Promises in the Dark

by D. K. Hood

  “He must be busy.” Kane shrugged and then indicated to the two people being led to their table. “Ah, Jenna. We have company.”

  The smile on Jenna’s face froze at the business-like expressions of FBI Agents Wells and Carter. She waved them to the two empty seats. “What brings you to Black Rock Falls?”

  “We have a case out of Louan.” Jo looked exhausted. “I’ll explain everything once we order. We haven’t eaten since breakfast.”

  “We also came begging for a bed for the night.” Carter dropped into a seat beside Jenna, bringing with him the distinct smell of smoke. “We left the chopper at the airport, I managed to get a hangar but we had to cab it into town. No rental cars and it seems all the rooms in town are booked for the summer.” He rolled his eyes. “Even the cabins up at the ski lodge are occupied. What’s happened to this sleepy town?”

  Jenna chuckled. “We’ve become the trendy place to stay since the town was featured in a series of crime novels. I’m not sure why people want to risk being murdered but you must admit, if you enjoy all the thrills we offer here and wide-open spaces, this is the place to be. The mayor went all out to cash in on the tourist industry.” She glanced at Kane, who gave her a slight nod. “You’re welcome to stay with us again.”

  “Thank you.” Carter tipped up his Stetson and grinned. “Maggie offered us a cell each if we lucked out. She said she’d clear it with you later.”

  “Where’s Zorro?” Kane leaned on the table. “I thought you and that dog were inseparable.”

  “We dropped him at Maggie’s. He doesn’t like crowds.” Carter frowned. “He wasn’t too happy and refused to eat his dinner. He’s stubborn.”

  Concerned for Maggie’s safety, Jenna frowned. “He won’t bite her or her husband, will he?”

  “Nah.” Carter waved a server over to take their order. “He’ll ignore them completely and just sit like a statue until I go get him.” He turned to Jenna. “If I die before he does, you’ll have to show him my body or he’ll starve to death.”

  Seeing he was deadly serious, she nodded. “I’ll remember.”

  The server came to the table and they ordered. Hungry for information on why the FBI was brought in for a housefire, she swiveled in her seat to look at Jo. “So, the case at Louan. Is it anything to do with the fire last night?”

  “Yeah but let’s not talk about this now.” Jo straightened in her seat. “The imagery doesn’t sit well with eating.” Her lips quivered into a smile. “The local sheriff is handling the situation and should have some information for us by morning. We’ll discuss the details after dinner and away from this noise, okay?”

  “Sure.” Jenna sipped from a glass of water. “It’s been so quiet around here of late, we’ve had time to redecorate the house, well, the house and cottage. My office will be getting an upgrade as well.” She couldn’t help noticing Jo’s usual bright personality was flat. She hoped her young daughter was doing okay. After a messy divorce, the kids were often traumatized. “How’s Jaime?”

  “She is doing fine, well, better than fine.” Jo’s smile was genuine and reached her eyes. “I figure not listening to her folks arguing is a good thing and the puppy has made a difference.”

  Jenna leaned closer to hear her over the noise. “What did you buy?”

  “A Boston Terrier by the name of Beau.” Jo chuckled. “He is the sweetest thing and even Zorro likes him.”

  The food arrived and the conversation died as everyone became involved in the meal. Carter and Jo seemed to be more interested in asking Rowley and Sandy about their wedding and recent purchase of a ranch than discussing work. Jenna finished her wine and turned to look at the dancefloor as the band struck up. Under her feet the floorboards vibrated with the stomp of cowboy boots and the next thing, Kane was pulling her onto the dancefloor.

  “What’s going on with them?” Kane moved her around the floor. “They seem evasive.”

  After some years of trying, Jenna wasn’t very good at the Texas two-step and trod all over Kane’s polished boots. “Oops, sorry. I don’t know but it must be a complicated case if they’ve been called in by Sheriff Tom Crenshaw.”

  “Him and his boys couldn’t find a lost dog.” Kane frowned. “A sheriff who only deputizes his sons, isn’t using his brains. It’s an easy paycheck for no work. I mean why does a town like Louan need a sheriff and four deputies? We have you and two, it doesn’t make sense.”

  Jenna sighed as the music went into a slower dance. “It’s the smallest county in Montana but the sapphire mine means they have cash to burn. Most of the townsfolk are Crenshaw’s relatives so he gets voted in at every election.”

