by Unknown
He reversed course and pulled open the passenger door of Keira’s already moving SUV. She flipped on the siren and then screeched out of the lot, following the pickup as it turned a corner and sped down a snowy gravel road.
“So. Friend of yours?”
She flashed a grim smile. “I didn’t get a good enough look to tell if I knew him, but something tells me his picture is gracing a warrant in my county or a neighboring one.” As she gained on the old truck, she grabbed her radio and called in the license plate number. A couple minutes and several road turns later, she disconnected. “Adam Beckworth, wanted in Marquette County for burglary. Idiot. I probably wouldn’t have known him even if he’d talked to me. Guilt turns people stupid.” The pickup in front of them hit a patch of ice and fishtailed wildly. “That is if they weren’t stupid to begin with.”
While they watched, Beckham lost control of the vehicle and it did two complete circles on the road before sliding into the snow filled ditch. Keira pulled to a stop along the road nearby. “Ten to one he runs.”
Finn peered into the driver’s window of the truck. Beckworth’s head was resting on the steering wheel, although it didn’t look as if an air bag had deployed. The vehicle was old enough that it might not have them. If he’d cracked his forehead hard enough, he wouldn’t be going anywhere. “You’re on.”
They’d no more gotten out of the SUV before Beckworth came to life, sliding across the seat of the truck to open the opposite door and dive through it. He got two steps before sinking in the snow and sprawling face downward.
“Loser has to wade in there and haul him out of the ditch.”
Finn’s gaze snapped to hers. “I’d rather just pay up.”
A smile on her lips, Keira rocked back on her heels, clearly enjoying herself. “Winner gets to name the terms.”
Looking back at the guy in the ditch, Finn saw he’d scrambled to his feet and had taken a few more steps before sinking to his waist again. With a sigh he pulled gloves out of his pocket and drew them on, then stabbed one finger in her direction. “You’re mean.”
“It’s been said.” She unclipped the cuffs on her belt and held them out. Grabbing them, he walked over to contemplate the man still struggling. “If I leave you down there I’m pretty sure they won’t find you until spring.” He’d take the obscenity the guy uttered as a sign of agreement. “You can start making your way over to me, or I can just wait until you tire and haul your ass out. Your choice.”
Because, as Keira had noted earlier, the man wasn’t blessed with superior powers of cognition, he continued to fight his way forward a few feet before falling and then dragging himself up again.
Finn made his way down the side of the ditch, in a position that would place him directly in the man’s path. He promptly sank in snow to his upper thighs and the look he threw at Beckworth was baleful. “We’re both going to regret this.”
The man turned and tried to retrace his steps. Finn caught up with him and used one hand to give him a powerful push. Beckworth went down, and, kneeling beside him, Finn quickly got the cuffs on the man.
“Since when is it illegal for a guy to not buy anything at a gas station?”
“As far as I know the illegal part was when you turned to burglary.” He searched him, finding only a thin wallet with ID matching the name on the warrant. With no little effort, he dragged the man to his feet.
“It’s not breaking and entering when you’re just going after your own stuff,” the man protested. Finn guided him toward the incline of the ditch. “A guy took something of mine and I was just getting it back.”
“Count me as disinterested.” He didn’t need to glance up at Keira on the road to know she was watching the whole scene with amusement. Grimly, he nudged the man forward when he halted in front of him. Something told him it was going to be a helluva lot more difficult climbing out of the ditch than it had been going down it.
_______
“For the last time, I was laughing with you, not at you.”
“I don’t recall laughing at all.” Finn brushed ineffectually at the snow that still clung to his pants. The journey up the incline had been somewhat more ignominious than his descent had been. Before he’d gotten Beckworth to the road, they’d both slipped and fallen backward. Twice. “It takes a hard woman to send a wounded man into battle.”
“Wounded?”
He pointed at his stitches and then his eye, which this morning was ringed with a yellow bruise. “I might have Raiker amend the contract to include combat pay.”
Her lips twitched suspiciously. “And what would be the most expensive, I wonder. The wound to your head, eye or pride?”
His tone was lofty. “It’s the emotional scars that hurt the most.”
A laugh burst from her. “That’s not surprising. Just be glad I didn’t film it. As comic relief goes, that arrest was gold.”
She pulled into the parking lot of the convenience station again. She’d already radioed for Brody to meet her there so he could transport Beckworth to the jail. “I’m going to go in and show the rest of the staff the picture, and then we can decide where to go from there.”
“Hey, let me see it.” It was the first time their prisoner had spoken on the trip back to town. “I only saw it from a distance. I might know the guy.”
With a shrug Keira pulled into the gas station lot and took the photo out of the inside pocket of her coat, holding it up to the cage that separated the front and back seats.
“Hey, that looks like Pitbull. I mean, not the rapper. But that’s what I called this guy. On account of he said his ear got all messed up from a dog bite.”
Finally, the man had Finn’s interest. He shifted in his seat to look at Beckworth. “What’s his real name?”
The arrestee shrugged as Keira got out of the car and disappeared into the building. “I don’t know. I only saw him once. But we had some beers and got to talking and that’s what he said.”
