Christmas Justice. Robin Perini
Чтение книги онлайн.
Читать онлайн книгу Christmas Justice - Robin Perini страница 6
Название: Christmas Justice
Автор: Robin Perini
Издательство: HarperCollins
Жанр: Зарубежные детективы
isbn:
isbn:
“You blew her head off,” Krauss said. “Cops had to notice.”
“It hasn’t been on the news, has it?” Strickland said with a small smile.
Krauss shook his head. “I figured they were holding back details as part of the investigation.”
“Hell, no. First guy there threw her into the fire. Everyone else is keeping mum. They think it’s national security.”
“Lots of loose ends, Strickland.”
“I got enough on my contacts’ extracurricular activities. They won’t be talking anytime soon. They know the rules.” Strickland slid a glance at his partner. “You read the paper? Remember last year, that dead medical investigator? I had no choice. He was a loose end. Like the boss says, loose ends make for bad business.”
Krauss tugged a toothpick from his pocket. “Guess the boss was right in choosing you for this one, because we have two very big loose ends.” He turned in the seat, his normally sardonic expression solemn. “You ever wonder how we ended up working for that psycho? ’Cause I’m starting to regret every job we do.”
“For the greater good—” Strickland started, his entire back tensing. He cricked his neck to the side.
“Yeah, I might have believed that once,” Krauss said.
“Don’t.” Strickland cut him off. “Don’t say something I’ll have to report.”
“Says the man who’s hiding his screwup.”
“I don’t plan to be on the receiving end of a lesson,” Strickland said. “You talk and we’re dead. Hell, we’re dead if we don’t fix this.”
“I know,” Krauss said, his voice flat. “I got a family to protect. Let’s get it done fast, clean up and get the hell out of this town. I already hate Trouble, Texas.”
“No witnesses. Agreed?” Strickland turned the motor on.
“The sheriff, too? Could cause some publicity.”
“This close to the border, this isolated, there’s lots of ways to die.”
“I was right. Great, just great,” Garrett said under his breath, cradling a sobbing Molly in his arms.
He rocked her slightly. She tucked her head against his shoulder and gripped his neck, her little fingers digging into his hair. He held her tighter while his narrowed gaze scrutinized the alley behind his house. A chill bit through the night, and Molly shivered in his arms. He needed to get them both inside and warm, but not in the place he’d never called home.
Another thirty seconds passed. No movement. The shooter probably didn’t have an accomplice, but he couldn’t assume anything. Assumptions got people dead.
A quick in and out. That was all he needed.
He led Laurel into the backyard of the house James McCallister had purchased on Garrett’s behalf and closed the gate. He wouldn’t be returning anytime soon. His time in Trouble had ended the moment he’d tackled Laurel to the ground.
But he needed his go-bag and a few supplies. On his own, it wouldn’t have mattered. He shifted Molly’s weight in his arms. These two needed more shelter than to camp out in the West Texas desert in December.
Molly clung to him tightly. He rubbed her back and his heart shifted in his chest. God, so familiar. The memories of his daughter, Ella, flooded back. Along with the pain. He couldn’t let the past overcome him. Not with these two needing him. He led them to the wood stack.
“Give me a minute,” he whispered. “Stay out of sight, and I’ll be right back.”
He tried to pass Molly to Laurel, but the little girl whimpered and gripped him even tighter.
“It’s okay, sugar. Your aunt Laurel will take good care of you.”
With one last pat, he handed Molly to Laurel, his arms feeling strangely empty without the girl’s weight. Laurel settled her niece in her arms, her expression pained. He understood. “She’s just afraid,” he said.
“I know, and I haven’t protected her.” Laurel hunkered down behind the woodpile. She pulled out her pistol. “I won’t fail again.”
Laurel McCallister had grit, that was for sure. He liked that about her. “I’ll be back soon.”
He sped across the backyard, slipped the key into the lock and did a quick sweep of the house, eyeing any telling details. He couldn’t leave a trace behind. Nothing to lead any unwelcome visitors to his small cattle ranch in the Guadalupes or to his stashed money and vehicle.
Garrett pressed a familiar number on his phone.
“Sheriff? What happened? Practically the whole town is calling me.” Deputy Keller’s voice shook a bit.
“Old man McCreary’s not putting a posse together, right?” Garrett had a few old-timers in this town who thought they lived in the 1800s. This part of Texas could still be wild, but not that wild.
“I talked his poker buddies out of encouraging him,” Keller said. “It’s weird ordering my old high school principal around.”
Garrett pocketed a notebook and a receipt or two, then headed straight for his bedroom. “Look, Keller, I’ll be incommunicado tracking this guy. I don’t want to shoot anyone by mistake. Keep them indoors.”
“You need me, Sheriff?”
“Man the phones and keep your eyes out for strangers, Deputy. Don’t go after them, Keller. Just call me.”
“Yes, sir.”
Garrett ended the call. If the men following Laurel and Molly had a mission, his town was safe. Assassins tended to have singular focus. He probably wasn’t the target, except as an opportunity. Still, Ivy had known his name. She’d said he was right. He couldn’t be certain how much of his identity had been compromised.
If anyone had associated Derek Bradley with Garrett Galloway before today, he’d already be dead. He might still have surprise on his side, but he couldn’t count on it. And if he’d been right...well, that was all fine. It didn’t make him feel any better. There was a traitor in the agency, and he didn’t know who. Ivy’s message hadn’t identified the perp.
Garrett grabbed his go-bag from the closet, then opened a drawer in his thrift-store dresser. He eased out an old, faded photo from beneath the drawer liner.
“It’ll be over soon.” He glanced at the images he’d stared at for a good two hours after his shift earlier. Hell, it was almost СКАЧАТЬ