by Mary Burton
Smiling, she bit into a fry. As she reached for a second one, a red Cadillac parked near the side of the restaurant. Sandy got out of the passenger side and Tony out of the driver’s. Sandy glanced in her direction but turned and hurried around the side of the building where several big rigs were parked.
Tony pulled off dark sunglasses and walked toward her, his gait slow and steady. She wrapped up her burger, set it aside, and met him several feet from the car, knowing Cooper would bark if he got too close.
“Tony,” Riley said, her hand shifting closer to her gun. “Sorry to hear about Cassie.”
“I liked Cassie,” he said. “I had plans for her.”
She assumed his plans included working the girl until she was so used up no one wanted her. “What do you think happened to her?”
“If I knew, I might go looking for whoever hurt her myself.” His gaze roamed over her. “Two dead girls who look like you. Someone with money has a type he likes to hurt. I’m wondering how much a man could get if you were up for sale.”
Tension knotted her spine. Sharp’s words of warning replayed. “You aren’t making some kind of threat, are you, Tony?”
He grinned broadly, holding up his hands. “Don’t be looking at me like you want to shoot me. I ain’t a threat.”
“Then why make the comment.”
“More of a friendly warning.”
She stood her ground. Cooper started to bark. He was search and rescue but very protective of her. “I’m not a kid like the other two. I know how to fight.”
Tony tossed a tense glance at the barking dog. “Oh, I bet you are tough. But you be on the lookout, Lady Cop. Hate to see you get snatched. I like you.”
She stood with her back to the car until he disappeared into the diner, and then she slid behind the wheel, locking the door.
As she pulled away, her cell rang. “Trooper Tatum.”
“Trooper, this is Sheriff Fletcher up in the western part of the county.”
“Yes, sir. What can I do for you?”
“Hoping you and your dog might head out this way. We have a man who is threatening to kill himself. He called 9-1-1 and said he’s headed up into the mountains and is gonna shoot himself. He called local media, and they had him on the phone for a half hour talking to a reporter. But he hung up minutes ago.”
“Did he say why he’s upset?”
“Talking a lot about a debt he owes. He says he can’t get out from under it. Says dying is the only way to get clear.”
She checked her watch and calculated how long it would take her to drive the thirty miles west. “I need to clear it with the boss.”
“Already done that.”
“Text me your location. It should take me a half hour to reach you.”
“Will do, ma’am.”
As she pulled out of the lot and headed west, her phone rang a second time and she half expected it to be Fletcher telling her that the man had been found. She glanced at the number. Bowman.
She tucked the cell under her ear. “You must have radar.”
“I do.” Classic Bowman. “What’s up?” His words were razor sharp.
“A man threatening to kill himself in the park and the sheriff can’t find him. Cooper and I are headed west now. This guy has already called the media, so it’s going to be a circus.”
“Where?”
She relayed the location of the heavily wooded state park. “Cooper and I know it well.”
“That’s a big park.”
“Command center has been set up at the south entrance.”
“Who’s going in with you?”
“There’ll be a few deputies, but it’ll be up to Cooper and me to pick up the trail.”
“I hope the boys can keep up with you this time.” Bowman had outpaced her on the trail and barely broken a sweat when he helped take down Carter.
“That’s not my concern now.”
“Be careful.”
“Always.”
She ended the call, pushed her foot on the accelerator, and flipped on her lights. She wove in and out of traffic until she pulled off the interstate onto the narrowing road and reached the south entrance of the park. She paused at the ranger’s station and got directions to the search team. A half mile into the park she found a half-dozen cars parked with lights flashing.
She grabbed her backpack from the trunk that she always kept stocked with water, first aid supplies, power bars, rope, and anything else she might need for a long trip into the woods. Hope for a quick outcome but plan for the long haul.
Off to the left stood Potter next to his news van. At Potter’s signal, the cameraman raised his camera and began shooting her. Both moved toward her, but two deputies stepped in their path.
She hooked the tracking line onto Cooper’s collar. “Time to go to work, boy.”
He barked, tail wagging. He loved the search, which was a great game to him.
With a slight tug he jumped down, sniffing the ground and wagging his tail. They strode toward a tall man dressed in a brown uniform. His trooper hat covered gray hair and a face tanned and lined by years in the sun.
“Sheriff Fletcher.”
He towered over her, taking a long assessing look at her and clearly wondering if someone had made a mistake when they’d recommended her. “Trooper Tatum? You’re the one who found Jax Carter?”
“Yes, sir.” Despite so many search-and-rescue successes, her tall, thin frame always surprised those who had not met her in person.
“I’ve heard good things about you, ma’am. Hope you’re as good as they say. But I must say, you don’t quite look the part. It’s rough country.”
“I’m familiar with the area. Cooper and I trained in these woods. What do you have?”
“All I know is I got a man named Lenny who says he’s betting he will kill himself before anyone can find him.”
“Did Lenny say why he wants to die? Does he have a wife, family I can talk to?”
“All he said was that he was out of options. Said his wife and kids live out of state and can’t do anything for him.”
“Did you talk to him directly?”
