The Indigo Brothers Trilogy Boxed Set

by Vickie McKeehan

  She glided up determined to show him and forged a trail of kisses down his bare chest. “How much time do we have?”

  Jackson breathed out a satisfied sigh. “We’ll make time.”

  Behind the wheel of Tessa’s car, Jackson drove past wooded countryside—flat landscape with narrow stretches full of short-leaf fig that grew alongside thatch palm. These areas were too populated for hiding a car, unless the parties involved did so behind gated walls. In this section of the Keys people tended to spend the money they’d brought with them from frigid places like Caribou, Minnesota, or Madison, Wisconsin, on luxury and privacy. Since they wanted out of the deep freeze of winter once and for all, relocating and experiencing Florida life to its fullest meant they’d sought out stately houses with gorgeous views and private boat access.

  The island itself was less than three and a half miles long, which meant it didn’t hold a lot of hiding places within the city limits. But south of town was a different story.

  There were dozens of places along the back roads and canals outside Indigo Key where Ryan’s Honda might have ended up. Jackson and Tessa checked out each spot while Garret and Anniston trailed after them, Anniston behind the wheel of her SUV.

  Like a mini caravan the four had driven up and down the coast twice, combing basins, searching low-lying marshes and salt ponds located off the main blacktop. Some were in the middle of thick groves with acres and acres of Spanish lime trees and coastal shrub. The brush made it a likely cover for anyone to dump a vehicle in the bog, away from the prying eyes of traffic from the roadway.

  The Toyota and Explorer parted company off the main route. Once Anniston took the fork to the west side of the island, Jackson veered off in the opposite direction heading southeast.

  “Where are we going?” Tessa asked.

  “I want to check out the restoration project, see the preserve my dad’s been involved in trying to save from Buchanan and his developers.”

  “You talk as though you haven’t been out there recently.”

  A pained look crossed his face. “I haven’t. It’s been years.”

  He pointed to a tidal basin with vegetation in various stages of overgrowth. “Back during high school this place was someone’s private marina. The house and the forty acres belonged to an old woman who’d moved here sometime in the late thirties. When she died at the ripe old age of ninety-five, she owed a ton of back taxes. It fell to the state. I think even then my dad was afraid Buchanan would get his hands on the property. So he started lobbying to make it a natural preserve. The politicians in Tallahassee agreed with him and a conservation effort was born. But the legislators wouldn’t pump any tax dollars into the project. My dad rounded up donations, assigned teams of volunteers to work and bring it back to its glory days. The old house could be used as a decent museum but the project was always low on cash. We spent what we had on hand to bring in truckloads of fill dirt to build up the bog floor so it would hold native mangrove again and hardwood hammock. After years of neglect, the area began to come back, bringing with it the natural way of rebirth and regrowth.”

  Tessa turned her head and thought she saw something slither into the blackish green water. “Uh, Jackson. Any chance we’ll run into alligators out here?”

  “Highly probable. Snakes, too. There are all kinds of reptiles and birdlife that you won’t find in any other part of the state. Birds like white-eyed vireo and ruby–throated hummingbirds make their home here.”

  “I’m not too concerned about cute little hummingbirds. It’s the alligators that are cause for alarm.”

  Jackson grinned. “I’ve got your back.”

  “What about my front? Do people actually live out here?”

  “Sure. There are probably ten shacks in this marsh where swamp folk live off the land. Been that way for hundreds of years. They live off the grid.” He parked the car under a bank of drooping cypress and shoved out of the car. Looking up, he studied the charcoal clouds bunched together and rolling in fast from the east, gobbling up the blue sky. “It’ll be raining soon, we need to pick up the pace and finish exploring before the downpour hits.”

  They roamed forty yards or so off the road before hitting softer ground toward the edge of the murky green waters of the bog.

  It didn’t take long for the humidity to get to them. Winded and out of breath, they crisscrossed past horsetail reed and sedge.

