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“I have a feeling I know who else they’ve been talking to,” Jay added.

“Tarrant,” Brick and Tristin said in unison.

Tarrant Security was KSI’s business competition in the area. While Tristin employed military special ops veterans to work for his firm, Tarrant hired men who loved violence and war too much. They were more mercenaries than security guards, and they recently began touting PI services as a new side to their business.

“They could have been bluffing. Threatening to take their business elsewhere to move us to take the case,” Brick pointed out.

Tristin shook his head. “I don’t think so. I think they are people who aren’t used to being told no. They’re used to having the best, and they were pissed they couldn’t hire us when their sources told them we were the best. I’ve run across a lot of people like this. They’ll stop at nothing to get their way, and right now, they want their way when it comes to their grandkids.”

“Did you notice how they spoke about their granddaughter?” Brick added.

Jay nodded. “I couldn’t tell if they were proud of her or disappointed. They definitely have warm and fuzzy feelings for their grandson.”

“I want to know what’s really going on here,” Tristin said. “I have a hard time believing the parents would appoint a guardian to their children who is unfit, and the court ruled in the aunt’s favor. I don’t think they would do that if there was evidence of neglect on the aunt’s part.”

“The children also chose her over the grandparents. They didn’t want to admit it, but I find it telling,” Jay added.

Tristin nodded. “I know we have a lot going on, but I hate the idea of Tarrant going the extra mile to prove this woman is unfit when she really isn’t. These kids lost both of their parents. I don’t want someone coming along to break up what little family they have left.”

“If it’s all right with you, I’m going to have Sam check into the case. He’s already told me Monica is giving him grief for being involved in some of the Alpha Team cases lately. I think he’d like to stay on the sidelines with the De la Peña case as much as possible,” Brick explained.

Sam Montgomery was one of the original members of the Alpha Team but stepped down to the role of investigator after an undercover op almost resulted in his death. His girlfriend, Monica, had convinced him to take a less dangerous role with the company so he would be there for her and their son Aidan more. He would resume his special ops role when KSI launched rescues for Sydney and Payton. When it came to the ones they loved, their family had each other’s backs no matter what.

“Sounds like a good idea. Have him use Travis for his technical support,” Tristin added. “I think this will free Travis up to work at the gym when he needs to while helping us out. It shouldn’t split our resources for the two of them to check into it.”

Jay used his hand to absently smooth his beard. “We could also assign Zane to the case when he’s released from his doctor. It would keep him busy and possibly out of our hair while we’re working the De la Peña case.”

“No way he’ll agree to that,” Tristin said.

“He won’t have a choice,” Jay insisted. “I’m ready to put Armando and Elian away for good. I’m done with watching over my shoulder in case they come for Payton or Davi or even Zane. For once, I want our KSI family to be able to live in peace, without the threat of some psychopath hanging over our heads.”

“Agreed. I’ve got Sydney and Kat running down intel on Cal Russo and whoever this Morrison person is. I wanted to know why Armando is so sure Zane was working for them.” Tristin pushed back up to his feet and motioned for Jay to follow him. “Let’s go check on Zane. Now’s as good a time as any to let him know he’s been benched for the time being.”

“Glad it’s you guys and not me delivering the bad news.” Brick chuckled. “I’ll get with Sam and Travis about this case. Are we meeting later to discuss next steps for De la Peña?”

Jay nodded. “Yeah. I’m not sure what those are yet, but it’s time we get ahead of these guys instead of playing catch-up.”

Chapter Seven

Zane eyed the IV connected to the bag of fluids on the metal pole beside his bed. Clear tape covered the needle resting in the vein in his hand. He hated how the clear bag and piece of tape made him feel powerless. He was weak physically, which his doctor said was normal, but now that he was up and moving around on his own, the soreness in his abdomen was manageable. His visitors had lessened to a few sporadic pop-ins a day, which left him with too much time to contemplate an escape from the hospital. How much damage would he cause if he ripped out the IV and made a run for it? Would he have enough energy to change out of this damn hospital gown so he could haul ass?

Just as he was feeling ready to jump out of his skin, he heard a knock a second before a familiar redhead pushed through the door. Her brilliant smile was what he needed to calm his anxiousness. Dressed in her typical casual top and jeans, her hair in its signature braid, she immediately pulled a chair closer to his bedside, which suited him fine. It gave him an up-close view of the freckles sprinkling over her cheeks and nose and the deep blue eyes which sparkled as he gazed at them.

“You’re up,” she said cheerily. “Good. I was hoping we’d have a chance to visit.”

“What are you doing here? I figured you’d be heading home from work.”

“Well, I am. Just not from KSI.”

When Sydney was hired at KSI, it was under the stipulation she could maintain a few clients in her private security business. Most of the time, she handled her business remotely from home in the evenings, but sometimes, she was needed to make an in-person visit.

“I figured once I finished with my customers, I’d stop in to see you on my way back to KSI. I have a few things to do there before I can call it a night,” she explained. “I’ve been worried about you.”

“No need to worry. I’m good.” He smiled and placed his hand over hers where it rested on his bed.

Her smile dropped. “Stop lying. Put up a good front with your mother, with your sisters, or anyone else if you want. But not with me.”

If she only knew how he’d been lying to her from the beginning. He was the brother she never had, but to him, she was never in the sister or friend zone, and she could never know how he felt about her. He hoped his undercover operation would give him the distance he needed to move past his feelings. Hell, he had agreed to give her away at her wedding to his teammate, but seeing her worried over him made him realize his feelings were still there. They may have been pushed out of the way for him to focus on his job, but they were as strong as he remembered.