“There was a journal in there, too,’ I said as I tossed him the book.
He barely caught it in his hands as he stood back to his feet. “What’s this?”
“Open it up. I’m sure you’ll recognize it.”
And when he did, his eyes damn near bulged out of his fucking face. “Holy shit, these are transactions. This was in that box, too?”
I nodded mindlessly. “Yep.”
“Where was this lockbox originally? I’m assuming you haven’t always had it.”
“I honestly don’t know, and I honestly don’t care. But, I think your business is done here, Sheriff.”
“Naomi?” Ranger asked.
I walked past everyone and stood in the doorway that was supposed to be hidden, but had been advertised to the entire world.
“You know how to get out, I’m sure,” I said with as kind of a tone as I could.
Sheriff Barnes looked at me with apprehension in his features. “I still have to find Gordon. I know he’s still here.”
“I don’t care where he is, but you’ve got all the proof you need to bury the man for good in the palm of your hands. Get your guys on it. Start your own search. Tear this place apart, for all I care.”
“Naomi,” Ranger warned.
I shot him a look that told him to shut his fucking face before I turned my attention back to the sheriff. “Whenever you’re ready.”
“I have to come after them if anything happens to Gordon. You know that, right?”
I simply shrugged. “Good luck with everything. I hope you find him. He deserves everything that’s about to come his way, as far as I’m concerned.”
The man snickered. “Don’t I know it.”
“Quick question, though.”
Sheriff Barnes eyed me carefully. “You mean, outside of where Gordon currently is?”
I bypassed his question. “Lakes. Mountains. Scenery. They spoke in so much code. Do you have any idea what it means?”
The sheriff snaked his gaze down my crooked figure. “How do you know that?”
“Does that matter?”
His stare snapped back up to mine before he relented. “Tommy Gun is known for turning cops against their own in order to get to their evidence lockers. It’s how he establishes his dominance in an area. His M.O., so to speak. Then, he convinces those same cops to steal and pillage for things that can be sold on the street: guns, cars that have been readied for sale after cases are closed, drugs, cold hard cash confiscated at crime scenes. Things like that.”
“So, that’s probably what Griggs was having Gordon do?”
“Most likely. Though, it’ll take time to break down what their arrangement actually was. But, I’d be shocked if it was anything other than the standard stuff. Griggs is nothing, if not predictable.”
I looked up at Ranger and did my best to stomach the bile rising up the back of my throat. “I’ll be in the room if you need me.”
With a nod of his head, he turned toward the sheriff, and his damned body was so massive that it completely blocked my movements. I passed by the gun that had been knocked from Gordon’s hand, and I peered over my shoulder to look at the men behind me. They were whispering to themselves, no doubt striking up some sort of a deal. And while I almost couldn’t stomach it, the moment gave me enough time to snatch that gun up and take it back into the bedroom with me. Where I quickly tucked it away behind my back. In the belt loops of my pants.
Just like I’d seen my men do so many times before when they thought I wasn’t looking.
“Ah, there we go,” I groaned as I sat back down in the bay window.
I stared at the wall and pictured the ocean waves undulating out toward the horizon. I closed my eyes, imagining the white caps that softly crested against the waters before battering against the edge of the cliffside. Maybe one of these days, I’d make my way down to one of the many private beaches that scoured the cliff’s edge along the entire state. Maybe one of these days, I’d start enjoying myself instead of simply surviving.
