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“Sure do, it’s sitting right here on the counter and it stinks. It’s from the local plant right here in Black Rock Falls.”
“Okay, place it in an evidence bag and seal it. Wolfe will come by and collect it.” She disconnected and explained the situation to Wolfe.
“It’s probably an animal tooth with dirt in it but I’ll swing by on the way back to the office and take a look.” Wolfe rubbed his chin and glanced back at the junkyard. “To put your mind at rest, I’ll come back after dark and douse the crusher with luminol in case I’ve missed anything but I’ve swabbed every inch of it and it comes up clean.” He glanced at his watch. “I’ll have time to run tests on everything else we’ve found this afternoon. If I find anything from here or if the tooth is human, I’ll call you.”
“Okay, thanks. We’ll head back to the office.” She turned her attention to Kane. “Lock up the place. I don’t want any complaints if Burns walks.” Trying to clear her head of the conflicting views from her deputies and put everything in order, she leaned on Kane’s truck to wait and surveyed the area.
Tucked away on the edge of town, the old red-brick building had once been a gold exchange for the miners but although gold-mining was still profitable in her county, the local mines yielded little now and the risk wasn’t worth the effort. She cast her gaze along the street and apart from the men walking around behind her the only noise came from the cracking of frozen branches. It was quiet in Black Rock Falls in winter but not a void of white. The abundant wildlife in the area surprised her and even the alpine birds seemed to adapt to the cold weather.
The cellphone in her pocket chimed and she glanced at the caller ID and frowned. It was the Blackwater Sheriff’s Department calling her. The new sheriff’s name had slipped her mind, although she had seen a memo sitting on her desk from Maggie about him. “Sheriff Alton.”
“This is Sheriff Buzz Stuart out of Blackwater.” Stuart cleared his throat. “I’ll get straight to the point. I have two of your people here, Douglas Michael Paul and Olivia Kate Palmer. They say a man kidnapped them and held them prisoner up in the industrial estate next to the highway not a half-hour from Black Rock Falls. I assume these are the people you mentioned in the BOLO and the media releases?”
Stunned, Jenna waved Kane toward her then put the cellphone on speaker. “Yes, those are two of the missing persons. What shape are they in?”
“Mr. Paul is in need of immediate medical assistance due to a wound on his side and Miss Palmer has a head injury. Mr. Paul won’t leave here and is hell-bent on speaking to you. I’ve called Black Rock Falls Hospital and they’re sending paramedics. They should be here within the hour.”
Heart racing, Jenna exchanged a look with
Kane and smiled. “Put him on.”
They listened in amazed silence as Doug told his story. Disgusted and alarmed, Jenna stared at Kane, watching the emotions move over his face. She straightened. “You say this man’s name is Jim? Can you describe him?”
“Yeah, solid, about six feet, dark hair, white. He’ll have a cut on his chest too. Olivia stabbed him with a scalpel. I figure it would have needed stitches.” Doug’s anger radiated down the line. “He’s strong as a bull and the nurse called him ‘the boss’. I figure he owns the place. The hospital room is under the fertilizer plant and the entrance is right beside a big machine, like a shredder of some kind. We tied up the nurse and left him on one of the beds.”
Anxiety crammed Jenna’s belly. “What about Sky?”
“I don’t know.” Doug took a ragged breath. “I figure she’s dead. From what we heard, Jim has been running an organ-harvesting racket for some time. I have a bad feeling they already took one of my kidneys.”
Jenna caught Kane’s horrified expression before he walked away, pulling out his cellphone. She frowned and went back to the conversation. “Okay, we’ll head out there now. Go with the paramedics to the ER and I’ll have a deputy waiting to meet you. We’ll come and speak to you at the hospital later. I’ll make sure you are in a secure ward, so no one can get to you.” She disconnected and called Deputy Walters and explained what she needed, then stared at Kane’s pale expression. “What’s up?”
“Get in the car.” Kane threw himself behind the wheel and started the engine, then took off at speed. “So this Jim they mentioned could be Wyatt Sawyer, the owner of the fertilizer plant. Earlier, I heard Rowley call in and say he was heading up there to speak to him.” He gave her a grim look. “I just called him and he’s not answering his cell. We need to warn him about Sawyer.”
“I sent him to see Doc Weaver about Sky’s sweater.” Jenna swallowed hard. “What’s he doing at Sawyer’s fertilizer plant?”
“I heard him tell Maggie that Weaver had gotten the sweater from her boyfriend, Wyatt Sawyer. Rowley went to speak to him.” Kane’s face was grim. “Buckle up.”
Heart thumping, Jenna snapped on the seatbelt as the truck fishtailed down the road and drifted around the corner. Kane darted down backstreets to avoid town, and shot out like a bullet onto the highway. The engine roared as he engaged lights and sirens and accelerated. He had turned into a military machine again, his face a mask of determination. It was as if Deputy Kane had left the building and a black ops agent had taken his place. He drove like a man possessed, and not afraid of dying.
As they left the town behind, the snow-covered grasslands flashed by in a white blur. Breathless with anxiety, she reached for the radio. “He might be out of range. I’ll try to reach him on the radio, then call Maggie and get an update. He would have called in when he arrived at the fertilizer plant.”
After frequent calls to Rowley’s cruiser yielded no response, Jenna radioed Maggie with their destination and requested backup. When Wolfe came on the two-way, she glanced at Kane. “Yes, Wolfe, what did you find? Over.”
“It’s a human tooth. We’re on our way, over.”
“I’ve got a real bad feeling about this.” Kane’s fists gripped the steering wheel as he pushed his truck faster over the icy roads. “With a human tooth in the fertilizer, we know how he disposed of Sky’s body and her vehicle. There’s a nurse involved and to harvest organs he must have a doctor on his team as well.”
Unable to imagine the horror Sky must have endured, Jenna tried to keep her mind set on the case. “My money is on Doctor Weaver.”
“Oh, it’s her for sure. Her boyfriend is Wyatt Sawyer and he gets off on seeing his victim’s sweater on his girlfriend. He is a smooth talker and was too smart to use his cousin’s yard to dispose of Sky’s vehicle. I’m wondering how long this has been going on.” Kane snorted in disgust. “SOB bashes and then drugs his victims to keep them quiet, then sells their body parts. I figured I’d seen some of the worst killers in my time but this one beats all.” He flicked her a cold stare. “We need to get there before he starts working on Rowley.” He slammed his foot on the gas.
Fifty-Nine
Dazed but still on his feet, Rowley ducked the next blow and the metal shovel clanged on the door of his cruiser, the sound echoing against the red brick walls. He shook his head, not able to comprehend the situation. Why was Sawyer trying to kill him? He went for his weapon but Sawyer had him pinned down in the truck’s open door and the next blow sent screaming agony up his arm as the shovel slammed into his elbow. Fingers numb, his Glock dropped to the ground and spun away into a snowdrift. His cellphone vibrated in his pocket. Help was a call away but he had not one chance in hell of answering the call. When Sawyer raised the shovel again, Rowley lifted his arms to protect his head. I have to get away from my truck and into the open before he finishes me off.
After ducking the next blow, he took a step forward but Sawyer pushed him in the chest with the shovel and laughed at him.
“You’re mine now.” Sawyer’s eyes flashed menace. “You don’t have a chance against me and I’m so gonna love killin’ you.”
