Deep in the Snow

by Wendy Meadows

  “I’m in the clear,” he yelled, easing his eyes up over the top of his desk. “Amanda, speak to me.”

  “I want a raise,” Amanda yelled back, keeping her head tucked under Sarah’s left arm.

  Sarah turned and looked at the shattered window. Powerful winds began pushing the blinds up into the air as if they were nothing more than a thin summer curtain. She had just started to get up on one knee when a second bullet announced itself screeching just past her ear. “Down!” she yelled.

  “High-powered assault rifle,” Conrad shouted from behind the desk. “Whoever’s shooting at us knows his stuff.”

  Sarah heard footsteps running up to the office door and knew that Andrew was about to barge in. “Stay out!” she called, keeping her arm over Amanda’s head. “Andrew, we have an active shooter outside.”

  “Go secure the front,” Conrad yelled.

  “I’m on it!” Andrew’s muffled voice came through the door and Sarah heard the echo of his footsteps as he ran off.

  “Amanda, crawl to the office door. We need to get out into the hallway,” Sarah whispered. “Can you do that for me?”

  “Los Angeles,” Amanda replied in a low, tense voice, “I can crawl from here to Key West if it means staying alive.”

  “I hear you.” Sarah helped Amanda crawl to the office door. She slowly raised her left hand, grabbed the doorknob, turned it, and eased the door open. Together, she and Amanda crawled out into the hallway. “Are you coming?” she called back to Conrad.

  Conrad stared at the Venetian blinds blowing in the stormy winds. Anger ripped his chest apart. “This isn’t over,” he promised.

  Chapter Six

  “Come on!” Sarah yelled.

  “Yeah, I’m coming.” Conrad crawled out into the hallway. “There’s no way Gatti is shooting at us,” he said, pulling the office door shut.

  “How do you know that?” Amanda asked, coming up onto her knees. “There’s a crime boss in town and bullets are flying through your office window.”

  Sarah waited to hear a third bullet chew through Conrad’s office. When the bullet didn’t come, she stood up. “Let’s go,” she said, taking Amanda’s hand and pulling her up.

  “Where?”

  “To the Chief’s office. It’s time we had a little chat with him.”

  Conrad tucked his gun back into his shoulder holster. “Chief is out of town right now visiting his daughter. Andrew is the senior officer in charge until the Chief returns from his visit.”

  “Speaking of Andrew, here he comes,” Amanda said and nodded up the hallway.

  “Tom and Edwin have the lobby secured,” Andrew told Conrad. He still had his gun drawn and at the ready. “Any idea who’s doing the shooting?”

  “No,” Conrad said tersely.

  “It’s got to be that Gatti guy,” Andrew insisted. His voice was surprisingly calm. “Detective Spencer, who else would be sending bullets into your office?”

  “It’s not Gatti,” Conrad growled. “Someone was sending me a message to back off, that’s all.”

  Andrew looked at Conrad with confusion in his eyes but didn’t say a word. Instead, he nodded his head and walked back to the lobby. “You were awful rude just now,” Amanda told Conrad.

  Ignoring her remark, Conrad turned to Sarah. “You said that Mintfield said he recognized Sophia in the grocery store, right?”

  “It’s possible. You said your ex-wife dyed her hair black and cut it short. Steve said the woman he saw had short black hair. What are the chances of a second woman with short black hair and a Yankee accent showing up in town?”

  “And this man with the red hair and beard, he was parked outside in the parking lot that day, right?”

  “Yes.”

  “How did this man know who was Sophia was? And how did he know Sophia was hidden here in Snow Falls?”

  “I don’t know the answer to those questions, Conrad,” Sarah confessed.

  Conrad rubbed his right cheek with a frustrated hand. “Sophia goes missing for two weeks... a stranger begins to track her in town—”

  “And don’t forget that Mr. Red asked Steve for a spare set of keys to your ex-wife’s cabin,” Amanda pointed out.

  “The back door to her cabin was kicked open... Sophia ends up dead..”

  “Conrad, I hate to jump ship on the idea that Sophia was murdered, but maybe she did freeze to death after all?” Sarah suggested. “If someone did kick the back door to her cabin open, then that means Sophia may have been scared and run out of the front door. And if she ran out into a snowstorm, at night, she could have gotten lost.”

