He concentrated on pulling in deep breaths and releasing them until his breathing normalized and his heart rate slowed.
The FBI wasn’t here. He hadn’t been caught. He still had time to carry out his plan and demolish the warehouse.
But he needed to hurry. No telling how long he had remaining.
Should he rearm the alarm system?
No time. Besides, it wouldn’t take him long to execute his plan.
He strode across the warehouse and disengaged the alarm at the base of the stairwell, then let himself inside.
As he took the stairs two at a time, he glanced at his watch. Just after six.
Ebony would have dinner ready by now. Dinner that they had no time to eat.
The gun in the holster at his waistband felt heavy. He wasn’t used to carrying it, but it had been necessary on a day like today.
Not that he planned to shoot his ex-family.
No, he had enough drugs to overdose all three of them. It was cleaner that way. No blood to get on him or the interior of the vehicle.
As he pushed through the door, he found Ebony waiting inside the kitchen straight ahead.
She smiled brightly, completely unaware of the trouble they were facing. “Great timing! I just pulled the casserole–”
“No time.” He flung his hand toward the hall on their left, which led to her bedroom. “Pack your things. We need to leave now.”
Her forehead creased. “Now? But dinner–”
“The FBI is coming! Unless you want them to take you in and lock you up, we need to leave.”
Her lips parted and she swayed. “FBI?”
“Yes! Move!”
She scurried toward the bedroom.
“Ebony!”
She whipped around to look at him, her large eyes dominating her chalky face.
“There’s a gun. In a compartment between the mattresses on my side of the bed.” He held her gaze. “Grab it in case anyone other than me comes in.”
She stared at him like a scared animal, but finally nodded.
Good. At least now two of them were armed. Just in case the FBI showed up and surprised him.
He unlocked the door to the stairs leading to the third floor and ran up.
The third floor was his private sanctuary.
He ran his hand along the top of the baby grand piano. Shame to lose such a fine instrument, but he couldn’t take it with him.
He barely glanced at the photograph of his mom. Wasn’t sure why he’d kept it anyway. She’d been a weak woman who had been the first to abandon him. He wished he could see the picture burn.
Kneeling by the safe on the far side of the room, he input his code and swung open the door.
Ten bundles of hundred dollar bills rested beside four vials of Kexatreme and a half full box of syringes.
First, the drugs. He scooped up the vials and syringes.
Best to prepare these here.
Leaving the safe door hanging open, he dumped the items on the small mahogany table and quickly filled the syringes to maximum capacity.
It was more than twice what was safe to give someone Oliver’s size. Three times the safe limit for Wendy. And enough that it should kill little Ava almost immediately.
He stuffed the syringes in his pocket.
Distasteful? Yes. But it had to be done.
He pulled a duffel bag from a drawer and returned to the safe, where he removed the stacks of cash he’d kept inside.
The money was supposed to be in case he ever needed to flee in a hurry.
If he could pull this off, he wouldn’t need it.
If he couldn’t, well, the cash might come in handy to help him and Ebony disappear.
₪ ₪ ₪
Kevyn followed on Dak’s heels.
Directly in front of Dak were Caiden and three other members of the SWAT team. Her team was sandwiched in the middle, with the remaining two SWAT officers bringing up the rear.
They couldn’t be more than five minutes behind him. The moment Trane had closed the roll-up door, they’d moved in.
They’d already cleared the first floor and were now taking the stairs as quickly as they could while still maintaining some degree of caution and silence.
She hoped they weren’t too late.
Dak was probably praying. He seemed to do that in times of stress.
It couldn’t hurt. Situations like this could go bad faster than she could blink.
The door at the top of the stairs opened into a wide room that had been set up like an austere living room. Light glowed from a single lamp on an end table.
On the opposite side of the room, an open doorway revealed a kitchen, the florescent lights as bright as sunlight.
