Fulfilling Promises (Red Starr, Book Five) (17 page)

“Your job puts your life on the line with every mission and you’re worried about a little tap on your bumper? The rental people are going to have a greater chance of a coronary when they see the damage.” Devyn got the response she wanted—his laughter. The situation hadn’t warranted any lighthearted moments, but she was getting tired of the solemnness of it all. It wasn’t until she pulled away that she realized she was trembling. “You really scared me with that phone call.”

“I prefaced it by saying I was all right,” Trigger reminded her, leaning back against the old indestructible GSA metal desk that they still made in federal prisons while keeping her close to him. He tucked a strand of hair that had come loose from her hairband behind her ear, as if getting her ready for some bad news. She didn’t have time to brace herself. “The cameras didn’t get an identifiable view of who did this. He kept his face turned away. All we have is that he was a white male, most likely in his early thirties. It’s still something to go on though, and—”

“Oh, John,” Gail Dixon exclaimed as she hurried through the garage door. Katie was right behind her, but it was Diesel who scurried past all of them and jumped up in order to place both of his front paws on his chest, looking into his eyes. “Are you all right? We heard…”

Gail continued to talk, but it was her way of reassuring herself that her son was safe and sound. Devyn moved slightly to the side to give all of them room, but she noticed that Trigger concentrated on Diesel first. He rubbed his back and gave the Shepherd a makeshift hug. She glanced over her shoulder through the doorway and was able to see the Jeep. It was a good thing Diesel hadn’t been with Trigger or this happy reunion might not have been the outcome.

“Are you doing okay?” Katie asked softly, coming to stand beside Devyn. Her dark eyes were so much like Trigger’s, but the acceptance was a little surprising. Exactly what had Trigger been telling his sister? “I can’t imagine what you’ve been going through, but we’re here if you need someone to talk to or need anything from the family.”

“I do appreciate that,” Devyn replied with sincerity. The Dixons were a good family with a solid reputation around Amberton and they’d always been really good to Joey. The sharp pain in her chest only served to remind her that he wasn’t coming back. She looked behind her once again, something catching her attention. “John, the truck. Joey’s truck. Can you pull up the footage from when we were here? I think whoever did this today drove past here that night.”

Trigger gave Diesel one more rub before encouraging the Shepherd to drop down on all fours. The dog then came over and nuzzled Devyn’s hand. She gave him the reassurance that everything was fine before she stood beside the other two women who had asked what she meant by that.

“John and I came here the other night and looked at the security video recordings to determine if someone was here before the police when they served the warrant,” Devyn explained, watching Trigger’s expression as he worked the computer to locate the security footage. “I remember a vehicle drove by, but there was something about it made me feel uncomfortable. I can’t even explain it right now, but—”

“You don’t have to, Devyn,” Gail said, stepping around Katie so that she could put an arm around Devyn in comfort. “Sometimes what we sense is just as important as the things we see with our own eyes.”

Devyn wasn’t used to being comforted in such a way, but she suppressed the urge step back. It was actually nice and she hesitantly lifted her hand to place over Gail’s. The older woman was right, though. She’d recognized something was off that night, just as she had known something had been wrong when Joey hadn’t returned her phone calls on that first night.

“You feel it too?” Devyn asked, searching Gail’s eyes for the truth. Her acknowledgment caused shivers of fear to travel up Devyn’s spine. “Why are we all being targeted?”

Devyn meant that in a general sense, but Gail understood exactly what she was trying to say. Three men from Amberton—from the same high school graduating in the same school year—were dead. Now Trigger was a target? It wasn’t a coincidence and finally Detective Chaisson was looking in the right direction. She was startled when Trigger spoke.

“It’s too hard to make out,” Trigger said with regret as his eyes searched the footage that appeared on the monitor. It wasn’t long before he shut the computer down and leaned back in his seat. “Mom, why don’t you and Katie head on home? I’m safe. No one was hurt and now the police have more leads than they did before. Devyn and I have some things to take care of here before we lock up the garage, but I’m sure we’ll see you later today.”

Devyn wasn’t so sure what
things
they had to do. Luke’s funeral wouldn’t be taking place for a few days since the coroner had not yet released his body. She was purposefully putting off Joey’s celebration of life gathering until they caught whoever did this and put him or her away for the rest of time. Isaac had the tavern covered and there wasn’t anything else she could think of that couldn’t wait.

They all filed out of the office, Gail protesting that she should stay and help. Katie was the one who talked her mother into driving back home and allowing Trigger to work in peace. The two women did try to convince Devyn that she should go with them, but she wasn’t leaving until she figured out what else it was that Trigger was holding so close to his chest.

Devyn stayed near the entrance to the garage as Trigger guided his mom and sister past the police vehicles. She noticed the plate for the deadbolt looked like a normal brass plate, but it was a quarter inch thick and anchored with large diameter countersunk screws. It made her wonder what other upgrades Trigger had ordered as she watched him escort his family to their vehicle. They must have driven over together, because Trigger opened the passenger side door of Katie’s vehicle and saw his mother safely inside. He walked around the front, exchanging some words with Katie briefly.

“Do you have a moment?”

Devyn tensed, but she nodded at Detective Chaisson’s question. She would do whatever was necessary to help this investigation to a successful conclusion. She crossed her arms and leaned against the doorframe. Diesel stayed beside her, giving her moral support. At least, that’s what she believed. She could get used to having him around, always on guard.

“Did you find anything in Joey’s truck?”

