The Marshal's Prize (Harlequin American Romance)

by Winters, Rebecca

  “Do you get any vibes from the guy with the clipboard?”

  “Randy’s nice and friendly, but maybe it’s a cover. One thing I’ve noticed. Only Harold and I were doing the counting of the bags. Randy just checked the load off at the end. There was no sign of Lucas, who’s supposed to be in charge of quality control. I understood he does it while the carts are loaded. I’ll find out more when I go over the tapes tonight.”

  “Don’t kill yourself out there and ruin that arm, Mitch.”

  “I’m all right.” He downed the rest of his Coke. “Now I’ve got to go.” He thanked the guys and drove back to the plant to start his afternoon shift. The truck they’d loaded had already left the bay and a new one stood parked at the dock ready to load.

  Harold joined him as he was putting the last bag on the dolly before starting to fill up the truck. “Who are you trying to impress?”

  Just for fun Mitch flashed him a quick smile. “You.”

  Harold wasn’t amused. “Eager beavers can wear out fast.”

  “Would you like me to slow down? Just say the word.”

  The other man frowned before turning away and getting to work. For the rest of the afternoon they loaded shipments for San Diego, California, through Las Vegas and Utah. So far no bags of flour were in the bunch, but he still had a hundred more bags to load before the truck was full.

  Suddenly his adrenaline surged. Fifty of the last hundred bags had red tags. Something different was going on with this truckload. Maybe because the thieves hadn’t been caught yet, they’d grown more daring. While he piled the last of the bags onto the dolly, Harold again made his way to Randy’s office.

  Mitch worked the slider and shoved it around. According to the yellow card, this last load of two hundred and fifty bags was headed for Beaver, Utah, a small town a couple of hours south of Woods Cross. He attached the strap and put the card in the pocket. With the truck loaded, he set the dolly against the side wall and walked down the ramp.

  Once more Randy came out of his office and checked off the shipment. He flicked Mitch and Harold a friendly glance. “Great job today. In case you’ve forgotten, we’re closed for the twenty-fourth on Monday because of Pioneer Day. See you on Tuesday morning.”

  “Thanks for the reminder, Randy. Good night,” he said to both of them.

  Mitch hurried out of the plant to his car and drove it to the surveillance van. Once inside, he changed into a T-shirt and jeans. “I made a fascinating new discovery, guys.” He put his New York Yankees baseball cap on backward. “The truck you’ll see leaving in a few minutes is headed for Beaver, ostensibly with an order of two hundred and fifty bags of mix. But fifty of the bags are flour.”

  Lyle let out a whistle. “Why are they stealing the flour?”

  “Who knows? I’m going to follow it and see what happens. I might need backup.”

  “Phil’s available.”

  “Good. Tell him to get down to I-15 on Thirty-third South and wait to hear from me.”

  “We’re on it.”

  “Keep your eyes on the storage rooms. The switches will be happening pretty soon. Lucas is supposed to count the bags loaded on the carts. You’ve been given pictures of the main players and will be able to spot him if he’s there doing his job. Let me know.”

  “Will do.”

  He got back in his car and called Roman to give him a progress report. Just as he disconnected, he saw the Bauer truck head for the entrance to the freeway headed south. He switched on the ignition and followed.

  * * *

  “MOM? CAN WE DRIVE TO Tim’s with my bike? I want to cycle with him.”

  Now that school was over for the week, Heidi was glad he had someone else on his mind besides Mitch. She couldn’t say the same for herself. Mitch had been working at the plant all day. She was anxious to know what he’d found out. More than that, she was eager to hear his voice.

  “Sure, but before we go, we need to have a little talk.”

  His blue eyes fastened on her. “Am I in trouble?”

  She chuckled. “No, honey. But if anyone should ask, just tell them a guy in our neighborhood helped you learn to ride without your training wheels. Don’t mention that Mitch has been training with the company.”

  “How come?”

  “Because it’s temporary and pretty soon he’ll be going back to Florida.”