Three other doorways opened off the living room, one on the left, one on the right, and one behind them, close to the stairwell door that they’d exited.
Probably led to the third floor.
Pete pointed to assign each of them directions to go. She ended up paired with Caiden and a SWAT officer whose name she hadn’t caught, checking out the hallway to the left.
Three people headed down the hall to the right, two went straight ahead to the kitchen, and another three, led by Pete and including Dak, headed for the door leading upstairs.
She followed the SWAT officer into a narrow hallway.
Three doors. Two open, one closed.
The SWAT officer pointed Caiden to the first open door and her to the open door at the end of the hall.
Evidently, he was taking the closed door.
She nodded and moved ahead of him down the hallway, her weapon up and ready.
“I’ve got one of our vics!” Felicia’s excited voice carried through her com. “It’s Ava. She’s okay!”
Kevyn kept easing down the hall, even as a small smile played with her lips. If Ava was okay, maybe that meant the others were as well.
“I’ve got more people.” Another voice, one she didn’t recognize, filtered through her ear. “Adult male and adult female. Both uninjured.”
It had to be Oliver and Wendy, right?
Now they had to find Ebony and Trane.
And end this.
₪ ₪ ₪
Dak brought up the rear, keeping an eye on the stairwell behind him as he followed Pete and the other SWAT officer up the stairs.
No sign of anyone behind them.
And, honestly, Trane would be stupid to follow them upstairs rather than escaping by going down.
They reached the small landing at the top of the stairs.
Pete motioned Dak to one side of the door.
Dak moved into position.
Through the coms, he heard the team talking about finding their victims. Alive and unharmed.
No mention of Trane or Ebony Bledsoe, though.
Which meant that they might be on the other side of this door. Dak tuned out the voices in his com to focus on the two men beside him.
The other SWAT officer gripped the door handle.
Pete held up three fingers, dropped to two, one, then a fist.
The SWAT officer pulled the door open and Pete swept into the room, leading with his weapon.
The SWAT officer followed, leaving Dak to bring up the rear. Again.
A flash of movement across the room.
A gun swept toward them.
Dak dove, sliding across the glossy laminate flooring. His shoulder bumped into a black leather sofa.
Two gunshots echoed through the room.
It was impossible to tell who Trane was shooting at.
He shimmied across the floor to the other end of the sofa as Pete’s voice rose above the fading echo of gunfire. “Put the gun down, Trane! We’ve got you!”
Another gunshot, followed by two more in rapid succession.
Dak peered around the corner of the sofa.
The SWAT officer leaned against the wall, blood oozing from his arm.
Neither Pete nor Trane were in sight.
He army-crawled to the fro
nt corner of the sofa.
Trane appeared in a doorway, scanning the room with his gun ready.
This guy wasn’t about to go down quietly.
Dak aimed and squeezed off a shot at the same time that Trane pulled back.
“Aagh!”
Trane twisted. A red spot blossomed on his shoulder.
The gun clattered to the floor.
Dak jumped up and raced across the room. In his peripheral, he saw Pete doing the same.
“Get down!” Pete’s barked command bounced off the concrete walls.
Stretching out his good arm, Trane reached for his gun.
Dak darted around a baby grand piano and kicked the gun away as Trane’s fingers brushed the grip.
“You’re under arrest for the abduction of…”
Trane’s face took on an almost purple hue, his jaw tight and his eyes narrowed.
Dak eased out a breath.
They’d caught him. It was over.
₪ ₪ ₪
Kevyn instinctively ducked as the gunshots sounded overhead.
Trane. Pete and Dak had found him.
Which meant that their search of this floor might be a waste of time.
She slid down the wall toward the last door as the SWAT officer tried the knob on the door she’d just passed.
Faint light shone from the room ahead of her. A shadow moved.
Kevyn tightened her grip on the gun. Someone was in there.
Ebony Bledsoe. She was the only one who was unaccounted for. The question was if she would be glad to see the FBI or if she was on Trane’s side.
