Stalking Ground (28 page)

Wednesday

The Timber Creek officers gathered for debriefing, all staring in glum silence at anything but each other. Disappointment and anger fueled the tension in the room.

Mattie glanced at the clock on the wall of the briefing room. Five thirty: the sun would rise soon. Yesterday had been the longest day of her life, and since she’d still not had any sleep, the endless day was stretching into a two-day marathon. Robo had curled up beside her chair and fallen asleep. He snored lightly.

McCoy spoke first. “So it’s out of our hands now. DEA agents are taking our prisoner to their Denver office. I’ll be informed of her disposition on a ‘need-to-know’ basis. There’s no guarantee we’ll be kept in the loop.”

Brody had chosen to sit beside Mattie and Robo, and she could feel him simmering. “Will Carmen Santiago be prosecuted for Adrienne’s murder?” he asked.

A pained look touched McCoy’s face. “I don’t know. I wish I could tell you she will, but . . .” He lifted his hands in a gesture of helplessness. He continued to explain. “They’ll use her as bait to get to her uncle,
El Capo
. They’ve been tracking his activities in the United States for months. This horse stable is believed to be a money-laundering scheme for proceeds from
his prostitution and drug operation that extends from Juárez to Los Angeles. The thing is, it’s doubtful he’ll care enough about Carmen for them to use her for leverage against him in any way.”

“So she might get a plea bargain,” Brody said, spitting out the words with distaste.

“It’s possible,” Stella replied, looking grim. “But she won’t get away scot-free. She’ll serve time for Adrienne’s murder. And in her family, getting caught like this will mean a death sentence. I doubt she’ll last long in prison.”

Brody rolled his shoulders and pushed back from the table, his chair scraping against the tan linoleum. Mattie could tell that Stella’s answer held no satisfaction for him. He would want to take part in the woman’s prosecution and see justice served with a murder-one conviction. They all would. But they were enmeshed in the downside of federal jurisdiction pulling rank.

“I was able to access Adrienne’s computer prior to the Feds taking it for evidence,” Stella said. “I found a file that contained her notes regarding the horses. She documented the decline of a horse named Diablo and her concerns about a horse named Red. She suspected drug dosing of some kind.”

As she continued, Stella eyed Brody, whose face had turned stony. “Juan Fiero told me what he witnessed. He said the lady, meaning Adrienne, accused Santiago of making the horses sick. Carmen went to her office, came out with her crossbow, and told Adrienne to run. She did. Carmen shot her in the back, and the bolt went clear through her chest. Fiero said she died immediately.”

Brody pushed back from the table, bent forward, and placed his elbows on his knees. He stared at the floor, clenching his jaw.

Stella continued. “He said he thought Carmen killed Adrienne because she needed to prove to her uncle that she was committed. He said that compared to her uncle, her evil side is very small. He thinks she’s probably as afraid of him as he is.”

“How did he call into our tip line?” Mattie asked.

“Adrienne gave him the TracFone,” Stella said. “They talked while they worked on the horses. He told her he wasn’t allowed to use the phone, and Adrienne gave him an old one that still had some minutes on it. After Carmen forced him to bury her body, he felt so bad about it, he had to call.”

“The Feds have taken Fiero into custody and plan to transfer him to a hospital in Denver as soon as they can,” McCoy said. “Why did he hide the fact that he speaks English?”

“He said he wanted to hide it from Carmen and her uncle. He believed it gave him an edge in case he could ever make a move to escape,” Stella said.

“They’re pawns,” Brody growled.

Mattie related to his frustration and nodded her agreement. The group shared a moment of silence. Mattie felt like she needed to say something to Brody but didn’t know what that could be. Stella beat her to it.

“It pisses me off that we couldn’t mete out justice for Adrienne ourselves, Brody. But we have to hope the system will give her the punishment she deserves.”

Stella had summed up her own feelings in the best way possible. “I think so, too,” Mattie said. “The important thing is that we were able to shut her part of the operation down and bring her to justice, even if what happens next is out of our control. And we solved the homicide case and made an arrest.”

Brody shrugged. “Maybe so. But Adrienne’s gone no matter what we do about it.”

