“Exactly.”
“Black SUVs and accents? It’s almost too obvious. It hits all our bullet points. Cartel. Ivy’s attack in the alley. Black SUV in the area of that drug runner’s supposed murder-suicide.”
“That’s officially a homicide investigation now. I quietly made that change based on the evidence collected. Thought I’d mention that. He didn’t kill himself or anyone else,” C.T. chimed in. “Final straw…no residue on his hands. He didn’t fire a weapon at all.”
“The shit over at the coast on the beach. Black SUVs and cartel muscle for hires,” Wylie said. “We need to get Eva up to speed on this.”
“We will,” Dace agreed. “It’s starting to look like this shit all runs together. That’s a pretty big area and broad range to investigate. This gets more complicated by the day.”
“Drug mules running product in, not so low-key but careful with identity? Cartel would make their presence known so the Russians and Irish know there’s another player in town. The big weapons? That screams money backing this. We might have ourselves a war between organizations if we don’t get that piece figured out and quick. Weapons hit the street with those drugs, and we’re screwed. Especially if the Russians and Irish decide to clean out this third party together.”
“We’ll have a bloodbath on our hands,” C.T. said. “Shit. No kidding. As it stands, we know the Irish run a small weapons operation. Russians have dope. Both are running from down south in Northern Cali. You get a player in here running both – they’ll work together to clean house, then go back to their original treaty.”
Gannon nodded slowly. “We won’t be able to stop that. You know that, right? We’ll need to bring in the feds on that.”
“NO,” Dace nearly yelled. “If they’re not already all over this shit, they’re turning a blind eye on purpose.”
Carter let out a deep sigh. “Our new player on the street has the DEA and ATF in their back pocket – that’s the theory?”
“Has to be, right? How the fuck did all this shit go down, and we’re the only ones on it? Normally, we get called up to these cases by the feds, not the other way around.”
“Fuck. We can’t call anyone in. If anyone from either department is in bed with this asshole, we can’t trust anyone over there. We’d be playing right into their hand.”
“We keep it here for now. Until we get closer to the ball in play.” Dace was feeling closer to an answer than they’d been in weeks. But it wasn’t enough.
“I’ll tread carefully and see what I can get into on my end,” Carter said, referring to his resources in DC. “If this guy is linked to all this shit and has those guys on his payroll, it’s going to get dirty. Really fucking dirty.”
“Liam, we need you to kick it up a notch on facial rec, and all the other shit you do. Speed it up somehow. I don’t know…anything. We need to figure out exactly who Ivy’s father is and how he fits into all this – if he does.”
“I assure you, he does.” Eli spoke up. “He’s dirty. Dirty as they come. This is all him.”
“Let’s get a team down to Moss Bridge, Mississippi,” Dace said. “Let’s look at the house and see what kind of evidence is left.”
“That house was off the grid as far as that town was concerned. Nobody knows what happened, so I’m sure we’d be walking into a pretty grizzly scene this many weeks later. Be prepared for the battlefield of bodies,” Eli added.
Wylie dropped his head. “Jesus. We’re going to have to process the whole scene then and get a cleaning crew on standby.”
Gannon pulled out his phone and pecked at the screen. “I can help with intel and cleanup. We have a chapter just outside Moss Bridge. In fact, I believe a few of the guys live there because the club owns the bar on the edge of town. I’ll call in some favors.”
“We’re going to need all the favors we can get,” Dace said. “Let’s plan on wheels up in twenty-four.”
“Dace, you can’t go there.” Ivy pleaded while lying in her bed as tears welled. “It…it isn’t safe. What if someone is there…”
“I have to, Ivy. I’ll be fine.” Dace grabbed her hand as he sat at her bedside. Carly had given Ivy something to help her sleep after such a horrific day of reliving horrific memories. “It’s the last place our son was seen.”
“But he isn’t there. I looked everywhere. He’s…”
“Shh.” Dace noticed her eyelids growing heavy as sleep threatened to claim her. “There might be a clue as to where he is. I need to go and see it all for myself.”
