A little while later, Cade reached out across the table in the dark and found DeeJay’s hand. She curled her fingers with his and held on tight.
As her nerves stretched, a kind of clarity came to her. She didn’t want to die today. She wanted the opportunity to get to know Cade better.
All of a sudden, she wanted all the time in the world, just as her timeline was narrowing to a matter of hours.
“We’ll be okay,” he said.
She hoped so. She really hoped so. For the first time in a long time, she wanted a future, one that didn’t depend on her job.
For some reason she remembered the historic words of Sitting Bull, and paraphrased them. “Today is not a good day to die.”
Chapter 14
Cade was driving. DeeJay studied the eastern sky, which showed the first predawn lightening. She figured they were only a mile from the Sweet place. Her stomach, which had been a mess for hours, had settled into a hard, tight knot she was familiar with. It was time to act, and they just had to make sure they did everything right. “Fruit of the poisonous tree,” in legal terminology, could prevent prosecution of Calvin Sweet even if they found bodies on his property. Everything now had to be by the book.
She suspected the only way they were going to get any further was if he attacked one of them. Up under her jacket she had secured a telescoping baton. Both of them wore shoulder holsters under their parkas.
“If he wants me, he has to get rid of you,” she said to Cade.
“I figured that out.”
“Sorry.”
“No, I’m sorry. I’d be lying if I denied I’m tense. I feel like a spring that’s been compressed a little too far.”
“I hear you. Plain view, damn it.”
“Plain view,” he agreed.
Then her phone rang and the nightmare truly began. She listened with growing horror, gave only a brief response and then hung up.
“What?” Cade demanded.
“That boy Andrew? His mother said he went to bed last night but when she got up this morning to take him on his trip, he was gone. He must have let himself out, because the side door was unlocked.”
Cade swore inventively. “Okay,” he said as they neared the entrance to Sweet’s ranch. “Not only eyes on, but ears on, as well.”
Hyperalert, she thought. As if she wouldn’t be anyway. But the knot in her stomach hardened even more. Now they knew where Sweet had gone late last night. Somewhere a boy might be clinging to life. This had shifted from an exercise to get information to one to save a life.
“Let’s get the bastard,” she said as they bumped their way toward Sweet’s house.
* * *
Sweet had evidently heard them coming. He was waiting on his front porch. DeeJay pulled down the zipper on her parka enough to be able to reach her baton or her pistol without revealing either. She saw Cade do the same as soon as he switched off the ignition.
“Ready?” he asked.