FBI Agent Jade Monroe: Live or Die 01-Blood in the Bayou

by Sutter, C M

  Renz blew out a huff. “I suppose. It’s been a weird year all around.”

  “So, when do you want to go, and who is that person going to be?”

  “Not me,” Renz said. “I’ve got other folks to talk to.”

  Bob turned to me. “Then it looks like it’s you and me, Jade.”

  “She isn’t going anywhere without an escort. Conway is tasking a deputy to go along.”

  “Um—”

  “It’s either that or she doesn’t go.”

  “Sure, but there isn’t enough room in my truck for three.”

  “The deputy can follow you in his squad car, and then Jade can ride back with him.”

  “Yep, okay, but I’ll have to clear it with Beau when we get there. I hope it won’t be a problem.”

  Conway returned minutes later and gave Bob a nod. “Mr. Hebert.”

  Bob returned the greeting. “Sheriff Conway.”

  I stood. “Guess we can go now unless you need help with those club members first.”

  “Nah, I’m good. I’ll run the names through the system and then interview the ones that I deem necessary. Conway can find someone to help me, but let me know when you’re headed back. We’ll meet up then.”

  “You bet.” I turned to Bob. “I guess we’re good to go.”

  “I guarantee you it’s going to be exciting.”

  I walked out with Bob and climbed into his truck. Stillman pulled up behind us, lowered his window, and gave us a thumbs-up.

  “Looks like he’s ready,” I said. “Where does Beauregard live?”

  “Just outside Dulac, about a half hour south.” Bob grinned. “So you may as well sit back and enjoy the ride.”

  I lowered the window just enough to feel the warm wind on my face. I closed my eyes, hoped for answers, and couldn’t wait to get there.

  Chapter 49

  Robby slowed to a stop beneath the tree canopy and nudged Jade. She woke, looked around, and saw that the truck was idling on a driveway. “I must have dozed off. Are we here?”

  “Yep. I’m going to jump out and have a quick talk with the deputy. He’ll have to wait down here unless Beau says it’s okay for him to join us. Give me just a minute, and then we’ll go on up, find out, and if it’s okay, I’ll come back and let him know.”

  “All right. I’ll need a minute to wake up and get my bearings, anyway.”

  Robby climbed out and walked to the squad car twenty feet behind his truck. He glanced back and saw Jade looking straight ahead. He lifted the flipper knife from his pocket and cupped it in his hand.

  Stillman lowered his window as Robby approached. The sun peeking through the trees was angled right in Stillman’s face. He shielded his eyes and waited. “What’s going on?”

  Robby lowered his head and leaned in. “You’ll have to wait here until I get approval from the resident for you to join us.”

  “Okay, not a problem.”

  “This might be, though.” It took only a split second for Robby to bury the blade up to the handle into the deputy’s neck. Robby backed away for a second so the initial blood pumping from the deputy’s artery wouldn’t spray on his clothing or hands. He reached in and grabbed Stillman by the hair. Robby pulled the deputy’s head back and slit his throat, then he gave him a push toward the console and watched as he slumped into unconsciousness.

  “You’ll be dead in a minute or two, so I guess we’re good.” He pocketed the bloody knife after wiping it on the deputy’s sleeve. Robby ripped out the radio, raised the window, pulled out the keys, and walked back to the truck. He tossed the keys into the brush before climbing in.

  “Everything okay?”

  “Yep, and Stillman has no problem with us going in ahead of him.”

  “Good. I’m excited.”

  “Me too.” Robby continued on. “The stilt house is about another quarter mile in. There’s a lot of potholes in this driveway, too, so you might get bounced around.”

  “Just part of the charisma of the bayou life, right?”

  “You bet.” At the end of the driveway, Robby parked near the firepit and killed the engine. He dropped the keys into his pocket, rounded the front of the truck, and opened Jade’s door. “This is the place, Agent Monroe.”

  She looked around and took in everything. “What’s with the big kettle of water over the coals?”

  Robby shrugged. “Beau cooks his game outside. Maybe he’s planning to boil something later.”

