MACK’S STOMACH did flip-flops the entire drive back to the house. He called his dad on the way to make sure he was all right. When they got back to the house, he changed into his uniform and went in to the station. Once at his desk, he did his best to get into work mode and tried like hell to stop worrying about Brantley. At least he knew Brantley’s truck wasn’t ready yet, so unless he bought another vehicle, he was stuck in town for a few more days.
“Is Zeb back yet?” he asked Gloria from his office.
“No. He said he’ll be back soon.” She came to stand in his office doorway. “Who pissed in your Cheerios?”
“It’s nothing.”
“Yeah, sure.” She rolled her eyes. “This wouldn’t happen to have anything to do with the new guy in town who just happens to be staying at your place, would it? Is he hard to live with? I saw him the other day, and he’s pretty cute. Do you think he’s in the market for a girlfriend? My cousin Elise would be great for him, and we’re all tired of the losers she tends to date, like Harley.”
“I can safely say that Brantley isn’t looking for a wife.” He picked up some papers from his desk so he would have somewhere else to look and swallowed hard. This sort of conversation wasn’t something he’d anticipated, but now that he thought about it, people were going to wonder about him and Brantley. He should have been prepared for this, but he found he wasn’t… at least not as much as he’d like to have been. “Brantley is gay,” he said flatly.
Gloria paused. “Okay. So no on my cousin.” She seemed to be thinking. “Hmmm, my friend Donna has a son who is gay… maybe….”
“Gloria. Brantley doesn’t need to be fixed up. He’s already seeing someone.” He realized this was a little fun.
“So soon? Who?”
“Gloria, who do you think? Me.” He stared at her. And saw the light go on in her head.
“You?” Gloria’s lower lip hung open for a whole second, then snapped closed. “Okay. So that’s good, then. It’s about time you found someone nice.”
“You’re not shocked?” Mack asked.
Gloria shrugged. “There are gay people everywhere. On television, in movies. What’s the big deal? But I guess there are some folks who aren’t going to be happy.”
“I’m aware of that.”
“What are you going to do?” Gloria asked. “The election is next year.”
“Fight for my job,” Mack said without thinking. “I’m a fine sheriff, and I’ve done a lot of good in this town. If people don’t see that, then they deserve someone else, and I’ll get a different job. There are plenty of things I can do.”
“That a boy,” Gloria said, turning away when the phone rang. She rushed back to the switchboard, and Mack got back to work, shaking his head in pleased surprise.
Zeb came into his office a half hour later and plopped himself into a chair. “God, I hate those calls.”
“What happened?” Mack asked, setting the paperwork aside. He wasn’t really reading it anyway.
“Peter Gunderson tried to take a video game. He didn’t make it out the door because he kept looking around all the time. They called mainly to have me scare the kid.”
“He’s only eight,” Mack said.
“Yeah, and he was in tears and could barely talk by the time I got there. He said he was sorry like half a million times, and when I asked why he took it, he said because his friend Barry had a copy and that he wanted to play with it, but Barry said he couldn’t come over when he invited the other boys in their class to play. So he said he was going to take it and all he wanted to do was play it, and then he was going to bring it back, and that if he did that and said he was sorry, that it would be all right. He kept saying through his tears that he wasn’t going to keep it. I talked to him, and it seems the other kids in his class pick on him a lot because he walks funny, and I think he wanted to have what they have.”
“Oh God.” Mack would have laughed if it wasn’t so heartbreaking. “Did you call his mother?”
“I called the house, and Larry came out. He walked into the store under a head of steam like you wouldn’t believe, but I calmed him down. I swear he was ready to punish Peter for the rest of his life. He was already promising never to do anything like that again, and when his dad did come inside, Peter tried to hide under the chair.”
“Jesus. Do you think there’s some abuse?” Mack asked. Stealing a game was one thing, but a kid in that much fear of his dad was something else.
“No. Larry was surprisingly gentle. I’ve seen him in his uniform, and he can be scary in fatigues, but once he got Peter out and away from the chair, he fell into his daddy’s arms, crying and saying he was sorry.”
“Are they going to press charges?”
“No. They got the game back, and it seems that Peter is going to be spending the next few Saturdays sweeping the store and sidewalk for them. And his video games have apparently been taken away for the foreseeable future.” Zeb leaned forward. “And I said I’d make an appointment to go into the school to give a talk about bullying.”
“That’s a great idea.” He could see the marks of bullying all over this incident. “If I’m able, I’ll come with you.” Mack waited to see if Zeb had anything more, but he got up to leave. “You did a really good job.”
MACK WENT back to work, going over everything they’d found out, hoping like hell it presented the portrait of someone he knew. He always hated thinking that his neighbors and even his friends could be suspects, but he’d learned over the course of the job that not every suspect was an asshole or someone he didn’t like. Sometimes he had to look objectively at neighbors and people he’d known for most of his life. That was the really difficult portion of his job. The advantage was that he knew everyone. So he continued looking at what he had. “This should be easier than this,” he said out loud to no one in particular.
“Talking to yourself?” Gloria asked. “Things must be bad.”
“Just a pain. I keep feeling like the answer is right in front of my face, and all I have to do is put the pieces together.”
“Maybe it is,” Gloria agreed and leaned over her desk. “The answers to most things are usually so simple that we look right past them.” The phone rang and Gloria picked it up.
Mack rearranged some of his notes. “Holy shit,” he mumbled under his breath. “Gloria,” he yelled. “Where’s Zeb?”
“I just sent him on a call,” she told him.
“Where?” Mack grabbed his hat and hurried to her desk.
“The Roadhouse. They have some sort of disturbance.”
