Justice Healed (22 page)

That was true.  The other Federal Marshals were milling around, talking and drinking coffee from
styrofoam cups.  They all seemed as relaxed as they could be in the circumstances. 

"Let's just say I'm not Harry Morey's favorite person.  We could also say that unless something is Harry's idea, he doesn't think much of it."

"Charming," Jared said.  "Likes to be in charge, huh?"

"Too much," Evan agreed.  "He likes being in charge more than doing a good job.  He's ambitious though.  I probably should watch my back."

Evan was grinning though, so it didn't appear that he was worried.  The government was sometimes a very fucked up place and guys like Morey could be promoted to the level of their incompetence.  Tanner had seen it in the military.  Some of the biggest assholes seemed to gravitate toward positions of power.

Evan straightened and nodded toward a man in uniform walking toward them. 

"Marshal Davis?" The man looked them over, his features bland.

"I'm Marshal Evan Davis."

Evan stepped forward and showed his badge to the man who nodded and looked down at his clipboard. 

"Are you prepared to take custody of one Howard Kerr?" the man asked.

"I am.  I have the paperwork right here."

The man took the thick set of papers and quickly scanned them. "Wait here."

The man turned and headed back into the border office building.  Tanner was instantly on alert, his adrenaline pumping.  He hated to admit it, but he loved the rush right before doing something ever so slightly dangerous.  It was stupid and kind of immature, but fuck, he felt so alive at moments like this.  One look at the expressions of his friends and he knew they felt the same way.  He couldn't have explained it to a civilian, but these men were the closest thing he had to brothers.  They understood what he didn't even have words to describe.

Four uniformed men came out of the building leading a man in an orange jumpsuit.  The man's hair was clipped short, almost military style, and he was shackled hand and foot.  His head was down and Tanner scanned the sky and rooftops looking for anyone who might be looking to take Kerr out.  From all the intel they'd been privy to, Kerr would be wanted alive and kicking, but that didn't mean someone might not want to take out a few Canadian Mounties in the meantime.

Logan sidled up to Tanner and looked back at the building the men had just walked out of.  "I don't like this at all.  We need to get out of here.  There are too many fucking people here."

Jared joined them, leaning in so he wouldn't be overheard.  "I'm with you on this.  I know that protocol states we meet them at the border but shit, he could get taken out by a sniper."

"Then let's get him in the wagon," Tanner said.  "You're right.  This is way too open."

Morey took the prisoner by the arm and led him to one of two armored trucks, opening the steel doors and escorting him in.  Kerr was quickly cuffed to the bench and his feet shackled to the metal floor.  The bench opposite would be for the Marshal who drew the short straw and had to ride with the prisoner.  It wouldn't be pleasant or fun in the least.  The seats were hard metal and there were no windows to watch the passing scenery.  The two men would basically be staring at each other for the next twelve hours.

Evan handed Morey a coffee can.  "If he needs to take a piss."

Morey's mouth gaped open and his face turned purple.  "What do you mean?  I'm not riding with him in there."

"Yes, you are.  I need a Marshal to do this."  Evan's voice was even and calm in contrast to a decidedly honked off Morey.

"Fuck you.  Get Hampson or Thompson.  I'm not doing it."  Morey poked Evan in the chest.

Evan looked down at Morey's finger.  "Hampson and Thompson will be on the Blue Team.  And don't ever do that again or you’ll be pulling back a stump."  Evan's tone was dangerously soft and menacing.  Morey took a step back.

"I'm going to call Staley.  He won't let you do this," Morey blustered.

Evan smiled slowly.  "Go ahead.  Call him."  He crossed his arms over his chest and waited.

Morey looked unsure as to whether Evan was bluffing, but eventually he pulled his cell from his pocket and punched in a few numbers.  He barked into the phone and his face grew redder with each passing minute.  He finally shoved the phone back in his pants with a growl.

"Fuck you, Davis.  You haven't heard the last of this."

Evan smiled.  "Now that I believe. 
You can lodge a formal complaint when this is over.  Get in.  We need to get on the road.  We have a long drive ahead of us."  Evan took a few steps away and then turned back.  "I'll need your phone."

