Burden of Proof

by DiAnn Mills

  “I need a favor.”

  “I’m ready to leave when you are.”

  45

  THROUGH BINOCULARS INSIDE HIS HOUSE, Jason observed a car parked on the eastern side of his property. Two men were positioned outside the vehicle. He moved to a southwest window and saw another car. A man and woman were stationed outside nearby. All four were dressed in jeans and hiking boots, with rifles slung over their backs and Glocks attached to their waists. Simon had called him at 8:30 this morning and requested he return home. The FBI had arranged to keep him safe, but Jason felt better confirming it.

  He’d been misled too many times lately, and for him to survive, he needed to work smarter.

  Before he judged Simon or the FBI for keeping April out of the loop, Jason’s growing list of questions demanded answers.

  So he’d hear Simon out. Control his temper.

  From what he’d learned about the five stages of grief, anger took the number two spot. After a year, shouldn’t he be past it? Step four was depression, and he’d spent far too long in that hole too. Every time he believed he’d surrendered the claws of grief to God, something caused him to draw it all back. Perhaps healing came in daily relinquishing the power and control to God. Perhaps he still needed a moment-by-moment reminder that God had a better purpose in taking Lily, and her healing belonged in heaven. Some people had shown Jason how to live an exemplary Christian life, and others, like his Lily, demonstrated how to pass on to Jesus’ arms.

  April texted him of her and Simon’s arrival within ten minutes. He checked on one of the vehicles and noted the man must have received an alert on his phone. But cynicism kept Jason cautious.

  The people waiting at both entrances looked like agents. But uncertainty of Willis’s whereabouts prompted Jason to tuck his weapon into the back of his jeans waistband, under a flannel shirt.

  He ground beans for coffee and brewed a huge pot. If he were a drinking man, he’d’ve added a shot of brandy. Snatching four cups from above the coffee bar, he readied himself. His dad’s presence would help him keep his head focused on listening.

  The low hum of a car engine and Fluffy’s resounding bark validated they’d arrived. Two doors slammed. The back doorbell rang.

  Time to make progress.

  He unlocked the back door and gestured them inside. April met him with a bruised smile and a swollen face. She limped inside.

  Simon stuck out his hand. “We meet again. Good to see you.”

  Jason grasped the hand with a firm grip. He gave a slight nod. “I haven’t decided yet.”

  “I deserve that.” Simon lifted his nose. “Fresh coffee? Never met a cup I didn’t like.”

  His friendly tone eased Jason a bit, but he’d not relinquish his guard. “Just finished brewing. Where’s my dad?”

  “I persuaded him to join his wife and granddaughter. Showed him a pic of his truck after the explosion. Told him about our concern for Billie and Zack. If Willis believed he could get to you through Ted, then he’s in as much danger as your daughter and mother.”

  “Glad you were able to pull it off.” One more worry gone from Jason’s mind. “FBI escort?”

  “Yes. An agent will call me when they reach the safe house. Your dad regretted not telling you good-bye before connecting with your family.”

  “I want to talk to all of them,” Jason said.

  “Of course. I’ll arrange it later on my phone.”

  He studied April. “Are you sure you’re up to this? Maybe you should run by the ER.”

  “I’m fine.” She walked to the coffee bar. “I’ll pour.” She obviously had a heads-up on the reason Simon requested the meeting.

  “Truth serum is in the sugar,” Jason said.

  April laughed lightly. “He likes honey.”

  “It’s there too. Local and good for allergies.”

  “Ouch.” Simon wrapped his arms across his chest. “Seriously, we need to establish trust.”

  Jason studied him. “Until I see proof of your sincerity, those words are empty.”

  “I’ll make sure you see it.”

  Jason couldn’t read a thing from Simon’s facial expressions. “Have you heard from Kevin Viner?”

  “Why?”

  “I’ve known him since we were boys.” Jason’s mind swept back to the years of growing up together. “I have doubts. He shows up at suspicious times.”

