Dark Secrets and Dead Reckoning, A Red Pine Falls Cozy Mystery (Red Pine Falls Cozy Mysteries Book 3)

by Angela C Blackmoore

  “Roger,” Gabe replied. “See you in a few.”

  When he got off of the mic, he looked over at Ben. “Is your truck available, Ben?”

  Ben dug around in his pocket and then deposited his keys in Gabe’s waiting hand. “Are you sure you’re ok to do this, Gabe?”

  “Yep, cause you’re coming with me,” Gabe said. “I’m not giving Frank the opportunity to hit me on the head again.” He stopped and gave Abby a long kiss once again before heading out the door. “We’ll be back in a flash. Just hold on tight, okay?”

  Abby nodded, but it was hard watching him leave. She wanted to just sit quietly by a fireplace with him and talk for hours into the night, but she knew that couldn’t happen. They’d found Frank, and she suspected it was important to get him into custody sooner than later.

  The image of John Troutdale talking about hunting flashed into her mind, and she went over to sit with Hazel, Becky, and Cheerio. Where was he right now?

  Chapter 18

  Despite her misgivings, Gabe and Ben returned to the ranger station in short order. They bought Frank in with them when they came, and despite the dwindled number of people, the few remaining gave them a wide birth.

  Frank, or what was left of him since he’d been out in the wild for several weeks, looked deflated and beaten. His clothes hung on his thinner frame, and the man seemed to have wallowed in mud at one point. The only parts of him that were even slightly flesh colored were the tear tracks that had made their way down his cheeks.

  “My God,” Becky said as they watched him stumble in between the two park rangers. “I almost feel sorry for him.”

  Abby looked at her in disbelief, making Becky do a double take at her friend.

  “I said almost,” she said defensively, making Abby roll her eyes as they watched the two men lead Frank over to a table and deposit him in a chair.

  “Ben, go get Frank some water and some jerky from the emergency supplies,” Gabe said as he sat on the desk and considered the wasted man. Frank wouldn’t meet his gaze and kept his eyes glued to the floor.

  When Ben came back, Frank almost jumped up from the chair grabbing for the food and water, but one glare from Gabe had him back in his seat. He remained quite after that except for his loud chewing noises. Gabe gave him one more look before telling Ben to watch him while he walked back over to Abby and a glaring Becky.

  “Don’t you think you should have someone other than Ben watching him?” Becky growled as she continued to stare at Frank. Abby knew she’d never really forgiven the man for cutting off her accounts a few months back when she had been under investigation for murder.

  Gabe shook his head. “There won’t be a need. He could barely walk in here. I’m pretty sure even Cheerio with a broken paw could knock him over.”

  Cheerio, hearing his name, wuffed and his pink tongue lolled out of his mouth. Gabe saw it and smiled, reaching down and ruffling the black and white Australian Shepard’s fur before standing back up. “Don’t worry, Becky,” Gabe continued. “I have a big, pulsing pain in my head that says Frank isn’t going to be escaping again.”

  “I just,” Becky said, gesturing to Frank who was hunched over the table as he wolfed down bits of jerky that Ben was handing him. “Why are you feeding him? He doesn’t deserve that! If anyone should suffer, it’s him.”

  Gabe shrugged. “Because, it’s the right thing to do, even if he’s a bit of an ass. Besides, he wanted teriyaki flavor, and we gave him original.”

  Becky harrumphed as Abby laughed softly and shook her head, swatting Gabe on the shoulder. “We should take you down to the clinic and have you checked out by Dr. Bennard.”

  “That’s the next step,” Gabe said. “At least, after I take a shower and then force Frank to take one. Hopefully, he won’t put up a fight. With the Sheriff still dealing with whatever he’s dealing with, we’re the only ones that can retain custody of Frank, so we’ll take him down to the clinic in town.” Gabe reached up and gingerly touched his head. “I’ll get checked out as well.”

  “I agree,” Abby said, patting Gabe’s arm. “Especially about the shower. Take yours while Frank eats. It doesn’t look like he’s slowing down anytime soon. Conner and Ben should be capable enough to keep an eye on Frank, right?”

  Gabe nodded then moved down one of the hallways towards the bathroom’s and, presumably, showers that were contained within the ranger station. Abby watched him go before he turned and disappeared out of sight.

