Hole in the Heart

by Carolina Mac

  “Hey, man, have you got a read on where Joey’s truck is?”

  “What’s wrong? You sound panicky.”

  “Joey made bail and I thought he’d go home and we were ready for him at the farmhouse. But he didn’t go home at all, he went straight to Bluebonnet and scooped Avery from the ranch where she worked.”

  “Jesus, no. I’m sorry, man. Let me check my phone. Hang on a sec.” Travis checked. “Nope. Nothing. He might have swept his truck after he left it sitting at the garage.”

  “Yeah, he figured we’d tag him. Okay, thanks.”

  “Hey, give me an update later, would you?” asked Travis. “I don’t like being out of the loop.”

  “Yep, back at you, partner.”

  Bluebonnet. Texas.

  FARRELL checked Avery’s trailer once more on the way by and it was as empty as it was the first time. How the hell was he going to find her? He jumped into his truck and headed for Sonora. On the way, he called Sheriff Oxford and asked if there’d been anything on the BOLO, and the answer was no.

  “He took Avery Dennison from the ranch where she works,” said Farrell. “With cops all over his farm where would he go?”

  “He took another girl? I can’t believe it. The judge never should have granted him bail.”

  Farrell’s next call was to Luke. “Are you finished at the hospital, partner?”

  “Yep, I’ll wait for you outside if you’re coming this way.”

  “We’ve got a problem. Joey took Avery Dennison.”

  “What kind of maniac is he?”

  “The tracker ain’t working,” Farrell was shouting now, without meaning to. “Travis thinks he probably swept the truck.”

  “He’s tight with his lawyer,” said Luke. “Let’s try him.”

  “Good thought. I’ll pick you up in ten. Find out where the lawyer lives.”

  Luke was ready with an address when Farrell picked him up in front of the hospital. “We’ll check his office first because lawyers work late sometimes and if he’s not there, I’ve got a home address for him.”

  Farrell nodded and peeled out of the hospital parking lot. “What was in Robin’s statement? Anything we didn’t already know?”

  “Not really.” Luke lowered his window and lit up a smoke. “She said when she woke up the old man was on top of her and she was in an old house. Figured it was probably the farmhouse. Then they took her back to the cave.”

  “Makes sense,” said Farrell. “The old man was in on the action?”

  “According to Robin, the old man was first.”

  “Shit,” said Farrell. “Maybe he was the one running the show.”

  “We’ll never find that out,” said Luke, “with the father already dead.”

  “What kind of a goddam crazy father does shit like that?”

  Besides mine.

  Farrell cruised down the main street and parked in front of a professional building Luke was pointing to. “Let’s hope he’s working late.”

  Inside, the reception area was empty but there was a plaque on the wall that gave the floor and office numbers of all the tenants. Attorney Ralph Hill resided on the second floor. They stepped off the elevator and Farrell tapped on the door then tried the handle. “Not locked.” He pushed it open and there was one client in the waiting area. No receptionist. Her desk was bare.

  Farrell stood in front of the waiting client, a fifty-something man dressed in black slacks and a golf shirt. He tried to be polite. He was so wired he could barely think. “Is there someone in with Mr. Hill at the moment?”

  The man nodded. “Should soon be finished. She’s been in there over an hour.”

  Farrell flashed his creds. “I need to speak to Mr. Hill for one minute before you go in.”

  “You’re butting in ahead of me?”

  “I have to. Somebody’s life is at stake.”

  “I think you’re exaggerating, Ranger, “but okay. Take your shot.”

  The door opened, and a female client came out. Luke and Farrell rushed in and closed the door behind them.

  Ralph Hill wore an annoyed look but didn’t raise his voice. “I have a client waiting, gentlemen. What can I do for the Texas Rangers?”

  “Joey Golden has abducted another woman,” said Farrell. “His home property still has a large police presence. Where would he take the girl?”

  “Why wouldn’t he go home? He told me he didn’t do anything.”

  “And you believed him?”

  “It’s not my job to believe my clients. It’s my job to exercise their rights.”