  “He doesn’t know I’m here.”

  “Should he?” Jason said.

  April set cups of coffee before them.

  “Thanks,” Simon said. “We’re going to bring Willis and his buddies down.”

  “Today would be good. You sidestepped my question about Kevin.”

  Simon took a drink of coffee. “He’s not on my list of concerns.”

  “What about Griff Wilcombe?”

  “At this point, he checks out.” Simon scrolled through his phone. “Griffin H. Wilcombe served in the US Army from 2011 through 2015, the last two years in Afghanistan. Decorated for bravery.”

  “He proved helpful when Willis took Ted into custody,” April said.

  Simon laid his phone on the table. “Are you ready to discuss what’s been going on?”

  Jason chose to listen. See if he could draw out the truth. “Yeah, what is going on?”

  Simon continued with a stoic look. “Some things are confidential. Some things I couldn’t tell April until now. And there are some things I can’t tell you.”

  Jason digested Simon’s words. “I’m not risking my life to add a notch to your career. My words to you still stand from last night. I’m not going to be your bait for Willis. And—”

  April touched his arm. “I agree you deserve answers.”

  Simon stared into his cup. “We have a search warrant for Willis’s home and land. But he’s disappeared.”

  46

  JASON STARED INTO the white-haired agent’s face and stuffed the irritation of not knowing critical information about Willis into a place where nothing was gained with demands. He resolved to see the FBI’s perspective.

  “You’re telling me with all of the FBI’s surveillance efforts, Willis can’t be found?” Jason said.

  “For the moment,” Simon said. “Agents called him last night after the accident, and he claimed to have been with Deputy Cal Bunion at his home. We made contact, and Bunion confirmed Willis’s statement. Agents drove to the Lennox place. No one home. His cruiser and truck were parked in the garage.”

  “Kevin and Griff?” Jason said.

  “Neither man is responding to our calls.”

  Jason reached to the far end of the table for his legal-size pad of paper. “Are you thinking he’s taken off in another vehicle or on foot?”

  “Both are viable options.”

  “Do you think Griff and Kevin might be with him?”

  “Again, viable options.”

  “And this is for additional questioning regarding April’s hit-and-run?”

  “We have cause to question Willis since he threatened her on multiple occasions.”

  “What else?” Jason kept his tone low.

  Simon seemed to toy with the decision to say more.

  April slowly eased onto a chair. “Simon, I understand confidentiality, but you can provide a few answers.”

  “Willis may be running scared from the FBI. We’ve been investigating him for over a year.”

  “Russell’s death expedited things?”

  “Yes.”

  “I’d like to know when the investigation began and what initiated it.”

  “About fourteen months ago, we received a call from the area that Willis was involved with illegal activities.”

  “From whom?” Jason tried to form a mental picture. But no one seemed a likely candidate.

  “If I could, I’d tell you.”

  “Over a year is a long time not to have something.”

  Simon took a drink of coffee. “Funds appropriated for the county went missing. The act had Willis’s fingerpr
ints on it. Also suspicions of pocketing bail money and taking bribes. As a result, we sent in an agent undercover, posing as a software developer who wanted to live in a rural area where he could hunt and enjoy nature. All he needed was connectivity. He hung out at Willis’s bar, established a friendship, and went hunting.”

  “What’s his name?”

  “Eric Deckett.”

  “Where is he now?” During hunting season, people drifted into the area and left again. Between his job, Isabella, his family, and church, he didn’t explore much else.

  “He disappeared. I’m not telling you anything you couldn’t find out on your own. Look in the county records, and there’s a discrepancy in the figures. If you google the FBI site, you’ll see a report about the missing agent.”

  Comprehension slammed into his brain. “And Billie might have seen Willis haul Deckett’s body into the woods?”

  “Yes.”