  Among the middle of the undergrowth, she stopped for a breather. Scanning for snakes, her eyes landed on the tail end of a silver Honda sticking out at an awkward angle. The front end was buried up to the hood, the windshield barely visible. The sedan sat in the slough, mud up to the rims, surrounded by patches of pondweed. It was so deep in the muck, there was no way you could wrench open any of the four doors.

  Tessa’s face went pale. She drew in the muggy air, her heart thudding in her chest. It beat so fast she could barely get out the words. She didn’t actually remember reeling from the sight, only that Jackson kept her from falling. “That’s his car.” She shifted her body toward the trunk end of the car, squinted to make out the license plate. “And look at the North Carolina ‘First in Flight’ Kitty Hawk emblem. If that’s not enough the plate frame is his college alma mater, North Carolina State.”

  Her head began to spin. Her mouth had gone cotton dry. “What’s the car doing this far out of town?”

  “You stay put,” Jackson said quietly. “I’ll go check it out.”

  “No way. I’m coming with you.”

  “Tessa, there are all kinds of critters out here… You said so yourself.”

  She did her best to ignore the swarm of mosquitos the size of bumblebees and the croaking of what sounded like a hundred bullfrogs all at once. Determined to go on, she held up a hand, waved him off. “Don’t even suggest it. I haven’t stuck around this long without realizing the implications. I know what I might be dealing with. I want to see for myself what’s in that car.”

  “You’ve got a spine of steel, you know that? I think you’d see this thing through no matter what size ’gator we run into.”

  She slapped his arm. “Putting that image into my head isn’t helping the situation.”

  With Jackson clutching her hand in a vise grip, she had to make her feet move to get close enough to peer inside the car’s interior. But they still had to slog a good fifteen more yards through the boggy landscape to do it. The sludge was thick like glue as they trudged past a forest of sweet bay and pop ash. They ducked under the gigantic bald cypress branches, trekked around gnarly vines that twisted to touch the ground and block their way.

  “We should’ve brought a machete,” Jackson groaned as he pushed past the stubborn arm of a dead birch.

  “I’ll say it again, why would his car be way out here? Ryan wouldn’t even know this place existed.”

  “Exactly.” Jackson deliberately avoided any more conversation until they reached the mud-spattered Honda.

  When she tried to cup her eyes over the glass she heard Jackson warn, “Try not to touch anything. This is the best evidence we’ve had since we started this thing.”

  It took every ounce of mettle she could muster to squint her eyes into the glare of the windows. “That looks like Ryan’s luggage and computer bag still on the floorboard. See?”

  “We know he was packed and ready to head back home until he was spotted with Walker at the burger place.” Jackson studied the angle of the car. “You found his medical alert bracelet on Walker’s boat.”

  Her pulse jumped. “What are you thinking?”

  “We already suspect someone dumped Ryan in the ocean from the deck of the Misty Dawn. That’s why the body eventually washed up where it did onshore, almost ten miles from here. Whoever did that to Ryan, realized they had to get rid of his car so they tried to sink it here. Big mistake. The swamp’s too shallow so it belched it back up in the mud.”

  “Lucky for us,” Tessa muttered.

  “I’m calling the state police and then Anniston. I don�
��t trust Sinclair.” With a shaky hand Jackson took out his cell phone from the pocket of his shorts. His knuckles were bone white as he punched in the number.

  But before he could hit send, an echo of gunfire burst out of the trees. The repeated tat-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat was so sudden Jackson thought they’d wandered onto a gun range.

  Bullets whizzed past where they were standing in knee-deep water. Jackson dropped and brought Tessa down with him into the muck.

  Pings hit the Honda’s metal as they tried to use the car as a shield. Their place to hide became an open-air shooting gallery. All around them the air zinged with a rapid barrage, every bullet aimed at them. Even the calm water of the bog rippled with shots. Water lilies exploded as the bullets found a home shattering the delicate greenery.

  Off in the distance Jackson heard someone running, then the sound of an engine starting up. Tires screeched. Just as quickly as the hail of bullets had started, it ended with silence descending over the preserve.

  “Are you all right?”

  Afraid to move, Tessa puffed out a grunt.

  “Whoever it was is gone now.”

  “What was that all about?”

