Page 146 of Stand: Part One

She shrugged. “I don’t know. There were three left when I came to. I don’t know how many they started with. I think some ran off once I managed to steal the gun.”

I released my own slow deep breath to keep my rage down. Now was not the time to lose my shit. “What else?”

She shrugged again. “The power went out right before they attacked,” she continued. “We all tried to fight the best that we could, but we were outnumbered.”

I’d already taken note of the four unknown dead bodies I’d passed through the living room, not including the seven of my own. There had to have been more to launch that kind of a successful ambush.

“Then I woke up in that chair and got really lucky when he leaned in too close to me. I kicked him in the balls and managed to wrestle his gun from his hand with my legs, and then the chair tipped over. By the time he got up, I had the gun in my hand and scored two shots while the others disappeared. I lost track of time before you came in.”

Lucky was not a word I favored.

“Stay here. Do not get out of the tub,” I ordered and stood to leave.

Storming out of the bathroom and into the living room, I knelt and looked over each dead body that had been left behind.

“Armenians,” Scott said as he stepped back into the room.

“Hired Armenians,” I added.

“Juan’s wife was Armenian.”

I stood and cracked the kink in my neck. “I know.”

Scott lifted his chin. “She okay?” he asked, nodding toward the bedroom.

I nodded solemnly, crossing my arms over my chest as images of what could have been flashed before my eyes. “She’s fine.”

“Good. Hopefully, she can fill in the blanks because we’ve got nothing. They cut the hardwire to the power. No alarms, no signal, no security footage.”

I pinched the bridge of my nose, releasing the growing tension in my forehead. This floor had an independent power source, so whoever it was had more information than they should.

FUCK.

“Jaden said she only saw three men when she woke, but there had to have been more. I had eight guards stationed here, including Clive and Owen. That should have been enough.”

Scott shook his head. “It doesn’t add up.”

No, it certainly fucking doesn’t.

“Matt was never at the docks,” I stated. “It had to have been a body double.”

“Sent to me to lure you away so they could, what, get to Jaden? Why?”

I shook my head. “I don’t know. She said they wanted information, but I’m not sure what kind yet. I’ll get more out of her later.”

“Do you think Matt was actually here?” Scott asked, his voice tight with suspicion.

I thought about it, and it was very possible, but it didn’t make sense. He wasn’t after Jaden. He was after Daniel. Why even bother with her? Unless he was still just trying to toy with me more, which also didn’t make sense since he lacked the time and resources.

I shook my head. “Jaden would have said so.”

Scott turned toward me. “You’re sure about that?” he asked, his tone cautious.

His doubt in her inflamed my already barely restrained wrath.

“After what I just did to her, she’d be pretty fucking stupid to make the same mistake twice,” I nearly growled.

Scott wisely stepped back. “Maybe she just didn’t see him.”