  “Got it. So a stilt house, a few sheds, and then farther back, the bayou?”

  “Pretty much, and not a lot different than most setups near the water. Stilt houses serve several purposes, to be close to the water but up higher in case the waterways flood or a critter comes calling.” He noticed Jade shiver.

  “That totally freaks me out.”

  “And so it should. Do you have any idea what the most dangerous predator is?”

  “In this environment, I’d say a gator.”

  “Nope. It’s always a human being no matter where you are.”

  She chuckled. “You got me on that one, Bob. So where is Mr. Rue?”

  “Likely inside.” Robby jerked his chin toward the steps. “Shall we?”

  “Yes, and I’m excited to meet him.”

  Robby followed Jade up the stairs. He was only inches from her holstered gun, but he couldn’t make a move on her until he was on level ground. Chances were, if he attempted to grab it, she would kick him down the flight of stairs. They reached the landing, and Robby pulled open the screen door and called out to the imaginary Beauregard as he motioned for Jade to enter.

  She stepped inside and scanned the room then turned to meet a fist to the face. Jade stumbled backward and tried to go for her weapon. Robby moved in fast and clocked her again, that time knocking her to the floor. He straddled her and pinned her arms with his knees.

  “Think you’re going somewhere, Agent Monroe? Well, think again.” Robby pulled her gun from the holster and tucked it in his waistband. Jade moaned and tried to lift her head. She looked up as another blow hit her in the face.

  With his hands grasping her wrists, Robby pulled her down the stairs. Her body thumped as it hit each wooden step. He dragged her to the tree where fragments of rope still remained from Sally’s escape. Using them, he secured Jade’s wrists behind her back and her ankles together, then he ran to the shed for more rope, nails, and a hammer. She was already squirming to free herself when he returned.

  “Bob, what in God’s name are you doing? Are you insane?”

  “Maybe, but this is what I do, and I enjoy every second of it. It makes me feel alive by feeding my body and paying my bills. There isn’t a Beauregard Rue. I made him up to lure you here. Mark and Billy are dead and have been devoured by the wild pigs, but that’s okay. My personal tastes lean more toward the ladies, anyway.” Robby knelt at her side, licked his lips, and whispered, “You’ll be far more tender and tasty.”

  “You sick son of a bitch. It was you all along, and you wormed your way into our investigation so you could stay on top of our progress. It was you who flattened my tire at the fast-food restaurant.”

  Robby laughed. “Ding, ding, ding. You win a gold star for having an average IQ. Now, let’s get this tree set up again.”

  As she lay face down in the dirt, Jade turned her head to see what he was doing. The trunk of the tree only a few feet away was covered in a deep red tint, and the ground beneath it looked the same.

  “Oh my God.”

  “Yep, this here is the victim tree.” Robby patted it proudly. “It’s where the killings take place most of the time, except in Mark and Billy’s case. I don’t want the boars coming close to the house. It could get dangerous, so I took care of them back in the woods. After I slice an artery, I string up the body to bleed out, gut them, strip the meat from the bones, and toss that meat in the trough of boiling water. Within hours, I have enough protein to hold me over for weeks.”

  Robby pounded a half dozen nails into the tree, b
ent them over, and ran the rope through several times. He secured the ends to the rope Jade was already bound with then pulled her to the tree and stood her in an upright position.

  “I’m actually getting proficient at this, except something went wrong yesterday and my latest guest, Sally, got away. Signs back in the swamp make it appear that a gator found her, though, so she’s out of the picture. I guess I got careless when I tied her up since my mind was on you, Jade. You’re going to be my trophy kill.”

  Jade spewed blood from her mouth as she yelled. “Not if I can help it, asshole!”

  Robby chuckled. “As if you’re in any position to threaten me. Maybe you haven’t noticed yet, but you’re tied to a damn tree. I’ll be back soon, but right now, I need to get a fire started.”

  “Deputy Stillman will wonder why this meeting is taking so long. He’ll come to investigate, or he’ll call Conway.”

