Seconds to Live (Scarlet Falls) (20 page)

“I have an old contact that is very in tune with the local criminal scene,” Mac said.

“And?”

Mac shrugged. “I could take pictures of your suspects and see if anyone in his gang recognizes them. Plus, Freddie knows things.”

“A gang? That doesn’t sound safe.”

He lifted a palm. “Safe is relative. He already knows I’m in town.”

“These are those dangerous associates you talked about before.” Stella poked a finger in his chest. “Don’t think I’m letting you go there alone.”

“I can’t take Grant. He’s too important to the kids. They already lost one father. I won’t put him at risk.”

Discomfort stirred in Stella. “You aren’t any more expendable than your brother.”

“Maybe.”

Did he really think he was less valuable than his siblings?

She propped a hand on her hip. Under her irritation, fear slithered. She felt more for this man than she’d planned, knowing he was likely not going to stick around Scarlet Falls. Mac spent more time in South America than the US. If—when—he left, she would be heartbroken. But she couldn’t bear losing him to a drug dealer’s bullet. He’d gotten lucky in Brazil. How long could his good fortune hold out? “There’s no
maybe
about it. Your family needs you.”

I need you.

The words in her head stayed there. She wouldn’t guilt him into staying. It had to be his decision, but she wanted him to choose Scarlet Falls.

To choose her.

He stepped back, out of reach. “I’m used to working alone.”

“Get unused to it.” Stella headed for the car. “I’m going with you.”

Chapter Twenty-Seven

“Like hell.” Mac grabbed Stella’s shoulder and spun her around. He would not put her at risk. “Freddie will smell cop on you in a second.”

Her chin went up and her eyes blazed. “I’m dressed down.”

He skimmed her jeans, T-shirt, and running shoes. Her black hair fell in waves past her shoulders. She didn’t need the pistol, badge, or handcuffs. She wore cop like a uniform. “It’s not the clothes.” It was her eyes. They were flat and sharp, not missing a thing. “It’s too dangerous.”

“You’re kidding, right.” She folded her arms over her chest.

“No.” Mac swallowed. “I don’t want anything to happen to you.”

“I appreciate the chivalry, but it’s not necessary.”

“This has nothing to do with chivalry.” He closed the gap between them. “I’ve been attracted to you since the first second we met, but what I’m feeling for you now is more than I’d expected. This wasn’t what I planned.” The deep connection he felt with Stella both excited and scared him.

He kissed her hard on the mouth, and the stunned expression on her face said she hadn’t expected what was developing between them either.

She blinked, surprise shifting to stubbornness. “I feel the same way, which is why I won’t let you go alone.”

He put a hand to the back of his skull where tension throbbed.

She cupped his cheek. “This isn’t a one-way street. You don’t get to care about other people and not let them feel the same about you.”

“But—”

She pressed her fingertips to his lips. “Either you let me go with you, or I’ll call your brother. Putting yourself into an unnecessarily dangerous position isn’t fair to me or to Grant or Hannah.
You
matter.”

“Grant isn’t getting dragged into this.” Mac wouldn’t allow any danger to touch his family.

“I wasn’t suggesting Grant take my place. But he’d be able to talk you out of whatever you’re planning.” Her eyes locked on his. “I’m going with you.”

Mac had a choice. He could skip the whole visit with Freddie. He and Stella could continue to follow leads through official channels. But if he had the chance to prevent another girl from being hurt, how could he not try? Once he learned Rabbit had bolted, Freddie would pay Mac a visit. Next time maybe he wouldn’t spot the tail. Maybe he wouldn’t be prepared. The thought of Freddie’s gang showing up at his cabin—or worse, at Grant’s house—gave him the shakes. A confrontation was inevitable, and Mac would rather be the initiator.

He could lie to Stella and go alone anyway. But that felt wrong in a thousand ways.

“You’ll stay in the car.” He glanced at her cruiser. “Not that car. We’ll have to rent one.”

“We can use my Honda.”

“All right.” Mac raised his hand to his face and covered her fingers. “But you have to promise to do what I say.”

The cocky lift to her brow shouldn’t have turned him on, but then everything about this woman cranked his testosterone into overdrive.

“Unless you’re in danger,” she said.

“That’s not an answer.”

“No, it isn’t.”

“OK.” But Mac wasn’t happy with her refusal to commit.

“Where is this friend of yours?”

“He used to operate out of the rail yard, but that location got too popular with the homeless. He’s under the power lines by Hidden Lake.”

“I’ve never been there.” Stella opened her phone and pulled up a map of the area.

Mac manipulated the image and pointed at a patch of green. “It’s here.”

“Where?” Stella squinted at the display.

“It’s called Hidden Lake for a reason.”

Stella opened her car door. “Let’s change cars and get out there. I want to be back by lunchtime.”

