Deserving of Death (CJ Washburn, PI Book 1)

by James Paddock

  CJ could also tell that this wasn't the first time Agent Stratton had to dance around the top dog of a city police department.

  "Fine. I'll keep you informed." Stratton hung up and looked at Josh. "I hope to hell you've got something?"

  Josh held up a finger for a few seconds, said into the phone, "Thanks. Call as soon as you have something else." To Stratton he said, "They've got one name on flights to and from New York the days around Clark's mother's death. John Dorne. They're checking that name against flights from Tucson or Phoenix during the Idaho thing."

  "Good," Stratton said. "Have you found Crane?"

  "Not yet."

  "I'll find him. You run with John Dorne. Find out if there is such a person living in the Tucson area. If so, do a face-to-face." He punched a button on his phone and put it to his ear.

  As Josh swung his chair around to a computer, his phone chirped.

  "Washburn," he said. He listened for a time and then said, "Thanks. That may be the golden spike."

  When he looked up after holstering his phone, his dad said, "Don't keep us in suspense. What's the golden spike?"

  "I had a hunch this morning while walking the perimeter so I called New York to have someone take another look at Kevin's medical record. What I wanted to know was how many fingers he had. The call I just received was my callback."

  CJ's eyebrows went up.

  "He's missing the little finger on his right hand, a kitchen accident seven years back."

  "Hold on," Stratton said into his phone and then turned to Josh. "What did you just say?"

  Josh repeated it.

  "I can't believe it," Stratton said and then returned to his call.

  CJ returned to the living room where Lisa had just rejoined the group. He filled them in on the new developments.

  "I just talked to Krystal," Lisa said. "She's on her way to the crime scene with Detective Payne."

  "And you want to be there."

  "Hell yeah, I want to be there, but I'm not on duty. Captain doesn't like it when his officers show up at a scene when off duty."

  "But you've been reassigned to this task force. You don't answer to the captain now. You answer to Detective Payne, or Agent Stratton."

  She stood up. "That's true."

  "But be careful what you ask for. You may wind up ordered to remain right here, guarding us anyway."

  She looked around, realizing everyone else was off on other tasks. She sat back down, dropping into silent contemplation.

  "So, what do we do?" Trish said.

  CJ looked toward the door to the dining room. "We've got enough now. It's all about figuring out where they are, so we wait."

  The minutes ticked by to an hour, then an hour and a half. CJ drifted into a nap in the easy chair. Trish and Stella were attempting to get involved in magazines. After Joe had done all the blood pressure and eye scanning procedures he could do, he'd settled back with a book, something about therapeutic procedures with the elderly. Lisa sat for a time and then got up and paced. Occasionally she did a walkabout of the property and then returned to pace some more.

  "CJ."

  CJ's eyes popped open.

  With a slight movement of his head, Stratton beckoned him into the dining room.

  CJ pushed off the chair, curious as to what was up, why Stratton was suddenly so quiet, so calm. CJ sat down in the nearest chair to Stratton's work area and looked him in the face. "What?"

  The agent pushed his fingers through his hair. "We've got an ID on this morning's victim."

  CJ could already tell from the, 'I'm about to tell you some bad news' look, that it was going to be someone he knew. The only women in his life besides those currently under the same roof as him were his ex-wife and his attorney, both of whom the perp had spoke of in the hospital. CJ closed his eyes, waited for the shiver to course up his spine and then slowly opened them again.

  "Who?"

  "Alexandria Rothbower."

  CJ had to think a minute to remember who Alexandria was. He remembered Gianna talking about her, the niece from Indiana who was living with her aunt while attending the University of Arizona, the beautiful young woman who Gianna loved like the daughter she was never able to have.

  "Gianna's niece." CJ's chin dropped to his chest. "You have got to get him. He's completely out of control."

  "I issued the order to bring Clark in, however, it seems that between his apartment and the precinct, the agents lost him. He never reported in for duty so we're assuming the worst."

