Cold Case Manhunt

by Jenna Night

  Bang! Another explosion brought a fresh wave of heat and deepened her fear for Leon, who was still unmoving. How many more of these blasts would there be? And then she remembered—there were two explosive devices thrown through the window. This second one didn’t sound as loud as the first, and the rush of air and debris didn’t seem as direct. This bomb must have been the one that had rolled toward the other side of the office, away from the area where she and Leon now lay on the ground.

  Fine bits of plaster particles floated down around them.

  “Hey, are you okay?” she called out to Leon, painfully aware that he had taken the brunt of the blast to protect her.

  He finally began to stir, lifting his arms from her head and then shifting his weight and moving away from her.

  He was alive. Thank You, Lord.

  Now, she could push herself up. As she did, Leon took hold of her upper arms and helped her into a sitting position. “Are you all right?” he asked.

  She nodded. “Yes. How about you?”

  “I’m fine.”

  He was dusted with the debris from the explosion. They were in the short hallway by the back door. Fortunately, the adjoining small office that served as a break room and kitchen had apparently absorbed a significant amount of the impact from the blasts.

  Cassie looked around dazedly. The electricity had been knocked out. And yet there was light.

  She smelled something burning. And then she saw the smoke, black and billowing, and rapidly growing in intensity. It crossed the reception area and curled around in the direction of her and Leon, moving as though it were some dark, glowing creature trying to seek them out.

  The overhead sprinklers kicked on, but weren’t spraying water fast enough to get ahead of the increasing flames. The fire extinguishers they kept on hand were clearly too small to bring the quickly increasing conflagration under control.

  Her office, filled with mementos and pictures, was being destroyed right in front of her. She was horrified to watch it happen, and yet she couldn’t look away. Despite the water spraying from the ceiling, the glow was turning brighter and the fire was getting bigger. Cassie stared at the flames, transfixed, trying to make sense of what had just happened and what was still happening. Maybe the explosives contained their own fuel. Maybe one or both had landed in just the right spot where there was already fuel in place to feed the resulting flames.

  Leon pulled her to her feet and in the direction of the back door. Behind her, she could hear cracking and popping, and the sounds of wood paneling and shelves breaking and collapsing. But she also felt Leon close by. He had her back, like he always did, and that was a good thing, because her brain didn’t seem particularly sharp at the moment. Maybe she’d hit her head when he’d shoved her to the ground. She couldn’t quite remember. Maybe she’d just hit her head one too many times during the course of the attacks over the last few days.

  “I should try to save as much as I can,” Cassie shouted over the noise of the fire and collapsing debris, her thoughts shifting to the pictures on the walls. Many were from the pre-digital age and no copies existed. Some were from the very early years of the business, and included images of Cassie’s late mother back when she was young. From the glow, it looked like the fire was centered at one end of the office. If she hurried, she might be able to grab something close by. She started to turn.

  “No!” Leon shouted. “We’ve got to get out!”

  He was right, of course.

  Leon unfastened the last of the latches on the back door and yanked it open, stepping aside so Cassie could go first.

  The burst of cool, clean air instantly revived her, though she also knew the rush of oxygen would feed the fire burning in the office. She stepped up to the threshold and heard sounds from the parking lot that she couldn’t quite identify over the growing roar of the fire behind her. And then she saw the splintered gouges suddenly appearing on the door frame to the right of her. Bullet holes. Someone was shooting at her. “Gun!”

  She jammed her body backward, pushing into Leon as she quickly slammed the thick door shut and bolted it. Her body began to shake. Whether it was from fear or fatigue or heightened levels of adrenaline racing through her, she didn’t know. And it didn’t matter.

  Get it together, she snapped to herself.

  More bullets hit the door, one blasting all the way through and striking the floor near Cassie’s foot. Once the shooter got close enough, more bullets would penetrate the door. She and Leon retreated farther into the office, where the smoke was now thicker and the temperature hotter.

  There was an odd creaking sound as a heavy wrought-iron light fixture, anchored to an exposed wooden beam in the ceiling above the main area of the office, began to pull away from its base. It crashed to the floor, sending out a spray of glass and stirring up a flare of cinders as it rolled toward the front door.

  “We’ve got to get out of here now!” Leon shouted near her ear.

  With the heated metal light fixture blocking the door, they were going to have to get out through the broken window. The thick smoke and noise from the fire and all of the objects breaking and collapsing around them made it impossible for Cassie to see or to hear if emergency services responders were outside the office yet.

  Leon grabbed the coat tree near the door. He pulled off the sweater that was on it and tossed it to Cassie. “Hold that.”

  She caught the sweater and held it, watching as he jabbed the tip of the coat tree toward one of the areas where the glass was already broken. He used it to clear away some of the deadly pointed shards.

  Despite all the noise, Cassie could still hear shots being fired at the locked back door. The trap that had been set up was horrific and smart. They had been boxed in by fire in the front of the building and a shooter at the back.

  Could there be another shooter waiting for them outside the front of the building, as well?

  “What if they’re out front, too, waiting to shoot us?” she called to Leon. The smoke made her cough, the scent of charred wood giving her a horrible headache.

