Carrera eyed them through the glass and opened one of the French doors. “I need to cover this.”
“It’s two in the morning,” Sin said. “No one’s awake.”
“My grandmother sleeps down the hall,” Carrera explained. “She already knows more than she should.” As he taped the paper blind over the glass, Luciano pulled another from the box and attached it to the other door.
Both large displays on Carrera’s wall and the one on his desk were dark.
“When does the stream go live?” Luciano asked.
“As soon as I click in,” Carrera said. “They should be on their way to the target’s house now.”
Rather than relax on the sofa, the men sat in guest chairs. Carrera locked the door. Once he sat, he hopped on his laptop. Seconds later, all three displays lit up.
“Frederica Salgado, longtime ALPHA Op, is lead,” Carrera explained. “We’re watching through her BWV—Body Worn Video.”
“Just the one camera?” Luciano asked.
“Yeah,” Carrera replied. “Livestream only.”
“Is Dakota watching?” Luciano asked.
“Yeah,” Sin replied. “He and Providence are watching from their safe room at home, so the kids don’t wander in.”
“Rebel’s watching at home too,” Carrera said. “Cooper’s with him.”
The men grew silent as the vehicle Frederica was driving came to a stop, the engine went dead. In silence, she exited, walked around to the back hatch and opened it. The three Ops who rode with her pulled on their night goggles. One quick check of their comms before they joined up with the other two Operatives who’d parked next to them.
“We go in together, we come out together,” Frederica said, then paused. “Questions?”
There were none.
“Is everyone up for the mission?” she asked.
One by one, the five Ops confirmed they were.
“This is an arrest-priority mission,” Frederica reminded them. “The suspect lives alone. Doesn’t mean he is alone.”
“If he opens fire?” asked an Op.
“Like we discussed, we return fire,” Frederica said, her voice calm and steady. “Let’s fall in line.”
“They’re at a small neighborhood park two blocks from the target site,” Carrera explained.
Pairing off in twos, they made their way to the street. Down the block the ALPHA SWAT team walked in silent formation.
Frederica signaled, and three of the Ops veered toward the backyard. The street was quiet, the small house dark. The body cam was equipped with the same lens as the night goggles, filling the screen with a greenish hue.
Frederica led two Ops to the front door. She tried the handle. It was unlocked.
“That never happens for me,” Luciano said.
“Same,” Sin added.
“Is the back door locked?” Frederica whispered, the comm catching her words.
They couldn’t hear the response.
“On three,” Frederica said.
