by Aimée Thurlo
Lee walked over to the bedroom door and tapped lightly. “Bridget, we have a few questions for you.”
Just then Diane’s cell phone rang.
Bridget opened the door and peeked out. Lee motioned with his head for her to come out as Diane walked back toward the kitchen area. Although Diane’s telephone conversation was too low for even a vampire to hear clearly, he’d managed to make out that the call was about Elka, so the caller was probably Logan.
He smiled at Bridget. “Let’s go to the sofa while she’s on the phone. I need to ask you a few more questions about Elka.”
Lee sat in the chair across from her, not too close. He wanted her to feel comfortable with him. If what she’d said about her background was true, he suspected she’d developed some serious skills as a con artist—many young runaways like her had been forced to play a role in order to survive.
“I know you said something about this before, but think carefully—is there any way that Elka could know or learn about this apartment? Or that you’re here? Assuming you’re not trying to con us, of course.”
Bridget looked up at Diane, who had just come back from the kitchen.
“I’m not trying to trick you or set you up. I decided to turn myself in to you when I realized there was only one other choice. I could either help kill people and risk being killed myself, or put myself in the hands of a ‘good’ vampire—if that’s what you really are.” Bridget looked at Lee, but instead of validating that, he simply waited.
Bridget took a deep breath and continued. “When I spoke with Elka this morning I told her that I knew where Diane lived, but I never gave her the address. And since I got the information when I picked the lock on Lee’s mailbox a few nights ago, there’s no way she could know.”
“You’re very handy around locks,” Diane said acidly.
“One of the things I did for Elka and her family was help gather information about people.”
“People who were to be killed?” Diane challenged.
“Or compromised. But I didn’t hurt anyone directly.”
“How do you two stay in contact? Cell phones?” Lee asked.
“Sometimes, but not on this trip. Elka was worried about being monitored. We use code phrases on E-mails to set up meetings, but crucial information, like names and addresses, are only passed face-to-face.”
“You have a laptop, then? Where is it?” Diane asked. “I didn’t see it in your car.”
“It’s under the spare tire in the trunk. I can give you the codes we use, I suppose, and how we get in touch,” Bridget said.
“Keep telling Lee all you can, but I’m going to have to go out for a while,” she said, reaching for her jacket. “Logan wants to meet me at Elka’s apartment—the address Bridget gave us earlier,” she told Lee. “She wasn’t there, of course, but apparently there’s some evidence he’d like me to examine.”
“Anything about me?” Bridget asked, her tone betraying her uncertainty.
“Not that he mentioned. You’ve never been there, right?” Diane asked.
“No, she gave me the address just before we separated in Corrales. After the officer was killed I decided it was time for a change in plans. There was no way I wanted to become linked to his death—or yours either. So I came here. You know the rest.”
Diane nodded.
“I’ll stay here with Bridget. Call if you need something,” Lee said to Diane. “You might want to get that laptop out of her car on the way back, though.”
“Okay. Stay safe. I’ll be back as soon as I can,” Diane said, then let herself out.
Lee went to the window and watched until Diane drove away. Locking the door, he walked back to Bridget, who had remained on the sofa.
“You two are more than partners. I can see the way you look at each other,” Bridget said. “Elka’s husband, Jochen, who was killed by the Iraqis—he wasn’t a vampire. Did you know that?”
Lee shrugged. “I figured as much, him being an assassin and going into a country with so much sunshine. What else did you find out about them during the time you were together?”
“Well, I was treated like hired help, so they never told me much more than I had to know to do the jobs they gave me, and one of them always went with me. Elka is … was the leader, and until recently has always been really cold and analytical.”
She stopped, then abruptly changed the subject. “Have you and Diane ever thought about making her a vampire?” Bridget asked.
He was thinking about how to answer that when the telephone rang. Lee walked over to the wall unit. It probably wasn’t Diane or one of their supervisors, Lieutenant Richmond or SAC Logan. They would have dialed his cell number.