Purely out of reflex, Mattie reached out to comfort him and put her hand on Brody’s forearm. His tension was evident in the tight, ropy muscle beneath his khaki shirtsleeve. “I’m sorry, Brody. I wish things were different.” She withdrew her hand before it became awkward.

McCoy steepled his fingers at his chin and swept them with an all-inclusive glance. “I couldn’t be more proud of the way my officers performed out there last night. I don’t want you to lose sight of our accomplishment: it takes a well-trained team of professionals to break up an international crime organization and take down one of its primary players. You can be proud of the way you served our department, our state, and our country.” He paused for a moment, letting his words sink in. “I believe the local property owned by this crime organization will be appropriated by the federal government and eventually liquidated, and I can promise you that I’ll fight for our share of the asset forfeiture when the time comes.”

“What about the animals?” Mattie said. “What’s their disposition?”

“Timber Creek County Humane Society has assumed responsibility for the horses, and they’ll remain under Dr. Walker’s care until he determines if they can be saved or not.” He smiled in a slight way, as if recalling a memory. “Dr. Walker made it clear that no one was to even touch the Doberman but him. He put the dog in his truck as soon as he finished with the horses.”

It was a relief to know that Cole would be in charge of the animals.

McCoy continued. “I want you all to know that even prior to Ms. Howard’s disappearance, I’d been working with the county commissioners to approve a budget increase to add a detective to our staff. There’s no question that our increased crime rate justifies the expense.” He sent Stella a pointed look.
“I hope you’ll consider applying for the position as soon as we post it.”

Looking thoughtful, Stella gave him a slow nod.

“Any questions or things you want to add?” When no one spoke, McCoy went on. “I’ve made arrangements for Deputy Garcia to extend his shift through the morning, and Deputy Johnson will also be on duty. You all can have the morning off, but shifts resume as scheduled at one o’clock this afternoon. For now, you’re dismissed.”

With fog descending on her brain, it took a moment for Mattie to orient herself to the day. Wednesday . . . right. She and Robo were scheduled to work, so she’d better get home as soon as possible. Right now she’d trade almost anything for a few hours of sleep. When she pushed her chair back and stood, Robo awakened and scrambled to his feet. He stretched and yawned, haunches in the air.

“Mattie, could I have a word in private before you go?” Stella asked.

“Sure,” she said, hoping it wouldn’t take long. She rested a hip against the table while the men left, closing the door behind them.

Stella searched Mattie’s face for a few seconds before she spoke. “I can tell the past forty-eight hours have been hell for you. I can read the pain in your face.”

Tears prickled Mattie’s eyes, and even though she wanted to argue, she couldn’t speak.

“I know you want to deny it, and I know you’re pushing yourself to carry on as if nothing has happened,” Stella said, the emotion behind her words making her sound angry. “But you’re one hell of an officer, Mattie, and I don’t want to see you break down. You owe it to your training, your career, and—yeah, you owe it to Robo—to take care of yourself. I’m not
going to stand by and watch you self-destruct. You’ve got to take care of this now that this investigation is over and get yourself some help, or . . .”

Surprised at the detective’s vehemence, Mattie looked her in the eye. “Or what?”

Stella put on her too-sweet smile. “Or I’ll nag you until you do.”

Placing her hands on her temples, Mattie rubbed the tightness that had formed there. “Good to know. Right now I need some sleep.” She started to pull away, but the need to tell someone the thought that had truly begun to nag at her made her turn back. “You know what’s bothering me the most now, Stella?”

“What’s that?”

“The fact that my mother must have known what was going on, and she didn’t protect me.” Mattie’s throat tightened and she couldn’t say more.

Stella looked thoughtful. “Yeah, you’re probably right. But keep in mind that she was going through her own hell. That’s no excuse to fail to protect an innocent kid, but . . . who are we to judge? At least she recognized that she wasn’t providing what you needed and did the best thing she knew how to do at the time.”

Bitterness flowed from Mattie’s chest into her words. “Yeah . . . relinquish her kids to the state.”

“Hey, we can piss on our parents as worthless idiots all we want, but ultimately we’ve got to take responsibility for who we are as adults. You’ve ended up all right.”