Mack was already past her and out the door. He raced to his cruiser and took off out of the lot, heading out to the edge of town.
Even at this time of day, the Roadhouse was busy. Mack parked near the door and walked in to find plenty of yelling and some shoving. Zeb was trying to get it under control. “What the hell is going on?” Mack boomed over everyone. Instantly the place was as quiet as the cemetery. “That’s enough.” He turned to the bartender. “Who do you want removed?” He wasn’t in any mood to sort out whatever stupid argument had started this. The bartender pointed to the usual troublemakers, and Zeb escorted them out just like that.
Mack followed them, the two men sputtering and fuming. “This is private property, and you have no right to be in there if the owners don’t want you. I suggest you walk it off, because if either of you gets in a car, we’ll throw both of you in jail.” He didn’t give them any quarter, and both men backed down and started walking toward town. Mack was pretty sure neither of them was particularly keen to call their wives to pick them up.
“I could have handled this,” Zeb said.
“I know. I didn’t come out here to step on your toes. But you said that Peter’s father picked him up.”
“Yeah. Larry said that Chrissy was down with the flu.”
“But why is he home? Denny Beltz called Julie and said that his guard deployment was extended by a week. So why wasn’t Larry’s? They’re in the same unit.”
“I don’t know. Maybe they only needed Denny,” Zeb said, but Mack wasn’t buying it.
“Thanks.” Mack took off and called Gloria at the station. “Gloria, I need Larry Gunderson’s phone number and address,” he said. He waited, and once he got the information, he went to the Gunderson home. Larry worked nights at the hospital, so Mack was fairly sure he’d be there.
Mack pulled into the drive of the small but extremely neat house just off Main Street. He put the car in park and wasn’t surprised at all when the front door opened as he walked up.
“Has Peter done something else?” Larry asked, yawning, dressed in a T-shirt and sweatpants.
“No,” Mack answered. “But I need to speak with you.”
Larry stepped back, and Mack went inside.
“I understand that you’re in the same National Guard unit as Denny Beltz.” Mack sat on the edge of one of the living room chairs while Larry collapsed back on the sofa. He hated interrupting Larry’s sleep, but this couldn’t wait.
“Yeah. Our annual training was the past two weeks, but we were done on Sunday.”
“The entire unit?” Mack asked as he pulled out his notebook and pen.
“Well, yeah. We were all dismissed, and when we left, Denny was getting ready to go, the same as the rest of us.” Larry seemed confused.
“Thanks.”
Larry yawned and stood when Mack did. “I’m sorry about Peter. He and I have had a long talk, and while it doesn’t excuse what he did, his mother and I are now aware that he was being bullied. I have an appointment to talk to the principal and his teacher tomorrow. We’ll get to the bottom of this.”
“Excellent. I’m sorry I disturbed you.” Mack headed for the door. “Do you have your commander’s phone number?”
“Certainly.” Larry rattled it off, and Mack wrote it in his notebook and then thanked Larry once again.
“Perfect. I’ll let you get some rest. I appreciate the help.” Mack left the house and got into his cruiser as his phone rang. He answered it through the car. “Yes, Gloria,” he said, backing out of the drive.
“We just received a call from Andy Erickson. He was checking on his herd and saw someone around the old Richardson house. He thought it looked suspicious and called it in. I was able to contact Brantley Calderone and he was heading out there, but I thought I should tell you too. Ronnie is on his way out there as well.”
Mack’s stomach roiled. In his gut he knew this was bad. He made a turn and raced out toward Brantley’s ranch, sirens screaming and lights blazing. He pulled in the drive, parking next to his dad’s car. Ronnie pulled in right behind him. Flames shot from some of the windows, and it was obvious they were gaining strength. The house would soon be completely engulfed.
“We need to find Brantley,” Mack said as glass broke and smoke billowed out of the back of the house. “Get the fire department out here now,” he yelled to Ronnie as he raced to the front door. He leaped onto the front porch and kicked open the door. Clouds of smoke poured out of the opening, followed by a wave of heat. He waited a few seconds for the air to clear and then raced inside.
The living room was filled with smoke. Mack coughed and scanned around. The kitchen was already being consumed, flames snaking their way toward the source of air. Mack knew there was no time to waste and launched himself down the hallway, pushing open each door. He had to find Brantley. He knew he was here.
The bathroom was empty, and so was the second bedroom. The master bedroom door was locked, and Mack kicked it in as the smoke around him grew thicker and the roar of the fire filled his ears. They didn’t have much time.
The room was dark, curtains pulled, but the air was clear for a few seconds, just long enough for Mack to see a figure on the bed. Mack raced around the bed, practically pulling the curtains down in his haste to open them. Brantley was there, arms and legs duct-taped together. Mack tried to rouse him, but Brantley didn’t respond.
Mack lifted him into his arms and hurried back the way he’d come, but a wall of roaring flame met him after two steps. That way was blocked, so he raced back into the bedroom and slammed the door. They had seconds before the flames broke through. Mack put Brantley back on the bed and opened the window, then pushed the screen out, letting it fall to the ground. “I need help in here,” he yelled, hoping like hell Ronnie heard him.
He heard sirens but time was running out. Mack touched the wall and found it hot, radiating heat into the room and telling him the fire raged on the other side. He turned back to the bed and lifted Brantley once again, grateful when he heard a groan.
“Mack?” Ronnie called.
“Thank God. Brantley’s here. I’m going to pass him through the window.” He was already lifting him feetfirst through the opening. Ronnie grabbed hold of him, and it seemed so did the firefighters. The bedroom door burst inward and collapsed as Mack climbed through the opening. Men helped him through and to the ground before they all hurried away from the burning building.