  "He's in the wind?"

  "He's in the wind. A search warrant is being issued on his apartment. Chief Rague is preparing to address everyone from his bureau chiefs down to his captains, and a new statement for the press is being drafted. An all points for Clark's car and his brother's van is being issued. This is turning into an all-hands-on-deck man-hunt involving everyone from animal control to border patrol. If he's still in the county there's a fair chance we'll get him."

  "You could have taken him when he walked out his door."

  "Yes, we could have. Chief Rague wanted to wait because there just wasn't any hard evidence. Even still we don't have anything except that he shook the tail and didn't report for work. And we don't know if he purposely shook the tail or if my agents just got sloppy. He could show up and say that he stopped to buy a birthday card for his grandma or there was a long line at Starbucks."

  "Sure, and pigs fly."

  "An officer has been dispatched to your ex-wife's work place, as well as to her home to check on her step-children."

  CJ looked over at Josh. "You should probably go to her, you think?"

  "Considered it, Dad. Seeing as there's an officer with her and she is pissed at both of us, I thought it better to keep my distance. I did call her, so she's aware."

  "What's she pissed at you about?"

  "Not telling her where I've been. Joining the FBI. I'm better off right here doing my part to get this guy."

  CJ nodded his understanding and then said to Stratton, "What about Gianna?"

  "Two officers just delivered the news to her at her office. They'll stay with her."

  CJ sat in silence for a time staring at the wall, then started to get up to deliver the news to the others, when Josh popped up with, "I've got an address for John Dorne."

  "Thought you said there was no listing in the Tucson area," Stratton said.

  "I went back through the credit card used to book the airline reservation, and...." Josh bent closer over his computer, clicking and scrolling. "Bingo! We've got him."

  "What?" Stratton and CJ said at the same time.

  "There have been only four charges made on that card since its inception a year ago. In addition to the flight to New York and back, there's a rental car in New York, then a flight to Spokane, Washington and back on the correct dates and a rental car associated with that."

  "Okay, so John Dorne is our man. Now we've got to match him to a face."

  "Tommy Clark's face," CJ said.

  "I certainly hope so, otherwise we don't know who the hell we're looking for. Josh, tell DeBonski and Nash to visit the address. I expect it's going to be an empty lot, or an abandoned house."

  "Why don't I go?" Josh said. "I grew up in Tucson, know my way around the streets. Tracking down airport security video is right up Nash's alley, I understand."

  "I can't have you going there alone and I don't have anyone else. I'm heading over to the meeting with Chief Rague and his honchos."

  "I'll go with him," CJ said.

  Stratton actually looked at CJ for a bit, as though seriously considering the proposal. "No."

  "This guy has taken a piece out of every part of my life."

  "And that puts you too close to it."

  "Chances are it's an empty lot, anyway, or an abandoned building, or John Dorne is an eighty-year-old who just happened to travel on the same days as our killer."

  "You trying to make pigs fly, too?" With that Stratton stood, picked up his suit jacket and he
aded to the door. "You know where I'll be. Keep me informed."

  After the front door closed behind Stratton, CJ and Josh looked at each other.

  "He didn't say no the second time," CJ said.

  "No, he didn't."

  "You okay with me riding shotgun?"

  Josh considered it for a long time. "I have to agree with the boss."

  "That I shouldn't go, that I'm too close to it?"

  "Well, yes, there's that. More importantly, I shouldn't be going into something like this without a backup. Technically I should wait until another agent frees up. Also, I don't want to leave Trish alone."

  "Officer Bowers is here. She's a good cop. And Joe is here as well, at least for a few more hours. It won't take us more than two to check this out and get back here."

  "Are you armed?"

  CJ shook his head. "No. They took my Glock away from me when I was first arrested."

  "The scene at which you showed up intoxicated?"

  CJ grimaced. "Yeah, that one."