  Turning back toward Hazel, she stopped and watched as Mr. Wilberson stepped close and reached out for Hazel’s hand. She couldn’t hear what he was saying, but she saw the way the two looked at each other as they talked quietly. It put a smile on her face, and she paused before walking over to Becky and sitting down next to her at another table.

  “How are you holding up?” Becky asked while taking a sip of some coffee out of a styrofoam cup.

  “Now that Gabe is safe, I’m doing much better,” Abby said while looking over at Frank who had finally stopped eating. The man was currently slumped over the table with his head on his arms and crying.

  “Good,” Becky said, then leaned in close and whispered. “Now, are you going to tell me what you know about Frank? Did it have something to do with Susan Clawson dragging you off?”

  Abby looked at Becky for a long moment but finally nodded. Keeping her voice down so no one else would hear, she filled in her friend about what Frank had been doing, at least according to Susan. When she finished, Becky was looking at Frank with wide eyes.

  “And he was all outraged when he thought I’d done something illegal,” Becky hissed quietly. “That rat!”

  “I’m less worried about Frank than these men that have come to town,” Abby said distantly, putting her head in her hands while resting her elbows on the table.

  “But which ones are you more concerned with?” Becky asked. “The bikers or John and his thugs. I’d say the bikers are more dangerous. John seems too nice to be dangerous, and I like his ideas about the pies.”

  Abby glanced at her friend for a moment before turning back to staring at the far wall of the room. “Actually, that’s what I think makes him more dangerous. When he was staring down the bikers at the Food Emporium, he may as well have been holding a gun.”

  Becky shuddered next to her but giggled while she did it. “I wish I had been there. He is such a delicious bad boy.”

  “Ugh, Becky,” Abby said, rolling her eyes. “Don’t you have a boyfriend? One we’re going to go see shortly?”

  “Yes,” Becky said defensively. “But a girl can look, can’t she? I mean, how can you not look at him? He’s like a little work of art dipped in butter.”

  Abby laughed and swatted at Becky’s arm playfully. A few minutes later, Gabe came out of the back looking much better for it. He’d put on a clean uniform and was gingerly drying his hair with a towel before walking over to Ben and Conner.

  “Okay, you two,” Gabe said as he stopped by the table where the two rangers and Frank sat. “Take Frank into the back and get him into the shower.”

  The two men groaned, but both of them helped Frank stand. He didn’t seem inclined to argue as they led him away while Gabe walked over to the two ladies.

  Abby stood, and intercepted him, wrapping her arms around him and taking a deep breath. “That is so much better,” she said, leaning up and giving him a kiss.

  “It feels a lot better, let me tell you,” Gabe said, grinning after they finished kissing. “I may love the trees and forest, but I don’t love rolling around in it all the time. Now, I’m going to go try to call the Sheriff and clear what should be done with Frank.” Gabe shifted, looking a little nervous. “I sure hope I can get ahold of him or at least one of the deputies.”

  “Isn’t it strange for him to be out of contact?” Abby asked.

  Gabe frowned and nodded. “Very.” He said. “I don’t know what happened out there, but it must have been messy.”

  Abby and Becky exchanged worrie
d glances as Gabe walked toward his desk.

  Chapter 19

  Abby and Becky watched as Gabe, Conner, and Ben escorted Frank to the waiting truck and loaded him into the back of the cab. Frank was clean and dressed in some too-small spare sweat pants and t-shirt, but the man looked terrified as he kept glancing around himself.

  “Why is he so scared?” Becky asked from the passenger side of the rental car. Abby had crashed her grandmothers PT Cruiser a few weeks back, and it wasn’t scheduled to get out of the shop for several more days.

  “Because he thinks he’s going to be shot,” Abby said, giving Becky a wary glance. “Remember how John said he was going to go Elk hunting?”

  “Yes,” Becky answered.

  “What if he wasn’t going Elk hunting, but Frank hunting?” Abby said, watching as the truck began to pull out of the parking lot. She waited for them to get a bit ahead before following along.

  “Do you think someone will attack him on the way to the clinic?” Becky asked nervously.