Emergency personnel had Brantley on the ground and were giving him oxygen. One of the EMTs, Audie, offered Mack a mask, but he waved it away and slowly breathed in the fresh air. “I’m fine,” he snapped. A large crash signaled that the house was falling in on itself, and when Mack turned, the kitchen side was mostly gone, sparks and embers flying high into the air. Water was being poured onto the house to try to keep the embers down, but there was nothing to be done otherwise. Mack could see the house was a total loss and within minutes would be nothing but a pile of ash and rubble. But that was a hell of a lot less important than the fact that Brantley was lying on the ground and he wasn’t moving.
“Brantley,” he said as he made his way over to where the person who had come to mean so much to him lay nearly motionless. “Why isn’t he waking up? The room was clear of smoke, and I got him out before it got too bad.” Just barely, but he’d been able to act fast.
“We’re trying to figure that out, Sheriff,” Audie said. “You need to stay back so we can work.” He’d known Audie for a number of years, but his concern for Brantley was overriding everything else.
“Bullshit,” Mack said and walked around to the far side, knelt on the ground, and took Brantley’s hand, stroking it gently. “You need to wake up for me,” he said quietly, paying little attention to the others around him. He had come to the decision that he was who he was, and holding back wasn’t going to do him any good regardless. “Brantley, sweetheart, you need to open those amazing blue eyes and look at me.”
“He has a lump on his head, but I don’t think that’s why he isn’t waking up,” Audie said. “I think he was given something to knock him out.” He turned to the others. “We’re going to transport him now. There isn’t much more we can do here.”
Mack backed away and watched as they lifted Brantley up and into the ambulance. Mack wanted desperately to ride with him, but he had a job to do here, and as much as he hated staying behind, he had to let the professionals do their job. “Do you think he’ll be all right?”
Audie closed the back door of the ambulance. “I don’t know. He could have been given a lot of things. I’ll make sure they know to call you personally.” He patted Mack on the shoulder and then hurried to the driver’s seat, and seconds later the ambulance pulled away with the siren blaring.
“Is there anything I can do?”
Mack turned. He hadn’t heard Julie Beltz come up behind him.
“Sorry,” she said.
“No. Thanks.” This was one of those shit times when doing his duty overrode what he really and truly wanted. He would be useless at the hospital, and here he could hopefully nail down who had done this.
“Was this an accident?” Julie asked.
Mack opened his mouth to say no but paused. He knew it wasn’t, but he couldn’t speak about ongoing investigations. “We’re going to find out.” He excused himself to talk with Captain Randall. “Whoever started the fire used accelerants,” Mack told him. “I could smell them when I was inside. I don’t think it was the whole house, but it wouldn’t have gone up so fast otherwise.”
“So this is arson?”
Mack shook his head. “Attempted murder.” He wasn’t going to pull any punches. “We need to investigate together.” He wasn’t about to get into a pissing contest.
“No problem. We can use all the help we can get. Most of our men are volunteers, so a joint investigation will work. And since I’m the lead investigator….”
“Good. It started in the back, right over there, then worked its way to the main section of the house and the bedroom last, which I don’t understand, because if he truly wanted to kill Brantley, why didn’t he start the fire in the room he was in?”
“Well, if I had to guess, I’d say the perpetrator wasn’t a firebug. Those guys know how flame behaves. So I suspect he put the victim in the bedroom and then left the house, spreading his gasoline and then throwing a match before he hurried away. If he didn’t wet everything, that would give him some time to get away and maybe out of sight before the heat broke a window and smoke would clearly be seen.”
That made sense to Mack.
“Do you know who did it? Or think you know?”
“I have a good idea” was all that Mack would divulge. He did his best not to look at Julie. For her sake, he hoped he was wrong, but the evidence was adding up. “Thank you for everything. I’m going to get out of your way until you have this out.” Mack went to his car, turned on the engine so the interior wouldn’t become a blast furnace, and made the call that could clinch everything.
“Is this Byron Masters?” Mack asked when his call was answered.
“Captain Masters, yes,” he confirmed gruffly.
“I’m Sheriff Mackenzie Redford from Hartwick County, and I’m hoping you can confirm something for me.”
“I don’t know.” He sounded wary.
“I’m conducting a murder investigation, and I have some questions. Larry Gunderson gave me your name.”
“Larry is one of my best sergeants. What can I help you with?”
“His unit recently had their two weeks of training.”
He heard the rustle of papers. “Yes. They completed the training last weekend.”
“Was anyone in his unit asked to stay an extra week?” Mack asked, praying for a positive answer.
More papers rustled in the background. “No. That entire unit was dismissed and sent home. They’re a great unit and work well together. There was no reason for any of them to stay.”
Mack’s heart leaped and then fell. This was both the break in the case he’d been looking for and a huge disappointment, especially as he watched Julie standing with the few neighbors who were congregating. “Thank you.”
“Are you saying that one of these men could be your suspect?”
“I can’t answer that at this time, but I will contact you if charges are brought,” Mack said.
“Fair enough,” Captain Masters said. “I’m glad I could help.”
“Would it be possible to get a copy of any paperwork that documents that the entire unit was dismissed?” Mack gave the captain his fax number, as well as e-mail address, and Captain Masters said he’d send a roster. He thanked the captain for his help and ended the call. “Shit!” he said inside the car, trying not to look like he was unhappy. There were too many people around for him to show this kind of emotion.
