Ryker’s Justice (19 page)

“Simon’s
friends were all like that.”

He
hated to hammer her but he did. “Who’s the richest?
The
baddest
?
The one you hated most?”

When
she shut her eyes, he thought she might cry and his guts twisted at the idea. Nicole
shed no tears, though. After a few moments, she opened them and met his gaze.
“Senator Conrad Bell. He’s a state senator from
Tennessee
and lives in
Memphis
. Simon kissed his ass whenever he
could and went to parties at his house. He would come home reeking of pot and
booze and some cheap perfume. If it’s anyone in Simon’s circle, Jude, it would
be him.”

“Do
you know if he came to the inn?”

She
lifted her hands, palms up. “I really don’t know. He might have. I was always
so glad to see Simon pack a bag and leave, I didn’t ask many questions.”

“Try
to remember, honey. I wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t so damned important. Think!”

“I’m
trying!”

One
minute
passed,
then two, then three. “Jude, I think
so,” Nicole said. “He would brag about his trips sometimes. I remember how he
talked about the food at the inn, how good it was. He brought home brochures—that’s
how I knew it was so pretty here. And I looked up the website after that but
never told Simon. But I remember he said something about Conrad getting so
drunk he busted an antique table or something, had to pay for it. I’m sure Rick
and Mary would remember.”

They
would. And if he asked about it now, he might as well pull out his badge and
tell them his purpose in coming home. “Now wouldn’t be the best time to ask,”
he said. “It might give the whole thing away. I need to see if I can find a
connection between this senator and the moonshine.”

Her
restless hands fiddled with her almost empty plate and rattled her fork against
the knife.
“How?”

Jude
grunted. “That’s the question and I don’t know yet. I need to go over to
Granite Springs Caverns and check it out. That’d be a start.”

“When
would you go, Jude?”

“Now,”
he told her. “I need to go tonight. If I see any evidence of a liquor or meth-making
operation, I can get a warrant. It would be handy if I could find something to
link the senator but I don’t know if it’s possible. Maybe I can make
Junior
sing like a cardinal. If he knows anything, I can
make him tell me.”

As
he spoke, Jude rose from the table. He reached into a drawer for his gun and
shoulder holster. He snapped the holster into place and Nicole gasped. “Jude,
don’t go tonight!”

“Why not?”

“It’s
dangerous,” she said. “It’s dark. You won’t be able to see anything. Can’t you
go tomorrow?”

“No.
I
gotta
do this, honey. It’s my job.”

“I’m
afraid,” she said.

“You’ll
stay here behind locked doors or I can drop you off at Adam or Noah’s place. Or
leave you at the hospital. Someone will be there, I imagine.”

“Jude,
you don’t get it.” Nicole crossed the kitchen floor to him and clutched his
arms. “I’m scared for you, worried sick out of my mind. Don’t go without some
kind of backup.”

His
lips stretched into what he hoped might be a smile. “I need evidence for that
and I don’t have any yet. Get your shoes so I can drop you somewhere.”

She
shook her head. “I’d rather wait here, Jude.”

“Baby,
I don’t know.”

Nicole
cupped her hand against his cheek. “You’re forgetting I can do more than fry
chicken. My Pop taught me how to shoot, too. Give me a gun and I’ll be fine.”

“You
don’t get my
Glock
,” he said. “All I have to leave
you with is a single shot .22 that belonged to my granddad.”

“It’ll
do.” Her voice never wavered.

“Nicole…”

“If
you have to do this, go do it,” she told him. “Then get home in one piece so I
can hold you tight.”

Jude’s
heart came near bursting. “You’re one hell of a woman, honey,” he said. “I’ll
do my best.”

He
only hoped his best would be good enough. There was a lot to live for, now.

Five
minutes later, dressed in camouflage from head to foot, heavy boots on his
feet, and armed, he headed out to the truck. On the way, he called Adam and
told him where he was heading and what he meant to do.

“Jesus,
kid, you’re taking a risk,” his brother said.

“Don’t
start. You sound like Nicole.”

“She’s
a smart gal. I hope you have sense not to waltz right up to the front door and
barge in. Do you remember the back way?”

“What?”

Adam
laughed. “Don’t you remember how we used to sneak along the bluff above the caves
there for kicks? And how we found a back door into the place?”

“No.”

“We
must have left you home because you were too little, then,” Adam said. “I know
Noah and me were there. I think Elijah was, too. I’m going with you.”

“Adam,
it’s not a good idea.” The last thing he needed would be to have his brother
hurt, or worse.

“I’m
coming along to show you the way or I’ll follow.
Your call,
kid.”

He
had him. Adam could track him anywhere, any time.
“All right.
Meet me at the
Sugar
Creek
Bridge
.”

“I’ll
be there.”

“And
bring a gun, for Christ sake.”

“I
always
do,
little brother.”

The
call ended as Jude hurtled the old truck over the winding roads toward his
destiny.

Chapter Eighteen

Somewhere
during the evening, he had lost track of time. Jude hadn’t bothered to check a
clock when he headed out so it could be
eight
o’clock
or
midnight
.
Clouds hung low and heavy in the sky, blocking the stars, so he had no way to
judge. If he turned on the radio, he could probably find out but Jude embraced
the solitude. As the steel-belted radial tires whined against the pavement and
a north wind buffeted the vehicle with strong gusts, he tried to clear his
mind. He had to go in with an empty mind and his emotions in check.

