Leo shook his head as he glanced at the team. “If Bear’scorrect, we have veterans on this mountain and teens. The latter has less access to a gun than the first. We don’t allow weapons here except for those belonging to our own team and Ivan and Victoria’s men. The veterans sign a contract, and the kids sign an agreement. We need to start at the hospital and do a search. Then expand it to the wooded areas and the paths. I don’t like the idea of someone loose near all those kids and our families.”
“Maybe one of the new patients snuck one in?” Shadow suggested.
“Then why go after Scarlett? She’s blind. Using the reasoning the cops gave, they don’t consider her a credible threat. The woman ran into a burning building and kept her wits about her to save those kids and the seniors. Something’s not adding up.”
“We assumed it’s Jeremy because of the cologne. It’s not a designer fragrance. Anyone in this town, especially the seniors, might’ve purchased it,” Taco added.
“Whoever set the fire knew when and where to do it. They stayed out of the city’s camera range. Yet, we can’t give the suspect credit for it. I don’t think the police station has upgraded its surveillance equipment since the eighties. They handed me a VHS tape. Do you know how long it took for me to find a VHS recorder?” Bear vented. “We can’t protect the town without adding our own cameras. We put them around the community center, and he managed to evade them.”
“Kassie’s working on suggesting a few more cops at the town meeting. This will be her argument. Chase says the city has funds set aside for upgrades, and since they paid for the school upgrades and Victoria handled the library’s repairs, they haven’t used the money,” Leo said, running his fingers through his hair.
“Bear, can you hack into the system and see how muchmoney the town has in the bank? Maybe we’re missing a piece of the puzzle there,” Ragu suggested.
“All right, Doc and Michael volunteered for the night shift tonight. We want to search the hospital, and I prefer Doc stay there. Ragu, you go with Michael. Taco and Shadow, you head over to the hospital. I’ll call Joe and see what the lawyer says about searching patient rooms. In today’s world, I’m not taking this threat lightly. We do it quietly and efficiently. Saint and I will take the veteran wards while they handle the teen rooms. I don’t even want to know what you’ll find in there if it’s not a weapon,” Leo ordered.
“Patch and I can take the cabins,” Knight volunteered.
“Good, wear your mics and cameras. If we spot anything, I want it recorded,” Leo ordered as he drained the last of his mug and placed it in the dishwasher. “Let’s find this asshole.”
CHAPTER 38
The next morning,Rocker poured himself a cup of coffee in the guest house. When Ty returned, he planned to say goodbye to Sledge and fly home in the morning. His wife, Connie, informed him she filed for divorce. It didn’t come as a big surprise after the last six months, but he missed his boys. As Connie pointed out, Rocker never stayed home long enough for his sons to know him as a father. It felt like a kick in the teeth. He served his country and got punished because it took him away from his family.
Scarlett seemed in good hands with Ty, and after he seared his eyeballs with the sight of the couple going at it, he knew he needed to return home and deal with his own situation.
Ty rapped twice on the kitchen door and peeked through the window. Rocker nodded for him to enter the guest house.
“I’m leaving to meet the insurance inspector. Maria and Harlow will arrive in about half an hour to clean the house. Mom and Scarlett buried themselves in an audiobook in the living room. They plan to go fishing at the lake later, andyou’re welcome to join them. I’m saddling Hank for them before I leave.”
“Do you think Scarlett will speak to me or throw something at my head?” Rocker asked sarcastically. “For a blind woman, she has great aim.” He recalled how she took off her sneaker and threw it at him when he entered the house and rubbed his forehead.
Ty grinned. “I’ll hurry back.”
“Take your time. I plan to visit Sledge tonight. I’m flying home in the morning. Don’t make me have to return,” he threatened.
“I hope they catch the guy soon. It’s making the town on edge. Not to mention, they have no bakery, community center, or restaurant to visit, other than the Pizza Palace, which is crawling with teens,” Ty said, sighing.
Rocker shuddered. “I don’t know how the veteran drivers handle all those kids. They’re polite and everything, but they have no volume button when they’re playing those video games.”
“It’s new. They upgraded the place after a small electrical fire in the wall. They’re lucky no one got hurt,” Ty said, turning to leave.
“I’ll watch over them,” Rocker assured him.
Forty minutes later, he walked along the driveway, scanning the field with his herd of cows and another pen with goats. He heard Hank nicker loudly and noticed the barn door. One of the hands must’ve mucked out the stall and left it open.
Rocker entered to see Hank’s head tied tightly to the stall. The poor animal thrashed, kicking in an effort to get loose. He didn’t have experience with horses, but knew instantly something didn’t seem right. He rushed to aid Hank, loosening the rope. As he turned, a shovel came out of nowhere, hitting him upside the head. Rocker swayed before jumpingat the person dressed in black. The knife appeared from nowhere, cutting into his side. He kicked out and punched the attacker in the face, hearing the satisfying crunch of the bone in his nose. They circled one another, waiting for the other to strike.
“Leave me alone unless you want me to hurt the women,” the stranger demanded.
Rocker held his hands out, “Stay cool. No one will harm you. You haven’t gotten into any trouble yet. We can work it out,” he said calmly.
“Throw your cell phone over here,” the man ordered as the dark stain covered his mask from the blood oozing from his nose.
Slowly, he put his hand in his pocket and took out his cell. The man watched his every move. With his attention on the device, Rocker lunged, tackling the intruder to the ground. The suspect brought his arm down on Rocker’s back with the knife’s blade entering his lung.
Rocker rolled over, fighting hard to breathe. The pain felt excruciating, and he knew he couldn’t stop the bleeding or loss of air on his own. He wheezed as his attacker stood up and wiped the blood on his pants. Grabbing Rocker by his boots, he dragged him across the floor and dumped piles of straw over the top of him. Rocker needed to get to Scarlett. He promised Ty to watch over the women. His eyes closed as darkness consumed him.
“When Ty returns,why don’t we check out the local library? You might find something you like there. You might also consider driving to Seattle and checking out theirs. They have tons of titles,” Cherise suggested.
