While he paced, he tried to figure out how to get out of the hole he found himself in. His burner phone buzzed with a text and he picked it up. It was from the work crew supervisor. They were delaying the work start this morning because of the icy conditions.

Ice responded with a thumbs-up emoji and tossed the phone back on the bed. A small bit of good news. He had no intention of returning to work. This would just mean a few extra hours before they’d notice “Jim Smith” was gone.

His other phone vibrated with a text, and Ice cursed. Gage had arrived—he must have flown—and Ice was out of time. He took several deep breaths to center himself. It didn’t take long for him to calm down. Gage would have a plan, and Ice would go with the flow. If that didn’t work, it would be on Gage, not Ice.

He texted Gage the name of his hotel. Twenty minutes later the big man knocked on the door.

“You find her?” he asked.

“Yeah. She’s holed up in a women’s shelter nearby.”

“Feds?”

“Only one that I’ve seen. But the place is locked down tight. Not sure yet how we can get in.”

Gage grinned. “I am.” He pulled a wallet out of his pocket and handed it to Ice.

Ice took it. Inside was a US marshal ID card, the real deal from what he could tell. It had the name Joseph Turner under Gage’s picture.

“I got the creds, man. I’ll drive up there and take her right from under their noses.”

“They’re not going to just give her to you.”

“Oh yeah, they will.” He retrieved some more papers. Ice looked them over. They were as authentic as any he’d ever seen, court orders that Roberta Impala was to be released to US Marshal Joseph Turner ASAP.

Ice was impressed, but he kept his expression blank. “How do you want to play it?”

“I say we drive over there now. I’ll head straight for the front door. If it goes smooth and they hand over the girl, we beat feet out of here. There’s a private jet waiting for us at the airport.”

“And if they don’t just hand her over?”

“Well, it’s scorched earth—you know that.” He tapped the ballistic vest he was wearing. “We go in hot. I don’t think the cops here are anything to worry about.” He arched an eyebrow, and Ice shook his head.

Gage continued. “I’ve got the hardware in the car. You’re my backup. Any hitches for me, you’ll know what to do.”