her take the lead as he pulls in behind her, waiting for the right opportunity to make his move.

The expert slope is a difficult one. It has numerous trees and angles to maneuver that require careful attention to avoid finding oneself running into one of the many bushes, or God forbid, trees that line the course.

The first mile is only for the more gifted skiers. The second mile merges with the intermediate slope, taken you the remainder of the way down.

This is not without its obstacles.

Once you reach the final mile you run into dozens of skiers with multiple levels of skill that could become an obstacle course for the advanced skier, especially one trying to beat another to the bottom.

Add in the fact that Peter and Lisa will be traveling at speeds twice as fast as everyone else, you can easily find yourself running up the back of another skier and taking them down with you, making it dangerous to both parties.

As they make their way toward the first half mile marker, Lisa is still in the lead but not by much. Peter knows that the next turn will be critical.

The safest path is to give it a wide berth and take all of the surrounding trees out of play. He hopes Lisa will take the safer route and then they can travel the rest of the expert slope with little obstacles.

As they make it to the treacherous turn, Peter sees Lisa choose the more dangerous route of cutting the turn closer to the trees. His heart jumps into his mouth as there is nothing he can do to stop her. He places himself right behind her so as to be close by if something bad happens.

As they make the turn, Lisa comes close to wiping out as she hits a few exposed roots on the course but manages to maintain her balance. Peter quickly avoids the roots and they are finally clear of the last of the more dangerous aspects of the slope.

As they reach the halfway mark and begin merging with the intermediates, Lisa maintains her lead and she knows that the rest of the way will be more about speed than skill. Could she beat her father to the bottom?

As both Lisa and Peter concentrate on the other skiers on the slope, they speed along with little in their way. Luckily, there are less skiers on the slope than they had anticipated.

As Peter begins looking for a chance to make his move to the front, he proudly watches Lisa in front of him and just then, without warning, everything goes dark.

Wednesday, January 4th

Vernon Valley Ski Resort

Vernon, NJ - 8.43AM

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Using the long range scope attached to the sniper rifle, the assassin is able to follow the prey from the chairlift to just about 500 yards from the summit. There is no reason to rush as the shot is planned for the final leg of the downward journey, not before.

This will be the first of a series of assassinations to come. There are a number of people that have to pay for their crimes and none of them will be able to avoid their fate.

As the wind begins to blow, the assassin, once again, picks out the point of contact on the slope and adjusts the trajectory to compensate for the wind conditions. It will be a good twenty minutes or so before the target makes its way into the rifle sights.

All that remains is to wait and watch for the moment when vengeance will be the order of the day. All those who deserve punishment for their crimes will begin to fall.

As our sniper waits in silence, the words being uttered in Arabic are quite telling:

Alaintiqam Hu Hadiat Lilah

(Vengeance is a Gift to Allah)

Wednesday, January 4th

Vernon Valley Ski Resort

Vernon, NJ - 9:01AM

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As the twenty minute mark grows near, the sniper prepares the tripod for its designed purpose and will remain behind the scope until the job is done.

The blue and white ski suit should be easy to spot. More importantly, the location chosen gives the sniper a clear view of the merging area where the expert skiers merge with the intermediates.

The target will be coming from the expert slope, in clear view of the shooter, making it less likely that any possible error will occur.

As if on cue, two skiers make their way into the intermediate slope with the target being the second skier to make the turn. As the sniper tries to quell the excitement building within, there is just one thing left to do.

As the shooter releases the safety, the final act of pulling the trigger is the beginning of a vengeance campaign that will rock the metropolitan area.

With the silencer in place to muffle the sound, the ski slope turns into a bloody mess as the target is blown away and the snow no longer resembles its former color.

As the sniper packs up the rifle and tripod to leave the area, there is a balloon hanging from a branch above the shooting site, in plain sight for someone to find when the time is right.

The world must know that this assassination has a purpose and that there would be a number of balloons to follow, each celebrating the death of another whose crimes are of great importance to the sniper.

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As Lisa rushes to the bottom, she is surprised that her father had not managed to pass her down the final leg. Could she really be winning this race?

As she observes the bottom of the slope, everyone at the bottom is looking in her direction as if they all know that this race is an important one. Maybe it has to do with the fact that she and her dad are skiing faster than everyone else.

As she reaches the bottom in triumph, it would only take a few more seconds for her to realize that both her life and the lives of her family will be changed forever.

Wednesday, January 4th

The New Jersey Special Projects Task Force Office

Morristown, NJ - 10:52AM

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The task force is huddled in the conference room going over the results of their recent encounter over the past weekend.

This is standard practice for the team in order to keep everyone sharp and to allow every member of the team a chance to express their opinions and to point out both the good and bad outcomes that are part of every mission.

Jake Patrick, the Director of the Task Force, believes that his team is made up of five patriots whose opinions and suggestions matter a great deal. While he may be the Director, the less orders he has to dish out the better.

