As the days went by, Mandy continued to investigate J. J. and Spike’s ties to the meth ring she felt certain was still operating in her area. There’d been no further reports of robberies, but Benny and Fred had arrested several teenagers for possession when they crashed a party that had gotten too loud for the neighbors.
Three of the teens had been dangerously high, but neither they nor their friends would give up the name of their dealer.
After interviewing numerous teenagers at the high school and coming up empty-handed, Mandy stopped by the main office hoping to have a word with Mr. Dobbs. If anyone had insight into who the kids were protecting it would be Cedric.
He wasn’t in.
Mandy looked at his secretary in surprise. “I thought he was expecting me when I finished interviewing the kids.”
“Oh, he was, but he got a call and said he had to leave. I think it was his wife. I don’t think she’s doing well. I do hope they get to take the cruise he’s been planning for her.”
“Then I guess I’ll speak to him tomorrow.”
“Oh, that’s just it. He won’t be in tomorrow. They’re leaving on their cruise. Can you imagine sailing around the Bahamas? I think it’s the most romantic gesture.”
The secretary reached toward her phone. “Would you like to speak to our vice principal? He’ll be taking over Mr. Dobbs’s duties.”
“No. Thank you.” Mandy left the school with her mind in a whirl. A cruise was a big expense for a man who’d had to sell his house to afford his wife’s cancer treatment. Mandy didn’t go back to the office. Instead, she drove to the apartment complex where Cedric and his wife lived and parked across the street.
She didn’t want to believe the man responsible for the education of the town’s teenagers could be involved in something as deadly as selling meth, but she had to be sure. Desperate people sometimes did desperate things.
Crossing the street, she knocked on his apartment door. When he answered, she could see at once that he was nervous.
“Mr. Dobbs, can I have a word with you?”
“I’m busy right now. Can it wait?”
“No, it can’t. I’m investigating some suspicious activity in this complex.”
He stepped outside with her and pulled the door closed. “What kind of activity?”
“An abnormally high number of parcel deliveries are being made here.”
His shoulders slumped as the breath whooshed out of him. “So you know?”
Mandy didn’t know anything for certain, but she knew how to bluff. “I wanted to hear your side of the story before I did anything…official.”
“Martha will die without these treatments. I know the drug isn’t FDA-approved and therefore illegal to import from Mexico, but it’s the only way I can afford it. It’s helping. I know it is.”
“But you can afford a cruise to the Bahamas?”
“I sold my car and the teachers at the school chipped in the rest. Martha has always wanted to go there. This is her last chance.”
Mandy faced a quandary unlike anything she’d faced before. Cedric loved his wife. They had so little time left to spend together. What if it were she and Garrett? Wouldn’t she treasure each second with him? Try anything to save him?
“Please, Sheriff,” Cedric pleaded. “Let me take her on this one last trip. When we get back…I’ll turn myself in. I promise.”
Mandy came to a decision. She laid a hand on his shoulder. “For what? I haven’t seen anything illegal.”
Tears welled up in his eyes as he gripped her hand. “Thank you. Thank you so much.”
“I’m going to check out your story, but I want you to know that I’m praying for you and your wife.”
He nodded, unable to speak.
Mandy left and returned to her car. As she drove back to the office, her spirits sagged lower.
She was no closer to busting her unknown meth dealer or to finding Judy’s murderer. If she hadn’t broken the law by letting Mr. Dobbs go then she’d bent it severely. Garrett wasn’t speaking to her and she had no idea when she’d see Colin again.
Maybe Fred was right. Maybe she couldn’t do this job. Maybe she should resign.
While she was considering what she should do, her phone rang. Hoping it was Garrett, she quickly answered. It was the hospital’s ER physician.
“Sheriff, I’ve got two teenagers here suffering from severe overdoses of meth. Both kids are being helicoptered to the medical center in Wichita as we speak. At this point, it’s doubtful that the young woman will survive. Her boyfriend was in serious condition, but I think he’ll make it.”
“I’m on my way. Can he be interviewed?”
“The chopper has already taken off, but there’s something you need to know. The boy is Luke Holt.”
Mandy’s heart sank as she pulled into the station parking lot. Ken would be devastated when he got the news. “Thanks for letting me know. Have the families been notified?”
