The Dead Rogue

by L B Wyatt

  Her words had carried a lot of weight. Merritt thought of them often. Every time Covey was hateful or vindictive or acted like she thought he was a gnat that needed to be swatted, he tried to remember to make good choices. He believed in Brooke’s abilities and that made him take her advice to heart. So far, he hadn’t regretted it. But tonight might be the one time he’d wished he hadn’t tried to be Covey’s friend. After the way the chief looked when he walked back into the lobby after escorting Veronica out, Merritt would be lucky indeed to have a desk at the station after this little stunt.

  When they got to the end of the drive, Merritt could see a Cape Cod style house come into view. It was a beautiful older lake house with tons of charm. Merritt new the lake was directly in behind the property because the GPS map on his phone had a perfect blue outline of it beside the blinking red dot. He could see there were lights on inside the house and the light above the garage illuminating the driveway enough he could see two vehicles present. And one looked alarmingly like Covey’s most recent rental. She had a thing for the little Kia cars, he’d discovered. Or maybe that was all Enterprise had in way of gas savers nowadays. Either way, he stopped his own vehicle while he was still quite a bit of distance away from the house.

  “I’m going to go check out that Kia,” he told his backup.

  “We’re behind you,” Huber said, easing the backdoor open. They all dispersed their weapons, caring them cautiously at their sides. Merritt walked slowly toward the vehicle and noticed some black material on the ground beside the back passenger wheel. He lifted it up but he couldn’t really make out what it had been used for. He watched as the other two officers walked toward the Lincoln town car parked closer to the garage. Merritt tested the door to the Kia to see if it was open. The front passenger had nothing, but when he opened the back passenger door he saw something disturbing. The backseat had been let down and he caught a glimpse of a blond wig splayed out next to a pair of high heels. He also saw duct tape that had obviously been cut through and discarded by the purse Covey had on her shoulder at the party.

  He looked over about the time the others were walking toward him.

  “Nothing suspicious in the Lincoln,” Roma stated.

  “She’s here,” Merritt said softly, cautiously looking around. “I think she was tied up in the trunk. She got out, though.”

  “Someone’s inside,” Huber noted and Merritt saw it too—shadows across the lawn toward the side of the house.

  “I see a camera above the front door,” Merritt whispered. “There’s probably an activated security system.”

  “Let’s try and bypass the camera and get a peek at who’s inside,” Huber suggested.

  “Nobody breach until we see what’s going on,” Merritt instructed. “I don’t want to announce our presence just yet. Roma go back to the car and call it in. We might need more backup.” Aside from an awkward phone call from Roma to his wife on the drive over (she seemed pretty pissed he was working ‘off duty’), no one even knew where the three officers were right now. So calling in the situation was best, considering Merritt truly had no idea what Veronica had gotten herself into.

  “On it,” Roma confirmed and carefully, but quickly, headed back to the SUV.

  “You try the side window, I’m going around back,” Merritt said to Huber. He nodded and they split up.

  Merritt ducked behind a row of perfectly manicured shrubs and made his way across the plush lawn. He stopped beside the back deck, craning his neck to peek inside the lighted window. He wasn’t quite tall enough to see what was going on, but he could see shadows now and he heard voices. One of them was unmistakably Covey. She sounded pissed, but that was nothing new. At least she was alive.

  Discouraged with his place under the window, Merritt decided to move to the back deck and see if there was a way in. Before he ascended the steps, he looked around but didn’t see a camera anywhere around the door. He decided to go for it. Considering how heated the conversation sounded through the walls, he might not have much time to overanalyze the situation anyway.

  Once he was at the back door, he realized it was a coded entrance. He wouldn’t be able to get in unnoticed. If he broke through the door, he was certain the alarm system would announce his arrival and probably hurt any chance he had at all of saving his partner. Just then the sound of a gunshot firing from within caused Merritt to act with urgency.