“Yes.” Lee decided not to identify himself. He’d forwarded all his business calls here and was using two different names in addition to his real one. He couldn’t afford a slipup that might cost a life.
Lee recognized Stump’s voice. “We’ve decided to move up the delivery time. Bring the cash and meet me on the east end of the bridge closest to our last meeting place. Be there in a half hour or the sale is off.”
Lee’s thoughts raced. The Silver Eagle skinwalkers were throwing him a curve ball. Had Angela talked, or were they just paranoid after Raymus’s death? Stump was still being cryptic, as if the call was being monitored. It was, of course.
“Can you give me an hour? I’m way up in the Heights, and the money is in our office downtown. We weren’t planning on delivery so soon, and your call was forwarded to our home.” Lee needed to stall until Diane returned. They were planning on taking the skinwalkers down hard and the plan called for her backup.
“Forty-five minutes. Or no deal.”
“That might be enough time. One more thing,” Lee added.
“Now what?” Stump grumbled.
“Which side, north or south?” He knew that Stump was referring to the Alameda bridge, closest to Corrales, but there were really two bridges side by side.
“Just go under the eastern end. Well find you.” Stump hung up.
Lee turned and noticed Bridget had been listening. It was expected, especially because she probably didn’t trust them very much yet either, for good reason.
“Sounds like cop work. Nothing about Elka?” Bridget crinkled her nose, a flirting gesture that could have disarmed most men, even a hardened policeman.
“I’ve got some cop work to do tonight.” Lee checked his pistol and spare ammunition automatically. He left his backup .45 and commando dagger untouched, not wanting to give out too much information to the young vampire on the sofa. He also scooped up her pistol and ammunition from the table, but left the knife. Unless he took the entire silverware drawer with him, she’d still have a weapon anyway.
She saw what he was doing but didn’t protest. “And Diane’s not going to be here either? Don’t I get a baby-sitter?” she teased.
“That would probably only complicate matters. Stay here and avoid any chance of being seen. Got that?”
“You are going to trust me,” she said, surprised.
Letting her think whatever she wanted, Lee used the cell phone and cryptically let Diane know about Stump’s call. He gave the time of the meeting, and the location of the bridge as the one closest to where she grew up. Bridget had no way of knowing where Diane had spent her childhood and that extra precaution seemed like a smart move at the moment.
Diane was now at a security command post on the base. She’d have to travel all the way across Albuquerque to back him up, but she’d be there. He hurried to the door, knowing he had to move fast to get back and forth across town, even during this time of night.
“I’ll be here when you come back, probably,” Bridget said, standing and walking across the room toward him.
“Probably?”
“Well, if I were to go, then you wouldn’t have the problem of trying to figure out what to do with me or who to tell.”
“True,” he said, then paused for a long moment. “Whatever you decide to do, Bridg
et, stay out of trouble.” He added, “I’d hate to be the one who has to kill you later on,” then stepped outside quickly. “Lock the door.” He hurried down to the car, keeping a sharp eye out for skinwalkers or vampires. As he reached into the backseat for his bullet-resistant vest, he smiled. His life was becoming more and more like a horror movie.
As he drove south down the freeway toward the downtown area, Lee remembered that the Silver Eagle skinwalkers knew where his office was, so it was possible they’d be waiting for him there instead.
Lee strongly suspected he was being led into a trap. The skinwalkers were changing the way they worked, and that was a bad sign, but he still had to play things out. All he had now was evidence of their smuggling operations, and he needed more. He called Lieutenant Richmond and told him about the meeting at the Alameda bridge, asking for heavily armed backup, but requested that the officers use a silent approach to avoid tipping off the Silver Eagle smugglers.
