“We can hide along the perimeter,” Griff said. “We won’t shoot first, but if he opens fire, all bets are off.”
“I like it,” Justin agreed.
Kendra glanced at Dom. “You’re being awfully quiet.”
“This isn’t my area of expertise.” He shrugged, then added, “But I like the idea of using a safe house. The only issue is that I’d rather not obtain that using the Sullivan name.”
“We can try using Owen’s last name of Ross.” Kendra glanced at Griff. “I don’t think Levy knows Owen is pretty much a part of the family now.”
“That may work. Owen’s wife, Emily, had a different last name from Doug even before she and Owen were married, which helps. Good idea, Kendra.” Griff picked up his phone. “I’ll let Owen know what we’re up to.”
Dom shot her an admiring glance. “We should have tried that ourselves.”
“I didn’t honestly think about it until now.” She grimaced, rubbing her temple. The excess caffeine was getting to her. “Chalk it up to not having time to think clearly. Let’s just hope Levy didn’t do his homework, or he may suspect a trap.”
“It’s possible he’ll play along,” Justin pointed out.
“He hasn’t so far,” Dom argued. “We barely left Grady’s house before he showed up guns blazing.”
“And you’re sure there isn’t another way someone could have found you?” Raine glanced between Kendra and Dom. “We need to be open to all possibilities.”
Kendra gestured to Dom. “Dom did a fancy technique to hide our ISP location. I don’t see how the average gunman would be able to figure that out.”
“Who said the gunman is average?” Griff shot back. “For all we know, he’s got a computer whiz on the payroll.”
“We considered that possibility,” Dom admitted. “I’m not bragging, but my skills are better than most.”
There was a long pause as her brother and in-laws digested that. Finally, Griff nodded. “Okay, we’ll move forward on the basis it’s Levy who’s managed to track your disposable cell phones. We’ll obtain a rental property under Owen’s name, then contact Levy with the address.” He gestured to the server carrying a large tray toward them. “After we eat.”
The topic turned more mundane as Justin, Raine, and Griff ate. Kendra had been making plans for a Christmas gathering, but she wasn’t in the mood to discuss the holidays.
The moment they finished eating, Justin pulled cash from his wallet for the tab while Griff worked his phone.
“Owen is fine with us setting up a rental in his name,” Griff announced. “I found a place on the east side of the city. That should be far enough from Grady’s place for our purposes. Especially as it’s situated on a large one-acre lot with the backyard butting up against the woods.”
“Sounds a little like Bailey’s old place,” Kendra said.
“About six blocks away,” Griff confirmed as he set his phone aside. “It’s going to take a few minutes for the rental to go through.”
Kendra hoped and prayed this would work. Once they had Levy in custody, the danger would be over.
Unless, of course, Levy refused to cooperate. The thought made her sigh. Still, having him off the streets would help.
They lingered over coffee while waiting for the rental property to go through. Griff glanced at his phone, then grinned. “We’re all set.”
“Let’s get to the rental before we call Levy.” Raine rose to her feet.
“Works for me,” Justin agreed.
Dom stood, towering over her brother and Griff. Kendra gave Smoky the hand signal to come. Her K9 crawled out from underneath the table, wagging her tail at the idea of going to work.
“I should put booties and a vest on Stone.” Justin bent to pat his yellow lab. “He doesn’t have Smoky’s fur.”
“That would be best.” Kendra eyed his K9. “We don’t know how long we’ll have to wait outside for Levy to show up.”
“I’m betting it’s not long,” Dom said. “He didn’t waste any time earlier.” He turned toward Raine. “Make sure you let him know that we’re at the rental house, but you’re on your way. That way, he’ll assume Kendra and I will be there alone.”
“I will.” Raine shrugged into her coat. “If he’s dirty, he’ll make his move.”
