by Desiree Holt
“I ain’t naming names,” he repeated,” but I will tell you your friend had gotten her teeth into something and wouldn’t leave it alone, no matter how many times she was warned.”
Sean glanced sideways at Zoe. She gave a tiny shake of her head. She didn’t know any of this. Whatever it was, Justine had never shared it with her.
“Can you give me a hint what she’d gotten into?”
He looked all around, as if he expected someone to jump out of the store area or the restrooms and blow his head off.
“She’d found out who the head man was.” He whispered the words so softly they were barely a whisper.
They had to strain to hear him.
“The head man?” Zoe repeated.
“Uh huh. She asked if she told me his name I could confirm it. Listen. I was nothing more than a low jerk on the totem pole, and saying anything could have cut my life short right then. Every single person involved in this whole business knew you were signing your death warrant if you ever said anything except you didn’t do it and you wanted an attorney.”
Zoe nodded. “Yes, you told me you had a lawyer. Where’d you get him?”
“From the public defender’s office. I heard whoever the attorney for the head honcho was had an arrangement that any of us guys that were picked up, the defender’s office would send one of two guys to take care of us.”
“He didn’t keep you out of jail,” Sean pointed out.
“He kept me from being dead. Got my charge reduced and made sure I was eligible for parole when the time came. That was good enough for me.” He shook his head. “But that Justine, she just couldn’t leave things alone. I hear she waylaid the public defender and tried to get him to tell her who he really reported to.”
Sean slid a glance at Zoe, who was looking sicker and sicker.
“My public defender suspected I knew who the head man was, but they couldn’t afford to get rid of me after they offed the other guy.”
Sean lifted an eyebrow. “Other guy?”
“Uh huh. The one they said died of a heart attack.”
Sean looked at Zoe, and she nodded. Rod Winkler.
“I overheard a conversation just before Winkler got killed.” Ridge leaned forward. “I was picking up stuff for my truck for deliveries, and the guy who ran the warehouse where I did pickups was there with another man. They didn’t know I was there, and I heard them talking. They said Montoya”—his voice dropped—“couldn’t afford to take a chance on the guy going to trial and shooting off his mouth. Even his lawyer from that big shot law firm said he had to go.”
Sean could see that Zoe was getting angrier and angrier but held it in well. It was very apparent Justine had been disposed of like used Kleenex to protect a multi-million dollar operation that had some powerful people connected with it.
They chatted a couple more minutes with him, but then he said he had to leave.
“My girlfriend told me to say my piece and get my ass the hell out of here, so that’s what I’m doing,” He looked directly at Zoe. “So, we square?”
“We are. And thanks. I promise to keep you out of this.”
Ridge slid out of the booth, and Sean signaled for the check. While they stood there he glanced out the big front windows. There were a bunch of cars in the parking lot, a couple of semis with familiar logos on them, the usual assortment of pickups, and one other semi with no lettering on it at all. It could be a rental, he thought, but they usually carried the logo of the rental company.
Alex had told them that Montoya’s operation hauled massive amounts of drugs up and down Montana highways in trucks like this. He was pretty sure no one had followed them here nor had Ridge had a tail. Sean had been watching for him out the window. But now, just because, something made him pull out his cell and take a picture through the window. He made sure to get the license plate included. Then he paid the bill and guided Zoe outside.
“I hope you aren’t going after the public defender or the guy in the prosecutor’s office by yourself.” He managed a smile. “You and I have barely got together. I’d like to be sure it lasts.”
She turned to him and searched his face. “Are we together, Sean?”
He hoped everything he was feeling showed in his eyes. He couldn’t wait until they got this mess cleared up so they could spend a week in bed together. He was sure he’d never get tired of exploring every inch of her body.
“As far as I’m concerned we are. For a long time I made it my business only to hook up with women very short term, but Zoe?” He cupped her chin and turned her face so she was forced to look in his eyes. “I’m not walking away from this one. Every minute makes me more sure of that. I know it’s fast, but when a friend of mine got married last year and I razzed him about it, he told me something I thought was a bag of shit at the time. He said, when it’s right, it’s right. So you’re stuck with me, scars and nightmares and all.”
Her smile warmed him. “Works for me.”
“Okay, then. We need to get out of here. Right now. Put a new plan of action together.”
“And I need to figure out how to get to Cal Woodrow without tipping my hand. I think he’s a major key to this whole thing. We need to dig up as much on him as we can so we have some leverage. I’ll bet Hank can do it. He can find out anything about anyone and how to leverage them.” She blew out a breath. ”If he’s being paid off by Montoya, we need to know it. Put pressure on him to admit it.”
“He’s not just gonna cave and cop to it,” Sean pointed out to her. “Look at the situation, He’s been doing this for way more than ten years. He’s no doubt built himself a position of power. He’s kept all these secrets, and others have, too. Fatal secrets, as it turns out. We have to be smart about this. They’ve already got eyes on you because you’re digging this all up again. I’m pretty sure no one’s going to kill you. That would open a whole can of worms. Bring too many questions. But they could find ways to hurt you. Send a message that way. Think they could put the fear of God into you.”
