Live Wire (Ramsey Security #2)

"All she needs to know is these people are rabid animals needing to be put down."

Marx pokes at his food. "True but understanding someone's motivation can't hurt."

Ruth frowns at Marx before turning her focus to Brad. Mother and son share a silent conversation. I don't know what they're saying, but neither looks happy about the outcome.

"Motivation does not help me," I say to break the silence. "I once hunted a man whose particular perversion was to kill and eat women who'd given birth to a son and a daughter. He was convinced the women tasted better if they'd had a child of each gender. Some might say he was mentally ill. Others might deem him simply evil. The reasoning behind the murders he committed mattered only to him or those who need reasons in an unreasonable world. All I knew was he was the target to be eliminated."

Ruth sighs. "There are some very sick fuckers in the world."

Brad surprises me by laughing. "The mouth on this one."

Ruth gives him a grudging smile. His laughter turns infectious. My fingers go to my lips where I find a smile.

"Have you ever killed an innocent person?" Marx asks, determined to ruin the good mood.

I give Marx a hard look from my dead eyes while Brad frowns.

"Why would you ask her that?"

"I'm curious to know if she's ever harmed someone innocent while doing her job. I guess I want to know if I'm in any danger. "

"I can say with all certainly that if I kill you, it will not be on accident," I say without a hint of humor. "I will of course make it look like an accident for the authorities."

"You're funny," Marx says, holding my gaze.

I refuse to get into a staring contest with an insecure man. Focusing my gaze on Brad, I find him amused by how I taunt Marx.

"All these years," I say, poking at my food, "the authorities must have examined the show for clues to find these people. The files claim a criminal profiler wrote an opinion on the cult. I don't need to know the why or where. I only need to understand they're the enemy. When they come, I'll deal with them. More might come, and I'll deal with them. Eventually, there won't be any more of them, and the problem will be solved."

Marx exhales hard. "That simple?"

"Yes," I mutter, focusing my gaze on Brad again. "These people are essentially stalkers, and stalkers have specific behaviors. They've been triggered by the interviews and Brad's reappearance. When I deal with a few of them, the others might want to crawl back into their holes again. You'll simply lure them back out by doing another interview until they're all gone."

"Deal with them?" Ruth asks. "What does that mean exactly?"

I glance at her. "You hired my firm for a specific reason. I won't say what you want me to say, but we both know you could have hired someone with better personal skills than I have to do this work. Instead, I'm here."

Ruth gives me a slight smile. "Understood."

I continue picking at my food, not recognizing the white clumpy stuff. I think maybe it's oatmeal, but who eats that for dinner?

"It's grits," Brad says, watching me.

I realize everyone is staring at me now. Ruth smiles and pats my hand.

"Before this is over, we'll teach you all about Southern cooking, Saskia."

I take a scoop of grits on my fork and eye it warily while bringing the food to my mouth.

"It's okay not to like it," Brad says, and I flash him a dirty look.

Rather than seem offended, he smiles. They watch me take the bite and chew.

"It's good," I say.

Brad grins at Ruth. "She doesn't get grits."

"It can be an acquired taste."

"I said it's good."

"You're not a great liar though," Brad says.

Frowning at him, I'm actually offended by his statement. I make my living by being able to lie directly to someone's face.

Brad smiles at my anger. Despite the earlier moment when he backed down, he's full of confidence now. I ignore him watching me and try to finish the grits.

"Do your dogs stay inside at night?" I ask, wanting the attention away from my eating habits.

"Depends on their moods," Ruth says.

"I'd like them to remain inside, if possible. I plan to install motion sensors at certain areas on the property. I'll pick up plenty of false positives from the wild animals in the area, but keeping the dogs inside will reduce the number."

Nodding, Ruth glances at Brad. They again share a silent conversation while Marx glances repeatedly at me.

"What would you do if they busted through the front gate right now?" the author asks.

"Call my team and the police. While waiting for them to arrive, I'd eliminate anyone I viewed as a threat. Why, what would you do?"

Brad laughs. "He'd probably piss himself in the corner."

"How about you, big man?" Marx asks, frowning.