by Jack Young
Joe stood and looked at his partner. “What do you think, Papa Bear? Time for another road trip?”
“Why the hell not. Might put an end to this before it gets any worse.”
The cabin was empty when Joe and Jacobs arrived, but it was shot to pieces. There were two bodies along the road near a Suburban and two bodies they could see on the ground by some nearby trees. The detectives recognized all the dead men as men who worked for Sean Brady in some capacity. Jacobs knelt down next to one of the bodies and put the back of one of his hands on the dead man’s cheek. “I don’t think they’ve been dead long.”
“Some kind of hit squad sent for Evans and Davy?”
“That’s my guess. Fuck. We better call this in. We’ll give the place a once over after I make the call.”
Joe nodded and looked out onto the lake. It was a such a peaceful place to come and he thought maybe he’d bring the family out here soon for a weekend or something. He saw the bodies on the ground and the next cabin over remembering those girls held captive there. This changed his mind on bringing his family to the lake really quick. This place may not look it, but it gave him the creeps the longer he stood around, and he knew there would be no way for him to relax knowing what he knew about the place. He and his family would find somewhere else to spend a relaxing weekend one of these days anyway. Maybe, if he took the instructor position at the academy, they would have more time for weekend getaways.
Joe walked back to the car as Jacobs finished his call to the station. “They’re sending a unit out here along with the crime scene folks and some paramedics. At least we’re on the side of the lake where we have jurisdiction, or else we wouldn’t have a say in any of this.”
Joe nodded. “How soon do you figure they’ll be here. Fifteen, twenty minutes?”
“Probably. You know them. They never hurry. They’re only sending one unit because two were sent out to deal with a shooting in town. They have some jackasses in custody on the way to the station for it. Guys also had an unregistered set of pistols on them. We get one car because that’s all that can be spared at this time of the day.”
It was nearly a half hour when they all arrived. Joe posted the two uniformed officers where they would make sure no one who wasn’t supposed to be working the area could get to it. The crime scene team did their thing and Joe began to get impatient. He and Jacobs were leaning on their car watching. Jacobs pointed to the shed. “If that’s Carlyle’s shed, I’m sure him and Evans did this.”
“Yeah, but if they did, they were attacked and this was all self-defense. Both of them are out there still. You think they got away and left town?”
Jacobs shook his head. “No. They’re still around. I can feel it.”
“You get that from Jughead?” Joe smiled a little when he said this.
“No, my youthful sidekick. Over thirty years of being a cop told me that.”
“Shots fired! Shots fired!” The radio began to go berserk and they both turned their attention to it. Joe went around to the driver’s side and sat in the seat as Jacobs did the same in the passenger seat. “Shots fired. At the station. An officer is down. A civilian is down. Suspect is heading west in a gray Toyota Camry. The car is shot to hell, too. We need medical assistance here ASAP!”
Jacobs hopped out of the car yelling to the paramedics. It sounded like they could use all the medical assistance they could get back at the station and one of the town’s three ambulances was out at the lake. “You guys get back to the station. These guys ain’t gonna get any deader. Get back there now. You crime scene guys keep working.” He pointed to the uniformed cops. “Stay put and make sure no one comes through here.”
Jacobs got back into the car where Joe had the engine already running. “They said they’re westbound. That’s this way. Could be our guys.”
“Then fucking go already.”
Joe put the car into gear and hit the gas hard enough to kick up a wave of dirt before leaving the crime scene at the lake.
As fast as Joe drove to get back to the station, he couldn’t beat the press. Two news vans were parked in the Safeway parking lot and their crews were trying to get a glimpse of what was happening on the steps of the station. Joe could see Darcy taking pictures and jotting things down in her notepad. She’d texted him as soon as he was back on the highway en route to the station checking up on him. He texted back saying he was fine and not even in town when it happened. He knew she would text Beth who would then relay that to her brothers.
Joe found a spot to park and he and Jacobs made their way to where several officers and detectives stood over two bodies covered with sheets. Another set of crime scene techs were working, leaving little for the detectives to do but try to get caught up. Joe went one way as Jacobs went another, both talking to other cops. Most of the cops Joe spoke to weren’t outside when the shooting occurred. They all said he should talk to Officer Smith. He was one of the officers involved and at the moment wasn’t being questioned by other detectives.
Joe approached Officer Gerald Smith. “Gerry, what happened?”
Smith was about ten years younger than Joe and had been on the force half as long. He was soon to be promoted to detective and sometimes he rode with Joe and Jacobs. Lately, he’d been swamped with his main duties and hadn’t worked any cases with Joe for some time. “Did you hear over the radio about the hit and run shooting?”
“Kind of. Jacobs and I were out of town and out of our car checking on something else. We caught the radio buzz about it. I assume these are those guys.” Joe was pointing around to the civilian bodies.
“Yeah. Apparently, they drove by the casino and diner on Tenth. You know, the one called Al’s. They shot at it and then took off. No one really saw it happen. CCTV never caught anything, but someone called 911 describing a black Suburban and about five minutes later, Larry…You know Larry Hines?”
“Yeah.”