Driving
too fast, he almost missed the turnoff to the bridge and wheeled down the
graveled entrance road with speed. For a moment, he thought Adam hadn’t come
but then he saw him, standing against his truck dressed in dark hunting clothes.
He blended with the night so much, Jude probably wouldn’t have spotted him if
he hadn’t been trained to observe minute details. He parked and walked over,
his tread so light he made little sound.

“Adam,”
he said.

“Let’s
go.” His brother turned and Jude thrust out a hand to stop him.

“We’re
walking?”

“Hell,
yeah,” Adam replied. “Or did you want to drive up so they know you’re coming?”

Damn,
if he’d missed such an obvious detail maybe he wasn’t up for this tonight. “No.
How damn far is it?”

“Less
than two miles across the country, but it’s a rough walk. Are you in shape,
city boy?”

Back
in D.C., Jude prided himself on maintaining prime physical condition, but
running three miles over urban pavement or using the gym didn’t compare to a
night trek over the rugged country. “I hope so.”

“We’ll
find out. Follow me.”

His
brother set out with swift stealth and Jude followed. The chill wind blasted
over them and he shivered, despite the layers he had added beneath the camo. Clouds
scudded overhead with the force of it and for one brief moment, the moon
emerged with glorious light. It faded fast as they moved through the brush and
brambles. There was a narrow path and they kept on it, climbing as they walked.
At least, Jude thought, they hadn’t had to cross the river.

Neither
man spoke as they moved. A strange sense of past and present blanketed Jude. In
following Adam, he hearkened back to the little boy he’d been, one who trailed
his older brothers with perfect trust and without question. As Special Agent
Ryker, he had become more leader than follower but tonight he didn’t quibble. Adam
knew the way and he didn’t.

As
they trudged over the hills, Jude inhaled the familiar scent of wood smoke
carried on the wind. Although he had steeled himself not to, he thought of
Nicole. It comforted him to imagine her sitting near the fire in his mother’s
old rocker, reading or staring into the flames. He hadn’t prayed much in years
but he did now, a silent plea to the God he no longer knew.
Let her be safe, keep her safe and let her
be there when I get home, in one piece, if it’s not too much to ask.

They
passed along a high ridge overlooking the creek valley spread out below. Yard
lights and illuminated windows marked living spaces, but they reminded Jude of
the fireflies he once caught on summer evenings. The path narrowed and he
noticed one misstep would take him down over the rocks to the forest floor
below. He slowed his step but kept up with Adam.

His
brother paused and tossed his head. “This way,” he mouthed. Frost formed when
he spoke.

They
headed downhill on a sharp incline, the trail narrowing until Jude had to turn
sideways to pass through. Sheer granite walls rose higher than his head. Adam
waited for him,
then
pointed to a slit in the rock
ahead. Jude nodded and when Adam disappeared into it, he followed. Outside he
could see a little, but once inside he was blind. Jude ran his hands along the
granite and hoped he wouldn’t make a wrong step,
then
plummet to his death. A pinprick of light appeared ahead.

“Follow
me.” Adam’s voice reached him, lower than a whisper.

After
a series of narrow corridors and several sharp turns, they came out into a
wider space. Jude could see little but he sensed the open air around him. Adam
might be a mind reader because he swept the small flashlight around the cavern
so Jude could see. When his brother beckoned, he followed again but he wished
he could have left behind a trail of pebbles to mark his way. Alone, Jude knew
he would never find his way out.

Adam
led him toward a larger hallway, the walls solid stone. Somewhere, he caught
the sound of voices and inhaled a whiff of tobacco smoke. Another odor rankled,
something pungent. It reminded him of ether or harsh ammonia.
Meth.
The corridor traveled toward a much
larger room and if Jude remembered correctly, it had been the work floor when
the place had been a leather works. They didn’t enter it, though, but skirted
around to a narrower space. Adam ducked into it and Jude followed.

“Look
through there,” Adam said.

Jude
glanced at the natural opening in the wall, more of a slit than a window. He
hunkered down and watched. On one side of the room, he spied what appeared to
be a large-scale meth operation and across from it, he noticed multiple stills,
all in operation. The combined smell of the cooking brew and the
methamphetamine created a nasty stench and he had seen enough. One call to Mark
March, and another to Sheriff Cole would shut it down, but first Jude wanted
the head honcho’s name.
And I think Aunt
Tillie’s neighbor is running a meth lab but it’s not part of this mess.

“Seen
enough?”

He
answered his brother with a nod.
“More than.”

With
slow, painstaking steps, they backtracked. For Jude, eager to get back to his
truck, make some phone calls, and return to Nicole, time crawled. The return
trip seemed to take twice as long. Rain began falling long before they reached
the
Sugar
Creek
Bridge
access area and both men were drenched by the time they reached their vehicles.
Before they parted, Jude turned to his brother. “Thanks, Adam.”

“No
problem. What now?”

“I
still need proof of who’s behind all of this” he said. He forgot that Adam
wouldn’t have any idea. “But I’ll call the sheriff and then my boss tonight. They
can get things started. Then I’m going home to Nicole.”

Adam
gave him a bear-hug and departed. Jude climbed into his truck and called March.

“It’s
Ryker,” he said. “I’ve got the location and it’s active.”

“About
time,” Mark March said. “Good job, agent. I’ll get some of the boys out of
Tulsa
or
Kansas City
to head your way. You can brief
them,
then
they’ll go in. You want to preserve your
cover.”

“Good,”
Jude said. “You might want to contact someone in
Memphis
, though.”

“Why?”

“I
have reason to believe the brains and money of this operation is from
Memphis
, a state senator.
By the time the agents show up, I should have it confirmed.”