want to see if he has lights still on.” He made his way under the cover of the roadside trees to where he could see the front of the house down the driveway. All the windows looked dark. He debated getting a look at the back. You’ve come this far.
McNaught was a dangerous guy to try close surveillance on— he was a veteran cop and had served a tour in the army— but with luck, this was just a precaution and he was in bed for the night. Nick crept down alongside the property.
When he reached the back lawn, he scanned the house. The rear was as dark as the front. Was McNaught sleeping? Plotting? Waiting for his alarm to go off at three to go roust Sam and drop him in the river? No way to tell. Nothing was happening for now.
And what about tomorrow? Brian might be able to do another day of flash-Finding, trailing McNaught, but it sure hadn’t looked as effortless as he’d claimed. Nick had the feeling that if McNaught kept his nose clean for a few days, they’d have to give up. What’s the bastard thinking? Didn’t Sam rattle him enough?
He made his way back up to the road. Brian was drowsy and jumped when Nick opened the car door. Not cut out for this job. At least not on top of Finding. He encouraged Brian to get out, pee, drink and eat some more. Brian was wrung out and it didn’t take much to convince him to grab more blankets from the back, recline his seat again, and take a “nap” —one that Nick wouldn’t disturb unless McNaught was on the move.
Nick pulled a blanket over himself and rolled the window down enough to hear the sound of any engine in the quiet countryside.
Hour after hour passed toward morning, with only the occasional vehicle going by. Nick kept himself awake planning new ways to rattle McNaught’s cage, until traffic began thickening, as the pre-dawn light brightened the road. Brian woke with a snort and a jolt.
“You didn’t give me a turn on watch.” Brian rubbed his bleary eyes.
“I was thinking.” Nick stretched as best he could in the seat.
“Nothing happened?” Brian’s tone was disappointed. He did a quick Find and opened his eyes to see himself pointing at the house. “Nothing.”
“Nope. Stakeouts suck that way.” Nick turned on the engine, cranking up the heat. “We’ll move as soon as McNaught heads to the station.”
“You don’t want to follow him?”
“We’ll stop at the gas station, get some food in you, and you can flash Find him to be sure he makes it to work. Then we both need some sleep.” A good thing Yasmin had agreed to give Brian the day off. “Charlie will make sure Sam gets to his job. He should be safe there till tonight.”
“When we do this again?”
Nick grinned. “The glamorous life of law enforcement.”
“We’re not in—” Brian bit off the words, but not before the hum of anticipation in Nick’s belly turned sour.
“No, guess not.” I damned well plan to be, though.
****
Brian wished Nick had bought a bigger car. An SUV, maybe, with huge seats. He shifted his butt around, trying to un-numb his ass cheeks while staying hidden by the cardboard sign. Despite running the motor now and then, the interior was getting cold too. He huddled into his jacket.
Beside him, Nick clicked his phone on to speaker. “Hey, Charles, any action from Sam tonight?”
“Not so far. I picked him up at work. He stopped at the Kwik Mart for ten minutes, and that’s the highlight of my evening. You?”
“McNaught is having a quiet night at home. So far.”
“You think something’s going to go down?”
Nick’s grin was visible in the fading light. “I went down to the shooting range like we discussed. Told Reggie I’d run into Sam at the gas station and he threatened me. Said he had friends in high places.”
Brian hid his discomfort with the way they were poking at McNaught. Like taking a stick to a bear. He shivered.
“What did Reggie say?” Charlie asked.
“He said Sam was full of shit and to ignore him, but he looked nervous.”
“I wish we had a third person to put on Reggie,” Charlie said. “Still nothing back from Gannet?”
“Nope. She’s either crazy busy or ignoring me.”
“There was that new meth lab bust on the news. She’s probably got her hands full.”
“We could ask Damon to watch Reggie,” Nick joked. Brian was pretty sure he was joking.