Truth Avenged (Green Division Series Book 1) (21 page)

“
What do you mean you can’t say?”

“
I can’t tell you.”

“
Why the hell can’t you tell me?”

“
Because we were ordered not to.”

“
Chance.”  He said lowly. 

“
I didn’t say that.”

“
Where are they?”

“
I can’t tell you.”

“
I will come down there and kick your ass myself Kevin.  You better fucking tell me.”

“
You’re on a recorded line, Tuck.”

“
I don’t care.”

Kevin considered his position.

“Aren’t you under investigation because of your relationship with her?  Maybe you should take our advice.”

“
Fucking tell me Kevin!”  He yelled loudly enough the dispatcher working with Kevin heard it from her station.

“
Helter Ridge.” 

Tuck hung up the phone and put his truck in drive.  He was an hour away from Helter Ridge, but
would make record time.

Thirty five minute later.

Tuck jumped out of the truck pushing his way through the sea of emergency responders and other wardens.

“
Tuck—”  Mitch saw him charging.

“
What happened?  Is she okay?  Where is she?”  Tuck looked around the scene frantically.

“
You can’t be here.  If Kerr sees you—”

“
I don’t give a shit.”  He tried to side step Mitch.  “Where is she?  Did they kill her?”  His voice had turned from rage to fear.

“
She’s fine.  She’s in Ryan’s truck.  She’s okay, but you need to leave.”

Tuck walked through Mitch.

“Tuck, stop—” He threw his hands up in defeat.  It was a lost cause.  That heart on his sleeve problem reared its ugly head again.

“
Johnston.”  A firm hand pressed against his chest and he halted.  “You can’t be here.” Kerr pointed him in the opposite direction.

“
Is she okay?”

“
She’s not injured any more than she was before.”

Tuck put his hands on his hips and looked at the ground.  He shouldn
’t care.  He shouldn’t be this upset, but he couldn’t help it.

“
I’ll go, Mike.  But tell me what happened here.”

Kerr crossed his arms but gave in to Tuck
’s request giving him the abridged version.

“
Roy Barnes was our shooter.  She came up here again in search of whatever the hell she’s in search of and Barnes followed her.  Thomas here followed Barnes.  Barnes was going to kill her, had the gun to her head, and Thomas took him out.  Thomas is a poacher, but apparently he’s not a cold blooded murderer, lucky for her.”

Tuck looked at her through the glass of Ryan
’s Truck.  Her eyes met his, but she looked away instantly.  His stomach churned and he felt sick.  The feeling that he’d nearly lost her made him feel that way.  But she wasn’t his to lose.  She was Paul’s. 

“
This is the weirdest case I’ve seen in my twenty years.”  Kerr admitted.  He looked at Tuck and caught his eyes focused on her.  “It’s time you go.”

Kerr put his hand on Tuck
’s shoulder and guided him away.

*****

The shock of the event hadn’t set in.  All of the responders were perplexed by the complexity of it all.  Jason and Roy were best friends and conspirators, but when the choice came down to his friend killing her in cold blood, or taking his friends life, he’d made a surprising choice.  At the scene of the shooting, Jason unloaded his gun and left it where Roy lay.  Chance had mixed feelings about Jason, but wasn’t scared of him after he did what he’d done.  He didn’t say a word following and merely walked away into the woods.  Chance called 911 immediately when Jason had walked away a different route through the woods, then she took off toward her Jeep.  With all of the events that had transpired she had become somewhat numb.             

The heat in Ryan
’s truck was switched to high, but she couldn’t get warm.  Roy’s blood was smeared on the side of her neck and shoulder from where he’d collapsed on top of her.  And then Tuck’s arrival, pushing his way around like he was something important.  A State Trooper was sitting in the driver’s seat talking to her, but she didn’t hear the words.  Time moved in slow motion and she watched Tuck walk back to his truck, Kerr’s arm around his shoulder.  Then he left.  He was good at doing that.

“
Miss Phillips.” 