“Yes, both sets of parents are already on their way.”
“All right. I’ll have someone come by and take your statement.”
Mandy hung up and rushed into the office just as Donna was on her way out. Donna took a step back. “Where are you going in such a hurry?”
“Call in one of the part-time officers to cover for me and send Fred to the hospital to take the staff’s statements.”
“What’s going on?”
“Luke Holt and his girlfriend have been medevaced to Wichita with meth overdoses. I’m on my way to interview them. Maybe now someone will talk.”
When Mandy entered Luke Holt’s hospital room, the boy’s parents were seated beside his bed. His father rose and took a wide-legged aggressive stance in front of his son as he confronted Mandy. “Why haven’t you gotten these thugs and their drugs out of Timber Wells? They could have killed my boy. Why aren’t you doing your job?”
Luke’s mother grasped his arm. “Nils, please.”
Mandy understood his anger. He wanted to protect his son. Right now, he was feeling as if he’d failed.
Lord, I pray this broken family finds comfort in You.
“Mr. Holt, your son is the one person who can stop these people. I need to ask him a few questions.”
He folded his arms across his chest and stepped away to stare out the window. Mandy withdrew her notebook and walked up to the bed. IV pumps sat on both sides of the bed. Luke’s color was pale. He had an oxygen mask over his face and a heart monitor beeped softly above his head. “Luke, I need the name of the person who sold you the drugs.”
The boy turned his face away. “I won’t talk to the cops.”
“Your girlfriend may die. By protecting the person responsible, you become an accessory.”
Mrs. Holt leaned forward to stroke her son’s hair. “You need to do the right thing. Tell Sheriff Scott what she needs to know.”
“You don’t understand, Mom. They’ll hurt you or Dad or Ken. I can’t—” He pressed his lips together, but Mandy saw the quiver in his chin.
She closed her notebook. “Mr. and Mrs. Holt, may I speak to Luke alone?”
The parents exchanged worried looks, but nodded in agreement. When the door closed behind them, Mandy took a seat beside the bed.
“Luke, these people can only hurt others if you allow them to go unpunished. I won’t lie to you. I can’t be everywhere all the time. I can’t promise I can protect you and your family. What I can promise is that I’ll do my level best to see that the people responsible spend a very long time in jail. But I can’t do it without your help.”
He was quiet for so long that she almost gave up hope. But at last, he said, “J. J. gave me the stuff to sell for him. He said he had a local supplier who could get me all I could sell and more. It sounded so easy. The money they promised me was more than I ever dreamed of making. I’ve been high a few times. I didn’t get hooked. I didn’t know it would…kill anyone. I just wanted to have some fun.”
“Do you have any idea who J. J.’s supplier is?”
“Last Friday night, I was coming back from a party in Topeka. It must have been three in the morning. I pulled in for gas at Turner’s. I saw Spike and J. J. coming out of the salvage yard with a couple of boxes.”
J. J. worked for Aaron Turner. Doing business at three in the morning was suspicious, but it wasn’t a crime. She needed more than her dislike of the men to take before a judge. “Can you think of anything else that might tie the men together in this?”
“The next night, J. J. brought me my supply in the same kind of box. It was white with a blue globe on it.”
“Where is the box now?” It could hold drug traces, fingerprints or DNA that might crack her case.
“J. J. dumped the drugs into my car trunk and tossed the box back in his tow truck.”
“He was driving Turner’s tow truck?”
“Yeah.”
It wasn’t much, but was it enough for probable cause? Could she get a search warrant? If not, she’d have to set up surveillance on J. J. and the station, but that would take time. In the meanwhile, more kids were in danger.
“One other thing, Sheriff. J. J. was bragging that they’ve been cooking under your nose.”
“Thanks, Luke. You’ve done the right thing.”
“Please, don’t tell my brother I was dealing.”
“I won’t tell Ken, but he’s going to find out anyway. You need to be straight with him and with your folks.”
“They’re gonna hate me.”
“I very much doubt that. They love you. Give them a chance to show it.”
Rising, she opened the door and stepped into the hall where Mr. and Mrs. Holt were waiting.
Ken came rushing down the hall toward them. “I got here as soon as I could. How is he?”