Morey's eyes went wide.  "Why?  It's untraceable.  It's the service's standard issue."

"You know the rules.  No cell phones in the truck.  And your piece as well.  All of them."

Morey muttered and bitched but handed over his phone and his handgun.  Evan lifted an eyebrow.

"Is that it?"

"Fuck you."

Evan laughed.  "I'll take that as a yes."  He turned to the rest of them who were watching the sideshow with interest.  "Saddle up.  Let's get this parade in motion."

Everyone knew his
position.  Evan was driving the armored car with Kerr inside and Seth was riding shotgun.  Jared and Griffin were in the front of the armored vehicle and Logan, Reed, and Tanner to the rear.  Reed was playing communication hub.  The front and rear chase cars completed their motorcade. 

Just before the motorcade was about to leave Evan walked to the back of the decoy armored truck and removed the license plate.  Tanner immediately picked up on what Evan was doing and did the same on the vehicle with Kerr inside, then handed it to Evan.  He gave Tanner his plate and Tanner affixed
it to the spot where he'd removed the original. 

The decoy motorcade pulled out and theirs followed suit.  At the five mile mark the other motorcade split apart and headed to more rural back
roads.  Evan's motorcade would stick to main arteries.  It would be easier to see a tail in a more wide-open space, and the better roads would give them room to maneuver if the need arose.  The sky was clear of any aircraft and the roads pretty much deserted.  Evan had said that the FAA was clearing the airspace above them for security purposes. 

They hadn't gone more than fifty miles when Evan came on the radio.  "Good news.  I just got word from the decoy team at the airport.  They've got the crew the Jackson cartel sent to break out Kerr.  That only leaves the Warner men
who we need to worry about."

"The decoy worked then," Logan said.  "They thought we would fly him."

Tanner nodded but kept his concentration on the road.  "Warner's men are still plenty dangerous."

"Everybody wants this guy," Reed observed.  "When they get what they're after, he's a dead man."

"If he talks," Logan countered. 

"He'll talk," Reed said grimly.  "Death will seem like a vacation for him if the Warner cartel gets their hands on him.  He'll beg to die before it's all over."

Tanner remembered the grisly scene at the packing plant and couldn't argue with Reed. 

"We don't let Warner's crew get anywhere near Kerr."  Tanner shook his head.  "He's going to be a guest of the U
.S. government at Florence for a very long time."

"I think I'd rather die than sit and rot in Florence for the rest of my damn life."  Logan looked out the bulletproof glass, leaning back against the headrest.  "Caged up like a fucking animal.  That's no way to live.  Just put a fucking bullet in my brain and let me die."

"I don't know about that.  The survival instinct is strong.  I saw it when I was in the Middle East.  You'd think you'd want to check out, but there's something inside of us that's stronger.  The will to live is overpowering."  Tanner sipped at his coffee and made a face.  He handed the coffee thermos to Logan.  "Can you pour me one?  My cup's gone cold."

"Me too?" 
Reed held out his styrofoam cup. 

"Yeah, yeah, I'm the damn waitress around here," Logan groused, but good-naturedly.  "All I'm saying is I couldn't be locked up like that.  No way, no how."

They drove for awhile, the silence only broken every ten minutes by the regular comm checks.  Reed sighed and rubbed his temples.

"It's quiet.  Too quiet."

"I thought it was just me thinking that," Tanner said.  "It's going too smoothly."

Logan groaned.  "Jesus H
. Christ, how can things go too smoothly?  You know what your problem is?  You both are pessimists.  You expect shit to go wrong and then you just wait for bad things to happen.  Then when they do, as shit eventually will, you point to it and act all smug and shit.  Well, fuck you.  I'm not going to get all pissy because shit is just going too damn good.  Son of a fucking bitch.  Do you get upset when your girlfriend has an orgasm too?  Do you think next time she won't?  Fuck."

Laughter bubbled up and Tanner couldn't hold it back.  Logan was a fucking piece of work, but Tanner had never met a better lawmen or a more true friend.

"Just for the record, Maddie comes every damn time. Most times more than once."  Tanner grinned.

