Stone Cold Read online

  That was how battles were won.

  “You bastard…” Tanner said, staring at his man and then turning his eyes to the other two men, who were both frozen to the spot, and sharing a look of uncertainty between them. Tanner reached behind his back and drew a large revolver. The gunshot rang out and Tanner froze, the gun limp in his hand.

  “What in hell’s name is going on here?” Howard racked another round into the chamber and the empty brass shell skipped across the dry earth. He stood with the hunting rifle held loosely in his hands, the muzzle moving between all of them, including Stone and Tanner. Maude stood at his shoulder with a cell phone in her hand. “Put the damned gun down, Duke!” Howard paused. “Right now, this looks to me like a stupid backyard brawl, don’t turn it into something it ain’t…”

  “Am I calling the cops or what?” Maude asked.

  “Not yet,” Howard replied. He looked at Stone and said, “Now, that’s some cold shit, Mister…” But he looked to Duke Tanner without waiting for Stone’s reply. “And Duke, ambushing a man four against one, really? And then you go pulling a gun when it doesn’t go the way you planned?”

  “Don’t call the cops, Howard,” Tanner said quietly. “I guess it’s done. But I’ll remember this right around rent review time…”

  “What about Will?” One of the men said, still staring at the man’s ruined hand. “The fucking psycho guy was right; he isn’t going to be working anytime soon… You got his wages covered for the season?”

  “Shut your mouth if you still want a damned job in the morning,” Tanner growled. “Will is going to be taken care of…”

  “Are we done, then?” Howard asked impatiently, the rifle still drifting without prejudice between them all.

  “I’m done,” said Stone.

  Tanner nodded.

  “But I figure six-hundred dollars for four new tires,” said Stone. “You can leave it as credit at the auto parts store in the morning.” He paused, staring at Tanner coldly. “If it’s not there by the time I get the bill, I’ll be paying you a visit…”

  Duke Tanner turned and walked towards a parked truck without saying a word. The other two men struggled with the dead weight of their companion and half carried, half dragged him silently to another truck.

  Stone looked at Howard and said, “Thanks.”

  “Don’t thank me, Mister. And you can be gone in the morning. We don’t want troublemakers around here.”

  “Now, Howard…” Maude said. “The man was bushwhacked, outnumbered and just defending himself.”

  “Damn it, woman!” Howard snapped. “That man won’t be working the rest of the season…” He turned and watched the two trucks race out of the carpark throwing up dirt and chippings which showered Stone’s truck in a somewhat pathetic and infantile show of retribution.

  “That man was one of four who thought they’d wreck my vehicle and then wreck me,” Stone cut in. “His boss is intimidating Katy McBride, trying to force her to sell. Then, he turns up here with three heavies trying to force me to leave…”

  “Well, if they wanted you to leave, then why the hell would they slash all your damned tires?” Howard shook his head. “It just doesn’t make sense to keep you from leaving.” Stone’s face fell and Howard said, “What?”

  Stone ran across the dirt and leapt up the stairs. He unlocked his room and returned with the .45 in his hand. “Give me the keys to your vehicle,” he said. “Better yet, you can drive me.”

  “What?” Maude frowned.

  “It was a case of misdirection,” said Stone. “Where would Katy McBride be staying tonight?”

  “Why?” Howard asked belligerently.

  “Because you’re right. Why make my truck undriveable and try to run me out of town? It wasn’t a case of running me out of town, it was making it so I couldn’t leave. Not until the morning, that is. Katy turned him down flat tonight, and Tanner said it was her last chance. I’m worried that while I was here with some smoke and mirror bullshit, Katy was the real target.”

  “Oh Jesus…” Maude said quietly and started to dial on the phone.

  “Leave it! No time!” Stone snapped. “Get your vehicle and take me!”

  He followed Maude, with Howard cursing and following behind him. As they reached the old pickup, Stone realized with sickening trepidation that he had underestimated Duke Tanner and had in fact played right into the man’s hands.

  He just hoped it was not too late.

  Chapter Six

  Howard drove with Maude up front. Stone rode in the back and had strapped himself in because the road soon became a dirt track and the big pickup slewed and bucked on the surface. Stone could not even decide what make and model it was, but it did not have four-wheel drive and handled like a tank. Once out of the town, small though it was, the darkness was entirely enveloping. There was little moon beyond the clouds, few stars to light up the sky. The pickup’s headlights were poor, most likely they were dirty and needed a wash, because they did little to light up more than fifty yards in front of them. They had not seen what direction the other two trucks had gone in, but Stone suspected they would be following Katy as she made her way back towards McBride’s Folly.

  “Where does Duke Tanner live?” Stone asked.

  “He bunks down at his mine most nights throughout the season,” Maude replied. “But he has a big house on Madison Creek.”

  “Maude, God damn it!” Howard cussed at her.

  “What?”

  Howard glanced at Stone in the rear-view mirror, then gave his wife a sideways glance. “We don’t know this guy, Maude. But we’ve known Duke Tanner for decades.”

  “And he’s a liar, a cheat and a bully. Just because we know him and don’t know this young fella, it doesn’t mean we shouldn’t believe him. Katy is a lovely girl and she’s suffered since her father died. It’s no mean feat running a gold mine.”

