Page 83 of Who's Afraid of the Big, Bad World

On hearing a noise behind him, Noah turned to see a somber Rodrigo heading toward him.

“Hey.” Rodrigo leaned over the table, keeping his voice low. “You gotta see this.”

“What?”

“Come on.” He jerked his head toward the door. “Not here.”

“But I need to keep an eye on Annabelle.”

“Got it covered.” He nodded toward Logan as he walked into the loft, looking equally grim.

“I’ve got it,” Logan said as he sat on a stool at the breakfast bar.

Worried, Noah followed Rodrigo downstairs to the office.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

“How long’s he been down there?” Noah stood, arms folded, staring through the window at the street below.

“Coupla minutes,” Rodrigo said. “I came to get you as soon as we spotted him on the cameras.”

A large, brand-new SUV was parked illegally on the opposite corner of the intersection, facing the warehouse. Leaning against its hood—ankles crossed and sipping coffee from a to-go cup—was Eddie Hanson. His aviator sunglasses made it difficult to see exactly where he was looking, but the angle of his head suggested his attention was firmly on Annabelle’s building.

“What’s he doing?” Evan jostled his way through the rest of the team for a better view.

“Trying to intimidate us,” Rodrigo said.

“No.” Noah wasn’t convinced. “I think he’s taunting us. He’s telling us that last night’s events had no impact on him or his business.”

“The guy has balls the size of boulders,” Harris muttered.

“Psychopath,” Abasi said. “I know the type.”

Rochelle hurried into the room. “I was on a call with Lake. What’s going on?”

“Take a look.” Noah stepped to one side to make room for her.

Her lips pursed. “Katrina? Call the detectives, please.”

“On it.” Katrina turned from the group, her phone already at her ear.

“You don’t want to handle this yourself?” Noah asked his boss.

She shook her head. “The cops can handle this one. I’m surprised you aren’t arguing the decision.”

He held up his hands. “I got the message. You’re the boss.”

“For now,” she muttered before looking past him to Violet, who was glaring at the Demons’ leader—even though he couldn’t see her. “And no shooting him either.”

“Hey,” Violet said. “I’ll be a good team player from now on. Even I can keep it together until we disband in a week or so.”

“Somebodyshouldshoot him.” Abasi’s tone was low as he studied Eddie. “He won’t stop.” His dark eyes met Rochelle’s. “Ever. The trial, a conviction, none of it will stop him. I’ve seen this before; he’s got us in his sights, and he won’t let go until he’s dealt with us.”

“You mean kill us, right?” Evan asked, swallowing hard.

Abasi just stared at him.

“Aye.” Evan nodded. “You mean kill us.”