A thoughtful look crossed Donner’s face, then he grinned. “Lawson, huh?” he remarked. “Not a common name. Especially around these parts. You think he won’t be able to find you? You’re a walking dead man, Lawson.”
Lawson glared back at him, trying not to let the fear that gripped his chest take hold.
Normally, he’d let this kind of threat bounce off, but now? Now, he had something to lose. All he could think of was Sarah and all she’d been through recently. Then his thoughts quickly shifted to his sister and the others at the lodge. The thought of Granger and his men coming after any of them had a chill racing down Lawson’s spine. He had to admit to himself it spooked the hell out of him and he couldn’t even try to deny it.
They stepped out of the interrogation room, Lawson shutting the door behind them, and the sheriff grimaced and rubbed a hand down his face.
“I’m sorry for dropping your name back there. Rookie mistake,” he apologized. “I’m tired. I wasn’t thinking.”
“It’s okay,” Lawson replied, though his gut was churning. “They would have found out who I was one way or another, anyway.”
Sheriff Willis lowered his voice and looked over his shoulder, like someone might be eavesdropping on their conversation. “These guys have me rattled,” he admitted. “I’ve had some rough types in here before, don’t get me wrong, but this…the way they’re coming at us, it’s just different. Like they know they’ve got the devil on their side, and they’ll do anything they can to turn him loose on us.”
“I get it. Don’t let them get to you,” Lawson warned him. “That’s what they want. Until they give us reason to think otherwise, they’re all bark.”
The sheriff nodded, but there was still a wariness to his expression, as though he didn’t entirely believe Lawson’s claim.Lawson had to hope it was just because the older man was exhausted, not because he was actually letting these guys get to him.
“Where’s Adams?” he asked, steeling himself for round two. His rap sheet hadn’t been as impressive as Donner’s, but he still had plenty on it to keep him locked up.
The sheriff nodded to the cells lining the end of the corridor.
“Down there,” he replied. Lawson gritted his teeth. He silently swore to himself that no matter what this guy threw at him, he would be able to deal with it. These weren’t the worst of the people they’d have to handle if they were going to take down Granger, and Lawson wasn’t going to let these thugs throw him off his game.
The moment they reached Jim Adams’s cell, the man was on his feet, pressed against the bars.
“Where’s Paul?” he demanded.
“None of your business,” Lawson replied. Adams gripped the bars, his hands holding on so tightly his knuckles looked nearly white.
“Tell me what you’ve done with him,” he continued, practically spitting out the words.
“You don’t trust him?” Lawson asked. “You think he might have spilled something? Or sold you out for a plea deal?”
Unlike his buddy, Adams didn’t even seem to consider that as a possibility for a moment. He snorted with amusement.
“You think that he would sell out Granger like that? For a speck on the map like you?” he demanded, jabbing his finger through the bars at Lawson. Lawson took a step back, not wanting this creep to lay a hand on him.
“You know what he’s going to do with you the moment he finds out about this?” he continued, his voice rising with each word out of his mouth. “He’s going to wipe you off the face of the earth. There’s going to be nothing of you left! Do you understandthat? There’s nothing you can do to stop it! He’s coming for you right now!”
Adams kept babbling, barely pausing to take a breath. Spittle was flying from his mouth as he spoke, and the cell bars rattled as he shook them. He was getting more agitated and animated over the words he threw at them. The churning in Lawson’s gut intensified as he watched the man become more unhinged.
Lawson was starting to get a clearer picture of the hold Granger had on his men. Apparently, it bordered on the extreme, and Lawson in no way wanted to know what the man had done to his crew to have this Adams go off the rails like this. If all of the men in Granger’s operation held this kind of loyalty, Lawson and his team were definitely going to be in for the fight of their lives when it came time to face him and his gang of thugs.
“And you’re going to end up dead. You and everyone you care about.” Adams spat at them, then fell back on the bench and started cackling gleefully.
Lawson’s heart dropped.Sarah. Once again, she was the first person he thought of when Adams said that. He would never forgive himself if something bad happened to her as a result of them going after Granger and his crew. He could still remember the terror he’d seen in her eyes from the fire and its aftermath, when Bailey and Aaron’s past caught up with them at the lodge all those months ago. The thought of her being dragged into more danger because of her connection to Lawson made him feel sick.
Adams seemed to realize he’d landed a blow that actually hurt. His eyes drilled in to Lawson’s, total certainty on his face, as though there wasn’t a doubt in his mind that he was telling the truth.
“Tick tock. It’s only a matter of time now,” Adams said, tapping a watch that wasn’t there.
Lawson gritted his teeth. He had told the sheriff not to let these guys get to him, but Lawson wasn’t sure he could take his own advice.
Chapter Seventeen
Sarah lifted the decaf coffee to her lips and took a sip, enjoying the last of the late afternoon sunshine as the day began to shift into evening.
She had been back to the lodge, dropped off the groceries, checked in with Hannah and Xavier, and returned a few emails before she made the hour-long drive back into town to pick up Lawson from the police station. She sent him a text when she arrived, telling him to meet her at the corner café across the street when he was done. He hadn’t responded so she had no idea how long he would be, but that was just fine by her. She was happy to relax, sip on her coffee and nibble at the carrot cake she had ordered. It wasn’t often she got a chance to come to town and people-watch like this, but there was something really fun about observing the townsfolk going about their business.