  Leon paused for a second. After a few more jabs with the coat tree, he finished clearing the window. Then he turned to Cassie and gestured for the sweater.

  She tossed it to him.

  “Get your gun,” he said, after laying the sweater across the bottom of the window frame to cover the few remaining jagged tips of glass.

  She pulled her pistol out of her waistband. Cassie did not normally walk around town with a gun. But considering everything that had happened lately, she’d carried one with her all day today.

  “I’m going through the window first,” Leon said. “You cover me. If anybody starts shooting at me, you shoot back.”

  Cassie shook her head and rubbed at her burning, watering eyes. What if someone out there started taking shots at Leon and she was unable to stop them because she couldn’t see well enough to shoot? The toughest part of her job was not facing fear for herself. Even though she did fear for her own safety at times. Being responsible for someone else’s safety was the most stressful consideration she faced in her line of work. As the owner of Rock Solid Bail Bonds, she held a position of trust and responsibility. And she wasn’t about to pass a dangerous action on to someone else to carry it out.

  “I’ll go out first,” she said loudly. She’d rather put him in the position of having to breathe smoke for a few extra seconds than risk having him shot as the first person out of the building.

  Her attempt to physically elbow Leon aside didn’t get her anywhere.

  “I’ve got it under control,” he said.

  If this weren’t a life and death situation, she would have argued with him. Instead, she blinked rapidly several times and rubbed her eyes with the heel of her free hand, trying to clear her vision as much as possible in case she had to return fire at a lurking shooter.

  Meanwhile, Le
on crouched and threw one leg through the opening in the window. He steadied himself and then brought the other leg through so that he was finally outside. Cassie kept her gun ready to fire, heart rising into her throat, terrified that something bad would happen to him.

  Smoke was already rolling out of the broken window. Now it was beginning to thin just enough that she could see Leon on the sidewalk outside, red and blue flashing lights just beyond him.

  The police presence should mean the scene was secure. The shooting at the back door had stopped. But considering all that had happened over the last few days, Cassie didn’t dare let her guard down. Instead, she focused her attention, willing herself to see through the smoky haze to make certain no one was out there waiting to take a shot at Leon.

  “Cassie!” Leon’s voice startled her. “I think we’re good out here.” He stood on the other side of the busted-out window, stretching his hands toward her.

  Behind him, in the drifting smoke, she saw a fire engine and a couple of firefighters jumping off the emergency rig, grabbing heavy hoses and hurrying toward the burning office.

  Finally convinced that it was safe, Cassie tucked her gun into her waistband. She reached for Leon’s hand as she climbed out through the window. Instead of taking her hand, Leon grasped her upper arms, keeping a solid hold on her as she moved through the frame and onto the sidewalk.

  A police officer rushed toward them. On the street behind him, an ambulance rolled up.

  “We’re okay,” Cassie said to the officer. “There’s no one else in the office.”

  “Let’s get you away from here,” the cop said. He motioned Cassie and Leon closer to the street, which was quickly being blocked by arriving emergency vehicles.

  “Someone threw two pipe bombs through the front window,” Cassie said to the cop. “And there was a shooter in the back parking lot.”

  The officer nodded. “We’re already checking on the parking lot situation. We got several calls reporting two explosions and gunfire.”

  Cassie let out a laugh that was nearly a sob. “I’m glad somebody called. I didn’t even have time to think of grabbing my phone. I just wanted to get out before everything collapsed around us.”

  Firefighters aimed their hoses and began targeting the office with streams of water. The remaining glass in the front windows shattered, and the carved wooden Rock Solid Bail Bonds sign that hung on the outside of the building crashed onto the sidewalk, breaking into several pieces.

  Cassie stood and stared at her office, seeing the destruction in front of her and also seeing the memories flickering through her mind. Good times spent with her mom and dad. With Jake. With her bounty hunters.

  Beside her, Leon wrapped an arm around her shoulder and she leaned into him.

  Every day she tried very hard to remember to count her blessings. But there were times like this, when it felt like too many things that she cared about had been taken away, that her heart could not withstand any more sorrow.

  * * *

  Leon stood at the open door of the ambulance looking at Cassie, who was seated inside on a narrow, padded bench. The paramedic who’d been checking on her leaned back, pulled the ear pieces of her stethoscope out of her ears and said, “Your heart sounds strong. But your lungs sound a little raspy, and I’ve obviously heard you cough a few times. You might consider going to the hospital to get that checked out.”

  Cassie shook her head. “I’m fine. And, honestly, while some of my coughing is from the smoke, I think a lot of it is from the dust floating around after the explosions. Thank you.” She started to stand, moving slowly and stiffly, Leon noted, and the medic moved out of the way.

  “Your turn,” the paramedic said to Leon as Cassie stepped out of the ambulance.

  Leon shook his head. “I’m fine.” None of his bones were broken. The back of his neck felt like it was sunburned, likely due to the heat of the explosions, but it was something he could live with. His smoke-irritated lungs were feeling better with each breath of cool nighttime mountain air that he drew in. And the small cuts on his skin from the flying debris were nothing.