Reed shook his head.  "I don't want to hear that shit.  I haven't been laid in weeks."

"What are you waiting for?"  Logan laughed.  "Your dick out of commission or something?"

"I'm no man-whore like you."  Reed pelted Logan with a wadded up napkin.  "I'm particular as to where I stick my cock, thank you very much."

"That's enough.  We're working, not comparing sex lives," Tanner interceded.  Logan and Reed could go at it all night if Tanner let them, and he wasn't in the mood.  "Location check."

Logan
consulted the GPS.  "We'll be changing roads here soon.  Keep an eye out."

That was exactly what Tanner planned to do.  He wanted to get home
–alive–to Madison.

Kerr should be on the plane by now.

Fenton leaned back in the leather chair and looked out his office window.  The sun was starting to set and the night was going to be fucking freezing.  Again.  He couldn't wait to get to New York where it might be cold but there were plenty of women to keep him warm. 

He hadn't bothered to call Abby.  There was no point.  He had enjoyed her company but it was over.  He would be moving on and she would be staying in this backwater shithole.  Now her ex-husband Tanner Marks was another matter.  Fenton had plans for him.  As soon as this job was done, he and Marks would be having some quality time together.  They'd find his body in a field outside of town. 

Fenton wouldn't be hanging around for the funeral. 

By Monday morning he'd be in New York with a new identity.  By Monday afternoon, he'd be checked into a private plastic surgery clinic.  It wouldn't be perfect, but it would be enough to make facial recognition just a little more difficult.  This surgeon was supposed to be the best. 

Of course this was all predicated on the job going well.  If he fucked it up, Fenton only had one choice.  Disappear somewhere Warner couldn't find him.  Fenton had enough money in the Caymans to live very well for the rest of his life. 

If it went well, then Fenton would have the information he needed to tap unknown amounts of Jackson cartel wealth.  He would be able to buy the loyalty and manpower he needed to knock off Warner and take over the organization.  It was what he'd worked for all these years and it was almost within his grasp.

Fenton's phone went off and he smiled.  This was the call he'd been waiting for.  His informant inside the prison had called this morning and said Kerr was being prepared to travel today.  Fenton's team would have extricated the man from federal custody by now and be on their way to a neutral location that had been scouted weeks ago.  Fenton, personally, would lead the interrogation.  He was looking forward to it.

He lifted the phone to his ear.  "Jacks."

“Mr. Jacks, this is John Bilson." 

Fenton sat up in his chair.  Bilson's voice was soft as if he was afraid of being overheard.  John Bilson worked for the C
anadian Border Patrol.  For a hefty fee he helped the Warner cartel, allowing them to move drugs through the checkpoints he monitored.  Fenton also had a Border Patrol cop on the payroll at the airport.  It should be that man calling him, not Bilson.

Every hair stood up on the back of Fenton's neck.  He didn't like surprises and his intuition was telling him something had gone very wrong.

"Why are you calling me?"

"Your prisoner?  That Kerr guy?  He's not on the airplane.  They just loaded him into an armored truck here at the border."

Fenton jumped up from his chair.  "Son of a fucking bitch.  Are you sure?  It sounds like they're using decoys."

He paced the office, muttering expletives under his breath. 

"I'm sure it was him.  I saw the picture you sent Terry."  Terry was the Border Patrol agent at the airport.  He'd been recruited on Bilson's recommendation.  "They had two large motorcades with two armored cars.  They loaded two armed Federal Marshals into the back of one and the prisoner and a Marshal in the other.  They drove out of here together, but I overheard them say they were taking different routes.  So I got the plate number of the truck they loaded him into."

At least one person was on the job in the organization. 
"How many cars?  How many agents?  What were they armed with?"  Fenton peppered the agent with questions. 

He had to react quickly or lose their quarry.  Bilson rattled off the information and Fenton scratched some notes on a piece of paper, already making plans in his head.  There would be more collateral damage this way but it wasn't his fault.  The government had decided how Fenton would play it.  The blood would be on their hands.

"You did good, Bilson.  Expect a bonus.  I always appreciate loyalty in my organization.  Call me if you hear anything more."

