by Dale Mayer
“So now we have a lost dog. Have you seen it since?”
“No, I haven’t. Now leave me alone.”
The driver hung up before Carter could respond. Carter called Geir again and told him the news.
“Wow, Brenda’s so bad to animals that her driver thought the dog would be better off on its own?” Geir asked.
“I’m not so sure I trust that statement either, but I do think he did something with the dog so it wouldn’t be with Brenda.”
“You think he took it?”
“I don’t know,” Carter said. “I need his and his granddaughter’s addresses.”
“Ah. Well, give me some names, and I’ll see what I can find.”
By the time Carter hung up, he felt better. What he really wanted to know was where the granddaughter was and what were the chances that she had a dog named Matzuka. With nothing better to do now, he headed back to the ranch.
As he turned the engine on, however, two vehicles came ripping up the road. Both had been parked at this trucking company lot while he’d been here on the phone. He’d seen them. He didn’t know who they were, but, at the speed they were going, they were on a mission. He pulled up behind them, driven by curiosity. He decided he would follow them and see just where they went.
Chapter 7
After cutting short her grocery shopping, getting only what she needed for tonight and tomorrow, Hailey drove home, her mind buzzed with confusion and odd thoughts. She hated to say it, but it felt like fear. She was afraid somebody was deliberately trying to sabotage her company. Afraid that more than trying to sabotage the business, the perpetrator had killed her partners and was after her now.
She couldn’t stop herself from looking in the rearview mirror to see if she was being followed. The road was clear, but she wished Carter had come behind her. She chastised herself for that thought. That was foolish. She didn’t want to be dependent on him. The fact that he had stepped up to help review the files was already huge. It also marked a turning point in their relationship. It was hard to be angry at somebody deliberately trying to help you out.
Maybe he had always been like that. Maybe she simply didn’t know because she’d only seen the mockery and the joking. He had almost a hard edge to him now. And maybe she just wanted to see it that way so she could back away from her emotions—away from the disappointment and the pain.
She couldn’t believe it when he’d married that bitch. At that time, Hailey had been hurt and distraught. Finally he had woken to the truth about his wife and now acted like a completely different person—and, well, so was she. She didn’t want to say maybe this was a second chance for them, but she couldn’t help thinking it. So many good things could come out of this, and yet, at the same time, it was kind of hard to go there. After all, she had spent years staying away from him and deliberately being mean and caustic to keep him back. But now he was divorced with a new start in life. And here she was with a new start too, whether she had asked for it or not …
She wanted to be joyful that the company was hers, but to think it came on the blood of her partners was not a happy thought. She had always preferred to scale her own mountains and to achieve her own success. This felt like a backhanded win. It wasn’t what she’d wanted at all. At one point, she had dreamed about buying out her partners and having the company all to herself—but not this way. Never this way.
She took a few more corners heading toward home when she realized two vehicles were coming up very quickly behind her. She automatically slowed down.
She was driving a good reliable and heavy truck, never taking a chance on a poor choice of wheels while living out on the ranch. One of the vehicles drove past and sent a cloud of dust into her face. She let out a breath of relief, thinking the driver must be in a hurry. But then he pulled in front of her and slowed down. Not sure what that meant, she slowed down ever-so-slightly. Then the realization hit her. The second vehicle was still behind her. That did not make her happy.
Instead of letting these two vehicles dictate her actions, she swiftly drove around the one in front of her and gunned it to get past him. The driver was caught unaware by her move, and she managed to zip in front. As she drove by, she caught the surprise on his face and realized it was someone who worked for her.
What the hell was going on? She kept driving, keeping her eyes ahead. She wasn’t sure if that was a deliberate pincer maneuver or if something else was going on here, and she had misunderstood their urgency. She hesitated and wondered if she should pull over and wait until they pulled up again. But then again she wasn’t sure. After what had happened to her partners, she didn’t dare take the chance.
Then she saw a third vehicle come closer. She frowned. She was heading toward her ranch now. Were the other three heading there too? Taking a chance, once again, she maxed out her foot pedal on the gas and whipped farther ahead. Then she hit the brake to surprise them and took the turn as fast as she could, so she was the only one heading down her driveway and waited to see what would happen. The other vehicles passed her through the cloud of dust. She caught a faint glimpse of the second driver, but it was enough to make an ID. The last vehicle, which appeared to be Carter, turned down the drive behind her.
When she got to the front of the house, she parked and hopped out, her hands shaking. She waited for Carter.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
“Was that weird, or was something going on there?” Her voice broke. “What the hell was that?”
“It looked like a special maneuver. Do you know those two men?”
“They both work for the company, or rather Slim used to and Andy still does,” she said in shock. “I need to contact the sheriff.”
“Good,” he said. “I’m trying to figure out what to do about that damn dog too.”
She stared at him. “Right. That’s the reason you’re here.”
“Do you know Brenda Longfellow’s driver?”