When he arrived downtown he circled the block twice, looking into every dark alley and doorway before stopping at their business. To break the pattern he parked in front and went in that entrance, avoiding the alley completely. He was in and out in five minutes with the cash in a small metal briefcase, now dusted with a powder that would show up under ultraviolet light, and carrying a tiny digital audio recorder in his button-down shirt pocket.
I-25 was only a few minutes away from their office location, and at this time of night Lee had no problem making good time northeast on the freeway to the Alameda exit. Off-Interstate traffic was heavier than he expected going west on Alameda Boulevard, but he made it to the river five minutes ahead of schedule.
Lee slowed the vehicle and pulled into a parking lot just south of Alameda where it approached the newer, wide concrete bridge. No other vehicles were there this time of night, but he’d seen the recreation area filled with cars early in the morning and on weekends. There were trails and bicycle paths that paralleled the river here, and access to the bosque and the Rio Grande.
He looked at his watch, then called Richmond again. A few officers would be in the area soon, but hadn’t arrived yet. Lee asked that when his backup arrived the officers hold their positions beside the two intersections east and west of the river for at least five more minutes, then advance on foot. He wanted to make sure money and contraband changed hands first, and, if possible, get something recorded that would provide evidence for murder charges.
It had sounded very plausible, but Lee knew that the scent of the officers, even at a distance, would alert the skinwalkers, and that was why he’d really made that request. As he stepped out of the vehicle with the briefcase, he checked the direction of the wind. There was a slight breeze coming from the west, which served him well because he was on the east side of the river. The skinwalkers, unless they approached from behind, wouldn’t be able to catch his real scent until just the right moment, which was part of his plan.
Lee knew he had been too far away the other night to be recognized by sight, but the wolves had picked up his real scent, the scent of the man who’d killed Raymus. Marie wouldn’t let him walk away tonight.
The absence of other vehicles didn’t necessarily mean he’d beat them to the meeting place. Lee walked west out of the parking area and onto a narrow asphalt path. On his left, a small, permanently flowing canal ran parallel to the river. He looked ahead to where the path continued beside the canal as both passed beneath the bridge. It was clear except for a little graffiti on the bridge pillar to his right.
There was a noise somewhere to his left and Lee saw a beaver scuttle into the canal from the bank. It swam off south with the current.
Lee passed beneath the bridge. Not far in the distance, the path made a ninety-degree turn back to the west to parallel the bridge on its north side. Lee decided that Stump had probably meant the old structure. The old Alameda bridge, now painted blue, was a narrow wood and steel structure that had been left intact just north of the new one. It now served as a pedestrian walkway and for people on bicycles or horses.
Lee turned on his recorder, then continued over the hill, actually a long, high levee. Once across the top, he continued down the pathway and through a steel gate used by the parks department to restrict vehicle access to the bosque. Now he could see three people standing beneath the bridge about halfway to the river, which rippled quietly fifty feet behind them.
They probably didn’t realize that he could see them already despite the darkness, so he had the opportunity to evaluate the situation. Stump was recognizable by his bulk even if Lee couldn’t see his face. He wore a black trench coat like in some old gangster movie, and his sawed-off shotgun was visible in his right hand. The second person was one of the delivery guys, but not Long-hair. He was holding a pistol half out of his jacket pocket. It would have been invisible to a mortal even up close.
Angela, wearing a windbreaker and jeans, was standing beside a large duffel bag, which rested on the sand at her feet. She didn’t appear to be carrying a weapon, and instead of watching Lee, Angela’s eyes were directed toward the grove of giant cottonwood trees to the north.
Stump elbowed her, muttering something Lee couldn’t quite make out. Immediately she focused in Lee’s direction. Lee glanced out of the corner of his eye and saw the muzzle of a wolf down low beside the trunk of one of the trees. Angela had just sent him a warning, intentional or not.
Lee was having second thoughts about his hasty call for backup to the lieutenant. Any help was supposed to approach from both sides of the river. It had been too late to send officers along the riverbanks themselves, up and down the bosque from north and south.
