“I want you girls back before sundown,” Jonah says to Teagan. “Make sure your phone is charged and call us if you run into anything.”
“We will.” She rises onto her toes to kiss her husband. He pulls her tight against him, prompting me to squeeze Holly’s hand.
“Promise me you won’t take any unnecessary risks,” I tell her.
“I promise, Daddy,” Holly whispers. I know she needs to do this, but watching her leave is gonna fucking gut me.
The girls load Burger into the Escalade and back out onto the street.
“So, what’s the deal?” Mike asks, after they’ve taken off.
Jonah and I share a tense glance.
“You fill them in while I put Joey down for his nap,” Jonah says.
Austin, Mike, and I head downstairs to the rec room. Mike takes a seat on the leather wrap-around sofa, while Austin fetches three beers from the minifridge and a Coke for me. I start filling them in on what’s happened so far. The details of the case and Russell King’s part in it.
A few minutes later, Jonah comes down the stairs, sets the baby monitor on the coffee table, and cracks open the cold one Austin grabbed for him.
“King sounds like a real piece of shit,” Austin says. “What do you need from us?”
I take a swig of my cola. “I’m gonna be upfront with y’all. Everything I’m about to propose has to be completely off the books.”
“Sounds right up my alley,” Mike says. Before his brother helped him shape up, Mike ran with an outlaw motorcycle club, serving as both their resident hacker and burglary specialist.
“I am gonna need your skills,” I say. “As well as your discretion.”
I let that request sink in. Out of all of us, Mike and Jonah probably have the most to lose. For Jonah, getting caught would mean years away from his family. Mike’s already served time; if he gets hit with another charge, it could be decades before he gets out again.
“What’s the desired outcome?” Jonah asks.
“We break into Russell King’s house, subdue his guards, then sit him down and ask him a few questions. Hopefully he tells us who the driver is and who he works for.”
“And King’s gonna volunteer this information?” Austin asks.
I shrug one shoulder. “It may take a bit of persuading.”
I don’t have to spell out what that means for this crowd. We’ve all had our run-ins with men like Russell King, whether on the force or in our own respective vocations. Men who lie and cheat to serve their own ends, or the ends of worse men who treat women and children like condoms to be used for their pleasure and tossed away.
There’s no reasoning with men like that. Fortunately, a devil’s forked tongue speaks many languages, violence being one of them.
“When’s it going down?” Mike asks.
“As soon as possible. There’ll be a fair amount of scouting required, but ideally, tomorrow night,” I tell him, both evaluating and talking on the go.
“Jesus.” Austin crosses his arms.
“It’s short notice, but if McKenzie’s still alive, and Holly and Teagan can’t track her down, then we’ve gotta get these assholes before they find her.”
“You think she’s alive?” Jonah asks. “In your gut, do you believe she’s still out there?”
I take a long sip of Coke, buying myself some time. In all honesty, I don’t know if she’s still out there. I’ve been at this job long enough that I’ve taught myself not to count on hope.
“Holly does,” I say, finally. “I might be jaded, but she’s convinced her friend is out there. The sooner we get names, the sooner we get the bastards into custody, and the safer McKenzie will be.”
I see them nodding, considering, weighing the risks against McKenzie’s life. Against the next missing girl’s life. Most of us, at one point or another, knowingly chose professions that involved protecting the innocent and bringing justice to the guilty. McKenzie might not be one of ours, but that doesn’t mean she’s not worth saving.
Jonah looks to Austin. “What are we looking at for recon?”
“With that small of a window,” Austin says, “we’d have to watch the house all day, note all the entry points, estimate the total number of players. We’d be making up most of it on the fly.”
“I’ve been inside that house,” I offer. “The footage of the interior was stolen, but I have a good memory for the main floorplan.”
“That’ll help.” Austin nods. “Russell have any kids or wives? Girlfriends we have to worry about?”
“Just the ones he’s bought and paid for.”
Jonah scowls. “We’d have to leave early tomorrow. I’ll call Lamar and ask him and Cherise to hold down the fort at the office. Give him a good excuse.”
“Someone broke into my place,” I say. “I called you to come help me install a security system. Fix the door.”
“That wouldn’t take all day,” Austin says. “But it’s a start.”