by Jodi Thomas
Willie thanked me for the coffee and followed Tim out.
I slipped my arm across Nana’s shoulders. “Willie’s a nice man.”
Nana put her arm about my waist. “That he is.”
I hadn’t been fair to the old man.
Chapter 36
Tuesday
October 1
2100 hours
Luke strapped the small Colt to his ankle. He’d spent the day piecing together theories about the operation at the lake and talking the agents in Lubbock into believing the threat was worth checking out.
“Ready?” He glanced at Nathan McCord, a young agent out of the Lubbock office. Nathan was runner-thin and would be able to keep up no matter what they faced, but his inexperience worried Luke. He’d spent most of his two years since the Academy doing office work.
“Almost.” Nathan tugged on his bulletproof vest. “I think you’re on to something big here, Morgan.” He muttered as he worked. “That guy you call Skidder sounds just like a man we hauled in a few months ago but couldn’t get enough evidence to make a charge stick. He kept saying his boss would flatten him if he so much as said ‘good morning’ to a cop. When we asked who his boss was, he went all wild-eyed and crazy.”
“Did he have a record?”
Nathan shook his head. “Funny thing, three years ago he was a respectable car dealer. We don’t know how he got messed up with drugs, but we could trace the slide. His business went to shit, then his wife left him. Six months ago he lost his house and disappeared off our radar. Word on the streets is his habit is so big that he works for product.”
Luke had seen it a hundred times before. Once they started to fall, there was only one of two endings: prison or death. A few make it through rehab, but only a few.
“If he’s the one blinking the light in the trees, we’ll pick him up.” Nathan went over the plan one more time. “Nobody will probably miss him for a few days, and by then he’ll be needing a fix so bad he’ll tell us anything we want to know.”
“I want the top man on this.” Luke wasn’t in this for a quick, small-time bust.
“We’ll get him,” Nathan promised.
Luke hadn’t told them Dillon’s last name when he’d related the story about the high school kid falling in the lake. He’d learned that the Lubbock office had had reports of drugs at the lake before and every time the sheriff had said he’d handle it. This time, the ATF would go around Sheriff Fletcher. They couldn’t wait until some kid died driving back from the lake with drugs running in his blood.
“What time is it?” Luke asked.
Nathan grinned. “What does it matter? You got a date tonight?”
“Something like that.” He’d had no time to let Allie know that they’d decided to go in tonight after last night’s search had turned up nothing. If she’d had a phone, he would have called. As it stood, if this went down as planned, he’d be lucky to get back to the office and finish paperwork by breakfast. She’d be madder than hell at him.
He smiled. She’d probably be so mad she wouldn’t talk to him.
There was a chance they’d find no one in the trees. If so, he might just make that midnight date with her. Otherwise, he’d explain everything to her later.
“Ready?” Nathan said as he lifted his pack. “You sure we have to use the canoe to get there? I’ve never been comfortable in water.”
They moved out of Luke’s cabin and toward the lake. “Anyone hiding in the trees by the dam would see a car go over the road. In a boat we can slip in behind him and catch him by surprise.”
A few minutes later they were in the water. Nathan got the rhythm of paddling and they silently crossed the lake. Luke went over the plan in his mind. Paul Madison and Mary Lynn had told Willie that they had spotted a car crossing the dam bridge just before dark, but it never passed Mary Lynn’s place. There were no occupied cabins between her place and the dam. So the chances were good Skidder, or one of his friends, was in place.
Luke grinned. Or else they were about to scare the hell out of kids coming out to make out in the woods or some fisherman who didn’t want to buy a state license and thought he could fish near the north shore without anyone noticing.
The canoe slid against sand and Nathan jumped out like he couldn’t wait to get out of the water. Luke slid the canoe out of sight in a cove he’d found a week ago while Nathan checked the gear. They didn’t know what they’d find here so they were going in well-armed.