  Abby shook her head. “No, I don’t think so. Everything has happened too quickly, and Frank was found by accident. I don’t think even mob hitmen could move that fast.”

  “Yeah, but didn’t Gabe talk to the Sheriff? Wouldn’t they be listening to the police frequencies?”

  Abby opened her mouth to answer but then closed it, thinking hard. Becky was right. Police shows and movies were terribly cliché, but wasn’t there a grain of truth to some of it? Why wouldn’t they have their own police scanners? Why look for Frank yourself if you knew the police were already looking for him? She suddenly realized that Gabe didn’t know about the bikers, John Troutdale, or that Frank might have even been doing something shady with these men’s accounts. Gabe didn’t know how much danger he might be in because of it. “Becky, call Gabe.”

  Becky pulled her phone out and dialed, waiting only a few seconds before Gabe’s voice came on the line. Becky put it on speaker so they both could talk and hear. “Hello, Becky. Is everything okay?” Gabe asked.

  “Gabe,” Abby said, “Sorry, but I just remembered you’ve been out in the woods for several days.”

  “Uh, thanks?” Gabe said and chuckled. “Didn’t you say you missed me?”

  “No, I didn’t mean it like that!” Abby said. “Of course I missed you! I mean, you don’t know all the stuff that has been going down with Frank. I forgot to tell you before we left the Ranger station. There are some men that came to town looking for him. Actually, two groups of men.”

  “Okay, go on,” Gabe answered slowly. With Frank right there, Abby knew he didn’t want to spook the man any more than he already was.

  “Well, one is a tough group of bikers, and the other I think…I think are mobsters,” Abby said.

  “That’s…interesting,” Gabe said slowly. Abby could hear the note in Gabe’s voice that said he was trying to digest this information quickly. “But, I’ll believe you. Heaven knows you’ve gotten to the bottom of a lot of things in this town. I’d be a fool not to. That might explain the Sheriff’s concern when I talked to him, too. What else do you know that might be helpful? I can’t talk much, but I can listen.”

  Abby took a breath and began to fill Gabe in on everything she’d learned in the past few days while Becky held the phone. It took longer than she expected, but by the time she was done, they were just pulling under several towering pine trees and into the parking lot of the clinic. Abby was relieved to see two of the town’s patrol cars in the parking lot. After worrying about being ambushed on their way here, it was a relief to see some law enforcement.

  Despite the happiness at seeing the Sheriff, Abby couldn’t help but notice the town’s only ambulance parked off to the side of the clinic with two EMT’s wheeling a couple of covered gurneys inside.

  As they parked, the Sheriff and two of his deputies immediately moved toward the Ranger truck and pulled Frank out of the back, much to the relief of Ben. As Abby stepped out of the car, she could hear Frank pleading with the Sheriff.

  “Please! Take me to the jailhouse now,” Frank whined. “They’ll get me!”

  “Take it easy, Frank,” The Sheriff said in his slow drawl. “You’ll have some nice, safe bars around you soon enough.”

  “You don’t understand!” Frank continued in a high-pitched, desperate voice. “These men could be anywhere. They’re dangerous. God, they’re going to kill me!” he finally broke down into sobs, collapsing and forcing the Sheriff and his deputies to scramble before Frank fell on his face. Despite having lost weight out in the woods, he was still not a small man.

  “Oh, for…” The Sheriff said, grunting as he helped pull Frank back up to his feet. “Listen. We’re taking you there right now, but the more you flop around on the ground, the longer it will take. Stand up!”

  Slowly, Frank complied, but he was still sobbing and hiccupping as he shuffled toward one of the police cruisers while the sheriff read him his rights. Abby glanced over and saw a self-satisfied smirk on Becky’s face as they handcuffed the man. Becky wasn’t the turn the other cheek type, and Abby couldn’t blame her.

  After they had finished securing Frank, who’d apparently laid down in the back seat of the cruiser, the Sheriff came ambling over. The man looked tired and worn as he leaned against the truck that Gabe had driven over.

  “What a day,” he said slowly, taking his hat off and wiping his forehead despite the coolness of the evening. He turned to Gabe and cleared his throat. “Sorry about not responding to you being missing. I was dealing with a serious situation, and all of us were just plain busy.”

