Caleb pondered that for a moment, looked at her, gave her a big kiss, and said, “You know what? You’re very bright.”
“No, it’s feeling like a stupid idea,” she said in alarm. “Forget I said anything.”
“No,” he said, “you’re right.” He pulled out a Titanium Corp card and wrote down an address on the back and said, “Take the truck and the dogs and drive here.”
“Where is that?”
“It’s the cantina,” he said. “Even though I know you don’t know where it is, your GPS should tell you. I’ll meet you there.” He stopped and thought about it and said, “Make it two hours from now.”
“And if you’re not there?” she asked, frowning, hating the idea of leaving him.
“I’ll contact you if I’m late.”
“And I’m not supposed to phone you, I suppose?”
“No, don’t,” he said. “I’ll have it off, and, if I don’t have it off, you’ll give away my position.”
“Shit,” she said. “I really don’t want you doing this.”
“Maybe not,” he said, “but I still think it’s a better idea now than later.”
“Yeah, but it was my idea, so I get to rescind it and to tell you to forget about it.”
“No, I was thinking about it on the way down the hill,” he said, “figuring out just what that shot would mean.”
“Well, it means he’s got to deal with a body now,” she said, “but I don’t know what that’ll entail.”
“Exactly,” he stopped and said, “and I need to go.”
She gave in, knowing there was no point arguing further. “Go,” she said, “but please don’t get yourself shot.”
He gave her a big fat grin and said, “I won’t.” And he turned and disappeared.
She stayed and watched him for a long moment, and then, her feet lagging, she headed toward the truck. She had to do as he’d said. And generally he was a man for the job, but, in this case, she hated the fact that he’d actually seen a guy killed. It just made it all that much worse. It also put the dogs in that kennel in more danger, although she didn’t know why because surely the dogs were a separate issue.
But, if that asshole was in that kind of a mood where he was pissy and didn’t like something, it was pretty easy to pull the trigger a second and then a third time. And maybe, just maybe, Caleb had an instinct in this that she didn’t. With the dogs dragging their feet now, not liking that Caleb had taken off without them, she urged them along with her, as she made her way back to the empty house.
Even just looking at that house made her cringe. And was the dog stolen from there? Maybe gunshots were so commonplace down the hill that the dog broke his leash and ran to help, due to the dog’s extensive military training. Maybe it had been taken from here or had run away, and it ended up in a way worse place. And maybe the dog was a completely separate issue.
She rushed the last few yards to Caleb’s truck, making sure all the dogs were inside, then hopped in, and turned it on. Laysha headed out of the driveway, putting as many miles between her and that damn house as she could. It was just plain creepy to think that somebody had been murdered and left in there. Then she thought about somebody being murdered ten minutes ago, and she grew quiet and sad. “It’s an ugly world out there,” she said to Fancy, who was cuddled up against her. Fancy whimpered a little bit, and Laysha reached a hand down and just cuddled her. “We’ll be okay,” she said.
She wasn’t sure how this nightmare had gotten into her life and what she was supposed to do about it. But it was what it was, and right now all she was concerned about was getting Caleb back to her. Safe and sound and in one piece preferably. As she drove, she followed her GPS’s instructions, trying to find the cantina, realizing just how big the countryside was out here and how few crossroads there were.
If she could have traveled as the crow flew, it would have been fine. She didn’t know if her navigation skills were up to something like that. Besides, Caleb had said two hours, and, at this rate, she would need all of that time. She hated even thinking about waiting on the other end for him to never come. And yet the thought just wouldn’t leave her alone.
She drove until she found the cantina again. Passing it once, she went to a small shop, walked inside, and picked up a few necessities that she liked to keep on hand. Besides, they were selling coffee too. She pulled out some money, paid for the groceries and the coffee, and hopped back into the truck. Then she drove in the direction of the cantina and pulled into its large parking lot with a bunch of vehicles. She waited for Caleb’s two-hour time frame to expire. The last thing she wanted to do was go to the cantina and sit there and look suspicious.
Even on this property, the adjacent parking lot, she looked suspicious because she hadn’t gotten out of her vehicle. She drove forward and around town, knowing that anybody watching her would keep track of these movements too. Also not a good deal. By the time the two hours were up, she was parked outside the cantina again. She wondered if she should go in but did not want to. A single white woman wasn’t happily welcomed here. And, if they were, it was for all the wrong reasons.
That thought had her remembering what else this bad guy might have been into. Women. And that was scary too. She also remembered how Caleb found his tipster dead in the Dumpster in the back alley of this property, and that was nothing she wanted to get close to either. She worried about his instructions. She knew she was here to pick him up, but what if he didn’t show? What if he didn’t call to reschedule the time for pickup? Was she supposed to leave—without him—at the end of the two hours?
“What the hell?” she muttered out loud. “What have you got me into?” she murmured.
Caleb snuck along the backside of the hill, coming down behind the ridge, until he could walk all the way around there. He stopped in the cover of a copse and studied the dogs. He was close to one of the big dog shelters, and all the dogs were chained up. Most of them looked to be pissed or angry, some of them quite likely well past rehabilitation. But he didn’t know that for sure. He studied the one separated off to the side, who was lying down, looking forlorn, possibly even injured. He called out softly, “Beowulf?”
The dog’s ears twitched, and slowly he lifted his head and looked behind him. And Caleb gave a very light whistle that he would have used in the military. The dog immediately struggled to his feet, and he realized the dog had one injured back leg. From what, Caleb didn’t know. But that’s why Beowulf was separated from the pack like that. The other dogs would have attacked him and taken him out.
Only the strongest would survive, particularly if they had been trained that way.
The dog limped as close as he could and then stopped because he was chained up. Swearing at the chain, Caleb considered what it would take to break it. He studied the way it was attached to the metal post and wondered if he could pull the metal post out quietly. Asshole and his crew weren’t taking any chances in what they considered their property, and somehow that dog, as far as this asshole was concerned, was his.
Caleb looked around the area, still in hiding, figuring out the layout here, when a guard approached the dogs.