Fenton hung up the phone and quickly made a list of everyone he needed to contact.  Nothing could go wrong the second time.  He wanted Kerr and he would get him. 

Fenton picked up the phone to call his second in command.  He wished he could call his lead man at the airport but the fact was he might not even be alive.  If he had been captured by authorities, Fenton didn't want to call the burner cell phone the operative would be carrying.  At this point, the man and his team were dead to him.  At least for now.

"Carl?  Where the fuck are you?  Billings?  Good.  Get the team, get the chopper.  Once you do that, call me back and I'll tell you the plan.  And Carl?  You have about ten minutes."

* * * *

The motorcade stopped for gas about three hours later.  They were north of Billings and the traffic had been few and far between.  They pretty much owned the road.  Even the few houses they passed were dark, the residents asleep. 

Tanner got out of the car and stretched his legs, the cold wind whipping around his body and sending a chill through him.  He'd much rather be in bed, curled around Madison but there was a job that needed doing.  It was too bad Evan wasn't transferring Kerr in July. 

"Damn thing
’s a gas guzzler.  I think it gets like seven miles to the gallon, for fuck's sake.  We'll be stopping for gas constantly."  Reed jerked his thumb toward the armored vehicle which was still locked.  Kerr and Morey wouldn't be getting out to stretch their legs.  Evan would get them a snack and might even let Morey out for a bathroom break, but that was it. 

Logan laughed.  "You don't buy an armored truck for the gas mileage.  Damn thing probably weighs ten tons with all that steel and bullet proof glass."

Tanner scanned the area, his rifle at the ready.  It appeared to be completely deserted but looks could be deceiving.  The front chase car had already checked out the area before they'd stopped, but Tanner couldn't stop the feeling of unease that had built with every passing mile.  Two dangerous drug cartels wanted this guy, but so far they'd driven peacefully down the state of Montana.  In a few hours they'd be in Wyoming and Evan had already told them a group of local sheriffs from that state would be joining them when they crossed over the state line. 

Evan nodded toward the attached convenience store.  "It's your turn."

They'd planned ahead and the team would go to the bathroom and grab a coffee in shifts, no shift lasting more than five minutes.  With three shifts they should be back on the road in fifteen minutes.  Tanner always felt better when they were moving.  Standing still he felt like a sitting duck.

Logan walked with Tanner inside the store.  "You've had a sour look on your face for the last hundred miles or so.  What's up?"

"I'm worried about Maddie.  This has gone too smoothly.  If they're not targeting us, are they targeting people we care about?  I wouldn't put it past Fenton to go after her."

Logan shrugged and looked away.  "Lucky me, there isn't anyone I care about.  Didn't you leave Scout with her and
have a deputy driving by every ten minutes?  You can't do much more than that, man."

Tanner had never delved into Logan's past.  The man had no family to speak of, or at least Tanner had never heard about any.  But Logan wasn't a man to discuss his past.  His eye was always firmly on the present.  He lived in the moment, enjoying life to the fullest whether it was climbing a mountain or romancing a pretty young thing. Logan only knew how to live life one way.  Full speed ahead and have a ball doing it.

"I just wish I was there, that's all."  Tanner pulled his cell from his pocket, saw the time, and put it away.  It was almost eleven and Maddie was an early riser.  She'd definitely be asleep or as good as, even with Sherry there with her.

Logan glanced at his watch.  "You will be in about twelve hours, give or take.  I know you don't want to hear this, but shit,
you need to keep your mind on the job.  Stay focused, Tanner."

L
ogan was right.  The reason he'd left Scout with Maddie and posted that guard was so he wouldn't worry.  Now here he was...worrying.  He needed to keep his head in the game or risk getting it blown off.

"I will.  You're right.  I've protected Maddie.  Now we just need to get this guy to Florence."

Tanner hit the bathroom and grabbed a coffee and a snack on the way out.  The motorcade was gassed up and ready to go.  One leg of the journey down and only three more to go.

* * * *

Madison poured the microwave popcorn from the bag into a large bowl.  She and Sherry were watching movies and talking.  Sherry was telling about the latest wedding she was planning and how the bride was a complete Bridezilla.