  A frown appeared. “How come?”

  “It’s his home, remember?”

  “Oh, yeah.” He looked downcast. “Do you like Mitch?”

  “Of course.”

  “Me, too.” No kidding. “I wish he didn’t have to leave.”

  Heidi gave him a kiss on the forehead to cover her feelings, then phoned Sharon to make the arrangements. Before long Zack and Tim were cruising around his neighborhood using the walkie-talkies. While her sister-in-law was getting dinner ready for her family, Heidi volunteered to watch the kids from the front porch.

  Later Sharon came outside. “When did the training wheels come off?”

  “A couple of days ag— Uh-oh, that’s my phone. I’d better get it.” Saved by the bell. Heidi reached into her purse for her cell and clicked on. “Hello?”

  “I’m glad you picked up.” Mitch’s voice.

  Since Sharon was within earshot, Heidi had to improvise. “Hi! What’s the verdict on Jim?”

  “Obviously you can’t talk. Call me when you can.” He disconnected. Mitch was all business, letting her know something serious was going on.

  She gripped her phone tighter. “That’s good news, Phyllis. Thanks for letting me know. Bye.” Heidi clicked off.

  “What was that about?”

  “Work. Jim’s the baker at the Foothill Shop. He doesn’t have to go in for surgery, after all. Now I won’t have to find a substitute.”

  “One less headache for you.”

  “You’re right.”

  “Are you sure you won’t stay for dinner?”

  “You’re sweet, but tonight Zack wants me to watch the Clone Wars with him on TV. The show will be starting in a half hour. Thanks, anyway.”

  After hugging Sharon, she called to Zack, who came speeding up the driveway. Once they put his bike in the trunk, they were ready to go.

  “See ya, Tim.”

  “See ya, Zack.” He handed him the walkie-talkie.

  On their way home, she darted her son a glance. “I bet Tim was surprised.”

  “He couldn’t believe it. I told him Mitch gave me the walkie-talkies, too. He wants to go to that spy shop.”

  Oh, dear. “Who wouldn’t? Did you guys have a good time?”

  “Yes, but he’s not as fun as Mitch.”

  Nope. Heidi was fast discovering there was no one like Mitch.

  “Do you think he could come over to our house tonight and watch the bike race with us?”

  “Not tonight.”

  “Why not?”

  “He’s still at work.”

  Once they were back home, she told him to wash his hands while she fixed fruit salad and homemade corn dogs for their dinner. While he was occupied, she called Mitch, but all she got was his voice mail. Whatever he was doing, he’d sounded intense earlier.

  While she was fixing dinner, the phone rang again. She grabbed it. “Mitch?”

  “No,” sounded another familiar voice. “It’s your mom. I’ve got the speaker on so your father can hear us, too.”

  “Oh, hi!” she exclaimed, hardly able to think. “I thought it was someone else. Are you two already home? I assumed you wouldn’t get back before tomorrow.”

  “We’re just leaving Rock Springs, Wyoming, and ought to be in Salt Lake in about three hours. It’ll be too late for you to come over to the house, so we t
hought we’d call and see how you are.”

  “Zack and I are fine.” That was the understatement of the century. “How are you? How’s Evy?”

  “Everyone’s great and little Stacy is adorable.”

  “I can’t wait to see this new baby.”

  “They promised to come for Thanksgi—”

  “Mom—” Zack came bounding in the kitchen, breaking in on the conversation “—is that Mitch?” Heidi’s mother couldn’t have failed to hear him.

  She turned her head toward him. “It’s your grandma. Do you remember we don’t talk when we see one of us is on the phone?”

  “I forgot. Are they home?”

  She gave up. “They will be later tonight.”

  “Can I talk to her?”

  Heidi handed him her cell. She already knew what he was going to tell his grandparents. For the next minute they couldn’t get a word in edgewise as he rhapsodized over his experiences with Mitch. Now that he’d been exposed to the world of the Tour de France, he couldn’t talk enough about it or the man who’d breathed confidence into him without even trying.

