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“There will be agents in the area, but I refuse to have someone inside our home tripping under our feet all the time. I was adamant about that.”
“I’ll need to start on Leanne tonight, so it could be late before I get home. Be careful.”
I gave Lauren a cool look and then stepped outside into the fresh air. It wasn’t until I stood there a moment that I realized I didn’t have my Suburban.
CHAPTER NINE
Agent Greer was speaking to another agent and I stood on the steps, watching them for a couple of minutes until they looked my direction. Greer had a box of what I assumed were case files in his hand.
“Problem, Doctor Graves?”
“I’ve got to head to the hospital and pick up a body, but I left my Suburban at home. Do me a favor and tell Jack I borrowed his cruiser.”
“Noneed. I can have Agent Donaldson take you to your vehicle.”
“So that’s Agent Donaldson?” I said, glancing at the man behind the wheel of one of the multitude of black SUVs. He looked uncomfortable and a little pissed off.
“It’s good to know not everyone can recognize him.” Greer sighed and shook his head in disgust.
“Jack’s very good at what he does. And what he did.”
“I know that better than you think, Doctor Graves. His file is impressive and his intelligence is top level. If he played by the rules a little better I’d be trying to recruit him for the FBI.”
“I mean to say that I know that Jack is strong and smart and has the kind of intuition that can be unnerving,especially when he can read people so well. But this time is different.”
He looked at me with a steady gaze and he finally nodded his head in agreement. “Yeah, it’s different this time.”
“I’m scared for him, though he won’t appreciate me saying so.”
“We’re going to do our best to keep him safe. I’ve got men out all over the county and I’ve got my team right here digging into the files so we can have a better picture of who’s doing this.”
“Don’t feed me departmental bullshit, Agent Greer. It took me about two seconds to realize that you have every intention of using Jack to draw out who’s doing this. You’ve read Jack’s files and probably have them all memorized, but you don’t knowhim. He’s one of the best men I know. Your files won’t say that. And he’ll put himself on the line because it’s the right thing to do and because he believes his men need justice. He’s carrying the weight of guilt on his shoulders right now, that there’s something important he missed six years ago that could’ve prevented all this.”
“All I’m asking is that you remember the man and not the file when you use him as the sacrificial lamb.” I took a step closer so Greer had to readjust the box he held. We were almost eye to eye and that was good enough. “If anything happens to him I’ll hunt you down. You know my background. My family. I could make it happen, and I can see in your eyes you know I’m telling the truth.”
“Threatening a Federal agent isn’t a good way to start our working relationship, Doctor Graves. All it will do is get you arrested.”
“If anything happens to Jack, it’ll be worth it. We’re getting married in a couple of weeks.” I moved aside and headed toward Agent Donaldson and the SUV. “It’s your job to make sure he makes it to the wedding alive. Thanks for the ride.”
***
It didn’t take long to retrieve Leanne Mosely’s body once Agent Donaldson dropped me back at the house to get the Suburban.
All of the familyhad left except for Leanne’s husband, Mark, by the time I arrived. And to be honest, I was thankful to not have to see the grief on her children’s faces. It was hard enough looking at Mark, his face sunken and aged, and the devastation in his eyes unbearable to witness.
Death had always been a part of my life. It was always there, lurking in the corners of my mind, even when I was entrenched in life. But that didn’t mean I didn’t question it—didn’t wonderand speculate about what happened after.
I know better than anyone the cycle of life. What happens to flesh after we draw our last breath. How the organs and tissues break down, rendering us back to dust. Death is powerful. No one is immune. And it’s the living who must make their peace with it, because the dead don’t give a shit.
I made an appointment to meet with Mark in the morning, promising to take good care of his wife. I told him to go home and be with his children, and I told him how sorry I was. But I’m not sure he was really listening. He just stared as we loaded her up and I drove away.
By the time I got back to the funeral home it was well after dark and the businesses in town were long shut down. The porch lights were on; so was the light near the kitchen door where I brought bodies in and out. Jack’s cruiser was gone, as well as all but one of the black SUVs.
I saw Agent Donaldson sitting across the street. He still looked pissed, so I had to figure he was being punished by given the duty of watching me. I tried not to worry about Jack and if he made it home okay. I also tried not to worry about whether Lauren had given him a ride and if they’d talked more about their past in my absence. Oddly enough, that was harder of the two to block out of my head at the moment.
I went over to Agent Donaldson and he rolled down the window.
“Is everyone gone?”I asked.
