Dire

by Jeff Carson

  “We have a few questions for you, Mr. Rome.”

  “So they tell me.”

  They sat in silence for a beat.

  “Did you email Lauren Coulter this Monday morning?” Wolf asked.

  Rome furrowed his brow. “This Monday?”

  “Yes.”

  “Oh, this Monday? Oh, wait. We don’t get internet access in this shithole so I’m going to have to say no.”

  His voice echoed through the empty visitation room.

  “Settle down over there,” the guard said.

  Rome sat forward as far as his chains let him. “Next question.”

  “Could have sent the email from a cell phone,” Luke said.

  “If I had a cell phone, yeah, I guess so. But I don’t have one.”

  “You could be lying,” Luke said.

  “They cracked down on that a year ago. Now they check every sealed bag of cereal, every box of macaroni and cheese, every sphincter that comes in here.”

  “Mind if we search your cell then?” Luke asked.

  He shrugged. “You’ll do what you want to do.”

  “You’re right,” Wolf said. “They’re searching it right now.”

  The smile slid off his face and then he shrugged. “They’re not going to find a phone.”

  Wolf thought about the Denver Police photos of Lauren Coulter’s father. “You hit Lauren Coulter’s father quite a few times with that baseball bat.”

  Rome sat back.

  “You were caught with a pendant when all was said and done. You said, ‘I just wanted to get what’s rightfully mine,’ did you not?” Wolf asked.

  When Rome blinked, Wolf upturned his good hand and looked at Luke. “You want to tell him about our deal with the warden, or should I?”

  “Go ahead,” Luke said.

  “Special Agent Luke here is a close personal friend of Warden Gantry’s daughter.”

  “She works in my office, actually,” Luke said.

  “Oh really? That’s great, honey.”

  “And she’s worked out a deal with your warden,” Luke said. “And if you don’t answer our questions to our satisfaction, he’s going to put you in solitary.”

  “For a month,” Wolf said.

  Rome rolled his eyes. “Please. I get to be away from my smelly, masturbating, cellmate for a whole month? Sign me up.”

  Wolf and Luke exchanged a glance.

  “Look, no offense,” Rome said, “but I don’t think this is going to work out. I just don’t like piles of shit with badges like you two. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I’d still spread you wide in the conjugation room. I’d just kick you to the curb when I’m done.”

  Wolf put his good hand on Luke’s arm. “The second part of the deal is: If we figure out you’re behind any of this, your warden will be recommending your transfer to Florence ADMAX.”

  Rome’s eyes pinched.

  “You know what it’s like in Florence?” Wolf asked. “They’ll have you in your cell twenty-three hours per day, the other hour in a ten-by-ten box that’s designed to let you have outdoor time, but it’s really just a form of torture. You can hear the birds, but you never see them, because they cover the sky. You never see it again. Ever. You’ll be begging for a death like you gave Lauren Coulter’s father and all the others.”

  He snorted and then swallowed. “What others?”

  Wolf said nothing.

  “Okay, what? Ask the damn questions already. This foreplay is getting me horny.” He gave Luke a slow wink.

  “You know a guy named Matthew Bristol?” Wolf asked.

  “Nope. Never heard of him.”

  “How about Zeke Jacoway?”

  Rome raised his eyebrows and leaned toward Wolf. “Nope. Next question.”

  “Zeke Jacoway and Matthew Bristol came to your daughter’s house and killed the nanny, then kidnapped your daughter.”

  Rome looked shaken for the first time. “And?”

  Wolf shrugged. “And what?”

  “So is she okay?”

  “Your daughter?” Wolf asked.

  “Yes, my daughter, you asshole!”

  The guard pushed off the wall and started towards them.

  Wolf held up a hand and the guard stopped with more than a little reluctance.

  “Just answer the question. Is she okay?” Rome lowered his chin and gave a menacing glare.

  “When you were picked up after killing Lauren Coulter’s father six years ago, you had a pendant in your possession,” Wolf said.

  Rome blinked.

