Page 31 of Daybreak

“A bowl of cereal and this brew will be enough,” he said as he filled his cup and then a bowl of cereal and carried them to the table. “I’m going to eat while you tell me what’s wrong, and don’t tell me nothing. I raised you. I can see it in your eyes.”

Gunner took a deep breath. “I took a leave of absence because here I’m safe, and in Dallas, there is contract out on my life, and a fifty-thousand-dollar bonus for the delivery.”

Jacob felt the blood draining from his face. “My God.” His hands were shaking as he leaned back and took a breath. “Talk to me.”

So, while Jacob ate, Gunner went through the entire scenario again, just as he had with Asher during the drive home.

“Good lord. Are you worried they’ll come for you here?” Jacob asked.

“No, and I wouldn’t be here if I thought for a second that I was putting anyone in danger. I just needed to lay low until the word gets out to all concerned parties that the bounty was called off as promised.”

Jacob frowned. “Can you trust this Dixon to keep his word?”

“Hell no, but he knows without doubt that after the target I put on his back, he’s the one who’s going to be blamed if anything happens to me. He doesn’t want to get sideways with the Feds again, and he also knows the State Attorney General’s office is aware of the hit that was put out on me, too.”

A slight smile slid sideways on Jacob’s face. “You were my wild child, and you grew up to be an indomitable, take-no-prisoners man of honor. I’m proud of you, Gunner, but it’s good you left Dallas until this all blows over.”

Gunner leaned back in his chair. “I have a question.”

“Ask it,” Jacob said.

“How far south does your property line go?”

“I own twenty acres. There’s about an acre’s width to the east of the Weed, then the rest of it runs straight south. Why do you ask?”

“Because I’m thinking, since I won all that money, I might want to build a house and move back to Crossroads. Being in law enforcement has lost its shine for me. I think it hit me when the old man was killed in that hit and run, and then the bounty on my head, and a dirty cop in my division, and I no longer have a desire to go out on a call with people I do not trust. It’s too easy to get shot in the back and blame some mythical crook that’s how it happened.”

Jacob picked up his cereal bowl, put it in the sink, and refilled his coffee before he sat back down.

“I’ll gladly deed you land to build a house, Gunner, but will you be happy in this little town, after all those years in Dallas?”

“I have a job in Dallas, but I don’t have roots there. I’ll figure something out to keep me busy, but in the meantime, I’ll be your bouncer for free.”

Jacob grinned. “In the evenings after Pearl is home, if it gets too loud in the bar, she comes stomping up from the house with an air horn, blasts it once, and she returns to the house without saying a word.”

Gunner grinned. “Are you serious?”

“As a heart attack,” Jacob said.

“What do they say? Does it make them mad?” Gunner asked.

“Nobody gets mad at Miss Pearl. She’s the reigning queen of Crossroads—her and the Yellow Rose. They just laugh and throw her kisses, but they do tone it down.”

Gunner shook his head. “That’s priceless. Lord, I am missing out on all the good stuff. This just makes me want to come home even more.”

Jacob stood. “Well, you’re already here, so that’s the first step. The next one will be going back to officially part company with your job. In the meantime, I need to get to work. Want to help me carry up some kegs to store under the bar? I have two that are going to need changing out before the day is over. I wouldn’t mind having them at the ready.”

“Absolutely. Just show me which ones you need,” Gunner said and followed his dad into the bar.

* * *

Asher received the list of names Gunner sent him and went straight to his boss, Robert Ivory, to tell him what happened. To say the attorney general was upset that an actual hit on a law officer was circulating was putting it mildly. And to be told that Burgess Dixon was the number one suspect of who’d done it and why made it worse.

“This is appalling,” Ivory said. “You have my permission to do background checks on all of the names on that list. If there’s a dirty cop in that division, I want to know about it. Also, share everything you learn with the FBI, because they will be the ones who prosecute. Don’t share your information with the Dallas PD or your brother. Understand?”

“Understood, and thank you,” Asher said and walked out.

The moment he was gone, Robert Ivory was on the phone with the FBI. The Feds were still reeling from losing four of their special agents and a material witness to their case. They knew Dixon was responsible, but they had yet to find a shred of evidence to prove it.