Page 50 of Devil’s Snare

My gaze swept over the ranch-style home with a well-maintained yard and a stucco wall surrounding the property. A middle-class home in a nice neighborhood. “There’s no way he could afford this house without a source of income.”

“Exactly. Gwen thinks I’m nuts because the court never proved it, but I think he’s a drug dealer.”

Maybe. It was possible.

The Grave Prowlers stayed clear of that shit. We didn’t run guns or drugs because it was an oversaturated market in California. But creating a cash flow people needed? Always in demand. That was why we had the printing press.

“I’m going to knock on the door. See who answers.”

“Let’s go.”

We walked right up, banged on the door loud enough to wake the dead twice, but no one answered.

“What about the back?”

“Worth a shot. Maybe he’s having a smoke in the backyard.”

Sarcasm. It seemed Ethan was fluent.

The gate wasn’t locked, so we entered, walking around the house to the back door. It stood wide, and the stench coming from it nearly stole my breath from my lungs. A sickening odor of decomposition immediately put me on alert.

I pulled my gun from the holster and aimed toward the door. “Cover me while I peek inside.”

Ethan nodded, looking around the yard and the large shed on the property.

I walked up the deck steps and peered into the house. Sure enough, a body lay there. Male. Covered in blood. A sack over his head. He was tied to a kitchen chair that toppled over at some point. The corpse couldn’t have been there for more than half a day. The smell wasn’t creeping beyond the property lines yet, but it would soon.

“Body,” I confirmed. “Hard to say who, but male.”

Ethan cursed. “We need to call it in.”

“Not until we’re sure that’s Max.”

Ethan opened his mouth to reply when we saw the shed door open, and someone walked out—a guy with shaggy blond hair, cheap tattoos, and bloody hands.

“Max!”

The guy’s head whipped toward us. He recognized Ethan and dropped the bag of lime in his hands. Fresh out of prison and already killing. Gwen was definitely in danger.

Max bolted for the fence and started climbing it when Ethan shouted at him to stop. Literally caught red-handed, Max wasn’t going to listen. He vaulted over the top of the fence.

Ethan rushed after him at the same time as I did.

The body in the house wasn’t our problem.

My boots hit the ground on the other side of the fence, and I ran after the fucker who hurt my woman, pumping my arms faster to catch up to Max. Ethan passed me, a snarl on his face. He wanted vengeance for his sister, and there wasn’t any way he was giving that up. I had to admit Gwen’s brother was earning my respect.

The chase led us beyond the street we started on, across the block, and down another road. I didn’t realize how close we were to the woods until Max disappeared into the trees ahead. Ethan went in after him, and I followed. Branches slapped at my arms and face, but I didn’t stop, pounding my boots into the ground and crunching leaves beneath the tread.

After several minutes, I heard rushing water, surprised to find we weren’t far from the river. In front of me, a gap in the trees opened to an unobstructed view. I halted to a stop in front of it when I noticed how high it had gotten, nearly reaching the top of the embankment.

Max hopped onto a log that stuck out into the water and slowly moved away from us. Maybe he thought he could jump and escape.

I lifted my gun. “Don’t move.”

He took another step, and I fired, hitting the bark as Max froze. “Don’t know who the fuck you are, but we don’t have a problem. You could walk away.”

Ethan scoffed. “Like I’d let you.”