“I can’t…” Ivy choked back emotion. “I can’t let you go.” Her voice dropped to a desperate whisper, “What if…what if you don’t come back? That place. It’s not a good place.”
Ivy’s eyes fluttered as she fought off the sleeping pills, losing her battle.
Dace stroked her head, brushing the hair from her face to comfort her as she gave in to the pull of the medication and hoped she still heard and felt his words. “I’ll come back, darlin’. Promise. I’ll come back. I’m not leaving you . I’ll never leave you. Never again.”
A lone tear trailed her cheek as she gave him a final glance. “I can’t lose you too. We’ve already lost…so much.”
She began to mumble, and it was clear to Dace she didn’t quite know what she was saying. He didn’t doubt that if totally coherent, they’d have a completely different conversation. A guarded one. She was showing emotion and sharing feelings she’d fought so hard to hide until now.
“I can’t lose you until…until you find him. You have to find him first. Before…before you’re…gone.”
Dace paused while he processed what she said. Until you find him. Before you’re gone. What did that mean? Part of him wanted to believe her words were confused as her mind succumbed to sleep. Then, there was a piece of him that wondered if it was just her truth, and she was unable to mask it under the influence of her medication. That she knew there was a plan to dismiss him along the way, but not until he brought their son to her.
His brothers’ doubt was influencing Dace’s thoughts and clouding his judgment. Ivy didn’t just come home to get help finding Cash. She came home because she needed Dace for the same reasons he needed her. The same reason they’d always need each other.
Even if her words were simply her truth – whatever that may be – his words were equally his truth. He’d fight. He’d fight for her. Fight for their son. Fight for them until there was nothing left to fight for.
He dipped his head, resting his forehead against hers, closed his eyes and listened to her breathe. “This isn’t how I pictured finding you. This isn’t how I thought I’d fight for you. But my promise remains…it will always be you, Ivy. Whatever that looks like. I’ll find our son, and we’ll find our way, baby.”
Dace kissed her forehead once, then twice, and the third time he paused before finishing the kiss and pulling away. “Always you, baby.”
19
Dace recruited Eli to assist on the trip to Moss Bridge. He didn’t entirely trust the man, but given the circumstances, he had little choice.
Sure, he’d been forthcoming with information, but much of what he shared was speculation, overheard statements out of context, and a lot of assumptions.
The one thing he believed Eli had pegged was that Ivy’s father was indeed behind this – all of it. He had no real basis for that feeling, but the pieces fit, and it proved Ivy was innocent.
He knew his brothers wouldn’t agree with that idea – Ivy hadn’t been proven anything. She very well could still be involved on some level and working with her father. Worse, she could be the mastermind and setting the man up because of some deep-rooted daddy issues. Regardless, the odds looked to be in her favor. The trip to Moss Bridge would hopefully solidify that.
They’d left late in the evening, coming in under the cloak of darkness as not to rile suspicions around town – especially if there was anyone left behind as a watch. If this were a setup, that was exactly what they’d run into. It was impor
tant to stay under the radar and as anonymous as possible. If this thing really did go up as high as it was alluded to in their meeting, none of them were safe, and they could be taking the fall for whatever was going down.
“They had a cleaner. Sounds like cartel to me,” Wylie said, assessing the scene. “This place is cleaner than most hospitals. It’s too sterile. Isn’t that obvious?”
“To us, it is. To anyone else, it’s just a clean house with a tidy yard,” Dace reasoned.
“Or it didn’t happen. This doesn’t look like a war zone. No bodies, no blood, no casings lying around,” Declan argued. “I hate to keep playing devil’s advocate here, but we can’t take the bait just because there were tears involved.”
“Jesus, Dec. You still think she’s behind this?” Dace asked with a fury and contempt for his brother he’d never had before. “You saw her. You heard her. She is as much a victim in this as the people who died that day and each day since.”
