Page 3 of Long Past Deadly

“What? What is that?”

“Cait and Hunt’s house. It’s seven minutes from here. We can take back streets and lose him. They won’t be home. They’re on their honeymoon. But I can get in.”

“Why?”

“Guns. Phones. First aid. Clothes. Then we figure this motherfucker out. And may I point out you’re FBI. A hunter of serial killers. It could be you.” Alanna’s presence rubbed his every nerve the wrong way. Sexual tension he could handle, but this wasn’t attraction. Annoyance qualified, though.

She gave him a deadly glare. “It’s not me. I wasn’t working on anything that would escalate to this. You’re gonna steal from them?”

Quaid huffed loudly. “Borrow, Williams. Borrow.” While he was pretty sure Hunt wouldn’t kill him for taking his guns, Cait would not be happy her Safe Harbor sanctuary had been invaded with violence – even though it was prepped daily for such an occurrence. His course set, he accelerated, finally losing the shooter in a maze of turns through the surrounding neighborhoods.

The man had ambushed the playboy but triggered the warrior.

&&&&&&&&&&

Alanna studied the neighborhood. Even with her past in San Diego, she had no idea where they were. Large expensive homes were surrounded by long stretches of rolling lawn. Christmas lights and yard scenes decorated house after house, lighting the area with a welcoming coziness. But they were trying to hide, and visibility was not helpful.

Quaid slowed and turned off his lights. “Hunt and Cait’s house is around the corner, and they live next door to a San Diego police sergeant. We’re pulling in the driveway and getting this car hidden in their garage as soon as possible.”

“Why do you have access to their house?”

“QM manages the security of the property. I check the house personally from time to time. Deal I made with Hunt when we hired Cait. Although, it was supposed to be protection from SEAL threats, not mine. He’s not going to be happy.”

“We need to call in.” She brushed off her black slacks and bit her lip to stop from saying more. She’d repeated the phrase multiple times already.

“Cait has a landline. We’ll use it. I need out of this tuxedo, too.”

“Then what? The office?”

“No. They found me there and party breakdown has left it vulnerable. We’ll Uber. Coronado Regency Patton Hotel. I have an SUV parked there.”

“I have no wallet on me.”

“Me either. I’ll use the business account – but we’ll have to move again.”

“Where to?”

“The LA Downtown Regency Patton.”

“Did you pick Patton hotels on purpose? There are other more discreet places.”

Quaid pulled in the driveway to a lovely, one-story home stretched across the lot in spacious, modern elegance. Doctor/SEAL pay. She had no frame of reference for big spacious homes. She barely managed her tiny LA apartment.

He killed the engine and swiveled in his seat. “Yeah, I picked them on purpose because I am familiar with the staff, and the Downtown Patton has a security chief who is on my ride-or-die list.”

“That still makes no sense. Better to use the resources at QM than to move away from those assets.”

Quaid glared at her, and she leaned away from the irritation oozing out of him like blood on a flesh wound.

He frowned. “QM has resources many places. But I’m getting the inkling you don’t recognize me.”

She opened her mouth to sass back, then thought better of it. The man’s handsome presence and entitled attitude drove her nuts. In her two weeks at QM, there’d been no evidence of the warrior ethos that was the hallmark of QM. Granted, she hadn’t been looking for it, but shouldn’t it have been obvious?

Quaid’s face blanked. “Congratulations. You are the only woman on the planet that can’t identify my face. Zephren Patton? Hotel magnet with dozens of hotels across the world? I’m his grandson. I’ve been in every hotel, know the weaknesses and strengths of each location, their staff, and how to go unnoticed in each and every one.”

Disbelief flowed. She’d never been close to a billionaire in her whole life – even working for the FBI. No one had briefed her on QM’s personnel even during the many frequent collaborations on the Tenney case.

She stayed silent a second, then gave in to defending herself. “I didn’t know. How would I?”