  “I love you, too, Grandma. Here’s Mom.” He handed her the phone. “Hurry. The Clone Wars are going to start and then I want to watch and see if any more guys crash their bikes in the race.”

  “Not until you sit down and eat.” She took a deep breath, then said, “Hi, Mom.”

  “Hi. I can’t decide who sounded more excited when they thought it was Mitch.”

  Heidi felt her face go hot. “Does he have a last name?”

  “Yes. It’s Garrett. He’s the P.I.,” she whispered so that Zack wouldn’t hear. As far as she knew her parents had never kept secrets from each other, so she had to assume her mother knew about the thefts. If she didn’t, then her mom would ask Heidi’s father when they hung up. “Tell you what. As soon as I’ve fed Zack, I’ll call you back. I promise.”

  * * *

  MITCH WOULD HAVE ANSWERED Heidi’s phone call, but the truck driver had suddenly switched lanes and taken the turn off for Draper, one of the communities in South Salt Lake. He’d only been on the road about forty minutes. Heidi said the trucks were gassed up every time they left the bay, so maybe the driver was stopping for dinner and a bathroom break.

  Or maybe he wasn’t.

  The driver turned left and took several roads before coming to a medium-size storage facility. He knew the combination to get in because the gate opened from the side before closing again. The office wasn’t closed yet. Mitch parked his car and went in, asking if he could rent a shed. When the paperwork was done, he was given the key and the combination to the gate before going back outside.

  Phil, from Lufka, had pulled up next to his car. Mitch walked over to him. “I’m going in with my car. If by any chance I miss the truck, you follow it and I’ll catch up.” Phil nodded.

  Once inside, Mitch drove around the mazelike facility until he spied the Bauer truck at one end of the K section in front of the last shed. Next to it was an older dark blue pickup. Three guys, all in their twenties, were moving bags from the truck into the pickup as fast as they could. Mitch pulled out his binoculars, but didn’t recognize any of them from the application photos.

  They hadn’t opened any of the shed doors. Mitch wondered if the storage sheds were even being used, but he would come back later to find out. This was the perfect spot to transfer the bags where no one would think anything about it. He filmed them for a minute, then drove out to join Phil.

  “What’s up?”

  “Before long you’ll see a blue pickup with three guys come through the gate. They’ve taken a bunch of bags from off the truck. I’ll follow them while you wait for the Bauer truck. See where it stops next, then call me. If you need backup, holler.”

  No sooner had he gotten back in his car when the big truck left the facility first and started down the road for the freeway. He exchanged glances with Phil who took off after it. It was five minutes before the pickup appeared. All three guys rode in front.

  First they stopped at a drive-thru. Mitch was right behind them and ordered a sandwich. He phoned in the license plate number to Lon, a retired police officer who worked for Lufkas. He would find out the information. Next, the pickup drove out to the freeway and headed south. When it took the Alpine turn off five minutes later, Mitch called Phil.

  “Are you in Alpine, too?”

  “No. The truck’s headed due south at a fast clip.”

  “If it’s supposed to be in Beaver by a certain time, I’m not surprised the driver is trying to make up for lost time at the storage place. Don’t follow it past its next stop, since we know the rest of the shipments haven’t been switched. Stay in touch.”

  “Ditto.”

  Mitch checked Alpine’s population on his iPhone. 9500 inhabitants. If there was a Bauer outlet here, then this stop hadn’t been put on the normal schedule. But the Bauer truck driver knew to stop in Draper at the storage rental to make a delivery. Was the driver acting on his own? Or was he following orders from the mastermind of this scheme?

  Full of questions, Mitch followed the pickup to the business center. When they came to a small strip mall with a variety of shops still open, they drove around to the alley behind it and stopped at the center shop so the tailgate faced the door.

  Someone from inside the shop opened the door for them. Quickly the driver lowered the tailgate and climbed in the truck bed. He began handing bags to the others, who carried them inside. Mitch had parked near some other cars and got it all on film. Once the load had been delivered, the guy from the shop shut the door and the three guys all got back in the pickup.

