Dead Shall Speak (An FBI/Romance Thriller Book 10) (48 page)

“I think we should head to Clarence Rickert’s home and find out if what Wilfred Monroe said about him is true.”

“We’re going to chase the money?” Callen asked.

Yeah they were.

“It usually leads us right to one thing.”

They all knew it.

Sex was behind this.

They could feel it.

~ Chapter Fourteen ~

It was interview time, and the man who was on their suspect radar lived in the middle of nowhere. He was so far back that all three Feds prayed they’d find their way out after the interview. Oh, and no one would shoot them in the process.

This was, after all, the Kentucky backwoods.

Bad things could and would happen to a wayward traveler if they got lost back here. There was no doubt that neither Callen nor Ethan wanted to have to trek aimlessly through the trees to find their way out of there in case of emergency.

That would suck.

“Crap!” muttered Elizabeth. “We have no reception back here. I hate leaving the team on their own. Who the hell knows what they’ll do?”

“I smell some debauchery,” stated Callen.

“Thanks. We needed that. Now I have so many pictures going through my head,” Ethan added. “I think this is the place.” He pointed toward the small cabin.

As they pulled up, there was a man already sitting on the steps, cleaning his gun.

“Great. An armed hillbilly,” Callen muttered. “Can this day get worse?”

Immediately, they both turned back toward Elizabeth to lay down the law.

“You’re staying in the vehicle,” they demanded at the same time.

She was entertained. Not because they were being ridiculous, and they were, but because they said it in unison—like it was practiced.

There was only one thing to do.

Before they could stop her, she was out of the vehicle and moving toward the man on the porch.

Ethan nearly lost his mind.

Callen wanted to throw up.

She was going to be the death of them.

As she approached, she noticed the man stared directly at the gun and badge at her hip. If he lifted that gun, she was going for her sidearm.

It wouldn’t end well for him.

While Elizabeth may be pregnant, she was still really fast when it came to drawing her weapon.

“Mr. Clarence Rickert?” she asked, allowing as much southern to creep into her voice as possible. When in Hillbillyville, play the part.

“What do you three want?” he asked, standing to stare at the two Native men who now flanked her.

“We’re with the FBI, and we’re here to ask you some questions about Magdalene Monroe,” Elizabeth stated.

At the mention of her name, his whole demeanor changed. Immediately, he moved toward his door to place the gun inside. When he turned, the look on his face said it all.

“I heard the terrible news. I can’t believe she’s gone.”

Ethan let out the breath he was holding. At least he was now unarmed. That was the best case scenario for this interrogation.

“Yes, sir, it is an awful thing,” she admitted. “Can we come up on your porch and talk to you?”

He looked surprised. “Yes, come on up. I’ll do anything to help you figure out what happened to her.”

Elizabeth didn't take her eyes off the young man. He was tall and lanky, had a dark beard, and bright blue eyes. He appeared to be peaceful enough, but one never knew when something could go wrong.

There was always the possibility that he had a concealed weapon.

When they were all sitting, he was the first to speak. “I can reckon that the reason you’re here is because of her daddy. He pointed you at me, didn't he? Magdalene and I had a relationship.”

“We heard, Mr. Rickert. Do you want to tell us about it?” she asked. “Don’t worry about her daddy. He has enough to worry about now.”

Wasn’t that the truth?

The entire time their woman questioned the man, Ethan and Callen were sitting there ready to pounce. Blackhawk let his brother take the protection duty, so that he could analyze the conversation.

“There isn't much to tell. I wanted to marry Magdalene, but when her daddy found out, he went nuts. He told her that I was a worthless hillbilly, and to look for a real man.”

“That had to make you mad,” she began.

“It did, but not at Magdalene. I was hired to work a little on his property, and that’s how I met her. She was sunny and bright. I fell for her immediately. Then, we snuck around a bit behind her daddy’s back. I just asked her to marry me out of the blue. I didn't even have a ring for her, and I certainly didn't have a trust fund to support her.”

He pointed at his cabin.

“This is all I have.”

Elizabeth could tell the man wasn’t going to get violent, so she opted to relax a little. “We happen to like cabins, so that’s her loss,” she stated.

The man grinned. “Thanks for that. It’s not easy to live out here in the woods. This is the poor part of the state. If you’re not moonshining, or bootlegging, you’re struggling to feed yourself.”

The two men before him got that.

It was the story of their lives.

“What happened when you both told her daddy that you were getting hitched?”

He took a minute to find the right words.

Ethan grinned at his wife. She slipped into the role of hick so easily, yet he could see her eyes calculating and working on every single potential angle.

“He went nuts. He kicked me out of there.”

“We hear that you took some money that he offered so you’d leave her,” Elizabeth stated. She needed to check the validity of their suspect and the potential witness. Although, with what they just learned about Wilfred Monroe, he wasn’t looking all sweet and innocent as he protected his baby girl’s honor.

“I did take the money, but not because I didn't want Magdalene. He sent some goons after me. That night, I was coming back here and got jumped. They beat the hell out of me, and then left the check. I didn't take it to leave her, I took it to get my jaw wired shut and repair the damage that man did.”

That made sense to the men. Callen and Ethan would beat the hell out of a man to preserve their daughters’ honor.

Easily.

But unlike Wilfred Monroe, they would never do it because a guy was poor.

“I went right to Doc Murphy to get fixed up. You can call and ask him. I even filed a report with the sheriff, but I’m sure you can figure out how that worked out. Magdalene’s daddy has half the town in his pocket, including the sheriff’s office.”

