Flynn saw the shotgun aimed directly at the windshield and came to a screeching halt several feet away from the barricade. "Shit," he muttered as he held his badge out the window.
"My thoughts exactly," Provenza said as they waited for the agent to walk over. "Now I know how your car got into its present condition."
The agent leaned down. "You'll have to stay outside the perimeter. We've got a hostage situation."
"Hostage!" Provenza yelled. "The guy's still in there?"
Flynn reached out and grabbed the agent's forearm. "Have any shots been fired?"
The agent shook his hand off. "What's your interest in this, detective?"
Through gritted teeth, Flynn said, "LAPD. Major Crimes. You know, the people who actually solved this case?"
"Oh. Sorry, sir. Um, I think they're just negotiating. No shots. You can go through." He trotted off to move the barricade.
Flynn jammed the lever into drive and eased the car through the narrow opening. "Thinks," he muttered. "He thinks they're negotiating."
"Don't worry," Provenza said. "The Waco negotiations went on for days before they stormed the compound."
"That's what I like about you, Provenza. You always know how to cheer a person up." Flynn pulled in behind a phalanx of FBI vehicles and walked quickly toward the group of agents standing uselessly in the street. He tapped Howard on the shoulder. "How's the girl? Does he still have her?"
Agent Howard turned. "He's not talking, but we used infrared and it looks like she's alive. Where's Brenda?"
Flynn let out a whoosh of air and ran his hands over his face.
"I said, where's Brenda?"
Provenza strolled up at a leisurely pace. "We passed Gabriel way back in Covina. They should be along in twenty minutes or so."
Howard nodded. "Maybe she'll be able to get him to talk. He hasn't responded to us at all; he's just pacing around one of the rooms."
Flynn stared at him. "You guys aren't going to wait to see if he feels like talking, are you? He's due for his next surgery any minute now!"
Howard looked steadily back at him. "We don't believe he'll try to perform a complex surgery while his house is surrounded by federal agents."
Flynn threw up his arms. "That's bullshit! You don't know this guy at all! He wants to prove himself. What could be better than a high-pressure situation with a big audience?"
His raised voice drew the eyes of several agents. A tall, thin woman walked across the lawn and held her hand out. "You're with Major Crimes? I'm Senior Special Agent Bauer. What can you tell me?"
Flynn introduced himself and quickly summarized the profile. "We've got to get in there now, ma'am," he finished.
Bauer nodded her head and tapped her microphone. "We're going in, folks. 60 seconds. Stay with your team." Without a backward glance, she took off toward the house.
"Wait!" Flynn called out. "We want to assist."
She turned and looked skeptically at him and Provenza. "You can help cover the west side of the house. Follow Agent Dolan over there," she said as she shooed them off with a wave.
Flynn sighed and jogged around the right side of the house. There were only a couple of small windows on this side. It was obvious Bauer had just been trying to get them out of the way. Dolan had already taken up a position a few feet away from one of the windows. Flynn took the other and waited for Provenza to join him. Without an earpiece, he could only estimate when the team would enter, but then Dolan held up his hand and started counting down from five. Flynn nodded at him and drew his gun, leaving the safety on for now. Even if Mackie was stupid enough to try to escape through one of these windows, he certainly wasn't going to get through the small opening in much of a hurry.
Boom! The battering ram shattered the back door. Heavy boots echoed on the wooden floors inside.
"In here!" somebody yelled from the back room.
"Get her out!"
Shouts of "Clear!" echoed throughout the house, one issuing from behind the wall Flynn was leaning against. He raised his eyebrows at Provenza and received a shrug in return. Where the hell was the guy? Flynn lowered his gun and peered around the corner of the house. Bauer was on the front porch yelling at one of her agents, every word emphasized with a tap to the poor kid's chest.
The front door opened and Agent Howard emerged in a rush, carrying a large bundle wrapped in a blue blanket. He ran down the front steps and jogged toward the van parked down the street. Flynn holstered his gun and started to follow him, but he felt a hand on his shoulder. It was Provenza.
"Where are you going? Dolan says they've lost the guy. We've got to find him!"
Flynn stared after Howard, who was running with a self-important air. He looked like he should be on TV. "Putz," Flynn muttered. He turned back to Provenza. "Wait. What did you say? They lost the guy? That's impossible, even for the FBI."
"Yeah, you'd think," Provenza said with an eye roll. "But even a 1200 square foot ranch house has these guys stumped. Let's give 'em a hand."