“I want to believe her, man. You know I do. She was like a sister to all of us, and we love her like family, even after all this time. But the moment we all let our guards down is the moment we’re the bodies on the ground. We don’t know if she’s been groomed for this, willingly participant or not. If this shit with her dad is the real deal, anything is possible where she’s concerned.”
“And my son? Made up too?” Dace questioned his brother’s intentions. Was it to hurt him? Make a point? Dace wasn’t stupid, and he could believe her and keep his guard up as not to fall victim to any ploy.
“I’d like to think she wouldn’t do something so cruel, Brother. But again…we need more.”
“I can assure you the boy is very real.” Eli came to Ivy’s defense, but more importantly, Dace’s. “The story she told was also very real.”
“Really?” Declan cocked his head to one side, prepared to hear the bullshit about to come his way.
Eli dropped his head and let out a loud, guttural growl. His hands placed on his hips, he began to pace in a small circle. “Fuck.” He tossed his head back and stared at the dark star-filled sky before he let out a heavy exhale. “I was there.”
“What the fuck?” Dace squared up with Eli. “What do you mean, you were there? As a participant? What didn’t you tell us?”
“I didn’t tell you I was there. That’s all. I didn’t participate. I was taking cover, okay?”
Dace laughed. “You? Were hiding? There’s a fucking bloodbath going down, my son is in the middle of it, seeing God knows what, my…Ivy was due back anytime, and you…were hiding?”
“It’s not exactly like that.”
Dace’s anger had escalated to rage, forcing Declan and Wylie to step between their brother and Eli in order to keep the matter under control.
“Pfft, oh really, Eli? Then what’s it exactly like?”
“I’d been excused from the meeting I was asked to sit in on. The meeting that prevented me from escorting Ivy to the farmers’ market. I was furious because she was out there alone, and the meeting was utter bullshit. Nothing valuable, I didn’t need to be a part of anything. I was told to check on the team. I left the office angry, and it all felt so off.” Eli looked at Dace. “I found Cash eating a sammy in the nook and playing with his motorcycle, so I sat with him instead of heading outside to check on the men who didn’t even report to me.”
“His motorcycle?” Dace questioned.
“It’s his favorite.” Eli dropped his tone and forced a weak smile at the memory. “Something in the tree line caught my attention – it wasn’t our typical regime making their rounds. They only circled the perimeter, and this was deeper into the woods. When I noticed more motion at the other end, across the back, I knew something was going down. First, the meeting, Ivy out of the house, and suddenly, I’m sent off to oversee men who didn’t know me from Adam much less report to me?”
Dace was stricken by what he was hearing. “Jesus. You were supposed to be a part of the massacre.”
“Likely. I moved Cash to his playroom and told him to stay on the floor and away from the windows. He knows the drill because, sadly, it’s his normal. I turned on a TV a little louder than normal and left for the path Ivy was due to return on. She wasn’t there as far as I could see, so I crept deeper into the trees and came in behind the first bastard I saw. Caught him off guard, dropped him dead. He wasn’t one of our guys. He was in full-blown camouflage, automatic weapon, and paint on his face like a damn soldier. Fucking idiot gave himself away because he had fucking reflective gear on like he was out hunting with the guys and didn’t want to get shot by his buddies. I found his mate, dropped him too. That’s when I started to hear the gunfire.”
“You were ambushed.”
“So it seems. What I saw was pure pandemonium and total bloodshed. Men were coming in from each direction, then the SUVs came with more men. The place was crawling with people I’d never seen before. I couldn’t go in. They had the element of surprise and eliminated the guards so quickly, I didn’t stand a chance.”
“They didn’t sweep the premises? Look for their missing men you took out?”
“Those who drove in, drove out, and the others retreated back into the woods from which they came. I’m sure they noted the missing at some point, but they didn’t even take their own men who fell at the hands of the other side. They left everyone who was dead.”
“Like they didn’t matter. Who does that? You never leave your fallen behind,” Dace said.