“Larry and I seen what we thought was the Suburban that was described in the call, so we pulled it over. Had everyone step out of the car. They all had guns on their person which we relieved them of while Larry searched the car for anything else. He found two pistols under the seats in the middle. We ran a check on all the weapons. Not one was licensed and the guns found in the car, Larry sniffed them and they smelled as if they were fired recently. He called backup and we brought them to the station.”
“What happened when you got here?”
“Fuck. The O.K. Corral or some shit. It was supposed to be routine, you know. We just needed to bring them in and hold them until we charged them for the guns. Make them wait until their lawyer showed up. Considering who we brought in they would’ve been out in a hour with just a big fine which would’ve been chump change for them.”
“Sounds routine.”
“It was until we got here.”
“What happened?”
“The other car with the other two guys pulled in first.”
“When did the shooting start? Whoever called it in said a car, a Camry, fled the scene.”
“I called it in. I’m not even sure the Camry shot first.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, Larry and I got out of the car and pulled our guy out from the back and made our way to the door. The guys from the other car were almost inside by that point. We were over there.” He pointed to a spot a little more than half the distance from his car to the door. “Then the gunfire started.”
“From the Camry?”
“From somewhere. Larry and I returned fire at a van we thought the shots were coming from and then that’s when I got a clear view of the driver in the Camry shooting. I think there was multiple shooters though.”
“Why do you say that?”
“The Camry was right there.” He pointed to the curb thirty feet away. “But, I swear there was another shooter in the nearby van laying down fire. We lit into the Camry anyway as it began to drive away. I know I hit the driver. Larry did, too.”
“That was it?
”
“No. Larry was hit and went down. That’s him.” Gerry pointed to the covered body to the right of them. The body was perpendicular to the other body making a “T” on the ground.
“Oh shit, Gerry. I’m sorry.”
Gerry tried to hold it together because the cameras were filming. Joe took him off to the side behind some hedges. “What happened to the other guy? How’d he end up dead?”
“Dude didn’t listen. I was calling in what happened and when I was done, I told him to stay on the ground because officers from inside were coming out to assist. Then the idiot stood up.”
“And the guy in the Camry shot him?”
“No. I don’t know really. I think maybe the Camry was gone by then. Shots were also coming from there.” Gerry pointed between the Safeway and the CarQuest next to it. “I think someone shot from the wood line over there.”
Joe looked and figured the distance in his head. “That’s probably a little more than three hundred yards.”
“What I figured, too. Whoever shot, shot more than once and didn’t miss. Any idea who I have under this sheet.” He waved Joe over to a covered body.
“I have an idea. Show me anyway.”
Gerry pulled back the sheet. The man under it was shot once under his left eye with the exit wound the size of a racquetball coming out the back right of his head. Although the bullet wound caused swelling, Joe recognized the man. “Shit. Sean Brady.”
34.
Paden was in his spot and hidden the best he could be, given the circumstances. He didn’t have time for putting camouflage on his face or getting into a ghillie suit. This wasn’t a military operation. He was going to take a couple of shots and hope they hit their target. Davy was the one taking the bigger risk by being closer to their target as he arrived. Davy was the professional killer, not Paden. The two guys at the farmhouse was still reactionary from the rage he was feeling from finding out they pulled the trigger that killed Joanne. He wasn’t sure if he could do it again up close. Especially, with police escorting Brady into the station. He was better off where he was.
There were headsets and radios in Davy’s shed, but they forgot to grab them. Instead, Paden had his phone lying next to him on speakerphone so he and Davy could communicate. Neither had much to say as they waited for the police to bring in who they hoped was Brady.
Paden’s field of fire wasn’t too wide, but he kept scanning anyway. Davy’s job was to let him know when police vehicles were approaching which, by their calculations, would be any moment.
“Got anything yet?” Paden spoke a little louder than he intended. They never rehearsed using the phones, and Paden rarely used the speakerphone app and he wasn’t sure how loud he needed to speak.
“You don’t need to yell, man.” Davy’s voice came through as expected. It sounded like someone leaving a message on an answering machine.
“Sorry. I don’t ever use the speaker on this thing. Joanne would though when she’d drive. She said it helped her stay alert on long-distance trips.”
“It’s okay. It’ll pick up your voice fine if you speak normal. But, no, I don’t have anything yet.” He paused a moment. “Hey man, I just want to tell you again how sorry I am and, um, yeah, um…”
“Thanks. I saw her earlier you know.”
“What do you mean? Like in a dream or something?”
“No. My little errand I went on. I went to see her at the morgue. They haven’t released her to the funeral home yet because the investigation is ongoing, so I went to say goodbye to her.”
Silence fell between them and Paden did another scan and could see where Davy was parked. Although, he was parked in Paden’s field of fire, he wasn’t in the way. More than twenty years had passed since Paden last fired at anything further than a few feet away. He was sure he wouldn’t hit Davy in the car. He couldn’t be that rusty. “They weren’t that far out from the station. They should be here by now, right?”
“They will be. Relax. You want your shot to be relaxed.”
“I know. I remember how.”
“That’s good. Just be ready.”