The sudden silence seemed louder than the gunshots she’d heard a moment ago.
She sure hoped Dak and the rest of the guys were okay.
Not that she could worry about them now. Failing to focus on the task at hand could result in getting shot herself.
She reached the doorway and peeked around the corner.
A frail woman with pale skin and light blonde hair stood on the opposite side of the room. A gun, pointed at Kevyn, shook in the woman’s hands.
Ebony Bledsoe. Even though the picture on the missing persons report was five years old, Kevyn recognized the face.
Ebony didn’t fire. Didn’t move. Didn’t speak.
Even in the dim lighting, Kevyn could see the tears rolling down the other woman’s cheeks.
All her training said to stay in the hall, out of the line of fire, but her gut urged her forward. This woman wasn’t going to shoot her.
Kevyn eased into the room, stopping close enough to the door to launch herself out of the way if needed. “Hey. Are you okay?”
“Don-don’t c-c-come any cl-closer.” Ebony pressed herself against the wall.
“It’s okay. We’re here to help you. I’m with the FBI–”
“I said don’t come any closer!” Ebony looked frantically at the ceiling as if trying to see through the solid surface. “Where’s Jax? What have you done to him?”
She was near hysteria, probably brought on by the gunshots they’d heard.
And she seemed to have a loyalty to Trane.
She fit the description of the woman who’d bought the drugs and the mysterious girlfriend. The question was if she was an accomplice or victim. The gun would imply accomplice, but she didn’t seem hard enough to abduct and kill people.
Kevyn sensed movement in the hallway behind her but didn’t turn.
The screaming would have brought both Caiden and the SWAT agent running. She held out a palm behind her back, hoping they wouldn’t burst into the room and escalate the situation further.
“Are you Ebony?”
The woman started. “I… how do you know my name?”
Missing person. Endangered runaway. Possible victim.
Kevyn tried to keep all of that in mind as her brain rapidly assessed how to best defuse the volatile woman. “We’ve been looking for you. We thought you were in trouble.”
“Where is Jax?” Ebony’s eyes darted around the room like a rabbit being chased by a fox. “I want to see Jax!”
“I’ll take you to him. Just put the gun down.”
“No, you won’t! You’re lying! You want to take me away from Jax.”
“We’re not here to hurt you. But Jax has kidnapped people. Killed them. We want to help you and all the others go home.”
“I am home!” Ebony shook the gun. “Get out! Leave me and Jax alone and get out!”
The gun shook so recklessly that any shots Ebony might squeeze off would likely go wild.
Kevyn took a small step forward. Maybe she could appeal to Ebony through the victims. Ava was likely the most sympathetic of the group.
“Where’s Ava?” Even though she knew Ava was now safe, Ebony wouldn’t know they’d found the child. “Her grandparents love her so much. They miss her.”
Ebony’s chin wobbled. “We would have loved her, too. If she’d let us.”
“Were you trying to build a community?”
“A family.” A small sob escaped. “We wanted a family to love.”
“What about your family? Your parents filed a missing person–”
“Ha!” Ebony snorted, red flushing her pale cheeks. “You know how they show love? By smacking me around. That’s why I left and never went back.”
Okay, appealing to her family wasn’t going to work. “I’m sorry. It’s horrible when people do that to their kids.”
“I’ll never do that to my kid. No matter what.” She narrowed her eyes on Kevyn and brought up the gun, which had gradually dipped down. “Jax said you’d come. That you’d lock me up and take away my baby. That you’d take me away from him.”
Baby? No evidence of any baby around here, not even a crib. Which could only mean one thing. Ebony was pregnant.
“We don’t want to take your baby. We want to help you. Help you get to a place where you can raise your baby in safety.”
It’d be a long road for that, as the girl clearly needed deeper psychological help before she was ready to parent.
What had happened to her to get her to such a fragile state?
“Let me help you. Please.”