“I know, I know. I’ve thought about that.” Then she smiled at him. “But I have my protector with me. Right?”
Despite the fact he could practically feel the tension vibrating from her he gave her a reassuring nod. “Damn straight.”
And he’d better be on his toes.
She huffed a sigh. “We’re so close, Sean. I just know it. I’m so sure Justine found out about all the payoffs going on and began digging into anything and everything. What I’d like to know is how much she found out. I’ll bet she found it led back to Montoya and that’s what got her killed. This isn’t just about the book anymore. This is about justice for her.”
“We need to get back with Hank and Alex and see where we can go from here.”
“Hank can even put Brotherhood Protectors on this. Want me to text him? See if he’s available if we get back to the ranch right now? I’m sure he’ll feel better knowing we’re still alive and the meeting went well.”
“Yeah, go ahead.”
As she was texting Hank, he glanced in the rearview mirror. The semi from the truck stop had pulled out right after they did, along with a smaller truck and a couple of cars. It could be just coincidence, but that truck had nudged his Spidey sense to begin with. Was it too farfetched to think the other vehicles were with him? Had Ridge somehow been followed, and he didn’t know it? After all, that was what the place catered to. The semi stayed three car lengths behind them as they wound along the highway, the smaller truck and then a sedan taking up the space between them.
Everyone seemed to be paying attention to their own business, but Sean had fifteen years as a SEAL under his belt, and he’d learned to be suspicious of every single thing.
“Hank said he was finishing up a meeting in the Brotherhood war room at the ranch and then he has some time. He should be ready by the time we get home. And he says be careful.” She shook her head. “Like we need someone to tell us. But really, Sean. No one followed us from the ranch. You checked to
see if there was a tail behind us when we got to the truck stop, and you said no. Ridge is so far off their radar now, I can’t imagine them paying attention to him. That’s another reason why he was a good choice.”
“I never write anything off. Ever.”
“We’re getting close, Sean. I can feel it.”
Sean checked the rearview mirror again. The car and small truck had dropped back, and the big semi was now directly behind them. And it looked like he was pulling closer to them. What the fuck?
“Is there a road we can use to cut across to another highway?” he asked Zoe. “I can reprogram the GPS.”
“Just up ahead.” She sat forward and pointed through the windshield. “See? Where the highway curves to the right? Just past the little group of trees is a narrow road that cuts over. Why?”
“There’s a big-ass semi on our tail. I don’t know if he’s friend or enemy, but I want to get rid of him. Hang on.”
He pressed his foot on the accelerator, speeding up to reach the curve and the narrow road. Behind him the semi sped up also. Sean floored it, and he had just made the curve, was parallel to the trees when the semi apparently put on the gas, also. The whole thing only took seconds but, to Sean, it seemed to happen in slow motion.
“Get down,” he yelled to Zoe, and pushed her head down with his hand.
At that moment the big truck slammed into him with the force of a giant tank and shoved them into the little grouping of trees. The last thing he heard was the sound of the crash. Then his head hit the steering wheel, and the lights went out.
Chapter 10
Hank had a radio in the war room set to monitor police calls in a five-county area. Brotherhood Protectors often had cases going on in those counties, and he liked to know what was going on. When he heard the call go out for an auto crash on the road where the truck stop was that Sean and Zoe had been to, the first thing he did was call Alex.
“I heard it,” the sheriff said. He, too, monitored surrounding areas. “I’m on my way.”
“Me, too. If you get there before I do, please for all that’s holy call me and tell me what the situation is.”
He was twenty minutes into the drive when his phone rang. He snatched it out of the console cradle.
“Alex?”
“Yeah. I’m here.”
”Is it them?”
“It is.” There was a short pause. “It’s pretty bad, Hank.”
Nausea welled up in Hanks’s throat as panic gripped him. He had to swallow twice before he could say anything again.
“Are they—” He couldn’t get the words out.
“No, but it’s not good. Something pretty damn big, maybe a semi, smashed Sean’s truck into a bunch of trees. He’s got a concussion, for sure, and a broken arm. Don’t know about internal damage. But at least he’s awake, although pretty groggy.”
“And Zoe?” Hank clenched his fist until the nails dug into his palm.
“Not so good.” Alex paused. “She’s still unconscious. She also has a broken arm, and the EMTs think she may have a cracked rib or two. And there’s a possibility of internal bleeding.”
“Motherfucker.” Hank wanted to hit something. Or someone.
“They’re loading both of them into ambulances right now. Taking them to the trauma center in Billings.” He recited the name to Hank. “I’ve got the sheriff himself here, and we’ve all taken a bunch of pictures. He’s sending someone to the truck stop to take statements there in case anyone knows anything. And, Hank?” His voice dropped.
“Yeah?”
“Sean managed to give me his phone. All he said was ‘pictures,’ but I went to his photo file, and there’s some shots he took of a semi and a couple of other cars in the truck stop parking lot.”
“License plates?” Hank snapped.
“Believe it or not, yes. Your cousin is one smart cookie. I’m forwarding them to you. I could run them, but I think it’s better to keep them off the public lines. Your guys can do it better and more quietly.”
