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Awesome. They had a witness in danger, an unknown shooter, and now his intel and tech specialist was too busy with her boyfriend to help him. Operation Blue Smoke was going swimmingly.
“Pack it up, boys. We’re lifting off. I’ll brief you in the air.”
Miranda’s estimation was right on the money. Ninety minutes later, Will gathered his team while the small plane tore through the clouds. He shared the update about the witness and the potential suspect reports he hadn’t reviewed. He did leave off his personal commentary about Joey’s priorities and the fact that they’d be relying on an untested tech specialist. No use throwing Joey under the bus before it caused any real issues.
In a few minutes, Miranda was on the line giving them an update.
“Here’s your girl.” Miranda shared the footage from the hotel. Will furrowed his brow at the obvious fear of the woman hiding in the loading dock. “I was able to catch a better glimpse of her nametag from another angle. Melanie.”
“That’s all we’ve got?”
“I’m working on the hotel employment database, but I got her license plate from another camera. It’s expired, but the plates belong to a Jeremiah Byers. Last address is in Alabama, so I’m thinking parents since she’s so young? Still digging on that. I’m not good at this stuff.”
“Come on, Miranda. We need to find her.”
“I’m getting there. Hold your horses. Here’s the fun part. She used a burner email address to reach out to WBC, but she sent it from an unsecure Wi-Fi network. It’s an apartment building. That’s as close as I can get you. I can’t find any record of Melanie Byers living there, but that’s not to say it is or isn’t her place. From Google Streetview, this isn’t the kind of place that keeps their lease information digitally. And again… I’m not Joey.”
“Let’s move. Send me the address.”
“Already on it,” Miranda said, hitting a few keystrokes. “Cole was released on bail this morning, and Joey will be here soon. We’ll keep digging into Melanie Byers. Be careful, though. She’s scared, and we don’t know who else knows about her.”
Will grunted an acknowledgement. They’d get to her first, knock some sense into her about the ridiculous notion of selling the video, and keep her safe until they caught the assassin.
When they landed, Miranda had a car waiting for them. Tank drove slowly as they approached the apartment building in the navy-blue SUV. The vehicle was at least ten years old, and Will said a silent thank you to Miranda for making it easy to keep a low profile. He hated the flashy SUVs they used for protection details. When half of the mission was communicating that the target was well-protected, the shiny armored SUVs were perfect.
In a rundown neighborhood like this one, they’d stick out like a tank in a bicycle lane. Probably end up with a target on their back.
He pulled up the photo of Byers’s license plate and searched the street until he found it. The early 90s model Impala had seen better days. The paint was bubbling up with rust spots around the wheel wells, and he could tell from across the road that the tires were well past their prime.
The apartment building wasn’t much better. Peeling paint hid behind overgrown bushes and a crumbling sidewalk overgrown with weeds. The metal staircases were rusting, and at least one of the balconies on the top floor was roped off with caution tape.
Always a good sign.
What kind of high-end hotel staffer had to live in a place like this? No wonder Ms. Byers saw the video she’d captured as her golden ticket. His chest tightened with guilt. She probably had every right to sell it. At least, once they caught the assassin and it was no longer a threat to national security. Or her security. Maybe all he had to do was convince her to wait.
“Pierce, go check out her car. See if there is anything helpful.”
Pierce pulled off a convincing nonchalant passer-by as Will watched from the car. He peered into the windows of the car, but quickly hurried back.
“Nothing at all, Square.”
Will narrowed his eyes at the nickname Pierce had obviously picked up from Jackson. “Wallet? Receipts?”
Pierce shook his head. “For a crappy car, she keeps it clean.”
Dang.
“That’s our girl, right?” Tank sounded angry when he said it, but Will knew he wasn’t. His eyes followed Tank’s thick finger pointing toward the apartment building at a young woman with light-brown hair. It could be her. The video they’d seen wasn’t great.
She clutched her backpack to her shoulder as she walked across the hazardous sidewalk and climbed into the rundown vehicle. That was Melanie.
The options flickered through his mind rapid fire, and he dismissed each one in turn. He debated grabbing her then and there, but they weren’t prepared for contact. Right now, they just needed intel.
“Tank, follow her. Pierce, you’re with me.”
They jumped out quickly, and Tank pulled the SUV away from the curb, disappearing around the same corner Melanie had a few moments before.
Pierce looked at him expectantly. “What now?”