Taking the popcorn back into the living room, Madison had to chuckle at how Scout and Sherry were sprawled on the couch.  Woman and dog had bonded instantly.  Sherry adored animals and Scout was no exception.  The dog was half reclined on Sherry eating pieces of cubed cheese.  Tanner was going to kill Madison.  By the time he got his dog back, he'd be completely spoiled.  Tanner didn't allow Scout on the furniture, and she was pretty sure he didn't get cheese cubes either.

"Watch what Scout can do."  Sherry balanced a piece of cheese on Scout's nose.  "Wait for it.  Wait for it.  Get it, Scout!"

The dog moved its long snout and snatched the cheese right out of the air.  Sherry clapped and praised the canine, ruffling its fur and scratching his ears.  Scout stuck his nose right into the bag of snacks and smacked it with his paw, indicating more.

"You've turned Tanner's police dog into a circus animal."  Madison groaned.  "He's going to be livid."

"He's still ferocious.  Aren't you, Scout?  You'll rip some poor man's leg off, won't you?  Good boy." Sherry crooned, nuzzling the dog with her cheek.  The
dog’s ears perked up and he nudged the bag with his nose again. 

"Have some popcorn and no, don't give it to Scout.  I don't think Tanner lets him have popcorn slathered in butter."

Sherry laughed and dug into the bowl after tossing Scout another cube.  "All I hear you talk about these days is 'Tanner this' and 'Tanner that'.  When am I going to get a 'You were right, Sherry' or 'Thank you, Sherry’?"

"Thank you, Sherry."

Sherry tossed a few kernels of popcorn at Madison.  "Once more with feeling, please.  I managed to get this entire town working together so you and Tanner could fall in love."

"They'll build a statue in your honor in the park."  Madison giggled, picturing it in her mind.  Sherry would have her iPad and her cell phone, complete with headset.

"It is love, isn't it?  Do you think he'll propose soon?  I totally cannot wait to organize your wedding.  I think a mermaid silhouette would be the perfect wedding gown for you."

Madison wasn't sure what to say.  She absolutely loved Tanner, more than she had ever thought possible.  But he had never mentioned the word love.

"I don't even know if Tanner wants to get married again.  I mean, we've never discussed it.  We haven't been going out all that long, you know."

"True."  Sherry tapped her chin.  "But you're both adults, not kids.  I can tell you're both in love."

"Do you think so?"  Madison chewed her bottom lip.  She wanted to believe Sherry.

Sherry smacked her forehead.  "You haven't told him?"

Madison shook her head.

"And he hasn't said it either?"

Madison shook her head, again, heat suffusing her cheeks.  She was a relationship idiot.

"May I ask what you
are waiting for?"

"For him to say it first?  Isn't that what you told me to do?" Madison asked indignantly.  She'd been following orders, for heaven's sake.

"Well yes, I did say that.  But once you could tell, it's okay to say it."

"Now you tell me.  Honestly, I'
ve been scared to death to do it.  What if he doesn't say it back?  What do I do then?"

The mere thought he might not say it back had Madison shaking in her
favorite boots.

"He'll say it.  He loves you.  Everything is working out for you, Madison.  I know you weren't sure about moving back home."

Madison hadn't been sure at all, but she'd promised her father she would someday come back and join him.  When he'd called, she hadn't been able to think of a single reason to stay in Chicago.  She had thought of several reasons not to come back to Springwood.  It had been the home of too many unpleasant childhood memories. 

But coming home had taught her more than how to be in a relationship with a man.  It had taught her that time marches on even when you're not watching.  She'd been in Chicago, maturing and changing, building her career.  The people in town had been doing that exact same thing. 

For Madison, Springwood had remained frozen in time.  It was an unchanging memory.  Coming back showed her that wasn't the case.  Everyone had moved on with their lives, sparing little thought to the freckled, red-haired girl they had tormented.

And that was how it should be.  Her classmates grew up and were smacked sideways by adulthood, as most young people are.  They'd been busy falling in love, marrying, having children, and working at jobs.  It made those years in school seem very far away and kind of unimportant.  Tanner's words that day in the coffee shop had given her a perspective she'd lacked in Chicago.