The obvious direction of escape for the skinwalkers would be to the left and right along the wooded bosque, and in that environment Lee would have the advantage over any police officer. None had his speed or night vision, and he knew that any fleeing skinwalker would assume animal form the moment they had the time. The problem would arise if the Silver Eagle pack split up when the shooting started.
His and Diane’s original plan had been flexible, but it had been based upon the original meeting time and the necessity of provoking violence. Tonight had quickly become a pull-it-out-of-your-ass operation. However, Lee felt very confident that his scent would incite the skinwalkers into a fight.
The instant they reacted, as skinwalkers always seemed to do without much thought, they would be taken down hard. Their guns would be his biggest problem, because bullets traveled much faster than fangs and claws, and only his torso was protected by the vest, now underneath his jacket.
“Yáat’ééh,” Lee greeted, then stopped. “That our stuff in the bag?”
“Could be. You have the money?” Stump grumbled.
Lee held out the briefcase. “Could be.”
There was a low growl, then the sound of rustling leaves to his right. Lee turned his head and saw three enormous wolves less than fifty feet away, watching him intently. Angela had betrayed him after all.
“Those your dogs? I think the parks department requires leashes. You could get a ticket.” Lee used the position of the briefcase to conceal his other hand, which now held his pistol.
Wishing Diane were here beside him and at the same time grateful she wasn’t, Lee forced himself to look away from the wolves and at Stump, his biggest danger from this direction. He took another step toward the three humans, watching how the big Navajo was holding his shotgun.
As stupid as it sounded, he was going to have to force a fight and hope they didn’t shoot him up too badly. “Where’s Raymus?” he said loudly, turning to look at the wolves, which were circling around behind him. The female was undoubtedly Marie and her teeth were bared.
“Quit trying to bullshit us, cop. We saw you and your woman on TV!” the man with Stump and Angela yelled sarcastically. “Didn’t you cops get our message last time? How many more have to die before you back off?”
Lee remembered that they’d been within sight of a camera crew over at the hotel wh
ere Rogers had been attacked, but he’d believed that they’d been far enough away. That mistake would cost him now, but on the good side, he wouldn’t have to force a confrontation.
“You’re all bark and no bite, delivery boy,” Lee said. “Who killed the two officers anyway? Stump did the shotgun work, obviously, but which of you gutless dogs emptied your magazines on them after they were already down? Besides that sick puppy Raymus, of course.” Lee looked over at the Marie wolf. The bitch’s hair was standing up along her backbone. It was a wonder she hadn’t attacked already.
“Trash talk is still trash, cop. You’re not walking away, and there’s not going to be any quick death for cop number three. Those two guys died in a hurry, but we’re going to eat you alive,” Stump said with a sneer.
“Oh, you think I came alone} My partner’s up there waiting for my signal to send down the troops.”
“Yeah, right. We’ve been here an hour and the place is deserted. Our partners here”—Stump pointed toward the wolves with pursed lips, Navajo style—“have been sniffing around. Just us and one walking, talking chew stick.”
Angela was anxiously watching the others now, not him, and she hadn’t shown a weapon. Unless she got the chance to shape-shift, it didn’t appear she was going to be any help tonight to anyone. At least he finally knew she hadn’t betrayed him.
Lee fought the distraction. Angela was just here for herself, and she wouldn’t make a move to help him unless it was clear he’d already won. Lee needed to focus—and stall. Another two or three minutes and his backup would start moving in.
One of the wolves snorted, maybe Long-hair, and he knew they were now downwind enough to detect his nightwalker scent—the scent of the one they knew killed Raymus. They froze, their nostrils working overtime.
Lee knew this was his only chance. Stump and the loudmouth with the pistol couldn’t shoot without hitting their own. He swung around, hurling the briefcase at the big female just as she made her move. She had to dodge before she could leap, and by then he was in a crouch, his pistol out and on target.