  “Well, Joey Golden has no more rights, Mr. Hill. We found two girls alive that he abducted and they’re in the hospital. We also found numerous girls he murdered, and the number is climbing.”

  “I don’t believe you. I’ve known Gareth Golden and his boys for years.”

  “Tough for you, counsellor,” said Farrell, “you’ve been keeping bad company.” He pounded a fist on the desk. “Tell me if Joey or his father have any other property around Sonora.”

  “I’ll tell you no such thing.”

  “Cuff him, partner,” said Farrell. “Mr. Hill, I’m charging you with accessory to a kidnapping.”

  Hill smiled. “Come on, boys. Be reasonable. Okay. Okay. Gareth Golden has a hunting cabin near Roosevelt. A few miles north of the highway. I’ve been there once boar hunting.”

  “Write down the directions,” said Farrell.

  La Grange. Texas.

  TRAVIS had dinner with Annie at the ranch and caught up with the cowboys he’d known for several years. After coconut cream pie and coffee, Annie cleaned up the kitchen before retiring to the office to work on her assignment.

  “What time should we head out, Annie-girl?”

  Travis sat at the coffee table hunched over one of the devices he was assembling.

  “Let’s give them lots of time to get into their meeting. If they start at ten, we should arrive around eleven. Most of those assholes are long winded.”

  Travis smiled. “You should know.”

  “Yeah, I do know.”

  Giddings. Texas.

  JESSE received the call from Farrell as he was cleaning

  Charity up after dinner and getting her ready for bed. “Hold on for a sec until I put Charity in her crib.”

  “No problem, boss.”

  “Okay, go ahead, kiddo.”

  “We’ve got a complication, boss, and I don’t know if I’ll be back tomorrow like I planned. Joey Golden took Avery. The sister of one of the girls we rescued from the cave.”

  “Why was he out running around loose, for chrissake?”

  “His arraignment came up before we found the girls in the cave and the judge granted him bail to bury his father and brother. It was a sob story ploy by his lawyer and bad timing. We probably found the cave at about the same time they let him go. Terrible timing, boss. Couldn’t have been fuckin worse.”

  “Sometimes you wonder,” said Jesse. “Do you have a line on where he took her?”

  “Just got that now from the lawyer. Possibly a hunting cabin out near Roosevelt.”

  “And y’all are headed that way now?”

  “We are, but it’s getting dark fast and we don’t know the area.”

  “Let me know.”

  “Yep. Call you later, boss.”

  Austin. Texas.

  TRAVIS cruised through south Austin, the GPS giving him directions turn by turn. “Are you sure we have the right address, Annie-girl?”

  “I wrote it down when he gave it to me.”

  Travis slowed the truck down. “This looks a little high end for a club house.”

  “It’s a brick garage,” said Annie, “At least it used to be a garage in its former life and now it’s home to these jerks. High end in who’s book?”

  “Just say’n, I’ve seen a lot of gang clubhouses that were a lot dumpier than this.”

  Annie scoped out the neighborhood. “Nice clear area. No neighbors.” She pointed at the SUV parked
close to the building under the security light. “That’s our target for tonight.”

  “That’s the Escalade they used in the drive by on Blacky,” said Travis. He checked the tag in his phone. “Yep, for sure. The same one. I’ll park down the block and run back.”

  “Be careful. If the door opens or if it sounds like they’re coming out, don’t stick around.”

  Roosevelt. Texas.

  FARRELL and Luke were on their third trip up and down county road fourteen—the little line that Ralph Hill had drawn on the map—and they couldn’t find any offshoot dirt roads like in the picture. There were none.

  “Was Hill lying?” asked Farrell.

  “Might have been,” said Luke. “I’m calling him.” Luke called and woke the lawyer up. “We can’t find the road to the cabin. Do you think you made a mistake on the directions?”

  “Now y’all are waking me up? And for what? In my opinion, y’all are on a wild goose chase. Joey wouldn’t do anything like you told me.”

  “Come by the morgue and see the bodies, Mr. Hill,” said Luke. “Your client will get the needle.”