  The pickup then went to a supermarket a mile away and pulled into the crowded parking lot. Two of the guys got out and walked to their own cars. Mitch took down their license plate numbers, but he stayed with the pickup and followed it for about a mile, to a small, framed house. The driver drove around the back of it.

  When the pickup disappeared, Mitch noted the address, then made a U-turn and drove back to the strip mall. The center shop was called Drop In Family Pub, and it featured music, games, homemade pizza and donuts. Mitch decided this was a great time to pay a visit.

  The place brought in a good crowd. He wandered inside, paid for a round of pool, then bought two donuts for takeout from the good-looking young woman at the counter. They didn’t serve alcohol.

  He smiled at her. “This is a great place,” he said with a Southern accent. “How long y’all been in business?”

  “About six months. The same time the movie complex went in down the street. Why not try our pizza, too? It’s new on the menu.”

  “I don’t know. I’m not a big pizza fan.”

  “This is different. Secret recipe,” she confided. “I promise you’ll like it.”

  “All right, sugar. You’ve talked me into it. I’ll take a medium with Canadian bacon.”

  After she’d boxed one up for him, he winked at her. “If I like it, I’ll be back.”

  “Don’t take too long. My name’s Georgia. What’s yours?” A flirt, too.

  “I’ll tell you the next time I come in. See y’all around.”

  As far as he could tell, there were two other employees circulating. Both were guys in their twenties. Much as he wanted to ask more questions—like who was the owner—this wasn’t the time to arouse suspicion.

  He left the pub and headed back to Salt Lake. On the way he heard from Phil who’d watched the truck drop off the delivery in Beaver at the Bauer outlet. Now he was on his way back home.

  Mitch told him about the pub in Alpine. After they’d talked shop, he phoned Heidi. Eight-thirty wasn’t too late. Since it was a Friday, she probably hadn’t put Zack to bed yet.

  “Mitch?” She’d answered before the second ring. H
e thought he heard a tinge of anxiety in her tone. “Are you all right?”

  More than all right now that he heard her voice. “I couldn’t be better. What about you?”

  “I’m fine.” She sounded a trifle impatient. “I’m dying to hear what’s been happening. I got a little worried when you didn’t answer.”

  “I couldn’t right then. Is it too late to come by your house?”

  “Of course not.”

  “What about Zack?”

  “He’s in the tub. I’ll be putting him to bed in a minute because he’s going to see his grandparents in the morning. They’ll be home late tonight. Now that you’ve helped him learn to ride his bike, he can’t wait to show them. On the phone he told them that one day he wanted to ride in the Ter da Frants.” She mimicked Zack’s pronunciation of the Tour de France. “That’s your doing.”

  Mitch chuckled in delight. “I’ll be there in twenty minutes. I’ve brought food.”

  “I was just going to say I’d make you a homemade corn dog. That’s what we had for dinner.”

  “What a coincidence since I’m bringing you something homemade. See you in a little while. I’ll knock.” He hung up because he knew she needed to get Zack to bed.

  As his car ate up the miles, he felt as if he hadn’t seen her in years. If he felt like this now, how was he going to feel when he put the distance of the country between them? The way this case was going, it would be wrapped up shortly.

  When he thought of the condo in Tallahassee he’d been subletting, the idea of returning to its emptiness left him cold. But he knew Lew wanted him back there soon or he’d have to bring in another marshal. Mitch needed to make up his mind. If he wanted to stay with the marshals, he didn’t want to work anywhere else in Florida except Tallahassee, otherwise…

  Otherwise what, Garrett? Your mother might come looking for you and not be able to find you? Are you still hung up on that childhood dream?

  Since meeting Zack, memories of Mitch’s own childhood had been surfacing right and left. The boy had a fantastic mother and a strong support system that would see him happily through life. But in Zack’s vulnerable moments brought on because his father wasn’t around, Mitch saw himself in the boy.