  The sky began to spit down drizzle.

  Jackson gripped his cell phone again and scanned the wetlands for any sign of activity. “I’d say someone took exception to us finding Ryan’s car.”

  “Enough to try and kill us.”

  “Yeah. That’s why I’m calling Garret and Anniston first. The private eye carries a Smith & Wesson.”

  Anniston didn’t need to take out the handgun as she stood in a driving rainstorm huddled beside Tessa. The two women, along with Jackson and Garret, watched as investigators supervised Ryan’s Honda getting dragged out of the bayou.

  The car, now bullet-ridden, was towed under the watchful eyes of Dack Hawkins. The detective wasn’t one bit happy about being called out in such bad weather to an alligator-infested pond. He hadn’t even had time to change his shoes. The expression on his face said it all.

  Tessa sensed the man’s petulant attitude. It didn’t sit well with her. She decided she was done with the passive role she’d played so far. With that in mind, she confronted the investigator head on. “By now you know they found my brother’s body yesterday.”

  Hawkins adjusted his umbrella so the rain wouldn’t soak his pricey Ferragamo loafers. “The medical examiner hasn’t confirmed that yet. In fact, he hasn’t even finished the autopsy. If I were you…”

  “You aren’t me,” Tessa fired back, taking a step toward Hawkins and shoving the umbrella to the side so she could see the cop’s face. “No more jerking me around, okay? My brother’s dead and you know it. The police chief in this town let it be known he thought my brother left on his own accord, had jumped a freighter and just took off.”

  She threw her drenched arms out wide for emphasis. “Does it look to you like he drove his own car into a murky swamp like this because he decided to take an excursion around the world? It’s a ridiculous notion. The only trip he took was on Walker’s yacht. I want to know what you plan to do about finding out if Walker killed my brother before Walker went missing.”

  “And while you’re at it, maybe find out who the hell emptied a rifle in our direction,” Jackson said, his mood boosted with snarky undertones. “That ought to give you enough incentive to hang around town and do Sinclair’s job for him.”

  As rain poured down and into the cop’s eyes, Hawkins moved the umbrella back over his head. “I can’t comment about an active investigation.”

  “Blah, blah, blah,” Tessa snapped. “We’ve heard that before. Sinclair didn’t think it was too active. In fact, he declined to do much work into Ryan’s disappearance. He even put forth a stupid idea that Ryan jumped a freighter. Now I’ve already given DNA to help the coroner ID Ryan, anything to jumpstart getting answers for my family. But finding the car says you guys were way off base.”

  Reluctantly Hawkins squinted into the distance and muttered, “I’ll see what I can do. By the way, who knew you planned to come out here to look for the car?”

  Jackson decided to shelve the attitude and make some headway. “As far as I know, just the family. Something else you should keep in mind, though. I know you aren’t from around here. But attempting to hide a vehicle in this spot doesn’t make any sense. Most locals would know this place is too shallow to sink a car. It’s less than six feet deep at the edges, no more than fifteen feet deeper in the middle.”

  Garret spoke up. “As soon as I got Jackson’s phone call that was a giant red flag for me. Dumping the car here would indicate whoever did this was just looking for any watering hole he came to first, maybe on his way out of town heading south toward Key West. The asshole had no idea the water level wouldn’t be deep enough to bury a car.”

  A wide-eyed look crossed Hawkins face. “You’re saying it wasn’t a local?”

  Jackson wiped his face with the end of his shirttail. “We’re saying if Walker is responsible for Ryan’s death, he obviously had outside help getting rid of the car.”

  “You guys are letting your imaginations run wild,” Hawkins proclaimed before cutting his eyes over to Anniston. “You hired a competent private investigator. Let her take the lead.”

  But Anniston took the opportunity to tout the theory. “That’s just it, I agree with them.” She decided to hold back having Ryan’s medical alert bracelet for now. “What if I could prove Ryan was on board the Misty Dawn?”

  “You’re kidding? I already know that much. Even Sinclair acknowledges Ryan went fishing with Walker. That’s why he came down here.” Hawkins narrowed his eyes. “What are you holding back?” Hawkins pointed a stern finger at Anniston. “If you’re withholding evidence…I could see to it you lost your license.”

