Page 151 of Jay Bird

His girls could be in there. The phrase had been running through his head since they had arrived.

“Jay.”

He realized Derek had said his name twice.

“What?”

“You with me?”

“Yeah.”

Derek studied him for a second, then nodded. “Keep it that way.”

Jay Bird knew exactly what he meant. He also knew Derek wasn’t hovering because he doubted Jay Bird’s ability to do his job. He was doing it because he knew him well enough to understand just how close to the edge he was standing.

A few yards away, Tink ended a call and headed toward them. His expression didn’t give anything away, which wasn’t unusual. The man could probably announce the end of the world without changing his tone.

“What’ve you got?” Derek asked.

“Nothing I particularly like.” Tink slid his phone into his pocket. “Every airport within a reasonable radius has Chen’s information, aliases, and the facial images we pulled from the clinic. Private aviation is covered too. Police have people at the train stations and bus terminals. Rental-car agencies have been notified, and Coast Guard and harbor authorities are watching maritime traffic.”

“And?” Jay Bird asked.

Tink looked at him. “Nothing. No sign of Chen, Willow, or any of the men from the clinic.”

Jay Bird’s jaw tightened. “They didn’t just disappear.”

“No, they didn’t.”

“Then where the hell are they?”

“If I knew that, we’d already be moving.”

Tink wasn’t being an asshole. Jay Bird knew that, but frustration still had him turning away.

The container sat there mocking him.

Derek folded his arms. “What about cameras?”

“Port security is pulling everything. We’ve got footage of a vehicle entering this area, but the plates were stolen. Whoever planned this knew enough to avoid the better camera angles.”

“Chen,” Jay Bird muttered.

“Maybe.” Tink’s gaze shifted toward the container. “Or someone working for him who knows what they’re doing.”

Something about Tink’s tone caught Jay Bird's attention.

“What?”

Tink hesitated. “I don’t like this.”

“None of us fucking like this.”

“No.” Tink shook his head. “I mean the setup. Chen goes through all the trouble of taking Willow and Lily, gets them here, leaves the tracker active, and then parks them inside a container wired with explosives?”

Derek’s expression hardened. “You think it’s a trap.”

“Could be. Or could be a diversion.”