Slaughter (The Agency: Young Guns Book 5), page 14
Chapter Thirteen
Wednesday, June 7th.
The Blackmore Agency. Austin.
Casey was pouring himself a coffee in the kitchen while Forest sat at the table eating a bowl of his favorite cereal.
“Mommy can’t find the police car, Casey.”
“But you can?”
“I saw it in the garage.”
“Do you know where the garage is?”
“Nope.”
“Good one, Forest.”
Blaine and Misty were in the office talking about Farrell’s wedding coming up on the weekend when the call came from the Chief.
“Morning, sir,” said Blaine.
“The boy used the fourth axe, son.”
“Where’s the victim?” asked Blaine.
“Liberty Hill area.”
“We’ll head out there right now.”
“Is your wife available to go with you?” asked the Chief. “I’d hate to lose this one. We’ve done so much work on it already.”
“I’ll take Misty and Casey, Chief, and I’ll call Farrell to bring the squad from the other station.”
“Copy that.”
Fisher Lake Trailer Park.
Travis didn’t sleep well in a strange bed. He’d brought his own linens with him but that did nothing to help. The bed itself was a piece of shit. He intended to toss the mattress in the dump and buy a new one. His donation to the trailer park.
He struggled off the bed with his back hurting and he was missing the dogs. The crap-can trailer felt empty and he was hating it already.
“I hope this gig doesn’t take too fuckin long.”
Travis padded barefoot to the kitchen and made a pot of coffee. All he’d brought for food was a dozen eggs and a loaf of bread. He needed a load of groceries next time he was near a store.
Waiting for the coffee, he sat at the old wooden table that came with the trailer and texted Annie like he promised he would.
“I’m under. Spyder Stone is my name. Got a trailer in the same park as the Smith boys. Dean and Glen. Meeting with Santana today. A guy named Sawyer Kidd is sponsoring me in.”
“Okay. I don’t like it but I want to know what’s going on. Is Lukas with you?”
“Lukas and Tommy are at my house with the dogs.”
“No. That’s not right. The dogs should be with you for protection.”
“I’m missing them.”
“Fix that today.”
Travis grinned and sent her a smiley face.
“I can’t stop loving her and I’ve given up trying.”
Coulter-Ross Ranch. La Grange.
Annie was up early feeling a sense of urgency. Too much to do before the wedding weekend.
She pulled on jeans and a t-shirt and ran to the kitchen to make coffee. Lenny was already up. Through the kitchen window, she could see him smoking on the porch. As soon as the coffee was ready, she took a mug out to him.
He glanced up from his phone and smiled. “Thanks.”
“No problem. We have the squad this morning. Not my job usually but Laine isn’t starting for two more weeks so I’m doing the orientation of the new hires.”
“I received the schedule on my phone. You’re pretty organized.”
“Have to be. You sleep okay?”
“Great. I love my room. Pretty high class for me.”
“I like to fix things up. I have money now but I didn’t always. I was raised in the foster system in Toronto.”
Lenny raised an eyebrow. “You’re Canadian?”
“Yep. Let’s have breakfast with the kids and we’ll get the day started.”
Violent Crime Squad HQ. Airport Road. Austin.
Lenny parked the Gladiator and hopped out before Annie. He checked the property over and cleared it before Annie got out of the truck.
She unlocked the front door and turned on the lights. “I’ll make coffee for the troops.”
Farrell came in next and he was talking on his cell to Blaine. “Yeah, Liberty Hill. Do you know where exactly? Call me when you do. As soon as everybody is here, we’ll come to you.”
“You have a call out?” asked Lenny.
“Fourth murder by the kid with the axe.”
“I’ve been following that on the Agency website,” said Lenny.
“Give your cell number to Blacky and you’ll get the updates sent to you. You should be monitoring incoming for Annie.”
“I’ll do that,” said Lenny and he sent a request to Blaine right then.
“As soon as the crew gets here,” said Farrell, “we’re gone.”
