Innocence Lost: Across A Crowded Room (IATO Series Book 1) by March Eliza & Marchat Elizabeth

Author:March, Eliza & Marchat, Elizabeth [March, Eliza]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: WP Sevilla
Published: 2016-03-16T07:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eight

The early spring night was crisp and clear and still. Distant streetlights within the grassy median looked like sparklers, silver rays of light shooting from the tops of thin metal spikes. The military-cut branches of the neighborhood trees stood at attention, casting shadow soldiers on manicured lawns.

In the quiet evening, a black Lincoln Town Car idled along the empty street. Enough light exposed the government license plate to confirm the cliché.

A man, whose features were indistinguishable except for his large size and a flicker of pale hair, quickly stepped from the sidewalk into the waiting car. No interior lights flashed to expose the passengers. They remained anonymous—mere silhouettes against the rear window.

As the sedan edged away from the curb, another car, identical to the first, approached. The first paused briefly at the stop sign and then picked up speed as it whipped around the corner in a cloud of billowing exhaust.

The new arrival stopped in front of the same house, pulling all the way into where gravel curled in front of an old ivy-covered mansion. The overgrown lawn filled with scattered weeds was a sign of neglect in this well-groomed neighborhood. The house, set back on the property, was veiled in darkness and vacant long enough for the wild ivy to take hold across the threshold.

The air stilled—only the slightest hint of a breeze disturbed the exhaust fumes drifting from the tail pipe. A stream of smoke snaked up, ribboning through the chilly night air. Nothing else moved until the driver’s door clicked open. He stepped out casually, unfolding his long body, a well-dressed man in a long, black tailored coat. He carried himself with an air of authority as he surveyed the vicinity.

The silver hair of the person in the backseat reflected under the interior light. He leaned forward, saying something to the muscular man who rode shotgun. The man got out, quickly inspected his side of the building and then, as an afterthought, walked over and checked out the adjoining property. This burly guy, almost as tall as the driver, seemed to have shoulders as wide as he was tall. Only after glancing around again did he signal the man in the back seat an all clear.

The three men worked with a precise team-like efficiency, inspecting the area around the house, while someone watched furtively from between overgrown bushes. Using the bushes as cover, he sank to his haunches and moved to the back of their car. At the rear end, he dropped to the ground beneath the bumper for a minute and quickly disappeared again, back into the bushes, just as the three men returned from the perimeter search.

They seemed satisfied that the house and grounds were empty, until a sound diverted the driver’s attention.

The driver stilled, listening.

* * * *

Jason Holmes squinted, studying the bushes until the movement of a shadow farther down the street distracted him. He watched a dark figure moving slowly away. Despite the distance and the lack of good light, he thought there was something remarkable about the character’s appearance.

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