Page 96 of Savage Ruin
He helps me sit up and take the tablets before lying back down.
His finger sweeps the hair from my eyes. “I’m going to work out. Sleep some more, querida.”
I bury my head in the covers in response.
It’s light when I wake again. Stumbling into the shower, I stand there bleary-eyed until my brain starts to function. When I get out, some wonderful man has laid leggings and a Green Day t-shirt on the bed. I chuckle and get dressed.
“There she is,” Grayson says cheerily when I sit down at the island. Coffee and a plate of greasy goodness lands in front of me.
With a huge sigh of relief, I dig in and don’t stop until it’s gone. My hangover starts to subside.
“Better, thank you,” I mumble to Grayson.
He kisses me on the forehead and takes my plate.
“Well, we’re down to one enemy. What do we do now? How do we draw him out?” I ask, blowing out a breath.
Thiago leans against the cabinet with his arms crossed. “My workout was longer than usual this morning and it gave me time to think.” He smirks at me.
Yeah, yeah. Give a girl a break.
“And?” I prompt him.
“We might have a few options. We can take the evidence we have to the police and see if they think it’s enough to charge him with the murder of Kathleen,” Thiago suggests, then continues. “We could put his name and picture in the paper and offer a reward for information on his whereabouts. Turn the hunter into the prey.” He clears his throat. “Or we could hire someone to hunt him down and take him out.”
Grayson likes the idea of the reward.
Mateo frowns. “I’m worried he’ll go off the deep end, making it worse for Henley. I don’t like any of the options.”
They turn to me. “I like the third option. I’m tired of looking over my shoulder, knowing he’s there. You saw the pictures. This has been going on for ten years. I want a life. A real one.”
“Okay, that’s what we’ll do,” Thiago states, his voice hard.
My conviction lasts for a whole minute. It’s so tempting, but I can’t let them. Thiago would likely be fine, but the other two would dwell on it. “No, we can’t. I don’t want this between us. We need to think of a way to trap him. Maybe we can dangle a black hat job in front of him, then inform the FBI.”
“Henley—”
Thiago’s phone buzzes. “What is it?”
He stands up straight and motions for us to stop talking.
“Where are you?” Thiago asks, grabbing a pen and paper. His hand is poised to write, but a second later, he throws down the pen. “Keep on him. We’ll get to SEI and join the teams. Talk to you soon.” He hangs up.
His face is filled with a grim satisfaction. “The security team caught Langford on camera early this morning. Thomas and a couple of his men tried to set up surveillance, but Langford hasn’t returned to wherever he’s holed up now. They’ve been following him for a couple of hours. Thomas even sent one man back to SEI after he ran into Langford outside a shop. He isn’t taking any chances.”
“Jameson’s got three teams ready to go when Thomas gives the word, but until Langford stops moving, we can’t send in more men,” Thiago explains in a rush. “Whatever it takes, we’re going to ride this one out. We have home field advantage and that won’t be the case if he decides to leave Miami. I’m going to grab a quick shower.” He motions to Mateo and Grayson. “Tactical gear. We’ll split up amongst the teams.”
I raise my hand to get his attention. “Umm, I don’t have tactical gear. Are jeans and a t-shirt okay?”
Thiago stops and pivots to pull me in close. “Henley, I don’t want you to go. If Langford is feeling cornered, it could get ugly. Would you please stay here?”
I think about it for a minute, then nod slowly. “I’ll agree to stay, on one condition.”
All three men tense, waiting for me to tell them.
“If you kill Harrison Langford, I want to see and touch the body. I need to know beyond a shadow of doubt, he’s dead. If not, I won’t have any closure,” I state firmly.
The three of them relax.