“I guess they won’t have time for the tour and orientation today,” said Annie. “You’ll still have to get them sworn in by the Chief.”
“Yeah, I’ll take care of that,” said Farrell.
“Okay,” said Annie, “I’ll just welcome them and y’all can get on your way. Lenny and I have stuff of our own to do.”
At ten minutes to eight the crew showed up and Annie introduced the new people. “Danny and Robbie,” she went around the room. The regulars were sitting at their stations. “Liam, Dusty, Jim, Gene, Caleb. Casey is with Blaine. Tommy and Laine are both wounded. Farrell will fill you in on what’s going on this morning.”
“Okay,” said Farrell, “Robbie and Danny were going to have an orientation with Annie here and then at Ranger headquarters in the city, but that has to wait. We have a new murder and we’re leaving right now for the crime scene in Liberty Hill.”
Farrell pointed, “Liam drive, Gene drive and I’ll drive. Everybody else pile in. We’ll worry about partners later.”
He made sure they all had vests and weapons before they left, and they were gone.
Annie locked up and she and Lenny left the station.
Old West Austin.
Lenny had the address in the GPS and he drove west across the city. As Lenny drove, Annie explained to him about Chet Kamps.
“We’re going to talk to Chet, who is a part of our team—a very important part. He is our intel. The best.”
“Can I park in the driveway?”
“Sure. Chet’s bike is in the garage but he can’t ride it anymore. He works from the townhouse.”
Inside, Annie introduced Lenny to Roy and to Chet as her new bodyguard. Chet looked Lenny up and down before giving him a nod of approval.
“What do you need, Beauty?”
“Travis is going under in the San Angelo Devils and I want to know what’s going on with that club. Have you got a reliable guy in San Angelo?”
“Sure. I’ll put him on it right away. Is this about the Donovans?”
“Yes. I don’t think it’s the way to go, but Travis does. He doesn’t want the Donovan boys in that club and he’s determined to get them out, no matter what it takes.”
“Travis can be stubborn,” said Chet. “PTSD has a lot to do with his behavior. In my opinion, he needs more treatment, but what do I know?”
“You know a lot.” Annie winked at him.
“Tell me what you need.”
“I’m most concerned about Lukas. He’s staying with Travis at the moment and I don’t want him getting messed up by the Devils.”
“You mean more messed up?” asked Chet. “The Eights are still looking for him. I monitor them every fuckin day. The assholes are beyond stupid and they won’t give up no matter how many members they lose.”
“I agree. They aren’t too bright. We’ve been watching them closely.”
“I’ll call as soon as I hear anything, Beauty.” He turned his head to look at Lenny. “I’m glad you have a new bodyguard. Don’t think I’m not.”
Annie moved closer and kissed Chet before they left.
Lenny slid behind the wheel and checked his schedule for where they were going next. “Neurological Center?”
Austin Neurological Center.
“I have to visit my ex-husband, Tyler Quantrall. He’s in rough shape. Just a quick visit. Tyler is also my partner at the roadhouse and he does more than half the work. The band is his too. I need him back desperately. If he can’t come back to work soon, I’ll have to hire another manager. Possibly two people to fill Tyler’s shoes.”
“The roadhouse is huge and so busy,” said Lenny. “Definitely too much for one person to run. Especially a person running the Violent Crime Agency.”
Lenny was observant and careful as they entered the hospital, crossed the lobby, and entered the elevator. They stepped out onto the fourth floor and located Tyler’s room.
Annie stood beside the bed and picked up Tyler’s hand.
“Tyler, it’s me, Annie. Can you hear me, sugar?”
He seemed to be looking at her but not seeing her.
“Tyler, can you look at me, please?” Annie reached down and turned his head towards her.
His eyes never moved and Annie couldn’t help herself. She cried. She reached for a tissue and wiped her eyes.
“Damn it, Tyler. Come on, sweetheart. I need you to come out of this.”
On the way to the truck, Lenny said, “You’d better hire another couple people today, boss. That guy is in rough shape. He’s not coming back to the roadhouse to help you anytime soon.”