“Where was this?”
“Crazy Horse. Only real bar in town.”
“How long ago?”
The man furrowed his brow as if the act of remembering pained him. “I don’t know. A couple weeks?”
“Did he say anything else?”
Beckworth settled back in his seat. “It was a long time ago. He might have said he had a girlfriend that he was shacked up with. This is helpful, right? My information could get those charges dropped?”
“You’ll have to take that up with the sheriff.” A second cruiser was already pulling into the lot. The deputy hadn’t been far away. “I’ll make sure and mention it to her.”
The man had seen the other official car too and sank a little lower in his seat. “These charges blow. That stuff I took was mine.”
The handoff of Beckworth took only a few minutes after Keira returned. Once finished, she slid behind the wheel. “The cook thought she’d seen Atwood before, but couldn’t be sure where.”
Finn reached up to the dash and turned the blower on the heat up. The car was plenty warm, but his clothes were wet and the faster they dried the better. “Your buddy in the back seat claims he drank with him at a place called the Crazy Horse.”
“Yeah, that’s a bar and grill in town. More bar than grill.” She pulled out of the lot and cruised down a mostly deserted Main Street.
“Will it be open at this time?” The dash clock read barely eleven.
“If not, the owner will be around. He lives in the apartment over it.” After a brief pause, she added, “He might not be that cooperative. The last time I saw him didn’t end well. I responded to a fight here and he ended up getting thrown through the front window.”
Chapter 7
“You know, they say people who hold grudges are the most likely to die of heart attacks, Randy. They’ve done studies.” As Keira had warned Finn, Randy Tenney had not been happy to see them. He was blocking the door of his establishment as if guarding a fortress, his scrawny frame clad only in jeans and a thin tee shirt.
“No.” Keira surveyed him steadily. “But I know that I made sure the three who busted up your bar were charged and forced to pay reparations. You got your medical costs covered, too.”
That stopped the man for a moment. Then he said truculently, “Didn’t get nothing for the emotional trauma. And let me tell you, a fella my age goes sailing through a window, there’s plenty of pain and suffering.”
“We’ll make this quick.” She pulled out the photo and showed it to him. “We already know he’s been in your place.” They had only Beckworth’s word on that, but Randy needed to be sidetracked, and this might be a way to jumpstart his cooperation. “We need a name.”
He looked at the picture and she saw the recognition in his eyes. “Yeah, he’s been here. Don’t have a name for him. He’s been in alone and with a woman.” He shrugged. “Don’t know her name either, not for sure. It’s that gal who works out at Lakeview Cabins. Always wants to put their fliers up in my place, and gets plenty mouthy if I say no. Pushy little bi—woman,” he amended.
Keira and Finn exchanged a glance. “You’re sure?”
“Nothing wrong with my memory.” He stepped back, swung the door closed.
“You should take your own advice about holding grudges,” Finn advised as they made their way back to the car. At her questioning look, he added, “The meteorologist?”
“I can be excused for only handling two of the three guys at a time who were breaking up a bar. The weatherman? What kind of stress was he under?”
They got back in the vehicle and she pulled away from the curb. Finn took out his phone to look up the address of their next stop. “You know where Lakeview Cabins are?”
“I’m familiar with Grand Marais. There are far more motels than other businesses.” From her side mirror, she saw a bundled up woman come out of her house to tackle the shoveling. Keira had to give her mental props. With as much snow as had gotten dumped on them last night, the woman had, at least, a couple strenuous hours work ahead of her. “Lakeview is just outside of town. I stayed there once when I was a kid.” It was a good memory. “Danny and I vacationed somewhere on the peninsula every summer. There’s a lot of breathtaking beauty on this slice of land.” She’d always wondered why her mother hadn’t been able to see it. People let their own personal unhappiness blind them to all the good in their life. For some, a new setting could bring a renewed sense of peace. In her mother’s case, Lisa carried that discontent within her. She was never satisfied with anything for long.
A long buried worry worked its way to the surface. Keira and Todd had been engaged for two years and she’d been as guilty as he about putting off setting a date. She wanted to believe that thoughts of her mother’s perpetual dissatisfaction were what had kept her from rushing to the altar. But in her heart, she knew it had more to do with her dad’s words the first time he’d met her fiancée.
He’s not the one for you, Kee-Kee.
It was the only indication he’d ever given that he didn’t approve of her choice, a fellow cop. Danny wasn’t the overprotective type, so his statement had resonated more than it should have. It had squirreled away in her mind and was likely the reason she’d let the engagement drift.
“I meant to ask.” Finn’s words were a welcome interruption from the gloomy path her thoughts had taken. “Are the pictures on the wall in your home of spots on the UP?”
Keira nodded. “The ones next to the fireplace are the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore in Munising. I’ve never been able to decide if it’s more beautiful in summer or winter.”
“I’ll have to come back sometime when you can show me some of the sights.”
She slanted him a glance. His expression was sincere. The thought of seeing Finn Carstens after the case ended was more intriguing than it should have been. Keira was cautious by nature. It was his layers, she decided, turning down the road that would lead them out of town before it swooped closer to the lake’s edge. It would take a while to discover all the facets of the man.
