Black Sheep (33 page)

Bernie fell back against the pillows, looking paler. He met Caitlyn’s gaze, and she
gave him a sorrowful nod. The two fathers in his life—Jimmy and Poppy—were killers.
Lena didn’t realize it yet, the role Bernie’s family played in all this. He turned
his face away, buried it in the pillow.

“I think Jimmy and Poppy were in it together. Poppy provided the muscle, Jimmy provided
the land and relationship with the council. All they needed was to get rid of the
one opposing voice on the council and it was smooth sailing. After all, who else would
the council appoint as their managing director but the man who put the deal together
for them and who was getting them all that money?”

“But why bring my dad into it? Why him?”

Caitlyn continued. The best thing for everyone was to get the truth out. “Tommy opposed
the reinstating the freedmen into the tribe, but he was a reasonable man, he did due
diligence and researched your father’s claim. While he was searching the archives
for the old tribal rolls to see if the Hale family was listed, he must have come across
an original copy of the Freedmen Pact.”

“One that wasn’t altered.”

“Right. Since Tommy could read the original Cherokee, he realized that although it
supported his contention that the freedmen not be allowed full tribal membership,
it also meant that the land the casino was going to be built on actually belonged
to your family and the descendants of the other freedmen families. It’s still reservation
land, but the freedmen descendants would control whether or not the casino was built
there—and at what price. He must have told Eli and given him the pact for safekeeping.”

“So where is it?”

Caitlyn pointed to the book. “Eli gave us everything we needed to find it. In his
drawings. That fireplace with the carved medallion? It’s not in your house. It’s in
mine.”

CHAPTER FORTY

Goose had never met a woman trucker before. But the one who’d almost run him over
then stopped and helped him, letting him use her WiFi to Skype Wilson, reminded him
of his aunt Tilley. All blushes and flirts but really she was a tough cookie who liked
living on her own and wasn’t about to take up with any man for long.

With her help, he’d made it back to the cabin before any of the cops. Not just the
trucker’s help—good old-fashioned fear had pushed him up the trail and through the
woods back to Bernie’s. Fear of what he’d find … and fear of what he wouldn’t find.

The curtains were all drawn in Bernie’s cabin but the lights were on. That meant at
least someone had to be left alive. Especially as the Reapers still congregated out
front, although there were twice as many as before. What the hell were they waiting
for?

A rumbling sound punctuated by a spotlight came from the sky and he had his answer.
Couldn’t be SWAT; they’d never risk a helicopter, not with the firepower in the hands
of the Reapers. A few of the Reapers did raise rifles and pistols at the helicopter,
then quickly lowered them as the door to the cabin opened and Caitlyn appeared, holding
a gun to Poppy’s head. Poppy’s mouth was duct-taped, his wrists bound behind his back,
and he looked angry enough to spark a fire with just a look.

The Reapers swiveled their attention from Poppy to the helicopter and back. Then the
helicopter landed and a man with a camera on his shoulder hopped out, followed by
a petite blonde in a skirt and a velvet coat that fluttered in the rotor wash.

“Smile, boys, you’re all on candid camera,” Caitlyn yelled.

*   *   *

Caitlyn let the camera crew catch a few shots of her as well as all the faces in the
crowd. Amazing how fast the guns vanished with a camera in the midst. She almost regretted
calling the staties for assistance—a pretty blonde with a microphone might be all
she needed to clear the Reapers off the mountain.

Paul beckoned to her from inside the room. Shit. No time to celebrate. “Is Bernie
worse?” she asked.

“I need to talk to you,” he said. “In private.”

She closed the door and hauled Poppy back to the closet, shut him inside.

“What is it?”

“He’s back,” Paul whispered, jerking his head toward the bathroom in the rear of the
cabin. “Your loser friend.”

Goose? Her heart gave a kick of joy. “Watch the doors,” she told Paul and Lena. “Don’t
let anyone in.”

“You’re not going in there alone,” Paul protested.

“I don’t have time to explain everything. Just do as I say.” She hated the wounded
expression that crossed his face, but it was the truth. She didn’t have time. And
she couldn’t expose Goose’s cover. “Please, Paul.”

He stomped off to the front door. She ran to the bathroom, gave a knock, and burst
inside.

