There were dogs in the house. Dammit. Lots of big dogs from the sound of them. He hated it when people he needed to kill owned dogs. Invariably the animals tried to protect their owners. Sometimes the worst monsters had really nice dogs.

He’d have to get a sedative to knock them out. He never killed the dogs, just helped them take super-long naps. I’m not a monster, for God’s sake.

There were enough people in that house that someone would know where the safe house was. He needed to wait until that someone came out. Then he’d follow.

And how will you know who the right someone is?

That was when he saw her.

Oh, hello, Doctor. She was entering the living room from what was probably the kitchen. It was definitely Dani Novak. He’d Googled her name and found her photo. He could see the streaks of white in the front of her hair, stark against the rest, which was very black.

His pulse kicked up when one of the men on the porch turned to look at his vehicle. He kept driving, grateful that the windows of his SUV were tinted darkly enough to hide his face and that he’d muddied up the license plates. He was so close to his goal, he couldn’t allow himself to be noticed now. If Dani was here, either the kids were, too, or she’d leave to go to them soon.

He’d find a place where he wouldn’t be noticed and then wait until either she came out or all the visitors left. Then he’d listen and watch.

Lawrenceburg, Indiana
Sunday, March 17, 9:40 p.m.

Diesel didn’t glance up when two beers were placed in front of him, keeping his eyes on the crowded riverboat casino. He wasn’t sure what he was looking for, but John Brewer had kept receipts from drinks at the bar on the Lady of the River, on more than one occasion. So he’d wait and watch.

“I didn’t order those,” he stated flatly, pointing to the new drinks. He’d been nursing the same beer since he’d arrived an hour ago.

A solid form dropped into the booth beside him with a resounding thunk, the voice as familiar as his own. “If you’re going undercover at a bar, you need to at least look like you’re consuming alcohol in some form,” Stone O’Bannion said dryly.

Diesel blew out an impatient breath. “What are you doing here, Stone?”

Marcus’s younger brother was another of Diesel’s oldest and most trusted friends. But he didn’t want the man here at the moment.

“Keeping your investigation from going tits-up.” Stone sipped at his beer. “You look like you’re loaded for bear and maybe even carrying a badge. Nobody’s going to do anything suspicious with you sitting there looking all pissed off and righteous.”