  “Did it have to do with that?” Gabe said, nodding toward the ambulance. The EMT’s had disappeared inside several minutes earlier, but it would have been impossible to miss the bodies they’d taken inside.

  “Yeah,” the Sheriff said as he frowned and shook his head. “Some nut job opened up on that gang that rolled into town a few days ago. Killed two of them, but witnesses say some others got hit.”

  “Jesus, I am gone for a few days, and now we have bikers and shooters?” Gabe said, frowning.

  The Sheriff nodded and put his hat back on, looking out into the distance. “Yes, but I think it was all tied into what happened to you. Or really, what happened with Frank. Some bad hombre’s are here looking for him. He’s not wrong in thinking they might want to kill him.”

  “Yes, it doesn’t sound like a very good situation,” Gabe said. “Do you think the bikers or that John Troutdale guy are more dangerous?”

  The Sheriff turned to answer but stopped and narrowed his eyes. “Wait a minute. How did you know about John Troutdale?” He started to turn toward Abby who was trying to look everywhere but at him when one of the EMT’s came running out of the clinic.

  “Sheriff! Come quickly!” the man said, looking panicked.

  The Sheriff glared at Abby for a moment longer, the promise in his eyes that he was not done talking to her about things before he finally turned toward the EMT. “What is it, son?”

  “Sir, The doctor’s gone! The place was empty, but we found the receptionist and two of the nurses locked in a back room. They said some men broke in and kidnapped him!”

  “Christ on a crutch,” the Sheriff said, turning and calling to the deputies as he raced to the front of the clinic. Before he entered, he turned and glared at Abby, Gabe, and a now-terrified Becky. “Gabe, keep everyone out of the Clinic. Abby, for the love of God, quit finding out things before I do!”

  ***

  When the Sheriff came out of the clinic, he walked over to the police car that didn’t contain Frank and grabbed the mic from the radio. Gabe, Abby, and Becky all watched with concern written large on their faces.

  “Lanie? We’re going to be bringing Frank Millerson over to the station in a big hurry. Be out front to get him. The rest of us are going to be heading out to where the Bikers are camped.” He paused and looked over to Becky, a note of worry in his eyes before he continued. “We think they may have kidnapped Dr. Bennard to
take care of some of their wounded.”

  Becky lurched forward and started to sob at his words. “Charlie? They took Charlie?!?”

  “Calm down,” Gabe said, grabbing onto Becky to keep her from running for the Sheriff. “They’ll get him back. It sounds like the Sheriff knows where they’re camped. They’ll get him back.”

  Abby came up and hugged Becky tightly as her friend collapsed against Gabe. A moment later, the Sheriff walked up with a grim look on his face. “Gabe, I know you’re hurt, but I’m going to have to ask for your help. Can Ben stay here and keep an eye on the nurses and receptionist? They need someone to stay here and settle them, and I can’t spare any deputies. Also, if you can get Conner and Julia to come down with some rifles, that would be great. Tell them to meet us at the jail house. You are all federal officers, and I can call for your aid if I need to.”

  “What happened to the State Police?” Gabe said, as he reached into the ranger truck and picked up his mic and prepared to call the other rangers that were still up at the station.

  If anything, the Sheriff frowned even more. “I’d like to say that they’re coming, but every time we’ve called them for help today, we are getting the run around that there’s no one available. It seems Superintended Ketch is paying us back for the embarrassment we gave him last month. I’m afraid we’re on our own.”

  Gabe nodded and began speaking into his two-way radio while Ben moved into the clinic. He seemed uncertain, but Abby was sure he could rally as he had at the ranger station. It had just taken a little nudging from her, but he’d calmed down quickly after that.

  She was still glancing at Ben out of the corner of her eye when the Sheriff cleared his throat, getting her attention. “Abby? Can I ask you to take Becky to the station as well?” I will let Becky know right away when we find Dr. Bennard, and I’d like for you to tell Lanie everything you know.” He paused before continuing. “Everything.”

  Abby nodded as she continued to hold a sobbing Becky. The Sheriff kept her eye for a moment longer, then turned and half ran toward the patrol car with Frank in it. One deputy went with him, while the other ran towards the empty patrol car and before she knew it, they were racing out of the parking lot.