Murders on the Edge

by Andie Alexander

  “So you think you’re getting lucky? Who’s the girl?”

  “Very funny.” He kissed me again, and rested his forehead on mine. “Have I told you how much I love you today?”

  I looked upward in thought, putting my finger to my lips. “No, but I think one of the Russian guys is in love with me.”

  “He is?”

  “Sure. I’m the lowest common denominator, remember? That makes me easy.”

  He chuckled and kissed me again. “Only to me.” He let go of me just as Chris and Archie walked into the room. “What’s for breakfast?” he asked.

  “Cereal,” I said. “And coffee.” I spun around to make it, but all the guys groaned.

  “Harley, where’s the milk for the cereal?” Archie asked.

  “We’re out, so I improvised.” I headed to the table and poured myself some bran flakes. “See?” I grabbed the nearest bottle and right as I was ready to pour it over the flakes, Jim grabbed it from me.

  “Nope. You’re not having wine this early in the morning, or at all.”

  “Okay, then pickle juice.” I reached over for the next jar, but he stopped me.

  “Not pickle juice on cereal.” He looked up at Archie. “Breakfast and make it good.”

  I thrust my hands on my hips. “What? You don’t like the way I cook?”

  He bit back laughter. “My sweetheart. I have a job for you and Archie’s a good cook.”

  As I glanced over at Archie, I saw him nod while Chris cleared off the table. At least he left the orange juice out.

  Jim spun me toward the office computer. “Find out anything you can about the two guys in the picture. I want you to call Kent and explain what’s going on. We need more agents and we need him here.”

  “He hates me,” I said. “I never told you, but we had a huge fight after I was almost killed in the hospital. He hasn’t spoken to me since.”

  Jim’s expression turned confused. “Are you sure he hates you?”

  “Yes. I’d rather not get him involved at all, if that’s possible.”

  He sighed. “Find out what you can about those two guys and I’ll call Kent.”

  “I don’t like shirking my duties,” I said. “If I can do anything else, let me know.”

  His grin covered his face. “Sweetheart, you’ve done more than anyone else on this mission, so relax. This is going to be a big day. I have a special surprise for you when you’re done in there. You have ten minutes.”

  “Thanks.”

  I went into the office to search for any information on the two men. I knew there would be nothing on either of them, and Jim was just trying to get rid of me, but I did what I was told. Having a boss for a husband wasn’t all it was cracked up to be.

  I flipped on the computer and started my search. The name ‘Vladimir Olzo’ came up on various hits on the Internet. I started my search and found his picture on many sites. He was a famous biochemist in Russia. He looked young, but the guy was thirty-six years old. I wondered about that, because the sheriff had the same problem, looking younger than he was.

  I then began my search for Assam Delgado, but nothing of importance appeared. I wasn’t surprised, but when I searched for Vladimir Olzo and Assam, I hit on one website that would amaze Jim. On the front of the website sat both of the men, and the heading was written in Arabic. I was pretty sure it wasn’t a nice website, because of all the guns on the thing at the top.

  “Jim,” I said. “What does this say?” I knew a few words, and I thought part of it said something about rocks at the top, but wasn’t sure.

  He and Chris came running into the room. They both stared at the page in front of me.

  “Those are the two guys in the picture at the mines,” Chris said. “What does it say at the top?”

  “We Rock Mines,” Jim said, scrolling down.

  “Not ‘We Mine Rocks?” I asked.

  “Nope.” He shook his head, still reading. “It’s a website for what’s going on here, and Señora Bonita is even mentioned. But the rest of the towns aren’t mentioned. They’re testing the latest mind control drugs to see if they’d be useful on a big-scale, which we already knew, and are testing a certain heart medication for their own troops.” He looked up at me. “Do you think that antidote is a heart medication?”

  “Did they test that yet?”

  “I found nothing and sent it off to the lab. But it takes time. That means these guys are purposely making people’s hearts bad, to test the antidote.”

  We all returned to the kitchen, where Archie was making some sort of omelet for each of us.

