It was difficult to follow the conversation when he was trying to observe everything. Lauren was the one who knew how to spot important details. “Yeah. He’s not the brightest.”
Eric glanced over his shoulder at Zach. “He never knew how to multi-task. You have to be intelligent to play this game.”
That was the truth. Eric’s intellect was the only thing that kept him out of prison. He had a knack for covering his tracks. Despite the charges the authorities thought they could pin on him, there wasn’t enough evidence to make an arrest. They weren’t looking for probable cause. They were looking for a sure thing. Whatever Zach and Lauren uncovered this weekend, it had to be big, or it was useless.
“You know what I’ve found to be the most useful advice in this industry?”
“What’s that?”
Eric stopped in front of a door and pressed a code into the small keypad on the wall. “Keeping your eyes open.”
Right. Eyes open. He was taking in everything he could, but Lauren was the one who knew how to assess everything. She was the one taking mental notes and analyzing every detail. This room might explain the difference in the floor plans they studied.
The door opened, and Eric stepped aside to let Zach enter first. He didn’t trust the guy as far as he could throw him, and turning his back to the enemy felt like a mistake. Without much choice, Zach steppedinto the room. Eric followed him in, and the lock clicked behind them.
Zach’s skin tingled with adrenaline. The locked door was a firm barrier between him and the woman he loved.
Turning to survey the room, he inhaled a deep breath. A dozen screens covered an entire wall, each with a grid of video feeds on them. Each scene had a location listed on the bottom right, but they were too small to read. A burly man stood against a wall, and another man sat in a high-backed chair in front of the wide desk.
Anthony. Zach’s jaw tensed as he tempered his reaction to the sight of Lauren’s long-lost cousin. His black hair was cut short, and he looked bigger than the last time Zach had seen him. There weren’t any signs of drug abuse. He looked healthier. Stronger. More alert.
If Anthony recognized him or was surprised at all to see Zach, he didn’t show it. The look on Anthony’s face was as blank as a new canvas.
The other man was one Zach had seen in photos from the briefing—a man known to work for Eric’s security team.
“Welcome to my favorite room in the house. As you can see, I have eyes everywhere.” He turned to Anthony. “Show him my favorite clip.”
Anthony swiveled the chair around to face the monitors, and a video of the room Zach had shared with Lauren appeared on the screen. They’d bothchecked the room for cameras and mics, but they’d missed them.
“With sound, please,” Eric added smugly.
Zach’s blood ran cold as the conversation he’d shared with Lauren played through the speakers as clear as if she were speaking right in front of him. Eric knew. He’d known all along.
“Now show me the one where Lauren tipped us off,” Eric said.
No. Eric knew Lauren’s real name. One exposed lie meant they were caught. Everything was falling apart, and he couldn’t warn her to get out.
A feed appeared, showing Lauren walking along the snowy path in the woods on Sumpter Road. Zach’s skin tingled with adrenaline as he watched her fall off the embankment into the darkness of the forest.
Zach took a step back, coiling like a spring ready to strike. Maybe he could get to her if he was quick enough.
Eric raised both hands, pointing one pistol at Zach’s head and the other at Anthony. “Not so fast. We’re not finished here.” He jerked his chin at the guard, then at Zach. “Get his gun and mic.”
Zach remained still as the man approached him, but the pent-up energy released from its coil as soon as the guard reached for him. He jammed his elbow into the man’s throat and pushed against him, toppling them both off balance as Eric’s shot pierced the room.
Zach hit the ground hard enough to rattle histeeth. Shaking his head to clear the ringing in his ears, he scrambled to his feet.
Anthony lunged at Eric with enough force to tackle him to the ground. The gun fired again as the men hit the floor, but Anthony pinned Eric beneath his weight, pressing his knee on top of Eric’s arm.
The guns. Eric had two, and Anthony couldn’t pry them both away at once. Zach scrambled to where the two men wrestled on the floor and grabbed for Eric’s wrist. Zach had a firm grip on the barrel, but Eric’s hand was locked around the handle.
The guard landed a solid kick to Anthony’s side. Anthony let out an “Oof” as he toppled into Zach, dislodging his grip on the gun.
Zach crawled back toward Eric, who was righting himself with a weapon still in each hand. “You take him. I’ll get Eric,” Zach said, hoping and praying he and Anthony were on the same side and the guy wasn’t just trying to save himself.
Before Zach could pin down both of Eric’s hands, one of the guns slammed into the side of his face. Sparks danced at the edge of Zach’s vision as he shook off the hit, and the small hesitation was enough to give Eric a leg up as he scurried across the floor.
The door clicked just before it opened. Zach’s heart seized as Eric pointed the two pistols at whoever was in the doorway.
