He said, “I don’t care to hear your excuses. I care that I’ve been sitting here boiling in the sun waiting on you guys. I don’t mind it when we’re RVing in the mountains or by a lake and that’s the plan for the day”—he waved his arms around—“but this place is a damn dump. The power keeps cutting out. The only reason we’re in Vegas is to gamble, and I’m stuck here waiting on you two.”
The female stood up, saying, “I’m Liz. Don’t mind him. He’d bitch at you if you’d agreed to meet him in the casino and paid for his blackjack. He lost all our gambling money yesterday. We aren’t going to the casinos anymore.”
She was just as sturdy looking as he was, with her hair pulled back into abun and a stocky frame, but her face held a beauty that was fading but still fighting, like a pageant winner from years ago.
He grumbled something, then said, “True enough. We planned for three days here, but one will do. I’ve had enough of Vegas.”
He stuck out his hand and I took it, saying, “Thanks for meeting us. I’m Pike Logan, and this is Jennifer Cahill. As we said, we’re with the Department of Homeland Security and we just wanted to follow up with that event in Utah you were involved in.”
He said, “Yeah, I was wondering why Homeland Security was checking on that. Damn government is getting so big they got agencies on top of agencies looking at shit. It’s no wonder nothing gets done.”
Liz said, “Stop it, Mosby. It’s the least we could do, since we couldn’t save the man’s life.”
He turned to the door, saying, “Come on in. I’m pretty sure the only reason you’re out here is because you found out we were in Vegas. Get the government to pay for your trip, then spend three days here on the taxpayer’s dime playing craps.”
He opened the door and I followed him inside, saying, “Believe it or not, I can’t stand gambling. I’ll be leaving out of here as fast as you.”
For the first time, he smiled, saying, “I’m just busting your balls. You two don’t look like the typical government leeches.”
He waved us to a couch, him and Liz taking a couple of chairs, and we went through what had happened. Most of it was in the police report, but a few things stuck out. One, I learned that Liz was a registered ER nurse and had tried to keep Marley alive, which made me feel a little better, as I was thinking he’d just gasped out his dying breath with two helpless passersby standing by idly watching.
Two, he’d told the sheriff’s deputies who’d arrived on the scene about the phone call to the Taskforce.
I said, “Who answered when you called?”
“I don’t know. Somebody just asked a couple of questions and hung up, thanking me for contacting them. They didn’t act like it was any big deal,like they got calls all the time from people talking about burning vehicles and guys getting shot. Weird, if you ask me.”
He looked at me closely, and I could tell he’d made a connection with the “weird” call and it being weird that “Homeland Security” had shown up at his RV in Vegas.
Nothing I could do about that. I said, “What did the sheriff say about the call? Did they pursue that as a lead?”
“Don’t know. That’s on them.”
If they had, someone at the Taskforce had shut it down. I just hoped that stuck.
I said, “Walk me through what you saw in the vehicle. Was there anybody else in it? Any clothing or luggage?”
“I couldn’t get to the vehicle while we were helping the man. It was burning like a funeral pyre. When they put it out, there was nobody else inside, but there was a stack of burned luggage. A duffel bag and other stuff. Nothing in it was salvageable, though. It was roasted to a crisp.”
I knew the Ghost had some travel stuff for the transfer, but it looked like he’d left it behind. Meaning he’d been forced to leave in a hurry. But why? Once the sheriff was out of commission, he’d certainly have time to get his bags—beforethey torched the truck.
Either way, it was something for Knuckles to check out. Maybe there was something useful left in the charred remains of the luggage.
I felt my phone vibrate and looked at the screen, thinking,Speak of the devil.
I stood up, saying, “Sorry. I have to take this. Jennifer, walk them backwards to their last stop, starting with the arrival of the police.”
Chapter 16
I left the RV, answering the phone, “Hey, I was just thinking about you. I’ve got a mission for you out there. Did you get to look at the burned luggage from Marley’s vehicle?”
“Yeah, I did. It’s nothing but charred clothes and a burned-up notebook. Nothing there, but that’s not why I’m calling. I found the mole.”
That was surprising and could only mean one thing. “No shit? Did the sheriff’s department have a leak we didn’t know about? Is that the insider threat?”
He paused, then said, “No. It’s the son.”
“What?” I didn’t think I’d heard him correctly.