  “Not happening, Jade. Stillman is dead. I slit his throat, ripped his radio from the car, and tossed the keys in the bushes. Nobody is looking for you, and they wouldn’t know where to find you, anyway. Every bit of information I gave you and DeLeon was fake, including where I live and my name. Hell, I’m not even married, and I don’t have any kids. I’m a ghost to you and to the sheriff’s office, so good luck tracking me down. Oh, and in case you’re wondering, I turned off your phone and tossed it in the water. Some pea-brained gator probably thought it was food and ate it.”

  “So it was you who killed all those missing people?”

  “Yep, and pretty soon, you’ll be added to that total.” Robby rubbed his chin. “That probably makes a dozen by now over the years. Had to quit for a while because I messed up my back, but now, I’m as good as new and stronger than ever.” He held up his hand to end the conversation. “Enough chatting already. I have a fire to build.”

  Chapter 50

  Renz checked his watch for the fifth time. It was pushing eleven o’clock, and Jade hadn’t called him yet. He and Deputy Holbrook didn’t find anyone at the home of the only person who had a police jacket. The man’s one offense was selling marijuana seven years prior, and he’d stayed out of trouble since then. They returned to the sheriff’s office, where Renz knocked on Conway’s office door.

  “Agent DeLeon, back already?”

  “There was only one man who had a police record, and the offense was minor. I’m grasping at straws here.” He pointed his thumb over his shoulder. “I’ll be plugging away in the office to see if I can come up with anything else.”

  “Sure thing.”

  Renz patted the doorframe to leave then turned back. “By the way, has Stillman given you an update from the Rue house?”

  Conway cocked his head. “Actually, he hasn’t.” He tipped his wrist. “They’ve been gone a few hours, haven’t they?”

  “Yeah, and that concerns me.”

  Conway chuckled. “Well, I do know how those old swampers like to bs.”

  “I thought they shied away from strangers.”

  “Stillman isn’t a stranger to them. That’s why I chose him to go along with Agent Monroe. His granddad was a gator hunter and has lived out in the bayous his whole life. The man is ninety years old but still likes to throw back a beer and shoot the shit.”

  “Humph. Well, let me know if you hear from him. Did Bob say where Mr. Rue lived?”

  “If he did, I didn’t hear it, but I can call Stillman’s radio and ask when they’ll be back.”

  “Yeah, let’s give it another half hour and then try.”

  “Sure thing. I heard from that guy again whose girlfriend disappeared.”

  “And did they make up and now everything is right with the world?”

  Conway scratched his head. “Nope. According to the mother, who’s disabled, Sally is still missing. The boyfriend is coming in soon to fill out a report.”

  Renz frowned. “That isn’t good.”

  “No, sir, it isn’t.”

  Renz returned to the office, spread the club applications out on the table, and looked them over again. He set aside the one for the member whose house he’d just been to.

  “Now, what about the rest of you?” Renz tapped Drew Moore’s application. He remembered Coltrane saying that he knew the guy. That left three others to check out. There was a Byron Price from Mechanicville, a Danny Simms from Houma, and a Robert Williams from Dulac. Renz rubbed his chin, stood, and returned to Conway’s office.

  “Excuse me, Pat, but did your deputies follow up with all those men who’ve had run-ins with the law?”

  “Not sure, but I’ll get you a list of the men they have spoken with.”

  “Okay, thanks. Just trying to narrow down the people that we haven’t interviewed yet. There isn’t time to repeat something that’s already been done.”

  Back at the table, Renz paged through the notes they had taken over the last few days. There was still Teddy Cain, a local wife beater; mentally challenged Evan Millbrook, who wasn’t home when they went calling; Derrick Alamane from Dulac, who liked to fight with cops; Destin Orly from McBride, who got paid for car repairs by jamming guns against people’s temples; and Robby Williams, also from Dulac, who was a thief through and through and liked to beat anyone who called him out on it.

  “Wait a minute. Robby Williams?”

  Renz flipped through the applications again and pulled out the one for a Robert Williams.

  What are the odds that he’s the same person?