  “May I cut in?” Carter’s voice came from behind Jenna.

  “Jenna?” Kane looked at her and raised one eyebrow.

  Not wanting to be rude, Jenna nodded. “Okay.” She reluctantly let go of Kane’s hand and found herself in Carter’s arms. “It seems strange you’d take time off in the middle of a case to go dancing.”

  “We arrived too late to do anything.” Carter twirled her around the dancefloor. “The sheriff is the best person to hunt down the missing girl. She could be with friends or a boyfriend. If we show at people’s houses they’ll clam up for sure. The FBI have a strange effect on some countryfolk, they don’t trust us.” He sighed. “I might look and sound like a local but it will be all around town by now that I’m not.”

  Shocked, Jenna stopped dancing and stared at him. “Missing girl, what missing girl?”

  “Oh, I thought Jo had walked you through the case? The bombing out of Aspen Grove, Louan.” He leaned closer and whispered in her ear. “We need your help this time.”

  “A bombing? Good Lord, Carter are you telling me there’s a girl missing and we’re out dancing? Have you lost your mind?” Jenna spun on her heel and pushed her way through the crowd. She could see Kane standing beside their table watching her.

  “Hey.” Carter grabbed her arm and spun her toward him. “Like I said, there’s nothing we can do right now.”

  In a surge of outrage, Jenna narrowed her gaze at him. “Do you have any feelings at all or did the military drain every last drop of humanity from you?” It took some effort to control her emotions because he just stood there and smiled at her. “Leaving Sheriff Crenshaw in charge of anything is as responsible as leaving a two-year-old with a Zippo and an open can of gas.”

  “There’s nothing you can do, Jenna.” Carter pulled a toothpick from his top pocket and slid it into his mouth. “You don’t have jurisdiction. He’s the local law enforcement and even a fool can hunt down the friends of a missing girl. It’s been almost twenty-four hours and if she was taken by the killer the chances of her being alive are negligible.”

  Fuming at his cold detached attitude, Jenna pulled away from the hand restraining her. “I would’ve called Crenshaw and offered my services, if anyone had told me.” She snorted. “Why did he call you?”

  “Maybe because the town doesn’t have to pay us for assistance.” Carter met her gaze. “You’re jumping to conclusions about the girl, Jenna. She could be safe in town with friends. That’s the first place we check, same as you do and Crenshaw is doing that as we speak. He was first responder. His men are chasing down next of kin and the names of witnesses. Wolfe and his team have documented the scene, we’ve even had the Black Rock Falls fire chief to do a report. Everything is being handled.” He sighed. “Apart from the missing girl, this case has turned up an anomaly we can’t ignore and is the reason we came here chasing you down. We want you and Kane to consult on the case. You’ll be working with us under the FBI umbrella, so no uniform. The freedom to move around would be like a dream come true for you guys, right?”

  “What’s going on here?” Kane pushed to her side. “You have half the town gawking at you.”

  Jenna looked up at him. Carter’s suggestion brought back nightmares she’d put to rest years ago. “Oh, nothing.” She rolled her eyes. “Carter just wants us to join the FBI as consultants.”
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  Seven

  Louan

  The first sweet smell of fire excited him. He loved watching flames lick the side of a building, the crackling of burning wood. He could stand forever watching the way fire waved its magic wand and changed everything it touched. Wood, converted to charcoal, misshapen and blackened, would never be the same. He craved the sound fire made as it roared and leapt to reach out in orange and yellow fingers to capture and consume everything in its path. The explosions of glass, scattering like a shower of diamonds to the ground and the pops and whines as flames gorged on furniture and prized possessions. The fleeting smell of hair followed by burning flesh never lasted long enough, and he wished he could be inside the swirling mass of heat to watch more closely. He’d pored over images of burn victims. In awe of the twisted limbs and gaping mouths of the charred remains. Had they screamed their last breath or was it the magic of the flame?

  Fire danced, he’d seen it with his own eyes, and a single flame multiplied from one lowly dancer into many. They joined to thunder their way through buildings and over rooftops. His heartbeat raced as he imagined watching a line of fire dancers streaking across the lowlands toward the trees. In the forest the fire changed again into a massive dragon, spewing fire in all directions and roaring its intent to destroy everything in its sight. Tall pines whined for a second before fire engulfed them in a whoosh of orange, so bright it hurt his eyes, first one and then a thousand in a wall of flames so high it reached the clouds.

