Page 63 of Zain

“No, man. Guy’s squeaky fucking clean.”

Zain grunted. “Bullshit.”

“Hey, I don’t believe it either. But I couldn’t find a single connection to any known criminals. Doesn’t mean he’s not behind it. Just gonna be a lot harder to narrow it down.”

He pinched the bridge of his nose. A deep pounding sensation started behind his eyes. It was too early for headaches. And worrying about Dana and his mom would be an even bigger one.

“Had a bit of luck with the security camera in Dana’s apartment though.”

Zain lowered his hand. “Yeah? Why didn’t you say anything?”

The gentle tapping of fingers on a keyboard clicked in the background. “Well, I started running the scans yesterday. It was tedious. Found a shot with a glimpse of the guy’s profile. Plugged that into the system to run while I slept, and I just got the results now.”

“You got a name?”

Ghost snorted. “Nah, it ain’t that easy. I’ve got some matches—a lead. I’ll make it a priority to have a name by lunch.”

Zain didn’t need to look at his watch to know that was hours away, but what more could he do? “All right. Thanks, man. We’ll touch base soon.”

A firefighter jogged forward. Early morning shadows and large headgear concealed his face. “Are you Mrs. Mitry’s son?”

He pocketed his device. “Yeah, what’s up?”

“Police want her statement. Is she still here?” He lifted his head an inch to glance over Zain’s shoulder toward where Dana stood on the lawn close to the sidewalk. He had a scar through his eyebrow.

“No, she left. She went with my brother. I’ll give the police his info.”

The firefighter thanked him, and then Zain made a beeline for Dana.

“Everything okay?” she asked. Her gaze hovered on him for a moment then drifted to the hustle and bustle around them.

“Yeah, I just need to speak to the police for a minute. I’ll be right back and then we can take off.”

She gave a tight smile. “Okay.”

He nodded and ducked in the direction of the cops. Some of the smoke had dissipated, and people now milled around on the sidewalk, gawking at the mess and chaos. At least the fire was under control and hadn’t consumed the whole house. If that was any indication, things might look up for them.

Plus, Ghost was onto something. They had a bite, and Zain wouldn’t let go until the bastard paid for everything he’d done.

***

Dana watched Zaincross the lawn to speak to the police officers in the driveway. A sense ofuncertainty crawled up her spine. The fire seemed contained now, and hopefully there wouldn’t be too much damage. But the fact that someone had targeted his mom’s house in hopes to hit him made anxiety sit heavy on her chest.

Zain might feel this was all his fault, but she was the one who’d set this whole thing in motion. She’d gone to retrieve him. She’d put him into the position of having to kill many of Jaysh’s members and then Ali’s bodyguard.

She bore an equal amount of responsibility, and she’d help get to the bottom of things. It was too early to call any of her old colleagues, but she’d sent an email to Suzanne, a woman she’d worked with at the FBI. How much she’d be able to help was yet to be determined, but it was something. She just hoped the woman got back to her before it was too late.

“’S’cuse me, ma’am?” A firefighter approached. Ash and soot covered his suit and face, and his helmet concealed is eyes.

“Yes?” She tucked her arms close to her ribs.

“Police need to speak with you. Please come with me.” He gestured to the sidewalk.

Dana furrowed her brow but took a tentative step in his direction. “Oh, I didn’t see anything, unfortunately. I don’t think I’ll be of any help.”

“You can explain that to them. They need to talk to every witness.”

She blew a breath through her lips andfollowed the man. A cruiser sat at the end of the driveway, bubble lights flashing and the siren off. A couple of other cars were parked along the curb. A lot of the spectators had left, and the street was quieting down.

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