Page 86 of Rogue Wave

Whipping out my phone as fast as I could, I fired off a few texts to Hank and then slid my phone back to my pocket.

I had to hope he got them and responded quickly, because this had now moved from a reconnaissance mission to a rescue mission.

I pulled both weapons out, all while listening to the conversation beyond the door.

“We need to go,” Carson said nervously. “If she’s here, her cop boyfriend isn’t far behind.”

Damn right he isn’t. At least, I hoped he wasn’t.

“No,” Huxley replied angrily. “Just call in some more guys from down the street and tell them to take care of it.”

I didn’t have much time. If they called in more of their guys, Hank and I could be outnumbered before his backup got here.

I crept around the bedroom door and slipped out into the hallway. My sneakers padded softly along the hardwood floor.

I watched as her father pulled out his phone and began tapping on the screen.

I was close enough to see that his screen was black the entire time his fingers tapped the screen. Either his phone was dead and he didn’t want Samson to know, or my earlier suspicions were correct—he was a mole.

I got my confirmation seconds later.

My silent approach was good, but Carson turned his head in my direction.

Our eyes met, and he stared right at me for a moment. I lifted my finger to my mouth—the universal sign for quiet.

He said nothing but turned his head back to his phone and continued to pretend to type away.

The next few minutes ticked by as I watched helplessly as Carson tied his own daughter up to a chair—shittily, I might add, but I suspected that was on purpose.

I hadn’t wanted to intervene yet without Hank. I didn’t have a shot at Huxley. I could see Hazel and Carson from my vantage point and still remain hidden, but if I moved to get a better view of Huxley, I’d lose that element of surprise. I had no idea if Huxley was armed, but if he was, I may not have enough time to react.

I was blind, so I waited for Hank to arrive or Huxley to move into view.

The next few moments were a blur as Hazel was untied and then moved to a cabinet and reached in to get them something.

She was a terrible liar, but they bought it for now, which would help in delaying time.

A second later, I watched her dig her hands into something and throw a large chunk of white powder into the air, which was followed by Huxley’s loud, furious yell.

It was hard to see now that the power went out, but Hazel bolted away, tripping and falling in the process.

Huxley came around the corner, one hand rubbing his eyes, the other hand waving his gun.

I’d run out of time.

“Carson, here!” I yelled as I burst out from the doorway.

I lowered myself and slid one of the guns I had over to him.

“I’ve got Hazel. You grab Samson,” I directed him, hoping like hell I could trust my gut on this one.

Carson bent to grab the gun and scooped it up quickly, but not quickly enough. Before he could lift the pistol and turn his body, Huxley fired his gun, and Carson’s body jolted and fell back to the ground.

As I turned my weapon to fire back, a crashing sound exploded in the room, bringing my attention to the living room.

Through squinted eyes, Samson turned again and aimed his gun directly at Hazel.

Well, that went FUBAR fast.