“I’ll call them now.”
“Don’t come here,” Alex told him. There’s nothing for you to see, and I’ve got shots of everything. Get to the hospital. I’ll meet you there.”
Hank disconnected the call, looked up the hospital address to program into his phone, and turned off onto a different highway. Then he pulled over to the shoulder of the road and called the war room. Charlie Zero (real last name Zalman) happened to answer the phone.
“Sadie said you took off like a bat out of hell,” he said to Hank. “She wants us to find out what the hell is going on.”
“She won’t like it, that’s for sure. I’ll call her myself, but here’s the gist.” He gave Charlie a brief but detailed account of everything he knew so far, which wasn’t fucking much.” I’m sending you some pictures of license plates. Run them through our secure systems. Alex doesn’t want them out on the public data bases. I’m emailing you the photos right now. Call me the minute you have something.”
“Will do.”
He pulled onto the highway again, let out a slow breath, and speed-dialed Sadie.
“Where the hell are you?” she answered the phone.
“I’m, uh, on the road.”
“I guess so. You ran out of here like your pants were on fire. What’s the emergency? And have you heard from Sean and Zoe?” One second later she said, “Wait. Is this about them? What’s happened? You’d better tell me right now, Hank Patterson.”
“I will, but just be calm, okay?”
Carefully he told her what he knew, doing his best to play down the seriousness of the situation.
There was a long moment of silence. “But they’re both still alive.”
“Yes. They are.”
“And you have a lead on who did this.” Statement, not question.
“I do. The guys in the war room are tracing license plates as we speak. Sadie, they’ll be fine. I’ll call you with an update from the hospital.”
Another moment of silence. Then…
“I’m calling that helicopter service. I’ll meet you there.”
He knew it was no use to argue with her. For one thing, the cost wasn’t a problem. Besides the nice living Hank made, Sadie had a fat bank account from her movie contracts. And trying to talk her out of this would be waste of time. One of her best friends was seriously hurt. Emma was still at a playdate. There was nothing stopping her.
“Be careful,” he told her.
“Without a doubt. See you soon.”
Baron (otherwise known as Elliott Craig, gripped his cell phone so hard it was a wonder he didn’t break the case.
“This is what you call taking care of things?”
“It’s a touchy situation,” Verne (Randall Vicks) told him. “Obviously, she doesn’t scare easily. We can’t go after her friend. That fucking Brotherhood Protectors outfit is worse than a secret army. That SEAL she’s hooked up with sticks to her like a barnacle to a boat. We had to figure out a way to stop them. That woman doesn’t stop until she finds out what she wants. My business is at stake. I can’t afford for her to keep running loose.”
“How did you set this up today, if I might be so bold as to ask?”
“We did our research on her, discovered she’d done a bunch of interviews with one of your low-level distributors and had testified at his parole hearing. We figured she’d get in touch with him and see if he knew anything. We put trackers on his piece-of-shit car and his girlfriend’s. That’s how we knew where he was going. When we saw our targets there, I figured it would be a good way to handle this. Didn’t you say an auto accident might work well?”
“I did, but that was then. Things have been changing. We needed to find another answer.”
“The answer,” Mac broke in, “is to get rid of her, and anyone else who has the least idea of what happened before and what’s going on now. Get someone to the hospital and find out what’s going on. I want to know ASAP. Somebody better make this mess go away.”
&nb
sp; “If you’d listened to me ages ago,” Baron told him, “you might have avoided this whole thing. Fix it now.”
Verne looked at his cell when the call ended. And just how was he supposed to do that?”
Everyone was still in the trauma center when Hank got to the hospital. He found Alex at once, standing impatiently in the waiting area.
“What’s the status?” he demanded.
“Sean has a fractured forearm. Not a full break , so that’s good. Bruises everywhere and a concussion, which means they’re keeping him overnight so he can be awakened and checked every couple of hours. Although they may have to tie him to the bed to do it. His vision is still a little blurry. He can grip a hand okay but his balance is a bit off.”
“And how is she doing?” Hank almost didn’t want to ask the question.
“Broken collarbone. Thought it was the arm at first. Also lots of bruises. A severe concussion. She was still unconscious when they took her into surgery.”
“Surgery for what?” Hank imagined all kinds of dire things.
Alex’s face was very serious. “They’re having to remove her spleen”
“Shit,” Hank spat out. “Just plain shit. How long will she be in surgery?”
“Hard to say. And Sean, as out of it as he is, keeps demanding to see her. This is one huge shitstorm.”
“For which we’d better have some answers.”
At that moment, the doors to the trauma waiting area opened again, and Sadie strode in.
“Where is she, and what’s the status?” She glared at everyone.
“It was close to an hour before everyone was satisfied they had all the information available. Zoe would be going to ICU, and Sean was causing a riot, yelling about Zoe. They finally got it all sorted out and Alex, Hank, and Sadie settled into the big private room Sadie had ordered them to move Sean to. The three of them were standing against the wall, chatting softly, when they heard Sean’s gruff voice.