Never Cry Mercy (27 page)

I nodded, said nothing.

"Hard to believe he did that to Ingrid. She was like a second mother to him."

"I'm wondering if he had a choice in the matter."

"You think Darrow made him do it?"

I nodded. "The guy had a lot on him. Knew his past. Guess they both had that on each other, but Darrow was in a position to ruin more than just Vernon's life."

Miles leaned back, glanced at his watch, then peeked at the phone he'd pulled from his desk. "Shoot, Jack. I've kept you here long enough now. Get out of here. Let Billie know I'm here if she needs anything."

The walk back to Reese's didn't take much longer than the drive to the station. I was able to take a more direct route, one that didn't involve backyards, too.

I wanted to call Sean, let him know what had happened. Tell him that Molly's soul could rest at ease now. He could break the news to my father, if he felt it was a good idea to do so. For some people, it was better to glance at a scar from time to time, rather than tear open an old wound.

I reached into my pockets. Both were empty. I'd have to wait until I got to Reese's to make the call.

I turned the corner to the narrow alley that led to her driveway.

"What the hell?"

I ran toward the house, passing two black sedans parked on the street. A third idled in the driveway. A man in a dark suit emerged from the doorway of Reese's place carrying a box full of her plants.

"What's going on?" I said.

He walked past me toward his car without acknowledging my presence.

"Hey, asshole," I said. "I'm talking to you."

He kept going.

I continued to the house. Another man came out with a suitcase.

"You," I said, finger aimed in his direction.

"One second." He nodded slightly as he passed. I got a good look at the cred pack attached to his belt.

FBI.

"Where is she?" I asked.

He turned, looked around, took a couple steps toward me. "Are you Jack Noble?"

I nodded, half-expecting him to arrest me.
 

"Reese McSweeney's identity was compromised. Word was out that she was here, and that word has reached the wrong people. We expect someone to show up here within the next few hours with the intention of executing a hit on her. There'll be a team that stays behind to handle that threat."

"Where is she now?"

"I can't tell you that, sir. She—"

I bumped into him. "Like hell you can't. Tell me now. Where is she?"

The agent glanced toward the house. "I think you should back up, Mr. Noble. You don't have the friends you used to have."

I didn't recognize the guy, and doubted he'd ever run into me before. But someone had briefed him on me, and what I was capable of.

"Sorry," he said. "But you know how this works. Nobody can know where she is. Neither friends nor family. Not with the people that are out after her."

"I can handle them."

"And they can handle you. And probably in ways you've never been subjected to. Sure, maybe you wouldn't talk. But maybe you would."

I stood there, staring at him, but past him. His face blurred. I heard his words and let them float by at the same time. All I thought about was Reese. We had a plan, one that I had intended to carry out. And now she was gone, and so was the possible life we could have had together. Maybe we wouldn't have made it long, but at least we could have tried. Now it was just a guessing game. Where would they take her? Would I ever see her again?

The agent continued. "That's a risk the FBI can't take while she is a part of our program."

She could have refused their help. Told them to screw off, go away, something. Looking at these guys, I could see that they hadn't come here to present an option to her. Darrow had tipped off the men who wanted Reese dead. Not just dead, but tortured until she decided it was no longer worth taking another breath.

I couldn't blame her for taking the FBI's help. It was simple, leave or die. I never factored into the equation.

The door to Reese's apartment slammed shut. Two agents walked past me, one on either side. They took position next to their partner, one pulling his coat back so I could see his holstered pistol.

"Now," the agent continued, "I think you should go get your things and get out of here."

"Got no car," I said.

"That's gonna be taken care of. You'll have one at the old couple's house in about twenty minutes. That's where your stuff is, right?"

I said nothing. How'd he know that? In light of everything that had happened, it didn't matter.

None of it did now.

Chapter 71

I felt the weight of everything that had happened in the small town since I'd arrived. Reese outted. The old couple murdered. Killing the man who had orchestrated Molly's death. Vernon's suicide. Every wound I'd suffered as a twelve-year-old and while in Texline tore open at once. I nearly collapsed on the street.

It was hotter than normal that morning. The sun beat down on my brow. Sweat formed and slipped down my cheek into beard stubble.

A group of kids played a block ahead. Some of the same ones I'd run into before. I didn't see the blond-haired boy. I wondered if the FBI had stopped by their house and offered them a deal to skip town. I hoped not. I had to make good on the promise I'd made the woman.

As I approached, the kids scattered. There'd be no showdown today. I still wondered what the hell they were hiding that day. Guess I had to let it go.

I slowed down as I approached Herbie and Ingrid's. Yellow police tape surrounded the place. I'd have to break the law to gather my things.

No place would ever be safe with me around. I'd figured that out a while back. The events of the past couple days cemented the fact that I was toxic, especially to the normal folks. I'd move on while the residents of Texline had to recover from the mess I'd made.

No, it wasn't entirely my mess. I managed to get caught up in the middle of it. Like always. Hell, at least I helped sweep it up. History wouldn't look at it that way, but it was what it was.

It always is.

I grabbed the spare key from under the mailbox that hung next to the back door. Then I yanked the yellow police tape away. Stepping into the kitchen, I was reminded of Ingrid, her welcoming smile, the smell of whatever she was baking that day lingering in the air. I could still grab a hint of the bread she'd cooked on her final day.

