The Soldier's Promise

by Patricia Potter

  “I don’t know.”

  “Henley signed the search warrant. I plan to have some words with him later this week because of the principle involved. Both Ryan and I are going with Sam. I don’t want to give him a chance to plant anything else.”

  “Maybe he already has.”

  “I doubt it,” he said. He didn’t add that he’d noticed that Manning had mounted several cameras around the cabin. He noticed them only because he’d been planning to do the same thing, and Manning’s cameras were in exactly the same places he’d considered. If Sam had second thoughts and tried to move the rifle, it would be on film.

  “Don’t call him,” he warned Eve.

  “I won’t.”

  He turned and left, closing the door softly behind him.

  * * *

  JOSH HAD JUST finished painting his bedroom when he heard cars pulling into the driveway. He closed Amos in the second bedroom and opened the door before anyone pounded on it. Three officers, including the police chief and the arrogant officer he’d met at Maude’s, stood there.

  The chief handed him a piece of paper. “We have a search warrant,” he said.

  “Who did you bribe to get it?” Josh asked casually.

  The chief shrugged, but Josh saw the officer named Clark smirk.

  The chief turned back to Josh. “I think you know Officer Clark. And this is Officer Ryan Keller. I’ll take the interior. The two officers will search the property outside.” He waited until Clark and Keller turned around, then followed Josh inside the cabin.

  Josh went over to the window.

  The chief joined him.

  “Have to ask,” he said. “Have any stolen property?” he asked.

  “Not to my knowledge,” Josh said.

  “No weapons other than your handgun?”

  “Not unless you include a nail gun.”

  The chief’s attention turned back to Josh. “I really didn’t think he could get that warrant.”

  “Maybe he’s not the one who put the rifle there.”

  “We’ll know soon. Sam isn’t good at hiding anger or frustration. The whole point of this exercise is to satisfy Ryan and me that Sam is the one who placed that rifle on the bike before we go any further. It won’t prove anything we can use in court, but it does give me ammunition to take to the Colorado Investigative Branch. It’s not something I should handle on my own. My bias is already clear. I’ve tried to fire him before, only to see him reinstated by the council.” He turned to the window.

  Sam, with Ryan Keller at his side, started the search at the opposite end of the property from where the Harley was parked. The two worked their way around to the back until they appeared again near the porch. The chief backed away from the window as Clark, followed closely by the other officer, approached the porch and looked at the new boards that covered what had been the space where the rattler had taken up residence. They then headed for the Jeep.

  It was locked, and the two officers returned to the cabin. When Josh opened the door, Sam demanded the keys. Chief MacGuire looked pained but said nothing as Josh handed them over.

  The two officers searched the Jeep. They started back to the cabin, and Josh wondered whether the sheriff, Eve and he had been wrong, or that Clark suspected a trap. But then the officer stopped, took a long look over the property and then headed toward the covered Harley. Ryan said something to him, then shrugged and followed.

  Josh watched intently as Clark uncovered the Harley. He couldn’t see the officer’s face but the man’s body language radiated confidence. Even from where Josh stood, he noticed the stiffening of Clark’s body as he saw the rifle was no longer there. He glanced around wildly.

  The officer with him had his phone out, and Josh hoped he was taking photos.

  “You were right,” Josh said to the police chief.

  “Unfortunately. I hate a crooked cop. I didn’t have respect for Clark, but now I know what he is, and I have to prove it.”

  “He can’t let this go,” Josh said. “He’ll have to know what happened to that rifle.”

  “I can go to the state now and get help. Hopefully keep Ryan around longer. But Sam might come after you now.”

  “I don’t think there’s any question about that. He has to think I found it, and now he’ll want to know what I did with it. But you knew that from the beginning.”

  “I thought it a possibility. After seeing his face, I know it’s a certainty. This was probably a bad idea.”

  “And kinda questionable legally. Isn’t there something called entrapment?”

