Mountainway Chant

by M J Calabrese

  Eagle reached back and tossed his gun out into the desert. “You know the sand will screw up the firing mechanism.”

  The driver stepped closer making a wide arc around Eagle. The young man didn’t appear to have a gun, but that was the least of his worries. The other one with the handgun moved to stand by his friend.

  “You won’t care what happens to that gun, Detective Woodard. You’re not going to need it anymore.”

  Eagle laughed. “So you’ve decided to kill me. Okay, fine. I just want to say goodbye to my boy.”

  The two young men exchanged a look. They seemed nervous and the one holding the gun was the worst. “He’s not here, but we can take you to him. Get in the car.”

  Eagle frowned. Were these amateurs playing this by ear? If so, he should take them both down quickly. Slowly, he walked toward the back door of the car. As he walked he never took his eyes off the two young men. The second he opened the back door, he knew it was a mistake. A quick, hard punch stunned him and he slid to the ground. Someone dressed in black, grabbed him by the collar, hauled him up and hit him again, but this time it did the job and Eagle Woodard passed out.

  *****

  Slowly, Eagle woke up. He knew by the fading light that it was late afternoon, almost evening. He kept his eyes closed and listened. A gruff voice told someone to keep digging and the younger male voice complained that he’d need a ladder to get out if he dug the hole any deeper.

  Eagle could hear the car’s shocks squeak as the weight of a large man lifted up off the edge he was leaning on. He ventured a quick peek, but realized too late that the other man was looking directly at him.

  “He’s awake.” The young man who’d held the gun when he got out of the car, sat on the ground beside him. A look at the approaching giant showed Eagle that this man now had both weapons and one was trained on him. Eagle tried to move, but his wrists were firmly tied behind his back.

  He groaned and turned onto his back. His feet were still free. That meant he wasn’t totally helpless. If he got the opportunity, he could crack the behemoth in the nuts and as he went down, kick him in the head. The one in the hole was effectively incapacitated, but the guy next to him was a wild card. Eagle knew he’d have to be careful.

  He looked at the young man. “What’s your name?”

  The young man looked at him and shrugged, “David Nixon.”

  His partner in the hole that would soon become his grave shouted, “What did you tell him that for?”

  The young man beside him laughed. “It’s not as if he’s going to tell anyone? Not after Benny here, gets done with him?”

  The large man came at the younger man and hit him hard, knocking him back. The younger man recovered quickly, jumping to his feet. “What the hell?”

  It was Eagle’s turn to laugh. “You, guys, don’t get it do you? That grave you’re digging, what’s your name?”

  “Jacob.”

  “Well, that’s big enough for all three of us. He’ll just pile us one on top of the other as he kills us.”

  David shook his head. “We’re Nelson Greybill’s nephews. We’re his family. He wouldn’t kill us.”

  Eagle nodded toward the large man, “Tell them, Benny. That’s why you told them your name, isn’t it? Because you know they won’t be telling anyone else, right?”

  Benny snickered and nodded.

  “Oh my god, he is going to kill us! David! Help me. Get me out of here.”

  “It’s okay, Jake. He’s just trying to scare….”

  The gunshot was loud in the open desert. Jacob stood stock still for an instant. A stunned look on his face before the blood from the bullet planted directly between his eyes started to flow down over his forehead then around his nose to run off his chin before the young man’s heart stopped beating.

  “You killed him. You, fucking bastard! You killed my cousin.”

  The man in black laughed and moved closer to David. For some reason, the giant didn’t think Eagle Woodard was a threat. He moved a few feet closer and that was all Eagle needed. He lashed out with his foot, pushing up high and hard. The heel of his boot caught the man right in his balls. The man looked down at Eagle, one hand outstretched as he fell to his knees.

  David didn’t hesitate. He grabbed the big man’s gun from his hand and shot him twice in the head. By the time the man fell into the sand, he was already dead. David stood there staring and shivering.

  “He’s going to fucking kill me.”

  Eagle could see the young man was in shock and had to proceed carefully. “David, untie me. I can help you. I can keep you safe.”