She frowned. “Diego?”
He nodded. “Must be. He told me that he let the dog go out into the wild.”
She shook her head. “I can’t see him doing that. He loves animals. He used to run a center for injured animals. He’d care for them.”
“Ah,” Carter said. “You know where his granddaughter lives?”
“Because of what the Burgess kid did or because of the dog?”
“How about both?” he said with a half smile. “Do you want to come with me in order to smooth things over? If she’s got the dog, then you can bet everything is okay.”
“Maybe, but is it possible to find the dog and remove it? Is that what you want to do?”
He frowned. “I just need to know if the dog is okay. I don’t have to take personal responsibility for it.”
“Why don’t we go out and take a look then?” Hailey asked.
“Right. I should have done that first. Right at the beginning, I was afraid that’s what he had done.”
“Why would you think that?”
“Just something about the way he reacted,” Carter said, leaning into the truck and pulling out the office box with her laptop. He walked inside and placed the box down on the counter, then turned and nudged her back outside. At the truck he motioned at the passenger side. “Let’s go talk to her.”
“We should have told my brother what I was doing,” Hailey said after a while.
“He’s probably out with the cows,” Carter said with a laugh.
“As long as he’s okay.”
Carter’s brows furrowed. “Do you think somebody’ll hurt him?”
“Not necessarily,” she said. “But I just know this war is heating up on all sides.”
“So, do you think the property war is related to your partners?”
She raised both hands, shaking her head. “I have no idea. None of this makes any sense. I would never have thought Fred or Phil could be involved in something like that. But the rest of their families—who knows—maybe.”
“It will make sense. Eventually. We
just don’t have all the pieces.”
While he drove, following her instructions, Hailey called the sheriff. She told Raleigh what had just happened with the two vehicles. Then she glanced at Carter. “I should have put that call on Speaker.”
“Doesn’t matter,” he said. “What did he have to say?”
“He said he’s made a note of it, and they have Phil’s laptop. He also said he did check the security cameras but didn’t find or see anything.”
“Okay.”
“I guess that’s what I expected.”
“We didn’t really see anything either, except I did see one vehicle entering the parking lot, then leaving soon afterward early that Monday morning when you found Fred’s body,” Carter said. “So maybe somebody knew about the camera in the parking lot and used that knowledge to avoid being seen.”
“What vehicle was it?”
“Fred’s, per a license plate check.”
“So after Fred was killed, they left from Phil’s window, explaining why that was left open. Adding weight to the fact that Phil probably killed him.”
“At least that’s what somebody wants to make it look like,” Carter said with a frown.
“I don’t know who would want to smear his name like that. Phil’s always been well loved.”
“But apparently he was a slacker in the IT arena.”
“Yes, but that doesn’t necessarily mean anything. People who are often very popular, it’s their very popularity that lets them get away with doing less than others.”
“They might get away with more shit,” he agreed, “but that doesn’t mean they get respect that way.”
“Possibly. It’s really hard to know.”
“Exactly.”
She directed Carter around a couple corners to the back part of town, where many small hobby farms were. They looked run-down.
“He lives in here,” Hailey said.
“The granddaughter?”
“The whole family lives together. You don’t really think Brenda pays enough for them to have separate houses, do you?”
Carter frowned at that but stayed quiet. They went around two more corners that opened up to a small and clean but older home, with a lot of dogs running in kennels. Carter pulled into the driveway and hopped out. Instead of heading to the main house with Hailey, he went to the dog kennels. He didn’t find Matzuka. Frowning, he turned around to see Brenda’s driver standing nearby.
Carter put his hands on his hips. “I’m looking for the dog, and I won’t stop until I find him.”
Diego shook his head. “I don’t have him.”
“Why?”
The man hesitated.
Just then Hailey appeared. “Hi, Diego, how are you doing?”
His face broke into a smile. He reached out and shook her hand. “I’m doing fine.” Then he looked at Carter and frowned. “Tell him that I don’t have the dog.”
“If you don’t have the dog, then you know where it is,” she said gently.
Diego looked distressed at that.
When Hailey saw that, she added, “It’s a well-known fact you’d never hurt an animal, and neither would you release one to the wild, alone and lost, with the possibility to get in trouble.”
His gaze turned sad.
“I don’t know why you think you’re in trouble. We just want the dog.” He shrugged but stayed silent, and she pressed a little harder. “You do understand the US government’s after it, right?”
“I do.”
“Then please be truthful and just tell us. We won’t tell Brenda,” Carter said.
Diego snorted. “That’s what you say. That doesn’t mean it won’t get back to her.”
“Did you open the cage?”
Diego hesitated.
“So, you didn’t,” Carter said. “Did you see somebody else open the cage?”
At that, he looked distressed again.
“Is the dog loose and running free somewhere?” Carter pushed.
Diego shrugged. “I haven’t seen him.”
“Have you tried?”
He nodded. “I have tried, but I haven’t seen him.”
