Two hours had passed since they’d turned over their prisoner to the officers. They were driving north on the main highway when Ranger’s cell phone rang. Even without looking he knew it would be his brother.
Ranger listened to what Hunter had to say, then answered. “That’s good to hear,” he said. He hung up, then glanced over at Dana and brought her up to date.
“It seems our sniper, who’ll only give his first name-Willie-is more than eager to spill his guts. But he wants to deal.”
“Let’s go see if we can listen in on the interrogation. Maybe I can help somehow. We should be safe there, too. Trujillo won’t come for me at the station.”
As she said it, Dana realized how much she’d changed. Faced with nonstop danger and unpredictability, she’d found new strength. Dana glanced over at Ranger, who looked as tired as she felt, and began to see their relationship in a new light. Although what was happening between them held no guarantees of a happily ever after, life was offering her a precious gift-but it wasn’t forcing it on her. She could accept it, or walk away as soon as she could.
“We’ve become a good team,” Ranger said, his eyes on the road, but his hand reaching over to cover her own.
She smiled. “I know you’re more comfortable acting off-the-cuff, but I’ve got to give you credit. You can certainly come up with a plan when it’s needed.”
“Back there, my one priority was keeping you safe. That took planning. Had it been just me, I might have handled it differently. But you were involved and that changed everything.”
A rainbow of warm, gentle feelings filled her. “I couldn’t have asked for a better guardian.”
“I know. I’m a man of many talents,” he said with a wicked grin, his voice low and seductive.
“Yes, but where would you be without the inspiration I provide?” she answered, trying to keep a straight face.
He laughed, a booming, deep sound that was infectious.
The drive back was uneventful and long. When they finally pulled into the Shiprock police station Dana sat up and gestured ahead.
“There’s the sniper,” she said.
The prisoner, his feet in shackles and his hands cuffed in front now, was being escorted into the building by a state police officer and a tribal cop.
Ranger and Dana went in a moment later and found Agent Harris waiting for them in the lobby. “The prisoner is being taken to an interrogation room, and I’m going to question him myself,” he said. “The deal he wants isn’t going to happen, but if he wants to avoid a potential life sentence, his only choice is to cooperate. I’ll bring that up, and hope he sees the light.”
“I hear Xander Glint is conscious now, too,” Ranger said.
Harris nodded. “Once we’re through here, we’ll head to the hospital.”
TWENTY MINUTES LATER, Dana and Ranger stood outside the one-way glass as Harris questioned the seated suspect, who was without handcuffs now but still wearing leg irons.
Harris rose from his own chair, walked around the room once, then stopped abruptly and leaned over the prisoner. “Your prints are being processed, and your photo is being taken to every gun dealer in the area. You’ll be recognized, and if you have a rap sheet, we’ll know that, too. So why don’t you stop wasting my time? What’s your real name-all of it.”
“William George Franklin,” he answered. “Willie.”
“Okay, Willie. Who hired you?”
“Hired? Nobody hired me,” he countered. “I was out hunting ground squirrels when some Indian with a forty-five ambushed me. He shot at me, held a pistol to my head, then tied me up. Then he called in some cop friends, and they hauled me here on some phony assault charge. Is anyone taking care of my Jeep? I left it parked down the mountain a few miles. If it gets stolen, I’m going to sue that Indian and his entire tribe.”
“We’ve got an eyewitness that saw you leaving a murder scene with a rifle. That witness’s testimony will carry some serious weight. He was the one who neutralized your spotter,” he said, careful not to use Hunter Blueeyes’s name. “I also have two more people here at the station who’ll happily testify against you-the pair that you were stalking up in the mountains before they brought you down. The bullets that killed two Navajo men have been recovered, too, and once we match them to your rifle, you’re looking at life in prison. So what’ll it be? Turn state’s evidence now, or rot in prison for the rest of your life?”
“I want full immunity before I say anything else.”
“I want to win the lottery. It looks like we’re both out of luck,” Harris spat out.
“Then forget about it. I’m not saying another word until I talk to a lawyer. I know my rights.”
Dana watched him, anger seething inside her. “I’ve about had it with this jerk,” she whispered furiously.
Ranger chuckled softly. “Easy. Let Harris work a little longer. He’s got a reputation for getting things done. He’s just got his own style, that’s all.”
Dana focused on the two men inside the room. Harris walked back to his chair, sat down, then leaned back casually.
“You’ll be serving time-hard time, and most likely in a federal prison. I can’t do anything about that, but twenty years, even twenty-five, is better than life. Ten minutes of truth can save you decades in a cell with a mean, ugly, sweaty roommate named Chuck. Give me a reason to tell the DA that you cooperated. That’s my final offer.”
