Montez wished he knew more than just the man’s name. Who was Nathan McBride? What was his story? And why was he involved? Maybe First Security was a shell company. McBride could be a covert intelligence agent. Probably was. He hoped tonight’s operation would lead to some answers. His men had orders to take McBride alive if possible. But if things went south, they were to kill him, conduct a quick search of his house, and get out. He had little doubt Nathan McBride would be a challenging interrogation subject and—

The trill of his cell interrupted his thoughts. He checked the number and answered. “I’ll call you back on the landline in fifteen seconds.” He placed his cigar in an ashtray and went inside. On the keypad of the small encryption unit connected to the cabin’s phone, he entered a numeric sequence and waited for the confirming beep. Satisfied, he dialed his man back and asked, “Are you secure?”

“Yes.”

“Report.”

“We were ambushed. It smelled like a tip-off.”

“Specify.”

“I think the target knew we were coming and set a trap for us.”

“Damage?”

“This guy was good. He killed my team armed with only a handgun. I lost half a finger.”

“Why do you think you were set up? You knew the man owned a security company. Didn’t you see an alarm system?”

“We didn’t see or hear anything except for a security keypad next to the front door, but it wasn’t armed.”

“It wasn’t armed?”

“No, sir. It was dark, no lights at all. I’m pretty sure the target was hiding in the kitchen. I heard a second handgun, a large caliber.”

“The target wasn’t alone?”

“No, sir.”

“Who was with him?

“A woman. I only got a brief glance.”

“A woman?”

“Yes, sir.”

“You’re sure about the second handgun?”

“There were two distinct discharge sounds. One was suppressed, the other wasn’t.”

Montez paused. “Could the target have been firing both guns?”

“I heard him call for cover fire.”

“What exactly did he say?”

“He said, ‘Holly, cover fire.’  Whoever Holly is, I’m pretty sure it was one of her rounds that took my finger off.”

“Holly, eh? Okay, good work. Are you at the safe house?”

“Yes.”

“Stay where you are until you hear from me again. I’ll make sure your finger is cared for.”

“Thank you, sir.”

This development was unfortunate. He should have known this target might prove too difficult for his men to take alive, but they should’ve at least succeeded in killing him.