  As if just then remembering Eagle was there. A witness to everything that had happened, he turned the gun on the man on the ground. David’s eyes were wild with fear. “If I kill you, I could tell my uncle you got free and attacked Jacob and Benny. He might believe me.”

  Eagle leaned back. If David shot him at this distance, he’d definitely kill him. Words were going to be the best way to get through to this guy. The one time he really needed Adam Coulter and he wasn’t there. “Your uncle won’t believe that and you know it. He’ll know it was you. I can help you.”

  David shook his head, “You know Jacob was the one who came up with all of this. He’s the one who set up Martinez, he’s the one who fucked your son and found out who he was. He thought he was just one of Rico’s whores until he asked him his name then he got this bright idea.” David groaned and held the gun tightly to his chest. “He’ll know it was me who killed Benny. Oh, God!” Suddenly, he turned the gun on Eagle. “You! You’re the one to blame. You didn’t back down. Why couldn’t you be a good little cop and do what my uncle wanted?”

  “David, if you kill me, then what will you do? You know you’re uncle will come after you. Who will protect you? Rico?”

  David shook his head, “No, no, but the Viking will. He was really interested in you. I don’t know why. For some reason, he didn’t want you dead, but I had to follow through on the plan. Now with you alive, maybe he’ll protect me if I give you to him. Get up.”

  Eagle struggled to his knees and from there he was able to get to his feet. He hoped Adam was calling in the troops because he wasn’t sure what David Nixon had in mind. “Get in the truck.”

  Eagle made a half assed attempt to climb into the passenger side of the cab and fell back. “I can’t with my hands tied. I need your help.”

  The younger man stepped a foot closer, but then he stopped. Something in the distance got his attention. Eagle looked over his shoulder at the blue strobing lights of a dozen police cars headed in their direction.

  “Fuck!” David grabbed Eagle and threw him against the side of the truck. Eagle was about to fight back when he felt the rope binding his wrists drop away, but an instant later a gun was at this temple.

  “You’re going to drive. They won’t shoot at us. They’ll be too scared of hitting you.” David followed Eagle to the driver’s side. “Get in, you’re going to drive.” Eagle climbed in, but couldn’t find the keys.

  David pulled himself into the passenger’s side, gun steadying on Eagle’s head. For a man frightened for his life, David Nixon was surprisingly calm. In his experience, Eagle knew adrenaline could affect people two ways, either they ran or they fought. Those who fought were hyper-focused and that was the state David was in. He’d used his own adrenaline rushes in combat this way. The man was focused on the task of escaping and he meant to kill anyone who got in his way.

  David pushed the truck key into the ignition then pulled his seatbelt into place. His gun hand never wavered. He let Eagle strap in and they headed down the casino’s dirt road.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Adam grabbed his cell phone from the passenger seat as it rang. He was almost to the construction site. He didn’t want to talk to Rick Kessler, but something told him he needed to answer this call.

  “Coulter?”

  “Agent Kessler?”

  “Don’t come to the Casino site…,” He hesit
ated. Adam could see him debating on what he should tell him. “There’s a problem.”

  “Problem?” He wasn’t going to make this easy.

  “Nixon has Eagle. He’s holding him at gunpoint. They’re in Woodard’s truck. Nixon’s trying to make his escape. We are in pursuit. Do not…, I repeat, Dr. Coulter, do not interfere. We’ve got this.”

  Adam shook his head. “Of course, you do. I wouldn’t dream of interfering.” He ended the call, tossing his phone back on the passenger’s seat. He could see a line of police cars with lights and sirens blaring chasing an older model green and white pickup. With a smile, he gunned the engine of the Jeep, fishtailing as he made the turn onto Casino road.

  Pulling his seat belt as tight as he could, Adam aimed his vehicle straight at the quickly approaching truck. He concentrated on his driving. The higher speed was making it difficult to stay on target. He said a little prayer, hoping that Eagle would realize what he was doing and would respond in kind.

  ****

  David Nixon was starting to panic as the adrenaline wore off. He brushed sweat out of his eyes with his free hand. The other hand held a gun on the man in the driver’s seat. He looked back. The police cars were gaining on the old Ford pickup. Despite his fear, Nixon’s hand held the gun steady. He was a desperate man ready to kill if he was forced to.