  “What, no wine and cereal?” I asked. “What kind of breakfast is this?”

  “Protein,” Jim muttered. “And you’re off cooking duty. Permanently.”

  I crossed my arms. “You guys never let me have any fun.”

  “No, we don’t want to be drunk all day,” Archie muttered. “I have to play sheriff, and if I’m drunk, that won’t work.”

  “I want to have a meeting before I call Kent.” Jim took out a piece of paper and wrote a few things. “Here are the known players. Vladimir, Assam, and all the townspeople. We know about them. I want to know who leaked information about Harley to the terrorists.” Jim stared at all of our faces, especially mine.

  “What makes you think it was leaked?” I asked.

  “Did you specifically tell the terrorists that you had a boyfriend in Tucson you were running from?”

  “Good point.” I thought back. “I told the lady at the bed and breakfast, Mr. Moody and all his employees, the guy who owns the grocery store, I think…”

  “Peter Arsenic,” Jim said, writing. “Who else?”

  “Everyone I came in contact with. I wanted them to know I wasn’t living in sin here with you.”

  He blew out a big sigh. “And that’s everyone in town, I bet. There has to be a connection between you and the terrorists. One person probably told them and is in with them, besides Tilvin.”

  “Rumors in towns like this run rampant,” Archie said, crossing his arms. “It could be anyone.”

  “True, but I’m guessing one person besides Tilvin has an in with these people.” Jim looked over at me. “When we talked to Pearl’s sister…”

  “Edith?”

  “Yeah, her. What did she say about Willy Nilly?”

  I thought back to Saturday, two long days ago. “She thought Willy Nilly was with the government, because he wouldn’t let her take pictures of the partying and send it to the FBI.”

  Jim was writing. “I wonder why and if he’s the contact? It would have to be someone higher up, to allow them to taint the water in some way.”

  “But the water’s not tainted,” I said. “You tested it yourself, right?”

  “Yes, I did. But didn’t the guys this morning say it was in the water?”

  I nodded. “Something’s not adding up.”

  “You got that right.” As Jim turned toward the other two men, the door opened. Vic and Damon entered the room and sat down near me.

  “Are you any better today?” Vic asked ne.

  “I think so.” I glanced toward Jim and leaned over toward Vic. “I haven’t been poked or prodded yet.”

  “Thanks for reminding me.” Jim looked toward Vic. “She needs blood drawn and a urine sample taken.”

  “Oh, man,” I said. “I can’t even just sit here without being analyzed in some way.”

  “Yep.” Vic got up from the table and headed out of the room at the same time Archie put plates in front of all of us, containing mixed fruit and a wonderful omelet.

  Damon touched my arm. “I want to talk to you when you’re done here.”

  “About what?”

  He leaned up to my ear. “I want to know what you’ve endured so far.”

  Psychologists. “Another analysis? Am I going to have time to do my job today or what?”

  “That’s going to have to wait,” Jim said to Damon. “Right now, we’re under the gun. She has to get to work befor
e eight.”

  “We should be there by 7:30,” Chris said, glancing at his watch.

  Jim started going through the things we needed to do while we all ate. “Archie, bring Vlad in sometime today. I want you to charge him with murder of the hooker, even though we have no evidence. Someone saw him near her or something. I want him questioned. He’s at the copper mines, working as a miner, I think.” He looked over at Chris. “You’re glued to Harley today at the mortuary.”

  “What am I to do?” Damon asked.

  “You’re the new deputy. Archie needs help, and I want investigations done for these people. Archie’s going to bring in some people just for questioning, starting with the guy who runs the grocery store. I want to know the connection from the town to the terrorists and it has to be done before four. I don’t want any of our people in town after 3:30 today.” He looked over at me. “Especially you. After five, you can go back and get kidnapped.”

  “Kidnapped?” Damon asked. “You sound like you know when it’s going to happen.”

  “I kind of stumbled on it this morning,” I said. “They’re kidnapping the weakest of the newcomers at six, to torture my heart and see how I’m reacting to their drugs.”