“You’re right. I have to hire more people right away. Tyler won’t be back for a while yet.”
Lenny cast her a skeptical look. “A long while.”
Liberty Hill.
The fourth victim, a man named Edgar Caddick, was found lying on his front lawn by his next door neighbor. The dog Edgar had been walking—a fluffy rust-colored Pomeranian—was still on his leash and the leash was in a death grip in Edgar’s hand. The axe with the red handle was firmly entrenched in Edgar’s forehead. Edgar’s face a Hallowe’en mask of congealed blood.
That’s the way the neighbor found him.
According to the neighbor’s statement, Mrs. Caddick had been in bed sleeping when the neighbor woke her up to tell her Edgar was dead on the front lawn.
The feds were clustered around the body in a tight little knot when Blaine, Misty and Casey got there.
In order to feel Edgar’s energy, Misty required an opportunity to be alone with his corpse. That was going to be difficult to arrange with the feds crowding the scene. While she waited her chance, she strolled around on the front lawn and driveway searching for any wisps of lingering energy from Malcolm and Pinner.
During the wait time, Blaine received a call from DPS and it was good news. They had finally found the camper. It was parked on a vacant piece of property on a county road outside of Burnet.
“Great,” said Blaine. “Thanks so much for the call.” He turned to Casey. “They found the fucking camper.”
“Took long enough.”
Farrell arrived with the three-truck convoy and the crew spilled out ready for action.
Blaine walked down the street to greet the crew. “Farrell, take two people and check out the camper. I just got the location.” Blaine told him how to get there.
“Copy,” said Farrell.
“The rest of y’all canvas this street and see who saw a squad car driven by two teenage boys.”
“Copy,” said Liam. “I’ll divide up the street.”
“Thanks, Liam,” said Blaine.
Farrell said, “Robbie and Danny, y’all are with me. We’ll go check out the camper the boys have been using for their murder headquarters.”
“Roger that, boss,” said Dan.
Asking a bunch of dumb questions he knew the answers to, Casey diverted the attention of the feds long enough for Misty to get close to Edgar’s body.
When no one was looking, she touched the axe handle and got a strong image of where the boys were off to.
As she walked to the Navigator with Blaine and Casey, she asked, “Is there a fair or a carnival around here?”
“Find it, Casey,” said Blaine.
Burnett.
Following the directions Blaine received from DPS, Farrell found the camper parked right where the boys had left it. Very secluded spot in the middle of nowhere. One of the boys still had a brain that worked—at least part-time.
“Let’s see if the boys left us any clues to where the hell they are.”
The camper was a small one. Perfect for the older couple Malcolm Lewis had stolen it from. One double bed. A tiny kitchen and a table in a small lounge area.
“Every scrap of paper,” said Farrell. “Anything y’all can find, we need to look at it. Go.”
Danny and Robbie searched diligently and the most they came up with were candy bar wrappers, chip bags, take-out containers, and soda cans. The boys were living large on the lam.
Marble Falls Spring Fair.
On the way to the fair, Blaine called Liam in Liberty Hill and had him take the crew off canvassing for the time being. “Meet us at the Marble Falls fair,” said Blaine. “It’s going on now and Misty thinks the boys are at the fair or heading there.”
“Copy, boss. Heading for the fair.”
Next, Blaine called Farrell and told him the same thing. “As soon as y’all are finished with the camper, come to Marble Falls to the fair.”
“The boys there?”
“Misty thinks so.”
“Copy that. We’re coming.”
They all met at the gate and Blaine organized them into search teams, each taking a specific grid and together combing every inch of the fairgrounds.
“The boys are young,” said Blaine, “teenagers, and they will be attracted to the food trucks and the games before anything else. We’ll search the entire grounds, but that’s where I think they’ll be.”
“How did we find out about the fair?” asked Danny.
“Blaine received confidential info that the boys were headed here,” said Farrell. “We lucked out being given the midway so let’s find the little bastards.”
