Trail of Lies

by Margaret Daley

  “Thompson was traced to a country with no extradition agreement.”

  “So he’s alive and skipped the country. I would say that is an admission of guilt.”

  “But it makes questioning him very hard. Levi has asked a judge for a warrant to search his office and home for any evidence. Maybe Thompson left something behind to help us.”

  “But you don’t think so?”

  “He’s had a while to cover his tracks—ever since we requested the paperwork involving the restaurant chain. I doubt this was a spur of the moment getaway.”

  “Great. We’re right back where we started with a lot of questions and no answers.” Tired, overwhelmed by all the dead ends, Melora leaned against the headstone, staring down at the photo of Bailey. “What do we do now?”

  “I’m going to finish checking this gravesite out then we’ll go back and get Gisella’s input on where to look next.” Daniel approached her and slipped the whole photograph display off the headstone, then opened the back of it. He fished around in the box-like container and withdrew something wrapped in a waterproof covering. After peeling it away, he revealed a flash drive. “Bingo.”

  THIRTEEN

  Back at the house, Daniel connected the flash drive to the computer in the office and waited for the files to pop up on the screen. Behind him stood Melora, her spicy scent reminding him of the cinnamon rolls he used to love when he was a child. “I hope this will give us some answers.”

  As a series of initials and numbers came up on the monitor, Melora shook her head. “This doesn’t make any sense. What do they mean?”

  “It’s got to be some kind of code Axle had.”

  “Leave it to Axle not to make things simple.”

  Daniel chuckled. “The story of my life.”

  Melora leaned closer, over his shoulder and pointed at the letters BHTX. “TX for Texas?”

  For a few seconds his concentration deviated from the information. He swung his head toward Melora. Their gazes met. Her nearness stole his breath until the sound of his cell ringing cut into the silence hovering between them.

  He fumbled for his phone and said, “Riley here.”

  “I’m at the hospital guarding Quin today,” Oliver said after he identified himself. “I thought I would let you know that it looks like he might wake up soon. He’s been moving more than usual. The doctors are optimistic.”

  “Good. If he does, call me immediately. I can be there in half an hour.”

  “I’ll let you know if there’s a change.”

  After Daniel hung up and set his cell down next to the computer, he glanced toward Melora who had backed away several feet, an unreadable expression on her face. “Quin might be waking up. If he does, I’d like you to be there when I talk with him. Maybe your presence will help loosen his tongue.”

  “I’ll do anything to end this.” She kept her distance as though regretting her nearness earlier.

  He forced his attention away from her and on the screen. “A lot of these have initials that end in TX. It’s reasonable to think TX means Texas. If that’s the case we can start by seeing what towns start with the first letters.”

  “It could be a business name.”

  “Yeah or a person. All possibilities will have to be tracked down.”

  “And the numbers? An address or phone number?”

  “Or latitude and longitude. Or the amount of a shipment going in or out. There are a lot of possibilities.”

  “In other words, days and days of more work tracking down all the leads.”

  He heard the deflated tone in her voice and wanted to reassure her that it would come to an end soon, but he wouldn’t give her false hope. “We’ll do our best.” He continued to scan through the numbers and initials until close to the end of the document. A series of notes glared off the bright screen—a few that were obvious what they meant—some couched in vague words that left him even more puzzled.

  Melora moved closer again and touched the computer monitor. “Uncle Tyler wasn’t Axle’s partner, but his boss. And this one confirms William Thompson was involved with both of them. This is worse than I thought. My uncle betrayed me from the beginning. I kept hoping he didn’t know what was happening with Axle.” Her disbelief evolved into anger. If the three men in question had walked through the door at that moment, the glare from her eyes would have struck them down.

  “Axle brought the drugs into the country, then your uncle took over from there. I don’t think Tyler trusted Axle totally. All the references to the distributors are vague as though Axle didn’t know who they were, only bits and pieces.”