A random thought passed through Paden’s mind. “Your uncle really have a cabin on the Flathead?”
“Yeah. I haven’t been there for a few years though. I used to go there to cool off after a big job. Just in case there was any heat on me or Big John.”
“Whereabouts on the lake?”
“You ever been there?”
“Been a while for me, too. It takes a long ass time to drive all the way around from what I remember.”
“A long ass time for sure. My uncle’s place is on the east side of the lake. Big house with a big sign on a gate with his last name. Jenkins.”
“Jenkins. I knew a guy named Jenkins back in basic. He was from Georgia though.”
He heard Davy laugh a little. “Probably not the same guy. My uncle grew up near here and is over sixty now.”
“Oh yeah. Definitely, not the same guy.” Paden laughed as well.
“Paden, how come we never came across each other before? We know many of the same people.”
“I dunno. I worked for Lanny and he seemed to distance himself from most of the Brady stuff. That or Brady kept various people away from each other to keep a separation amongst the ranks. The fewer who know one another lessens the chance for a link back to him.”
“Could be. I wasn’t always privy to much of what Big John dealt with. He’s been my mentor of sorts, but the day to day stuff he kept away from me. In the end, I really didn’t want to know. I was fine with what I was doing.”
“A couple of times, I did some tracking for Big John. Lanny must’ve owed him or something, but he would pay me to look for people who needed finding.”
“Did you find them?”
“Yep. I never failed at finding people.”
“I probably whacked some of those people you found.”
Paden was silent for a moment. Since he’d hooked up with Davy he hadn’t thought about that. “Who knows. I never gave it that much thought at the time. My job was to locate people for him.”
“He never told me how people were found. He just told me who it was if I knew them or showed me a photo if I didn’t know them, and gave me an address so I could take care of it.”
“You still gonna do that after we get clear of this today?”
“I dunno. Gotta make it through this first. If not, I’ve set my brother up with some money I saved. I gave my split from the Target thing to this girl I know from work. She’s supposed to clean it for me. If I make it through this, I’ll leave town and she said she’d go with me. If not, she’s set up good, too. I’ve been doing this long enough to know there’s only one for sure way of walking away from this life.”
“That ain’t gonna be today though.”
“Maybe. Maybe not.”
There was a long pause to their conversation. Paden was getting anxious again. “They here yet?”
It took a moment before Davy replied. “Any moment now. I think I see them coming down the street.”
“Talk me through it.”
“Will do. This will be over soon.”
Davy saw the two police cars approach. He was parked along the curb across the street with the driver’s side facing the station. He’d grabbed a TEC-9 from the shed and had it resting in the passenger seat. It may have been an extreme type of weapon to bring to a hit, but he wanted to make sure Sean Brady would die. If not, it was only a matter of time before Sean sent someone after Davy.
“There’s two cars.” Davy had his phone sitting on the dash.
“Can you tell which one Brady is in?” Now it was Paden’s turn to sound like he was a recorded message.
“Not yet. They haven’t parked. Just pulling in now.”
“Keep me posted. I’ll fire on your go.”
“You’ll get it. Steady now.”
“Roger that.”
The first police car parked where Davy could see four people inside it. T
wo were cops, but he couldn’t see who was in the backseat. The other car parked on the other side of the first car out of view from Davy. Davy held up a paperback book pretending he was reading it. He held it in a way that allowed him to look over the book and see what was going on. He also moved the TEC-9 to his lap. It was ready for when he needed it.
The car window was already rolled down and Davy could hear car doors open. He kept one hand on the book and his right hand moved to grab the TEC-9. Two officers exited their vehicle and each opened a back door grabbing a guy from the back seat. Davy recognized both of them, but their names escaped him. Both were just some muscle Brady kept around.
The officers led the two men to and up the steps leading to the entrance of the station. When the doors closed all the way, Davy heard and saw the other car’s doors open and two more officers stepped out. The one from the passenger seat opened the back door on his side while the driver walked behind the car. This was most likely to cut their passenger off from running. When all three were on the sidewalk, Davy recognized the man the cops were leading as Sean Brady. “There he is. Got him?”
“Yeah.” Paden’s came in loud and clear. “Not a clear shot though.”
“We only have a few seconds. Got him?”
Just then a blast of machine gun fire erupted from somewhere behind Davy’s car. He didn’t have time to see where they came from. He raised the TEC-9 and let loose with it. The police officers began taking defensive positions. Brady was still standing as an officer tried to pull him down to the ground. Davy sprayed Brady with bullets and the officer who was trying to pull him to the ground stood to tackle Brady, but whoever else was shooting fired at him. The bullets tore up the officer’s back and blew off the top of his head.
There was a slight pause in the gunfire. It was long enough for the still standing Brady to take a bullet to his face. Davy knew that shot came from Paden. “Move to the rendezvous. Now!”
Davy hoped Paden made it there before he did. Both agreed to leave Davy’s car behind and take a truck they stole. Their rendezvous was on the other side of the wood line where Paden was positioned. Paden had a hundred yards or so of woods to run through and it was decided it would be quicker if he left everything in his shooting position.
