Page 23 of Deadly Alliance

Owen growled. “Could be that. Never easy to get into either, but maybe he flew under their radar.”

“He specialised in bombs but didn’t stay for long, as he dropped everything to start a career as a hired mercenary. Look at the list of private companies I found with him on the payroll.” Will mirrored his search on the main screen.

Shane whistled as he recognised several of them, more on the criminal side of things than he had hoped for. “Not good. How can we be sure he’s working alone? Or maybe he was a hired hand, that’s why Bea didn’t recognise him.”

Emme sighed before she turned to Beatrice. “Could it be linked to your husband instead of you? Someone wanting to get to him by threatening you?”

Shane liked her suggestion and gave her a quick nod.

“I don’t know, Emme. Together, we have a good stack of enemies. We’ll only know when we get our hands on the man.”

“Then, let’s get him, wherever he’s hiding.”

Zack nodded to Lucy before scanning the men and women around the table. “It may take a while. Especially since he was stopped while attempting to kidnap Emme. And maybe he figured he’s been made. We need to keep that as a possibility. We may have blown Shane and Emme’s cover for good because of what happened.

“I think the only way we’ll know is if Bolton is still in the UK or not. If he’s fled, that means he knows we’re on his tail,” Zin suggested.

“Or he’s stayed because it’s personal,” Owen added, which made Shane wince.

“He’s still here.” Dee’s mumble was low but caught everyone’s attention.

Beatrice shook her head in disbelief. “You mean he’s still in the UK?”

The hacker nodded her head before glancing at a sombre Will. “Just outside Hereford. We traced one of his bank accounts, hidden under two pseudonyms, he’s rented a flat.”

Shane got to his feet, newfound energy buzzing through him. He nodded at Emme before turning to Zack and Beatrice. “We have to be careful; maybe it’s a trap. But if it’s not, time is of the essence. We can’t wait until he finds another victim or makes another attempt on Emme. Enough of defence, let’s do offence. And I have an idea.”