In the driveway, they parked her police vehicle, and Stella locked her purse and badge in the trunk. She transferred her AR-15 to the Accord. “Just in case.”

“Don’t let anyone see that.” Mac wasn’t planning for Freddie to ever set eyes on her. “It will only cause trouble. There’s no shooting your way out of that gang. You’ll be ridiculously outgunned, and they have enough ammunition to turn your car into a colander.” Tension clamped down on the nape of his neck. “Maybe we should forget this whole plan.”

Stella tucked her long hair behind her ear. “I need some evidence to tie Noah Spivak to the murders, or he’s going to get bail. I’m not entirely convinced he killed Missy and Dena, but I don’t want him on the street.”

“All right.” He held out a hand. “Why don’t you let me drive? I know where we’re going.”

She handed him the keys, and Mac got behind the wheel. He shifted to grab the seat belt. Something poked him in the leg. He reached under and found one of Stella’s hairpins. “Do you shed these things?”

“Sorry. They’re always falling out.”

She reached for it, but he closed his fist around it. “I’ll hold on to it. For good luck.” He tucked it into his pocket.

“You’re weird.”

“No doubt.” But the pin reminded him of their night together, and what Stella looked like when she let her hair down.

A half hour later they bounced along a dirt road. Mac hadn’t been out to Hidden Lake in years, but he remembered the basic terrain. He stopped the car next to a fire tower, nosing the vehicle behind a patch of shrubs for concealment. Fifty feet ahead, a metal gate blocked the road. An electrified fence prevented him from walking around. “You can wait here. There’s a clearing around the bend. I’ll walk into camp.”

Overhead, the sky teemed with heavy clouds, and the wind whipped with an approaching storm.

Stella scanned the area. Her lips pursed. “I can’t see anything, and cell coverage is weak out here. How will I know if you need me?”

“If I’m not back in thirty minutes, call for backup.” He kissed her and got out of the vehicle. “It’ll be fine. I know Freddie.”

But Mac didn’t feel as confident as his words sounded as he slipped through the gate and set off down the dirt road. The gate was probably rigged with an alarm that went off in the camp. They would know someone was coming.

Usually being in the woods calmed him. But electricity hummed in the air, and adrenaline buzzed in Mac’s veins. He’d left Stella at the fire tower because he wasn’t sure how Freddie was going to receive him. The last time they’d connected, Freddie had owed him. But that debt had been paid. Now they were even.

He paused at the edge of the clearing. This early in the morning, most of Freddie’s men would be sleeping. Their clients tended to be night people. But Mac had no doubt guards were on duty. His shoulder blades itched. Eyes were on him. No question.

A sturdy cabin and several sheds occupied the clearing. Behind the buildings, the approaching storm whipped the lake’s surface into tiny whitecaps. Three mammoth SUVs were lined up in front of the cabin.

All looked suspiciously like the one that had followed him.

Mac stepped out of the shadows.

“Stop.” A man in cargo pants and a muscle tank looked comfortable with the assault rifle pointed at Mac’s chest.

He raised his hands. “I’m not armed. I know Freddie.”

The man jerked the barrel toward the cabin. “We’ll see about that.”

A second man stepped out from behind a huge oak tree. He gave Mac a cursory pat down. Mac knew better than to bring a handgun into the camp, but he’d hidden the Colonel’s KA-BAR in his boot. It wasn’t as accessible as he’d like, but they’d have to look hard to find it.

A half dozen men emerged from the cabin and sheds to congregate on the pine needle carpet. Freddie’s son, Rafe, stood a head taller than the others. Despite the heat, he was dressed in slim, European-cut jeans and a tailored black shirt. His blond hair was tied off his chiseled face.

Mac caught his gaze. Once, Rafe had been his closest friend. “I see you’re still dressing like a fancy-pants.”

“And I see you still need a new wardrobe.” Rafe took two steps and gave Mac a shoulder-slapping hug. Rafe’s face went serious. “What brings you here, Mac?”

“I came to ask you a favor.”

Looping an arm over Mac’s shoulders, Rafe steered him away from the other men. He lowered his voice. “What do you need?”

Mac pointed to his pocket, then slowly withdrew the two pictures. “Do either of these men look familiar?”

Rafe barely looked at Adam Miller’s photo. “Never seen him before.” He touched Noah Spivak’s mug shot with the tip of his finger. “This one is a crazy motherfucker. He’s with that white supremacy militia group, WSA.”

“WSA?”

“White Survival Alliance. They’re preparing for an invasion or some shit.”

“Do you know where they are?”

“They spread themselves out over a bunch of locations. Dad probably knows more.”

As if on cue, the front door opened, and Freddie stepped out onto the porch. At six feet six, he bore an uncanny resemblance to Hulk Hogan, from his long blond and gray hair to the matching beard. He crossed the distance between them with rapid, anger-driven strides. Stopping in front of Mac, he glared. “What are you doing here?”