  The series of incidents fell into place. “Here’s what we’ve learned. Willis thinks I know the whereabouts of his wife and son. I imagine he has a flash drive that has photos she took the day after the killing. Dad has added things too, but I have no clue if they’d be tossed out in court.” Jason paused. “He, or someone he paid, murdered Russell, and I was framed for it. For added punch, he has Isabella nabbed. Then he released me and claimed I’d escaped jail and kidnapped my daughter. But that was his mistake. That and me taking April hostage brought in the FBI, which allowed you to probe deeper into his activities and move closer to learning what happened to your missing agent.”

  Simon sighed, a sign Jason was on the right track.

  “Billie contacted me and explained what she’d seen, which gives you a solid lead to finding your man. All roads point to Willis heading up a little empire with a strong possibility of two murders to his credit. But he’s gone.”

  “Sums it up,” Simon said. “The fact that Willis is missing says he’s attempted to cover his tracks one too many times.”

  “Or someone has put him out of his misery.”

  “Did you?”

  Jason huffed. “No. But I’ve thought about it.” He thought through what he knew. “Doesn’t public corruption fall under April’s division?”

  “Other agents were working the critical case. There was no need for April or me to have the details.”

  April swung a quick look at Simon. “I complicated things. When I’m back in the office, I’ll ask for a full explanation. But what’s more important than my ruffled feelings is securing evidence to arrest Willis.”

  “How long since your agent disappeared?”

  “Seven months,” Simon said. “Deckett was last seen at a bar in Sweet Briar with Willis. One other bit of info here. Billie and Zack left their apartment sometime yesterday afternoon, and she ditched her car at a park-and-ride at the Seattle airport. We lost track of her.”

  April spoke up. “What about the security cams at Sea-Tac?”

  “Nothing there. We’re investigating public transportation and the airport.”

  Jason couldn’t bring himself to write Billie’s and Zack’s names on the notepad. “She has resources to stay hidden. When I saw her last, she had determination stamped on her face. But Willis doesn’t give up either.” The thought of another tragedy sailed into his mind. “Simon, do you have reason to believe Willis has found her and that’s where he’s at?”

  “He didn’t have time to fly to Seattle, but he could have hired someone and had them delivered here. We’re working hard to locate Billie and Zack. Right now, I want to make sure Willis isn’t hiding out in these woods. We know what he’s capable of doing.” He turned to Jason. “I know you looked for a possible grave yesterday, and I appreciate it. But the FBI is going to take over.”

  Jason swallowed his ineptness and hoped Billie and Zack were safe and not in the hands of death.

  “We can arrange for dogs or heat-sensing technology to track him down, but there is a concern that he’s holding hostages.”

  Jason guessed where Simon was heading with this. “You need a man who knows this part of the country to find him. And this on the heels of using me as bait to corner Willis.”

  Simon tapped his fingers on the mug of coffee. “The FBI is not in the business of putting innocent people in danger. If you’re willing to lead agents across your land and his, we’d be grateful.”

  Jason eyed him. “With the suspicion Kevin Viner and Griff Wilcombe could be with him? All three men would be armed.”

  “We have agents to assist.”

  “This is crazy.” He shook his head. “I forgot it was Sunday. I know where Kevin is.” Jason pressed in Kevin’s burner number.

  “Jason, what’s going on?”

  He nodded at Simon. “Wondered if you’d seen Willis.”

  “Not since yesterday.”

  “Griff?”

  “He’s helping me set up for the high school youth group.”

  “Why aren’t you two answering your phones?”

  “Why all the questions? Neither of us are on duty, and my phone’s on vibrate. Look, these kids are piling in, and the sound system isn’t cooperating with the computer.”

  “I’ll talk to you later. If you hear from Willis, let April know.” Jason breathed relief and gave Simon and April the basics of the conversation. “The teens use the elementary school on Sunday mornings. It means setting up the equipment, then taking it down once things are wrapped up.” He waved away his unimportant explanation. “If I help you, I have a few requests.”

