Silent Trigger: A London Carter Novel (London Carter Mystery Series Book 3)

by BJ Bourg

  She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly before continuing. “When I was young, my grandfather had given me his old Browning ten gauge shotgun. I grabbed it out of my closet and loaded it before going look for my dad. He had hit me right before I left for college and I swore he’d never put his hands on me again.” She leaned back and stared down at her open hands. “I aimed my shotgun at him and wrapped my finger around the trigger. I was going to do it. I was absolutely going to kill him and put an end to my mother’s suffering.”

  She quit talking and left me hanging. After a minute, she looked up at me and her eyes sparkled with tears.

  “I pulled the trigger, London. In my heart, I killed my dad that night.”

  My brows furrowed. “In your heart? So, you didn’t really kill him?”

  “The only thing that saved him was my brother. He had come in the room and was standing behind me. He knew I was going to do it. He begged me not to, but I was so enraged I didn’t even hear him. He jumped on my back just as I squeezed the shot off. The slug ripped a hole in the wall about eight inches above my dad’s body.” She shook her head. “A lot changed that night, the worst being that Darby never spoke to me again.”

  I sat there stunned. “What did your dad say? What did he do?”

  “He didn’t even wake up. When my ears stopped ringing, I started thinking more clearly. I realized my life would’ve been over had that slug hit him, and that’s when I decided to leave Arkansas for good.”

  “How’d you end up here?” I asked. “We’re half an hour from the end of the earth.”

  “A friend from college landed a job at a local pharmacy here in Seasville. After I told her what had happened, she offered to let me stay with her until I could find work.” Dawn stood and leaned her back on the railing, looking down at me. “I saw an ad in the local paper about an opening at the sheriff’s office. I’d never thought about police work until that very moment. When I saw that ad, I knew instantly it’s what I wanted to do, so I signed up and here I am.”

  “Just like that? You never thought about being a cop until you saw that newspaper ad?”

  “Right. That’s when I realized I wanted to stop men from beating their wives.” She sighed. “Since then, I’ve realized you can’t help someone who doesn’t want to be helped—like Cynthia Alvey and my own mom.”

  I smiled to myself. The more I learned about Dawn, the more I admired her. Most interested men would’ve probably been terrified to learn she’d almost killed her dad, but I respected what she had attempted to do. I suddenly frowned, remembering something she’d said.

  “Earlier, you mentioned you didn’t trust yourself enough to get married or be engaged,” I said.

  “If I get married and my husband puts his hands on me in anger…well, I don’t trust myself not to kill him.”

  Dawn’s phone rang and interrupted the rest of her thought. She pushed off of the railing and answered, pacing back and forth in front of me as she talked. When she hung up, she spun on her heels to face me. “That was Doctor Fitch…Wilton Michot was murdered.”

  “Murdered?”

  Dawn’s head bobbed up and down. “Someone stuck an ice pick through his ear and then shoved a cotton swab deep inside to keep any blood from leaking out.”

  CHAPTER 13

  Tuesday, October 2

  When Dawn and I drove up to Cade Baryon’s house, he was standing on the blacktop street in front of an old white Delta 88. I didn’t know what looked worse, him or the car. He appeared to be about Wilton’s age, but more weathered, and his jeans were dirty. He wasn’t wearing a shirt, so Dawn and I were blessed with a grotesque view of his jailhouse tattoos, all of which were faded and looked like something from a child’s notebook. His white and black beard was scruffy and his hair unkempt.

  “Hey, there, beautiful,” he called to Dawn as we stepped out of the loaner Tahoe. “Why’d you have to go and bring your boyfriend?”

  I saw Dawn’s eyes flash and I thought she was going to knock the piss out of Cade, but she forced a smile and nodded her greeting.

  I quickly took in my surroundings. The Delta 88 was parked in front of two trailers that were side-by-side and perpendicular to the street. A makeshift fence surrounded the property around the two trailers, and it was the only thing keeping a thick pit bull from getting at us. The anger the dog felt was evident in his hoarse bark.