Mack got out, wondering how in the hell he would ever prove that Denny Beltz had been at the scene of the crimes. He had the boot print, but Denny wasn’t the only person in town with those boots, and there could be others from out of town. So far he’d proved that Denny had lied to his wife, but that wasn’t necessarily a crime. Denny had military expertise—that was a given. So Denny met all of the criteria they’d developed of their suspect, but the evidence was circumstantial. Mack had to find something more concrete, but at least now he knew where to start looking.
He got out of the car and did his best to try not to look like part of his world hadn’t just crashed in on him. Denny was an old friend, and Mack looked after his family when he was away. The whole situation really pissed him off.
His phone rang and he practically jumped. “Sheriff Redford.”
“It’s Audie. I can’t say much, but Brantley regained consciousness just before we reached the hospital. Privacy laws prevent us from saying more, but I wanted to let you know that he was talking and asking where you were. He doesn’t remember very much about what happened, but he seems lucid.”
“Thank you.” Part of the knot in Mack’s gut unwound. At least it sounded like Brantley was going to be okay. “Are you still with him?”
“I can be.”
“Tell him that I’ll be there just as soon as I can.”
“I will,” Audie agreed, and Mack thanked him and hung up.
The house was still too hot to enter, so Mack instructed Ronnie to stay on-site and not to allow anyone to enter the wreckage until he returned. Mack ran back to his car and pulled out, calling his dad as he raced home.
“Mack,” Lew said as he answered the phone.
“Are you okay?” Mack asked in a rush.
“Yes, I’m fine.”
“Call someone and get them to sit with you. I don’t want you alone. Hell, get half your friends and tell them you’re having a party. Eat everything in the house, just get people over there.”
“You know something.”
“Yeah, and don’t let anyone under fifty in the house. I have a suspect, and I can’t say who it is, but do not stay alone.”
“Okay. I’ll make calls.”
“You have five minutes,” Mack said and hung up. He continued toward town, hands shaking until his dad called back to ask if Gordy across the street was clear. Mack told him that was fine, and apparently Gordy was on his way to sit with him until other friends could come over. “Keep your eyes open, Dad, and call in if you see anything suspicious.” He continued to the station, went to his desk, and sat looking at all the things he had.
The one thing he didn’t want to do at the moment was to serve a warrant on Julie. He had the probable cause to search the house, but that would be traumatic for them, and what if he was wrong? And he wondered if Denny would bolt if he got word of it, and that particular bit of news was bound to get around town in record time.
He looked up at a knock on the doorframe.
“Mack,” Zeb said. “I heard about what happened. When you see Brantley, tell him I’m sorry about his house and that I hope he’s doing better.”
“I will,” Mack said. “Come in here and close the door.” He waited for Zeb to comply and then went over what he had. “I think I know who’s behind all this.”
Zeb’s eyes widened. “That’s great.”
“No, it’s not. It’s Denny Beltz.”
“No way!” Zeb leaped to his feet. “He has….”
“I know. The thing is, he has the kind of boot we are looking for, military experience, and he wasn’t at training for an extra week. No one from his unit was asked to stay longer. Brantley and I found gold on the ranch property he bought. So I think that’s why Denny has been trying to run Brantley off. The problem is that I can’t tie him directly to the crimes. It’s all circumstantial. I knew there was something I was missing.”
“What can I do?”
“We need to go over everything we have again.”
“We checked the casings we recovered for prints but found none,” Zeb said.
“I want you to look at those boot photographs again. Enlarge them, or get Ronnie to help if you need it, to see if there is anything special about them. Maybe we can match them to a specific boot.” He knew that would only help if they could recover the pair of boots. He was grasping at straws. Mack groaned. “I’m going to have to bite the bullet and have a talk with Julie. It’s going to hurt like hell, but I have to see what I can find out.”
“Are you sure she’ll cooperate?”
“I can get a warrant if I have to.” He hoped that wouldn’t be necessary. This whole thing was turning out to be a minefield. But he’d navigated them before, and he’d do it again. “I need to go see Brantley as well.”
“You do what you have to, and I’ll review everything and go over all the evidence again. There could be something when seen through fresh eyes.”
Mack nodded. God, he hoped he was right. If he wasn’t, he was going to create a great deal of pain for dear friends. He reluctantly stood, still running through everything that he’d gathered. He knew he needed to pay Julie a visit, but he put that off. “I’m going to go check on Brantley.” He needed to see him and know he was okay. Thinking clearly wasn’t happening at the moment. “If you come up with anything, call me right away.”
“I will, Sheriff.”
“We should also put out an APB on Denny’s truck.”
“I’ll do that right away,” Zeb said.
“And it goes without saying to keep all this to yourself. I don’t want the rumor mill to pick up on all this.”
Zeb got up, and Mack followed him out of the office. Zeb went right to his desk, and Mack left the station and went to his cruiser. He intended to go from the hospital to Julie’s, and that needed to be an official visit.
The ride to the small county hospital took less than five minutes, and he parked as close as he could to the door, then strode inside and up to the desk.
An older woman looked up from her computer, and her eyes widened and she licked her lips. “Can I help you?”
“Brantley Calderone’s room, please.”
She typed. “He’s in room 212. Is he in trouble?”
Mack thanked her, ignoring the question, and headed down the hall. He’d been here plenty of times and knew where he was going. People got out of his way, and normally he’d smile and greet them, but the closer he got to Brantley, the faster he moved and the harder his chest pounded. He paused outside the room and then stepped into the doorway.
Brantley lay on the bed, his eyes closed. A monitor next to his bed displayed his pulse and heart rate, as well as the last blood-pressure reading. There might have been other things displayed, but Mack paid them little attention and focused on the man in the bed.
“Mack,” Brantley said in a groggy voice.
