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She eyed him warily. He had already told her this, so something was definitely up.
“Traffic cameras were down for a five-block area surrounding the hospital.”
Okay, that was new information, and while she never changed her expression, relief flooded her entire being. It had to have been OZ who’d rescued Sean. That kind of operation would have involved multiple people with sophisticated equipment, experienced hackers, and someone with covert ops training to snatch an unconscious man out from beneath the eagle eyes of medical staff. Who else would be interested in rescuing Sean other than Option Zero? How he had gotten in touch with them, she didn’t know. But she was extremely grateful that he was in good hands and that she didn’t need to worry about his health.
“No one can explain who stole your husband away or why.”
Ordinarily, she might be shocked that Kingsley was sharing this information with her, but since she was sure he had an ulterior motive, she waited for the punch line. There was no way he was telling her any of this to reassure her or give her any kind of comfort.
A grim smile appeared as he said, “Even though the cameras were disabled, our thief didn’t count on an accident closing down his escape route. He had to take a detour, and it just so happened, a police cruiser caught his vehicle on camera.”
A plain white cargo van appeared on the screen. The camera caught a head-on shot of the driver. An elderly man with brown, scraggly hair and a large nose sat behind the wheel. The camera was able to film him for a good seven or eight seconds before the van drove on. The disguise was a good one. Just looking at his face, she wouldn’t have recognized him—but for one very noticeable characteristic. Even from a distance, she would know those distinctive eyes anywhere.
“Do you know who he is? Have you ever seen him?”
Only from years of practice was she able to maintain her demeanor as she said, “No, I’ve never seen him. How do you know he’s the one who took Sean?”
“When questioned, the nurses remembered seeing an old man roaming the hallway in the ICU. When the lights came back on, he was gone, as was your husband. When shown a still of this video, the nurses identified him.”
“I don’t know who he is or how he would even know Sean was there.”
For several long seconds, Kingsley stared at her, trying to gauge whether she was lying. Even though she had no problem maintaining a mask of ignorance, she was extremely glad her pulse wasn’t being monitored, because she was sure her heart rate was sky-high. In those few seconds of video feed, she knew everything she needed to know about not only Sean’s whereabouts and safety, but also what Kingsley had actually planned for Sean. She hadn’t really needed any extra proof that Colton Kingsley was a lying sociopath, but she had now seen the evidence with her own eyes.
Apparently believing her, Kingsley turned off the screen and said, “We’ll find out who it is.”
She couldn’t resist one more poke at this man’s fragility. “I don’t understand why you’re so concerned about who helped him. You agreed to release him and leave him alone if I agreed to work for you. Why does it matter who took him?”
Turning slightly away from her so she couldn’t see his face, he gave a stiff shrug. “I don’t like mysteries.”
No, what he didn’t like was that someone had thwarted his plan to eliminate Sean.
Needing to be alone to absorb all she had learned, she said, “Is there anything else you need from me?”
“No. That’s all. You may return to your work.”
She didn’t linger. Only by hanging onto her professionalism was she able to calmly walk away and return to her office. Knowing that cameras were everywhere and would detect the slightest change in her demeanor, she kept the same expression. Tonight, when she was in the shower, her head lowered under the force of the water, she would let loose the multitude of emotions she held back. Because there were two very important things she’d learned in those seconds of recording.
Kingsley hadn’t had any intention of keeping his promise and allowing Sean to stay alive. How did she know this? Because he had sent a deadly assassin to kill him. And that assassin had been none other than Brody McAlister, Jazz’s brother.
She didn’t fully understand how or why the man was working as an assassin for the Wren Project, but she knew enough to know that he would not harm Sean.
Brody McAlister was a mystery she had been unable to solve. She had told no one, other than Ash, about her encounter with the man. When Jazz and Xavier had married in Francine, Brody had shown up to see his sister. Jazz hadn’t known he was coming, and Serena was sure it had been a beautiful reunion. She had been happy that her friend had been able to see her brother after all this time. But she had also wanted answers. So when Brody had been driving out of Francine, he had encountered a very determined Serena standing in the middle of the road going out of Francine, waiting to talk to him.
Confronting a known assassin might not have been her smartest move, but she’d been stubbornly resolute to learn as much as she could about Brody’s intentions. She knew he must have his own agenda, and Jazz swore her brother was one of the finest men who’d ever existed. Taking that into consideration, she had forced the meeting. It had lasted less than ninety seconds.
The man had been taciturn to the point of being nonverbal, and she’d walked away from the meeting with more questions than answers. However, she had gotten what she’d needed. Brody McAlister did indeed have his own agenda, and he was on his own journey of revenge. She only had her suspicions about who and what that involved, but she knew, without a doubt, that he would never do anything to hurt Jazz. That included harming anyone Jazz cared about, and Sean was one of those people.
So though she still had a mountain of questions about the man’s motives, she knew without a doubt that Brody had rescued Sean. And that was more than enough for her right now.
Miracles happened every day. She had witnessed her share, but she had to admit this one was extra special. What were the odds of Brody McAlister being the assassin they would send to take Sean out? Without divine intervention, the odds were nil.
Feeling more at ease than she had since she’d been here, Serena returned to her work. Every step she took—and every bit of intel she gathered—brought her closer to being back with her family again. As well as the man she loved.
No matter what lay ahead, she was at peace.
Chapter Thirty-One
OZ Headquarters
