Nailed (43 page)

Chapter 55

Friday, the first week of September

Deputy Chief Oliver Gosden was back on patrol with Ron Ketchum. Oliver was behind the wheel. He drove carefully but without visible signs of nervousness across the Tightrope.

Since the episode with the mountain lion, Oliver had become a fatalist. He now firmly believed that when your time was up, you’d go. But not a minute earlier.

The Gosdens had been back in L.A. the past week on R&R.

“I almost decided to stay,” he told Ron. “I thought I might see if I could get my rank back with the LAPD.”

“And?”

“Lauren and Danny wouldn’t hear of it. They like it here. Danny wants to bring all his cousins up and show them his room. Where Daddy and Warden Knox killed the mountain lion.”

“That’s better than him having nightmares.”

“Lauren said she’s a mountain woman now.”

Ron nodded.

“My parents are thinking of moving up here, too.”

“Good for them.”

“They say things down in L.A. are getting to be too much to bear.”

“There’s something everywhere you go,” Ron cautioned.

“We still got all those drunks outside that new bar?”

“Now that you mention it, yeah. And the burglary calls are still creeping up. And we still haven’t found that floating poker game, either.”

“Maybe Texas Jack could help us with that.”

“Maybe he could.”

Chief Ketchum and Deputy Chief Gosden of the Goldstrike Police Department talked about crime and race, and completed their morning rounds.

About the Author

Joseph Flynn is a Chicagoan, born and raised, currently living in central Illinois with his wife and daughter. He is the author of
The Concrete Inquisition, Digger, Hot Type, Farewell Performance, Gasoline Texas, The President’s Henchman, The Hangman’s Companion, Round Robin, Blood Street Punx
and more titles to appear in the near future.

You can read free excerpts of Joe’s books by visiting his website at:
www.josephflynn.com
.