That irritated Elizabeth. She’d been a sheriff, and it didn't, or shouldn’t, have mattered, if someone had money or not. Then again, not all cops were on the up and up. There could be bad apples in every bunch.

They knew that for sure.

It pissed her off that she was letting a corrupt cop help in their case.

“After that day, Magdalene had a new cell number and her daddy moved her away from me. I didn't know how to find her.”

“But then she returned.”

He nodded. “I saw her on Main Street, and she walked right past me, like I was invisible. It was like I didn't even exist in her eyes. It broke my heart.”

He wiped a tear from his eye.

“I can’t believe she didn't really love me. Maybe I was just someone to pass her time while trapped in this hell hole.”

Elizabeth had dealt with many rich people over her career, some cared, some saw, and others lived in a bubble.

It was simply the case.

“When was that?” she asked.

He didn't have to hesitate. “It was about a week before she went missing.”

Ethan made notes. This man could have had something to do with the woman’s disappearance.

Or he might not.

They didn't have enough at that point to go either way.

“You didn't happen to see any of the men who kicked the hell out of you, did you?” she asked.

His hand gently touched his jaw. “Yeah, I saw one of them. I think it was Russell Beston. He works over at the local market. I don’t know what I ever did to him, but I’m almost one hundred percent sure it was him.”

She made notes.

When Elizabeth stood, she held out her hand. “Mr. Rickert, stick around. I’m not sayin’ you’re guilty as sin, but I am tellin’ you that you’re part of this investigation from here on out. If you make me chase you down, what Monroe did to you will be nothing. I’ll really make you hurt.”

The man nodded. “Yes, ma’am. Just find the person who hurt Magdalene. She may not have loved me, but I loved her. She was going to be my wife. That means something here,” he stated, touching his chest.

They headed off the porch and to the vehicle.

Was this a case of unrequited love or something more?

Until they dug deeper, there was just no way to know. Their suspect didn't help the situation out.

The team was still wandering around blind.

They needed some caffeine to get them through the day. Stopping at the local coffee shop, Ethan, Callen, and Elizabeth perched outside on a set of steps to take a break from the interviewing process.

Her mind was swirling full of suspects, details, and things related to the case. On top of that, she was thinking about Oracle, and if Jagger had managed to get her to Salem and out of harm’s way. If that wasn’t enough, she was worried about the shooter, the skull Jaxon was working on, and Tony’s heart.

Elizabeth was buried.

Just as they were finishing up their coffee, they saw the black Denali tear into the parking lot.

Immediately, they all went on alert. Had something happened? If one of their team was
‘driving like they stole it’
, there had to be a damn good reason, or they’d be feeling her boot up their ass.

When the driver hopped out, Elizabeth’s gut sank. Rushing toward her was Doctor Tony Magnus, and he looked enraged.

This couldn’t be good.

In fact, there could only be one reason he looked so pissed off, and immediately, her mind went there. She held her breath, bracing for what was to come. By Elizabeth’s side, each man stood, placing her protectively between them.

It was obvious they were aware what was coming too.

“You knew!” he exploded, pointing at her. The rage was evident in his voice.

Sadly, he didn't need to elaborate. This was exactly what she didn't want to happen.

Well, shit!

It was going down.

Elizabeth didn't know why she was surprised.

Before she could speak, Tony continued, “You and Chris were the only two people who I’ve ever trusted with this, and you still kept it from me! How could you?”

“Tony,” she began, only to be cut off.

“You’re one of my best friends! You’re my family! Yet, you let me walk into the morgue today to find out that my mother was in that fucking hole!” he raged, gathering attention from everyone around them.

They were now becoming a spectacle.

Unfortunately, trying to stop his explosion would only garner more attention. It looked like she was taking one for the team.

“I trusted you. I see that was a mistake. Well, here’s something that you need to hear! Fuck you, Elizabeth Blackhawk! You played God with my heart, and I’ll never forgive you for as long as I live. You’re dead to me. We’re done! Today we part ways as friends, family, and everything else.”

Ethan went to say something, and Elizabeth stopped him by placing her hand on his forearm. She understood that Tony was hurting, that she had caused it, and that it had to come out.

There had been times in her life where she’d needed to spread the pain around, and she understood it.

“I won’t ever forgive you for this betrayal. You are a cold hearted bitch. Sadly, I had to learn it the hard way.”

It was like a punch to the gut.

Yet, she took it.

Before Ethan or Callen could say anything, Tony turned on his heel, headed back toward the Denali, and was gone.

When she was finally able to speak, all that came out was a sigh.

“Lyzee,” Ethan began before continuing, “he’s hurting, but that crossed a line. You should have let me kick his ass, if not as his boss, then as your husband.”

Callen agreed. “That was way out of line.”

Yeah, and she’d crossed that same line earlier by keeping part of her team in the dark. This was life. It sucked, but that was just the way it was.

For now, she needed to be alone.

“I’m going to head back to the hotel. Can you two go to the bar and conduct the interview? We need to know about the night Magdalene was abducted,” she stated, knowing that she wouldn’t be able to focus from here on out.

Losing someone she loved was hard. Tony had been a part of her for so long. Now, she wanted to think and be alone. Oh, and call Chris to make sure Tony didn't kick the hell out of him too.

It had been all her fault, and she would carry this one alone.

Blackhawk knew it was seldom that she’d opt out of an interview. He also knew how crushing Tony’s words had been. For her, he’d let it slide. “Sure. We’ll catch up with you later. Want us to drop you off?” he asked.