  “I’ll call Sheriff Oxford in the morning and verify your story.”

  “Tell me how to find the hunting cabin,” said Luke.

  “Are you on the right county road?”

  “Yes, we’ve been up and down several times.”

  “The track would be hard to find in the dark. There’s no marker for the road leading into Gareth’s property. You’ll have better luck in the daylight.”

  Farrell stared across the console waiting for Luke to tell him. “He says it’s easier to find in the daylight.”

  “Think we didn’t know that?” Farrell pounded the steering wheel. “He’s a goddam idiot. This is making me nuts. We must be close and still we can’t help her.”

  CHAPTER NINE

  Saturday, May 9th.

  2:00 a.m.

  Austin. Texas.

  ANNIE and Travis waited down the block from the gang’s clubhouse for a couple of hours after Travis planted the device.

  “Are they ever gonna bang the gavel down?” asked Travis. “It’s almost two o’clock and I’m beat.”

  Annie giggled. “Drink some more bad coffee.”

  “Don’t want anymore. My gut is in a knot and I have to piss already.”

  “You get testy after midnight.” Annie reached across the console to tickle him and saw the door of the clubhouse open. “They’re done. Coming out now.”

  Travis blew out a breath. “I’m ready.” He started the truck and held onto his cell phone with his left hand.

  “Okay, the new big boss is in the SUV,” said Annie. “Take them out.”

  Travis pressed the button and drove away.

  3:00 a.m.

  The Blackmore Agency. Austin. Texas.

  BLAINE got the call at three and wondered if he’d slept at all. He tiptoed into the hall with the dogs following him, so Misty wouldn’t waken. “Did something happen, Chief?”

  “An Escalade blew up at the Aryan gang’s clubhouse. Four more of those mothers are dead.”

  “Uh huh.”

  The Escalade that tried for me.

  “I thought you’d want to see the scene.”

  “Sure. I know where they hang out. I’ll get dressed and take a drive down. Is Mort there already?”

  “He’s on his way.” The Chief chuckled. “Not happy about it, but he’s coming.”

  “He’s happier with murders between nine and five.”

  “Aren’t we all,” said the Chief. “I’ll see you later at the office and we’ll sort this out. Make sure you take somebody with you to the scene in case the fuckers have a tail on you.”

  “Yep. I’ll wake Rick up.”

  Uniforms had the clubhouse property taped off by the time Blaine and Rick arrived. Media vans had begun queuing up down the street on the opposite side. Some cameras were already rolling, catching snatches of emergency personnel doing their jobs.

  A couple of reporters hollered at Blaine as he jumped out of his truck. “Are these the gangers that tried for you at headquarters, Ranger B?”

  Damn right they are. Is this retaliation or something else?

  “Give me a minute, guys. I’m barely awake.”

  The fire department had the remains of the SUV sufficiently soaked to cool it down some by the time Blaine stood next to it, but the stink of it was something else. Four bodies burned crispy would be hard to ID and club members would be less than helpful. They hated cops and never gave a straight answer. Always. They had rules. Not the regular rules. Different rules. They made up their own.

  Doctor Mort Simon arrived with his assistant and they stood beside Blaine staring at the burned out chassis. “Four of them? This is a nightmare, Tim,” said Mort. “Fetch four bags and one of those little shovels… and a whisk. We’ll have to sweep the bits into the bags.”

  “Uh huh,” said Blaine, “Somebody already cremated them.”

  “Any idea who?” asked Mort.

  “No clue. Somebody doing me a favor.”

  5:45 a.m.

  Roosevelt. Texas.

  FARRELL woke wondering where in hell he was. Parked on a dirt road with dense bush on both sides. No signs of civilization anywhere around. He stepped out of the truck to piss, then jumped back in and started the big red girl up. “I can almost see,” he said to a sleeping Luke, slouched down in the shotgun seat. “Let me see the map again.”

  Luke never moved, and Farrell rummaged around until he found the crumpled piece of paper in the cup holder. He straightened it out and stared at it. “Okay, let’s try again.”