  Merritt was about to back up and kick the door in when he saw a silhouette cross the window pane of the door. He felt the tip of the gun behind his ear before he could turn. He stood there perfectly still as he watched a hand reach out and punch in the code to unlock the door.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  “You didn’t call for backup, did you?” Merritt cursed a little under his breath as Roma grabbed Merritt’s gun and tucked it in his belt.

  “Nope. Had to grab my silencer,” he answered causally.

  “Huber in on this too?” Merritt guessed.

  “No. I took care of him after I got my silencer.”

  Merritt’s breath staggered. “He was your partner.” Merritt was trying not to picture his own partner on the floor of this home in a pool of her own blood right now.

  “Relax, Miss Priss,” Roma growled. “I didn’t kill the guy, but he’ll have one hell of a headache tomorrow.”

  “What’s going on here, Roma?” Merritt demanded.

  “What? Your girl didn’t fill you in?”

  “Obviously not.”

  “Everybody knows not to go to bat for Veronica Covey, Merritt. She’s not a team player. She’s only out for number one. Now you’ve risked your ass to come here and help her and you don’t even know what kind of deep shit she’s in.”

  “It doesn’t matter,” Merritt decided. “She’s my partner.”

  “Does she know that?” Roma gave Merritt a push through the door with the barrel of his gun and they proceeded through the doorway into the house.

  Merritt had his hands up as they walked inside. Roma pushed the door shut loudly to announce their arrival.

  “Roma?” called a feminine voice that did not belong to Covey. Suddenly Merritt realized with alarm that Roma’s call to his ‘wife’ was probably just a warning to whomever had Veronica held hostage. Merritt cursed inwardly thinking how stupid he was going to look in front of his partner yet again…if she were alive to see him at all.

  “Here,” Roma answered and pushed Merritt forward. They walked through a den and entered into a formal dining area. Merritt wasn’t prepared for what he saw so it took his mind a minute to process. In the middle of the room, Veronica stood next to a large table holding out a barely noticeable knife. She was dressed less elegantly in the clothes she’d had on at the gala earlier. Her white shirt was stained with blood now and her skirt was considerably shorter. An image of the cloth beside the car popped through his head and he understood where the material had come from. Her hair was down in its usual braid, but more disheveled than normal. Her eyes were wide and disbelieving when they met his across the room. Merritt tried to say he was sorry with his expression, but it just seemed to make her angrier. He had never been happier to see her so pissed. He was grateful she hadn’t been the victim of that shot fired.

  Standing opposite his partner with a much larger weapon was Everly Ross, still as poised and as pretty as she’d been a few hours ago when he’d seen her at the hotel. Next to her was a skinny, balding man with a large shotgun in his hands. They were both aiming their weapons at Veronica and she was standing there like she stood a chance with her teeny blade. He wanted to ask her what the hell she was thinking, but he figured he had arrived just a few minutes before the senator’s wife and her crony were about to lay Veronica out like the big man on the floor at her feet.

  Analyzing the scene, Merritt could only conclude Everly had shot her own guard after Veronica had escaped with her cute little pocket knife. What he didn’t know was if it had been an accident or intentional. Maybe Everly had missed.

 
; Merritt found himself wishing he had connected the dots sooner, although there was no possible way he could have. He wasn’t investigating this case like Veronica. He had turned the other cheek and obeyed what the chief had ordered him to do without question. He was sorry he hadn’t believed more in Covey and her intuition.

  “What do we have here?” Everly crooned. She didn’t look very upset by the new arrivals. In fact, she looked rather pleased about it, leading Merritt to wonder what exactly he had just walked into.

  “Sorry, Ev. We didn’t have a choice. Merritt here decided to tag his partner and I figured it was better to come along and help you figure this out,” Roma stated as if he and the senator’s wife were on the friendliest of terms.

  “It’s quite alright, Roma. I appreciate your efforts and your call. I was just telling Veronica if she didn’t tell me where the ledger was, then I would have to kill her partner and the chief. They’re they only ones she seems to care about.” Everly held her weapon steadily at Veronica, but Everly was grinning at Merritt like he was the prize in the cereal box.