  Glancing forward, the killer frowned. High beams from the rapidly approaching green Jeep almost blinded him. It took him a few seconds to register that the two of them were on a collision course. Eagle noted Nixon’s distraction. He reached down, pulling his own seat belt tight, then casually rested his right hand at the 5 o’clock position on the steering wheel.

  “What the hell is that son of a bitch doing?”

  Eagle grinned. “Oh, that’s Adam. I think he’s trying to kill me.”

  “What?”

  “I mean, that man can really carry a grudge. Sure, I roped him into a sham marriage. And maybe I did, sort of, accidentally on purpose, allow an insane killer to cut his balls off.”

  Nixon looked at his driver in wide eyed disbelief.

  Eagle smiled, “No really, I did. But you’d think after all this time, he’d forgive me. But no.”

  The Jeep stayed on target.

  “He’ll swerve, right?”

  Eagle let out a little maniacal giggle, “Let’s see.” He stomped on the accelerator and the truck surged forward, tossing Nixon back into his seat. The patrol cars behind them began losing ground. The headlights of the oncoming Jeep filled the truck, blinding both men. Adam stayed the course, but Eagle veered ever so slightly to the left. At that same moment, Eagle’s hand dropped down and he unfastened David Nixon’s seat belt.

  Less than a second later, Adam’s Jeep grazed the back wheel well of Eagle’s truck and both began to spin. Tires dug into soft sand. As if in slow motion, both vehicles began to flip. Eagle reached up trying to brace himself as well as he could, but he felt his head slam against the side window before it knocked him unconscious.

  David Nixon, now without the restraint of a seat belt, was thrown about the cabin like a rag doll. His head hit the roof so hard it snapped his neck. On the third roll, the dead man was ejected through the shattered windshield. The young killer’s body flew in one direction while the truck went the other. Eagle’s truck rolled three times before it came to a stop upside down.

  The pursuit cars slammed on their brakes. Weaving and bobbing to miss each other and the rolling metal projectiles. Voices shouted orders as all the vehicles came to a stop. Adam couldn’t make much sense of them. He knew he rolled at least twice, maybe more. Lucky when his Jeep had landed upright, Adam tried to move. Reaching to his left, he attempted to open the driver’s side door, but the pain that shot through his left wrist stopped him. Reaching over with his right hand, he found the door wouldn’t budge. Adam tried to pull his right leg free, but something stopped it. That was the instant he smelled the smoke.

  The shouts came closer. His vision started to blur as smoke began to fill the cabin. Adam realized he couldn’t escape the now burning SUV. Suddenly hands were grabbing at the door and with a scream Carlos Aiello ripped it off its hinges. He took hold of Adam’s arm, trying to get him out of the car.

  “Come on, Adam! Help me.”

  “Right leg’s trapped. Carlos, you need to get away before this damn thing blows.”

  “No!” Carlos threw himself across Adam. Reaching down, he found the sharp piece of bent metal that skewered Adam’s pant leg. Grabbing the fabric with both hands, he jerked. His adrenaline enhanced strength tore it free just as the flames burst through the dashboard. He heard Adam cry out in pain.

  Other hands reached in. Someone emptied a fire extinguisher onto the dash as they all dragged the injured man from the now engulfed vehicle. Seconds later, the Jeep succumbed to its funeral pyre.

  ****

  Eagle’s next memory was of a paramedic checking his pupils. He squinted against the bright light and tried to push the man away. His head was pounding so badly he could hardly think.

  “Tell me your name.” The man demanded.

  “Eagle.” He croaked. His throat felt dry. Mouth still gritty with sand.

  “Eagle what?”

  “Eagle Woodard.”

  “Okay, how many fingers do you see?”

  He squinted hard, then took a guess. “Four.”

  He saw the other man shake his head. Obviously, he’d given the wrong answer.

  “You’ve definitely got a concussion.” He then turned, addressing the man coming up beside him. “We need to transport both of the survivors to the hospital. You can call the coroner on the dead guy.”