She came around.

“Yes.”  She said to the baby blue uniform sitting next to her.

“
What happened?”

“
Where do you want me to start?”  She exhaled. “The plane crash, previous shooting, or today?”

*****

Chance worked with Sergeant Kerr showing him the evidence of the plane crash she’d found.  He was spellbound as were the group of other wardens who halted their assistance into the investigation and manhunt.  They didn’t have time to go back to the scene of the plane crash, it was too late in the day; night had already set by the time Chance returned to the bumpy road.  Every law officer within a hundred miles was searching the woods for Jason, but she only felt gratitude to him.  

Now it was over
.  Truly over.  The plane crash--solved.  Her attempted killer—dead.  She wasn’t worried about Jason.  If he wanted to harm her, he would have.  He saved her.  Now life could go back to normal.  Just like it was before.  The thought didn’t excite her as it should.

She
’d swayed the wardens to keep the plane on the DL.  She’d break the story with the Tranton Times. With all the effort she’d put in, she was going to have a cover story.  This was the piece of a lifetime.

Chapter Fifteen

“Over here.”  Chance pointed to a pile of debris.  The scrap metal she’d dug up the previous day.  She picked up a piece of metal and flipped it over showing Kerr the name Squirrel painted across it with the caricature of the same animal.

“
Your pilot?”

“
That’s him.”  She ran her hand across it wiping the dirt from the paint.

“
There’s more over there.”  She looked at her GPS and pointed.  “No more than a hundred yards.”

One of the wardens
who stood beside Kerr walked over to investigate. 

“
You heard a noise that led you off the trail?”

Chance didn
’t like where Kerr was going.  She wouldn’t expose the ghost story, but had yet come up with any logical explanation and wasn’t going to lie.

“
This is almost seven miles off the trail.  You weren’t out here doing a piece on this hiking trail.”  He looked around.  “You came here looking for the plane, didn’t you?”

“
No.”

“
That war vet felt guilty and told you before you came out here last month, tell the truth.”

“
I told you what happened.”  She took a few steps away.  “Some things in life can’t be explained, Sergeant.”

“
You’re sticking to your story.”

“
It would be easier to tell you a lie.”  She smiled.  “You’d believe a lie over what I’ve told you to be the truth.”

“
Touché.”  Kerr let it go.  “Two government reps are on their way up here.  It will be interesting to hear their spin on this.”

“
The proof is here.  They can’t deny the wreckage.”

Ryan held out Squirrel
’s compass.  “I believe this belongs to you.”

“
Thanks.”  She picked it up and looked at it fondly.   He’d left it behind.

They recovered, documented, and brought
out the remains of the plane. 

*****

“Thanks for keeping me in the loop.”  Paul looked as though she’d mortally wounded him.

“
I tried.” 

“
They called a press conference for 8 a.m.  If you want this in the print edition, you need to move.”

“
It’ll be done.  I work better under pressure.”

*****

Chance finished writing the article before the military would release their damage control. Her story would be scooped up by national papers, along with the top news networks within hours.

She didn
’t take time to bask in her success; she hadn’t slept in nearly 48 hours and passed out on the couch in the break room after submitting the article.  Paul covered her with his suit jacket and shut the lights off. 

“
Sunshine.”  Paul roused Chance after a peaceful hour nap.

She opened her eyes with difficulty.

“GMA and Today want interviews tomorrow morning.”

“
You can talk to them.”  She rolled over.

“
C’mon.”  He jostled her side.  “I’ll bring you home.”  It was 1 a.m. and the newspaper office was dark. 

Paul walked her inside.

“I’ll be back at 5:30 to pick you up.”

She dropped onto the bed and pul
led the blanket over her head grumbling.

“
That wasn’t English.”  Paul laughed.

“
I…hate…you.” 

“
I’ll be back in the morning with bells on.”  Paul kissed her cheek and let himself out.