  “Why did Axle write all this down?”

  “For insurance? Axle didn’t trust Tyler, either? Axle was trying to figure it all out to make a move against your uncle? We may never know exactly.”

  “No honor among drug runners.” Her mouth pressed in a tight line, she pointed at the screen. “Look at that reference.”

  “Tyler’s contact at Mercy continues to be the best distributor in the area.”

  “Mercy Hospital? Where I volunteer?”

  “Where Quin is. Possibly. A hospital and drugs certainly go together.”

  “What’s that number at the end of the sentence mean?”

  “Good question. A room number, an extension number for the contact?” Daniel printed the document then closed it on the computer.

  “Maybe a room number, but not the other. They all start with 7.”

  He gathered up the sheets after they printed. “If it’s Mercy. I think the best way to find out is to check the place out. See what this number gives me.”

  “I’m coming with you.” He started to protest her involvement when she hurriedly added, “I know the hospital and the people who work there. I might be able to help.”

  He frowned. “You should stay here.”

  “Why? I’m safe with you. I’ve got to do something. I feel so helpless. That way Gisella only has to worry about Kaitlyn.”

  Shaking his head, he scooted the chair back from the desk. “I’m only agreeing because I think you can help. And while we’re there, we’ll stop by and see if anything is happening with Quin. Besides, knowing you, you’d probably follow me.”

  “I’d rather ride with you.” She gave him an impish smile that tempted him to forget he wasn’t the kind of man she needed.

  “Fine. Let’s find Gisella and tell her what we’re doing.”

  Melora headed out of the office several steps in front of him. Determination marked her action, her arms stiff at her sides. Although they’d found the flash drive, she would never be safe until he figured out who had killed her husband. Had it been her uncle all along? Even if it was him, who had hired Walker to come after her family?

  Gisella and Kaitlyn were in the den, trying to coax Patches out from under the couch.

  Gisella straightened up when she saw Melora and Daniel coming into the room. “What’s up?”

  “We’re going to Mercy Hospital to check some things out.” While Melora covered the space between her and Kaitlyn, Daniel drew Gisella out into the hallway and handed her the printed pages and the flash drive. “I’ll have Anderson come pick this up. I think we found the information everyone has been looking for.”

  Gisella flipped through several pages. “What in the world does BHTX mean or GATX? Something in Texas?”

  “Probably. That’s what we’ll need to figure out.”

  “I see BHTX is in here several times.”

  “Yeah, I noticed a couple of initials were.”

  “Is this everything on the flash drive?” Gisella thumbed the sheaf of paper she held.

  “Yes, pages of initials and numbers and references to the network Tyler Madison and Axle set up. One being a contact at Mercy.”

  “And you think it is the hospital?”

  “Could be. While I’m checking out the hospital, see what else Mercy might be.”

  “I know of a Mercy Assisted Living Center not far from where I live. I’ll track
down a list of other places.”

  “Great. Give me a call when you have it.”

  As Gisella went back into the den, Melora came out of the room. “Kaitlyn finally got Patches out from under the couch. With all that has happened lately, that cat might need a pet psychologist.”

  Making his way down the stairs, he slid a glance toward her. “There is such a thing?”

  She shrugged. “It wouldn’t surprise me. Look at the extremes Axle went to for his dog. I also knew a friend of my uncle’s who used to send her cat on a vacation to a five-star pet hotel once a year.”

  After settling into his truck, Daniel placed a call to Anderson to let him know about the flash drive, then to his captain to give him an update. By the time he completed his second call, they were halfway to the hospital.

  “If it is someone at Mercy Hospital, do you think Quin is safe, especially if he wakes up?” Melora asked, drawing his attention at a stoplight. “He may know who the person at the hospital is. What if my uncle was about to tell me something and was silenced?”

  “Walker wasn’t hired to kill you, but your uncle? Looking into Walker’s background and his training as a sniper, I wouldn’t doubt that at all.” He pulled into the parking lot at the hospital. “We’ll check Quin first then look for the number.”

