Chapter 9 #2
“Mrs. E definitely knows she’s being hunted. That projection at the Bayshore house made that clear.” Liam’s hands tightened on the wheel. “It’s almost like she’s playing games with us.”
“Then we have to be careful not to play by her rules.” Lina pulled out a small notebook, already strategizing. “We observe, document, and gather intelligence. We don’t engage until necessary.”
The drive took them through increasingly residential areas, the houses growing more spread out as they neared the water. The road they were on ran parallel to the coast, with beach grass and sandy soil occasionally visible between properties.
Liam slowed as they approached their target address. “If she’s got this place rigged like the last one…” he trailed off, not needing to spell it out.
“We shouldn’t get close enough to find out,” Lina finished. She had her phone out, camera ready. “There. That’s the place. The one with the detached garage. Interesting. The Bayshore place had a detached garage too.”
The house looked ordinary enough. It had weathered siding and a small yard with scrubby beach vegetation. A fence enclosed the property, and Liam could see the glint of water beyond, suggesting dock access like the Bayshore place.
He drove past without slowing noticeably, his enhanced vision taking in every detail. No cars were in the driveway. The curtains were drawn. The mailbox at the curb looked dusty and unused.
“Looks abandoned,” Lina murmured, discreetly snapping photos with her phone as they passed.
“Or it was made to look abandoned.” Liam continued down the road, scanning for a good observation point. “There’s a construction site four houses down. We can pull in behind those pickup trucks on the street and park for a bit.”
He maneuvered the SUV into an open parking spot, positioning it so they had a clear sightline to Mrs. E’s property through the windshield while remaining mostly concealed by other large vehicles associated with the construction project nearby.
Lina raised a small pair of binoculars—apparently standard equipment in her go-bag—and studied the house. “No movement. No obvious lights. The grass is slightly overgrown, which suggests no one’s maintaining the property regularly.”
“Could be deliberately neglected to make it look empty, but in this neighborhood, she’d have to have someone come cut the grass from time to time to avoid a fine from the township.
The neighbors don’t take kindly to owners letting their properties get too overgrown.
” Liam used his phone to zoom in on the house, taking his own photos.
“Check out that garage. The door is closed but there’s a window on the side. ”
Lina adjusted her view. “I can’t see inside from this angle. There’s too much glare on the glass.”
They sat in silence for several minutes, watching. A jogger passed on the road. A car drove by. Seagulls wheeled overhead. But the target house remained still and lifeless.
“This could be another dead end,” Lina said finally. “Maybe she just used this address for the PO box application and never actually stayed here. It might be one of her contingency plans. A safe house that’s been set up but never used.”
“Or it could be exactly what we’re looking for, and she’s just not home right now.” Liam drummed his fingers on the steering wheel, thinking. “We need to get closer. Check for signs of recent occupation.”
“Not in broad daylight.” Lina lowered the binoculars. “And not without more information. We should run the property records, check utility usage, and maybe set up spy cams to monitor activity over the next twenty-four hours.”
Liam nodded slowly. She was right, of course. It was the smart play. But his lion chafed at the delay, wanting to corner their prey.
“How long do we continue the stakeout?” he asked.
“Another few hours at least. See if anyone comes or goes.” She settled back in her seat, binoculars still in hand. “Surveillance is ninety percent boredom and ten percent donuts.”
“Too bad we didn’t bring any donuts,” Liam replied with a grin.
“That’s okay. Mrs. P gave us a bag of treats.
That’ll have to do,” Lina countered, then her face cleared of amusement as she watched the house in the distance.
“You know, it really would be best if we had round-the-clock surveillance on that house, but we can’t sit on the street watching forever.
The neighbors will eventually notice us. ”
“I think we can come back tonight and mount those cams. And since this is a waterfront property, it might be time to consider calling in some of those elder statesmen I told you about earlier. They can watch from the water for as long as we need them to,” Liam told her.
“Elder statesmen who can watch from the water...” Lina’s eyes lit with knowing amusement. “I still don’t understand how the founding members of the SEAL teams were actually selkies. They were literally seal shifters. You’d think they would’ve chosen a less obvious name for their teams.”
Liam shrugged. “I’ve heard Uncle Gunnar say they thought the name was both ironic and funny.”
“Uncle Gunnar?” Her voice still carried that note of disbelief.
“Yep. Though if I’m following proper chain of command, I should probably call Uncle Nate first. He outranks everyone and coordinates the retirees when they take missions,” Liam explained, already looking up his uncle’s number on his cell phone.