Chapter Sixteen

Chance and Sergeant Kerr appeared together on the Today Show, but she wasn’t doing the media circuit circus.  The paper tried to push her to do so, but she had the final word.  This was hers.  The Warden Service could do as they pleased on their end.  The attention it garnered was far more than she expected.  She expected attention—some attention—not worldwide attention. 

The day fo
llowing the Today Show interview, the phones rang off the hook at the Tranton Times.  Lonnie and Abe’s distant relatives called and refused to believe the truth.  They were angered, hurt, and in denial.  They preferred to believe Squirrel had taken the lives of their family members than to know the truth, which was they’d attempted to flee service to their country during a time of war.  The biggest shock though was the frail looking woman who appeared at the office.

“
There is someone at the front desk looking to speak to you.”  One of the office interns peeked into Chance’s door.

“
Who is it?”

“
Don’t know.”  The useless intern walked away.

Chance took her time finishing her task and walked to the lobby.

“Can I help you?”

T
he woman rose, a young woman assisted her to her feet.  Observing her difficulty, Chance came around the reception area to meet her.

“
My name is Samantha Cromwell, John White’s daughter.”  Samantha was in her seventies and was a sweet looking grandmother type.  Her white hair was in perfect silver curls, she had rosy red cheeks, and was slightly stooped over.  She dressed elegantly and had an air of royalty.  Much like the queen.

“
Hi.”  Chance said shocked.

“
This is my granddaughter Jennifer.”  Jennifer was in her thirties, a stocky woman, and dressed casually.

“
Nice to meet you both.”

“
Sorry I didn’t call first, but I wanted to talk to you in person.”

“
Of course.”  Chance walked them down the hallway to her office.  They spent the rest of the afternoon discussing the events and the memories she had of her father.  Unlike the other families involved, Samantha wasn’t angry, or in denial.  She was glad to know the truth, even if it still wasn’t an honorable one.  At the end of the day there were some tears shed, hugs given, and phone numbers exchanged.

“
Goodnight.”  Chance waved from the reception area as the two walked out of the building.

Samantha turned around.  “
Chance.”

“
Yes.” 

“
Thank you.”  She smiled.

“
You’re very welcome.” 

Jen
nifer assisted her to her car in the light snow and Chance went back to her desk.

Chapter Seventeen

“Can you come into the office this afternoon?”  Kerr asked. 

“
I can stop by this evening.”  The case was pretty much wrapped up, what could Kerr possibly want to discuss with her now?  Maybe another joint press interview.  Or they had a lead on Jason.

“
I’ll be here all afternoon, come when you can.”

“
Is there something going on with the case?  Did you find Jason?”

“
No.  He’s as much a ghost as that plane.  We should wait to discuss it until you get here.”

“
Ah, okay.  I’ll stop once I finish up this piece.”

Th
e phone hung up.  The week following her story going national had been a whirlwind.  She’d tried to keep herself together through it all, but it was a difficult task.  Between her family, friends, and “family” she’d never heard of, her phone had not stopped ringing and she didn’t have an idle moment.  Her body was beginning to rebel and she planned to take the weekend to do absolutely nothing.

Two hours later Kerr let her in and took
her behind closed doors with two other men dressed in suits.  She instantly felt uneasy and knew this didn’t concern the plane.

Kerr introduced her to the two men,
detectives with the department doing an investigation on Tuck’s inappropriate relationship with her.  Great.  It wasn’t bad enough how things had spiraled downward between them, now it was public and he could get fired.  She answered their questions but didn’t go into specifics.  They weren’t shy with their questions.  Every detail picked apart. 

“
Thank you for your cooperation, we understand it is an uncomfortable subject.”

“
Yeah.  A little.”  Chance’s face had been rose red during the entire interview.

“
You’ve done nothing wrong, don’t take this meeting to imply that.  But, don’t try to contact Warden Johnston until we close this investigation.  He’s been advised the same on his end.”

“
I won’t.”  She gave a fake smile.

“
Good enough.”  One detective said, picked up his notebook and shook her hand.