Their success is primarily due to being a cohesive unit, one in which no member of the team is afraid to provide their opinion and insight, with no one being above criticism, if the situation warrants it.

This past weekend was a successful one as the team managed to track down a potential terror financial network that was accumulating large amounts of cash for an undetermined attack on America.

Thanks to some fine undercover work in a suspected mosque, Tricia Highland was able to blend into the background over the past two weeks, resulting in her overhearing a conversation that led to the takedown.

It appeared that a local muslim food distributor, who had ties to Afghanistan, was accumulating significant cash, from overseas sources, that was to be used to finance a major attack in the New York Metropolitan area.

Impersonating a muslim woman, with all of the traditional garb, made it easy for her to go unnoticed as the more dominant males in the mosque never gave her a second thought.

While Tricia was unable to get anyone to reveal their planned target, once they shut down the financial life line, a number of key terror contacts were no longer in play.

The New Jersey Special Projects Task Force

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The Task Force consists of five trained and skilled team members that work in the shadows whenever possible. The last thing they seek is publicity, especially when the need to conduct their activities in a less than politically correct manner is always on the table.

Because of some of their high profile successes in the past few years, to say they remain anonymous to the masses would be a lie.

The best they can hope for is to keep the media at bay while they go about their daily business of protecting the people of New Jersey from any and all threats that may come their way.

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Jake Patrick

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Jake Patrick is the Director of the Task Force. He is a former Navy Seal that earned numerous accolades overseas during the early days following 9/11 up to the time he would leave the Seals behind and come back to civilization.

His status as just another citizen did not last long as his reputation made him the perfect candidate for the newly formed Task Force unit that NJ Governor David James was organizing.

The Governor has never regretted making that call and Jake is much happier fighting terrorism than working in some office downtown. In fact, the Governor let Jake hand pick his entire team, which Jake insisted on, resulting in one of the highest success rates in the country.

Kent Baldauf

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Kent was a member of Jake’s Seal Team overseas that returned home looking for a challenge.

He took a job in private security that lasted less than a year, driving Kent a little crazy, as interaction with trouble was mostly non-existent. The lack of action was not something Kent could tolerate.

When Jake reached out to him to join the team after one of their members was killed a few years back, Kent jumped at the chance and the rest is history.

Kent is an expert marksman and close combat specialist, two requirements of his time overseas, where he was a sniper during the day while leading a team of deadly assassins at night.

Kent is a valuable member of the team and has been required to use his particular skills on numerous occasions. His no nonsense approach might ruffle a few feathers from time to time but having Kent by your side on a mission would be the choice of every one of his team members, when in a tight spot.

Tricia Highland

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Tricia Highland is a former United Nations interpreter that speaks Arabic fluently and has participated in numerous undercover assignments for the team over the years.

Her past military experience and excellent combat skills makes her a vital member of the Special Projects Task Force and one of Jake Patrick’s more valuable assets.

Ava Matthews

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Ava is a former Newark detective that began her task force career a few years back on loan to the team for a major terror threat to the region.

She has risen to the role of second in command and has earned the trust of her entire team, especially her boss, who values her intellect and commitment, along with her street smarts.

Gary Ceepo

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A former Army Ranger, Gary is a communications expert that can handle anything thrown his way.

His most valuable role requires him to run interference with the media whenever the team’s assignments prove to be less than clandestine. The ability to provide insight to the press while maintaining the necessary secrecy for his team is a minefield few can navigate.

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As the team is comparing notes and dealing with their latest successful assignment, Jake’s assistant interrupts their meeting with a call from the Governor, David James.

Assistant: Jake, the governor is on the phone and would like to speak to you and your team.

Jake: I see the light flashing on line two. I’ll pick it up here in the conference room. Jake: Governor, you are on speaker in the conference room. My entire team can hear you.

Governor James: The more heads the better on this one. Are you aware of the murder this morning on the slopes of Vernon Valley?

Jake: We have the news on in the office and a report did come on the screen about it. It appears that a business man from Wayne was shot while skiing with his family. It looks like the shooter took him out as he was making his way down the mountain.

Governor James: Peter Brown was actually racing his daughter down the slopes at the time. She was just a few yards ahead of him when it happened and had no idea her father was shot until she reached the bottom.

Kent: That suggests to me governor, that the shooter must have been using a silencer. The sounds of a long range rifle can be pretty loud. I doubt she would have failed to react to the shot otherwise.

Governor: You are correct, Kent. No one we could find heard anything. The only reaction came from the impact on the slope and the large amount of blood that spattered everywhere after impact. It was a head shot and Mr. Brown fell immediately with blood all around him.

Jake: According to the news, he was on an annual ski trip with his wife and two children.