“No, I did not, but I listened to the 9-1-1 recording and the conversation he had with Mr. Potter.”
“He called Mr. Potter?” Riley asked.
“Yes, he did.”
“And you’re sure this is legit?”
“We won’t know until we get into the woods.”
Of course, they could not ignore the 911 call or Potter, who might have information that would help her.
“Can I talk to Potter?” she asked.
“Sure.”
As Fletcher waved Potter past the deputies, she noticed the smirk he was trying to hide. He had to love this, especially after being stopped by the deputies when Riley arrived.
“Trooper Tatum,” he said. “How can I help you?”
“I hear this man named Lenny called you. He said he was going to kill himself.”
Potter’s eyes danced with excitement. “Named this park and its waterfalls as his destination.”
“Why did he call you?”
“Saw me on the news covering Jax Carter’s arrest. Said my name was the first that came to mind.”
“He tell you anything else that can help me?”
“I told you all I know.”
“Okay. Thanks.”
He held up his cell phone. “Care to make a statement before the search?”
“No, sir.”
“Are you really going to go in after him?”
“That’s my job.”
Fletcher guided her away from the reporter and handed her a bag containing a shirt. “We found this in his car.”
“Which is his car?”
“The blue Lexus parked right by the entrance.”
“Do we have any idea what Lenny looks like?”
“The car is a rental and we’re contacting the leasing agent for a photo ID they should have with the paperwork. I can text it to you.”
“Right.”
She knelt and held the bag with the shirt to Cooper’s nose. He sniffed and snorted several times. “Lenny said he was going to shoot himself. Do you know what kind of weapon he’s carrying?”
“No.” Fletcher rubbed the back of his neck. “I don’t like this any better than you. Sketchy on more levels than I can count.”
Another news van arrived. “Who’s coming into the woods with me?”
“We’ve got three deputies ready to go.”
She met the sheriff’s gaze. “What’s your radio frequency so I can tap into your team?”
He rattled off the number and watched as she dialed in the setting.
She tested the radio several times before she hooked it to her vest. The deputies looked like they could each bench-press three hundred pounds, but she questioned their cardio strength. “I’m going to be moving quickly. Can your men keep up?”
“They’re tough.”
But could they keep up? As she faced the woods, a large SUV pulled up behind her car. She didn’t bother a glance back as she hefted her pack onto her back and moved toward the woods.
“Trooper Tatum.” The clear, deep voice was getting to be too familiar.
She turned to see Clay Bowman moving toward her. He wore dark BDUs, boots, and a lightweight long-sleeve shirt. “Bowman, what’re you doing here?”
“I’m here to assist.” Not a request, but an order.
“And you are?” Fletcher asked.
“Clay Bowman. Shield Security.”
“And former HRT,” Riley added. “He trains people like me.”
Fletcher looked apprehensive. “But he’s now a civilian.”
“I’ll sign any waiver you need me to sign,” Bowman said. “But I am going in those woods.”
Riley met Fletcher’s gaze, now full of challenge. “He’ll be an asset. We’ve worked together before.”
Potter shouted, “Hey, I got our guy on the phone again!”
Fletcher swore under his breath and moved toward the reporter. “Can I talk to him?”
Potter nodded. “Lenny, will you talk to Sheriff Fletcher?” The reporter listened and nodded. “He said I can put him on speakerphone so everyone can hear.”
“Go ahead,” Fletcher said. When Potter held up the phone, Fletcher added, “Lenny, we’ve got a team here to help you.”
“I don’t want your help,” Lenny said.
“You must want our help,” Fletcher said. “Otherwise, you wouldn’t have called us and the news station.”
“I wanted him to know I was going through with it. He needs to see I kept my word.”
“Who are you talking about?” Fletcher asked.
“It doesn’t matter,” Lenny said. His voice sounded calm, resolute. “Mr. Potter, make sure everyone knows I’m here and ready to die.” The line went dead.
Bowman checked his watch. “He’s controlling the situation, and I don’t like it. It could be an ambush.” He leaned in closer to Riley, his voice low enough so only she could hear. “How easy would it be for you to be lulled into a search like this and then vanish? Maybe Lenny is bait for you to overextend yourself and make a mistake.”
She recalled Tony’s comment just hours ago. Still, she held on to what she wanted to believe. “That’s a little far-fetched. You’re overthinking this.”
“I’m paid to overthink. And it’s what I do best.” He moved to the trunk of his car and pulled out a pack, which he swung onto his back with practiced ease. “Ready?”
“Just try and keep up with me.”
He grinned. “I’ll do my best.”
Riley and Cooper took point. Bowman’s steady footsteps fell in step behind her, and the deputies kept up with her fast pace. Soon, though, the deputies’ breathing became labored and she realized she’d burn them and smoke herself and the dog. That wouldn’t do anyone any good.
Drawing in a deep breath, she adjusted her gait, and soon her heart rate and breathing slowed to a normal, steady pace. Bowman also shortened his stride, but she sensed he could have kept the faster pace much longer.
Riley turned to Bowman. “How many of these searches have you done?”