  Five minutes later, Daniel and Melora stepped off the elevator. He scouted the area, searching for anything unusual. Normal activity hummed around him, staff going about their duties. “Let’s go.” Taking Melora’s hand, he hurried toward room 414. “I’ll just stick my head in to see what’s going on with Quin and let Oliver know we’re in the hospital.”

  Daniel settled his hand on the handle and thrust the door open to Quin’s room. Not seeing Oliver, he took a couple of steps inside. Something hard came down on his head. The room spun before his eyes. Right before darkness swallowed him up, he heard Melora scream.

  Melora followed Daniel into the coma man’s room a few steps behind him. She saw him crumble to the floor. The sight produced a scream that erupted from her mouth.

  Right before she swung her attention to Jorge holding the barrel of a gun as though he’d used it to strike Daniel.

  Her gaze latched on to Jorge’s security badge and noticed his ID number was 5389, the same numbers that were written down next to the sentence about Mercy on Axle’s flash drive. She tried to back out of the open doorway, sounds of running footsteps coming down the hall behind her. Jorge’s wide gaze took in what was happening in the corridor. He quickly covered the space between her and grabbed her, plastering her against his chest.

  “Don’t try anything stupid, Melora, or I’ll kill you.” He moved out into the hallway, the gun pressed to her temple. “Get back or I’ll shoot her. Now!” he shouted to the people responding to her scream.

  They all stepped away and gave Jorge room to escape. Dragging Melora with him, he headed toward the elevator.

  Daniel heard voices coming from the corridor. A man shouting, someone weeping. He willed his eyes to open although his head throbbed, pain threatening to push him back into the dark void.

  He blinked and focused on a nurse bending over him. “What happened?”

  “Dr. Cantana has taken Melora as a hostage. He went to the elevator.”

  Struggling to sit up, the room spinning, Daniel managed with the nurse’s help to get to his elbows and survey the area. Oliver lay on the floor off to the side out of the view of anyone coming into 414. Another nurse was tending to his friend. Daniel’s gaze swept to Quin in the bed. The monitor indicated he was still alive, and for a second he allowed relief to flutter through him as he tried to think clearly.

  Then the words the nurse had just said fully registered. Dr. Cantana has taken Melora. He pushed himself up farther. Swayed. Nearly collapsed back to the floor. He didn’t have time to be wounded. He bit down hard and drudged up all the willpower he had to stand. Finally, he rose slowly. Each second it took him eroded his patience.

  Melora’s life was in danger. He’d promised her he would keep her safe.

  “We need to lock down the hospital, call the police and the Texas Rangers,” he said to the head of security for the hospital who had burst into the room as Daniel got his bearings.

  The nurse who bent over Oliver said, “He’s alive.”

  “Was he hit?” Daniel asked while the pounding of his head amplified all the noise around him. But at least the room wasn’t swaying as a doctor rushed into it.

  “I don’t see any kind of head trauma or gunshot wound,” the nurse said.

  The doctor knelt next to Oliver, spied something under the bed and reached for it. He held up a syringe, empty of any contents. “Becky, I need this analyzed stat.”

  More medical help arrived. Daniel pulled the security chief out into the hallway to allow the doctors and nurses to work on Oliver. “We need to check the hospital security cameras to see where Dr. Cantana is taking Melora.”

  “Come this way.”

  As Daniel made his way to the security office, he received a call from Evan. “I’m going to check the cameras then start looking. Coordinate a floor-to-floor search with the police.”

  “I’m pulling into the parking lot.”

  Daniel disconnected as he and the security chief entered his office. Had they locked down the hospital fast enough?

  Sweat drenched Melora, more from fear than the stifling heat in the basement. “Why are you doing this?” She slowed her pace, hoping to delay Jorge as much as possible. Was Daniel all right? Did Daniel know what happened to her?

