by Mac Fortner
I hope you enjoy the Cam Derringer Series. If you would like a FREE prequel eBook to the series, just click HERE and let me know where to send it.
Table of Contents:
Knee Deep
Bloodshot
Key West: Two Birds One Stone
THE CAM DERRINGER SERIES
Knee Deep
Mac Fortner
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Copyright 2015
All rights reserved
ISBN-13: 978-1505349467
ISBN-10: 150534946X
The characters and events portrayed in this book are a work of fiction or are used fictitiously. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
DEDICATION
PROLOGUE
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
Chapter 50
Chapter 51
Chapter 52
Chapter 53
Chapter 54
Chapter 55
Chapter 56
Chapter 57
Chapter 58
Chapter 59
Chapter 60
Chapter 61
Chapter 62
Chapter 63
Chapter 64
Chapter 65
Chapter 66
Chapter 67
Chapter 68
Chapter 69
Chapter 70
Chapter 71
Chapter 72
Chapter 73
Chapter 74
Chapter 75
Chapter 76
Chapter 77
Chapter 78
Chapter 79
Chapter 80
Chapter 81
Epilogue
Other Books By Mac Fortner
About Mac Fortner
.
DEDICATION
For my wife Cindy, who is always there when I need support, and love, and to the HUNTIN’ DOGS who have been there all my life and won’t go away.
Life can be as good as you want it to be
The sand, the sun, and the deep blue sea
Just say you’ll share it with me
And we’ll sail away
Rumora….Mac Fortner
PROLOGUE
Ronnie Pierce opened the throttle on the forty-two-foot Sea Ray and felt the acceleration. He could barely see, even though the moon was bright. The stars twinkled in the sky like a million diamonds. Ronnie wished he had a million diamonds, then he could quit this job, but for now, it paid well and had some interesting benefits. There were times when he could have his way with women before he killed them. Those were the best ones.
He was now at least a mile away from the shore and couldn’t see any other boat lights, so he lit his flashlight and shone it around the instrument panel. He located the switch for the lights and turned them on. They did little to show him the way, but at least he could see on-board now.
He turned and looked at the man lying on the deck. His hands were tied behind him, and he had a concrete block roped to his ankle. The man rocked back and forth with the rhythm of the waves. The gag in his mouth prevented him from begging for his life again. He had begged – more than most. Usually, they pleaded for about ten minutes and then their voices turned into an unrecognizable babble once they’d accepted their fate.
There was dried blood on his face, but there was a fresh stream now trickling from the corner of his mouth. The gag was becoming saturated.
“You doing okay back there?” he asked his partner, who was guarding the man.
Billie Daryl answered, “Yep.”
Billie was a man of few words, but when he spoke, you had better pay attention. He never really spoke words of wisdom, not ones you could ponder the meaning of life from, but words which would unquestionably change your life.
Ronnie kept his eye on the GPS as he opened the boat up a little more.
“This baby can really move,” he yelled back over his shoulder.
“You just watch where you’re going. If you damage this boat, Juba will have your ass,” Billie hollered back.
Ronnie kept the throttle down for another ten minutes and then slowly eased it back. According to the GPS, they were right over their favorite spot.
“We’re here,” he announced.
Billie got up and moved over to the man. “Your ride is over,” he said as if he were letting him off a Ferris Wheel. “Time to get off.”
The man squirmed against his restraints and tried to plead for mercy.
“What? I can’t understand you with that gag in your mouth,” and Billie laughed.
“Yeah, talk plain English,” Ronnie chimed in and giggled like a child. He pulled the gag from the man’s mouth.
“Please don’t do this. I won’t tell anyone,” the man pleaded while trying to take in the fresh air.
“Sure you will,” Ronnie said.
Together they lifted the man from the deck, carried him to the edge of the boat, and set him on the rail. Ronnie held him while Billie held the concrete block, so it wouldn’t scratch the boat.
“If you had backed off like we told you to, you wouldn’t be here now, but oh no, you had to find out what we were going to do with the boat. This is your last ride. Be sure to tell the others down there that we are still doing fine up here,” Billie said.
“It wasn’t me. It was that detective asking all the questions,” the man said, gasping every few words. “I made a deal with you. I only wanted the money. I don’t care what you do with the boat.”
“Juba doesn’t believe you,” Ronnie said. “And if we bring you back, he’ll have us killed.”
“Just drop me off somewhere. You’ll never hear from me again,” the man pleaded.