“I was just talking to Rafe,” Mac said. His body went tense as aggression radiated from the big man.

Freddie’s weathered face turned grim. “You shouldn’t have come here, Mac.”

“That’s not the welcome I expected.” Sweat broke out at the base of Mac’s spine. Something was wrong.

“I don’t owe you anything.” Freddie leaned over and spat tobacco juice into the dirt.

“What’s wrong, Freddie?” Mac cut to the chase.

Freddie drew a knife from the sheath at his waist. “Rumor has it that you’re a cop.”

“Really?” Mac held his gaze and prayed the river of sweat sliding down his back would be attributed to the heat.

“You were spotted riding along with a woman cop.” Freddie’s eyes dared him to deny it. “Where is she?”

“I came alone.” Mac would die before he led an angry Freddie to Stella.

“What’s the deal with the cop?” Freddie asked.

Mac considered a lie, but Freddie’s bullshit meter was prime. “Two women were abducted, tortured, and killed. I want to find the bastard who did it.”

Freddie tapped the flat side of his knife on his palm. “Wasn’t anyone here.”

“I didn’t think that for a minute.” Mac nodded. “But you know what goes on in this town. This killer is using heroin as his murder weapon.”

“I don’t work with cops. You’re awfully cozy with them lately.” Freddie’s thumb slid along the edge of his blade. “You’re right. I do know what goes on in this town.”

“Dad, this is Mac.” Rafe stepped forward. “He’s not a cop.”

Mac swallowed, his throat arid.

But Freddie didn’t take his gaze off Mac. “Do we look like fucking police informants?” Freddie gestured with the knife. “Why are you really here? Are you setting us up?”

Rafe put a hand on his father’s shoulder. “Mac wouldn’t do that.”

Rafe’s faith in him stirred up old feelings. They’d been close. They’d been arrested together, and Lee had gotten them off without charges. Mac had once saved Rafe’s life. But Freddie would make no exceptions. None. Sure, Mac had run with Rafe in his youth, but Freddie was a hard man. Anyone who crossed him ended up at the bottom of a lake tied to cinderblocks.

That’s how he kept a tight rein on the violent men he led.

“People change, Rafe,” Freddie said.

They did indeed.

Did Freddie know that Rabbit was gone? If he didn’t, Mac certainly wasn’t going to bring up the subject.

“I’m sorry I bothered you.” Mac eased backward.

Freddie flipped the knife into a reverse grip. Mac used his peripheral vision to track the other men in the group. He didn’t recognize any of them. But working for Freddie warranted hazardous duty pay. Membership turned over frequently.

The knife rose into a pre-strike position in front of Mac’s chest.

How long had he been gone?

If he didn’t turn up, Stella would go for help. But what did it matter? By the time she returned with backup, Mac would be dead.

There was no way he was going to talk his way out of this. Nor could he possibly fight off a dozen well-trained, heavily armed men. His heart stammered. A few years ago, the prospect of dying wouldn’t have bothered him that much, but now everything was different. Grant, Hannah, the kids . . .

Stella.

A red dot appeared in the center of Freddie’s chest. He froze. “Looks like you didn’t come alone after all.”

All eyes tracked the laser scope’s trajectory. Something glinted at the top of the fire tower.

Stella?

“You’ll be the first man down,” Mac said to Freddie. Smart girl. She’d picked out the leader from a hundred yards away.

Freddie lowered his knife and took a step back. The red dot followed him. “I suggest you leave town.” Or Freddie’s men would find him, and they would kill him. “You have family here. I’d hate for anything to happen to them.”

The threat to Mac’s family turned fear to fury. This wasn’t over. He backed out of the clearing. Thunder cracked, and lightning streaked across the sky as the storm broke. Once he was out of sight, he turned and sprinted for the car. The downpour soaked his clothes in seconds. Stella was climbing down the tower, her rifle slung across her back. She slipped on a wet rung, recovered, and finished her descent. He jumped into the car and started the engine. As soon as she slid into the passenger seat, he sped away as fast as the rutted lane would allow.

“That was quick thinking.” He steered the sedan around a deep hole in the road. “I’m impressed.” Stella was awesome.

“I added the laser scope after the last shooting, and I told you I wasn’t letting you go in there alone.” She brushed water from her eyes and pulled out her phone. Her hair was plastered to her head. “No signal.”

“You know what?” He couldn’t control the crazy grin that spread across his face. “My father would have loved you.”

Rain poured onto the windshield as Mac gave her a brief summary of his conversation with Freddie. The tires slid on a patch of mud, and Mac slowed the car.

“What will you do?” Stella asked. “Leave town?” Even though Mac hadn’t intended to stay, he certainly wasn’t leaving Scarlet Falls with his family on Freddie’s radar. Having that knife in his face had given him a crash course in what was important in his life. Grant, Hannah, the kids . . .