Page 112 of As Thick As Thieves

“Where’s Penn?” Hunter asked as he approached, and I blew out a breath.

“She was hysterical. She’s sleeping in her old bedroom upstairs.”

“Show me the bodies,” he nodded, and I led him up to the bedroom that was currently a crime scene. “Is it just the two?”

“So far. We haven’t looked for more since Penn freaked the fuck out.”

“Get your guys to do a proper sweep of the rooms you haven’t checked. We’ll handle this mess and the cops,” he promised, dismissing me as I went in search of Drake. Between the four of us, as well as Beckett and Maddox, we managed to complete the sweep in record time, and once we were back in the kitchen, Maddox joined me. I got along with him the easiest because he didn’t fuck around like Beckett. She liked to make a game out of everything, and it drove me insane.

“You really have no clue who could’ve done this?” he asked with a frown, making me groan.

“My guess is it’s Penn’s stalker who killed Leah two days ago and who probably shot up the track. Then there’s the whole issue of them blowing up Drake’s car and doing a goddamn drive-by. We don’t have an ID for the person, though, or we would’ve dealt with them by now.”

“Are you sure they’re after Penn? What if they’re just going after you guys? They blew up Drake’s car after all, so maybe he’s the target?”

“That doesn’t explain killing Penn’s dad or his housekeeper,” I pointed out.

“Maybe that was just to throw you off the scent?”

“We’re nowhere near close to figuring out who’s been causing chaos for us, so it was an unnecessary tactic to use,” I sighed as Beckett joined us. “I take it you guys have no idea who this psychopath serial killer is? They’ve got balls if they’re taking out major players like Louis Whitlock. This could make waves in the underground.”

“It’s not me,” she said brightly, making me roll my eyes as she continued. “But we’ve been keeping an eye on things, and so far, nothing’s standing out.”

“You guys have your foot in every damn door, and we have eyes literally everywhere. How the fuck is this person such a goddamn ghost?” I snarled, clenching my fists.

“You’re not the only people who can hack technology. If the cameras are showing an empty house right now without a crime scene, then it means you’ve got someone with similar skills to you who’s causing mayhem. Which could be why they’re a ghost, they’re deleting evidence and covering shit up as they go. They’re probably right in front of us,” she grumbled, annoyed with the mindfuck herself. “Zavier’s the best for underground information, so if he doesn’t know anything, no one else is likely to.”

“How many more people are going to die? There’s no pattern, so we can’t even try to avoid more deaths until we find this asshole.”

“Whoever it is had better hope they run fast when I find them,” she snorted, turning to Slash. “Hey, Dad. Did we find any details from the bodies? Even the type of gun used?”

He shook his head, crossing his arms. “Nope. Whoever it is knows how to stay hidden. All the bullet wounds have exit holes, and he’s taken the bullets with him. I called Rory to get a few of the Psychos to scout around the outskirts of town, the blood was pretty fresh, so you likely scared the culprit away when you climbed through the window. Penn’s father was still warm.”

That made me frown. “How fresh?”

“He was probably still in the house when you first found them. Why?”

“Fuck, I need to check on Penn,” I said quickly, taking the stairs two at a time as I ran, a sick feeling starting in my stomach. The only room we hadn’t checked since finding the bodies was the one she was currently sleeping in. If the killer had snuck in there to hide, we wouldn’t have noticed.

I shoved the door open, not caring about scaring her at this point, but I was met with an empty room. We were too high up for anyone to use the window, but that didn’t mean they didn’t knock her out and sneak out another way while we were downstairs waiting for Beckett.

I wasted no time, running back down to the others as panic clawed at my throat, but I couldn’t break now, not when my girl needed me.

“They took Penn. She’s fucking gone,” I snapped, Cruz and Stone already running towards the front door before I even finished the sentence, Beckett grabbing my arm and making me snarl as she stopped me.

“You guys stick to the main roads, Maddox and I will head towards the back end and meet up with Mom. We’ll cover more ground that way. We’ll get her back, Knox. Whoever this asshole is obviously doesn’t want her dead, or he could’ve shot her and run. He took her, which means she’s valuable to him. I’ll call you if we find her,” she promised, and I nodded before taking off, Drake right on my heels as we tore out into the night.

Chapter Twenty-Five

Penn

My mind was foggy as I woke up, rubbing my temples with a hiss. I had an insane headache, and my mouth tasted like ass. I sat up, blinking as I took in my surroundings, and uneasiness washed over me as I realized I had no idea where I was. Nausea hit me as I looked at the bedside table to find multiple pictures of Emily, waking me up faster.

This room wasn’t in Dad’s house, so where the fuck was I?

I slowly climbed from the bed, taking my time as my head swam, and I found more and more of Emily’s things as I quietly opened the closet. Some of her clothes, her favorite Barbie, a stuffed bear Estelle had given her for Christmas one year. Tears pricked my eyes at the thought of Estelle, but I swallowed my emotions back as I walked out into the hallway.

Music played softly from the living room, and I glanced around to find even more photos of Emily on the walls, noticing the music was some of her favorites.

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