“No, not really,” Detective Chaisson answered, joining her in watching a man secure the front end of the vehicle in question to a tow truck. They would most likely take Joey’s truck to a police impound for forensic examination. “But the individual we’re looking for is someone who is very familiar with this area. Considering what we know right now, this unknown subject was aware of the area where Joey used to party back in the day. He—and we know his gender from the footage of the garage’s security system—purposefully used a weapon you own to deflect blame. He also knew enough of Ken Feragon’s schedule to know he was staying late for an afterschool activity, which means he studied Feragon’s movements.”

“What about Luke?” Devyn asked, trying to understand how his death fit into such a strange pattern. She looked on as Trigger gave one last wave to his mom and sister before making his way back across the parking lot. His eyes drifted over to where the tow truck was just about finished, the driver now having an officer sign off on some paperwork. “He was set on fire over at Jester’s gas station.”

“Did you know that Luke used to work for Jester part time back when he was in high school?” Detective Chaisson inquired, apparently not needing to confer with his small notebook for that piece of information. He was currently slipping it back into the inside pocket of his suit jacket. The man had to be sweltering in this heat, but there wasn’t a bead of sweat on his forehead as he spoke. He did push up his tinted glasses, though. “Someone apparently did and made sure that’s exactly where Luke Stoddard died. Can you think of anyone you knew back in high school who Joey might have had a falling out or caused some problem with?”

Trigger had stopped before them, catching the question Detective Chaisson was asking them. Devyn shared a perplexed look with Trigger. Joey had been a typical high school teenager. Boys at that age caused all sorts of problems for everyone they met. He had his clique of friends, especially those on the basketball team, as well as Trigger. John had played football, but the jocks pretty much had stuck together back then.

“No one,” Devyn replied, with Trigger backing up her claim. “I mean, there were the basic cliques, but I can’t think of anyone who might have held a grudge over some trivial bullshit. Besides, those who remained in Amberton all meet up at the tavern. Childhood angst was left behind long ago.”

“I would have to agree with Devyn, Detective.” Trigger turned slightly to watch as the tow truck pulled away and the remaining officers conferred, most likely waiting for Detective Chaisson to release them. “The people who’ve remained in Amberton look out for one another, regardless if they had been friends in high school. Hell, the three who—”

Trigger broke off his words as if something had come to him. He shared a look with Devyn in which she wasn’t quite sure the meaning of, while Detective Chaisson straightened his shoulders in anticipation of what was about to be revealed.

“I think I just figured out the connection, but I can’t for the life of me understand why it would mean anything now,” Trigger said as he rubbed a hand over the growth of his whiskers. He’d only shaved once since he’d been here, claiming he’d have time to clean up once he returned to San Diego. She didn’t want to think about that, especially now that he’d made some sort of correlation between the three murders. “Joey, Ken, and Luke played basketball together on the school’s team throughout high school. They were practically legends considering that was the last year the high school went to state. Those three, plus Micah Kilgore and Dalton Linney, were known as the
Fantastic Five
. Detective, you now have the link you were looking for—at least, the only one I can come up with.”

‡

D
evyn tended bar
that evening to give herself something to do other than agonize over the one thing she had no control over. Detective Chaisson had immediately taken action when she’d revealed that Micah and Dalton had been at the tavern when she’d left, operating on John’s revelation that all the murdered men had played on the same team referred to as the
Fantastic Five
. He had the officers follow him to The Laughing Griffin and then spent the next hour speaking to the duo before leaving without garnering any more information than they had come with. That wasn’t what anyone was hoping for, but it was becoming par for the course on this case.

Chaisson had spoken to Trigger and Devyn before he’d left, telling them that neither Micah nor Dalton could shed any light on who might be eliminating the old basketball team. Both men appeared to be worried about the situation, as well as the townsfolk who’d all but demanded to hear what was being discussed, going so far as to stand next to the table where the two were questioned and watch the discourse like a tennis match.

Sheriff Harpole had even been included in the discussion and had offered his two deputies to keep an eye on both the men. Devyn wasn’t so sure that Micah and Dalton should feel safe with the sheriff’s two old drinking buddies as guard. Yes, they had their pistols, but then again, so did Micah and Dalton. And what of Trigger? Were the police even going in the right direction in regards to the
Fantastic Five
since John had been in the killer’s crosshairs today?

“Can’t Detective Chaisson take them into protective custody?” Isaac asked, using the remote to kill the bar’s television. Everyone had already left The Laughing Griffin, she and Isaac had cleaned up, and it was now going on two-thirty in the morning. Trigger and Diesel had been inside her office talking to someone, most likely Catori Starr. Devyn didn’t like the surge of jealousy that shot through her when Starr’s name was mentioned. She had no right to feel that way. “Micah and Dalton deserve protection if they’re being targeted by a killer.”

“Dalton refused any protection, even from the deputies,” Devyn shared, having gotten that bit of information from Jenna. Dalton Linney wasn’t the smartest in the bunch and she hoped like hell he didn’t end up regretting it. Sheriff Harpole would no doubt still have one of the deputies watch Dalton’s residence off of Lahmeyer Road, but would it stop a determined killer? “I still can’t believe someone is targeting the basketball team from way back then. It doesn’t make any sense, especially since the killer went after Trigger today.”

“Maybe Trigger was getting too close to finding out the truth? Grudges aren’t the easiest thing to let go of,” Isaac shared, most likely referring to his conversation with the sheriff earlier. The tension between the two men had been there for many years, mostly due to Isaac’s family being an outcast when they’d moved into the area fifty some years ago. Times had changed though and so did people. “Harpole will do the right thing, if only for the fact that this has so much visibility.”