  None of it mattered, anyway. Because there was no way he was going to climb into the back of the ambulance while Cassie stood outside it. She’d potentially be a target if the shooters were still in the neighborhood. It didn’t matter how many cops and emergency workers milled around—and there were plenty. He wasn’t leaving her side.

  Cassie stared at him and he could tell by the look in her eyes that she was irritated with his decision. He could also tell by the drooping of her shoulders and the slack expression on her face that she was too tired to argue.

  She’d been through so much in the last few days. So much in the last few years, really, with her husband’s unsolved murder hanging over her head. And still she kept going. He admired and respected that. At the same time, he wanted to help hold her up. Carry some of the burden for her. He couldn’t bring her husband back to life. Couldn’t ease that heartache over her loss. God would have to do the heavy lifting when it came to that. But he could do some of the small things. Like watch her back—especially when someone was clearly determined to kill her. And he could keep doing that even when it annoyed her.

  She finally turned away from him to look at the Rock Solid Bail Bonds office. The flames had been knocked out. The three fire engines’ giant floodlights shone on the building, making visible the light layer of smoke still roiling out as they sprayed water on it. Electricity to the surrounding buildings had been temporarily shut off to avoid the threat of electrocution. Several firefighters were standing by with rakes to go inside and stir up hot spots to ensure the fire was completely out.

  “Well, I see you two are still alive.”

  Leon turned at the sound of Sergeant Bergman’s voice as the detective approached them. Normally, Bergman was the picture of professionalism and always dressed in a suit and tie. But right now he was wearing jeans, cowboy boots, an untucked shirt and a leather jacket. It made the lawman look younger than he usually did, and almost like a regular guy instead of a cop.

  “Sorry to be the reason you got called into work on what was obviously your day off,” Cassie said.

  “Are you kidding?” the detective responded. “This is what I live for.”

  Bergman didn’t crack a smile and Leon couldn’t tell if he was being dry-humored or serious.

  “I’ve already been briefed by the initial responding officers,” Bergman said, holding up a notepad Leon hadn’t noticed until now. “They told me about the incendiary devices, so I’ve contacted the Feds for help on that. They might recognize the work and have suggestions on who made them. At the least, they’ll be able to tell us about the skills it took to make them, who might have those sorts of skills, what ingredients they needed, where they might have procured them, that sort of thing. And there’s a good chance they’ll offer us assistance on the investigation.”

  “Somebody on the street had to have seen something,” Cassie said. “Even with it being a Saturday evening and many of the businesses in this part of town closed, there’s still always some traffic around here. People going to and from the police department headquarters, if nothing else. And then there was the shooter at the back door. Someone must have seen something helpful there, too.”

  “We’re all over all of this,” Bergman said. “Surveying the crime scene. Canvassing the area and talking to people. Contacting business owners and requesting security video. We know how to do our jobs.”

  “Right.” Cassie nodded. “Of course you do.”

  “Did you get any warning this was going to happen?” Bergman asked. “Anybody threaten to do something like this? I want you to think about everybody you deal with. Not just the attacks on you over the last few days.”

  Cassie shook her head. “No. No warning. No threats.”

  “Do either of you know anyone with the skills to make bo
mbs?” Bergman turned to Leon. “You were in the building. You could have been the target of this attack.”

  Leon thought about that. “I know a few people who might dream of doing something like this. But to actually carry it out?” He shook his head. “No one comes to mind. I haven’t had a big falling out with anyone lately. I couldn’t tell you if any of my enemies have bomb-making skills.” He shrugged. “I’ve heard you can find the directions to make an explosive online, so I guess anyone who is determined can do it.”

  “I don’t know how long it would take someone to get the parts and assemble explosives like the ones used here,” Cassie said. “If it can be done quickly, then I suppose it could be in response to one of the conversations we had today. Maybe we made somebody nervous.” Cassie quickly listed the names of the people she and Leon had talked to throughout the day, adding a summary with each name to explain who they were and why she’d wanted to talk to them.

  “Cassie!” Daisy Silverdeer, bounty hunter and Rock Solid’s newest hire, hurried across the street. She wrapped her arms around Cassie and hugged her.

  Daisy’s husband, Martin, was close behind. Harry was also with them.

  After multiple reassurances by Leon and Cassie that they were fine, Cassie quickly filled in their coworkers on the information they’d just given the detective.

  Bergman asked the newly arriving bounty hunters if they had any idea who might have launched the attack. No one had a suggestion to offer.

  “I know you don’t work for me,” Bergman said, his glance taking in everyone in the small group before finally settling on Cassie. “But if you decide to continue questioning people, please keep me in the loop. I’d like to know who you talk to, what they tell you, and if they behave suspiciously or not. My department is going to be working our own investigation, but as always, you might get info we don’t get.”

  “Of course,” Cassie said. She glanced toward the building and then back at the sergeant. “I’ll try to uncover helpful information again as soon as I can. But first things first. I’ll need to secure my office once the firefighters are finished.” She sighed heavily. “I want to go in and have a look as soon as they say it’s safe. Check for anything salvageable. And then I’ll need to head to the ranch to grab some plywood so I can return to board up the broken windows.”