Finn shifted in his seat as she slowed before the motel’s lane. He was still wet past his knees. Keira reached over to turn the blower up another notch. “Have you ever been married?” Shewheeled the SUV along the narrow freshly plowed drive to pull to a stop in front of the cabin office.
He was looking at the motel sign. “No.” He got out and slammed the door, waiting for her to join him before walking toward the business. A slight breeze had come up, just enough to tease the tops of the hills of snow and scatter random flakes in the air. A few landed in his thick brown hair. “I’d like to think if I ever had been I still would be.” His mouth quirked. “I have a streak of idealism that life has attempted to hammer out of me, but hasn’t quite succeeded.”
“I hope it doesn’t. Succeed,” she added, when he cocked a brow. She shrugged, oddly embarrassed, and continued toward the bright red door of the office. “God knows in this line of work, a few ideals are all that get us through some days.”
_______
“Oh, yeah, that’s Joey.” The twenty-something girl at the front desk nodded emphatically as she looked at the photo. “He works here.” A frown marred her forehead. “At least, he used to. He might have gotten fired. I haven’t seen him around.”
“Is the assistant manager here?”
The girl rolled her eyes theatrically. “Sylvie Baxter? Oh, yeah, she’s here. Been on the warpath all week. She’s probably the one who fired him.”
“Britta! Have you finished…” A woman at least a decade the girl’s senior burst through the cracked door behind the desk that led to what Keira could now see was an office of sorts. She stopped short, taking in Keira’s uniform and badge before arranging her features into a polite mask. “Deputy. Is Britta helping you?”
Keira heard Finn’s strangled cough, but her focus was on the newcomer. Holding up Atwood’s photo, she said, “Sheriff Saxon. I understand that you know this man.”
The assistant manager pushed back her long dark hair and gave a cursory look at the picture. “That’s Joseph. He worked here for a short time, but doesn’t any longer.”
“Why don’t we discuss this matter privately?”
The woman’s unwillingness was written in her expression, but finally she stepped aside and motioned for them to join her behind the counter. When they followed her into the postage stamp sized office, she shut the door behind them and said briskly, “I’m afraid I can’t give you much more information. Joseph was employed here for a few weeks but stopped coming to work several…” She halted when a phone rang. Keira glanced at Finn, who had his cell in his hand, his eyes on the assistant manager.
“I thought it might save time,” he said in an aside before returning his gaze to the other woman. “You might want to answer that. Could be important.”
The woman’s mouth twisted. “Are we done playing games? So you have my number. So what?”
“So your name is Sylvie Baxter. You met Joseph Atwood at a casino a couple months ago. He quit his job and came back here with you.” Frustration flickered through Keira. “You could have saved us a lot of time and effort if you’d answered your phone messages.”
Baxter sat behind the desk. “My phone was dead. I haven’t had time to check them.”
“Where is he?”
“That’s why you’re here?” The assistant manager snorted. “Why, what’s he done? I’m not getting tangled up in any mess he might have gotten himself into. He took off a couple weeks ago and hasn’t been back since. That’s all I know.”
Studying the other woman Keira figured that she wasn’t one to give up all she knew without a struggle. Although likely shy of forty, the years had etched cynicism in
to a face that that would have been pretty if not for the hardness in her blue eyes. This was a woman who’d backed more than one losing proposition in her life. It was clear she’d already written off the one she’d made on Atwood.
Slowly and painfully Keira led Baxter through the events from the couple’s first meet to their time here. “I got him this job, you know.” The woman opened the desk drawer and pulled out a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. Lighting up, she drew deeply on the cigarette and blew the smoke out in a long stream. “He could have shown a little gratitude for that, at least, the bastard.”
“You say he’s been gone nearly two weeks? But you didn’t report him as missing?”
The assistant manager gave a hoot at Finn’s question. “Missing? Probably went running home to his mommy. The apron strings were long for that one. Or more likely someone else caught his fancy and he’s shacked up somewhere with her.” She took several more quick puffs before grinding the cigarette out in a black plastic ashtray emblazoned with the Lakeview logo. “Thought he was different, but turns out he’s the same as every other guy who’s screwed me over.”
“You said he might have gotten himself into a mess. What kind of trouble were you thinking of?”
“Well, I’ve got the law here asking about him so what else am I supposed to think?”
Keira chose her words carefully. “It’s possible Atwood was the victim of a crime. That’s the only reason we’re trying to find him. Anything you can tell us may be beneficial. Was he having problems with someone? If so, do you have a name?”
Concern crept into the woman’s expression. Her gaze darted from Keira to Finn and back again. “You’re freaking me out here. What kind of crime? I mean Joseph…he was a pretty sweet guy. You think someone hurt him?”
“Do you know anyone who would do that?” Finn put in quietly.
“No!” Baxter fumbled for another cigarette. “The only people around here he knew were his co-workers. I don’t ever remember him mentioning any type of trouble except for some jerk who was hassling him over his traplines.”