  “How do you feel about that?”

  “Cut the psychology junk,” I said. “It just ticks me off, thinking I’m the weakest, so these guys are getting it full force.” I turned toward Jim. “I want two guns.”

  “No guns. You have to act the part, and Jane Black wouldn’t have any guns. However, we’re shooting you with a tracking device, so we’ll know where you are at all times. Act like Jane would act…weak and feminine.”

  I stuck the rest of the omelet in my mouth so I wouldn’t argue with him. He was right, but it made me angry. Just because I was a girl, I didn’t get to have any fun.

  Chapter 27

  Jim stared at me for a moment and shook his head. “What’s the matter?”

  “Nothing.” I stabbed at the fruit with my fork.

  “We’ll discuss this in a minute.”

  Vic walked into the room and took my blood then handed me a vial for the urine sample. “Fill it.”

  “Yes, master.”

  “Hey, that’s my name,” Jim said.

  I stood up and walked out of the room. “Get over it.” Upon entering the bathroom, I shut the door and filled the stupid vial, angrier than ever. I hated when they played gender games.

  As soon as I finished and was ready to wash the vial, the door opened. Jim stood in front of me with his arms crossed.

  “Spill it,” he said.

  “I’m a girl. It ticks me off.”

  “It doesn’t tick me off. I like the fact that you’re female. What brought this on?”

  “I’m the weakest and the lowest common denominator. I don’t like that role at all. Fix it.”

  He chuckled. “You’re also a rookie with attitude. Think of it this way, Harley. None of the rest of us is wanted by the bad guys. You’re in the thick of things, where all of us wish we would be. They’re going to think you’re weak, and I want you to play helpless, so they’ll take you to their hideout. When you get there, fight back a little bit, but not enough to take them down, until we show up. Then they’re yours. I don’t want them dead, but just beaten up, so we can interrogate them. Want to do that part?”

  “Would you let a rookie do that?” I hated being a rookie. I washed off the vial and handed it to him, wrapped in toilet paper.

  “Sure,” he said. “I’ll be there with you so I can take notes. No one ever takes you for granted, so don’t worry about that. Without you and your take-charge attitude, no one could ever measure up to what you’ve done. Even this morning, you showed your guts to go up to that house, and showed your brains by knowing what was being said. If Chris had done that, he’d never know what they were saying. None of the other guys would. Now, when you’re kidnapped, you don’t know any language but English. You know a few easy Spanish words, but that’s it. You’re terrified. Remember that much.”

  “What’s going to happen when they give me a truth serum?”

  He opened the door to the bathroom and we headed back into the kitchen. “We’ll get there before they do.”

  “Promise?”

  “Yes, sweetheart. I promise. I won’t endanger either of you.”

  “Either?” Damon asked.

  “Harley thinks she’s pregnant,” Chris said. “But it’s too soon to tell, so Jim’s making sure she is pregnant.”

  “I am not,” Jim said.

  Chris stood up from the table with his plate. “We all heard it in the office.”

  “You’re hearing things,” I said, lying. “I have to change for this dead job, and I’m wearing slacks today in case I have to dig another grave.”

  “A pregnant woman’s digging a grave?” Damon asked. “Harley, we need to talk.”

  “No, we don’t. I have to dig the graves for Mr. Moody.”

  Damon sighed and addressed Chris. “No digging of graves for her. She’s got to look helpless.”

  Chris nodded while putting his things in the dishwasher. “I’ll cover that part. We’ll be out of there before three-thirty.”

  “Everyone think about the things I mentioned this morning,” Jim said. “Chris, you picked Harley up while hitchhiking to work. I couldn’t leave to take her in, because of several doctor emergencies.”

  “Like Jordan’s jock itch?” Chris asked.

  “Yeah. He’s staying at a motel just north of town. He should be in town today, looking for a good time.” Jim turned toward Damon. “If you can, have something to eat at the diner across from the bed and breakfast. I want to know what people are talking about. The drugs include some sort of mind control. I want to know what they’re thinking.”