Goose grinned up at her from the toilet seat. “Hey there, Red. Will you still talk
to me now that you’re a TV star?”

“Best way I could see to keep the Reapers from rushing the cabin.” She shrugged. “Not
exactly SOP, but when you’re outgunned and outmanned, you’ve got to make do.”

“You up for one more acting job?”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “What do you have in mind?”

“I need you to take me hostage,” he whispered earnestly. “Throw me in with Poppy.”

“Why? To protect your cover?” The hungry gleam in his eye gave her her answer. “That’s
why you came back? You really believe there’s a chance in hell Caruso is going through
with it? If the man has any brains, he’ll bury the money and come back for it next
century.”

“I’ve met the man—hubris is his middle name. Hell, he probably thinks he has less
chance of getting caught now with this all going down, drawing attention away from
him. He can blame it all on Poppy and the Mountain Men going rogue. He knows there’s
no way Poppy can talk, not without earning the same fate as Eli Hale once he’s behind
bars. All I need is for you to throw me in there with Poppy. The cops have nothing
on me, they’ll have to let me go. Caruso will think I was trying to protect Poppy
as club enforcer, and it will buy me time to get to the money.”

“You’re insane. You really think Poppy and Caruso will buy it?”

“Why not?” He stood and stared down at her. “Tell me you’d do anything less if it
was your op.”

She sighed and sank onto the edge of the tub, rolling her shoulders. “Maybe Paul was
right, I should quit.”

“Why? Because you didn’t recognize that Poppy was a step ahead of us? Hell, neither
did I and I’ve practically lived with the man for the past year.”

She shook her head. He didn’t get it—how could he? “People have died because of me.
Good people.”

He sat beside her, his hand over hers, and waited.

“Six months ago. I was following a lead. No official case, but I knew there was something.
I was right. Found a psychopath getting ready to slaughter an entire town.”

“Good instincts. Told ya.”

“The local officer working with me got killed.” She blinked hard, talking to the floor
because it was just too damn hard to find the energy to raise her head and face him.
“He died saving my life.”

“Was it your fault he died?”

“No.”

“And how many lives did you go on to save?”

She shrugged. That was beside the point. “I couldn’t save him.”

“Are you God? Do you think you can save everyone?” His voice had an edge even as his
fingers gripped hers. “Because if you do, tell me now. That’s not the kind of partner
I want to have watching my back.”

“You’d rather have a screwup?”

“I’d rather have someone who knows we all screw up and who will do their damnedest
to prevent it from happening. I’d rather have someone who thinks with their head instead
of their gun and who sees the possibilities, isn’t afraid to make the tough choices.
Someone like you.” He stood, pulling her back to her feet. “Face it, Caitlyn. We’re
both screwups in our own way. But you gotta admit, we make a helluva team.”

She didn’t try to stop her smile. “What can I say, Carver. When you’re right, you’re
right.” She dropped his hand, took a step toward the door. He surprised her by not
following. “You ready to do this or what?”

“Just so you know, the money isn’t the only reason I came back.” He grabbed her by
the elbows, pulling her tight to his chest, and kissed her so deeply her vision went
wobbly before she remembered to breathe again. Then he released her. “Okay. Now I’m
ready.”

CHAPTER FORTY-ONE

Caitlyn yanked open the door to the closet. Poppy scowled up at her, a death wish
in his eyes, making her thankful for the duct tape over his mouth.

“I have a present for you.” She reached behind her and yanked Goose off his feet,
hurling him into the room so hard he bounced off one wall before landing on the floor.
Like Poppy, his arms were bound behind him and his mouth duct-taped. “You didn’t really
think I’m stupid enough to let this doofus get the drop on me, did you, Poppy?”

She slammed the door shut again, leaving them in the dark. The less said, the more
Goose would have to play with later. If there was a later.

The satellite phone chimed. She grabbed it. “We’re in position,” the state police
SWAT leader told her. “Just need a diversion out front to focus their attention away
from the perimeter.”

“Give me two minutes.” She turned to Paul and Lena. “Get ready to move. Lena, it will
be safer for Smokey if she’s back in the bathroom.” Last thing they needed was a chimp
going nuts in a crowd of Reapers who were itching for a fight.