“I’m here. How are you feeling?” He sat down next to him and gently took Brantley’s hand.
“Like I’ve been run over by a steamroller. I was injected with something, I think. I don’t know what, and then that was it.”
“Did you see who it was?” That could be the hard proof he needed.
“No. It was from behind, and I remember being dragged down the hall as I passed out. The man from the ambulance said you saved me and got me out of the house.”
“Yeah. Whoever drugged you set it on fire, but I got there first and got you out the window.” Mack’s hand shook. “You scared me half to death. I didn’t know if you were going to make it, and….” He swallowed hard. It was difficult talking about his feelings, but damn it, he’d nearly lost Brantley, so this was not the time to hold back. “I was scared that I’d never get to look in your eyes or be able to tell you that you’ve come to mean the world to me. I wanted to stay with you and be here when you woke up.”
“You had a job to do.”
“I did, and I think I might know who is behind all this, but I can’t prove it yet.” Mack got his mind back on what was important. “Seeing you on the ground, not waking up, made me realize just how much I love you and that if I didn’t get off my ass and say something to you, I was going to regret it.” He lightly stroked the back of Brantley’s hand.
“I know how you feel. I was passing out, and all I could think of was you and how I might not get to see you again.” Brantley turned his head toward him on the pillow. “You think you know who it is?”
“Yeah. But we don’t have to talk about that now.”
“I want to know.”
Mack knew he shouldn’t say anything, but Brantley had been working pretty closely on this case. Still he hesitated before answering. “I think it was Denny Beltz. Julie said he’d called to say that he had been required to stay another week in Reserves, but he wasn’t. He lied to her, and I got the proof from his captain today. He also has the training to take the shots, and he owns a pair of the boots that made the print. He had the opportunity and means because no one was looking for him.”
“But why?” Brantley asked. “For him to go to all this trouble, there has to be more to it. Does he need money? Can you place him at any of the scenes?”
“I don’t know about the money, but I need to find that proof. Ronnie is great with electronics, and he’s going to look at the boot print image to see if there is anything unique about it. Denny covered his tracks so well that while I have circumstantial evidence, I don’t have hard proof, and that is really pissing me off.” Mack stood and walked to the end of the bed. “He’s tried to hurt you so many times, and I almost lost you because of him. I’m ready to tear him apart—job, along with everything else, be damned.”
“What you need to do is find him. How long have you known him?”
“Fifteen years. Since we were kids.”
“Then ask yourself where he’d go and see if you don’t get lucky. People return to places they’re familiar with and where they feel safe. If he’s been watching us and gone to these lengths, he’s not going to give up now. He knows I have to be scared shitless. So you might put the word out through the grapevine that I’ve decided to leave town and that I’m going to put the ranch up for sale again and be done with it. Use that as bait and see if it doesn’t shake some of the leaves off the trees. Once I get out of here, we can figure out how we make that look good. Then we can see who comes forward.”
“Give them what they want. You’re brilliant.”
“I like to think so,” Brantley said, smiling for the first time.
Mack returned it. “How do we get them to act quickly?”
Brantley closed his eyes, and Mack sat quietly, wondering if Brantley had fallen asleep, but then Brantley said, “I think we need to say that you heard that one of my friends from New York was interested in the property. Make it time sensitive, so they have to act quickly. I bet you know just the right person to tell and get the word going.”
“I do,” Mack said. Gloria would be perfect, and so would Marlene, especially if he could arrange for them to overhear what he wanted them to pass on. “Brantley, what about you?” He was tired of talking about the case. “How long will you be here?”
“They want to keep me overnight to make sure that whatever I was given is completely out of my system,” Brantley said, sounding hoarse, and Mack got his cup of water from the tray and held the straw to his lips. After Brantley took a sip, he said, “They said I should be fine but want to be sure. The only question I have is how am I going to make it seem like I’ve left town without actually leaving town?” Brantley put the straw to his lips and drank again.
“We could check with the garage to see if your truck is fixed. You could pick it up, and I’d have one of the deputies drive it out of town. Then you’d stay at the house and keep out of sight.”
Brantley closed his eyes once again. “Maybe this is just too complicated to pull off.”
“Are you saying that you want to leave for real?” Mack asked with a sinking feeling in his gut.
“Honestly, I think I’m saying that you need to try to solve the case so we don’t have to go through all this crap.” Brantley opened his eyes and slowly repositioned himself. “Maybe my first idea about playing like I’m leaving town is over the top. I’m not thinking too clearly, and I don’t think I want to be scared away or to let people think I can be. After we catch this guy, I want to be able to live here and have friends here. What will they think if I appear to run?”
Mack didn’t have an answer for him. More than anything he wanted Brantley safe and secure. “All right.” He leaned over the bed. “I have a murderer to catch, and I’m going to see what I can do.”
“I wish I could go with you.”
“You stay here and be safe.” He kissed Brantley on the lips, savoring his sweetness before pulling away. “I’d feel so much better if I could take you with me. I could make sure you were safe.”
“The only guarantee is if you catch this guy and put him away. Then I’ll be safe, and we can begin living a life.” Brantley held out his hand, and Mack took it, gently holding Brantley’s fingers.
“I’ll see you as soon as I can.” Mack let his hand slip from Brantley’s and then turned to leave the room. He did peer back to take one last look before heading to the nurse’s station. He explained that Mr. Calderone was to have no visitors and that he would let the desk know downstairs. Within a few minutes he was face-to-face with a hospital administrator.
“It’s for his safety and that of your staff.”
“No problem, Sheriff. We’ll make sure that he’s removed from our visitor system so anyone who checks won’t be given his room number.”