Tricia: From the news report, I understand his wife and their 12 year old son were not near the site when it happened. With his daughter ahead of him on the slopes, it appears the family were spared seeing the actual murder. A head shot on a moving target is something you can’t easily wipe from your memory.

Ava: It was a horrible tragedy that I would not wish on my worst enemy but there’s more to the story if you are coming to us.

Governor James: I’m afraid so, Ava. The police found the location used by the shooter without much difficulty as the site was marked with a balloon and a note secured to a tree branch.

Jake: What did the note say?

Governor James: "Forgive my dialect, which might not be the best, but the note said

Alaintiquam Hu Hadiat Lilah

which I’m told translates to…."

Tricia responds first as the team member that speaks Arabic fluently: It means Vengeance is a gift to God, which for the Islamic radicals would mean Allah.

Gary: So we are dealing with a terror attack of some kind, either an assassination or an honor killing, if I’m reading it correctly.

Governor James: While I’m not sure what it means, the connection to possible terror activities cannot be ignored. I need my best team on this and I’ve already informed the local police that you and your team will be taking over the investigation, Jake.

Jake: I understand, Governor. We will head to the crime scene right away to see if we can make any sense of it. Marking the spot with a balloon and a cryptic message tells me that the killer is taunting us and looking forward to publicity. I doubt he will let us keep any of this under wraps.

Kent: It also tells me that the sniper is not done. There are going to be a number of victims caught in his crosshairs before we are through. The quicker we can find this maniac the better.

Ava: We rarely encounter a terrorist working entirely on their own. I suspect we are dealing with an organized terror cell that is planning and implementing these attacks.

Jake: It’s too early to begin hypothesizing but I do agree that more attacks are imminent if we can’t end this quickly. We will give this our complete attention, Governor.

Governor James: I know you will. Keep me posted on your findings. The press will be all over this once they get a sniff of a terror connection.

Gary: Speaking of that, how much does the media already know about the murder?

Governor James: They know nothing about the balloon and the note, if that is what you’re asking. Only the local police and your team know about it. I’ve instructed the Vernon Police Department to keep all of the details confidential until you get there and conduct your own inspection of the murder site.

Jake: That gives us an edge to start. I’ll keep you posted Governor.

With that, the phone call ends and the team looks to Jake for instructions.

While the scope of this is still undetermined, every member of the task force is aware how serious a situation they are dealing with and the potential for disaster. The days are going to get a lot longer starting right now.

Every member of the team appears quiet and determined. While this is not their first rodeo, every attack has its own set of complications, the most deadly being the nature of their enemy.

Every radical extremist is more committed to their mission than they are to their own safety. When death is not a deterrent, the results become more dangerous for the team and much more complicated.

Jake: Let’s get our things together and head north. I need everyone to be on their game if we are to stop this from escalating.

With that said, the Task Force begins preparing for yet another war with radical extremists who have no regard for human life, including their own.

Assassin

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Chapter Two

Wednesday, January 4th

Vernon Police Department

Vernon, NJ - 12:43PM

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As Jake and his team arrive at the police station, they are escorted into a make shift conference room where the Chief of Police is awaiting their arrival.

Captain Peter Gambino has been in charge of the department for the past six years and has never had to deal with a crime of this nature before. The police station is located less than two miles from the Vernon Valley Ski Resort where the murder occurred.

After hurrying through the normal pleasantries and introductions, Jake has two objectives in mind and little time to spare. He needs to get a handle on the details of the killing from the authorities as well as evaluate their level of competence before agreeing to cooperate with them on the case.

He knows very little about Vernon’s police department and their captain, Peter Gambino, and that needs to change if they are going to work together.

Jake’s focus is never on the subtleties that surround him. Getting to know someone new is of no importance when there is a case that needs solving.

While Jake may be good at his job, he’s not very good at politics. He cares little about superficial things, including the feelings of anyone that may be on the receiving end of his questions or opinions. Unabashed honesty and directness rules the day.

While Jake treats everyone with respect, if they are waiting for compliments or expect kid glove treatment, they will be waiting a long time. The shortest distance to an answer is a direct question and no spin will ever get in the way of him doing his job.

Jake: Captain Gambino, since we have never met before and my team has no direct knowledge of you and your team, can you please take us through your process and the actions taken as a result of today’s murder?

Gambino: I got a call from one of my officers, who was assigned to the ski lodge early this morning. As you may suspect, we have very few serious crimes in Vernon and rarely need to deal with a crime scene of this nature.

Jake: Do you know the exact time of the call?

Captain Gambino begins looking through his notes before answering: It was exactly at 9:16AM.

Jake took this as a good sign. Every detail matters, especially in serious cases of this magnitude. Knowing that Gambino is thorough in his approach and noted the exact time indicates his attention to detail. This was not a small thing in Jake’s book.

Ava spoke up next: What did you do then?

Gambino: "We have a small squad with only three officers on duty at the station. All four