  Smoke too had its own fascination. First it curled up and away in a white line, innocent and ethereal. Deceptive like a joker, it soon billowed into rolling gray or toxic black clouds. Smoke was as lethal as its brother. It burned lungs and suffocated, filling the air like an afterthought to capture anyone foolish enough to try and extinguish the flames. He enjoyed fire from the very first spark to the steam and hiss from water-soaked flames carrying the distinctive odor that stuck to his clothes. The blackened aftermath called to him. He had to go inside a burned-out shell of a building or walk through a blackened forest. It made him feel alive. Fire made him powerful.

  He dragged his thoughts away from his passion and leaned back in the seat of his truck to watch the sheriff and his deputies return to town. Behind them came the medical examiner from Black Rock Falls. They’d been out since dawn, maybe earlier. He’d no idea how much sleep they’d lost, nor did he care. The law had never worked in his favor and he despised every last one of them. The law hadn’t protected him as a child and as if fate had caught him in an endless loop of bureaucracy, not one of the goodie-two-shoes, procurers of children for foster homes, had been there to protect his son when he couldn’t. He opened his phone and pulled up the trail cam app to check on Sophie. He’d spent a great deal of time setting up the caves. The light ran on a battery but he’d had to run cable from the webcam to a wireless receiver outside the caves to counteract the magnetic force of the mountain. The effort and expense had been worth it. The sight of her helpless and scared made his lips curl into a smile. He’d taken her from her home without a fight. Her father had been weak and done nothing to protect his wife and daughters.

  He shook his head. A father should fight to the death for his family, a mother should protect her children. The law should protect children against monsters disguised as foster parents. He snorted. He’d walked right in the house when Sophie had taken out the trash, just like she did every night, and her parents had allowed him to play out his fantasy. Now he had Sophie and they were just charred remains. He stared at her again, curled up under the blanket waiting for him to return and smiled. There was no rush. She wasn’t going anywhere and he had all the time in the world. He accessed his blog and added an image of steaks sizzling on a grill. He wrote a post.

  Last night, I dropped by a friend’s place for a barbecue. His wife made a special effort to make me feel at home. I had a great time. In fact, the night went off with a bang. Everyone had a turn at the grill and I got to take some home to enjoy later.

  Eight

  The mood inside Kane’s truck was somber as they waited for Carter to collect Zorro and the assortment of bags and equipment from Maggie’s home in town. The knowledge there was a missing girl out there, probably in the hands of a pyromaniac murderer, ate at Jenna but her hands were tied. Without Crenshaw asking for her assistance, she could do nothing. When Maggie’s door opened again and Carter spilled onto the sidewalk, the Doberman danced around Carter’s legs in an uncharacteristic dance of joy before a click of his fingers had him fall into step beside him. Jenna had watched the affection Kane lavished on his bloodhound, Duke, and wondered if Carter treated his dog the same. Her concerns were answered when the dog jumped into the back seat between him and Jo. She turned to look at Carter. “Is he okay?”

  “Yeah.” Carter put an arm around Zorro and gave him a rub from ears to tail. “He knows I care about him but he expects orders from me. It’s how he’s wired. The burst of excitement at seeing me is a left over from when I took a bullet at one time during a tour. They took me away and there was no one left alive in my team to explain, he was part of our bomb squad. I was out of it for almost two days. He didn’t eat or drink for all that time. When I explained we worked as a unit and he won’t take orders from anyone but me they wanted to shoot him, so I dragged myself out of a field hospital and went to find him. It’s been okay working for the FBI in the city, but now we’re out west, things happen. Nobody knows us apart from Jo and the two of you.”

  Jenna stared at him and shrugged. The solution seemed easy enough. “Then add our phone numbers to the one on his collar. We’ll come get him if anything ever happens to you.”

  “I’m not shooting him if you’re stupid enough to get killed.” Kane turned in his seat to look at him. “No way.”

  “Once he knows I’m gone, Jo can take over.” Carter looked away. “We’ve been working with her.” He sighed. “I figured, since I’m working in your Godforsaken neck of the woods, I need a contingency plan.”