Luke took the lead as they moved into the trees. He knew most of the areas around the lake better than this one. Even as a boy he’d always found the campground and lodge around the old Baptist retreat spooky. Maybe because when he’d visited here as a boy the campers had always told ghost stories after evening services.
Stories so frightening he still looked behind him now and again.
The big, old lodge peeked over the trees, its roof spotted with dark holes where the tiles had blown away over the years. It reminded Luke of what a place would be like if houses had acne. Pitted and scarred. The little cabins huddled around it as if for warmth, but Luke felt only the stale stillness of neglect.
“When was the last time this place was open?” Nathan whispered as they circled on forgotten trails between the buildings.
“Twenty years, I guess. But even then it was falling down with neglect.”
“Looks like they would have fixed it up. I’d think this property would be valuable.”
Luke nodded. “The church who owned it folded after their preacher was killed in a hotel room with a woman he’d hired for the night. It seemed everyone left the church at once with no one claiming any part of it, including this land.”
Nathan moved closer so that his voice only carried a few feet. “I remember hearing about that from some of the guys. The couple was blown away with one shotgun blast. Some thought the preacher’s wife did it, but if I remember right, she killed herself with pills less than a month later.”
Luke didn’t like to talk about the murders. Maybe because he knew Mary Lynn and knew what talk had done to her. If he’d been her, he would have run so far away he’d never hear the story again. But she’d stayed, hiding because of the sins of her parents. Preferring loneliness to questions.
Nathan shook his head. “I think someone said that the only name on the deed to all the church property was the dead preacher’s, so his daughter inherited all church holdings.”
“We’re coming into range.” Luke didn’t have to say more. They both knew from now on they’d be moving silently, using light only when absolutely necessary. A night wind camouflaged their steps, blowing dried leaves around and stirring the water against the uneven shoreline.
After half an hour of crisscrossing through the trees and around abandoned cabins and campsites, Luke spotted what looked like the black SUV he’d seen at the cabin fire. Nathan moved left. Luke took the right side. Neither made a sound as they circled the vehicle.
The side door stood open. Luke held his gun ready and flicked on his flashlight. The one he’d called Sneezy jumped with the light, but before he could say a word, Luke closed the distance and clamped his hand down hard on his mouth.
“If you don’t make a sound,” Luke whispered against Sneezy’s ear, “you just might be alive at dawn.”
Sneezy’s eyes bugged out. He nodded in panic.
Nathan moved close, sliding his knife back into his boot. He didn’t have to say anything, they both knew that whoever remained out here wouldn’t be going anywhere. The hissing sound of tires going flat blended with the rustle of dried leaves. It wasn’t procedure, but with drugs on the seat and the rest of the dealers missing, it seemed a necessary precaution.
Nathan cuffed Sneezy and patted him down while Luke tried to get him to talk. It was hopeless. Judging from the state he was in it was no wonder his friends had left him in the vehicle. His mind was so messed up he couldn’t even remember his own name, much less what he was doing out here in the dark. He had enough drugs on him to pu
t him away for a long while.
They gagged him and carried him to the porch of one of the cabins about a hundred yards away.
Luke leaned to within an inch of Sneezy’s face. “Stay here and stay quiet or the bears will find you. We’ll come back.”
The little man rocked his head back and forth as if to say he didn’t care one way or the other.
“If he was in the backseat then there are two more.” Nathan tied Sneezy to the porch rail.
“Or three,” Luke whispered.
They backtracked to the SUV. No sign of anyone about.
Luke pointed toward where the trees thinned near the road.
Again Nathan moved left and he crossed right. Luke was still deep in the trees, moving as soundlessly as possible, when he spotted the big guy he’d named Tanker, who’d slept on the beach the night the fire started.
Tanker obviously stood guard as before, his weapon crossed over his arm at the elbow, his feet planted wide apart.
Luke knelt down and studied the shadows. After a while, he spotted Skidder pacing about ten feet from the road. If possible, he looked even thinner than before. His hands and arms were moving as if he were doing sign language at warp speed.