  I indicated with my head toward the dog. “That’s a pretty cat.”

  Cade scowled and cocked his head sideways. “Are you shitting me? You don’t know the difference between a dog and a cat?”

  “He’s just being funny,” Dawn said, trying to sound friendly. “So, is this the beauty Wilton was talking about?”

  Cade nodded and slapped the hood of the rusted car. It had to be twenty-five years old. “I hate to part with her, but I’m hard up for cash and Wilton told me he’d take her off my hands.”

  Dawn chewed on her lower lip and slowly walked around the car, pretending to look it up and down. I casually glanced toward the trailers, looking beyond them toward the thick trees and bushes that surrounded the property.

  Jerry had set up in a tree east of us, while Ray had positioned himself across the street to the south and behind us. Jerry had radioed when we drove down the street to let us know everything looked quiet. Other than Cade and the intense pit bull, they hadn’t seen any movement from the property.

  “Did you and Wilton discuss a price?” Dawn asked, coming full circle around the car and stopping in front of Cade.

  “Yeah, he said he’d give me five for it.”

  “Five hundred…okay, that seems fair.”

  “Five thousand,” Cade said, spitting the words.

  I saw the shock on Dawn’s face. We weren’t planning on giving him anything except metal bracelets, but it was clear she didn’t think the car was worth close to what Cade was asking.

  “Are you trying to pull one over on me?” she asked. “There’s no way Wilton would’ve given five grand for this car. It’s—what?—nearly thirty years old? Probably has half a million miles on it.”

  “Wilton and I had a special arrangement,” Cade said slowly. “If you’re really from the dealership, you would know that.”

  “Well, his own secretary didn’t know your name, so it seems Wilton was a bit private about his relationship with you.” Dawn crossed her arms in front of her chest. “By the way, what exactly was the nature of your relationship with him? Now that he’s gone, you’ll be dealing with me and we need to understand each other fully.”

  Cade took a cautious step back, stealing a glance in my direction as he did so.

  Ray’s voice came over my earpiece. “He’s looking skittish.”

  I nodded my agreement, knowing they could see me.

  “Why are you asking that kind of question?” Cade asked, licking his cracked lips and looking around. “You sound like a cop.”

  “Why are you so paranoid?” Dawn shot a thumb toward the car and smiled. “You’re not about to sell me a stolen car, are you? That could cost me my job.”

  “No,” Cade quickly said, still unsure about what was going on. “But you didn’t answer my question. Are you a cop?”

  “I didn’t answer your question because it’s ridiculous.” Dawn pulled a checkbook from her back pocket. “If Wilton agreed to five thousand dollars, then that’s what you’ll get, but I’ll be negotiating any future deals.”

  Cade’s eyes lit up. “Yeah, that’s what we agreed to.”

  Dawn started filling in the check, then paused, her pen in midair. “Wilton died suddenly and his wife was left with a lot of questions. Did he say anything at all about what he was up to last night? Maybe tell you where he was going?”

  “You are a cop!” Cade turned and bolted for the fence, clearing it in one jump. He landed with a grunt in the tall grass on the other side and bolted between the two trailers.

  Dawn reached the fence a step ahead of me and grabbed the top bar to launch herself over it. J
ust as she landed, the pit bull reached her and tried to bite her calf. I hollered as I went airborne and the dog jerked around to face me, his mouth opened wide to expose a row of menacing teeth. I saw Dawn start to react to the dog coming at me, but I told her to keep going and she did.

  I landed on my feet beside a large garbage can and quickly dragged it in front of me and in the dog’s face. He backed away and then circled around the garbage can, coming straight for me. When he was within biting range, I kicked out at him, but he deftly ducked away from my kick and circled toward my left, looking for another opening.

  I heard a muffled voice over the radio and realized my earpiece was slipping from my ear canal. I shoved it back in and kicked at the pit bull a second time, keeping it at bay.

  “Repeat…Sierra One, do you want me to take him out?” Ray called over the radio. “I’ve got him in my crosshairs.”

