Page 42 of Security Breach

Jon glanced at David, eyebrow raised. After David’s slight nod, the SEAL grabbed his Ka-Bar and sliced through the bindings. “Stay in your seat.”

The agent scowled. “And if I don’t?”

A slow, cold smile formed on the sniper’s mouth. “Do you really want me to answer that question?”

Wells dropped his gaze. “Whatever. Look, I’m not a threat to any of you. I wanted to protect Emma.”

“I have her covered,” David said. “Tell me what happened, Wells.”

“The Butcher sent another threat.”

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

David frowned. Why did the Butcher send the threat to the feds instead of sending it to Emma at the ranch? “You should have called instead of sneaking onto the Rocking M. You’re lucky one of my friends didn’t shoot you on sight.”

The agent glared at him. “I planned to tell you about the threat in the morning,” he muttered.

He still held something back. “Spill it, Wells. No more dancing around the truth.”

Wells reached inside his jacket, freezing when every man in the room pointed a weapon at him a second later. He held up an empty hand. “I’m reaching for a paper copy of the Butcher’s message. No weapon, I swear. You should know I’m not carrying since you confiscated my weapons.”

“Go slow,” David warned in a soft voice. “We have itchy trigger fingers.”

A snort, but Wells withdrew a sheet of paper from the inner pocket of his jacket. He held up the paper.

David flicked a glance at Levi who bridged the gap between himself and Wells. His brother scanned the message, a muscle twitching in his jaw. Levi brought the paper to David.

“Well?” Owen demanded. “Don’t keep us in suspense, bro.”

David read the message aloud. “If Emma Tucker doesn’t dump her bodyguard and come out to play, I’ll hunt in her backyard.”

“He’s expecting Emma to give herself up,” Rafe said.

“Why would she agree?” Jackson asked.

David knew the answer, and one glance at his brothers told him they understood the reason. “To protect our friends and neighbors. The Butcher is a threat to people in Maple Valley. He already murdered her family. Emma won’t want anyone else hurt.”

“Handing herself over to die isn’t an option,” Levi said. “We won’t let him have Emma, not even to protect the citizens of Maple Valley.”

“We have to convince Emma,” Owen said as he handed mugs of coffee to the Fortress operatives. He eyed David and gave a slight inclination of his head toward Wells.

He didn’t want to be chummy with the agent, but he wasn’t a threat to David or Emma. He gave a slight nod.

A moment later, Owen handed Wells a mug of coffee. “Cream or sugar?”

The agent shook his head. “Black’s great. Thanks.” Wells sipped his coffee.

David studied him. “Anything else you need to tell me?”

A head shake. “Is Emma safe?”

“Do you think I’d sit here and chat with you if she wasn’t?”

The agent’s shoulders relaxed. “I suppose not. Where is she?”

“All you need to know is that Emma is safe.”

“I’m trying to help,” Wells said.

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