  Conrad continued to rub his face. “Let me chew on that idea for a while,” he said slowly. He was internally struggling to dismiss the anger he was feeling and search out a logical path for his thoughts to walk on.

  “We don’t have a while,” Amanda reminded him. “I’m with Los Angeles. I think your ex-wife got lost in the snowstorm and froze to death, too scared to return back to her cabin.”

  “Then why didn’t she run to her truck? She had her purse, didn’t she?” Conrad asked.

  “Plows don’t run regularly on the road she lived on. I checked,” Sarah informed him. “Could have been that her truck was snowed in.”

  Conrad considered Sarah’s argument. Understanding that his emotions were interfering with his ability to think sensibly, he drew in a deep breath and closed his eyes. “The guilt I’m feeling is tearing me apart,” he confessed. “I have to take responsibility for Sophia’s death. If it weren't for me... she’d still be alive. Because of me... she was brought here...” Conrad ran his hands through his hair.

  Amanda shook her head and with an impatient hand, slapped Conrad across the face as hard as she could. Conrad’s eyes flew open in shock. “Life is full of disappointments, New York,” she scolded. “If you want to continue blaming yourself for the death of a woman who was walking down a dead end street anyway, then go right ahead. Los Angeles and me, we have seven days to find a killer or die. And I don’t think my husband wants to return from London and find his lovely wife dead, do you? So stop whining and get with the program!”

  Conrad rubbed his stinging cheek. “You hit me?”

  “Want me to hit you again?” Amanda asked.

  Conrad stared into Amanda’s fiercely caring eyes. “I get it,” he promised her. “I’ll get my mind back to home plate.”

  “Good,” Amanda said. She patted his shoulder. “Because you’re a good cop and I have confidence in you.”

  “Me, too,” Sarah said. “Listen to me, okay? We have more clues than we had last night. We have a lot to go on. It’s obvious Gatti thinks the killer is in town. He must think the killer knows where the book the Feds were searching for is.”

  “Which would explain the countdown of seven days,” Conrad said, catching on to Sarah’s train of thought.

  “But,” Sarah continued, “what if Sophia really did freeze to death and wasn’t murdered? What if the Feds just wanted Gatti to believe Sophia was murdered?”

  “We have a dirty Fed on our hands... or three dirty Feds,” Conrad replied, looking at his office door. “It’s possible that’s who sent those two bullets into my office.”

  “As a warning to back off,” Amanda said as her eyes grew wide. “Yes, I get it now. The FBI doesn’t want you helping Gatti find the person who was after Sophia because they’re afraid of whatever it is she had and don’t want Gatti getting a hold of it. But Gatti, Mr. I’ll-Smear-Your-Face-Into-The-Concrete, he’s twisting our arms to help him. In the meantime, we have Mr. Red running around playing Mr. Know-It-All, the lousy bloke.”

  “Possibly so,” Sarah congratulated Amanda on her deductions.

  “We have got to find the man with the red hair,” Conrad said in an urgent voice.

  “He told me that he would be in touch,” Sarah explained. “He also insulted my coffee, the jerk.”

  Conrad shoved his hands into the front pockets of his jeans. “Then all we can do is wait. The s
torm is predicted to grow into full force by nightfall. Tomorrow Snow Falls will be at a complete standstill. Our job isn’t going to be simple. The weather is really working against us, here, guys.”

  “We can do this,” Sarah promised, attempting to sound positive. Deep down, however, she wondered if she should run home and update her will. “Conrad, you need to ride your friend in Washington and push him to dig up everything he can. Time is really of the essence here.”

  Feeling exhausted from lack of sleep and too much coffee, Conrad felt a hint of irritation flash through his system. “My friend is kicking over every rock he can for us,” he told Sarah in a tone that wasn’t too pleasant, and then closed his eyes. “There I go again,” he quickly apologized.

  “And they say us women are moody,” Amanda joked. She slapped him on the shoulder with a gentle hand. “You’re okay, New York. Don’t worry about being moody. My husband gets moody all the time. I’ve learned to ignore him and just smile... that drives Jack crazy.”