“Be still,” Tanker ordered. “Ain’t nothin’ going to happen tonight. We’ll make the sale then get the hell out of here.”
“I don’t like it.” Skidder kept pacing. “The buy’s too big for us to handle.”
Tanker lifted an automatic. “That’s why I’m here. To make sure nothing goes wrong and you don’t start eating into the profits.”
A car bumped its way across the dam and Skidder jumped back into the trees. Tanker stood perfectly still. The old Jeep passed without slowing or blinking any lights.
Luke followed the headlight’s beam along the tree line and spotted Nathan standing far too close to the edge of the trees. Then in the blink of lights, the rookie made a second mistake-he moved.
Tanker must have thought he saw something because he yelled, “Get back! Someone’s out here.”
He raised his weapon and in rapid succession fired off three shots following where the car lights had passed. Luke dove out from behind the big man, trying to stop the shots.
Luke hit him solid in the back, but didn’t take the giant down.
Tanker swore and whirled on Luke. He got in one good punch with the butt of his automatic before Luke sent the mountain of a man to ground with a swinging blow that almost toppled them both.
Tanker, hurt and angry, scrambled for his gun.
Luke dropped his knee into the man’s back and pushed the barrel of his Glock against Tanker’s head. “Move and you’re dead.”
Tanker stilled.
Luke knew he was in great danger. Skidder was somewhere in the shadows and if he was armed Luke would be an easy target. Chances were good the frightened little man would run, but Luke didn’t like betting his life on it.
Luke slapped handcuffs on Tanker, then removed every weapon. The big guy wore an arsenal. As Luke worked, he listened for any movement around him. All he’d have was a second if the click of a gun sounded near.
As soon as he had the prisoner in check, Luke flipped on his flashlight and scanned the area. There was no longer any need for darkness. Skidder knew he was there. The only question was: Where was the jittery little man?
Luke pointed the light to the trees where Nathan had been.
Nothing.
“Nathan?”
No answer.
Using a plastic tie to bind Tanker’s feet, Luke thought of dragging the man back to the porch, but he wasn’t sure he could pull Tanker that far. At least bound, if the thug went anywhere he’d have to do so hopping.
“Stay put,” Luke ordered. “I’ll shoot if you so much as raise your head off the ground. I’ll be within sight of you.”
Tanker swore, but he didn’t move.
Luke crossed to the spot where he’d seen Nathan standing and tripped over him.
Flipping on his light, he saw the younger agent lying on his back, almost as if he were asleep. Only sleeping men don’t have blood dripping out of them.
Luke knelt and moved his hands over Nathan’s chest, smearing warm, sticky blood as he checked for wounds.
One bullet had caught Nathan high on his left arm. By the time Luke tied a handkerchief around it, blood had completely stained the white cotton red.
Nathan had taken another hit on the vest dead center of his chest. He’d be bruised, but the vest saved his life.
The third bullet had clipped his neck, brushing along the skin just deep enough to cause bleeding.
Groaning, Nathan opened his eyes and tried to sit up. “I’m all right,” he lied as he touched his bandaged shoulder.
“I got the shooter.” Luke helped him to his feet. “He’s tied up.”
“And the third guy out by the road?”
“He disappeared.”
“Go after him. I can make it back to the SUV.” As Nathan said the words, his knees buckled and he was out cold. Luke grabbed him before he tumbled to the ground.
“Nathan?” he tried.
The young agent didn’t move, but his breathing came in a steady rate and his heart pounded a solid beat.
Luke lifted him over one shoulder. “I’ll get Skidder later. Right now, I’m getting you help.”
He plowed a wide path through the trees to where they’d left the canoe. The fastest way out would be across the water, then he’d get Allie to drive Nathan to the hospital and he’d go back after Skidder.
For a moment, he thought he’d gone to the wrong place. The canoe was missing.
Luke backtracked along the beach, breathing heavy with the load he carried. No canoe. He left it in the same spot every time he crossed to this site and he made sure it was well out of the water.
