Page 104 of The Vigilant

“These photos are from four days ago?—”

“Four days?” Sutton’s anger was instantly sparked. “Why did you wait?—”

“We can’t assume every meeting—every conversation has to do with Mara,” Rob chided, but even she had a hard time keeping her voice steady.

“But I did have a bad feeling when I took these photos,” Creed admitted.

“Which was why he called me.” Rob stepped forward almost like she was taking center stage. “Creed continued to keep tabs on Carson, but I decided to stake out the Straw Sandal.” She nodded, and Creed put up the next image on the screen; this photo was taken at night of the Straw Sandal escorting a seemingly drunk, scantily clad woman into the building.

“Another victim?”

The photo changed again; the same woman now clearly exited the building.

Not a victim. Just a hookup.

“For the last four nights, the Straw Sandal has brought a different woman to this building late at night, waited outside for a few hours, and then took her away.”

“I don’t understand what this has to do with Mara.” Sutton folded her arms, her frustration simmering so hot, all I wanted was to pull her into my arms and hold her steady. But I couldn’t.She wouldn’t even look at me, let alone accept any kind of comfort.

“The Straw Sandal is one of the highest-ranking members of the Wah Ching. Who would he be personally escorting women to?” Rob demanded of Sutton directly. “Not to some low-level soldier or someone outside the organization. He’d be bringing women to someone important. Someone who couldn’t leave because they had a job to do. Someone involved in something they don’t want people to have knowledge of.”

Sutton’s jaw went slack, understanding dawning. “You think another leader in the gang is in that building?”

Rob nodded. “The Red Pole—the Wah Ching’s top enforcer.” She explained her theory. “I think when Sutton went after Kang, Carson got spooked. A feeling that only got worse after you killed the assassins they sent to the house and then Creed went to the first place they’d held Mara. If I were in his shoes—answering to Uzair Shazad and in the public eye—I wouldn’t take any more chances. I’d demand from the Straw Sandal that only the very best of their men guard Mara and that her location be kept from everyone—even low-level soldiers in the gang.”

“So, the Straw Sandal enlists the Red Pole as Mara’s babysitter…”

“And what?” I rumbled. “Promises to bring him a different woman each night as a perk since he can’t leave the building?”

“Exactly,” Rob said without missing a beat.

God, I couldn’t wait to take all these fuckers down.

“The first two nights, I watched the building, but aside from delivery people, this is the only time the Straw Sandal appears. The third night, I followed his car when the woman was done, and he took her back to the White Pearl.”

“No surprise there,” I muttered.

“No,” Rob said. “And last night was the same. He’s picking up these women from the White Pearl, drunk and drugged, and bringing them to the Red Pole while he guards Mara.”

“And no sign of Kang?” I looked at Creed, assuming, if anything, that he would’ve encountered the man while following Carson.

“No.”

“They probably disposed of him,” Rob muttered. “He was a fucking liability.”

No one could find any reason to disagree with her. Kang was a loose cannon. Expendable. Especially after becoming Sutton’s target.

“So, what’s our plan? When do we leave to get Mara?”

My jaw tightened.

“I would’ve gone in for her, but it’s heavily guarded. I’m big but not stupid,” Creed grunted, and it took a good couple of seconds for the rest of us to realize the unemotional giant had attempted to make a joke.

“We have to assume there’s additional security inside the building. Probably keycard access up to the floor where Mara is being kept, which means our best chance is to intercept the Straw Sandal on his nightly…errand. We can take his credentials. I can pretend to be the woman. And hopefully, because of their own secrecy, it will only be one or two guards and the Red Pole that we’ll have to deal with once in the building.”

“So, tomorrow night?” The edge in Sutton’s voice was like a live wire ready to spark.

“That’s my plan,” Creed replied. “I’m going to map out some routes and weak points.”

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