  Well, at least he knew why she seemed so smug now. Merritt had managed to hand deliver himself to a twisted bartering system where life was exchanged for information. His worry was whether or not Veronica would actually exchange what the senator’s wife wanted for Merritt’s life. As he looked carefully at Veronica, he was saddened to realize he truly didn’t know the answer.

  Would she let him take the fall for her mistakes?

  “I had a man on her, Everly. I know what hotel she’s staying at. I’m sure the ledger is there.”

  Everly looked elated and then deflated all in the same second. “As wonderful as that sounds, Roma, Veronica claims she has electronic copies.”

  Roma shrugged. “I’ll get my IT guy on it. He’ll be able to recover and destroy what copies she’s made. Now, if you want to go ahead and get this over with, I’ll help you stage it up and I’ll send someone to get it,” Roma offered.

  This news pleased Everly and she smiled even wider. “That sounds like the best plan I’ve heard all night. I really would like to wipe my hands of this situation. Veronica knows too much now to leave her alive. What do you suggest?”

  “A kidnapping. You for ransom, obviously. Veronica could have been trying to help you and got caught herself. Merritt and I just happened to show up and rescue you two. But not everyone can survive, of course.”

  Everly was nodding intently. “Sounds reasonable. Who kidnapped us though?” she wondered.

  Roma pointed his weapon at the skinny guy and fired before the man could even react. “I’d say both of these guys did.” He nodded to the dead man at Veronica’s feet and the fresh one at Everly’s.

  Merritt knew their time was about up now. He was going to get a bullet to the base of his skull and it looked like Everly was aiming at Veronica’s heart. It would be over for them quickly. He locked eyes with his partner and he knew she was about to make a move. He subtly gave her a tip of his head and they took a chance at the same moment. He didn’t have time to really focus on what Veronica was doing because in that split second he elbowed Roma and made a grab for the gun. He could hear his partner struggling with the senator’s wife, but he hadn’t heard the gun go off yet so that was a good sign.

  Roma, on the other hand, was a pretty fit guy. He was tough to overcome. They struggled and the pistol fired twice making a soft whistling sound with the silencer on as the bullet whizzed by Merritt’s ear. He tackled Roma like a linebacker, pushing him hard and fast into the wall. Merritt hit Roma square in the nose, feeling it shatter beneath his knuckles. Blood started gushing and it washed over the back of Merritt’s other hand as he grabbed his gun from Roma’s belt.

  He backed up a step to get a shot off, but it was too late. He heard the silencer as it spit the bullet out about the same time he heard Everly’s gun fire. The showering of bullets was followed by screams, but Merritt didn’t know whose. He felt the metal hit him square in the chest and he staggered before falling to the floor.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Veronica saw Merritt hit the floor. She had disarmed Everly, but not before the woman fired off a random shot. Veronica was lucky the bullet didn’t catch her, but Merritt had taken one straight to the chest. Veronica wasn’t sure who was screaming when Merritt hit the floor at first, and then she shamefully realized it was herself. Though what exactly she had screamed, she couldn’t remember. It was fear she felt initially, but then she welcomed the fire of anger that followed behind it. The rage consumed her from the belly up and Veronica had shifted her aim from the senator’s wife to the bad cop who was attempting to shoot Merritt again.

  She watched for a split second as the officer aimed to finish his job, but Veronica was faster. She had the trigger pulled before Roma could and the shocked look on his face indicated he didn’t see it coming. Veronica’s bullet pierced the side of his neck and blood spattered across the dining room table. Movement caught her eye and she turned just as Everly was crawling through Skinny’s pool of blood to grab his shotgun. The urge to kill the woman was almost crippling. Veronica restrained herself, opting for the less drastic measure for once in her life.

  She bent down and grabbed a handful of Everly’s silky soft hair and gave it a mighty tug. Everly let out a horrified scream and clutched at Veronica’s fist to no avail. The woman didn’t weigh much and with the anger and adrenaline fueling her muscles, Veronica dragged Everly to a chair and hauled her up ungracefully into the seat. The roll of duct tape was still there so Veronica took it and promptly taped both her wrists to the armrests and Everly’s torso to the back.

