Chapter 16
—Love is a lot of things, but it should never be hard.—
He drove down his target’s street at a normal speed, not wanting to draw any undue attention. For the first time in the last twenty-four hours, he spotted lights on downstairs. Time to get to work.
Instead of parking on her street, he headed down a couple blocks and parked near a children’s park. It should be easy enough to subdue her, then grab his vehicle and dump her in it. Or he would just toss her in the trunk of her own car, which was no doubt in the garage. It was early enough so she should be eating dinner or doing homework or whatever college-aged girls did. He didn’t know and didn’t care. All he knew was that he was going to get paid. The guy who’d hired him seemed like a jackass, but his money was good and that was all that mattered. Because jackasses made the world go round.
As he headed toward her house, there was a woman walking her dog about thirty yards in front of him on the sidewalk so he crossed to the other side. He’d worn jogging gear, a beanie and a headset—that wasn’t pumping out any music. But he needed to blend in, play the part. It wasn’t so late that jogging was out of the ordinary so the woman might remember seeing some guy out, but she wouldn’t remember him. Out of the corner of his eye he watched her as her dog took a crap.
She didn’t even look over in his direction. Perfect. Keeping his pace steady, he headed down the street then looped back around. The woman and her dog were gone.
The time was right that most families would be having dinner with their kids or spouses. It was a Sunday so people were winding down from the weekend and getting ready to head back to work tomorrow. He might not have a typical job but he understood people and their routines.
Her neighbors didn’t seem to have outdoor dogs either so that was a plus. From his file on the female, he had her address, marital status—single—and other benign information. The only thing not benign was who her family was. Her father, specifically. Some rich douche. He figured the man could have sprung for better digs for his kid but that wasn’t his problem. Besides, this place was in a “safe” neighborhood. She probably felt safe right now.
Instead of heading for the front porch, he ducked around the side of the house. Damn. She didn’t even have security lights. As he crept up to the nearest window, he kept his back against the wall. There was a sign for a security system out front, but in his experience that didn’t always mean there was one. And the system she had was generic enough. Besides, if he held a gun to her head, he was pretty much guaranteed she’d turn the system off anyway. People were often predictable.
After a quick scan around the side of her small yard and her neighbor’s house, he saw that he was alone so he turned and peered through the windows. Blinds covered them, but one was slightly pushed up. Looking inside, he saw the profile of a woman sitting on a cream-colored couch. Her legs were kicked up on a tufted storage bench. The television was on some kind of nature show.
He couldn’t get a clear shot of the woman’s face. But the hair was the right color and this was the target’s house so it was a pretty good chance it was her. Next to her was a glass of water on the side table.
Her marital status was single but the guy who’d hired him hadn’t known if she was dating anyone. If she was, the guy wasn’t here. Didn’t mean he couldn’t show up, if he existed at all.
Frowning, he watched her for a few moments. She flipped the channel a few times during a commercial, but ended up back on the same nature show. Then she took a sip of her water. Then more TV watching.
Pretty boring shit. As he contemplated making a grab for her now, waiting until it was about three or so in the morning, or setting up cameras to watch her for a few days, he realized that her shoes were still on.
He wasn’t sure why it struck him as wrong but it did for some reason. She wore a simple sweater and jeans. And her shoes were kicked up on the bench. When people came home they took off their shoes, sweaters, scarves. It was one of those human nature things.
It probably meant nothing and he was almost certainly being paranoid, but he still didn’t like it. He also noticed that she didn’t have a cell phone with her. Or if she did, she wasn’t checking it. He’d read that people checked their phones something like eighty times a day. Hell, that was probably an understatement.
Since he hadn’t had enough time to do much recon on this place, he decided to ease off for now. He hadn’t remained alive and in business for so long by getting sloppy. Yes, he wanted to get paid, but he wasn’t going to get stupid.
Easing away from the window, he started back the way he’d come. But before he left, he stopped by a tree facing her place from a perfect angle. He’d have a great shot of her front door and garage.
Pulling one of his cameras out, he started to quickly install it when he saw another camera in the bark. Holy. Shit. It might be one of the other people who’d been hired, it could be her own security camera or it could be something else altogether. Either way he definitely didn’t like it.
His internal radar pinged, telling him to get the hell out of there. Now.
Without missing a beat, he pocketed his camera and stepped onto the sidewalk. As he headed down the street, he glanced around to see if he was being watched. There were vehicles in driveways, and some driveways were empty so it was impossible to tell if anyone was inside. His radar was definitely going off, but that could be because he’d found the camera and not because someone was actually watching him.
As he reached the end of the street, he took a right and picked up his pace, breaking into a light jog. He’d have to double back to where he parked his vehicle, then ditch it. The precaution was worth it because if someone tried to tail him, he’d notice. He wasn’t going to bail on the job completely, but he was definitely going to do more recon on this target before he went in.