  “I already have your list.” Simon hesitated as though he wasn’t sure what to relay. “Your best friend is dead. Your daughter’s kidnapper—the daughter of Brenda Krew—is on the loose. Billie and Zack could be in danger. Someone attempted to kill a federal agent last night. We are on those aspects. There’s an issue at your parents’ bank with a missing flash drive from their safe-deposit box, containing information we need, specifically the photos the sheriff’s wife took. Although we know who allowed the theft to happen, we have no idea who has it. We’ll get all those answers.”

  “I have a duplicate of the missing flash drive.”

  “Here?”

  Jason nodded. “I’ll make a copy before you leave. I haven’t looked at it myself.” He stared out through his kitchen window to the horses and cattle grazing together. Fluffy lay in the side yard watching the animals. Normal. He was ready to see these tragic crimes solved and get his life with Isabella back.

  He stuck out his hand to Simon. “Let’s start tracking.”

  “Your handgun stays here.”

  47

  APRIL STUDIED THE THICK TREES and brush on the eastern section of the Lennox property, the area where Billie had seen her husband unload from the trunk of his cruiser what she feared was a body and carry it into the woods. Simon claimed they were after Willis, but she’d worked with him long enough to recognize another purpose—find an unmarked grave.

  The four agents who’d been on protective duty at Jason’s home joined them in the search for Willis. The three men were familiar agents from Houston, but the young woman, who had hunting skills, came from the Dallas office. She’d lead one effort with another agent. The other two agents took a second trail that Jason mapped out, and Jason and April took the third.

  “We want to find Willis Lennox ASAP,” Simon said. “With his wife and son missing, we’re concerned he has them. Joey Frederickson is also missing, and these woods would be a good hiding place.”

  “Here are a few guidelines,” Jason said. “Don’t wander off. These woods are filled with wildlife, and some of them aren’t friendly. Although the weather is cool, this is home to water moccasins and other poisonous snakes. If you can’t identify a deadly snake, leave them all alone. The low-lying areas are perfect for gators, although they tend to prefer the warmer weather too. So stay out of the marshes. Wild hogs will kill you. Period. Avoid approaching piglets ’cause Mama is bound to be close by. Camouflaged deer stands are prime spots for a shooter, or sh
ould I say a sniper. No Trespassing signs are posted, and Willis’s men will pull the trigger first and ask for your search warrant later. Be on the lookout. Wear bug spray. Got it? This could take a lot of hours. Stay hydrated.”

  A huge dose of satisfaction laced with pride filled April. Jason’s leadership surpassed most agents she knew.

  Simon took over the briefing. “Keep in contact. I’ve summoned the Woodville Police Department, and they’re en route to help with the manhunt. If Willis is here, we’ll track him down.”

  Jason signaled for Simon’s attention and held up a map for the others to see. “Your phones will have spotty connectivity, and as we go deeper into the woods, those radios and mics might not work. April and I will move southwest while group two tracks northwest and group three moves centrally.”

  While Simon waited on the dirt road for the Woodville police officers, April followed Jason into a thicket. For the next forty minutes, they tramped deeper into the woods.

  He shoved aside brush and often bent to study the ground. The sounds of birds amid the cool quiet should have been soothing. But mosquitoes swarmed like flies on rancid garbage. The insect repellent did little to keep them at bay.

  “Tell me what you see,” she said.

  He stood from examining the ground. “Deer tracks. We’re circling a marsh. You can probably smell it. If anyone’s been here, their footprints will be easily detected.”

  A snake slithered past on their right side.

  “Water moccasin,” he said. “Be careful.”

  “How many are around in hot weather?”

  “Lots.”

  They trekked for the next several minutes through the woods not far from Jason’s land. Their phones remained silent.

  “If we suspect trouble, you stay out of the way and call for help,” he said.

  She considered smacking him. “Right. I’m the trained agent here.”

  He stopped and swung to her. “April, have you checked the mirror?”

  “Doesn’t mean I can’t shoot. You kissed the road too, remember?”