“Thank you,” Mack said, shaking his hand, and then hurried toward the exit. There were times when he wished he had more personnel, but his budget was severely limited and his deputies were all assisting him. Brantley was right: the sooner Mack apprehended Denny, the sooner this would all be over.
Mack left the hospital and hurried to his cruiser, then took off out of the parking lot and out toward Julie’s.
“Sheriff Mack,” Nathan called as soon as he got out of the car.
“Hi, Nathan,” Mack said as gently as he could. “Is your mom here?”
He pointed and then ran toward the barn. “Mommy, Sheriff Mack is here,” he yelled as he ran.
Mack smiled and walked behind him, finding Julie feeding the horses.
“Mack, it’s good to see you. It was a real shame about what happened to Brantley’s house. Is he all right?”
“Yes. He’s very shaken up and more than a little scared, but I guess that’s to be expected after all that’s happened.” Mack stepped a little closer and lowered his voice. “Is there someplace we can talk? I don’t want to frighten Nathan.”
Julie dropped the hay she’d been carrying into the nearest manger. “Of course,” she said warily. “Is something wrong?”
“I’m not sure, and I hope you can help me find out.” He stepped away, and Julie took Nathan’s hand.
“Why don’t you come with me? You can watch Dora for a little while.” She led an excited and chattering Nathan across to the house and got him settled on the sofa in front of the television. “We’ll be on the front porch if you need us,” she said once he was settled and watching a DVD. He was completely engrossed within a few seconds, and Mack followed Julie out to the porch.
Julie sat in one of the wicker chairs, and Mack leaned against the railing. He’d practiced what he wanted to say and how he wanted to start this conversation on the way over, but those words flew out of his mind.
“Julie, can I ask if things have been good between you and Denny?”
She shrugged. “We have our ups and downs. Things have been more down than up these past few months. I’m hoping that when he gets home, the weeks apart will have been good for me, at least. We both needed a chance to breathe.” She turned to check inside the house. “I haven’t told Nathan about our problems.”
“What kind of issues?” Mack asked as carefully as he could and tried to sound less like a cop and more like a concerned friend even though he was in uniform.
Julie blew air through her lips in what Mack interpreted as exasperation. “The ranch hasn’t been doing very well. He wants us to cut our losses, and I’m trying to fight to keep what my family and I have built here. It’s been the source of a number of arguments.”
Mack saw the fire in her eyes. It was the kind that it took to keep a place like hers going. Ranches existed on cattle, horses, hard work, and piles of determination and grit. Mack knew that, and he knew Julie had it in spades.
“Have you heard from Denny in the last few days?”
“He called to talk to Nathan the other day. I talked to him for a few minutes. He said he’s been very busy but should be home this weekend. He said he was training some new people and that it was going very well.”
Mack sighed and knew he had to come clean. He wished like hell he didn’t have to be the one giving her the bad news. “Julie, you know I’m here in uniform and it isn’t just a social call. I talked to Larry Gunderson, and he wasn’t asked to stay. That got me curious, so I called Denny’s commanding officer. He said that no one from Denny’s unit was asked to stay an extra week.”
Julie blinked at him, staring as though she was trying to comprehend what he had just told her. “So he isn’t at Reserves?”
“No. And I’m trying to determine his whereabouts. We found boot prints at my house after it was broken into that match a brand of boot that Denny has, and it seems that the mercantile hasn’t sold many pairs. There is also the shot that was taken through the diner window and the one taken to Brantley’s front porch. That one in particular took some skill.”
“So you’re accusing Denny?” she asked with a bite in her voice.
“No. But he did lie about where he was, and I need to know where he’s been. I was hoping it would be all right for me to take a look at his guns and if you could tell me if any are missing.”
Julie sat still. “My first instinct is to tell you to fuck the hell off. But I’ve known you for years, and I know you’d never do this if you didn’t have a good reason.” She slowly stood and walked to the door. “I refuse to believe that Denny could do anything like tie someone up and leave them in a burning house to die or try to shoot someone, even that husband-stealing bitch, Renae.” She stopped with her hand on the door. “God, you don’t think Denny was having an affair with her, do you?” She trembled and her shoulders slumped forward.
“What I’m hoping I can prove is that it wasn’t him and then figure out where he was so that I can remove him from my list. And I have no evidence that he was having an affair.” In fact, Renae’s appointment book had yielded no information whatsoever about the men she’d been seeing. That part of the case had been a dead end, and maybe for the town itself that was a good thing. Renae might have been a cougar on the prowl, but she didn’t have to rip apart half the marriages in town.
“Okay,” Julie said, her voice turned defeated. “Come on. I’ll show you where we keep the guns.” Julie opened the door, and Mack followed her inside.
Nathan sat on the sofa, legs curled up, enthralled in the television. Mack stopped, watching him, wondering about the impact on this innocent, adorable child if what he suspected was true. There were times when his job completely sucked. Nathan looked from the television to them and then went right back to his show. Mack continued on to the office.
Julie had opened the gun safe. “There’s one missing,” she said with remarkable calmness, and Mack wondered if she was going into a sort of shock.
“What kind is it?”
“A Browning 300 Win Mag. Denny has used it a few times for hunting elk,” Julie answered, and fuck if that didn’t match the shells and bullets they’d recovered. Mack did his best to keep that information off his face. He didn’t need to worry Julie unnecessarily, although the case against her husband was becoming tighter and tighter. “I have the paperwork on it here somewhere.” Julie opened one of the file drawers and pulled out a file folder, found what she wanted, and handed him the brochure with the receipt attached.