It wasn’t the time to share that all she’d ever really wanted was to reunite her family, and now she wanted nothing to do with them. Her shattered dream hurt more than anything at the moment, but she was too tired to get into it. She pulled a
hand down over her face. “I’ve got to go home. I’m due back here at one.”

“Okay, I’ll let you go. But think about what I’ve said, and we’ll talk later. Hey . . . I’m considering that job the sheriff mentioned. I might be your neighbor someday.”

Mattie gave her a tired smile. “Worse things could happen.”

Stella took Mattie by the arm and started walking her toward the door. “And they probably will.”

*

Mattie slept the hard sleep of exhaustion for five solid hours, and so did Robo. When she awakened a few minutes before noon, she lay in bed disoriented. In the split second it took to remember why she was in bed in the middle of the day, it all flooded her mind—the search for Cole, Carmen’s takedown, the hideous image of that bolt lodged in Juan Fiero.

And Willie’s phone call.

She pushed herself up and sat on the edge of the bed. Robo lay stretched out on his side on his dog bed, and he opened his uppermost eye to stare at her. As if also needing a second to orient himself, he lay still for one eye blink before scrambling to his feet. She realized why the room was warmer than they were used to—she’d forgotten to open the window before collapsing on the bed. And she’d awakened, safe and sound.

“Come here, buddy.”

He came and placed his head on her knee for an ear scratch.

“Thanks for always being there when I need you,” she murmured. “You’re my best friend.”

More refreshed than she’d felt for a couple of days, she let Robo into the yard, watched him long enough for him to do his business, and then called him inside. Picking up her cell phone, she took it off vibrate and noticed she had a message.
It was Cole, asking her if she would join him and the kids for dinner.

She took in a breath, thinking about his family. Months ago, she’d believed it to be perfect—loving couple, gorgeous daughters, dedicated parents—and then she’d discovered the flaw in her illusion. No family was perfect. And the pain Cole’s kids were feeling over their own mother’s abandonment was as real as hers. She wanted to make sure that Cole sought counseling for his daughters without delay.

And what about you?
Clearly Stella had weaseled her way inside Mattie’s head, because it was her voice that whispered the question.

“Okay,” Mattie said aloud, causing Robo to look up at her. “I just might do it, too.”

*

The mundane routine of patrol duty and paperwork felt like such a relief, and the last half of Mattie’s shift flew by. She clocked out and left the station in time to drive straight to Cole’s house for dinner. After parking under the tree in front, she unloaded Robo, who wasn’t even trying to hide his delight. Allowing herself to smile, she decided that dogs could teach humans a thing or two about happiness.

Cole opened the front door and stepped out, his friendly grin lighting his face.
Dogs and Cole; they always make me feel welcome
. Bruno and Belle spilled out into the yard to greet Robo, and the chase was on. Mattie climbed the few steps up onto the porch and allowed herself to be swallowed up by Cole’s warm hug. She was relieved to feel less complicated emotions than those she’d felt during his last embrace. This time, she recognized joy and affection, pure and simple.

“I’m so glad you’re here, but I have to warn you about something,” Cole said, releasing the hug but tucking her under one arm. His expression turned serious, his eyes earnest. He spoke in a rush, his voice hushed in the low, confidential tone used for sharing secrets. “Angie is real mad at me for not coming home last night, even though I called her when we got back to the barn to explain that I had to stay to take care of Diablo. I’m at a loss how to tell her and Sophie the real story. How serious the situation was. You know, I can’t tell them what really happened, about the danger and all, but they’ve got to realize I was gone for good reason. What can I say?”

A few months ago, Mattie would have done anything to avoid getting involved in Cole’s personal trouble, but tonight she felt better equipped. “Did you tell them Carmen was arrested for Adrienne’s murder?”

“Not yet. You know how Angie’s been. And I just got home from the clinic.”

“Well . . .” She thought for a moment—watching the dogs play, sensing the warmth of his arm on her shoulders and his body at her side, breathing in the spicy scent of his aftershave. “The truth is always best. With kids, withholding the truth is more damaging than exposing them to some of the scary stuff. But after this, you’ve got to find a professional who can help your daughters deal with their feelings, Cole. They’ve been through too much lately.”