  “We do things differently in a small town,” the chief said. “And anyway, I’m on my way out. Bad heart. But I’m not going to leave that...thief in a uniform, much less mine.” He looked at Josh. “You can stop this now. Just report having found the rifle, and that you gave it to me. You’ll have my dated letter as proof.”

  He was giving Josh an out. One last chance.

  And he did think about it, but not for long. “As you said, there’s no proof other than the fact he was angry. He could just be angry because he couldn’t find evidence.”

  “True.”

  “You need my help.”

  “I shouldn’t be asking you. You’re a civilian now. You did your part, and more.”

  “It means staying here longer,” Josh said slowly and, to his surprise, that didn’t sound like such a bad idea.

  The chief nodded. “And you could be in danger, although I doubt he has the nerve to go after you directly. He’ll probably try to plant other evidence. But I notice you have cameras installed around here, and Ryan will keep a close eye on him.”

  “You noticed, huh?”

  “I was going to do the same thing. You saved the city some money.”

  “There was a saying we lived by in the Rangers. ‘If anything can go wrong, it will.’ Thought it would be good to have a record.”

  “Can’t say something won’t go wrong,” the chief said. “Sam can be unpredictable, but I never thought he would go this far.”

  “I would like that official letter,” Josh said.

  Tom took an envelope out of his pocket and handed it to Josh, who opened it and scanned the contents. It outlined everything he’d requested.

  “We have a witness now, and Ryan will make a fine one. He’ll know all about this conversation.”

  “I’m in,” Josh said simply.

  “I want to hire you,” Tom said.

  “Can you?”

  “Other than Sam, I can hire whoever I want if it’s within my budget. Would a dollar a year be okay?”

  “Eve told me the city had a small budget. Didn’t know it was that small. But are you sure about this? It’s a lot of trust on your part.”

  “I’ve read your service record.”

  Josh raised an eyebrow. “I thought that was confidential.”

  He looked at Josh. “No one will know about this arrangement but the four of us. You, me, Eve and Ryan.”

  Just then Clark and the other officer came inside without knocking. Sam looked as if he was about to have a heart attack. His face was red and he was breathing hard. “Where is it?” Sam asked.

  “Where is what?” Josh replied.

  “I know you burglarized the house down the street.”

  “And how do you know that?”

  Officer Sam Clark glared at him. He turned to the police chief. “Did you find anything?”

  “No. Just a Glock, and he has a permit. No rifles. No belt buckles. You were just plain wrong, Sam, and I’m going to have a little talk with Judge Henley.”

  “I say we search longer.” Clark’s face was even redder.

  Keller interjected, “We’ve already searched everywhere.”

  Chief MacGuire said, “We’re goin
g, unless you give me a solid reason why we shouldn’t.”

  “I just know...” Sam’s voice trailed off.

  “That’s it.” The chief turned to Josh. “Sorry to have bothered you, Mr. Manning.” He led the way out, and Clark didn’t have a choice but to follow. Clark turned around and shot Josh a poisonous look. Josh would have pitied him if he wasn’t dangerous. Any bad cop with a uniform and gun was dangerous. The officer had to know the rifle had been found, but he couldn’t ask questions without revealing guilt.

  Josh knew the police chief intended to keep him wondering.

  * * *

  EVE SUFFERED THROUGH most of the morning working on her comments for the graduation tonight, but her concentration was in tatters.

  She’d watched as two police cars pulled out of the lot. Nick was staying with his grandparents again.

  She hated the cloak-and-dagger stuff. It cheapened her job. She didn’t like subterfuge or secretive conversations in her office. But the fact that Sam had gotten a warrant without Tom’s approval and felt he could plant evidence told her exactly what he would do if he had more power.