“What do you think, Billie Daryl?” Ronnie said.
“Nah.”
With that, Billie threw the block over the side, and at the same time, Ronnie pushed the man. They watched him hit the water. He sank instantly, the block pulling him down like the weight on a fishing hook.
Descending in the salt water, he held his breath as long as he could. He felt the concrete block hit bottom. Must only be about twenty-five feet here. That was a stupid thought. I should be thinking how to get this block off my leg. He thought of his wife and his grown children. How would this affect Terri? Would she still finish her law degree at Notre Dame? He looked down at the knot securing his leg to the block. With his other foot, he tried to push the rope off over it, but it was too t
ight. He bent forward, bringing his hands down from behind and fumbled at the knot.
His breath was threatening to release, his lungs burning. He looked to one side and saw the outline of something. In the moonlight cutting through the water, he could now tell what it was—another man, hands tied behind his back. Looking around he saw others. Their eyes were hollow. He gasped at the sight, taking a lung full of salt water, then everything was gone, and his fear subsided.
~*~
The boat accelerated again and broke plane. Soon it was flying along the water. Just two men out for a nice evening ride.
Teko raised his head, looked over the rail of his fourteen-foot johnboat, and watched the Sea Ray disappear. What the hell? They just drowned that man. Glad they didn’t see me. “COUNT ME INN—I’ll remember that name,” he said to himself, reading it on the back of the boat as it sped away.
Teko looked around the moonlit night, wishing his connection would show up before those guys came back. He glanced down at the two hundred pounds of cocaine lying in the bottom of his boat. I gotta get out of this business before they feed me to the fishes.
KNEE DEEP
Chapter 1
I opened my eyes slowly. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to see where I was or what kind of shape I was in. My head was killing me, and my whole body pulsated in pain with every breath I took. I could feel my clothes clinging to my body. I was wet. The sun was fading but even that hurt my eyes, then I blacked out again.
The next time I opened my eyes it was dark. At least I hoped it was, because I sure as hell couldn’t see any light. The pain was still there. Maybe even some new pain that I didn’t feel the last time I’d woken up.
I felt my right arm which was where most of the pain seemed to come from. I didn’t feel any bones sticking out. That was a good sign, but I thought I had clothes on the last time I checked. I know I did when I woke earlier.
Looking down through blurry eyes, I could tell I was naked and that I seemed to be lying in a mud puddle. Great, not only was I beat to a pulp and left outside somewhere but I’d been the victim of a clothes-jacker.
My name is Cam Derringer. I’m a private investigator working out of my small but cozy office-slash-houseboat in Key West. I was investigating a boat theft ring which has been running a very successful business in the Keys. I guess somewhere along the way I missed something. Not a first.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m not without my skills, but I do have my faults. Probably my biggest is my size. I’m six foot four inches tall and weigh two hundred and thirty pounds. Mostly muscle. I work out daily and try to stay in shape. I guess I’m doing okay for fifty-two, but I’m no problem for a couple of twenty-something heroes trying to impress their friends or just prove to themselves how tough they are, although I have taken a few of them down.
But that’s not what happened this time. I never saw who hit me. The first blow was to the back of my head, not hard enough to knock me out but plenty hard enough to render me helpless from the barrage of punches and kicks that followed. The last thing I heard was, “Back off or you’re a dead man,” yelled into my ear.
That was going to be a problem; but right now, I had a bigger one. I’m out in the country somewhere, naked. I painfully turned over and got myself to my hands and knees. My knees hurt from the rocks in the road. I think maybe whoever dropped me off here didn’t stop the car first.
I looked around and saw I was lying in the middle of a wet dirt road. Tires had rutted it from past rain and neglected maintenance. Recent rain had filled the ruts with water. Vegetation shouldered both sides of the road and grew close to its edge. It left little room for a vehicle to miss me if one came along. I guess whoever did this thought, what the hell if he gets run over then problem solved. I reasoned it had rained since I was dropped here because I remember my clothes being wet.
I got to my feet just in time. I could see headlights coming toward me. I took a painful step to the side of the road, and a truck slowed down and stopped beside me.
“Help me please, will you?” I said in a very raspy voice. I think I must have taken a punch to the throat.