  “Is it morning?” Luke sat up and stared out the window.

  “Almost,” said Farrell. “Almost light.”

  “I can’t see a damn thing,” said Luke. “It’s still dark.”

  Farrell roared up the road for the fourth or fifth time and hollered, “There.” He cranked the wheel, veered off the road, bounced through a shallow ditch and blasted though an opening no more than five feet wide. Branches brushed along both sides of the truck that he babied and still he kept going. The trail widened slightly and a quarter mile farther off-road the headlights lit up a wooden shack. “There it is.”

  Farrell parked the truck, jumped out and ran towards the shack, not even realizing there was no vehicle parked in front. He kicked open the door and shone his Maglite around inside.

  “Nothing. There’s nothing here.”

  Luke was standing right behind him. “No vehicle, partner. He’s not here.”

  7:00 a.m.

  Sonora. Texas.

  FARRELL DROVE WEST, as dawn broke over Texas, frantic that Avery hadn’t been at the hunting cabin.

  “When we get back to Sonora,” said Luke, “let’s check out Twin Auto and see if Joey boy switched out his truck with something else. Not saying he would, but it’s a possibility.”

  “Good thought,” said Farrell. “I can’t think of a fuckin thing we should be doing.”

  “That’s because you’ve seen the girls in the cave,” said Luke, “and you know first hand what might be happening to someone you care about.”

  “You are so on the money,” said Farrell. “My gut wants to heave, and my chest is so fuckin tight I can barely breathe.”

  “We need to focus,” said Luke. “It’s the only way we’ll catch the crazy motherfucker.”

  Farrell drove through Sonora to Twin Auto and the garage seemed secure. Yellow tape across the door and a big red and black ‘closed’ sign in the window.

  “Check the parking area behind,” said Luke.

  Farrell circled around behind the building and Joey’s pickup was there. “Shit, he’s been here. He’s driving something else.”

  Farrell scoped out the parked vehicles and tried to remember what had been there. A couple of old clunkers the boys were working on, Jeff’s pickup and what else?

  Luke thought of it first. “The only thing missing is the tow truck.”

  �
��He’s driving around in the fucking tow truck with his name on the side? That shows how crazy he is.”

  “Let’s stop by the hotel, pick up breakfast and coffee, then plan our next move,” said Luke, trying to keep Farrell straight. “I’ll call in the BOLO on the tow truck.”

  Farrell nodded and drove to the Hampton Inn.

  8:00 a.m.

  The Blackmore Agency. Austin. Texas.

  BLAINE stopped off at home after his visit to the blown up Escalade for three reasons: first and foremost was coffee and breakfast, second to pick up Fletcher and Travis, thirdly to check on Misty. Not knowing what direction her brain injury could take her from minute to minute was wearing on him. The new doc wanted a week to do a work up and he had to wait for files to come from Doctor Lee Chang’s office in New Orleans.

  Declan had Misty sitting at the kitchen table when Blaine got there, and she was working her way through a short stack of pancakes. She’d lost a lot of weight during her confinement and the healing of her throat. Now that she could swallow again, maybe talking might be next on the list. He could always hope, but there were no guarantees.

  Blaine leaned down and kissed her. “Are you better this morning?”

  She nodded and pointed at the pancakes.

  “You’re right, sweetheart. I’m starving.” Blaine took a mug from the cabinet and filled it with coffee. Carmelita smiled at him and assured him in Spanish that she was making him pancakes and bacon and it would only be a couple of minutes.

  He sat down across from Declan and hoped the medic would share the latest on Misty, but he had little to say. Maybe it wasn’t good, and he wanted a word in private. Declan was the best and always tried to keep Blaine updated.

  Misty wrote a word on her communication notepad that she kept handy and passed it to Blaine.

  Farrell?

  “I told you they found the girls in the cave, didn’t I?” asked Blaine.

  She nodded.

  “You did a fantastic job, Mist. Farrell was thanking you.”

  She tried to speak, and nothing came out but a gurgle. Tears came to her eyes and Declan passed her a tissue. “What is it, Misty?”