  “In the police report, it says you said something to the effect that the pendant was ‘rightfully mine.’ Did you say that?”

  “Yeah, so what? Tell me about Ella. What happened to her?”

  “You were found with that pendant after you smashed Lauren’s father’s brains in. Lauren arrived to find her father dead and you knocked her over the head, putting her into a two-day coma, all while she was carrying your baby, so don’t pretend you give a shit about your daughter now.”

  Rome sagged in his chair and shook his head. “I didn’t mean to hurt her.”

  Wolf and Lauren exchanged a glance, neither of them buying the remorse act.

  “Come again? You didn’t mean to hurt her?” Wolf asked.

  “She was just in the way. Screaming and punching me while I was trying to get out of there.” Rome looked up at them, this time with a hint of desperation. “What is this? What do you people want? Did something happen to Ella?”

  “Ella’s fine,” Wolf said.

  Rome closed his eyes and exhaled. “That’s good news. That’s good.” He studied their faces. “And Lulu?”

  “Lulu.” Wolf frowned. “That’s what you used to call her, isn’t it?”

  Rome flicked a glance between them. “Yeah, so what?”

  “Lauren’s fine. And the two kidnappers are dead.”

  “Good.”

  They sat in silence for a few moments.

  A door behind them squeaked open and Warden Gantry stood in the doorway, staring at Wolf and Luke expectantly.

  They got up, leaving Ryan Rome chained to the table.

  “We found nothing,” the warden said under his breath.

  “You’re sure?” Luke asked.

  “We checked extremely thoroughly.” Warden Gantry shook his head. “I tell you, we’ve had some serious trouble with this type of thing in the past. There’s no way a cell phone’s getting in this place without me knowing it. We check everything that comes in here. Even use X-ray scanners to look at each and every box that’s given to an inmate, the whole nine yards. And then after that we regularly sweep with cell-signal detectors.”

  Wolf nodded. “Thank you, sir. We appreciate you allowing us to visit Mr. Rome on such short notice.”

  “You got it.” Warden Gantry gestured to Rome, who was gazing out the windows. “I just thought you’d like to know ASAP that we found squat. Take all the time you need with him.”

  Wolf grabbed the edge of the door. “That won’t be necessary. We’re done here.”

  Luke raised a quizzical eyebrow. “You sure?”

  “Yeah. I have to get back up to Rocky Points.”

  After a series of exit procedures, Luke and Wolf were walking through the parking lot of the Sterling Correctional Facility. It was bright out, blue skies and glaring snow covering the gentle slopes of the eastern Colorado terrain, which stretched out in every direction as far as the eye could see.

  Luke inhaled deeply through her nose. “Ah, I miss the smell of cow shit in the morning.”

  Wolf eyed her.

  “I’m serious. I used to get smells like this up in Glenwood Springs. Now I’m lucky to get a whiff of Greeley when a cold front comes in from the north, and the rest of the time I get dog food from the plant on I-70 … and crappy men’s cologne. Being surrounded by the shifting scent of manure really gets the blood pumping.”

  “You oughta make your way up to Rocky Points more often. The scent of bull and horse sh
it is pretty strong up there.”

  She eyed him. “Yeah. I saw MacLean’s press conference yesterday. He took a good portion of credit for himself, I noticed.”

  Wolf raised his left hand higher to counteract the throbbing pain while they walked.

  “I talked to ASAC Frye,” she said. “They have Matthew Bristol’s sister and her kid in protective custody. With those emails and everything else we’re finding on Bristol’s computer, we’re filling in a lot of information we’ve been looking for. The SAC in Vegas is breathing down our necks for everything we have. So, on a positive note, looks like I’ll be takin’ myself a trip to Vegas soon.”

  “Put a twenty on black for me.” He stepped over a clump of snow and pain shot up from his ankle.

  Luke put a hand on his shoulder and pulled him to a stop. “You need to listen to me, okay?”

  “What?”

  “Go rest.”

  With a roll of his eyes he continued to the loaner sedan the Sterling PD had lent them. “I will when this is wrapped up.”