There was a note on the fridge that I hadn't noticed the last time I was in the house. It was made out to me. I slid it out from under the magnet.

"Jack," it read. "Come find me the moment you get home. - Ingrid."

What would she have told me? She'd been crying earlier that day, the last time I saw her alive. Was she going to tell me about Darrow? Vernon? Had she uncovered his secret? That would have explained why she was so upset. And when she confronted him with it, he killed her and Herbie.

I thought back to how I found her. She hadn't expected to die at that moment.

I folded the paper into a small square and stuck it in my pocket. Walking through the house felt like stepping back in time. They hadn't updated for at least forty years, and in some cases, never. I climbed the stairs, stepping over the spot where Herbie had fallen into the next life.

The door to my room was closed. I turned the knob and pushed it open, waiting in the hall in case there was movement inside.

There wasn't.

I gathered the few things I owned, shoved them in my bag and threw it over my shoulder. Then I popped into the old couple's bedroom to say goodbye. Superstition, I guess. They weren't there, but maybe their spirits were hanging around for a few extra days.

"I survived, somehow," I said. "I don't know, maybe you had something to do with it. Thank you."

Back downstairs I stopped in the kitchen to get a glass of water and placed a call to Sean. The conversation was brief. I simply told him I was leaving town and would be in touch soon with instructions. I wanted to fill him in on all that had happened, but decided a two minute conversation was not the way to do it. We'd be face to face soon. After hanging up, I spotted a black sedan outside. It had been more than twenty minutes since my initial encounter with the FBI agents outside of Reese's apartment. I figured they were delivering the car for me to leave town in.

Then another sedan pulled up, followed by a third. Why the hell were they coming to see me here? Were they going to tell me where Reese was? Maybe they'd brought her along to say goodbye.

I watched as the men exited the vehicle. Studied their faces. Didn't recognize a single one of them. How many teams had they sent out here?

I exited through the kitchen door and came face to face with two of the men.

"You guys missed her," I said. "They found her at her place. They're already on the move."

"Jack Noble?" the guy on my left said.

I couldn't tell if it was my heart that sank, or if my stomach had risen.

I turned and was face-to-face with two more Feds. They had circled the house. I caught sight of others positioned so as to cut off my escape routes.

"Mr. Noble," the guy said. "It's best if you just stop right there."

I turned in a circle, looking for a way out. Another agent emerged from the kitchen door. And another stood across the alley. They had me boxed in. All of them trained their pistols on me.

"Arms up," the guy said.

I didn't move.

"Now." He raised his weapon. "We have orders to shoot if you don't comply."

"Who sent you?" I asked.

He said nothing.

"Dammit," I said. "Who sent you for me?"

A black windowless panel van pulled up, drove past the cars, and screeched to stop a few feet away. The door opened. A guy in tactical gear with a pistol strapped to his leg hopped out.

The Fed closest said, "Arms up."

I had no choice. I lifted my arms. The Fed holstered his weapon, patted me down.

"I'm clean," I said.

"Get in the van," he said.

I hesitated. He shoved me forward. I climbed in. It smelled like a hospital. Like they'd disinfected it recently. There were three rows of seats. The driver and passenger seats were occupied by men in jeans and t-shirts. They wore ball caps and cheap watches. I slid into the middle row. The agent who did most of the talking climbed in next to me. Two more took the back seat. The guy in tactical gear hopped in and crouched. The remaining Feds returned to the sedans and we pulled away convoy style.

"You gonna tell me what this is about?" I said.

He pulled out a cell phone and placed a call.

"Yeah, we got him."

I strained to listen to the voice on the other end, but I couldn't hear a damn thing.

"No, he has no clue." The guy glanced at me. "You sure about that? No telling how he's gonna react." He paused. "All right."

He shoved the phone against the side of my head.

"Yeah?" I said.

"Jack Noble."

It couldn't be. "You son of a bitch."

"That's how you treat your old pal?"

"You're not my pal, Frank. Your ass shouldn't even be alive right now."

Frank Skinner laughed. "Only have you to thank for that."

"The hell do you want?"

"You."

Jack Noble returns June 28
th
, 2016.

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Other Books by L.T. Ryan

Jack Noble Series in Order
The Recruit

Noble Beginnings

A Deadly Distance

Thin Line

Noble Intentions
(formerly Noble Intentions Season One)

When Dead in Greece

Noble Retribution
(formerly Noble Intentions Season Two)

Noble Betrayal
(formerly Noble Intentions Season Three)

Never Go Home (Jack Noble)

Beyond Betrayal (Clarissa Abbot Thriller)

Noble Judgment
(formerly Noble Intentions Season Four)

Mitch Tanner Series
The Depth of Darkness
Mitch Tanner #2 -Fall, 2016

Affliction Z Series
Affliction Z: Patient Zero
Affliction Z: Abandoned Hope
Affliction Z: Descended in Blood
Affliction Z: Book 4 - coming soon

About the Author

Lee "L.T." Ryan lives in central Virginia with his wife, daughters, and two bully breed dogs. He enjoys writing fast-paced suspense thrillers, and post-apocalyptic fiction. When not writing, he enjoys reading, hiking, mountain biking, fishing, and spending time with the ladies in his life.