“Yeah, that and three-fifty will get me a cup of coffee,” Willie spat out. “Do your best. You’ve got nothing on me but lies.”
“You’re going down, Franklin, and you know it as well as I do.”
Willie held Harris’s gaze, then finally his eyes narrowed. “If I decide to cooperate, will I get protection?”
“You’ll be guarded around the clock until we put the ones you’re working for behind bars.”
Willie leaned forward, resting his elbows on the desk between them. “I know you want a name, but I never asked and he never offered one.”
Harris reached into his jacket pocket and brought out three photos, laying them on the table in front of Willie. “Is the man who hired you among these?”
Willie glanced down and picked out the photo on the end. “That’s him, but he’s older now, and has a mustache. After he handed over half the money, he said I’d have someone watching me while I worked. If I failed to kill the bodyguard and take the woman-by tonight-I’d be as good as dead.”
Dana looked over at Ranger. “That’s why he had the handcuffs,” she whispered. “You were supposed to be killed. I was going to be kidnapped again.”
Ranger nodded, remembering his brother’s report.
They both looked back through the glass as Harris continued.
“He can’t get at you here. You’ll be in a tribal jail cell by yourself,” Harris said, holding up Ignacio Trujillo’s photo so they could see it on the other side of the glass.
“No, man, you don’t get it. The dude’s bad, and he’s rich. He’s got bodyguards who’ll slit your throat for a six-pack of warm beer. With his money he’ll find someone willing to stick a screwdriver in my back.”
“Not here, and especially not once we lock him and his people up. That’s where you come in. We’re going to need everything you have on him-how he contacts you, what he’s driving, all those details.”
“Fine, but not before my lawyer gets here,” Willie said. “He’ll make sure I’m not screwed out of anything I should have.”
“Okay. I’ll let you know when he arrives. Until then you’re going to a holding cell. You’ll be alone, so no one can get you there.” Harris opened the door and waved to an officer coming down the hall. “Officer Benally, would you escort the prisoner to lockup while I speak with your captain?”
“Sure.” Officer Benally waved Franklin out from behind the desk. “Turn around, please,” Benally said, taking the handcuffs off his belt.
Willie held out one hand, but when Benally reached for the other wrist, the prisoner whirled around and tried to grab Benally’s pistol.
Ranger moved in to help, but Harris got there first. He clipped Willie on the side of his head with the heel of his palm.
Franklin, his balance precarious with his ankles shackled, fell hard, dropping the pistol when his head bounced off the seat of Harris’s wooden chair. There was a sickening crunch as he hit the floor, face first.
Willie’s body started to twitch, his head at an unnatural angle.
Dana stared in horror through the glass, her heart hammering against her ribs. Benally flew out into the hall, yelling for help. Dana saw blood flowing onto the floor. She watched mesmerized, as Willie’s body twitched hard one more time, then lay motionless.
Dana turned away, feeling weak and a little sick to her stomach. No matter where she went, death was waiting. She was trapped in a circle of violence with no way out.
Ranger pulled her into his arms. “ Franklin made his choice,” he said softly. “At least no one else was hurt.”
Seeing Harris motioning to them, Dana stepped out of Ranger’s arms and walked down the hall toward the agent. As she did, she took deep breaths, trying to pull herself together. She wouldn’t let herself fall apart now.
“I don’t know why Willie reacted like that. It cost him his life,” Harris said as they joined him. “I told him he’d be in one of our holding cells, away from even other inmates, but he still tried to escape.”
“Where does that leave you now?” Ranger asked.
“We’ve got one more potential informant-Xander Glint. I’ve got guards all around him but, so far, Glint’s not talking.”
“I’ve got an idea,” Dana said. “Let me go identify him for you, face-to-face. Once he knows his conviction is all but guaranteed, that may jolt him into cooperating.”
“It’s worth a shot,” Harris said. “I’ll let the guards know you’re coming, and join you there.”
As they walked back outside, Dana couldn’t help wondering if they’d make it to the finish line in one piece. Trujillo was a relentless enemy. As long as he remained free she’d never be able to go back to her life. She missed her work, her students, the sanity of routines. Yet, deep down, she also knew that her eventual return would be bittersweet. Nothing would ever be the same for her again.
She glanced at Ranger, lost in her own thoughts. Her one wish was that Ranger would choose to remain a part of her life even after the danger had passed. But wishes alone would never tame the wind.