  Sarah focused on the office door again. “All is quiet,” she said, attempting to force Conrad away from the negative track he was veering off onto. “Should we dare go back into your office?”

  Conrad shifted his eyes to the door as well. His office was no longer a safe haven, he realized. Snow Falls was no longer a place to leave your doors unlocked at night. The small, snowy town had become a cave filled with deadly vipers waiting to strike at any second. “I’ll check—”

  “What’s going on here?” a man’s voice roared.

  Sarah spun around and saw Gatti walking down the short hallway toward Conrad with his two bodyguards close behind. “What are you trying to pull?” he asked, pointing a weathered finger at Conrad.

  Conrad’s face turned red with anger. “Look at this,” he yelled and kicked his office door open. “Someone just sent two bullets through my office window from a high-powered rifle. What am I trying to pull? Why don’t you ask the Feds what they’re trying to pull?”

  Gatti walked up to Conrad’s office door. Conrad moved to the side and let Gatti view his office. “If the Feds wanted you dead, boy, you would be dead,” he growled.

  Sarah caught sight of Andrew at the far end of the hallway. He had his gun drawn and at the ready. “It’s okay,” she told him.

  “Take a hike, Opie,” the bodyguard in his twenties told Andrew in a sarcastic tone.

  Instead of taking a hike, Andrew walked down the hallway and pointed the gun in his hand right in the face of the young bodyguard. “Listen to me,” he said in a voice that made Sarah want to take cover, “this is my town, do you understand that? I know who you are, but I don’t know why you’re in my town. I’m hereby giving you an eviction notice. Get out of town before dark or I’m going to place you under arrest on suspicion of murder.”

  “What murder?” Gatti snapped at Andrew.

  “The murder of an innocent woman who was found frozen to death... a woman you are acquainted with, Mr. Gatti,” Andrew replied, keeping his voice firm. “The State’s Attorney’s Office might be very interested in knowing that a crime boss from Boston is lingering around in the town that his ex-girlfriend was brought to under the protection of the FBI. They might also be very interested in knowing how you found out the location of a woman who was in the Witness Protection Program? I know I’m mighty curious, myself.”

  Gatti balled his hands into furious fists. The last thing he wanted—or needed—was for a small town cop to make trouble for him. “Don’t threaten me, cop. I play rough.”

  Andrew kept his gun in the face of the young bodyguard and looked at Gatti. “I’m sure you do, Mr. Gatti, but up here in Alaska, we know how to play rough too. When the law fails, we take matters into our own hands. Be out of town by dark or I’m going to gather myself up an old-fashioned posse of men who tangle with hungry grizzly bears just for the fun of it.”

  Gatti’s breathing grew faster as he realized he was outnumbered. The truth was, he was outnumbered and outflanked until he could get more of his own men situated onto the battleground. “You’re a dead man,” he promised Andrew.

  “Mr. Gatti,” Andrew said, nodding his head at Conrad, “you have the right to remain silent. Anything you say or do...”

  Gatti looked at Conrad. Conrad whipped out his gun and pointed it at him. “You threatened a cop in front of three witnesses,” he told Gatti. “You may kill me in seven days, Gatti... but I’m not going to stand by and let you threaten a good man. Put your hands behind your back.”

  The bodyguard in his forties reached for his gun. Out of instinct, Sarah reached for her ankle, yanked her gun out of the holster, and pointed it at the bodyguard. “Freeze,” she yelled.

  “Do what the cop says,” Gatti told his bodyguard in a low growl. He narrowed his eyes at Conrad. “You’re being very stupid. I came here because I thought you sent someone to shoot at my limo. I would have walked away after seeing your office. Now, it’s personal.”

  “It’s always been personal,” Conrad said. “Deep down, Sophia loved me and I loved her. But you were just her toy, Gatti, and nothing more. Now get your hands behind your back.”

  “And you two drops your guns,” Andrew warned Gatti’s bodyguards.

  “Do it,” Gatti ordered. “Pick your headstone, boy,” he warned Conrad as he put his wrists behind his back and turned around.

  Sarah waited until Gatti’s two bodyguards disarmed themselves. Sensing Amanda staring at her, she looked at her friend. “What?”