  “Got it.”

  “I’ll join you,” Archie said. “We’ll have a new employee’s meeting.” He faced Jim. “We can have coffee then?”

  “Bottled water only, from far away. I don’t think there’s anything in the water, but we didn’t test every single faucet in the place.”

  “Uh-huh,” Archie said. “Got it.”

  Jim grabbed his arm as he headed toward the door. “I mean it. Order food but don’t eat it. I don’t need another incident like what happened to Harley. They’re trying to give people heart problems.”

  Archie nodded. “Yep. Got it.” He and Damon walked out the door. I ran out of the kitchen, up the stairs, and into our bedroom. I went as fast as I could, throwing on dark blue slacks, flat shoes, and a white blouse. I pulled my hair back into a nice ponytail, finally applying minimal makeup.

  “Are you ready to go?” Jim asked.

  “Yeah. Do I get a visit from the doctor today?”

  He grinned and gave me a kiss. “Maybe. Play your cards right and you might get more than a visit.”

  “Is Vic coming? Is that what you’re talking about?” I bit my lip so I wouldn’t laugh at my own joke.

  He shook his head. “That’s my Harley.”

  “I think we have some funerals today,” I said. “I don’t know how that works, but if anything weird happens, I’ll let you know.”

  “Good.” His kiss was passionate. “I have a date tonight with you, and it’ll be fun.”

  “Quiet, I hope. I think Chris is taking notes.”

  “Fix him up today. Those hookers upstairs might be lonely.”

  I chuckled. “Yeah, diseases and all.” I walked out the door, down the stairs, and outside with Chris. We left the house, and while he drove into town, I watched the sides of the road. He slowed when going past the house with the black windows.

  “That’s the place?” he asked.

  “Yep. And they speak Russian. How weird is that?”

  “Pretty weird, for someone from the Middle East. Do you think they might figure out who you are and report it back to the Russian delegates in the U.N.? They were really hunting for you for the past six months. We all had run-ins with various Russian mafia members.”
<
br />   “I hope not. Who would ever have thought they’d be down here, though?”

  “Not me. I would’ve thought more Mexicans, personally. Did you notice the lack of Hispanics in this place? I mean, we’re probably about 30 miles from the Mexican border, but I haven’t seen one Mexican here.”

  I hadn’t noticed, because I didn’t think of people by their nationality, usually, unless they were really out of place, like the guy with dark eyes. “You know, you’re right. I wonder why that is?”

  “I don’t know and I doubt I’ll ever find out. Anyway, I don’t want you out of my sight today. Got that?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  He glanced toward me, grinning. “What, no master for me?”

  “You’re not quite at the master stage yet, but you’re getting there.”

  After parking his car behind the mortuary, we both got out and headed inside. It was only 7:15, so we were early.

  Since the back door was unlocked, we left ourselves inside. Mr. Moody sat at his desk, reading over the papers Jim had left for him.

  I stood in front of him and cleared my throat. “Good morning, Mr. Moody.”

  He snarled, looking up at me. “What’s good about it? One of our best women from upstairs was killed.”

  “I heard about that. What can I do to help you?”

  He glanced over at Chris and back at me. “We have a few more graves to dig, and have to get ready for four funerals today.”

  “Four?”

  “Yeah. The bodies are starting to stink.”

  Moody didn’t describe this man from his behavior, compared to the week before. His voice even seemed lower to me.

  I went into the back room and grabbed a shovel. Chris followed me and shook his head. “I want to do this one. You stay inside.”

  “Nope. We all have to work around here. I want to find out what’s going on with this guy.”

  “Four funerals,” Mr. Moody muttered. “And more tomorrow. I can’t keep up with all the deaths around here.”

  We all headed outside to the back of the cemetery, with green grass and tombstones as far as the eye could see.

  While Chris and I marked off the four plots, Mr. Moody ran the backhoe. I was sure professional mortuaries dug the plots differently, but Mr. Moody was old and kind of stuck in his ways. It didn’t matter because it got me out of the depressing mortuary, at least.