Present Danger by Elizabeth Goddard (shoe dog free ebook .txt) 📗

deputy entered. Chance had remained in the booth until he could exit without being noticed. He had to find out who had been behind the package, behind the years of blackmail, before he was found and blocked from getting answers and preventing more loss of life.

Years of blackmail. Why didn’t he put an end to it long ago?

Palms sweating, Chance repeatedly clenched his hands as he stood up and began to pace. He’d tried to avoid thinking about what had happened before. He’d pushed that far behind him and moved on. Carved out a new life.

Except his eyes were suddenly opened to the truth. He’d deceived himself for far too long. His past remained a constant knocking in the dark corners of his mind. But he’d already paid for his crimes. A higher price had been exacted than he ever could have imagined.

One mistake. One errant thought had led to a few misdeeds and cost him everything.

And he didn’t want to think about any of it.

But if he could remember every detail of the past, that could help him solve what was happening now. He knew in his gut this was true.

He had to find whoever had blackmailed him all those years ago and coerced him into making a few shipments now and again, controlling his life and taking everything from him.

He’d been afraid to refuse to cooperate before. Afraid and stupid.

That was then. This was now.

He was older, maybe a little wiser.

Chance pulled the curtains open and let the greenery of the forest calm him. He was safe, and no one would find him here. Resting on the double bed, he stared at the log ceiling. He closed his eyes and thought back to his life-altering mistake almost twenty years ago.

The memory of the thrumming rotors on the AH-64 Apache he’d piloted for the Army’s 11th Aviation Regiment filled his head. A city was sprawled beneath him when he’d been expecting desert. After the initial “shock and awe” of the campaign, the desert became his constant companion—one of the hottest places he’d ever had the displeasure of enduring.

Chance sat up on the edge of the creaking bed and rubbed his eyes.

His head still ached from the plane crash. He wasn’t sure it would ever go away, but thinking back to those years increased the throbbing.

He inhaled deeply. He could do this. He had to do this.

“Oh, God, why was I so stupid?”

Chance forced his thoughts to that moment in time. That moment when he’d made the wrong choice. At the time, it had seemed innocent enough.

Even now, at the memory, he could taste the desert sand on his tongue.

TWENTY-NINE

Terra had been able to charter a flight in a small plane owned and piloted by Ned Campbell, a retired forest service ranger related to Nathan and a friend of Gramps. There had been no question that Jack would join her—her archaeological investigation was intimately connected to his murder investigation.

Ned landed at a small airport near Denver, where Terra had rented a car. Jack finally ended the call that had taken up the short drive to the correctional facility.

“Well, that sounded informative,” she said.

“Star Oil Company is based out of Tulsa. According to her sister, Jan, who lives in Bozeman, Neva owned the home in Big Rapids. But working for Star Oil as a consultant required so much travel that she finally decided to rent out the house. That’s why it appeared empty of her personal effects. She had made a trip home this week to gather the rest of her things and settle some accounts. Jan and her husband had planned to move the bed and furniture out for their college-aged daughter next week.”

Terra absorbed the news and let the moment of deep sorrow pass.

“I’m curious about those accounts she mentioned and what her dealings with Jim Raymond could be, though we have our suspicions. I’d like to know what she really did for the company.”

“We’re in process now.”

“I know it takes time.” Terra would do some digging of her own too. But they needed more information. Where and why did Neva travel? After flashing their credentials at the gate, Terra steered into the low-security federal prison, then entered the parking lot. She found a spot at the back.

Jack sighed. “This Joey DeMarco. Tell me about him before we get out of the vehicle.”

Ned had done most of the talking on the flight, and Terra hadn’t wanted to discuss their investigation in front of him. “He’s the mastermind behind a big scheme to dig up the pots and sacred cultural items. He had a network of people and auction houses on the dark web through which he sold the items. A few ended up being resold on eBay. That’s ultimately how he was taken down. I worked undercover for eight months on the case. Testified, as I mentioned, six months ago. Joey . . . he’s not what you would expect.”

“How so?”

She opened the car door. “You’ll see.”

They got out of the vehicle and walked toward the entrance to the sprawling complex surrounded by a double-fenced perimeter. Once again, they flashed their credentials and then signed the required paperwork.

A man stepped through a side door. “Special Agent Connors? Detective Tanner?”

“Yes.” They spoke in unison.

“I’m Agent Bill Janssen, Bureau of Prisons Special Investigative Services.”

Terra shook the man’s hand. “Thanks so much for approving and coordinating this.”

He gave a bland smile. “I’ll take you to see Mr. DeMarco and will be supervising your visit today.”

Terra wasn’t sure if that meant he would listen to their conversation, but she would take what she could get. Part of her wondered if this would lead them nowhere.

Agent Janssen led Terra and Jack down a sterile hallway into the facility that housed almost two thousand criminals guilty of mostly white-collar crimes. Janssen opened a door and ushered them into a small room with a table and chairs.

Terra took a seat while Jack remained standing at the edge of the table.

Janssen remained next to the door.