  Woodard’s mind slowly processed his words. He tried to sit up, but everything began to spin.

  “Hey…, hey! Lie back down, sweetheart.” Rick put a firm hand on Eagle’s shoulder pushing him back onto the gurney. “You aren’t going anywhere.”

  “Adam.”

  Rick was tempted to tell Eagle that Coulter was dead, but he owed the Doc this one. “He’s going to be fine. Broke his left wrist, they think, second degree burn on his right hand otherwise just a bunch of cuts and bruises.”

  Eagle nodded then sagged back onto the gurney before promptly passing out again.

  ****

  Adam listened as the ER Physician revealed he had a non-displaced fracture of his left wrist. They agreed on a removable brace for the next eight weeks as treatment for the problem. Adam refused the Percocet they offered for the pain. A white gauze bandage turned his right hand into a mitt. Steri-strips treated his superficial cuts and ice packs rested on the worst of his newly forming bruises. He knew from experience. What they saw today was only the tip of the iceberg.

  Charming the ER nurses, he got information on his husband. Eagle had suffered a bad concussion and they had taken him for a CT scan of his head to make certain there wasn’t anything worse.

  One of the trauma specialists stepped into his cubicle with a tablet. Closing the curtains behind him, he sat down, typing a few words before he began.

  “Dr. Adam Coulter?”

  “PhD, not MD.” Adam clarified.

  “Oh, okay. I’m Dr. Kostas. Says here, your spouse is Eagle Woodard? The man in room six. Correct?”

  Adam nodded. “Sixteen, almost seventeen months of not so wedded bliss.”

  “I see you have different addresses.”

  “We’re getting a divorce.”

  The older man stared at the screen, but nodded. He turned and looked at his patient then his demeanor grew serious. He stood up, touching the healing cut and older bruise on Adam’s jaw. “Did he do that to you?” He asked, pressing the bruise. Adam frowned.

  “I got into a fight.”

  “With Woodard? He’s got knuckles that look like he’s punched someone recently. Skin’s torn, bruised. He’s a big man. So, don’t bullshit me. My Dad used to beat my mother to a bloody pulp. I can tell the difference between new and old bruises and I’d say he beat the crap out of you
fairly recently.”

  Adam looked away. “It was my fault. We were arguing. I took the first swing.”

  The doctor grabbed his arms, looking at them. “No, you didn’t. These are all defensive injuries. You need to let his commanding officer know.”

  He looked the doctor straight in the eye. “This is between me and Eagle. I’m sticking to my story. I hit him first. I got what I deserved.”

  “No one deserves to be beaten.”

  The look in Adam’s eyes told the doctor there would be no more discussion on this topic. The older man sighed. “I was your Trauma Specialist when that woman assaulted you, Dr. Coulter.”

  “I’m sorry, I don’t remember too much after….” He looked away.

  Dr. Kostas looked over at him. “Are you doing alright, now?”

  Adam gave him a sad grin. He knew that look and he didn’t need this man’s sympathy. He knew what the doctor saw; a dirty, disheveled man, too thin bordering on emaciated. They’d stripped his jacket off of him when they brought him in. Old track marks were clearly evident, but there were no new injection sites. Hadn’t been for nine months now. Adam thought about deflecting this man’s unwanted concern with sarcasm, but the gentleness in the man’s eyes made him think otherwise.

  “I’m doing the best I can. I’ve gone through a lot”

  “PTSD. Obviously IV drug use. Alcohol abuse, too, I suppose.”

  “Yes. I’m in recovery. AA, NA. Had a sponsor, but he died recently. Nine months clean and sober.”

  “Yeah, I noted you refused the Percocet for your pain.” He paused, looking at Adam. “Has your husband been using?”

  Adam shook his head. “Eagle would never. He drinks a little at times, but never does drugs.”

  Kostas looked at his tablet. “We’ll be doing a drug screen on him anyway. He was injured in the line of duty, so that’s mandatory. I would like to do one on you as well.”

  Adam shrugged, then held out his arm. “Sure, like I said, I’m clean. Only thing you might find is whatever the paramedics gave me at the scene for pain.”