“Thank you,” Mack said, taking the paperwork as though it was red hot. This was the link he was looking for, and now he needed to find Denny and the gun. “Do you mind if I look around? I’m not going to dig through things.” He wanted to make this as easy as possible.
“Just do what you need to. I’m going to sit with Nathan.” She turned away and left him alone in the office.
Mack looked around the room, determined to keep his promise. He left the office and went to the back mudroom. The floor under the blue awning-stripe upholstered bench seat was a jumble of kid and adult shoes. Some were obviously Denny’s, but his boots weren’t among them. He went from room to room, methodically searching for the boots. The house was meticulously clean, with very little dust under the beds and definitely no boots. The closets were the same. Mack didn’t want to push things with Julie since he was here on her goodwill.
Mack joined her in the living room. “Thank you.”
“Nothing?” she asked, gathering Nathan a little closer.
“No. I appreciate the help. Thank you.” Mack shared a smile with Nathan and then left the house, going back to his squad car. He pulled away and followed his nose. He had to find Denny, and that meant checking some of the out-of-the-way places he knew Denny frequented. The first of which was a now-abandoned junkyard outside of town. He drove that way, making the turns until the pile of car hulks showed on the horizon. A number of people had petitioned the county to clean up the place, but there was no money, so the skeletons of once stylish vehicles decayed more and more each year. It had been abandoned when he was in school, so when he pulled to a stop and got out, the yard was even more overgrown and the cars less identifiable.
Rust prevailed as he wandered slowly through the rows, the wind dancing and whistling around, churning up little clouds of dust. Other than that and the occasional animal scurrying, there was no sound other than the scuff of his own feet. Mack kept his hand on his gun, going row to row, looking for some sign that someone had been there recently, but the ground was surprisingly undisturbed. If someone had been living out here, there would be some sort of coming and going unless Denny had gone to great lengths to hide his tracks, and given what he’d done, Mack thought that was a possibility. Still, as he made his way around, he became more and more convinced that there was no one here now.
Mack sighed and walked back to his car. He got in and pulled away.
“Sheriff.” Gloria’s voice boomed through the radio. “We got a call on the Beltz APB,” she said, and Mack acknowledged the message and cringed before calling the station through his phone. There were too many people in the county with police band radios. “Sheriff, I’m sending you to Ronnie.” The phone beeped.
“Ronnie, what do we have?”
“His truck was spotted thirty miles north of here, heading this way. We got lucky as shit. They thought he seemed to be heading back toward us on Taylor highway.”
“I’m heading that way now. Have Zeb meet me along the way. I went to the Beltz ranch and a 300 Win Mag seems to be missing.”
Ronnie whistled. “If we recover it, I can test fire and match the bullets. I was able to take detailed photographs of those we recovered for comparison.”
“Okay. Get Zeb out here right away. We need to get Denny into custody.” Mack hung up and listened to the radio calls. He drove cautiously until Zeb caught up with him, and then both of them sped up as fast as safety allowed.
After ten minutes, Mack pulled off to the side of the road, turned around, and waited. He got on the radio and said to Zeb, “Go on up a few miles, right at the county line, and wait. Don’t pull out or signal, just let me know when he’s on the way. Once he’s out of sight, follow at a safe distance as backup. I’ll pull him over and wait to approach until you arrive.”
“Got it,” Zeb said and continued down the road.
Mack settled in, watching in his rearview mirror.
Five minutes later, Zeb radioed that Denny’s truck had just passed him. “Couldn’t see the driver,” he added, and Mack acknowledged the call.
Mack waited. It should have taken just a few minutes for Denny to reach him, but no truck appeared. “Are you sure it was him?”
“Yes. I’m following. Should be a mile behind…. Sheriff, you need to get back here.”
Mack pulled onto the country highway, turned on his lights and siren, and raced. He saw Zeb’s car and slowed, pulling off the road. He got out, and Zeb pointed to where Denny’s truck had gone off the road, down a ravine, and was resting on its roof. Zeb took off with Mack right behind him.
The truck had rolled more than once, one of the back wheels spinning freely. The other back tire seemed to have blown out and was shredded.
“Call the fire department and an ambulance,” Mack instructed as he knelt on the ground to peer inside. Denny Beltz hung in his seat by the belt. “Denny, can you hear me?” Mack asked, but Denny didn’t move or answer. He raced to the other side of the truck, the scent of gasoline burning his nose. He ignored it, knowing there was no time to lose, and reached inside the now nonexistent window. Denny was alive, he could tell from the pulse.
“They’re on their way,” Zeb called.
“We need to get this door open,” Mack called. He was able to unlatch the door, and it opened a few inches. Zeb joined him and added his strength. The metal protested and then slowly the door opened enough that Mack could reach inside to unhook Denny’s seat belt and drag him from the truck as the gasoline fumes continued to build. His eyes watered, but together with Zeb, they were able to get Denny away from the truck and up to the side of the road.
Zeb got a blanket from his car and laid it on the ground, and Mack settled Denny on it while they waited for help. “I hope we didn’t hurt him worse,” Zeb said.
“That truck can go up at any time. The fuel tank is leaking and….” A sizzle caught his attention, followed by flames that quickly engulfed the entire truck. The heat was intense enough that he turned away and fell to the ground. Thankfully the heat lasted just a few seconds and then dissipated. A cloud of black smoke rose high into the air. He didn’t want to move Denny again, but the breeze was unpredictable, so he and Zeb carefully dragged Denny on the blanket to a safer spot.
“Flag down the ambulance and fire department when they get close. This area is dry enough that if this fire isn’t brought under control quickly, it’s going to spread, and then we’ll have a grass fire to contend with.”
