Page 28 of Critical Witness

“What are you thinking?” Tank asked from the back.

“I think the email is our way in,” Will said.

“Let’s lay a trap for him,” Pierce said excitedly. “We can use Melanie as bait.”

Will heard the gasp from the backseat and his fist tightened. Pierce had joined Black Tower last year, and Will didn’t have a ton of experience with him. He was a good soldier, but he was also impulsive and insensitive in ways that sometimes drove Will crazy.

“Absolutely not,” Will said firmly, letting the edge in his voice warn Pierce that he was on thin ice.

Apparently, Pierce was hard of hearing, because he immediately countered. “Well, what do you think we should do? We got the girl, now what?”

“Pierce.” Tank’s single-word warning made the young driver stop his rambling.

Will looked out the window and snuck a glance at Melanie. Did Pierce not understand how that would all sound to her? Melanie wasn’t some operative or soldier like them, used to putting herself in harm’s way. She hadn’t signed up for that.

“I’m sorry, Melanie. He shouldn’t have suggested that. And we’re not going–”

“He’s right,” she said.

Her response made the words disappear from his mouth faster than a stealth fighter vanishing from radar.

That was the last thing he ever expected to come out of her mouth. “What? There’s no–”

“No, it’s okay. He’s right. I’m the one the killer wants, right? We might never catch him otherwise. You should do it. Use me as bait.”

Will shook his head. “Not a chance. We’re not having this conversation.”

Tank spoke up. “You can postpone it. But we’re still gonna have it eventually, Will.”

Will shot a glare toward the giant man sitting next to Melanie. Was he surrounded by a bunch of crazy people? You couldn’t use a civilian as bait in a military operation. It was probably some sort of Geneva convention violation.

He didn’t care what she said, it wasn’t an option. Melanie didn’t know the risks, and they weren’t going to put her in danger like that. He’d put on a wig and pretend to be Melanie Byers himself before he did that to her.

“We’re done talking about this,” Will said.

He saw Pierce open his mouth and immediately gave him a look of warning. Pierce pressed his lips together forcefully and kept his eyes on the road.

Thirty minutes later, after Pierce had verified no one was following, they pulled into the address of the house they’d been given.

Will Gilbert dropped the bag on the floor. Miranda Bailey had worked her magic again. A quick walkthrough revealed that the house was all set up. He wasn’t sure how she did it, but the house had food in the kitchen, plus guns and ammo discreetly tucked away in the primary bedroom closet. A new license plate for the SUV sat on the table.

Tank and Pierce traipsed in behind him with the rest of their gear, and Melanie trailed behind. Will gestured to the dining room.

“Set up everything for TOC in there,” he said, using the shorthand for temporary operation command. “I want to talk to Joey, as soon as we’ve got internet again.” Or at least after he took a shower and did some thinking. There were a lot of variables to consider, and he didn’t want to make any rash decisions.

CHAPTERSIXTEEN

Hannah wanderedthrough the safe house. It reminded her a bit of the home she’d grown up in. It wasn’t fancy. No granite counters or gleaming hardwoods here. Yellowed linoleum and dark wood paneling made the space feel a bit depressing. It was clean and far more spacious than any place she’d lived since leaving her mom.

She checked out the bedrooms, following the curt instructions from Tank to “pick one.” She dropped her bag on the soft brown carpet and lay back on the bed, feeling the tension drain out of her onto the bedspread. The faint voices of the guys in the main living area were soon drowned out by the rhythmic hum of the ceiling fan she’d flipped on.

She stared at the blades as they spun, reminding her of the helicopter circling overhead while they hid in plain sight at the park. Had she really spent the morning running from the FBI?

Will had been so in control and calm, she hadn’t questioned her decision to follow him. Though she’d teased him about their fugitive status, she trusted that he had a reason for evading them. She sighed. Would she even have enough information at the end of this to write a story? It felt like she was completely in the dark, dragged along for the ride without any clue as to why they were doing anything.

Hannah hadn’t been able to hide her surprise at Pierce’s suggestion to use her as bait, but it shouldn’t have shocked her. She’d meant what she said. Even she could see that it was the best option they had, and while she appreciated Will protecting her, part of her wondered if it was really worth it.

Catching this killer was way more important. It was the greater good, right?

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