Page 74 of Red Hunt

Damn, I hated observation jobs.

For a split second, my eyes fell on Belinda, then Milli behind her. My breath got stuck somewhere between my chest and my throat, and my hand was on the door handle before my brain engaged. I slowly pulled back and leaned back in my seat. I exhaled, then inhaled. Not that it was helping. What the fuck was Milli doing here?

“Boss, we got a problem.”

“Come in.”

I didn’t know who was answering, but I didn’t care either. “Deputy Sheriff Belinda Graves and Milli Patterson just entered the building.”

There was silence on the comms. Probably some debating going on as to what to do. But I was coiled like a string. I just needed the word, and I would drag Milli out of there faster than a tropical storm could hit an island.

“Hold position.”

Wait, what? No. Absolutely not. I would not sit out here while Milli could be in some kind of danger. “Negative.”

“Max. This is a nightclub. They’re probably just having a girls’ night out. Do not interfere.” Usually, Carter’s voice was able to calm me down and put some sense into me. But not this time, not today. I would not stand down. I couldn’t.

“Negative. I think there’s too much inherent risk.”

More radio silence. More waiting. I was too much part of the team to just act and endanger everyone involved. But I wouldn’t stand down. No way.

“I’ve hacked their security system. Seems like some of the cameras are off, but I have visuals on Graves and Patterson. They’re scoping the place out. They’re not acting like they’re out to party.” Peaches’ voice was calm, yet there was a steely undertone. As if he didn’t like what he was seeing.

“Hold positions. Peaches, you’re our eyes inside; tell us what’s happening,” Carter replied, his voice strained. There were probably legal issues he had to deal with. Usually, we didn’t do joint operations with law enforcement, so us toeing the line with things, like hacking into security cameras, was common practice.

“They’ve talked up a bouncer, but he denied them entrance. I can’t see what’s behind that door, but my guess is there’s probably another floor in the basement. Half the cameras are turned off, so they usually have surveillance there, too. Whatever is going on down there, they don’t want any witnesses. I can’t find George and Lucas on the main floor, so I guess they must be somewhere in the unobserved area.”

I gripped the steering wheel. Whatever Belinda was up to, and I would bet my new home on the fact that Belinda had dragged Milli into this, it wasn’t good. And it could jeopardize this mission.

“Belinda and Milli can recognize Lucas and George and vice versa,” I said into the comms and heard a resounding “shit” from Peaches.

“They just disappeared behind the bar. I don’t have them on cams anymore. I can’t retrace their steps.”

Peaches’ voice sounded slightly panicked, unlike I’d ever heard before. George and Lucas carried no comms because George was convinced they would be searched upon entrance. The only thing they had was some sort of panic button which could send a signal to Peaches and would mobilize the rest of us. But no way to communicate. No way to warn them.

“Max, Goofy, go, salvage the situation.” This was Jeremy Mulberry’s voice. So, the real boss had taken over.

I exited the car when I saw Goofy turn the corner. At least this way it would look like I had waited in my car for my friend to arrive.

“Hey,” I called out and waved when I crossed the street. We met up a couple feet before the entrance, and together, made our way inside. It was dark, loud, and like your typical nightclub.

“Okay, Peaches, lead the way.”

“They ducked under the bar on the left at the far right end and escaped into the opening to your right. You need to be quick and invisible. I’ll give you the go when the barkeepers are busy on the other side, but you need to haul ass.”

“Roger that.”

It wouldn’t be easy. Neither Goofy nor I were small guys. I saw the small gap where we could slip through, where Belinda and Milli had slipped through. My stomach tightened, and a slight chill on the back of my neck made me rub my skin there. Was Milli okay? Were they careful enough not to get into trouble? And what the fuck had they been thinking, snooping around like this? Why were they even here? And why didn’t Milli tell me what was going on?

I sighed. Because I’d been a dick and left her after having sex and learning about her past. That was why.

No one to blame but me.

Goofy narrowed his eyes and stared at me. “You okay? I need your head in the game, bro.”

I stared back, unflinching. He was right. If I was off my game, things would go sour. I exhaled, cleared my mind, narrowed my focus, then nodded once.

This would be risky enough without me being distracted.

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