  “Playing hardball won’t work with me, Dack. So you won’t. Let’s just say, what I have is in a very safe place. You might want to take it up with Sinclair that no member of law enforcement checked Walker’s boat or sent a crime scene team there.”

  Hawkins couldn’t believe his ears. “Damn it. Ever since I set foot in this town, I’m dealing with gross incompetence. We haven’t even found Walker yet and you’re accusing him of murder. I want that evidence,” he shouted over the clap of thunder that rang out.

  Anniston briefly described the bracelet and how she’d obtained it. “I submitted it to the same lab the state uses. I’ll gladly send you the results. But you have to promise me to stay on top of Ryan’s case. None of this announcing ‘there’s no crime scene’ crap before moving on.”

  “I don’t need your promise. I want that lab report.” But with his demand, Hawkins dropped his head. “It isn’t my fault there wasn’t a shred of evidence in the Buchanan house.”

  “That’s just it, they didn’t leave without their personal belongings. Who does that? You have to admit they never hopped a plane.” When Hawkins started to explode in protest, Anniston quickly went on, “Just promise me, you’ll work Ryan’s case. You have an unidentified body, a male, lying in the morgue. You now have Ryan’s car with his belongings still in the backseat. You’re bound to comb over the vehicle for DNA, fingerprints. You’re standing here now because someone opened fire on my clients. Potential evidence just keeps piling up. We intend to be part of this whether you like it or not. Find out what happened to Ryan Connelly, that’s all we’re asking. Plus, since you’ve deemed Livvy’s case no longer active, I want you to share what you know. I’d like your full cooperation on both.” She held out a hand in peaceful accord.

  Hawkins wavered before stretching out his hand. Drenched skin-to-skin, they shook on the deal. “But I want every piece of evidence you have, no holding back, and all your theories documented.”

  Anniston chewed her lip. “Sorry. No can do. I’m not sharing my theories, let alone putting them in writing. At least not until I know the people I can fully trust around here. Sinclair’s a problem. On that we agree. Correct?”

  “Yeah. I’m getting soaked here,
Anniston. Could we negotiate this somewhere else, like the nearest coffee shop?”

  “No need. I want to know who the coroner has lying on that slab in the morgue as soon as you do, okay?”

  Hawkins sighed. “Your old man would be proud. You’re as tough as he is.”

  “I’ll take that as a yes, and a compliment. Your first latte’s on me.”

  The cop looked from one Indigo face to another. “For what it’s worth, I don’t think your sister left on her own. The thing is the higher ups are pressuring me to move on. If I could turn up something, anything at all that points to foul play, I’d dig in and fight them. The truth is the van was my last hope. Without a break there, I don’t have a choice in the matter but to focus on other cases.”

  Just as Tessa was about to speak up in protest, Hawkins added, “I’m here, aren’t I? On site. At the moment, my priority is your brother.”

  Jackson took a step closer. “We appreciate you leveling with us. But since we think Ryan’s case leads straight back to Walker, we’re hoping, at some point, you’ll turn up a reason to rethink Livvy’s situation.”

  “Fair enough. As long as Anniston keeps me in the loop, I’ll return the favor. I expect all of you to keep this detail out of the public domain.”

  Tessa glanced around at the group for confirmation. With a nod from Jackson, she turned to Hawkins. “You got it. As long as you’re honest with us about Ryan, and consider keeping an open mind about Livvy, we’ll keep our mouths shut and our eyes open.”

  “And it would be great if you could find out who tried to kill us, the sooner the better,” Jackson noted, before everyone broke up and started making a mad dash for their cars.

  But later, after the group had cleaned up and dried out, they sat around the kitchen table eating Lenore’s crab and corn soup, going over the events of the day.

  “I’ve never been shot at before. It’s an experience I’d rather not have happen again,” Jackson said. “And if things weren’t bad enough, there’s Tessa finally getting a good look at Ryan’s car and dodging bullets in mud up to her knees.”