Page 106 of S.O.S. Billboard

“Yes,” Jake’s cried out, hope sparking in his eyes. “They did. But that wasbeforethey got her here.”

“Oh, really?” Billboard pondered.

This is what he was good at. Giving his victim a little hope before dashing it again. As many times as it took. Billboard stroked the piece of glass, almost lovingly as Jakes continued to dig his own grave.

“That’s right. I’d…I’d never condone them harming her. They did that on their own.”

Billboard sent the shard back down without warning, completely impaling Jakes’ hand, securing it to the arm of the chair.

Jakes screamed.

“You want to rethink that answer?” Billboard thundered, leaning down to get another fragment of glass from the floor. “Because this new piece here might just skewer your balls.”

“Okay, okay,” Jakes gave in, snot running from his nose as he moaned. “She’s…in the basement.”

“Where in the basement?” Billboard wasn’t buying it. “My friends said they searched the whole house and didn’t find her.”

“There’s…there’s a second…sub-basement,” he bawled. “Behind a tall metal cabinet.”

Billboard got back into the man’s face.

“You better not be lying, because I’ll have you bleeding from so many holes, you’ll be wishing for death.”

“I’m not lying. I’m not,” Jakes heaved out.

“Del!” Billboard raised his voice to call his boss, but he knew the man was lingering just outside in case Billboard had lost it.

“I heard,” Del answered. “Let’s go.”

Billboard didn’t hesitate, but took off at a run.

“Wait,” Jakes’ plea wailed from behind him. “You can’t leave me like this!”

Billboard didn’t answer.

Let the prick stew.

CHAPTER THIRTY

In the first basement they came to, Billboard, taking point, saw the man on the floor who Wiley and Perk had taken care of. The injuries to the man’s face were…a little over the top, even for Billboard.

“What did you do?” Billboard grunted as he looked around for the metal cabinet that Jakes had said led to the sub-cellar. “It looks like you sicced a cat on him, and his side is bleeding pretty badly.”

Wiley shook his head. “He was already messed up when we got to him. My guess is that O’Shea got in a lot of good hits.”

Billboard sure hoped so.

But if the perp looked like this and had managed to walk away from O’Shea, what kind of damage had he done to her? His gut curdled.

“There,” Brent alerted, putting his fears on temporary hold. Billboard’s teammate pointed to a rusted out, tall shelving unit on one wall.

They all ran toward it, where Billboard and Brent dragged it forward. It didn’t make noise or take much effort. Clearly the egress had been used recently.

Billboard took a deep breath and muttered quietly, “I’m going in first.” He didn’t know who or what he’d find down there.

Just because Jakes had told them there were only two accomplices in the house, didn’t mean the man was telling the truth.

Del nodded, and they all drew their guns.

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