She called the news crew, made sure they were in position and out of harm’s way. Paul
and Lena helped Bernie to his feet. His eyes rolled back for a moment, but then he
steadied himself. Together they shuffled toward the front door.

“You guys ready?”

They nodded. Caitlyn shoved the phone into her pocket, keeping an open line to the
SWAT leader, grabbed her gun, and went to get Poppy.

He didn’t fight her as she hauled him to the front door. She gave Paul a nod and he
opened it, keeping himself, Lena, and Bernie behind it, waiting for her signal. The
Reapers out front were getting agitated again, like a bunch of sheep who couldn’t
remember where home was.

“You want me to shoot him now?” she yelled. That got their attention real fast. She
pushed Poppy in front of her onto the porch, holding her gun to his head. “No? Well,
here’s how it’s going to work.”

Most of them had holstered their weapons, but a few still carried long guns. “First,”
she told them, “everyone put their weapons on the ground. Then you’re going to let
the civilians walk over to that news crew. Then you get Poppy.”

They hesitated, staring up at Poppy for his approval. She shoved the Glock into his
ear, hard. “Tell them to do it.”

He cut a glare her way but nodded his head. The Reapers scowled at her, letting her
know exactly how this was going to play out once they had Poppy clear and safe, but
they lowered their weapons and cleared a path to the helicopter.

“Good. Everyone, don’t move.” She marched Poppy to the side of the porch, giving Paul
and Lena room to come out, Bernie between them, his arms over their shoulders as they
helped him down the steps. They’d just taken two steps into the crowd when a figure
appeared between the Reapers and the helicopter. He raised his pistol, aiming at Bernie.

Weasel. Caitlyn raised her own weapon. Poppy used the movement to plow into her, knocking
her gun to the floor. She scrambled away from him just as a shot rang out. Lena threw
herself in front of Bernie, who was down.

The crowd went wild, Reapers reaching for their weapons, two of them jumping onto
the porch to get to Poppy just as Goose barreled out of the door, knocking Poppy back
down again, covering his leader with his body.

Nice touch, Caitlyn thought as she pulled her ASP from her pocket and with a couple
of well-placed swings made her way to Lena and Bernie. She couldn’t see Paul. Lena
stood her ground, despite the fact that Weasel was advancing on her, along with several
Reapers who had lined up on either side of him.

Help came from an unexpected direction. A blur of motion caught Caitlyn’s eye as the
leopard flew over the heads of the Reapers and landed beside Bernie. The cat stood
over Bernie, in between Caitlyn and Lena, as if protecting him. A few of the Reapers
ran, straight into the arms of the SWAT team advancing from behind them, but Weasel
and his men rushed forward, screaming obscenities.

Caitlyn swung her ASP, trying to buy the few seconds it would take for the SWAT guys
to get in and clear the crowd. With the wind, they wouldn’t be using tear gas, but
given that Weasel was the only one who seemed interested in using a gun, they probably
wouldn’t have to. The rest of the Reapers were in a blood frenzy, using their bare
fists to take on the leopard.

The leopard did more than hold its own; of course it had more than fists to fight
with. The Reapers quickly fell back, leaving Weasel holding his pistol, aiming right
at Lena. Before Caitlyn could push the girl out of his way, the leopard leapt through
the air.

Weasel fired. The leopard pulled back its paw and batted his head so hard Weasel dropped
to the ground. The leopard pounced, striking him one more time. Then there was a tiny
pouf of noise. A dart whizzed through the air and into the leopard’s flank.

The leopard looked over its shoulder as if disappointed in the humans who interfered
with its dinner, then dropped.

Caitlyn turned her attention to the civilians first. “Are you okay?” she asked Lena,
checking her for wounds.

“I’m fine. He didn’t hit me.” Lena flung herself beside Bernie. “Bernie, Bernie?”

“We need a medic over here,” Caitlyn called to the SWAT team. One of them separated
himself from where they had the Reapers lying prone on the ground, searching and restraining
them, and joined them.

“No sign of a gunshot wound,” he said. “But he’s burning up. In shock.”

Paul appeared, his face covered with dirt and grass. “I’m a doctor. He needs a hospital.
Can we use that helicopter?”