“You need us, we’ll be there. Keep the comms open.”
As if I could close them.
“Truck turning into the road.” This is from Bolt.
“Positions,” I instruct, waiting myself until Keeper’s taken his vantage position, checking he’s where he can see but not be seen, and Kink’s waiting with his gun raised ready to fire or use as a threat out of sight behind the door.
It’s only then I sink to my haunches beside the countertop. In order to see anything, I’ll have to expose myself, but hopefully anyone will be looking at eye level, and not down at their feet.
An engine cuts out in front of the house, and doors quietly close, probably with respect to any neighbours near enough to be disturbed. Then, there’s the scraping of a key in the lock and someone steps inside. The alarm is luckily affixed to the wall on the side of the door opposite to where Kink’s hiding.
I hold my breath, but the alarm apparently raises no red flags, and spy Devon tapping a number in.
Come on inside and close the door, I mouth.
Devon steps back, allowing two others to walk past him into the room.
“You want to bring the kids up so we can get them into the truck? They going to come quietly?”
“Don’t they always?” Devon snorts, kicking the door closed behind them. “They think they’ve arrived in the goddamn States and will make their fortune. Most of them won’t care where we’re taking them, two might. They’ve gone on and on about contacting their fuckin’ aunt.”
“We’ll shut them up, won’t we, Bert?” The speaker elbows the other man, and his answering chuckle sends shivers down my spine.
“You need to rethink your plans.” An audible click shows the men that the man who has suddenly appeared behind them is armed.
Of course, one wants to be a hero. I see him sliding a gun out of a shoulder holster ready to fire as he turns, but I’ve got half a second on him and take him down, luckily before he can get a shot off. My gun’s equipped with a silencer, his was not. All we’d need is fuckin’ nosy neighbours.
“Don’t fuckin’ move,” I say, as I stand and expose myself. “We’ve got beads on you both. Take out your weapons very carefully and put them on the ground.”
The unnamed man left standing obviously wants to live. He takes out his gun and lays it gently on the ground.
“Slide it over here.”
At my instruction, he does. Picking it up, I put it into my belt.
Devon, though, he’s not moved. “I know you.” He narrows his eyes. “You’re the asshole with the bike. What do you want?”
Does he know we’ve found the kids? Watching him very carefully, I notice him nonchalantly glance around, his eyes resting momentarily on the closed, and now invisible again hatch.
“Money you owe me.” I string him along.
“And that’s worth killing someone?” Devon’s eyes open wide. “You could have just asked me, man.”
“You’re a hard person to track down,” I tell him.
I hear a snick and see while we’ve been talking, Kink’s got the thug’s hands cuffed behind him. Trust Kink to bring the proper equipment, myself, I just use zip ties.
“On the ground,” Kink barks, waiting until the man lies prone. “Keep? Got him covered?”
“Yeah,” Keeper replies.
Devon’s hand moves toward his jacket.
“Stop,” I bark. “Lower your hands.”
“Just getting my wallet out. I’ll give you your money, then you can leave us alone.”
Hmm. Not that I need it, but Alicia might. “Two thousand dollars. You carry that much around?”
He rolls his eyes. With Kink’s gun to his head, he takes out his wallet and carefully counts out twenty hundreds. Walking forward, I snatch it out of his hands and place it in my cut.
“We straight now?” He eyes the dead man on the ground but doesn’t seem heartbroken over his death.
“I don’t think so.” I shake my head sadly. “Gone way past that now. Got some folks want to have a conversation with you.”
As Devon stiffens at the touch of the barrel of Kink’s gun digging into the back of his head, I start searching the man, patting him down. He’s got a gun, but other than that he’s clean.
“I got more money,” he tells me. “Far more than you’d get modelling your fuckin’ bike.”
“Too late,” I reply. “See, when a man’s dishonest in the small things, it makes people start to think. You’ve done shit to me, Devon, shit much more than stealing from me. Owen and Alicia, ring any bells?”
“That had nothing to do with me!” Devon screeches as Kink yanks his arms behind him, another loud snick proving he’s come equipped with more than one pair of handcuffs. “That was all Owen. I refused to touch the video he’d made. I’m not into that shit.”
“Grumbler?”
“Two trussed and ready for transport. One dead,” I answer Bolt.
“On our way.”
“Is there anything you want to tell us before my friends come for you?” I ask, well aware there’s a hole full of kids right under our feet. Devon doesn’t seem to suspect we’ve found them. What’s he going to do? Fess up so we can save them or leave them to die to save his sorry ass.
“Owen tried to get me involved in shit I wouldn’t touch.” Devon’s voice rises louder. “I just take pictures. I’m not interested in videos. It’s him you should be after. If you let me loose, I can take you where he hangs out.”
But he won’t be there. By now, he’s six feet under if the prospects have done their job right.
Bolt and Swift appear in the doorway.
“I told the others to go back to the compound as you’ve got it all handled here. No need for multiple bikes waking up the neighbourhood,” Swift informs me. As her eyes fall
