“Come on, Juniper,” Maya said. “I think we need to get back to our vehicle and take a drive.”
CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
Maya and Juniper followed Lucas as they headed back to the crash site. She had gloved up and was carrying the shotgun for evidence. Lucas had the lady in cuffs. At one point, she stopped and threw her head back at Lucas. He was standing far enough back that she didn’t hit him, but it was Juniper’s growl followed by a bark that made the lady stop fighting and continue hiking.
“You better behave,” Maya said. “My dog would love to catch you again.”
“Is that a threat?” the lady shot back.
“If it needs to be,” Maya said.
Lucas told the lady to keep walking, and she complied. Maya decided she and Juniper better follow Lucas and the lady back up the hill to the patrol vehicle. The steep incline could provide a good excuse for the lady to slip and try to get away. If she did that, Juniper would be quick to respond—much faster than Lucas or Maya could.
The climb up was slow and tedious, especially for the woman in handcuffs. She’d also refused to give her name and had no identification, but Maya figured once they had her fingerprints and ran her through the system, she’d probably pop up pretty quick.
Lucas went over to Deputy Wilson. “Take her to jail, book her, and tell them that she needs to be in a higher-security section. Got it?”
“Got it,” the young deputy answered.
“And Wilson?” Lucas said.
“Yeah?”
“Be careful. If you notice anyone coming up behind you quickly or doing anything strange, radio it in right away, okay? I’m going to have one of my guys follow you, but still, keep your eyes open.”
“Yes, sir,” Deputy Wilson said as Lucas put the lady in the back of his patrol car and tightened the handcuffs another notch.
Maya watched the cruiser drive away and then Lucas came over to her, this time not breaking eye contact. “Do you have any idea where Josh was going?” he asked.
“I do.”
“Care to share?”
“Only if you swear to me that you think he’s been framed,” Maya said.
Lucas laughed. “Okay, Tree Cop. I believe that there’s something fishy going on here. I still can’t rule him out, but those two people didn’t just show up out of nowhere to have a vacation here in Colorado. Plus, one of my guys said they found a rental vehicle parked down the road. It has a big dent in the front, probably from hitting the van. I agree with you that there’s something going on.”
“There is,” Maya said. “And even though I have a conflict of interest, you’re going to need me. And Juniper.”
Juniper gave a quick bark in agreement.
“Fair enough,” Lucas said. “Tell me your thoughts and what you know.”
“I’ll tell you some, but I don’t trust being out here where someone could hear us. And you need to swear you won’t arrest him again.”
“Really?”
“Really,” Maya said.
“I can’t swear I won’t arrest him. While I believe there’s something more to the story, the fact is, he’s still my number one suspect for Amber’s murder.”
“Then I’m sorry, I’m not telling you anything.”
“What would it take for you to keep me in the loop?”
“I want to know why we have Chicago gang members here and if they’re connected to Senator Bradford or his two security guards in any way.”
“I can find out more about his security guards, although it might take a while to make a connection between them and the gangs. That could be hard to find. Same with connecting the gangs to Bradford, but I promise to look if you promise to keep me in the loop about Josh.”
