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CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

Noel

Sometimes it was hard to be on the sidelines of things and not in on the action.

When Shep killed the man who’d had JJ beaten almost to death, I’d been proud to be there with him and support what needed to be done, to be in the thick of it.

Unfortunately, Nick and I were the best with tech, and that often meant we were behind the screens while our brothers were in dangerous situations.

Like now. Angel, Gabe, and Shep were closing in on the cabin, and I hated that more of us weren’t with them. We had eyes on them every second, but we weren’t close enough that if something happened we’d get there in time. Maybe if Four was with them, I’d feel better.

Speaking of, I glanced at the drone rotating around Lizzy’s place. Her birthday party was a lot more active than Hazel had led us to believe. I didn’t know the people coming and going, but Four was inside, and he’d let us know if something was amiss.

“Five minutes out,” Gabe said, and I switched my focus from Lizzy’s party to them.

The drone above the cabin showed no outside movement. I’d lowered it a few times and could see any activity behind the curtains, so we knew he hadn’t left.

“There are three ways into the cabin. Front door, back door, and a side one. Split up, enter at the same time. That way he can’t run out,” Nick informed them.

“Got it,” all three of them responded in unison.

“Be safe,” I added.

Phoenix’s hand rested atop mine, and he gently squeezed. I returned it and added a small smile.

Gabe, Angel, and Shep exited the car, far enough away and hidden so that Amo wouldn’t see them. They tapped the doors shut and stealthily slipped through the trees toward the cabin, weapons in hand. Angel took the front, Shep the back, and Gabe the side.

“Counting down,” I announced. “One, two, three, go.”

They kicked the doors and entered. The aerial view kept watch in case Amo tried to sneak out while they walked deeper into the cabin, and we had great vantage points, thanks to their body cameras.

It was larger on the inside than it had seemed on the outside. Gabe’s entry was through the kitchen, and it was vacant. Angel’s was the living room, which was also empty. Gabe’s view showed a mudroom that led to a small dining room, also with no Amo.

“There are stairs, Angel whispered. “Gabe, stay on the first floor. Shep, with me.”

Gabe stationed himself at the bottom of the stairs and rotated his view slowly. Angel ascended the steps, Shep close behind.

“It’s quiet,” Shep said.

“I know.” Angel reached the top and turned right, Shep went left.

There was one bathroom and two bedrooms on the top floor…and no Amo.

“What the hell? We saw movement, and no one has exited that cabin.” Nick released a frustrated growl.

“He has to be in there, hiding,” Mason surmised, and I tended to agree.

“Guys, he hasn’t gone anywhere. We haven’t taken our eyes off that place. Check everywhere.” I looked at Phoenix, and his face was scrunched with worry. “It’ll be okay.”

He nodded and bit his lip. I could admit to being unsettled that they didn’t find him in there, and I hoped he wouldn’t get the jump on my brothers. He was a dangerous man, a monster. He had no remorse and wouldn’t hesitate to kill any of them.

I watched as Gabe, Shep, and Angel turned that cabin upside down.

“Fuck!” Angel roared. “How did he leave without us seeing?”

“I know how.” I moved to Shep’s camera, and my stomach dropped.

He was in the mud room, where there was a door to the left of the entrance. Inside that door was a room with a huge hole.

“He escaped through a hole in the ground?” JJ asked.

Angel and Gabe joined him. Gabe swore and Angel growled some more, but Shep decided he was going into the hole.

“What the fuck are you doing?” Gabe tried to grab Shep, but he couldn’t.

“We gotta follow it. See where it leads—maybe to a hiding spot.”

“One of us has to stay here in case he returns.” Angel motioned to Gabe. “Go with him, I’ll be fine.”

“Don’t be a hero, Angel. If he comes back and you can’t take him, run.” Gabe patted his shoulder.

“Fuck off with that shit, and go with Shep. He’s already moving.”

Gabe jumped in, and I was glad the tunnel was well lit. Angel sat by the hole, gun raised and ready for Amo to appear from any entry point.

“Watch Angel’s camera,” I ordered Mason.

“I gotta also watch Lizzy’s.”

I rolled my eyes. “We’re all watching Lizzy’s.”

Mason spun and glared at me. “I’ll watch Angel, but you gotta have JJ watch the drones above the cabin, someone has to watch Lizzy’s, and then Gabe and Shep.”

“I can watch Lizzy’s,” Phoenix offered.

“Perfect, you do that. This monitor here.” I pointed. “JJ, drones. Nick and I got Gabe and Shep.”

“On it.” JJ put the drones on his monitors, Mason focused on Angel, and Nick and I were watching Gabe and Shep as they went deeper into the tunnel.

It was a good thirty minutes later when we saw a split in the tunnel.

“Tell me you have too much money without telling me you have too much money,” Gabe grumbled. “It had to cost a fortune to build this, and now it’s breaking into different directions?”

“You go left; I’ll go right.”

“Shep!” Angel yelled, having been able to hear them but not see them. “Don’t split up more. Go one direction and backtrack; if he comes this way I’ll stop him.”

“All right.” Shep motioned for Gabe to follow him, and they took the left side.

After about five hundred feet, they hit a wall.

“Dead end?” I asked.

“Nope,” Shep turned and pulled his camera, so I saw above him. “A door.”

“Carefully open it, Shep.” I took a cleansing breath.

Shep climbed the ladder that was built into the wall and, using one hand, he turned the latch, and the door pushed open.

Slowly, Shep climbed through. It was quiet but for a small rustling sound. My hands were fisted, nails dug into my palms.

“Shit,” Shep whispered.

“What?” Everyone shouted at the same time, which probably wasn’t the best thing to do.

When Shep turned, I saw exactly why he’d cursed. He was standing in the middle of one of The Broken-Doll Killer’s sheds and on the ground, huddled in the corner, was a young man, no older than twenty-two, shaking.

“A hundred bucks says all those tunnels lead to different sheds,” Nick said.

“Nick.” Gabe came through the speaker. “You gotta call Carmichael. There’s no way the three of us can get to all of these sheds before he returns to one of them. He’s likely in one of them now. It’s a labyrinth down here, and the further you go, the more complex it gets.”

I gritted my teeth, hating that we needed the FBI at all, but Gabe was right. It was too much ground, and we weren’t enough.

Nick glanced at me. “I’ll make the call.”