  She was to give out the awards for scholarship at the graduation tonight. She reworked her comments, wanting to make them personalized to each recipient. Sandy Evans, English prize, had babysat her son and was a tutor for younger kids. She also worked with the animal rescue group and was constantly harassing people to adopt rescues. Kaylee Bradley, math prize, had the voice of an angel and sang in the choir and community chorus as well as being a math whiz. And then there was Ken Barrett, science prize, who was the son of the Presbyterian minister. Russ had coached him in youth football and had said the wiry young man was the most determined, if not the most athletic, player he’d coached.

  The ceremony itself would be held in the school auditorium with a reception later in the gym. She had convinced the grocer to donate ingredients for a punch, and the PTA was providing food. She figured they wouldn’t need much. The kids were bound to leave early for their own parties at the lake beach.

  She usually loved the graduation ceremonies and had attended nearly every one since she and Russ graduated, even when she wasn’t mayor, because she’d known someone who was graduating. Too many would leave Covenant Falls and she would only hear of them through their families.

  She looked at her notes again. They sounded trite, but she couldn’t concentrate. She wished Tom would call or come sauntering in. She looked at her watch. 1:00 p.m.

  Her heart was about ready to jump through her body. Why had she ever given Tom the go-ahead for the plan?

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  THE QUESTION NOW was what would Clark do to save himself?

  Josh mulled over the question later that afternoon as he pulled up to the hardware store in the Jeep. Amos sat in the passenger seat. Josh was not going to leave Amos alone with Officer Clark on the loose. He’d told Amos to stay, and to be sure, he’d tied the leash to the door.

  As he entered Wilson’s hardware store, Calvin Wilson greeted him as if he was an old friend.

  “Heard you’re joining our roofing party.”

  “Is everyone in town going to be there?” It felt as though half the town had made the same comment.

  “Quite a few. The ladies serve refreshments. I’m too old to get on the roof, but I’m donating the nails. Right now we have twelve men and one woman who have volunteered to work on the roof. I expect there will be others now that they know you’re coming.”

  “Why is that?” Josh asked with real puzzlement.

  “Well, word is you’re army. We’re real pro military here. Don’t know if you’ve seen it yet, but we all contributed for a memorial to honor our fallen heroes. It’s in the park near the community center. We’re real proud of it.”

  “Lose a lot of guys?”

  “And one woman. Five so far in the Middle East, nineteen in Vietnam and two in Korea. There were forty-two during WWII. Most in the same outfit on Omaha Beach.”

  “That’s a lot for a small town.”

  “Most of us have roots that go back to the 1800s. Real strong on patriotism. I was in the infantry during Korea. Didn’t have the choice then, what with the draft. I appreciate those who volunteer today. All of us do,” he added, then mumbled, “except a few.” He paused, then said, “We’re also mighty appreciative of what you did for the Douglas boy. Eve’s had too much pain already.

  “And she’s been a good mayor,” Calvin Wilson continued. “Best we’ve had in my memory.”

  “How do people feel about the rest of the council?”

  He shrugged. “Different opinions.” He changed the subject. “What can I get you, Mr. Manning? Seems you’ve been doing a lot of work on the cabin.”

  “I’m enlarging the porch. I have a list of materials here.” Josh handed it to him.

  “Big porch, huh?” Wilson commented.

  “The cabin deserves one,” he replied, then was suddenly struck by what he had said. The cabin was becoming personal. Now, that was worrying.

  “I have most of the hardware,” Wilson said. “I’ll have to order the lumber, if that’s okay.”

  “How long?”

  “Five days to be safe unless you want to pay extra for rushing it.”

  He wasn’t going anywhere in the next few days. He was going to see the Sam Clark matter to its end now. He was committed, whether or not he liked it. “Five days will be fine. Might do some fishing in the meantime.”

  “Good bream and trout. The lake was stocked years ago and the fish really like the cold water coming down from the peak. They multiply faster than we take them. You need any fishing equipment?”

  “I have a rod. What do you use as bait around here?”

