“I just realized that maybe you should give me your phone.” He snatched it from her before she could resist. Glancing at the screen, he swore. “What do you think you’re doing?” he demanded, pocketing her phone.
“You said you’d hoped I’d be your partner in crime,” she said evenly. “I thought I’d better find out exactly what crime we’re going to be committing. I’m guessing it isn’t marijuana. It’s fentanyl. Probably from China, brought into Canada and now headed for the States. How much?” He shook his head. “Come on, I’m curious. We can’t have gone through all of this unless there is a big shipment worth a whole lot of money. So, how will you get it back across the border? If it’s as big a deal as it says in those articles, then they will be searching every car that crosses.” She saw his jaw tighten. “But that’s where I come in, isn’t it?” She let out a bitter laugh.
“They don’t search every car—just the ones that seem suspicious,” he said without looking at her. “You just need to stay in character. You hear me, Kate? You’re my fiancée. We’re on an engagement trip because you’d never seen snow and you’ve never been to Canada. Got it?” He shot her a warning look.
She nodded and dragged her gaze away from what she saw in his blue eyes. Her heart pounded. His reaction told her that she’d guessed correctly. If just seventy pounds were worth almost thirty million, then a lot was at stake. People had been killed for much less.
One good thing, she thought. If he needed her to cross the border with him on the way back with the drugs, then he couldn’t harm her until they were safely back across. That gave her little comfort. If caught, she would be considered as guilty as him. She hadn’t paid much attention to the length of the prison sentences the men had been given in the New York bust, but she figured it would be years.
Even as she thought it, she knew that was minor compared to what would happen once Collin didn’t need her. He couldn’t let her go. He knew her well enough to know that she wouldn’t keep quiet. If it was fentanyl, then it was an extremely addictive drug that had already killed thousands in overdose deaths just last year. She wouldn’t be able to live with herself if she let him put that much poison on the street.
He’d have to kill her, but she wouldn’t go down without a fight. And if she got the chance, she would take him with her. But how was she going to stop him before he stopped her?
* * *
JON DROVE HIS old pickup north along the east side of Fort Peck, a lake with more shoreline than the state of California. He was only a few hours from the border now. He’d checked his phone periodically. Matthews was also headed north, but on the west side of the lake. That gave the man two easy options as far as border crossings: Turner or Morgan.
Turner was one of the few ports that had both the US and the Canadian custom officers sharing the same building. Would Matthews see that as a benefit? Or would he go for Port of Morgan? Both had so few vehicles through each day, would security be tighter? Or more lax? There was still Opheim, Montana, just to the northeast, but it would take more time to reach the way Matthews was going. Plus, at this time of year, the border closed early in the evening.
Matthews still had plenty of time to get across before the borders closed. These small ports were only open from about ten in the morning until about six or eight in the evening in the winter, depending on where he chose to cross. Otherwise, the border was closed overnight.
As he drove, Jon considered his own options. The way he saw it, he had only two. Try to intercept Kate in Canada before Matthews brought whatever drugs he was smuggling across the border. Or wait and take him down with the goods once he crossed back into the States. But could he leave Kate with the man that long, knowing how much danger she was in?
He was taking a chance even coming up here. If he got picked up on either side of the border and the officials ran his fingerprints...
Jon checked his phone. It was as he’d thought. Matthews was headed for the Port of Morgan, north of the town of Loring. If he got that far, he would think he was in the clear. North of there might be the perfect place for an ambush. But not knowing what firepower Collin might have would mean jeopardizing Kate’s life.
He couldn’t do that. He’d wait and see where Matthews was going once across the border. If Jon was right, Matthews’ drug supplier would be meeting him. Given the time of the day, Matthews wouldn’t be coming right back across with a payload until morning. That meant Collin and Kate would be spending the night somewhere.
If it was fentanyl like Jon suspected, then Matthews would have to have a way to get it across the border. That usually meant welded storage containers under the vehicle. In which case, the tracking devices would be found. Also, it could mean more than one day in Canada.
If Collin managed to get back across the border with the drugs, then he would be meeting someone stateside to sell them for distribution. Matthews was too clean-cut to be a dealer or even a distributor. No, Matthews was just the mule, Jon thought. Once back in the States, Collin would make the trade: money for the drugs. That was dangerous enough, but once Matthews crossed the border back into the US, he wouldn’t need Kate anymore. At that point, she would become a liability he could no longer afford.
Jon swore. He had to find out what Matthews was picking up in Canada, which meant he had to go to Canada. He had the tracking devices on Matthews’s vehicle. If he hoped to find him, it would have to be tonight before any alternations were made on the SUV Collin was driving. Which meant his best chance of freeing Kate was tonight.
His phone rang. He’d been expecting a call from Earl Ray, letting him know if Kate’s daughters had been found and were safe. But he saw it was Bessie Walker calling. The hair rose on the back of his neck as he took the call.
Even before she spoke, he knew something bad had happened.
“It’s Earl Ray,” she said, sounding as if she’d been crying. “He’s had a heart attack. They took him by ambulance to Lewistown to the hospital. I’m driving there now. He was at the café when he collapsed. He said I had to call you and tell you. Something about a favor he was doing for you? He hadn’t gotten it done yet. Does that make any sense to you?”
Earl Ray hadn’t been able to find out about Kate’s daughters. That was what had been on his mind when he’d collapsed? “How is he?”
“I don’t know.” Bessie was crying again.
“Call me when you do, and don’t worry. Earl Ray is one of the strongest men I know. If anyone can pull through this, it’s him.” He disconnected, worried about his friend. It was so like Earl Ray to be having a heart attack and worrying about someone else. Jon said a silent prayer for him and one for Kate and her daughters as well.
This put a whole new wrinkle in his plans, though. If Matthews was using one of the daughters or both as insurance to get Kate to do what he wanted, then Jon would be jeopardizing their lives if he took Kate tonight. But if he didn’t, this might be his only chance.