The truck was a red and rusty Chevy S10. The wheels were covered with mud which left a perfect arch from the front wheel well up the fender, across the door and then widening to cover the entire side of the bed. The driver flipped on a spotlight and pointed it my way, blinding me. My eyes felt as though someone had thrown acid in them. The guy sat silently for a second before laughing and speeding away. The truck bounced over the rutted road. One tire would find traction and throw a rooster tail of mud before the other took its turn. The truck then fishtailed and threw a blanket of mud at me. I couldn’t move quick enough and was hit in the chest with rocks and mud. I could hear him laughing until he rounded the bend in the road and disappeared from view. The truck left a trail of blue smoke that made me even more nauseous than I already was.
“Thank you,” I whispered, as loud as I could.
Nice guy; can’t even help a man when he’s injured.
I started walking in the direction the truck had gone. I figured there had to be something in that direction. I didn’t know where I was or even which Key I was on. I could smell myself, and it wasn’t pleasant. I had blood dripping from my mouth, leaving a metallic taste. A full moon lighted the night, and a slight breeze actually chilled me.
Chapter 2
Another set of headlights came from behind me, a few minutes later. The car slowed and stopped across the road from me. It wasn’t muddy like the truck; only the tires and a small amount around the wheel well. I surmised that it hadn’t been out in the rainstorm. They must be from around here.
“Help me, please,” I whispered.
“Stay where you are,” a young female voice said. “Who would you like for me to call?”
Smart girl, I thought, helpful but cautious.
“Call Diane for me,” I said, gratefully. I gave her the number and could see her dialing.
I fell back to my knees and held my arm again, knowing I was going to be in serious pain for a long time.
“She’s on her way, sir. Can I do anything else?” the girl said, apprehensively.
“No, but thank you very much,” I managed through the pain.
“You must have really pissed someone off,” she said, now matter-of-factly.
“Yeah, I do that sometimes.”
I felt myself getting weak again and fell back down on my side. The young woman got out of her car and came to me.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to call an ambulance?”
“No, I’ll be fine,” I gasped. “Where am I?”
“Cudjoe Key. I’ll stay with you until she gets here.”
“Thanks.”
She knelt down next to me and placed her hand on my arm. Her touch was soft and comforting. It actually relieved some of the pain. She was good.
“Do you know who did this to you?”
“I have no idea.”
“Did you know they painted a mustache on you and wrote ‘kick me’ on your forehead?” she giggled but then said, “Sorry.”
“Gee’s, how embarrassing. I’m laying here naked with graffiti all over me, in front of a beautiful young lady, and I don’t even know your name.”
“Jenny,” she said, restraining a giggle.
“Nice to meet you, Jenny. I’m Cam,” I said through the pain.
“I’ll be right back,” and she returned to her car.
She came back with a pink sweater and laid it over my mid-section.
“You looked like you might be more comfortable with this,” she said.
“Is pink all you have?” I asked, trying to break the tension.
“Sorry, Cam,” and she put her hand on my arm again, but then my world went black once more.
Chapter 3
I woke again. The bright lights were blinding so I closed my eyes. I could hear voices. One belonged to Diane but the other I didn’t recognize.
“Will he be alright?�
� Diane said, in a low whisper.
“He’ll be sore for a while, but we didn’t find any broken bones. There is a small laceration on his right bicep. Looks like someone tried to cut it with a rusty blade of some kind. We cleaned and bandaged it and gave him a tetanus shot. That should hold him for a few days, and then you can change his bandage.”
“Okay, if he’ll let me. He’s kind of hardheaded.”
“I can hear you,” I said.
“Cam, you’re awake,” Diane said, surprised.
“Yeah, and it sounds to me like you’re worried.”
“Not me. I just didn’t want to have to spend all day here signing papers,” she said, nonchalantly.
“I knew you cared.”
“Doctor, is there anything you can give him to put him out again?”
“Mr. Derringer, can you open your eyes?” The doctor asked.
“I can, but the light is too bright, so I think I’ll just keep‘m closed for a while,” I said, trying to sound like W.C. Fields for some stupid reason.
The doctor walked across the room and dimmed the lights.
“Try now if you don’t mind.”
This time it was bearable but not pleasant. I could see Diane and the doctor looking at me, but there were four of them.
He took a small light and shined it in my eyes. “They look clear enough. I don’t see any permanent damage, but his vision will be foggy for a few days. Are you going to be able to stay with him for a while after we release him?” he said, turning to Diane.
“I guess I can check in on him once in a while.”
“Thanks for your concern, Diane,” I said in a weak sarcastic voice. “You have plenty of work to do at the office anyway.”
“Okay, since I’ll be there anyway, I’ll look at you once in a while.”
“Fine,” the doctor said and left the room.