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Corey followed Bobby to the garage, sliding into the passenger seat of the Volvo, then frowning when Bobby started the engine. The quiet engine. “Is this a hybrid?”
Bobby laughed. “God, the look on your face. Yes, it is, but it’s got the best acceleration of all the hybrids. I helped her pick it out.”
“Then why didn’t you make her get a car with something bigger than a golf cart engine?”
“Because she cares about the environment. Look at it this way—we can sneak up on people with a quiet car.”
Corey grunted. “Nobody was gonna be looking for us in a Volvo. Nobody’s really gonna be looking for us in a hybrid Volvo. I just hope we don’t have to get away fast.”
Bobby only sighed as he put Allyson’s home address into his phone’s map app. “You’re always such a ray of sunshine, Corey. Don’t ever change.”
Mid-City, New Orleans, Louisiana
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 27, 6:55 P.M.
“You okay, Dad?” Elijah murmured from where he sat on the arm of Kaj’s chair.
They’d finally made it back to his house in one piece—him, Val, Sylvi, and Phin. Burke had one of his part-time people in Sylvi’s shop, putting plywood over the shattered window. The cops had given Val a hard time about firing her weapon until André had arrived. They’d confiscated her gun, but they’d all been cleared to leave.
André was still at the crime scene but had promised to let them know if they found any evidence identifying the shooters. As if they needed evidence. It had been Corey and Bobby, Kaj had no doubt.
Now that his adrenaline was crashing, his mind was playing what might have been.
“I’m okay. It’s just...”
“Sinking in?” Elijah asked. That his son understood was unacceptable. They tried to take my son and then tried to shoot me? He hoped he’d be there when the bastards were caught. He had some pent-up anger to release.
He wrapped an arm around Elijah, exhaling quietly when his son rested his head on Kaj’s shoulder. “Yes. It’s sinking in.”
Sitting on the floor with her back to Kaj’s legs, Val sighed. “All I wanted to do was visit my sister.” She threw a harried smile at Sylvi, who returned it.
“Thank you for inviting me to your home, Kaj,” Sylvi said. “I live over the shop and wouldn’t have slept a wink tonight.”
“You’re welcome for as long as you need to stay,” Kaj said sincerely. If there was one good thing to come of this day, it was Val’s reunion with her sister.
Burke returned from the kitchen, a bag of ice in each hand. He wrapped the bags in towels and carefully laid them on Phin’s back. Phin was sprawled facedown on the sofa, his back bruised but not bloody. None of the bullets had pierced his military-grade body armor, thank God. The armor was designed to withstand high-velocity rifle fire, which was the only reason Phin was alive right now.
When they’d asked why he’d been there, he’d said that Val was distracted and that had worried him, especially with the online threats. He’d followed them from the jail and had been waiting in the narrow alley next to the flower shop, planning to follow them back once they were done talking with Sylvi.
Wearing the armor had been a last-minute decision, he’d told André, looking embarrassed. Helped him reduce his anxiety and stave off a panic attack.
Kaj was waiting for a quiet moment to express his gratitude. Phin didn’t strike him as the kind of man who’d want to be the center of attention as Kaj thanked him. Besides, the man was looking pretty miserable at the moment.
Phin hissed at the ice but settled quickly with only a slight grumble. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome.” Burke looked over his shoulder to the table where Antoine sat with his three laptops, Jace at his side. “You tap into the security cameras around Sylvi’s shop yet?”
“Yep,” Antoine said. “Nice shooting, Val. I think you hit the driver in the arm.”
Antoine was right. Val had done some fine shooting, considering one of the gunmen had been using a semiautomatic rifle.
“Wish I’d hit him in the head,” Val muttered. “There didn’t appear to be any blood at the scene, but André said they’re looking for the gray sedan. He might have bled on the upholstery.”
The gunmen would probably ditch the stolen car and steal something else.
“Can I?” Jace asked, tugging at Antoine’s laptop. “I want to see.”
Kaj had agreed to release Jace from his cuffs while both Burke and at least one other of his people were in the house. Jace had been grateful, but not insistent. Nevertheless, Kaj had gathered all the kitchen knives and any sharp implements Jace could use as a weapon. He still wasn’t sure that he trusted the young man, but he really wanted to.