  “You still think you’re right about everything?”

  Wolf nodded. “I do.”

  “You’re sure you don’t want me and a few boys coming up to give you a hand? You don’t have to handle it yourself.”

  Wolf shook his head.

  “That’s gonna be a little damper on your relationship with this woman, right when it was just getting started.”

  Wolf opened the car to the Caprice Classic and sat on the worn seat. “It was one date.”

  She eyed him again and started the engine. She pulled out her cell phone, dialed a number, and reversed out of the spot. “Hey, we’re done. You can start with the pre-flight.” She hung up and looked at him. “Chopper will be ready in fifteen. You want me to stop at a drug store for some pain reliever?”

  “Just drive.”

  “Because you look like shit.”

  Chapter 47

  Wolf stood at the window in the third-floor waiting area of County Hospital, watching the snowflakes brush up against the windows. He held his cell phone against his ear with his good hand.

  The heavy breathing continued on the other end of the line. “I, uh … you know why I’m calling, don’t you?”

  Wolf waited for MacLean to continue.

  “I got Patterson’s email, which I’m sure you got.”

  Wolf said nothing.

  “You there?”

  Wolf sniffed in response.

  “I guess I don’t blame you for being a bit pissed off. But I need to talk to you ASAP. We need to figure out the way forward on this. So when you’re done there at the hospital, call me. I’ll bring Barker in here and we’ll conclude this.”

  Wolf hung up and pocketed his phone.

  “Three days and she doesn’t have a name for him yet?” Rachette asked behind him.

  “It’s a tough decision,” Munford said. “It takes some people time to decide.”

  The mountains of Williams Pass were now invisible behind an ever-widening column of white flakes. Wind rattled the windows, and a trio of crows blew past. Wolf turned away before the memories of the body in the trees surfaced again, and saw the doors to the maternity wing opening.

  “Here she is!” Munford sang.

  Patterson and Scott stood in the doorway with their yet unnamed newborn child bundled in a car seat hanging from Scott’s long arm.

  Munford swooped in first. “Oh, he’s so adorable. Oh my God.”

  Rachette hung back, his face blossoming red. The story relayed by Alan Wenter, a paramedic on board the ambulance that had come for Patterson, had been that Rachette was between Patterson’s legs, his hands out like he was catching a football snap, when they’d arrived on scene.

  In the end, Rachette’s readiness wasn’t required, however, because the baby was ultimately delivered by C-section. It had twisted into breech position, and Patterson’s placenta had ruptured, putting both their lives in danger.

  Rachette had stuck by her side for the ride and then the air-ambulance flight to County, which was a feat in and of itself for Rachette, who was deathly afraid of heights.

  Patterson and the baby were fine. They’d spent the past three days in the hospital for rest, tests, and healing. Rachette had been unusually quiet about the incident since, and Wolf suspected that, in the end, Rachette had been more traumatized than anybody else in this room.

  Scott had missed the whirlwind birth, while Rachette had held Patterson’s hand through it all. Scott was more than grateful to Rachette for his help, and was now shooting regular glances back at the detective.

  Wolf smiled at the newborn, who was peacefully asleep, his impossibly tiny red face the only exposed skin. The rest of him was burrito-like in a blanket, his head covered with a pink-and-blue cap.

  “You need help?” Wolf asked, shaking Scott’s hand.

  There were two bags hanging across Scott’s chest and a paper sack dangling from his free arm. “Nah. My mom and dad are back there getting the rest of the stuff.”

  “Well, congratulations. And how are you doing?” he asked Patterson.

  She nodded. It was amazing to see her so flat-bellied, so back to her normal self after watching her balloon for eight months at work.

  “I’m doing fine,” she said, craning her neck. “Hey, Rachette.”

  Rachette looked up from the floor and came over. “Hey, congrats you two. There he is. He’s so cute.” He sounded like he was reading cue cards.

  “We have a name for him,” Patterson said.

  “What is it?” Munford asked, unable to contain the volume of her voice.

  “Thomas.”

