day, handing the crown to Devane.
This reporter has been told by a representative of Blackwood Security, the company central to the search and recovery operation, that a dent in the back of Piper’s car suggests she was run off the road. Could this be linked to rumours that Devane was seen driving erratically on the afternoon Piper vanished?
Oh, hell. If Kyla and Ridley realised her secret was out, that could send them over the edge. Alaric almost didn’t want to click on the second link.
An unnamed military source has today informed us that Eric Ridley, a former Navy lieutenant who rose to prominence this week thanks to his role on senatorial candidate Kyla Devane’s security team, is wanted for questioning by the Naval Criminal Investigative Service regarding an incident that took place in Syria eight years ago. Ridley was previously cleared of wrongdoing in the shooting of nineteen Syrian citizens found in a boat off the coast of Latakia, but we understand that new evidence has now come to light.
“Nick, have you seen this?”
“Seen what?”
Nick leaned closer to look at Alaric’s phone. He read both articles in silence, then straightened.
“Shit. This could be a problem. Our profile of Ridley says he’s volatile when provoked. Who knows what he’ll do if he thinks Blackwood’s out to get him?”
Xavier’s voice came over the airwaves. “There’s a second car parked around the back. Hood’s still warm.”
For the first time, Nick’s voice held a hint of stress. “We need to get Emmy. If Ridley’s in there…”
“Stand fast.”
Was that Black? It sounded like him, but where was he?
Alaric couldn’t hold his tongue. “Your wife’s inside a building with a lunatic.”
“She’s—”
A gunshot cut him off. A large-calibre weapon by the sound of it, coming from the house. What the hell? A moment passed in complete silence, everyone frozen. Then a blood-curdling scream came from the same direction, quickly followed by two more gunshots.
“I’m going in,” Alaric said, his own gun already in his hand.
“I said, stand fast.”
This time, Black’s voice came from close by, not over the radio. A second later, he materialised from the darkness with Nate at his side and a phone held to his ear. Who the hell had fired the shots? Not Black or Nate—they hadn’t had time to cover the distance from the house.
“H-h-hello? Police? I wanna report a murder.” He’d injected more than a hint of fear into his voice. It was the most emotion Alaric had ever heard from the man. “Yes, a murder. My boss just went crazy and shot two of my colleagues and our client.” Wait. Kyla was dead? “His name? It’s Eric Ridley. Be careful, okay? He’s got a gun. … Yeah, he’s at the Devane estate on Willow Tree Road. Hurry.”
Black hung up as the Hawaiian shirt guy from the gas station dumped a limp body onto the ground in front of them. A man in jeans and a dark-coloured bomber jacket. Black tucked the phone into the unconscious stranger’s pants pocket, then straightened.
“Sweet dreams, motherfucker.” He peeled off his gloves. “Xav, get back in the car. Everyone move out.”
“Where the hell is Emmy?” Alaric asked.
“I’m here.”
Her voice was weak, and Ana was half carrying her, but she was alive. “How’d it go? I slept through the whole thing.”
“The wicked witch is dead.” Black ignored Ana’s glare as he picked Emmy up and cradled her in his arms. “Time to go home.”
This wasn’t just the fucking twilight zone, it was the full-fledged dark side.
“What the hell happened?” Alaric asked.
Black smiled, and honestly, that was scarier than his usual cold expression.
“Assassination’s so much cleaner when you avoid pulling the trigger yourself, don’t you think?”
“What do I think? I think you’re crazy. You played Russian roulette with Emmy’s life.”
“No, I took a calculated gamble. Ridley’s predictable. A small man with a big ego who shoots first and considers the consequences later.” His tone hardened. “Now, move out.”
CHAPTER 28 - ALARIC
THE FIRST SIRENS sounded as Black’s team drove away from the Devane estate, each vehicle taking a different route out of the area. Alaric spotted the RV turning south towards Tennessee. Who was that guy? He voiced the question, but the Blackwood employee behind the wheel shrugged, and if Dan knew the answer, she was keeping her mouth shut.
“Did you know what Black was planning?” Alaric asked her.
“With Kyla? He said he was going to pick her up as an insurance policy, but I didn’t know he was planning the switch. The original plan was to get