“Give me the address, Bobby. I’m going after her,” Ryan said forcefully.
My head swiveled in Bobby’s direction. He’d already talked me out of following her to Ogdens’ property. Would Ryan fare any better?
“Serenity is with a US Marshal. They are both capable of taking care of themselves. I believe they don’t want a crowd of cops at their back for what they’re trying to accomplish,” Bobby said as he jotted down notes in a little book. He didn’t take his eyes off the dead men.
“How long are we supposed to wait?” Ryan demanded. The look he gave me was hard. “You can’t be okay with this.”
“No, I’m not. But I trust Serenity and the Marshal to do their jobs and come home safely.”
“Bullshit. From what she told me those rednecks are like Deliverance. She might need backup and can’t reach us.” Ryan walked to the edge of the tent and gazed out at the rain.
It bothered me that he cared so much for Serenity.
Todd ducked in, and like Bobby did before, he set the umbrella down and handed the coroner his camera. Before he got turned around, Ryan laid in on him.
“Todd, we have to go to the Ogden’s. Serenity might need our help.”
Todd looked between me, Bobby, and Ryan. Jerome was all but forgotten as he silently watched the scene play out. “Bobby, I think he’s right. We can at least head that way.”
Bobby finally turned his attention from the dead men to the officers. “I think not. We have several active murder investigations on our hands at the moment. I need you here, and so does Serenity. Let her do her job. She’s not alone. The Marshall will provide whatever assistance she needs. If she doesn’t check in with us by five o’clock, Jerome and Daniel can pursue her.” He wagged his finger between Todd and Ryan. “She doesn’t need you two hot-heads going up there and ruining whatever progress she might be making.”
Ryan stood up taller, puffing out his muscled chest. “You’re not in charge of us. Todd is the next in line of succession. He makes the damn call.”
I almost spoke up, but Todd had it under control. “That’s right. But in this town, we all give Bobby’s opinion a lot of weight. We wait until five and go from there.”
Ryan grunted loudly, shaking his head. “I’m going to conduct interviews in the gas station. Jerome, do you want to join me?”
“Of course.” Jerome glanced at me as he passed by.
When the two officers were gone, I turned to Todd. “Ethan is dangerous, and you know it. I appreciate Bobby’s wisdom as much as anyone, but do you really want to take a chance with Serenity’s life?”
Bobby stiffened, but kept his head dropped to his notebook. I knew he listened intently though.
Todd exhaled and scratched his cheek. “Dammit, I don’t like it any more than you do, Daniel. Bobby has a point. Serenity knows exactly what the Ogdens are like. If the marshal gave her a legitimate lead and she’s following up on it, she’ll be pissed if we fuck it up for her.”
I nodded, looking at my watch. Serenity had one hour or me and Jerome were going to find her.
Todd stepped up to Bobby. “What are your thoughts about these guys?”
“With just a cursory look, I’d say they’re Hispanic, but without the obvious tattoos and being older, I would say they probably aren’t MS-13. This isn’t where they died. Their bodies were moved here.” He pointed to the one man’s denim jeans. “There’s blood smudges there that wouldn’t be from the head wound. Looks like the other man was placed on top of this one when they were transported here.”
Todd moaned. “Oh my Lord, when is it going to end? Do we have a hitman on our hands?”
“It does appear that way,” Bobby muttered. He used his pencil to point at the closest body. “These shootings appear to be from a handgun, like the Tony Regio case. Unlike Regio, I’d say they were shot at from a greater distance—more similar to the MS-13 gang member killing.”
“What difference does it make? I’m sure murderers can change up their routine under different circumstances,” I commented, glancing outside the tent. It still poured down. My mind hurt with one ongoing thought—where’s Serenity?
Bobby made his way over to the other corpse, but he spared a glance at me as he moved. “True enough. Forensic analysis takes many different factors into account, including psychological. Random crime acts or those of passion don’t necessarily have specific traits, but criminal professionals do act within certain patterns, making it easier to profile them. Similar to a serial killer, they take their job seriously, and have comfort zones. Sometimes their arrogance gets the better of them.”