  I shook my head and waved him off, narrowly escaping another charge from the pit bull. Thinking quickly, I removed my shirt and wrapped it securely around my left arm, moving away from the dog as I did so. I yelled and kicked out at him, but he wouldn’t be deterred. He continued to lunge forward, searching for an angle and trying to bite any part of me he could reach. I didn’t want to have to shoot him and I didn’t want Ray or Jerry to shoot him, but Dawn needed my help, so I knew I didn’t have much time to waste.

  I dangled my left arm in front of me like bait and backed toward the rear of the yard, hoping to reach the opposite side of the fence before the pit bull got to me. I continued backing away until the heel of my left foot suddenly came into contact with something hard and I stumbled backward. As though sensing my disadvantage, the pit bull lunged into the air, his mouth open and his intentions evil.

  I shoved my protected forearm in his direction and he latched onto it like a bear trap. He began shaking his head from side to side and it was all I could do to remain on my feet. Gritting my teeth against the painful pressure of his teeth smashing down on my forearm, I grabbed onto my left wrist with my right hand. Spreading my feet to balance myself, I lifted him into the air until only his back legs were touching the ground. I then stepped into him, pressing my body up against his, and quickly wrapped my right arm around the back of his neck.

  Taking a deep breath and keeping his body pressed firmly to mine, I slowly began to lean forward, bending him backwards. As I applied pressure to his spine, I heard him start to whimper and I felt the grip on my forearm loosen. I knew all I had to do was bend forward sharply and his back would break, but I didn’t want to kill the dog—I simply wanted him to eat something other than me.

  I bent forward a little more and he whelped, fully releasing my arm and squirming in pain. I straightened and pushed him away from me, ready to continue the fight if necessary. It wasn’t.

  As soon as he crumbled to the ground, he twisted around and shot like a bullet toward the underside of the trailer, whimpering his apologies as he ran.

  I quickly unwrapped the shirt from my arm and pulled it over my head. Running between the trailers, I called over the radio and asked if Ray or Jerry had a visual on Dawn.

  “Negative,” Ray called. “I lost sight of them when they hit the tree line.”

  Jerry responded and said he couldn’t see her either.

  When I reached the back fence, I jumped clean over it and plunged into the thick underbrush behind the property. There was a faint trail through the thick weeds and it marked the route Dawn and Cade were traveling. I sprinted hard, dodging trees and jumping over downed logs, trying desperately to catch up with them, and calling Dawn’s name as I ran. Picker bushes ripped at my arms and thick branches smacked my face, but I didn’t slow down. Cade was a dangerous man and I needed to reach them as soon as possible.

  CHAPTER 14

  Dawn ran as fast as her legs would carry her. While she’d never been the quickest sprinter she knew, she had stamina and was certain she’d outlast Cade, who was somewhere ahead of her. The greenery was too thick to penetrate with her eyes, but she could hear him crashing through the underbrush like a bull with its ass on fire.

  She knew she’d probably be on her own once she caught up to Cade, because London was fighting with that mean-looking pit bull the last time she saw him. She hadn’t heard a gunshot yet, so she figured he must still be wrangling with the animal.

  A large branch loomed ahead, just at eye level, and Dawn quickly ducked under it. The trees were starting to thin out a bit and she finally caught a glimpse of Cade. He was about twenty yards ahead of her and he looked to be slowing.

  “Stop or I’ll shoot!” Dawn ordered, trying to run faster.

  Cade didn’t even look around. He jumped over a log and slowed just a little to pull his jeans higher on his butt. Dawn gagged when she saw his ass crack sticking out above his waistline.

  “I’m serious, Cade,” she hollered. “I’ll shoot your ass if you don’t stop.”

  All of a sudden, Cade leapt forward into the air and disappeared. Dawn quickly slowed when she heard a large splash. She approached the area cautiously and grunted when she saw a large drainage canal cutting through the center of the woods. Cade was already halfway to the other side, paddling as though his life depended on it.