  “You were awesome!” Amanda exclaimed. “Freeze... pow... wham! Policewoman at your service. I can’t wait to tell Jack about this.”

  Sarah looked over at Conrad. He winked at her. “Once a cop, always a cop,” he said proudly.

  “You’re all dead men walking,” Gatti warned.

  Amanda, sick of being threatened, threw her hands up at Gatti. “Oh, go eat a poisoned cannoli.” She walked away toward the front lobby, mumbling to herself. “Bald-headed bloke thinks he can scare me, he has another think coming...”

  Sarah and Conrad stared at each other with uncertainty. Outside, the snow continued to fall, and the storm grew stronger.

  Chapter Seven

  “Gatti won’t make bail until he sees Judge Fleishman,” Conrad told Sarah as they sat at the table in her kitchen. “Today is Thursday, and the judge won’t be back in town till Monday. Until then, Gatti will be sitting on ice along with his two thugs.”

  “That’s good, then, right?” Amanda asked, munching on a turkey sandwich.

  “Actually, it is,” Conrad said. He looked down at the half-eaten grilled cheese sandwich sitting on his plate. “Whoever sent those bullets into my office unintentionally did us a huge favor.”

  “Gatti’s temper did us a huge favor,” Sarah added, taking a bite of leftover shepherd’s pie. “He was stupid to threaten a cop in front of reliable witnesses.”

  “Unless...” Amanda began as a sudden thought ran through her mind. “Say, do you guys think maybe Gatti wanted to be arrested?”

  Conrad looked across the kitchen table at Sarah. He shrugged his shoulders. “It’s a thought,” he admitted.

  Sarah nodded. “We did find his limo with the front right wheel shot out,” she said. “But why would Gatti allow himself to be arrested? He’s not the type of man to run scared.”

  “I’m not sure... assuming Gatti intentionally threatened Andrew with the purpose of being arrested,” Conrad confessed. He began to speak again when a hard knock struck the back door. Conrad exploded to his feet and pulled out his gun.

  Sarah reached out and grabbed her own gun, which she had placed beside the dinner plate. “Amanda—”

  “I know.” Amanda quickly crawled under the kitchen table.

  “Ready?” Sarah whispered to Conrad. He nodded his head and dropped down onto one knee. “Who is it?” Sarah called out.

  “The man who knows the truth,” a voice called back.

  “It’s him, the red-headed man,” Sarah whispered.

  “O
pen the door,” Conrad ordered, keeping his gun aimed at the back door.

  Sarah reluctantly walked to the back door, unlocked the deadbolt, and pulled the door open. Freezing winds and heavy snow immediately slapped her in the face. “Inside,” she told the man standing there, covered with snow.

  “It isn’t a night fit for man or beast,” the red-headed man replied as Sarah moved away and he stepped through the back door. “You can put your guns away,” he raised his hands as he spotted Conrad. “I’m not here to harm anyone.”

  “Then why are you here?” Sarah asked.

  The man turned and closed the back door behind him. “Gatti is in jail,” he said calmly. He began stomping snow off a pair of black boots. “He was smart.”

  “Who are you?” Conrad demanded. “I want a name and I want it right now.”

  “Call me... Hank.”

  “I want a real name.”

  “Hank will have to do.”

  “Okay... ‘Hank,’” Sarah said, putting her gun back down on the kitchen table, “how did you find my home address?”

  Hank looked at the table but didn’t show any signs that he was aware Amanda was hiding under it. “Gatti was smart,” he repeated. “May I sit down and have a cup of coffee?”

  “Sit down,” Sarah acquiesced.

  Conrad waited until Hank sat down before retaking his own seat. “How do you know Gatti?” he asked.

  “Gatti and I are old friends,” Hank explained. “But for now, let’s focus on Sophia, okay? You see, I came here to protect her. I failed.”

  “I’m all ears.” Conrad laid his gun in his lap. “Talk to me.”

  Sarah poured Hank a cup of coffee and brought it to him. “Steve Mintfield informed me that you became... temperamental with him when he refused to give you a set of keys to the rental cabin Sophia was living in. Yet you seem so calm and mild-tempered now. Care to explain?” she asked.