Bobby finished writing down notes and then started taking pictures. Todd alternated between asking Bobby questions and talking to other people on the phone. After a while, I zoned out, staring out into the rain storm, and counting down the minutes until five o’clock arrived. I checked my phone a hundred times, and still no contact from Serenity.
Just when the digital number switched to five, Jerome and Ryan entered the tent. No one needed to say a word. Todd simply nodded at us and Jerome and I were out of the tent, running for his cruiser.
I only hoped we made it to Serenity in time.
20
Serenity
“My team knows where I am, Ethan. There are more of you than us, and a couple of you might still be standing after you begin shooting, but I guarantee, the posse that will come after you for killing a sheriff and US marshal will be like a tornado. A swarm of lawmen will be banging at your door. There won’t be anywhere for you to hide.”
A small smile cracked on Ethan’s lips. He seemed amused. “Let me ask you this, Sheriff Adams. Did you come here to arrest me or any of my kin?”
Without hesitation, I said, “No. We only came to talk. We hope you might have information that will help us nab the hit on a known Indianapolis mobster, killed in Blood Rock.”
“You aren’t looking for the killer of the little foreign gangster, shot behind Charlie’s?” he said.
I glanced at Toby. His mouth twitched, but he offered a slight nod.
“No, we aren’t.” I wasn’t sure if I was lying or not at that moment.
Ethan lowered his shotgun, and the rest of his relatives did the same. A gust of cool wind struck, snapping the top half of a tree off. It happened so fast, I hardly had time to react when Toby grabbed my arm and hauled me closer to the Ogden gang. A large portion of the tree fell right between us and Toby’s truck with a loud crash.
I smelled the wall of rain before I saw it coming.
“Ethan holstered his shotgun to his ATV and motioned me to climb on behind him. Toby glanced over his shoulder at the oncoming storm. “We need to seek cover and quickly,” he muttered close to my ear.
Options were limited, so I stretched my legs and ran over to Ethan’s ATV. I jumped on and Toby followed suit, climbing on behind the woman who I assumed was Darryl’s mother. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Darryl take a seat behind one of the other big, bearded dudes. Daisy was clutched in his arms.
I hadn’t ridden on an all-terrain vehicle since high school. My ex-boyfriend, Denton McAllister, had one. The way he’d driven it terrified me. Even though we never had a wreck, I finally told him I wouldn’t ride with him anymore. Those teenaged joyrides were child’s play compared to the way Ethan spun the vehicle around and we lurched forward at full speed. I had no choice but to grab onto his midriff to keep from flying off the back.
I bent down, using his back for cover. Thunder cracked overhead and I caught a glimpse of a jagged streak of lightning through the canopy above. Leaves and even small branches rained down on us ahead of the storm, which we were staying only a dozen yards in front of.
The roar of the other engines was drowned out when the wind gusts strengthened. Another boom of thunder rocked the forest as Ethan left the gravel surface and drove straight up a leaf covered incline. It must
be a short cut, I guessed. Holding on tighter, we surged over the top and were airborne for a moment before smacking the ground hard again. The bounce caused my butt to leave the seat completely. It was only blind luck that it came back down in the right place.
Just as the rain reached us, we sped through a narrow, bushy channel, and then out into a small yard that encircled a large, log cabin. Ethan drove straight up a ramp and didn’t stop until he reached his front door. There, he parked the ATV and shut off the engine. The others followed us up onto the porch in the same fashion. Rain poured down, instantly creating small rivers jutting through the partially mowed yard. The sound of millions of taps on the tin roof made it impossible to hear.
Toby caught my eye. Like me, he was soaking wet, but in good shape. Ethan grasped the knob and thrust the door open. With a jerk of his head, he motioned for me to step inside.
I swallowed and took a small breath. The situation was out of our hands. We had to play the game very carefully and trust that Ethan Ogden and his family weren’t about to murder us.