  He was chatting, for God’s sake. Was Covenant Falls beginning to get to him?

  When Josh left, he had several new lures and had arranged for the screening and lumber. He could have gone to Pueblo as he had for the flooring, but he might as well patronize the local businesses even if it did cost a bit more. Eve had said the merchants were having hard times.

  He thought about the shortsightedness of Al Monroe. This could be a thriving community. There was certainly enough scenery to go around.

  There were good people here, too.

  He couldn’t help but admire a town where people had parties to roof the homes of residents who couldn’t afford repairs. Who raised funds for a library and community center staffed by volunteers. It was sad that so many of the young people had to leave to find jobs.

  Tourists and more residents would bring more services and more opportunities.

  He didn’t know why his brain was popping with ideas. Maybe it was just his training. See a problem; find solutions.

  But it was more than that. He found himself growing indignant on the town’s behalf. That was even more worrying.

  He took Amos from the car and walked him down to Stephanie’s clinic.

  She was tending to a Chihuahua, according to Lisa, Stephanie’s vet tech. He looked at the bulletin board as he waited for her to finish.

  Amos sat quietly. Stephanie came out with a middle-aged woman holding a teacup Chihuahua tightly in her grip. Amos looked up but ignored the frantic barking of the tiny dog. The woman stopped. “You must be Mr. Manning,” she said. “Welcome to Covenant Falls.”

  He nodded in acknowledgment. She looked down at Amos. “And this must be Amos. Can I pet him?”

  Josh wasn’t sure whether Amos would welcome it or not. But he nodded. “He might be a little...”

  “Would you mind holding Giselle?” The woman didn’t wait for an answer but plopped the tiny dog into his arms. She let Amos sniff her hand, then scratched his ears. “Such a handsome fellow.” Amos allowed her to pet him without flinching. “I’m Agnes Murray. I am, or was, Nick’s teacher. He just g
raduated from my class. He talked and talked about Amos.”

  Josh found himself hanging on to the squirming yappy dog with all his strength, then it bit him.

  “Oh, my.” Mrs. Murray grabbed the Chihuahua. “I’m so sorry. It’s not that she doesn’t like you. She even bites my husband from time to time. It’s her way of showing affection.”

  He sighed inwardly as a few drops of blood dribbled down his arm. Mrs. Murray hurried outside. He saw Stephanie grinning as she stood in the doorway.

  He had a sudden suspicion. “You didn’t suggest I hold...Gidget?”

  “Giselle,” she corrected. “And no, I didn’t. I have a few scars from her myself. I’m afraid that some Chihuahuas feel they have to prove size doesn’t matter.” Then the grin grew into a chuckle. “I’ll try not to tell anyone. But the picture of you holding little Giselle, and...” The chuckle grew into laughter.

  “Will you stop laughing and give me first aid?”

  She left and returned with Sherry at her side and a first-aid kit in her hands. Sherry and Amos touched noses and wagged tails. It was more emotion than Amos had shown since he’d alerted Nick about the rattler. Josh savored the moment.

  “They really like each other,” Stephanie said, the laughter gone. “I thought they would. Sherry is a born caretaker. She loves finding lost people, particularly kids, and it breaks her heart when she finds a body instead. She’s inconsolable for weeks. Other animals seem to sense she’s a gentle soul.”

  She paused, then said, “There’s a training session next week for search-and-rescue dogs. I think Amos would be a natural.”

  “He’s trained to find explosives,” Josh said. “And to protect against enemies.”

  “But he has endurance, discipline and a trained sense of smell. And he’s improving every time I see him,” Stephanie said. “If you had told me he would just walk in here and regard everyone as his subjects a few weeks back, I would say you were crazy.”

  A sense of pride flowed through him.

  “Okay,” she said dramatically. “Stop avoiding medical aid.” She brushed the small bite with an antiseptic pad, then applied a Band-Aid with a flourish. “My diagnosis? You will live.”