“Confirm interior path,” I ordered.
His camera peered through a narrow window. “Utility room leads to a hall. Hall opens into the dining room on the right. Kitchen left. Stairs up at the end.”
At the far side of the building, Kane’s night vision sprang back on, picking up the warm kitchen and the bodies beyond.
No third occupant, still.
“These doors will pop easy,” he muttered.
Convict converged on him, Ash to Heretic.
“Proceed,” I said. “Keep those masks up.”
Kane grumbled at the order but complied. The black fabric provided some semblance of disguise, skeleton teeth grinning where their faces disappeared. The crew became something else then. Anonymous.
Intimidating.
Those we hunted spoke more when afraid. Not that I typically got that far. I admitted to myself that I could be a liability in the field. Not so much an issue when intercepting traffickers, but not ideal when capturing suspects like these.
As much as I wanted to be out on a mission, I knew my strengths and weaknesses. And my priorities. I was better off here.
Someone else entered behind me, and I squinted around at Cassie, drawing up another seat.
“Arran was taking way too long to text,” she griped then held up her phone. “Say hi to Dixie.”
I snapped my gaze to the pretty lady on her screen. “Hey, doll.”
Her lips curved into a smile that had my heart aching.
“Eyes on the prize, big man,” she chided.
I fought a grin and turned back to the operation, ignoring Cassie elbowing Arran with a whisper of the nickname I hadn’t meant to give up.
Heretic worked the lock in seconds. “Entry,” he breathed.
At the same time, Kane and Convict moved in from the lounge side, Kane taking point now, his camera dipping where he crossed the threshold. Convict followed, light-footed, humming under his breath like this was a social call.
“Convict,” I warned quietly.
“Relax, boss,” he whispered. “I hum when I’m happy. Keeps the nerves under control.”
“I’d prefer the occupants that way. Convict, hum quieter.”
Ash stifled a laugh as he slipped in behind Heretic and eased the door shut.
In the interior, yellow light bled down the hall. Classical music played somewhere in the house, and cutlery clinked. A woman laughed too loudly at something that probably wasn’t funny.
“Positions,” I said.
Kane flattened himself against the wall outside the dining room, peering in. Convict mirrored him opposite. Ash took the kitchen. Heretic covered the stairs, still as a statue, listening. Just the same as the collection of people in my operations suite and on the phone all seemed to hold our breaths.
Kane murmured, “Two targets confirmed. Nothing upstairs. No heat.”
That answered one question and raised another.
“Execute,” I commanded.
They moved together, the minute adjustments of the green dots on my tracker screen a rush of my team in action.