“I don’t need your help!”
“Kev.” Caiden’s whispered voice came from behind her. “Wendy wants to talk to her. She thinks she can convince her to surrender.”
Involve a civilian? A victim, no less?
She was shocked Caiden would even consider the option.
But Ebony was growing more agitated by the second and she was getting nowhere with the woman. Maybe…
“Ebony?” A woman’s voice came from the hallway behind her.
Ebony’s demeanor shifted. The panic, while not gone, seemed to lessen and an almost hopeful anticipation took its place.
“Wendy? Is that you?”
Okay. It wasn’t exactly protocol, but Wendy might be their best chance of talking Ebony down. “Bring her in.”
“Ebony, let them help.” A gentle female voice came from Kevyn’s right. Ebony’s eyes shifted that direction. “Please. No one has to get hurt here.”
Ebony’s face softened slightly. “They don’t want to help. They want to take me away from Jax.”
“Is that really such a bad thing?” Wendy moved further into the room, closer to Ebony. “Don’t you want to be free? Go outside and play with your baby in the park? Jax will never let you do that.”
“You don’t know that.”
Ebony didn’t sound convinced.
Kevyn briefly glanced at Wendy. What had transpired these last few weeks to give Wendy this kind of sway with someone so mentally unstable?
“Please, Ebony. Put down the gun. I don’t want to see you get hurt. Do it for your baby.”
Ebony wavered. “I want everyone to leave. For things to go back to the way they used to be. Just me and Jax.”
“You know that’s not going to happen. Jax kidnapped us. Held us against our will. Killed Susan.” Wendy shrugged. “He has to answer for that.”
Ebon
y shook her head vehemently. “We can leave. Start over. Me and him and the baby.”
“If you hurt these people,” Wendy swept her hand, gesturing to Kevyn. “You’ll be held accountable. Then what will happen to your baby?”
Sobs engulfed Ebony, shaking her frame.
Wendy stepped closer. “Give me the gun, okay?”
Ebony held it out and Wendy slid it from her fingers.
Handing it to Kevyn, she glanced back at Ebony, who had crumpled to her knees. Kneeling beside Ebony, Wendy put a hand on her back as she held Kevyn’s gaze. “She’s as much a victim as the rest of us. I think he brainwashed her or something.”
Wow. Wendy really seemed concerned for this woman who had helped hold her captive for the last two weeks.
Kevyn placed a hand under Wendy’s arm and eased her to her feet. “I’ll see that she gets the help that she needs.”
“Thank you.” Wendy allowed the SWAT officer to escort her down the hall.
Kevyn approached Ebony and helped her stand. “Let’s get you somewhere safe, okay?”
At some point they’d need to read Ebony her rights, but Ebony was in no frame of mind to hear or understand them right now.
Honestly, Kevyn wasn’t certain she ever would be.
Twenty-Four
Exhaustion settled deep in her bones.
Kevyn rolled her shoulders and stretched her neck, watching as Ebony was led away in handcuffs.
The poor girl wasn’t right in the head.
Prison wasn’t the place for her. She needed to be in an institution. Someplace that would help her overcome whatever had happened to her in the past.
Oliver, Wendy, and Ava sat in the back of the SWAT van. Wendy and Ava huddled together. Oliver sat back, arms crossed over his chest, a goofy grin on his face as Trane was wheeled past, handcuffed to a gurney.
From the jerk of Trane’s head, she was pretty sure Oliver had made some sort of snide comment, but she couldn’t hear it from here.
Her gaze shifted to Ava.
She’d kept her promise. Ava would be going home, alive, and seemingly physically unharmed.
Mentally, though… it’d take some time for her to bounce back from this.
She’d have to obtain the names of a few good child psychologists to pass along to Ava’s grandparents. They’d need to get Ava into therapy if they ever wanted her to enjoy a normal life.
Nameless (Sinister Secrets Book 1) Page 28