“Savages don’t, and that’s what these people were,” Eli said between gritted teeth. “I’m embarrassed to say I’d perched in a tree near the edge of the woods, hoping to remain undetected. There was nowhere else to hide, and I didn’t know if they’d be back. An hour must’ve passed, and I saw her…Ivy. I watched her pause, take in the scene, and the shock was instant. I believe her when she said the bodies just appeared to her. I could see it in her devastation. She didn’t immediately recognize what had happened because it was so extreme – as if her mind really was protecting her from herself. I sat silently in a fucking tree and watched her search, watched her cry, heard her scream for her son and father.”
Dace pinched the bridge of his nose. “Jesus.”
“Jesus definitely wasn’t there that day, mate. This was pure evil. I couldn’t go to her, comfort her, help her…” Eli’s eyes began to well with tears. “I had to let her panic, feel that fear, and watch her run because we had a plan, and it was to go find you. I needed her to go so I could chase leads and look for answers elsewhere, answers I didn’t find. I knew we couldn’t do this alone, and I couldn’t keep her safe while looking for Cash and also following leads. I needed her to get to you. So I sat. Waited. And when she left, I followed. We hit Portland, and I thought she was safe, so I left to chase those leads.”
“You didn’t come back here?” Declan asked.
“No. I saw what happened with my own eyes. I knew there was little to nothing here. I retraced the steps that got us here. I followed up with old leads and old contacts. They’re all dead. He got to them.”
Dace had a glimmer of hope in his eye when he asked, “Did you see him? Did you see Cash leave?”
“No. I didn’t see him. But I know he got out, and I’m assuming it was with his grandfather, because when I finally made my way to the front of the house, I found his motorcycle in the drive, right where the SUVs were parked.”
That glimmer of hope became Dace’s new motivation. “Then he’s alive. Let’s find him.”
Declan grunted. “It’s a good story, man, but…”
“But what if I’m in on it and just performing my part?” Eli smiled. “Follow me.”
Eli led the men to a shed on the far corner of the property and opened the unlocked door. An overwhelming pungent stench wafted through the air, offending their senses. It reeked of death, causing their stomachs to roil.
“What the hell is in here?” Wylie asked. “Damn.”
Eli pulled a string above his head, and a dim light came on, exp
osing the source of wickedness. Two dead men, wearing camouflage, in various stages of decay. “I’d like to introduce you to the men who drew me out to the woods.”
“What the hell, Eli? A little warning would be nice.” Dace pulled the sweat-soaked collar of his shirt over his mouth and nose, but it didn’t help. It only added his own odor to the plethora of disgust.
“It’s the only thing I found or thought was worth hanging on to. I don’t know who they are, but maybe you do,” Eli said. “Ivy took off in one of the SUVs left behind by her father’s crew, so I stayed, pulled these guys in, and looked for anything else I could find. Then I caught up with her a bit later by tracking her GPS.”
“Smart,” Dace said, snapping pictures of what was left of the two deceased men. “I don’t recognize them, but that doesn’t mean shit. I’ll send these to Liam to run through the database, see if there are any hits.”
Eli asked, “Can he even get anything with their faces so far…gone?”
Wylie chuckled. “He’ll probably reconstruct them in the images in one program before running them in another. The shit that guy can do is pretty impressive.”
“And scary,” Dace said. “If they’re anyone we need to know about, he’ll figure it out.”
“Do you believe me now, Declan?”
“We still need to clear the house,” Declan said before heading inside to see what, if anything, their crew had found.
Wylie slid his cell phone into his back pocket. “Liam said he’d like a heads-up next time we send shit like that over. Apparently, he was eating a late-night snack in the lair, and it didn’t go over well. He’s still trying to pull footage from CCTV and area cameras but having a hard time. Not all the systems are designed to keep footage for this many weeks. He’ll let us know what he finds.”
“We just need one shot with Ivy’s dad in one of those vehicles,” Dace said.
“Ah, but your brother may not be satisfied with that,” Eli joked. “It doesn’t mean he’s behind it. It means he’s simply in the car, mate.”
Brother's Keeper V: Wylie (the complete series BOX SET): NEW RELEASE + Series Box SET included! Page 105
