I pull the handgun from the small of my back.
She nods once.
“Good.”
One of the men speaks in the sanctuary.
“Board’s here.”
Another voice answers.
“Name confirmed.”
My jaw tightens.
They’re looking at the recruitment board.
Looking at my name.
“They expected you,” Mara whispers.
“Apparently.”
The flashlight beams sweep closer to the hallway.
We don’t have much time.
Mara gestures down the stairwell.
“We go down.”
“And then?”
“Then we figure out who these guys are.”
I glance back toward the sanctuary again.
Six men.
Organized.
Disciplined.
Definitely not amateurs.
“Those aren’t church volunteers,” I say quietly.
“No.”
“Private contractors?”
“Maybe.”
“But they’re not part of the network leadership.”
“How do you know?”
She meets my eyes.