  The room went silent.

  “Thomas?” Rachette asked. “Tom? Like … me?”

  Patterson smiled, and then instantly grimaced. “Oh, shit … my stomach hurts when I laugh. Yes, we named him after you, dumbass.”

  Rachette’s mouth fell open, and then his lip quivered. “You serious?”

  Closing her eyes, Patterson nodded. “I told you, I can’t laugh. These freakin’ staples are going to come out.”

  “Oh, man. That is the coolest thing ever. Let me see that kid.” Rachette pushed aside Munford. “What’s with the red splotches on the skin of his face? Do you …”

  Patterson stepped aside and motioned for Wolf to follow.

  “His middle name is David, after you.”

  Wolf nodded. “Ah, thank goodness. I was going to be pissed off if it wasn’t.”

  She smiled and held her stomach.

  “Sorry, right. The laughing thing.” He squeezed her shoulder with his good hand. “You did good, kid. Everyone’s hugging their children tonight because of you.”

  She looked at his bandaged hand with a sigh. “Everyone sacrificed. How’s Hernandez doing?”

  “He’s going in for a third shoulder surgery this morning.”

  “Again?”

  “They’re trying to give him mobility.”

  Her face dropped. “Damn.”

  “Yeah. He’ll live, though. That’s all that matters.”

  “But his career as a cop?”

  Wolf gave her a who-knows shrug. If the man couldn’t move his arm, couldn’t fire a gun with reliable accuracy, there was no spot for him on the detective squad. It was a tough thing that he wished on no good man like Hernandez.

  “And you got my email about the LoStar system in the river victim’s car?” Patterson asked.

  “I did. What the hell are you doing working hours after a helicopter ride to the hospital that ends in an emergency C-section birth of your first child?”

  “Anything to get Barker out of the department.” She raised her eyebrows. “And he’s out of the department, right?”

  “It’ll be up to MacLean.”

  She shook her head.

  “Just relax, go home, get some rest,” Wolf said. “But, hey. Thanks.”

  She nodded. “How’re Lauren and her daughter doing?”

  “I’m going to see them now.” He ch
ecked his watch. “In fact, we have to go. We’re meeting the hospital security in five minutes up there. You have a good three months with that baby of yours.”

  She put one hand over her abdomen and reached up to hug with the other. “Come visit?”

  “Of course we will.”

  “I’ll miss you guys.”

  Wolf gave her a gentle squeeze while Rachette launched into a rendition of his harrowing experience in the helicopter and bumped into Patterson from behind.

  “No you won’t,” Wolf said.

  “You’re right. I won’t.”

  Chapter 48

  Wolf knocked softly on the hospital-room door and entered first, Rachette and Munford bringing up the rear.

  Lauren and her brother looked up, smiles plastered on their faces left over from watching Ella do something in the center of the room.

  At the sight of the three deputies, the five-year-old ran to her mother, climbed onto her lap, and laid her head on her shoulder.

  “It’s okay, baby. It’s David and Tom, remember them?”

  She did, and that was the problem, Wolf thought. At least the little girl had been smiling when they’d walked in. That was something.

  “Hi, ma’am.” Munford took the bag from Wolf’s hand and pulled out the Disney princess doll from within. “My name’s Charlotte.” She bent down and Ella twisted her head and looked at her. “David and Tom want to talk to your mother and uncle for a few minutes. What say you come out into the hall with me and tell me all about this princess?”

  Ella burrowed her head into the crook of her mother’s neck. “No.”

  Lauren shook her head. “It would be best if she stayed here.”

  “It would be best if she left,” Wolf said.

  Lauren’s eyes met his. She nodded and pried Ella back. “Honey, I’ll be right out to see you in a second.”

  “No!”

  It was heart-wrenching to watch. A part of the girl suspected she was saying goodbye forever, but Wolf held his unflinching gaze on them, making it clear that Ella Coulter could not be in the room.

  A few drama-filled moments later, Lauren sat back down on her chair. “Okay, that was painful. Sorry, she’s just … well, you understand.”