“Yeah. And that was my SUV you plowed into. But you know what? I’m looking past that, and right now, we want to hear what you have to say.”
“Look, man, I didn’t do it. But the other stuff? They made me.” Colter’s voice shook.
“Do what? And who made you?” Dani rested a hand on the stair rail.
“I had to do something before they took me out like Donner.”
Ice ran through Michael’s veins. “Donner? What do you know about him?”
“He worked for them too. But I don’t know what other cops were on their side. I wanted to come clean. I swear.”
He was all over the place. They needed to make sense of all these threads. Dani was probably the better person to get him to stay calm and keep talking. Michael gently nudged her arm.
“What did you want to come clean about, Colter?” she asked him.
“I helped move stuff for them. I didn’t mind the deliveries so much. The pay was good. The guys, we all looked out for each other. But when Booker got drunk and told me what he did to Donner, I didn’t believe him, man.” Colter slid his trembling fingers through his greasy hair. “I didn’t want to be a part of that.”
“Booker Wilson killed Gary Donner?” Michael asked.
“Yeah. And he said it wasn’t even the first cop he offed. That’s when I knew I had to get out.”
“Why did Booker kill him?”
Colter shrugged. “That was the job. You followed orders from the boss. No questions asked. Moving stuff? No big deal. But I didn’t sign up to hurt anyone.”
“Then why did you run us off the road?” Dani kept the accusation out of her question, but Michael was glad she’d asked.
“That wasn’t me. When I saw you at the plant and told Angelo you were my ex, he freaked out. Said you were with a cop and must be poking around. He forced me into my own truck and took off after you. I yelled at him to stop, but once your SUV went over the side of the road, I knew it wasn’t good. So I hid. But they have people everywhere. I want out, and I can’t get out.” Colter’s head dropped into his hands.
“That’s why you called for me?” Dani asked.
Colter lifted his head again. “I got scared when Booker told me you showed up at the Snake Pit. I tried hiding as long as I could, but I ran out of options.” His shifty gaze landed on Dani. “I know I was never good enough for you, Dani, but I had to warn you. You don’t want to get mixed up with these people. And you were the one person who never lied to me. If anyone could help me, I figured it would be you.”
“What are these people doing? Running drugs?” Michael needed specifics.
“Everything. They move product, guns, people, money. They have people that make problems disappear. The last job I did was rough up some lady at her store and take what was in the till.”
“You beat up a convenience store owner over on Washington, by any chance?”
“No, but I think Booker did. He enjoys hurting people.”
Michael needed to find Booker Wilson ASAP, but first, they needed to finish this.
“Colt, the best thing you can do now is turn yourself in,” Dani told him.
What Colter knew could put a lot of criminals behind bars, make a real dent in the citywide corruption.
Michael kept his voice soft. “You said it yourself. You want out. Let’s get you out. Keep you safe.”
Colter huffed. “Safe? I’m not safe anywhere in Renegade.”
“We’ll ask the prosecutor to sign off on protection for you. We have US Marshals right here in Renegade, so there’s a good chance to get something in place. But you’ll have to testify.”
Colter’s gaze bounced between them. “You really think I got a shot?”
“You willing to come clean?” If he agreed to testify, they could take their time and get the details straight. Michael held out his hand. “Give me the detonator now. Let’s take off that vest and find a safe place for you.”
Colter considered the device for a long moment. “Anything has to be better than this.” He dropped the detonator into Michael’s hand. “I’ll do my time. Please, just get me out of Colorado though.”