“Heard about the three fugitives who set off those bombs last year?”
“The ones that made it to the North Carolina Appalachian Mountains?”
“Those would be the ones. They were mine.”
That arrest had captured national media attention. All the tracking experts who’d been interviewed about the search had only praise for the HRT team. And at the time, she’d been impressed by the team leader’s skills.
Both paused to scan and listen, studying the sounds and sights of the woods. In the distance a creek flowed by. “Lenny mentioned the waterfalls in the northwest corner of the park.”
“Roger.”
They kept moving forward along the narrow path. The brush grew thicker and thicker.
“A lot of work for a man who wants to take his life,” Bowman said.
“I don’t pretend to understand his motives.”
They broke through the thicket and into a small clearing at the foot of the waterfall. Cooper sniffed, his tail alert, his gaze sharp.
The primary path to the falls cut right, but Cooper pulled left toward a smaller footpath. She followed, not questioning the dog’s nose.
“What’s up that way?” Bowman asked.
“Another path to the falls.”
The deputies cleared the woods and paused in the clearing.
“Take the path to the right,” she said. “We’re taking the left. One of us should make contact with him in the next ten minutes if he really is at the falls.”
The deputies nodded and pushed onward.
She took out her water bottle and drank enough to match her perspiration rate given the heat and humidity. She gave Cooper a small amount of water while Bowman drank his own. When they were all hydrated, they left the clearing for the woods.
As the heat of the day rose, neither spoke. When they reached the base of the falls, the sun had climbed into a bright-blue sky.
Bowman looked up the steep slope leading to the top. “We shouldn’t need climbing equipment to get up there.”
“Agreed.” She wrestled off her backpack and pulled off her sweater top, revealing a tank top that clung to her sweat-soaked body. Jamming the sweater in the top of her pack, she hefted the pack onto her shoulders, ready for the final push.
Bowman stood by watching for anything out of the ordinary. When Riley started moving again, he strode up the side of the mountain, taking point, his powerful legs making easy work of the terrain that grew steeper and steeper. She and Cooper held their own and kept pace, but her efforts weren’t as smooth as his. She lost her footing once and slid a few feet. He paused, glanced back at her, but said nothing. When she regained her footing, he kept moving up. Higher and higher.
“Look,” he said.
He pointed to a strip of red fabric dangling from a branch. “Seems like he wants us to find him. Take a break. You’ll need fresh legs.”
“Agreed.” She sat on a rock and wiped the sweat from her eyes. “Why would a guy come all the way up here to kill himself? It makes no sense.”
“No, it does not.”
She rubbed the back of her neck with her hand. “People do all kinds of crazy stunts when they’re stressed or under the influence. And some just don’t want to go quietly but want to make their last act a show.”
“Maybe.”
“No theories on this guy?”
“I deal in fact, not theory. But I do know for certain that you will come out of these woods alive and well.”
He had her back on the mission. Of that, she had no doubt. However, that confidence didn’t extend to their personal lives. “I saw Tony today. He’s the pimp that ran Cassie.”
Bowman frowned. “Where?”
“Truck stop. My regular beat. He’s also looking for the person who killed Cassie.”
“So he wasn’t the
one that sold her that last time?”
“Apparently not. As tempted as I was to offer Jax and Darla up to Tony, I didn’t want to out Sandy, who is still with him. He’s the kind of guy that would make her pay for talking to a cop.”
“What did Tony have to say?”
“Said there seems to be a high demand for women who look like Vicky and Cassie.”
“And you.”
“He said I should be careful.”
Bowman reached for a branch and snapped it in his fingers. “He’s right.”
“I need to flush this Shark guy out. He needs to be caught.”
Bowman looked up the last twenty feet of steep climbing. “I’m retaining point position.”
“Cooper can take point.”
“Not now.”
The last ten feet were nearly hand over hand, and when he reached the top, he extended his hand down toward her. She readily accepted it, appreciating his strength when he pulled her to the top. Cooper climbed easily beside her.
They moved toward the falls where the river raced past, swollen by recent high rains. A cloudless, clear-blue sky touched the mountains. The view was stunning. “Lenny!” she shouted.
Her voice echoed, traveled, and bounced. Neither one of them moved or spoke as they listened. Water crashed and splashed. But no sign of the man.
“I’m Trooper Riley Tatum with Virginia State Police. I’m here to help you!”
Again Riley and Bowman stood in silence waiting for an answer. Wind rustled through the trees. Nothing moved.
She stared at the pool of water below, searching for signs of his body. Hell, if he’d fallen in the water, the current could have pinned him to the bottom of the deep basin. Where the hell was he?
Seconds later a gunshot rang out. She and Bowman both dropped into a crouch and reached for their weapons. “It came from the woods to the east,” Riley said.
Bowman moved toward the gunshot while she and Cooper followed. The woods grew less and less dense, then opened into a small clearing. Leaning against a rock was a tall man with dark hair. He wore a suit, dress shirt, and shoes. His arms lay limp by his side. Clutched in his right hand was a revolver. There was a single gunshot wound in his head.