  Once she was certain it was tight and secure and that all threats were neutralized (just as Arc had always taught her), Veronica picked up her hand gun and moved closer her partner on the floor. She tried to keep herself together and calm, but it was hard. She realized Roma wasn’t dead yet because as she knelt to look over Merritt, she could hear the other officer choking on his own blood.

  Ignoring the gargling noises, Veronica swiftly kicked Roma’s weapon away and leaned over her partner to feel for a pulse. There was blood everywhere, but she couldn’t tell who it belonged to. She was more than just a little alleviated when she felt a strong pulse over Merritt’s carotid. She then glanced at his chest seeing only a small hole in his shirt. With her gun still firmly in her grasp, she reached her fingers through the button holes and ripped the material open to see the damage for herself. Much to her surprise and relief, she only saw black.

  He had thought to wear a bulletproof vest.

  She had never been more proud. She didn’t realize it, but Veronica was leaning on Merritt’s chest as her shoulders dropped as the tension she’d been carrying since seeing him hit the floor fell away.

  “Ow,” he moaned.

  Veronica looked up into his face to see him wincing in pain. She couldn’t help but grin.

  “How is it I came here to save your ass and you still ended up saving mine?” he asked in a hoarse tone.

  Veronica actually laughed out loud and slipped her fingers under the top of the vest where it stopped under his neck, hauling him up into sitting position. “I guess that’s what partners are for, huh?”

  Merritt looked pained as he rubbed the area the bullet had landed. “That was really close range.”

  “You’ll live. Thank God you had a vest on,” Veronica sighed. “And what the hell are you doing here anyway?”

  “Long story,” Merritt moaned. “And speaking of long stories, do you mind explaining why one of our own just turned on us?”

  “I’ll let you in on everything, but let’s call this in first,” she suggested, looking over at Everly as she sobbed with her head low. Her crying was already irritating Veronica, so she helped Merritt up and then returned to duct tape the murderess’s mouth. Veronica didn’t hold back. She wrapped the tape around Everly’s head, making sure she got ample amounts of hair in the adhesive. Once she was finished, she stepped back and took hold
of her weapon again as Merritt used Roma’s cell to call into the station and report the events. Veronica looked at the silver in her palm and ran her thumb over the back of the handle in thought. Every ounce of her being desired to put the barrel to Everly’s head and pull the trigger.

  Subconsciously, her body moved with her heart’s desire and somewhere in the far recesses of her mind she heard Everly’s startled cry and muffled pleas, but the part of her that held any compassion for this monster was long gone. Her finger twitched on the trigger, enjoying the fear in Everly’s eyes. Veronica wondered what kind of fear Amelia had felt before her life had ended? Was it something like this or did Everly show mercy and make it fast?

  Before Veronica sank too deep down into her darker side, she felt Merritt’s fingers slip over the hand pressing the gun deep into Everly’s temple. Veronica didn’t realize how much pressure she was using until she watched Everly’s head bounce back from being shoved over so far.

  “It’s over, Covey,” Merritt whispered.

  Veronica wasn’t sure if he just didn’t trust her or if he was being extra cautious, but he pried the weapon out of her grip and she let him do so. She felt better with the temptation removed anyway.

  The relief on Everly’s face was evident and she sank a little lower into the chair, but what was she really so relieved for? So she could go on living and face the humiliation of her actions? Instead of dealing with an illegitimate grandchild like any modern day messed up family could, Everly made a lot of bad decisions. There was no doubt people would judge her less for having a teenage pregnancy than a double murder; and depending on how far along Amelia was, Everly could be tried for a double homicide. Three counting Poppy Stafford.

  Veronica felt a rush of disappointment with herself and she backed away from the woman in the chair. Suddenly there wasn’t enough air in the blood-soaked room. “I’m going to wait outside,” she informed Merritt, turning toward the doorway. Before she could fully exit, she felt his hand on her arm.