One last glance at the pouring rain and the line of huge, scruffy-looking, armed men made me wonder if my luck had finally run out.
I inhaled deeply and stepped through the doorway.
Surprisingly, the inside of the log house was immaculate and spacious at first glance. There was a long, wooden table that would seat at least twenty people. Homemade-looking quilts were thrown over the backs of the couches and the window above the sink was open, allowing the driving wind to whip the curtains up high. One of the women ran past me and promptly closed it. She yelled out to someone. By her tone, I assumed it was a child. Sure enough, a few seconds later, a young red-headed girl ran into the room, apologizing for not taking care of the windows when the storm hit. Behind the girl were two younger boys, both with varying shades of red hair. The woman snapped at the kids and they turned and ran back down the hallway. She followed after them while the other woman, a brunette, went to the refrigerator. She pulled out a glass pitcher full of clear liquid, which I guessed was some of the Ogden famous moonshine, and set it on the table. Then she grabbed a stack of red Solo cups and set them down next to the pitcher.
She glanced over at me without smiling and gestured at the refreshment. The Ogden woman was as wet as I was, and without paying any more attention to me, she grabbed a kitchen towel and began wiping her face and drying her hair. I had no idea who that particular woman belonged with, and I guessed it didn’t really matter. The woman I’d long ago thought had been Ethan’s wife was nowhere in sight. Not wanting to be rude, and hoping to lighten things up, I walked up to the table and began pouring drinks for everyone.
As always, Toby went with the flow. He tipped his hat at Ethan as he stepped around him to reach me. Then he took the cup I handed him and drank a large gulp.
“Shew,” Toby exclaimed. “That sure is good—just like my granny used to make—God rest her soul.” He winked at Ethan, then pulled out a chair and sat down.
If there wasn’t so much tension pulsating in the room, I would have laughed. How Toby could be so casual around men who had just aimed guns at us was anybody’s guess. Another clap of thunder rolled over the house and lightning flashed. It didn’t appear that the storm would be ending anytime soon.
I sipped the harsh, bitter liquid from my cup and remained standing beside Toby. My gun was still holstered and so were both of Toby’s. Ethan hadn’t required us to hand them over before we’d entered his home, which was strange. The only thing I could think of was that he wasn’t particularly worried about his chances in a shootout. All of his men were still armed and Ethan himself had his shotgun slung over his shoulder as if it were a fashion accessory.
Ethan nodded to his goons to get their cups and they quickly lined up, still dripping wet, to do what he wanted. He was definitely their boss, maybe even their king. It took a few minutes for everyone to get a drink and find their seat. Two men continued to stand, never taking their eyes off of me and Toby.
Ethan pulled up a chair directly in front of us and sat down. After a long drink, which nearly emptied the contents of his cup, the tall man set the cup down, wiped his lips with the back of his hand and leaned back. There was a moment of relative silence where we stared at each other. Ethan didn’t pay as much attention to the Marshal, which I found interesting. Maybe it was because Toby was an outsider. People like Ethan Ogden took being from the same geographical area very serious. I might not be kin, but I was born and raised in Blood Rock, and that seemed good enough for him.
“What brings you to my humble abode, Sheriff?” Ethan asked quietly. For such a rough looking man, his voice was pretty smooth.
“We know who our MS-13 gang member is. What we don’t know is why he was in Blood Rock.” I cocked my head. “Can you help us with that?”
Ethan narrowed his blue eyes and pressed his lips tightly together. In an action very much like an Amish man, he smoothed his scruffy beard down. After taking his dear sweet time thinking, he finally spoke. “Guarantees, Sheriff. I want guarantees that you and the marshal”—he nodded at Toby—“won’t go after me or any of my kin. If you can assure me of that, I’ll tell you what you need to know.”
