“Then let’s go in both doors.”
“We’ve only got one ram to take out the doors.”
“How tough do they look?”
“Heavy, brand-new, only got primer on them.”
“Okay. Knock on one door, say it’s the plumber. As soon as somebody cracks it, knock down the other one and go in both.”
“Okay. Hang on, one of my men will have to unsuit so he’ll look okay through the peephole.”
“Okay.”
They waited as patiently as they could on the landing, and then they heard a knock.
“Plumber,” a male voice said. “I gotta turn off the water for a few minutes.” A pause. “Look, pal, the landlord says I go in there right now. You aren’t even supposed to be in the apartment, so let me in.”
They heard a chain rattle, then the door opening, then all hell broke loose. They heard the ram hit the second door.
“Police! On the floor, everybody!” Other voices added to the din. Shots were fired, then the shooting stopped.
Dino ran up the stairs, followed by Stone and Holly. Both doors were open, one off its hinges, and the hallway was empty. Dino ran through the second door.
Stone and Holly were right behind him. The scene that presented itself was of half a dozen men, all dressed in white, lying on the floor with their hands secured behind them with plastic strips. One man lay faceup on the floor, his chest a mass of blood and holes. He didn’t appear to be breathing.
“Is he here?” Holly asked.
“Hang on a minute,” Dino said, “we got another door.”
A team member was swinging the heavy ram toward what appeared to be a bedroom door. The steel tool struck the door and bounced off, leaving a dent.
“We got a steel door,” he said, “and it’s braced.”
“Keep at it,” the team leader yelled.
The man continued to batter the door, then gave up the ram to a second, fresher man.
“This ain’t working,” the team leader said. “Bring up the saw.”
A team member carrying a large black nylon bag unzipped it and produced a battery-operated radial saw. He went to work on the walls around the door, slicing through the timber studs, then he stood back.
“Once more with the ram,” the team leader said.
A man picked up the ram and swung it at the door with all his might. The door skidded off the timber bracing it and fell into the room, creating a cloud of dust, and the team poured through the opening, shouting. A moment later, the shouting stopped.
“What’s happening?” Holly yelled, pushing her way into the room, followed by Stone and Dino.
“Holy shit,” somebody said.
They were all standing around a hole about eighteen inches in diameter that had been punched through the outer wall and into the building next door. Men were stripping off their armor so they could squeeze through.
“Put that equipment back on!” the team leader shouted. “Nobody goes in there without armor!” He held the radio to his lips. “Roof team, start down and search every apartment on the way!”
“Hang on,” Dino said, “our warrant doesn’t cover the building next door.”
“I want four men on the front door of the building next door,” the team leader said, pointing to men, and they ran out of the apartment.
“I’m going through there,” Holly said, pushing her way forward.