Wicked and True (Wicked & Devoted 4)

From his current position, he had a better view of the kitchen, but half of it still wasn’t visible. He saw an open cabinet door and heard footsteps, but that didn’t tell him who he was dealing with.

Still crouching, he eased into a shadowy corner of the living room, pressing his back to the wall, then craning his head around the remaining obstructions.

Bingo! A woman with long brownish hair swishing down her back and wearing tight black yoga pants emptied the dishwasher, skinny ass swaying to some R and B tune. But that wasn’t the only thing that interested him. In the very edge of his view, he caught sight of what looked like the leg of a high chair.

Damn it, another six inches and he’d be able to tell if his eyes were correct and if Hallie was in there.

Suddenly, he heard a baby peal unhappily. His heart leapt in his throat.

“If you want more Cheerios, you’re going to have to wait, kid.”

So they did have a baby here. He glanced back at Tessa. Her eyes had gone wide. Hope lit them. She trembled, looking anxious, sleep-deprived, and near tears. And he wished like hell he could stop everything, comfort her, and lend her the strength to finish this op. Instead, he had to press a finger to his mouth for quiet.

She flattened her lips together like she was holding in a sob and nodded.

The brunette in the kitchen cracked a little window over the sink and lit up a cigarette, blowing the smoke through the screen. The baby Zy couldn’t see let out another howl.

“Shut that damn baby up,” Johnson yelled at the brunette across the house, suddenly very tense. “Look, I said I’m not interested. I don’t care about your promotion, your sisters, your knowledge of roaches, or your bullshit. Go the fuck away.”

When he tried to slam the door in Trees’s face, the big guy pressed a palm against the sturdy fiberglass and shoved. The foot he’d already wedged onto the threshold kept Johnson from shutting him out. “C’mon, you don’t mean that.” Trees laid on the aw-shucks charm. “We’re getting to be friends here, I think. We’re having a moment.”

They weren’t, and Zy knew Trees’s cover couldn’t last much longer. He had to make a move, figure out if the baby in the kitchen really was Hallie and whether he should neutralize the woman while Trees dealt with Johnson on his own terms or abort altogether. But where the fuck was Cash?

“What the hell? The noise level around here…” A man emerged from the other side of the house in a pair of boxer shorts, pulling a T-shirt over his head.

Speak of the devil.

Tessa’s eyes widened in panic. Once Cash yanked the dirty tee down and finished rubbing at his bleary eyes, he would be looking right at her.

Fuck.

Zy risked poking his head above the chair to catch Trees’s attention and zipped a finger across his neck.

His friend bobbed his head, then sent his widest smile so far to Cash. “You a friend of the family, sir? You’ve got to tell your pal here that he’s missing an opportunity if he doesn’t sign up for Pest-Away’s platinum-level service.”

“I don’t fucking want it,” Johnson exploded. “Get your foot out of my house.”

Trees went on as if he hadn’t spoken. “Here. Let me get you my card and…”

As he pretended to dig in his pocket, Cash lost interest in the sales pitch and turned toward the kitchen. He zeroed instantly on her and stopped in his tracks. “Tessa! What the hell are you doing here? Get the fuck out.”

When she didn’t move, Cash dashed straight for her and grabbed her arm viciously, tugging her toward the back door.

Zy saw red and pulled his Glock.

On the other side of the room, Trees turned back to Johnson—not with a business card but the business end of a Sig. He planted it right in the man’s forehead. “Hands up. Just like that. Now step back, motherfucker. Nice and slow.”

Hector held up his hands and retreated to the middle of the living room. As Trees kicked the door shut behind him and turned to lock it, never taking his stare off Johnson, Zy stepped out from the corner and aimed his barrel right at her ex’s forehead. “Let her go.”

“Fuck you.” Cash glowered.

“You don’t want to give me a reason. I’m already half inclined to blow your worthless brains out.”

Wisely, Cash stopped running his mouth and released her.

“Now get your hands up.”

Grinding his teeth together, Cash did, muttering curses.

“Tessa, in my back pocket are a couple of pairs of cuffs. Get them out. You”—he told Cash while she did as he’d asked—“get to the middle of the room, by your buddy, Johnson. No. You can walk with your hands in the air.”