“Of course,” I say as James nods.
“I’m not fucking around,” Kynan snarls at us. “If you get out of the car, it could cost Dozer his life.”
Fear rakes through me, and I don’t doubt it’s a real risk. I have no intention of distracting him. But if Dozer is in that house, I’m going to be the first thing he sees when he comes out.
When we reach the neighborhood gate, a massive arched structure with a pad to press a key card against for entrance, another SUV pulls in behind us, presumably Jackson and Cage who Bebe called just a minute ago.
Kynan coasts up slowly and stops at the gate. Bebe pulls out a small black device no bigger than a remote control. She presses a button on it and a blue light comes on. She hands it to Kynan and says, “Press it on the pad when I say so.”
He rolls down the window while Bebe works on her laptop, a flurry of numbers and symbols apparently representing some hacking code.
“Now,” she says, and Kynan does as requested. The gate slowly swings open and with the other guys right on our bumper, both vehicles slip through.
Bebe directs Kynan where to go, and when we see the large Mediterranean mansion on the left, Kynan cruises right by it. He goes down to the end of the block and pulls to the curb. I glance behind us and see that Jackson and Cage’s SUV is gone, but I assume they’ve parked elsewhere.
Kynan pulls out his gun and checks the magazine and chamber before tucking it into his rear waistband. He then drums his fingers on the steering wheel.
“What are you waiting for?” I ask, trying to keep the panic out of my voice.
“Jackson and Cage are going to approach the house on foot, find out how many are inside.”
“With that heat radar thing you mentioned?” James asks.
“Yup,” he says just as his phone rings. He answers it on speaker.
“Seven people inside.” It’s Jackson. I’ve met him a few times while staying at the Jameson building in Pittsburgh. “Five in one room at the back, two nearer the front of the house.”
“And no cars in the driveway,” Bebe muses. “So, not a party.”
“Not a party,” Jackson says grimly. “We can see Dozer, and Borovsky’s in there.”
“What?” I exclaim, ripping off my seat belt and pushing my shoulders between the two front seats.
“We were able to enter the back of the property as there’s a pool house there to hide us. They have him in a room off the back patio. He’s in a chair, and Borovsky’s working on him.”
“What does that mean?” I ask, hysterical.
Jackson doesn’t answer me, and Kynan doesn’t ask for details. I think it’s to spare me, but Kynan wastes no time.
He opens the door, exits, and then looks back to Bebe. “Call the SAC and get them in here.”
“On it,” she says, and then Kynan slams the door and is gone.
I twist in my seat, watch in the rearview mirror as he blends in with the shadows, skirting pockets of light as he makes his way to the house where Dozer is. He melts into the darkness and is gone.
“I’ve got the radar feed,” Bebe says, and I whirl to look over her shoulder. James leans forward too.
“How are you getting that?” he asks.
“Jackson must have propped it up on something. It’s fed through satellite hookup to me.”
My jaw drops as I see orange men inside a house. There’s not enough detail to know definitively they’re men—I just assume they are. As Jackson said, two are in a room near the front. Five are in a room at the back, and of those five, one is clearly sitting in a chair. I can’t see the chair, only the orange glow of his body in what looks to be a sitting position.
I’m not sure if it’s my eyes or my fear, but it seems the seated man’s orange is duller than the others.
“That’s Dozer in the chair,” I breathe out. James leans further forward and curses. “Why is his color not as bright?”
Bebe’s answer comes a little too quick and smooth. “That’s just satellite interference.”
I know she’s lying.
My breath catches as I see other orange figures enter the screen. Two sneaking up to the rear of the house, and then there’s Kynan again, moving to the front porch. At least I assume it’s Kynan, and the two at the back are Jackson and Cage.
What happens next is so fast, I’m not sure I even understand the coordinated attack. From the porch, Kynan must ring a doorbell as the two glowing figures walk that way. The doorbell must make the other group leery, as two of the men walk out of that room.
Then Jackson and Cage enter from the back patio—maybe the door was open—and their stances are such it’s clear they’re pointing guns at the men. All of them put their hands up except Dozer in the chair and the man closest to him.