So, where was it now?
A slow dread crawled into his heart. He looked out over the water and saw Skidder trying to paddle.
Panic shot through him. He had to get Nathan to safety. An agent was down, bleeding enough for it to be life-threatening. That had to be his first priority.
But the drugged-out criminal was heading across the lake to Jefferson’s Crossing. By the way he paddled, Skidder wouldn’t make good time. It would be midnight by the time he reached the far shore.
Midnight.
Allie would be standing there waiting. The only person between him and freedom.
Chapter 37
I leaned back on my elbows and watched the moon. Funny how when you live in the city you don’t really notice the moon-it’s like an accent or a painting stuffed in a corner. But out here, where there were no artificial lights to destroy the view, the moon became a centerpiece of the night.
I’d built a fire when I’d first wandered out after Nana went up to bed. The flames had turned to mostly smoke and crackle. It didn’t matter, Luke knew his way.
All day I’d thought about what tonight might be like. Tonight, when we didn’t have to worry about someone interrupting us. What would happen when we had time for more than a stolen kiss?
I had been holding back passion all my adult life, thinking it was something I’d never express. When he touched me, Luke made me want to taste it fully.
Giggling, I decided that Luke didn’t have to even flirt. I was ready. I’d probably frighten him. Part of me felt like a fish trying to jump into the boat.
Closing my eyes, I listened to the faint sounds of a paddle hitting the water. Luke was coming, just as he’d promised.
Jefferson must have stopped renting canoes years ago. I couldn’t help but wonder if Luke’s was the last survivor. It was the only canoe I saw regularly on the lake. Most of the fishermen preferred to row, or use a motor.
Smiling, I wondered if he’d notice that I wasn’t wearing pink underwear. I’d made a trip to town before supper just to buy new black panties and a small bottle of the perfume I used to love in college. Now the smell of it vanished into the smells of the lake. I’d wasted my mone
y.
I laughed, realizing I didn’t care. It had felt so good to be able to buy one thing that wasn’t a necessity. I’d bought Nana a white shawl so she could sit on the porch these cool nights and watch the sunset. She told me it made her feel like a queen.
The sound of the paddle grew closer and I tried to think of what I’d say to Luke. That I was still mad? That I missed him all day? Maybe I wouldn’t say anything at all. We seemed to be progressing nicely in our current pattern of not talking.
When the canoe hit one of the dock’s poles beneath me, I jumped. Even in the dark I would have thought Luke had more skill. Many more knocks like that and the sole surviving canoe would be at the bottom of the lake.
Standing, I walked over to the edge and waited for him to swing himself up. But he didn’t.
I waited, then thinking he must be walking beneath the dock, I searched along the line of planks for him to appear. It was far too dark and too late for him to be playing games. Besides, Luke wasn’t the kind of man who’d try to scare me.
Five inches from my tennis shoe one blackened hand flapped onto the dock. Then another. The one lamp threw enough light for me to see that the hands were thin and scabbed.
“Dirty kind of, black but not oily,” I whispered Dillon’s description of the drug dealer’s hands.
I backed away. Luke was not below. He hadn’t been in the canoe. Someone else had. Someone I didn’t want to see out here alone at this time of night.
The dock squeaked beneath my steps as I moved backward. I searched the lake, looking for another boat. Praying I’d see Luke heading toward me.
The hands disappeared. I froze, listening to every sound. I hoped whoever crawled beneath the dock would stay there. Every muscle in my body wanted me to run, but if I ran, I might be heading right toward him.
I heard only the lapping of the water against the boards below. He could be anywhere below. Footsteps in the sand wouldn’t make a sound.
I forced a slow breath, telling myself I’d fallen asleep waiting for Luke. The hands had been nothing but the remnants of a nightmare.
Just as I turned to walk back to the house, my nightmare reappeared. A black, scabbed hand shot up and grabbed my ankle, pulling me down hard on the wet dock with one violent jerk.