Mandy said, “The doctors say he’s serious but stable. Luke has made some mistakes. He’s scared, but he’s done a very brave thing today. I thought you should know that.”
After leaving the family, Mandy checked on Luke’s girlfriend and learned her condition was improving. Thankful for that bit of news, Mandy left the building and headed for home. Once she was on the open highway, she pulled out her cell phone and called the office.
As soon as Donna answered, Mandy said, “I need a search warrant drawn up for the Turner salvage yard, the store and all their vehicles.”
“Turner’s? Why?”
“I have a witness who says their place is being used to move drugs.”
“Really? How soon do you need this? We’ve been busy today.”
“I’m two hours away. I want it ready by the time I get there. Is Fred or Benny in?”
“Um, they’re both out on calls right now.”
“Get hold of them and have them meet me at the office. I want to execute this warrant today.”
“Is this the break you were hoping for?”
“Luke Holt is willing to testify he bought meth from J. J. and that J. J. used Turner’s tow truck to deliver the stuff. Luke saw him picking up the drugs at the salvage yard.”
“Wow.”
“I’m going to give you all the information for the warrant request. I’m not letting these creeps get away this time.”
Garrett walked out of his barn into the hot noonday sun. He didn’t recognize the green van in the yard, but he did recognize the man standing beside it. Aaron Turner. What did he want?
Garrett walked toward him. “Afternoon.”
Aaron smiled his slick I-know-I’m-better-than-you grin that had never sat right with Garrett. He didn’t smile in return. “What can I help you with?”
Aaron turned his head in all directions. “I’m looking to buy salvage. Scrap metal is what I need. I’ll take old tin, even old cars or trucks that don’t run. I pay top price for it.”
Garrett shook his head. “I don’t have anything like that.”
“No?” Aaron’s smile dimmed. “Do you know who might?”
“You can check with Ina Purdy down the road.”
“Great. You wouldn’t happen to have a phone number for her, would you?”
“Sure. Come up to the house and I’ll get it.”
Garrett walked ahead of the man, impatient at the delay in getting his work done. When he opened the door, the cold barrel of a gun pressed to his temple stopped him in midstep.
“Move into the kitchen, cowboy, but move real slow.” It was Mike Peters.
Fear sent Garrett’s heart racing. Had they hurt Colin? “Where’s my son?”
“Sleeping like a baby. For now.” The implied threat chilled Garrett more than the gun at his head.
“What do you want?”
“I want you to ask another stupid question, so I can blow a hole through you.”
Garrett clenched his jaws together and walked forward with his hands raised. In the kitchen, he stopped. Wiley crept out from under the table and whined. Mike sneered at him. “Get outta here, mutt, or you’ll get my boot again.”
Aaron squatted and held out his hand. “It’s just a dog. He’s kinda cute. Don’t he look like the pup we had when we was kids?”
Mike’s eyes never left Garrett. “I hated that cur. He bit my leg.”
“Yeah, yeah. Come here, boy,” Aaron coaxed, patting his thigh.
As much as Garrett wished Wiley would morph into an attack dog, it didn’t happen, but neither did he venture near Aaron. He stayed at Garrett’s side.
Aaron looked at Garrett. “What’s his name?”
“Wiley.”
“Like the coyote.” Aaron smiled. “I like that.”
Mike reached out and took Garrett’s cell phone from his shirt pocket. He handed it to Aaron. “Make the call, then get outside and hide the van.”
With a disgruntled glare at Mike, Aaron took the phone and left.
Mike gestured with the gun toward a chair in the center of the room. “Take a seat and don’t try anything stupid. Behave and your kid lives another day.”
Impotent rage threatened to choke Garrett. He struggled to stay calm. He might be able to rush the man and overpower him, but if he got himself killed, there wouldn’t be anyone to protect Colin.
“If you do anything to harm my son—” Garrett bit off the threat.
Mike walked behind Garrett and shoved him down into the chair. “Didn’t I make myself clear? You are the one who will get him hurt. Now, shut up and get comfortable. We’ve got a while to wait.”
Who or what were they waiting for?
Sudden blinding pain exploded through Garrett’s skull. He felt himself falling—then nothing.