* * *
“He’s leaving,” Gage said.
“You’re sure?” she asked, pushing up from the couch as she adjusted her earpiece.
“Yes. He saw one of the cameras. He was trying to set up one of his own. I got a great shot of his face.” Gage sounded gleeful and Skye could practically see him rubbing his hands together like a cartoon villain.
Skye cursed under her breath even as Colt met her at the bottom of the stairs. “We’ll tail him.”
“I’ll start the tail,” Brooks said along the comm line.
“When did you show up?” He’d told them he was going to stop by the condo where Darcy was staying to spend a little time with his fiancée.
“About an hour ago. Didn’t want to bother you on the comm. But I managed to put a tracker on his vehicle,” Brooks added. “He parked at the children’s park not too far away.”
“He’ll probably ditch the thing as soon as he can.” At least that was what Skye would do. He wouldn’t have time to scan the car for electronics, and if the guy had half a brain, he would have a backup plan in place. And said backup plan should include a different getaway vehicle. Of course the guy could be a complete dumbass and lead them straight to wherever he was holed up.
“Keep an eye on her place.” The temperature dropped by about ten degrees as Skye and Colt stepped into the garage. Mother Nature seriously needed to get her shit together this year.
Gage simply snorted in her ear, his only response. Because of course he would. She was so used to giving orders, however, that sometimes she said the obvious.
Skye slid on her gloves and held her hand out for the keys but Colt shook his head, grinning.
“It’s my turn to drive.” His breath curled in front of him like a wisp of faint, white smoke.
“I’m a better driver,” she said even as she rounded to the other side.
“Please.” Colt slid into the driver’s seat as she did the same on the passenger side.
“You really want to debate who’s a better driver?”
“There is no debate.”
“Exactly. Because I am clearly superior.” She sniffed slightly.
“You two both suck at driving,” Brooks muttered. “If there’s a contest for who’s the crazier driver, Skye, you would definitely win. But Colt comes in second… I’m taking a turn onto Ward Street. Looks like he’s headed south.”
“He’s likely heading out of the residential area and toward one of the more industrial districts,” Colt said.
Skye wasn’t from Redemption Harbor, unlike her husband, Brooks and the rest of the team. But she’d studied the city since moving here and knew what area he was talking about. “So how’s Darcy doing?” Skye asked Brooks.
“Sitting tight at the condo. She’s busy with her new clients and barely noticed I was there.”
Well that was surely a lie. “I got a look at some of the security guys at her condo and they’re quite muscled. And good-looking,” Skye murmured.
Colt shot her a hard look as she contained a laugh. She mouthed I’m kidding, but his expression didn’t soften. She’d make it up to him later.
“Seriously? You’re messing with me now?” Brooks muttered.
“Come on, I’ve gotta have some fun. We’re headed south on Ivy Lane right now. I can see you up ahead but we’ll hang back out of sight.” She steered into a closed dry cleaner’s parking lot.
“According to the tracker, he’s parking at a pay-by-the-hour lot,” Gage said.
Yep. He was switching vehicles. So he wasn’t a complete idiot.
“He’s getting into a Chevy Malibu. Dark green,” Brooks said a few minutes later. “I’ll tail him for three blocks, then turn off.”
“We’ll pick it up from there.”
“You guys want me to take a turn following him?” Gage asked.
“No. Focus on finding out who he is.”
“Affirmative.”
Gage was trained, but finding out who this guy was would be a lot more important for the team. Because it would be one more way to figure out who the hell had hired these kidnappers in the first place. Then cut the head off the snake.
As Skye and Colt traded off with Brooks tailing the guy, Gage’s familiar laugh made something ease inside Skye. Whenever he started laughing like a cartoon villain, she knew he’d hit gold.
“Got him. He’s Steve Barclay. Thirty-five. Army vet. Married once. Divorced. No kids. And…he’s got a federal warrant out for his arrest. For a long list of shit. Once we’ve got him locked down and get what we need, I say we call Hazel and do her a favor.”
Hazel Blake was an FBI friend of Leighton’s who had done them a solid not too long ago. Skye really liked the woman even if she was a Fed. “Agreed.” Because doing favors for someone at a federal agency? Oh yeah. They might already have a couple “get out of jail free” cards in the form of some very interesting information they’d gathered during an op, but it never hurt to keep current contacts happy. She figured this was the version of normal people networking.
Barclay took them on a merry chase around Redemption Harbor, but since they were working as a team it was unlikely he’d seen their tail. If he had, he still led them back to a quiet suburban neighborhood where he parked at the last house on a cul-de-sac.
“It’s a rental,” Gage said once they gave him the address and he did his computer magic. The man really was a genius.
Made sense. Much easier to stay at a house as opposed to a hotel with nosy staff.