Dammit. I couldn’t make a promise like that. One of the Ogdens had murdered a man in cold blood in my jurisdiction. It didn’t matter if the man was a gang member who had probably killed his own fair share of people. But at the moment, what worried me the most was that a known mobster was gunned down in Blood Rock. Would Regio’s murder be avenged? The last thing I wanted was for a bunch of killers ascending on Blood Rock. If I played my cards right, I might be able to get the information I needed without having Ethan implicate himself or someone else.
Toby must have been thinking along the same lines. “I’m sure we can come to an agreement that mutually benefits all of us,” he offered.
For a second our eyes met, and I saw encouragement there.
“Look, I’m a sheriff, and I have to be careful to follow the law on the investigation. I can’t ignore evidence or damning statements that are brought to me.” I swallowed, feeling icky all over. “But if I don’t hear anything right now that would make you or your family suspects, then I haven’t broken the law—and neither has the marshal. It’s a fine line, Ethan. Speak very carefully.”
The smile that erupted on Ethan’s face was downright sinful. He appreciated my style and almost appeared eager to begin talking.
Everyone else in the room was quiet as church mice. The storm continued to rage on beyond the walls. I was wet and cold, but bound and determined not to show my discomfort. Not feeling exactly threatened any longer, I was still tense. Our amicable talk could go sideways in a heartbeat.
“You’re probably thinking the MS-13 fellow was taken down over drugs.” Ethan’s brow lifted. “Not exactly. He might have been in Blood Rock for the same reason as your Italian.”
Ethan said Italian with a long I like a lot of country people did. His pronunciation might not be too good, but he understood exactly what I’d meant about his wording. He just gave me a riddle without admitting any knowledge about anything. One thing I was sure of—an Ogden had killed the MS-13 man. What about Tony Regio? “Are you saying that the same person who killed one, killed the other?” I fished.
Ethan chuckled and clamed up for another uncomfortable moment. When he began talking, he seemed annoyed that I couldn’t read his mind. “No one said anything about who killed who.” He suddenly bent forward, resting his arms on his knees. “You’re way too concerned about who shot your dead men.” Tapping his fingers together, he went on. “Isn’t the fact that two very different individuals were in Blood Rock, close to the same time, much more intriguing? Why were they here? Could there be ties between them?”
Now I was the frustrated one. Maybe I was wasting my time here, playing cat and mouse with a lunatic. Then my gaze swept around the tidy space, and the men who followed
Ethan. No, he wasn’t crazy. He was actually very intelligent and in complete control.
“We’ve been trying to figure all that out, but coming up relatively empty. You came into my office, out of the blue, and basically threatened me to leave the investigation be—to let whoever killed the MS-13 man go, because the shooter did Blood Rock a favor. Do you realize how fucked up that is?”
Ethan smiled back at me, nonplussed. “Yes, it is. That doesn’t negate the fact that it makes sense and it’s in our town’s best interest that the man was put down when he was—especially for you, Sheriff.” He shrugged, taking his fidgeting fingers to his beard again. “Maybe taking that man out was in your personal best interest.”
My eyes widened. What the hell was he talking about?
Just as I was about to ask him just that, Darryl burst through the doorway from the porch. Daisy was at his side and both of them were soaked. I hadn’t even noticed his absence until just now.
He bent over to catch his breath. “A cop car...parked behind their…truck,” he sputtered out. “They’re coming up the road on foot.”
Ethan rounded on me. “You promised you were alone!”
“We were, but it’s been a while and I haven’t had cell phone reception since we turned onto the gravel road.”
Toby rose. “Serenity is a sheriff in a small town. Her people care about her and when they didn’t hear back in a timely fashion, they took matters into their own hands.”
“Or something’s going on in Blood Rock and they need me,” I added.
Ethan made a growling noise and faced Darryl. “How many are there?”
“Two. One’s a black guy in a uniform. The other is a tall, dark haired guy, wearing regular clothes.”
Daniel…
Ethan thrust his arm toward the door. “Intercept and stop them before they reach the house.”
Bloody Ties (Serenity's Plain Secrets Book 8) Page 13