  Renz ran his finger down the sheet. The gun club application showed Robert Williams as a Dulac resident.

  “He has to be the same guy Leroy was talking about.”

  There weren’t any photos included with the membership applications, so Renz logged on to the DMV database instead. If Robert Williams was willing to drive the half-hour distance from Dulac to Houma, he obviously had a vehicle and, Renz hoped, a valid driver’s license. He typed in Robert Williams as the name and Dulac, Louisiana, as the city and state and then stared at the screen until the results popped up.

  “Holy shit!” Renz leapt from his chair, nearly knocking it over, and ran to Conway’s office. “Pat, we’ve got a problem. Bob Hebert isn’t who he says he is. His real name is Robert Williams, he signed up Wednesday night as a new member at the hunting club, and he lives around Dulac. Leroy Duggar mentioned the name Robby Williams of Dulac as a possible person of interest, and now the son of a bitch has Jade.”

  “Damn it! Let’s head out. I’ll get Dispatch to see if anyone in Criminal Patrol is near that area since it’s a half-hour drive for us. I need the address.”

  Renz handed Conway the application as they rushed down the hall to the dispatch counter. “Marie, get this address out to the criminal patrol unit. We need deputies on site ASAP. This Robert Williams character may be armed and dangerous, and he has Agent Monroe in his custody.”

  “On it, Boss.”

  Conway led the way to an available squad car. “I’ll try Stillman’s radio as we drive.”

  Renz slammed his fist against the dash. “I should have never let her go with him. I’ve had a weird feeling about that guy since day one.”

  “But Stillman went along. He and Jade are seasoned law enforcement officials and armed.”

  “Doesn’t matter if you’re blindsided.”

  The radio squawked, and Conway picked up. It was Marie getting back to him.

  “Boss, the nearest unit said they’re twenty minutes away.”

  “Shit! Okay, dispatch at least two deputies there and tell them to go in silent. We’re on our way. Try Stillman’s radio and get back to me. Keep trying every few minutes.” Conway jerked his head toward Renz. “Do you think Williams is the killer?”

  “That’s one hundred percent what I think. We’ve got to get a warning out to Jade and Stillman.”

  Conway shook his head. “And they’ve already been there for more than an hour.”

  “Yeah, and that worries me even more.”

  They’d just reached the outskirts of Houma when the r
adio squawked again. It was Marie, and she said she couldn’t get a response from Stillman.

  Conway barked back into the radio. “Let me know the second those other units arrive.”

  Renz clenched his fists as Conway sped south down Grand Caillou Road en route to Dulac. He leaned over and gave the speedometer a glance. “Can’t you go any faster?”

  “Not if we actually want to arrive in one piece. There are too many small towns and businesses sprinkled along this road with cars pulling in and out. I’m going eighty miles an hour the way it is.”

  Seconds later, Marie radioed back. “Boss, the units just arrived and found Stillman’s squad car parked in the middle of the driveway. He’s dead, sir, with his throat slashed wide open.”

  Renz yelled out and pounded the dash again. “Shit! Tell those deputies to shoot Robert Williams on sight, no questions asked. My partner’s life is in his hands.”

  Chapter 51

  My head pounded from the beating Bob had given me. My vision seemed blurred—I chalked it up to a concussion. I looked around and did my best to get a clear focus but couldn’t see him anywhere. What I could see and smell was wood burning and a roaring fire coming from the pit several hundred feet away.

  Where did you go, Bob?

  I assumed he went into one of the sheds, likely to get his tools of the trade—killing, carving, and cutting knives. I couldn’t believe that I’d fallen for his ploy of helping the FBI while all along, he was reeling me in hook, line, and sinker. Now it was my turn to die, and nobody knew where I was.

  That means if I don’t save myself, I’ll be in hot water—literally—before the day is over.

  A branch snapped at my back, but I couldn’t see around the tree. I was sure a gator had seen an opportunity and would have me for a meal before Bob got the chance.

  “Psst.”

  I jerked my head to the side. What kind of sick game was he playing? Was Bob coming up from behind to slit my throat like he’d done to Stillman?