Whispers in the Dark (KGI #4)(71)

“Grace,” Shea whispered.

“That’s your sister?” Donovan queried.

She nodded and leaned forward as Donovan resumed the footage.

Grace crept stealthily through the house, her eyes wary and alert. Clutched in her hand was the journal that Shea had found in the escape tunnel. As she entered the living room, she paused and tears filled Shea’s eyes. This was where she and Grace had talked. She was watching her sister communicate with her. A smile softened the tense expression that Grace had worn and then she glanced down at the journal she held and Shea knew this was where she’d told Shea that they weren’t their real parents.

The furnishings were still intact, which meant the ransack had occurred after Grace’s arrival. Everything looked exactly as it had been before her parents were killed. That was what stuck out to her. There was no evidence that murder had been committed. Who’d cleaned it up?

Shea focused back in on the footage to see Grace’s head jerk upward and then she flew toward one of the windows. The sound of breaking glass and heavy footsteps filled the silent room.

Grace looked left and right, clear indecision and panic racing across her face. Then her eyes hardened and she bolted into the hallway. There were four frames on the screen, and Donovan followed her progress from room to room as he enlarged each of the ones she ran through.

She raced into the panic room, and slammed it shut.

Donovan turned to Shea. “Are there no cameras inside the panic room?”

She shook her head. “Only on the outside. The idea was to be able to see out, not in. My father set it up so that it was the ultimate safe room.”

“He did a pretty damn good job,” Garrett muttered.

“Look,” Ethan said, directing everyone’s attention back to the monitor.

A soldier moved through the living room, and behind him, another appeared.

Everyone leaned forward, coming to attention as they studied the men going through the house, methodically searching. They completely destroyed the house. They were responsible for the damage Shea and Nathan had encountered.

“She spoke to me. I mean just before she ran. She said that someone was there,” Shea said.

Nathan hugged her a little tighter.

The room went silent as they watched the men sweep through her parents’ house. Nathan’s eyes narrowed. They didn’t move like they were chasing Grace. Maybe they hadn’t even known she was there. But they were looking for something and they weren’t a run-of-the-mill civilian operation.

They wore black military head nets, so only their eyes were visible. Nathan took in every detail of their appearance, looking for anything that could identify them, but they were covered from head to toe. Boots and fatigues and they carried military-issue rifles.

Unless some survivalist underground cult was after Shea and Grace, the U.S. military certainly was. This looked special ops. Probably some damn group that didn’t even exist, and that made Nathan damn nervous.

Once the footage of Grace abruptly ended, Donovan keyed the more recent surveillance from Nathan and Shea’s visit. Nathan watched grimly as he and Shea stole through the house and entered the kitchen. His brothers frowned when the sound of breaking glass occurred and he and Shea hit the floor just before the flashbang grenade detonated.

Nathan leaned forward, his gaze narrowing as he studied the intruders making their way into the house after he and Shea had disappeared into the panic room. Like the men who’d been after Grace, these looked military. They seemed more careful, however. They didn’t touch or disturb anything. It was apparent they weren’t looking for something but rather somebody. They didn’t even hesitate before honing in on the panic room.

He didn’t like it. Didn’t like it one damn bit.

“Now ain’t that some shit?” Garrett muttered. “Anyone want to take a stab at this one?”

“What have you heard from Resnick?” Nathan demanded.

Sam’s mouth twisted and he glanced toward Donovan. “Not a damn thing. We explained the sitch, asked him to do some digging, but he went radio silent shortly after.”

“I don’t like it,” Nathan muttered.

“Neither do we,” Donovan said.

Shea bolted to her feet, leaving the confines of Nathan’s arms. She paced back and forth, her gaze still riveted to the screen while the scene played out over and over as Donovan kept going back.

“What are we going to do to help Grace?” she blurted out. “She’s out there alone. I’m here with all of you. Nothing’s going to happen to me but the same can’t be said for her. She’s not talking to me. I’ve tried to reach her. I’m terrified for her.”

Sam rose and put his hand on Shea’s shoulder. “We’ll send a team. I promised you we’d protect her. I made you that promise and I’m going to keep it. We have to find her first, but we’ll do it.”

He turned in Steele’s direction, but before he could open his mouth, Rio stepped forward.

“I’m going.”

Sam’s eyebrows went up. Garrett turned to his team leader in surprise. Rio’s gaze was riveted to the screen where Donovan had paused the replay of Grace standing in the living room.

“I’ll find her. I’ll protect her,” Rio said shortly. “These ass**les won’t get their hands on her.”