  “I’ve got to get out of here. You’re my ticket out of the hospital.”

  She’d seen security cameras mounted in certain strategic locations about the building, but few were on this bottom floor and none in the stairwell they’d used. “They know you’re the person they’re after. Give yourself up. I’m sure you can make a deal with the authorities to testify against the people—”

  “Shut up.” Jorge grabbed her, his fingers digging into her arm. “Don’t you understand what they do to people who cross them? Your husband is dead. He tried to get a bigger slice than he was supposed to. They don’t take kindly to that. I’ve messed up, and they won’t be pleased with me. I couldn’t even kill Quin. You and that Ranger had to come in and let the whole floor know.”

  “Who are they?” The wild-eyed look, like a trapped animal forced to fight to the end, Jorge gave her unnerved her.

  “Your uncle is dead because he was going soft. Wanted to protect you at all cost. They couldn’t trust him or you any longer. And they couldn’t afford for the information Axle had complied to be found. Your uncle and I were given the task of finding Axle’s info. He threatened them. Them. Axle was insane to think he should get a bigger cut of the action.” Shoving her forward, he waved her along with the gun. “Keep moving. If I get out of here, I’ll be able to get away. I’ve planned for this. I have enough money stashed to disappear where no one will find me.”

  “Where are we going?”

  “I’m hoping they haven’t thought about this back entrance into the building. If they have, then I have you to get me out of here. I saw how that Ranger was hovering over you at your uncle’s funeral. He’s not going to let anything happen to you. I’m counting on his cooperation if he wants to see you alive again.” His voice went from frantic to icy as though he were finally getting enough control over his fear to do what he needed to get away.

  She needed to come up with a way to escape. “There’s always Witness Protection.”

  He laughed, a high-pitched sound. “I have my family to think about. I’m not going to be taken, Melora.”

  Alive. He hadn’t said that word, but that was what he meant. She heard it in his voice. She saw it in the resolve in his expression as she glanced back at him. “Did you kill Axle?”

  “Clyde Walker did. Axle and his bodyguard both. Your uncle ordered it.”

  The feeling of betrayal multiplied, and she had to resist the urge to give into it. Not
now. She had to remain as calm as possible if she wanted to stay alive. “But you hired Clyde Walker to carry out the hit two years ago.”

  “Yes, but I didn’t have anything to do with the death of your uncle. They did. They should have found someone else. Clyde was becoming unpredictable. I suspected he was taking drugs, but I needed someone fast and he’d done a good job in the past. He was just supposed to frighten you so you wouldn’t say anything to the police.”

  Listening to Jorge tell her what he’d done made her realize she wouldn’t get out of this alive unless she did something about it. Jorge wasn’t going to let her go when he got away from the hospital. She knew too much, and this man she’d known for years was losing it.

  Before she turned the next corner, Jorge gripped her arm and hauled her back against him. The barrel of the gun poked into her back, doubling her already fast heart rate.

  Lord, help me. What do I do?

  Walking in sync with Jorge, Melora rounded the corner at the end of the dim corridor and came to a halt. Furniture stacked against the wall and door blocked the exit.

  A curse exploded from Jorge’s lips, singeing her ears with his fury. Sounds coming from the hallway they had used reverberated through the air. Footfalls.

  Thoughts of a shootout made her stumble as Jorge shoved her toward the furniture, his gaze darting back the way they came. She fell against a desk, toppling a chair to the cement floor. The loud crash sent panic through her as her gaze flew to Jorge’s enraged face.

  Suddenly, Melora felt as trapped as Jorge must feel.

  Watching Jorge direct Melora toward the stairs on the video footage from a few minutes ago, Daniel clenched his hands at his sides, wanting to pound his fist into the doctor’s face. The pale look of fear on her face tore at his composure, something he needed at the moment. “Where do you think he would go?” He’d downed several painkillers so he could function. There was no way he wasn’t going to be involved in finding Melora.