Page 82 of Long Past Deadly

Alanna patted her on the back. “We’ll get them covered any way necessary, until we have the scope of this.” She turned to him. “I can help Celissa confirm personnel, if you want.”

He wanted her close, but it made no sense. “That would help. We need Niles, too. Put him with Tinkerton to lock down the armory until we confirm HQ is secure and have him work his magic with some meals.”

“I’ll call him.” She left with her phone at her right ear, and he had a moment to be thankful she hadn’t been here for this explosion. Her left ear couldn’t take it.

In Operations, he reassessed jobs. Confirmation of all personnel across all locales and their safety was already in the works. Plus, they needed to form security details to check Celissa’s family and QM family homes. A review of security footage and adding personnel to canvas the neighborhood was also on his mental to-do list. Medical research and manufacturing in their area didn’t leave anyone to see anything, but they’d check anyway.

Miner came to his side. “Fire department has the fourth floor elevator open, and they are extracting Harrison and Elizabeth. They’ll be up in a minute.”

“Are either of them injured?”

“No, Elizabeth is pissed, though.”

“To be expected.” She’d been known to go for her shotgun when in a temper.

Twenty minutes later, Harry and Elizabeth walked into Operations. Quaid let out a sigh of relief that he didn’t show to either of them.

Elizabeth kissed Quaid’s cheek, and he held her for a long minute.

She patted his arm. “I’m all right. Harry took good care of me. What can I do?”

“Alanna is upstairs in the dayroom helping Celissa. I want a full status on everything before dark.”

“I’m on that.” She left the room, heels in hand.

Harry propped hands on his hips and assessed the room. “Where we at?”

“I need someone supervising fire department and police activity. Can you manage? I want to know the second they find anything. Frank has the bomb squad searching the building.”

“Yes, I’ll check in.”

Mackey stepped into the room, taking over the management of the two-man details. Soon, they were running like the well-maintained engine they were. Even Frank allowed them to work with his cops to check everything.

After several hours, Quaid stopped to reflect and chug an energy drink. Though the man had tried days ago to kill him, too, he’d shifted all the reasoning over to Alanna being in danger and detached from his own safety.

This was different.

Mercer attacked his business, something he and Mac had worked to build and grow for five years, and his aunt had been in the building. He thought of most of these people as family – and if you came at him and threatened all that, you were tar-ge-ted.

He was done playing it safe to protect Alanna.

She was chomping to go after Mercer, too, making the decision that much easier. The trick was to keep it professional and be smart and tactical.

Mercer might want the anger and the chaos. He wasn’t going to get it.

Because the FBI agent/profiler had the killer figured out and would work hand-and-gun with him to trap the son of a bitch.

He was a destroyer who deserved what was coming at him. And God dammit, he was about to meet the warriors who would achieve his destruction.

&&&&&&&&&&

QM International Situation Brief: 00:25:05 PST 12/21- San Diego HQ. All personnel accounted for and safe. Threat remains active. Security level 5 remains in effect. All personnel and families exercise extreme caution regardless of location. Ϙ

The sparse report flashed on Alanna’s text messages. She’d been added to QM’s notification system, and she gobbled up the information like a dry plant sucked water.

She made a list of everything she knew from memory.

Security stayed tight like an oh-dark-thirty op.