  Josh pushed his chair back so he could reach into an oversized briefcase. He came out with a gun in a compact belt holster, and two clips. He pushed them across to his dad. "That's my backup. If you're going to have my back I don't want you resorting to throwing rocks."

  CJ grinned as he pulled the weapon from its holster. "Glock 27. Same as mine, which was my BUG when I was on the force."

  "BUG?"

  "Backup gun."

  "In the bureau BUG has a totally different connotation."

  "Ah."

  "A Glock 27 is what you taught me to shoot with."

  CJ dropped the clip, knew by its weight that it was full, then pulled back the slide to eject the chambered 40 mm round. Next, he removed the slide entirely, followed by the spring and barrel. After a quick inspection he put it all back together, pushed in the clip and let the slide slam closed. Knowing that chambered a new round, he dropped the clip to reload the round he ejected before taking it apart. The entire procedure took him forty seconds. "Nice piece." He stood and started putting the gun on his belt.

  "What are you doing?"

  Both CJ and Josh were startled by Stella's sudden appearance. CJ was already thinking they shouldn't tell the women where they were going, that as soon as he had the gun on he would pull out his shirt to cover it.

  "Ah... Josh and I are running out. We won't be too long."

  She gave CJ a long stare and then looked over at Josh. "You guys do know what you're doing, don't you?"

  "Yes," Josh said. "We do."

  "Does Agent Stratton know about it?"

  "Yes."

  "Does he approve?"

  Josh didn't respond so CJ jumped in. "Not in those exact words, but...."

  She snorted. "I don't like it." She was looking at the Glock that CJ was trying to get secured on his hip.

  "You've never had a problem with it before," he said.

  "That's when I was only your secretary. In the beginning I was more concerned that if something happened to you I'd lose my job. Now I'll lose my job and my boyfriend."

  "Oh. Kind of like losing your boss with benefits," CJ said.

  Stella blushed. "You just come back with no additional holes." With that she kissed him, then without pause, returned to the living room.

  Several seconds later, Lisa appeared. "What's going on?"

  Josh explained about John Dorne and the address from the credit card.

  "I should be the one going with you, but..." she looked between the father and son, "I get it. Be careful."

  Out at Josh's car CJ said, "I figured you had a rental."

  "Hate the paperwork necessary to fly with weapons and body armor. It was just a twelve hour drive."

  "It's more than twelve hours."

  "Not for me." Josh pulled a vest from the trunk. "Try this on."

  "I don't need...."

  "You don't have my back if you don't have armor."

  Not having an argument against that, CJ slipped on the vest. "You travel with all this just to come down to check up on your sister?"

  "You never know. You taught me to always be prepared."

  "How to shoot and to be prepared. What else did I teach you?"

  Something flashed across Josh's eyes. "That's about it, I guess." He loaded the address into his dash-mounted GPS. "Let's go."

  Chapter 58

  Most of the press were gone, likely chasing after Stratton when he left, or Agent Platt before him. They may have also received notification of the pending statement to the press. Whatever the case, only two SUVs remained, one of which fell in behind them when they rolled out. Josh seemed to pay it no mind until he turned east onto Ina Road. He slowed to let a car coming in from a side-road pull out in front of him, then, after judging the oncoming traffic, accelerated around the car, leaving the follow vehicle suddenly trapped.

  "That should take care of them," Josh said.

  By the time they merged onto I-10 five minutes later, CJ could see no sign of the SUV.

  Heading eastbound, Josh moved in and out of the left lane, running close to 75 when he could, until taking the Valencia exit. At the bottom of the exit he turned west onto Valencia.

  "I think we were supposed to go the other way here," CJ said.

  "When we shook the press, they apparently had another stationed near the interstate. That one picked us up. He's not making any pretense now. He's right on our tail."