“From what I can tell there’s a retention pond behind the house. Let’s meet up on the other side and we’ll move on the place. Take him quietly,” Gage said. “I’m parking two blocks over at a gas station. No cameras.”
Everyone murmured their version of affirmative.
* * *
“I’m taking point on this,” Brooks said, his voice tight as if he thought they would argue with him.
The four of them had set up stations all around the rental house with Colt and Skye in the back near the retention pond. Gage and Brooks were in the front. They were all using the huge trees and neighboring houses for cover.
“Affirmative,” Skye said even as Colt said the same.
“I’ve got him on a parabolic mic,” Gage said. “Just a few movements and water running. Now it’s off. Sounds like he took a quick shower.”
“I say we wait half an hour and see if he rabbits out of here,” Brooks said. “He saw that micro camera. If I were in the same position, I would have left too. Actually, I wouldn’t have come back to my base at all.”
“Yeah,” Skye said slowly. “I wouldn’t have either.”
“Unless this is some sort of trap.” Brooks added.
“Could be, but this guy isn’t big-time.” Gage’s voice was as quiet as the rest of them. “He’s competent, takes a few jobs a year, gets paid and lies low.”
“Then we wait,” Brooks said. “We’re not losing anyone because we got impatient.”
Out of all of them, Brooks was a pro at being patient. As a former sniper, he would have to be. She, on the other hand, hated downtime, and though she had been very good at what she did when she’d been a spy, the downtime had always made her stir-crazy. Still did.
“So what do you guys think of the name C-4 for the dog?” she murmured, scanning the house for any movement.
Brooks snickered across the line. “I think it sounds like something you would do.”
“I can’t believe we’re getting such a small mutt,” Colt muttered. “We should get a German Shepherd or something…”
“Something what? More manly? Please.”
“I don’t know, something bigger. Like a guard dog.”
“I like C-4.” She’d never had a pet before and the cute little Shih Tzu had the biggest, sweetest eyes. She’d have to be a monster to have turned the puppy down. “I see movement,” Skye murmured, shifting into fight mode. A shadow peeled itself off the back of the house, moving stealthily toward the chain-link fence around the retention pond. Right toward where Colt was hiding.
“I got him.” Colt’s voice was whisper quiet.
He was closer to the moving figure. Still, Skye always got a little nervous whenever her husband put himself in danger. She figured that would never change, no matter how strong and capable he was. There was always going to be a part of her that simply worried for him. Even if worrying didn’t do shit.
“We got your six.” Brooks’s response was just as quiet. Even though he’d wanted to take point on this, it didn’t make sense when Colt had the best angle.
Skye remained where she was as Colt disappeared into the shadows, becoming nearly invisible as he used huge oak trees to his advantage. The moon was obscured by clouds tonight, giving them all an advantage. And there wasn’t much light on the back side of this house and none illuminating the retention pond, which was definitely a bonus. The lack of light was probably the reason Steve the kidnapper had decided to exit out the back of the house. Maybe he knew he’d been followed or maybe he was simply taking extra precautions. She was betting on the latter, considering all the evasive driving he’d done. This guy thought he was safe, alone.
If there had been only one person following him, he would have lost the detail. But it was pretty damn hard to evade a team of drivers. It was one of the pros to working with a team. Something she appreciated now.
As he moved west, Skye remained in place, all the muscles in her body tense as she waited for the man to get close enough to where Colt was lying in wait. She couldn’t even see Colt, but she knew where he had to be.
They’d all donned dark clothing and ski masks, because they were going to be turning this guy over to the Feds when they were done with him and they didn’t want him to be able to identify them. The fewer people who knew who they were, the better. Even if this guy was a total douche, he might have a big mouth and someone might eventually listen to him if he talked about a team of people kidnapping him.
Like a jaguar bursting from the trees, Colt attacked with sharp precision, not making a sound as he body-slammed Barclay.
With a grunt, the man went down, and to give him credit he didn’t panic. No, he started to fight, drawing his arm back for a punch.
But he was no match for Colt who had a hell of a lot of training, first with the Marines and then with the CIA.
Her husband moved swiftly, maneuvering the smaller man onto his stomach and gripping him in a chokehold as the guy clawed at the grass and dirt beneath them. Barclay flailed about, gasping as he fought the inevitable.
Skye raced toward the two of them even as she counted one, two, three. By the time she reached them, the man wasn’t moving but Colt held firm, still putting pressure on his windpipe. Skye continued counting and when she reached the right number she said, “Stop.”
Colt was already loosening his grip. Without pause, he’d grabbed the man’s wrists and yanked them behind his back. Watching the way he moved, with such economic precision, it was hard not to admire how incredibly sexy he was as he hog-tied the man with a couple flex ties. Yep, that was her husband.
“I’ll get the truck,” she whispered, racing off into the darkness. It was time to get some answers.