Zeb hurried away, and Mack once again checked for Denny’s pulse. It was slow and he was breathing, but not healthily, by any means. Mack stayed close and listened for sirens, which took another ten minutes. When the ambulance and fire truck arrived, they pulled to a stop and got right to it. Mack let the EMTs work on Denny and stayed out of the way of the firefighters while they brought the burning truck under control. Mostly they doused the perimeter to let the truck burn out.
“What happened?” Captain Randall asked once he and Mack were able to talk.
“I think he had a blowout and lost control of the truck. The one tire was shredded, but it’s hard to say, and most of the evidence I’d need to know for sure went up in flames.” One of the cardinal rules of crime scene investigation was that human life came first, and getting Denny out of the truck and away from danger was worth more than being able to get a look at what had remained of the tire, which was now gone.
“How did you get out here so fast?”
“We were looking for him. He’s a suspect in an investigation,” Mack explained, keeping his answer vague. The truck was already burning down, the fire having consumed most of what there was to burn.
“That’s going to be hot for a while.”
“Zeb will establish a perimeter as soon as you and your men are done.” There was nothing else he could do. The fire had to be contained so it would burn out. He couldn’t have a large portion of the county blazing with an uncontrolled grass fire. Public safety also took precedence.
He let Captain Randall do his job and checked in with the EMTs, who were ready to transport Denny to the hospital. “He is a suspect,” Mack said. “I’ll have someone meet you at the hospital.” Mack called Ronnie from his car and explained what he needed.
This entire case was stressing his department to the limit, but he was determined to see it through. Once he was done with his call, Mack returned to the scene as the ambulance pulled out, heading toward town with blaring sirens.
“At least we got him,” Zeb said.
“Yeah, but did you happen to notice anything strange?” Mack asked.
“Like what?”
“His boots?” Mack answered. “They weren’t the ones we are looking for. The ones he had on are completely different. The interior of the truck cab was clear. There wasn’t anything lying inside.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Exactly. There wasn’t a gun or anything like that.”
“It could have been in the back.”
“That’s a possibility. The gun we’re looking for costs nearly a thousand dollars new. Granted, Denny’s gun is probably older, but with something like that, you aren’t going to throw it in the bed of the truck where it can roll around and slide back and forth. It’s going to be in a case inside where it can be protected.”
“It could have been behind the seat,” Zeb suggested, and Mack shook his head.
“The back of the seat was sprung. If it had been there, it would have fallen out. It didn’t.” Mack rolled the facts around in his mind.
“What do you think that means?”
“That as soon as it’s safe, we need to check every inch of this area. If it was in the back, then it would have been thrown out when the truck rolled, and we need to find it. We have to know what he had with him.”
“Sheriff, what are you thinking?” Zeb asked.
“Nothing in particular. We just need to search this scene with a fine-tooth comb.” That wasn’t the whole truth, but he had a feeling in his gut that wasn’t going away. It felt a lot like excitement, and he wanted to make sure that if there was any evidence to be found, they located it as soon as possible.
“But he ran off the road,” Zeb said.
“Did he? Do we know that for sure? Until we prove otherwise, this is a crime scene, and we’ll treat it as such. So we’re going to need gloves, of course. Also, I’m going to need someone to remain here to control the scene. It’s going to be many hours before the truck is cool enough for us to work—” Mack was interrupted by a hiss of steam as the fire department poured water onto what was left of the truck. That doused the last of the flames, but it wouldn’t do much to cool the truck’s body, and the tanker only carried so much water.
“We’re going to remain here until we’re sure there won’t be a flare-up,” Captain Randall said.
“There’s a creek with water in it a mile up the road. You can probably pump some more water if you wanted,” Zeb said, and Mack figured Zeb would have brought the water himself by the bucketful if it meant he wouldn’t have to sit out here all night to wait for the truck to cool.
“Great.” Captain Randall instructed the tanker to head up the road for water. “We can dump another tank on it, and that will ensure that it’s out permanently.”
“Good,” Mack said and stepped away. He made a call to his dad, who was apparently in the middle of some sort of game that he thought was hilarious.
“We have to get us a copy of this Cards Against Humanity. It’s a hoot. Gordy called some of his friends, and we’re having a game party.” The laughter in the background told him all he needed to know. “They brought that game, and believe it or not, I’m winning. It’s hysterical.”
“Okay. I’m going to be out for a while yet, and I don’t want you to be alone.”
“Gordy and his friends will be here for a while I think…. Oh, and we’re out of beer.”
Mack stifled a groan. It was a small price to pay. “Just have fun and I’ll call again as soon as I can.” He hung up and shook his head. He was happy his dad was enjoying himself and safe. That was what mattered. Hell, his father never ceased to surprise him, and Mack hoped that never changed. He was truly blessed with an outstanding dad who had done an amazing job as both father and mother. He really couldn’t ask for more.
Once he hung up, Mack called the hospital and asked for Brantley’s room.
“Hello,” Brantley answered softly.
“Did I wake you?” Mack asked.
“Kind of, but I’m glad you called. It’s been so quiet here. The doctor stopped in just after you left, and they’re running a few more tests to ensure that the sedative I was given is all gone.”
Mack made a note to see the doctor in order to get a report of what they found. This case had so many moving pieces right now that he felt like he was unwinding a Gordian knot in order to get at the truth. “Did he say when he expected you to be able to come home?”
“Tomorrow morning,” Brantley answered.
“Good. You get some rest, and I’ll be over to see you as soon as I can. I have a crime scene I need to investigate, and I’m hoping this will tell the tale about exactly what’s going on.” He sure as hell hoped so, because in order for everyone important in his life to be safe, he needed to solve this case.