Robbie grinned. “I’m hyped for the takedown.”
Strolling slowly down the midway and trying not to look like cops on a mission, Farrell led the way with Rob on one side and Dan on the other.
Farrell had stared at Malcolm and Pinner’s pictures on his phone so many times he was familiar with what they looked like. New guys, Dan, and Rob—not so much.
After checking the crowd around three of the game booths, Farrell stopped and had the boys review the photos.
“Yeah, I’ve got their faces,” said Rob. “Hard to pick them out in a big crowd like this.”
“Yeah, it is,” said Farrell. “The crowd is constantly moving and if we’re lucky enough to spot them, they are gonna run like rabbits as soon as they see us coming. Be ready for it.”
“Yep,” said Dan. “I’m ready to chase them down.”
Every member of the crew was wearing ear buds and they could hear the other search teams talking all over the fairgrounds.
As they passed a taco truck, Robbie said, “That looks like one of them.”
Farrell turned to look and he agreed. The kid paying for his taco was Pinner—Tim Pinard. Farrell turned to Rob and Dan, “I’m going to go quickly over there and take him. Y’all watch for Malcolm and go for him. They should be close together.”
“Yep, we’ll take the other one,” said Dan.
Farrell sauntered casually over to the taco truck trying not to draw attention to himself. He came up behind Tim Pinard who was holding tight to his taco. Farrell grabbed Tim’s arms from behind and pulled them back behind his back to cuff him.
“You’re under arrest, Pinner. Where’s Malcolm?”
“Run Malcolm,” Pinner shouted at the top of his lungs and Malcolm sprinted away from a truck farther down the row.
“Go,” hollered Farrell to Rob and Dan, but they were already gone. Farrell couldn’t run. He held onto Pinner and called Blaine.
“Come get Pinner and take him to the truck. My guys are chasing Malcolm down.”
“Copy that,” said Blaine. “Where are you?”
“Food trucks. Taco truck.”
Malcolm Lewis disappeared into the crowd with Dan and Rob in hot pursuit. Not able to help them, all Farrell could do was tell the rest of the crew what direction the chase was taking and hope they could close in and help Rob and Dan.
Blaine and Casey showed up minutes later and took Tim Pinard off Farrell’s hands. As soon as he was free, he spoke into his mic to Rob.
“You got him in your sights?”
“We got him, boss.” Rob was out of breath. “Near the pig pens. Liam has him in custody.”
“Fantastic. Get him to the parking area, that’s where Blacky is with Pinner.”
“Copy. Going to the parking area.”
“Nice job, guys,” said Farrell. “Excellent work.”
Devil’s Clubhouse. San Angelo.
Travis rode his bike to the Devils’ clubhouse for his meeting with Santana. The VP, Dolan Castillo, and the Sarge, Dougie Grecko, were there along with Sawyer Kidd who was sponsoring Travis in.
Santana wasn’t friendly in the least. Cold with wary black eyes, dead from drug abuse, the asshole was barely functional. Speaking in fractional sentences, Santana explained about the monthly dues and demanded the first month in advance as a show of good faith.
Travis almost laughed out loud. There was no good faith inside a bike club.
Travis opened his wallet and counted out the money. He pushed it towards Santana.
Without a thank-you, Santana picked up the bills and shoved them into his shirt pocket.
They talked about how many members the club had and who their enemies were. Travis was being given a minimal amount of information and he knew it. Santana wasn’t giving away club secrets.
Next, Dolan Castillo, the VP, gave a little talk about the Devils’ turf and he hinted at a few things Travis might have to do for the club while he was a prospect. None of them particularly legal.
Nothing Travis hadn’t heard before. He single-handedly ran the biggest and baddest club in Houston before taking it down with Annie-girl’s help. There was little he hadn’t seen before and nothing shocked him.
“Meeting tonight at nine-thirty,” mumbled Santana. “You can meet the members.”
“Sure. Thanks.”
Travis left the clubhouse feeling they were going to test him at the meeting or afterwards at the bar. Whatever.