“When I first arrived,” Carter said, “I thought I saw a coyote along the back of the airport. Matzuka looks like a coyote. His colors are very much fawn colors. He’s been missing for three months. That’s a long time.”
“Plus lots of garbage can be found around the airport,” Diego said. “Sometimes dogs can survive there without problems.”
“You didn’t open the cage, and you didn’t see the dog, but you know something about him. What happened?”
The driver’s shoulders slowly sagged. “I wasn’t there. I told you about my granddaughter.” He glanced from Carter to Hailey. They both nodded. “But my nephew, … he works there sometimes. He thought the dog looked sad. My nephew’s special.”
At that, Hailey remembered his nephew had Down’s syndrome. She nodded. “Did he let the dog out because the dog looked sad? Did he want to play with the dog for a little bit?”
Diego brightened. “You remember him?”
“Of course I do. Carlos is a very happy boy.” Hailey thought he was about twelve now, physically, but she didn’t really know what age he was mentally.
“He goes to the airport with his father, where he washes cars in the parking lot for money.”
“And Carlos was on his own when he saw the dog and opened the cage? He let the dog out, hoping to play with him but lost him?” Hailey asked. She talked with gentleness and empathy.
Diego nodded and sighed heavily. “I’ve been looking for the dog, but I’ve seen no sign of him.”
“The airport is not very close to you,” Carter said. “Have you been driving by to check out the neighborhood?”
“I drive by,” the old man said. “I always have dog food, and I leave some at the airport, hoping I can capture him again.”
“Because you knew someone would be checking in on this dog, didn’t you?”
“Whenever the government’s involved, yes,” he said. “The minute I understood it was a War Dog, I knew we would be in trouble.” Then he raised his hands, palms showing, and took a deep breath before continuing, “But what can I do? I wasn’t there with Carlos. He was there alone for a bit—only because his mom was at work, while his dad was trying to get work in the parking lot at the airport. Then Carlos wandered off for a few minutes. He saw the dog, and I was late, so I should have had the dog, but I didn’t, and Carlos let him go.”
Hailey smiled. “You know what? It isn’t the end of the world. We just need to find the dog now.”
“But what can I do? I’ve never seen the dog.”
“Not at all?”
“Once, maybe twice,” he said. “Only in the first week.”
“Okay,” Carter said. “I’ll go to the airport area and see if I can track it. It’s unfortunately been a little too long for me to track anything fresh. Where did you last see him?”
“About an hour away from the airport or about a couple miles from there, near a small dump pile everybody just throws crap into. So often food is there, which leads to a problem with the bears sometimes too, but always coyotes are there.”
“Matzuka would handle coyotes just fine,” Carter said, “but it’s still not an ideal lifestyle, is it?”
Diego shook his head. “No, I should have told you in the first place.”
“Yes, you should have.”
“Let’s go take a look now,” Hailey said.
“Yeah,” Carter replied. “I’m worried somebody else has picked him up.”
“Maybe,” Diego said suddenly. “I think I saw somebody with a shepherd like that in town the other day.”
“Who was it?”
“Harold,” he said. “Harold Longfellow.”
“Another Longfellow?” Carter shook his head as he glanced at Hailey before turning toward Diego.
He nodded. “One of the nastier ones.”
“Oh, crap,” Hailey said. “Slim’s cou
sin. Yeah, I can see him wanting a shepherd like that.”
“Was he treating him well?” Carter asked.
“The dog wasn’t behaving, and he was a little rough with it,” Diego said. “But you dare not criticize or comment on the Longfellows’ behavior.”
“He wasn’t using the dog to threaten anybody, was he?”
“The dog wore a big collar with spikes on it. Harold is bad news. I think he runs a bookie operation and also loans money to the down-and-out locals in this town.” He flashed a look at Carter. “His interest rates basically mean he’s bought many an indentured servant.”
At that, Carter looked at Hailey.
“I don’t know about any of that,” she said. “I just know, back when we were in school, he used to be the punk at the street corner, maybe doing marijuana sales. So he’s got ties into that drug culture from way back then. He wasn’t into the bigger drugs or anything, not that I heard, but he may have upscaled to the betting and loans hustle instead. It would go along with his street image. He wears a vest and has a lot of tattoos. But still, in their case, family’s family.”
“And, of course, the dog was supposed to go to Brenda and David, but they don’t know anything about where it ended up, right? And, if they did find out, after the fact, would they have said anything?” Carter asked Hailey.
“Maybe. But Brenda doesn’t like Harold. Brenda is probably the only one in the entire family who would not have given him the dog. Although, if Harold threatened her, she might bend.”
Diego nodded. “I think that’s what happened. But I can’t be sure.”
“How can I find this guy?”
Hailey sucked in her breath and shook her head. “You don’t want to do that.”
“Why not?”
She frowned. “Because I don’t care how tough you think you are, Harold’s generation is just mean.”