  Suddenly, without so much as a signal, Josh slipped between two cars in the left lane and then immediately into the turn lane, did a fast 180 and then accelerated back the way they had come. The new follow vehicle came to a fast stop on the shoulder, throwing up enough dust to slow traffic, causing him even more delay in getting turned around.

  "We should be clear now," Josh said.

  "I'm impressed."

  CJ turned forward and checked the GPS. "Six minutes."

  They made a turn off of Valencia, then two more, the last being onto a dirt road. Josh pulled the car to the side and stopped. They studied their destination, which the GPS indicated was 300 feet on the left, an old ranch house with a barn and one out-building.

  "Doesn't look like it's been occupied for decades," CJ said.

  "Either our perp is only using this address for his John Dorne creation and we'll find nothing here but snakes and pack rats or...."

  "Or he is actually living here and we'll find the van hidden in the barn," CJ continued. "Drive by and let's study it a bit more."

  Josh put the car in drive and started it moving.

  "Not too slow. Don't want to attract attention."

  "I know what I'm doing."

  "Yeah, I know you do. Just saying."

  After passing the drive and checking the beat up and weathered mailbox to ascertain that they had the correct address, Josh drove on for a quarter mile before finding a convenient place to turn around. Once parked and facing back toward the old ranch house, Josh said, "There's been activity there. I could make out two different treads, one wider than the other. There may have been more, but I doubt it."

  "I didn't see any signs of a dog. Did you?" CJ said.

  "No. In this heat he'd be in the shade or in the barn. He'd have to have a source of water."

  "Likely in the barn."

  "I don't think there's a dog."

  "Me neither."

  "I loaned my binoculars to Janet a few weeks back. Never got them back."

  "Janet?"

  "Agent Crosby."

  "Oh." CJ remembered what Trish had told him about Josh being in a relationship. "You got something going with her?"

  "No. That would be unprofessional."

  "Doesn't mean it doesn't happen."

  "She has issues. No thanks."

  "You're in law enforcement. Everybody has issues."

  "Very true. One doesn't get involved with a woman who has an ex who hasn't yet let go, and who is also in law enforcement and thus carries a gun."

  "Oh."

  "Besides, she's a lot
more senior than me."

  "That's a problem."

  "Yes."

  CJ started to open his mouth to ask about an actual current girlfriend when something moved at one side of the house. From a quarter mile away it was hard to tell what, but it was too tall to be a dog or a javelina.

  "Deer," Josh said.

  CJ watched for a time until a young doe darted out into the yard. "Young eyes, I guess," he said and then the doe jumped and sprang away, lost from view in the desert growth.

  "When we drove by, did you see anything in the barn?" Josh said.

  "Nothing, but with the bright sun and the angle, a Mac truck could be in there and I'd not be able to see it. Do another drive-by. Something bothers me but I can't put my finger on it."

  Josh started the car moving forward again until it was up to 25 mph.

  Already concluding that there was no way to see anything in the barn, CJ watched the windows of the house and the area on both sides. When they got to the end of the dirt road, they turned around and stopped again. "Still not seeing anything suspicious."

  "Same here. Tire tracks still bother me, though. I'm with you. Something still seems off."

  "Sometimes bad feelings mean nothing more than nerves," CJ said.

  "True." They watched the house for another minute. "This seemed like such a good idea at the time. Now I wish we had a swat team in play."

  "Maybe you should call Stratton and get his take."

  Josh grunted and then put the car in gear. "Let's get done what we came here for."

  They passed through what used to be a wooden swing-gate, now pushed to the side, broken and blocked open by a complex growth of Indian Fig Cactus, which told CJ it had been a long time since the gate had been closed. As they got closer to the house he could see that some of the vehicle tracks led into the barn, however, he still could not see if anything was parked inside. With the barn's shape and size a van, car or both could be parked out of immediate sight.

  "These tracks were made in the last 72 hours," Josh said.

  "How do you know?"

  "We had rain Wednesday afternoon."