  Keeping her pistol trained on the back of his head, Dawn waited until Cade climbed up the opposite bank. He turned briefly and smiled when he saw her standing there, about fifty feet away. He then plunged into the woods on the other side, but not showing as much urgency as earlier.

  Now that he was gone, and knowing he was their only lead in the murder case, Dawn kept her pistol in her hand and stepped softly into the water. She shivered when her boots sank in the soft mud and the cool liquid quickly saturated her pants. She found herself in waist-deep water at first, but it grew deeper as she trudged closer to the middle. Before long, her shirt was also saturated and she was shivering in the deep shadows of the thick forest.

  When the water level had reached her breasts and soaked her bra, she gasped and stood frozen for a moment, cursing Cade and the damn canal. Why couldn’t he just run up the street like a normal criminal?

  Something splashed to her right and she jerked around, her pistol at the ready. She scanned the surface of the water, searching for the source of the splash. If it had been an alligator, it was out of sight now, which meant it was under the water and could be heading straight for her.

  Needing no further encouragement, Dawn hurried forward, stumbling in the soft mud and paddling with her left hand. When she could no longer touch the bottom, she kicked off and began to swim, struggling against the weight of her clothes and boots. She no longer cared about being heard. At this point, she needed to avoid drowning and becoming alligator bait, so she kicked with her feet and splashed with her hands, fighting desperately to reach the other side of the canal.

  It was a struggle to keep her head above water so she could watch for Cade and she almost lost her pistol several times, but she finally managed to reach the shallow water of the opposite bank. Before she could relax, something bumped the back of her leg and she jumped in her skin. Stepping high and struggling fiercely with the soft mud, she raced forward. Water shot high into the air as she stumbled forward and some of it splashed into her eyes, blinding her. The bank was now a blur, but when she thought she was close enough, she launched herself into the air and landed with a thud on the solid ground.

  Turning onto her butt, she scooted backward toward the trees with her feet and one hand, while keeping her pistol pointed toward the water with her right hand. She had barely reached the security of the forest when she saw the head of a large alligator rise above the surface. Its mouth was half open, giving it the appearance of laughing at her.

  Cursing the alligator under her breath, Dawn spun around and ran into the woods, heading in the direction she’d last seen Cade. She wasn’t sure how she would cross the canal on the return trip, but she planned on using Cade as a decoy if she had to.

  The ground on the northern bank was pa
cked and clear of underbrush, which made it easier for her to move covertly. It would also make it harder for her to hear Cade, so she slowed her pace and scanned the area ahead carefully as she stalked forward. With each step she took, water sloshed in her shoes and it was difficult to move without making a sound.

  After traveling about thirty yards from the canal, an uneasy feeling crept over her. She stopped and squatted beside a tree. All was quiet. She turned and scanned the route from which she’d come, unable to put a finger on what caused the feeling of trepidation.

  Am I just being paranoid? Dawn gripped her pistol in both hands and took a deep breath. She remembered London once telling her how deadly it was to be the seeker in hide and seek with guns. While she wasn’t sure if Cade had a gun, she had to assume he was armed. She definitely knew he was dangerous. She weighed her options, knowing she only had two choices…she could either continue pursuing him or turn around and live to fight another day. No one would blame her for turning back.

  Dawn gritted her teeth and shook her head. London would not turn back and neither would she. This man was their only lead and it was up to her to bring him in…and by God she was going to do just that.

  With renewed vigor, she straightened and turned back toward the north. She gasped when she saw a dark figure rushing toward her. She’d only seen Cade Baryon briefly, but there was no mistaking his ugly frame covered in mud, and there was no mistaking the large tree branch he was swinging right at her head.

  CHAPTER 15

  I wasn’t sure how far I’d run, but I was beginning to worry that I hadn’t caught up to Dawn and Cade yet. I paused for a moment and scanned the ground, looking for sign. I nodded. There it was, plain as day. I was heading in the right direction, but I still didn’t hear or see them. Grunting, I pushed on, running like Dawn’s life depended on it.