  Dumbfounded, Jenna swallowed hard and stared at Jo. “What are you two mixed up in, Jo?”

  “We’ll explain later.” Jo frowned. “Carter found something in the fire out of Louan. It’s complicated.”

  After getting their guests and dogs settled, Jenna made a pot of coffee and waited for Carter and Kane to haul in laptops and a couple of evidence boxes from the truck. When they’d finally sat around the kitchen table, Jenna looked from one strained expression to another. “Okay, I know seeing the results of the victims of a fire is harrowing but I’m sure this isn’t the reason you two are being so evasive. Why do you need us to assist you? You could call in any number of FBI agents from other field offices.”

  “Well, unless it’s involving the abduction of a child under the age of twelve, we’re expected to manage alone. It’s not usual to have cases like you have in Black Rock Falls all over the west.” Jo flicked a glance at Carter. “We need your help but we’ve come up with a security issue.”

  “It goes way up to the top.” Carter leaned on the table and stared straight at Kane.

  “Here we go.” Kane huffed out a snort of contempt and leaned back in his chair staring at the ceiling for a beat before lowering his gaze. “Security issue huh?” He gave Jenna a meaningful stare and then glared at Carter. “Do you figure us backwoods hicks can’t keep a secret?”

  Jenna held up a hand. Of course, they had no idea, Kane had a higher security clearance than anyone in the room. What had a fire in Louan to do with national security? “Okay calm down, Dave.” She glared at Carter. “If you can’t trust us why come here in the first place? Did you just want a bed for the night?”

  “No, Jenna.” Carter looked at her and smiled. “We’d sleep in the cells before we pulled a stunt like that.” He glanced at Jo. “Let’s cut to the chase. We trust Shane Wolfe. I gather you know he is ex-military and still has contacts. He insisted that we can trust you implicitly but what I’m about to tell you, never leaves this room.”

 
; Biting back the need to tell Jo and Carter the truth about her and Kane, she nodded. “That’s a given in any case we investigate. Every member of my team is fully aware of keeping the details of a crime secret. Nothing ever leaves my office or here without my permission.”

  “Okay.” Carter went to a sealed plastic box and pulled out an evidence bag. “When I did a search of the scene with Zorro, he found these fragments of the device used to detonate the C-4.” He placed the plastic bag on the table and Kane took it and examined it closely. “Do you know about explosives?”

  “Yeah, it just happens that I do.” Kane lifted his gaze to Carter. “This isn’t from the primary explosive charge, it’s from a secondary charge.”

  “Well, lookee here, a deputy with skills in explosives. A little knowledge can be a dangerous thing.” Carter grinned at him. “Worked in the mines before you became a deputy, huh?”

  “Nah, marines.” Kane narrowed his eyes. “I just chose an easier life after my tour of duty. I’d had enough killing.”

  Jenna looked from one to the other waiting for someone to throw the first punch. “Okay, can we get on with it? It will be midnight before Carter explains why this device is so darn important.”

  “Yes, get on with it, Carter.” Jo raised her eyebrows at Jenna. “I’ll pull up the files, so he can explain.” She went to work on her laptop.

  “Sure.” Carter took the evidence bag from Kane. “This is what you’d typically find in a cellphone used to detonate plastic explosives. When the phone rings, it closes a circuit and boom.” He pointed to the blackened remains of a cellphone. “The wiring in this phone is the same as we found in three explosions that occurred in DC some years ago. See the three dots of solder with the strikethrough, it’s unique, and a trademark of the creator. Two resulted in explosions and housefires. He hit the residences of a lawyer and a social worker, but the last one was different. He used the same type of device in a car bomb and the explosion resulted in the death of a high-ranking federal agent and his wife. We found nothing to link the crimes apart from the detonator.” He waved a hand at Jo. “This was the aftermath. I’ve just forwarded the crime scene files to both of you. They are classified as top-secret and the names of the victims are withheld but you’ll need the files for background on the bomber. The explosion in the vehicle was set to specifically kill the occupants, not to ignite the car—there was a small fire but it was extinguished immediately by a passerby. This type of explosive device takes skill and opportunity. It was set inside the vehicle and the agent survived the blast but unfortunately, died on the way to the hospital.”