  “Running it into bankruptcy,” Howard said sharply. “Maybe she should just take Duke’s money and cut and run. Go back down south and practice law again.”

  “Howard…”

  Stone pointed ahead of them. “What’s that?”

  Howard did not slow. “Just some debris. Most likely a fender bender between two vehicles and the debris hasn’t got broken down with traffic yet. The haulage trucks grind everything into the dirt.”

  “There’s more,” said Stone. “Slow down!” he snapped, and Howard eased on the brakes. The big pickup slewed and skidded on the loose surface and more debris was visible in the road ahead. Stone got out and picked some of it up. It looked like part of a fender. There was both clear and colored glass as well. He tossed the piece of fender into the verge and ran back to the vehicle. “Drive! I can hear something going on up ahead!”

  Howard glanced at Maude, his expression in the ambient glow of the cabin showed concern.

  Stone had the .45 in his right hand. As they rounded the bend, rear lights were visible in the road ahead. When they drew closer a man was kneeling in the road. He looked up, shielding his eyes from what little glow the pickup’s lights afforded. He was straddling a body. He stood up, then looked behind him as a vehicle’s lights switched on. Howard hit the brakes and the truck skidded on the loose surface. Stone leapt out and the man started to run. Stone fired a round above the man’s head, and the man ducked instinctively and bolted for the waiting vehicle. He leapt into the passenger side and the pickup slewed and fishtailed on the dirt road. Stone ran to the body, dropped to his knees, and checked for a pulse. Katy blinked up at him, confused. She had been on the brink of unconsciousness, close to death, and suddenly started to gasp madly for air. Maude and Howard appeared either side of Stone and stared down at her.

  “I… I… couldn’t breathe,” she said. She attempted to sit up but winced and laid back down. “The truck bumped me several times from behind, then crashed into me and ran me off the road…” She paused, either finding the memory painful, or feeling pain from the incident. “I was dazed, and someone pulled me ou
t of my truck and at first I thought they were attempting first aid on me, like resuscitation, CPR. But he blocked my mouth and nose with his hands, and I couldn’t breathe… not even the tiniest amount of air…” she started to sob and Stone eased her close to him, smoothing a hand across her shoulder.

  “Come on,” he said. “Let’s get you into the pickup.” He gestured for Maude to lend a hand and she both eased her to her feet and comforted her. As they loaded her gently onto the backseat, Stone said, “Did you recognize him?”

  “No. It was too dark,” she replied quietly. “Thank goodness you all came; I was blacking out…” She started to sob. “Why would someone do that?”

  Howard had backed up and turned in the road and they were now bumping back over the uneven road surface. “It wasn’t Duke and those boys, though,” he said. “It was a different vehicle.”

  “Duke?” Katy looked perplexed. “Why would you think it was Duke?” she asked, but it was already dawning on her. “Jesus… I know he wants McBride’s Folly, but…”

  “Like I said, it wasn’t Duke or those boys,” said Howard adamantly.

  “We had a spot of bother back at the motel after you left, honey.” Maude paused, glancing at Stone. “They tried to get the young fella here to leave town. He wouldn’t have it and beat up one of Duke Tanner’s boys…”

  “What?” Katy looked at Stone. “Are you alright?” She looked at him, then shook her head. “Of course, you are. I’m so sorry,” she said. “If you got hassled on my account. But why did you assume Duke Tanner would go after me?”

  Stone shrugged. “Words were said, but it didn’t make any sense. Howard here stopped it escalating, but it had already turned violent, and slashing my tires so badly, only made sure I wasn’t going anywhere. Then I wondered if that was the play all along.”

  “You thought he might do something to your truck back in the restaurant, which was why you asked me if there was a garage or auto parts store in Lame Horse. I thought Duke was just getting back at you for your earlier stand-off, not as part of some plan to get to me…” she trailed off.

  “Nonsense!” Howard protested. “What happened back at the hotel was down to pride, nothing more.” He shook his head. “In the morning we’ll get this all straightened out.”

  “Yes,” Maude agreed. “And in the meantime, you can stay with us.”

  “Thank you,” Katy replied gratefully. “But if it’s all the same…” She looked up at Stone and said, “I’d like to stay with you tonight. I’ll take the spare bed, or the couch or whatever you have, but I’d feel safer with you in the room with me…” She paused. “Would that be OK?”

  Stone couldn’t think of a reason not to spend the night with an attractive woman. Even if it was in separate beds. But more than that, his years protecting people had formed a need within him, a trait he just could not shake off. He looked at the vulnerable woman beside him and said, “Sure, I’d be glad of the company.”

  Chapter Seven

  Maude had fixed Katy a large bourbon with ice and along with it, brought a tray of coffee to Stone’s room. The kind reserved for diners and not the complimentary sachets in the rooms. Howard had called the police down in Emmerson and because Katy was not in need of medical attention, they had said they would dispatch an officer in the morning. They would assess the vehicle crash site, then meet up at McBride’s Folly in the afternoon. Alaska was one of only two US states that did not have counties or parishes and therefore no local sheriff departments to handle regionalized crime, so the state troopers dealt with all law enforcement matters. With the nearest police department being just under three-hundred miles away, Stone could see why Alaska was a good place for people to run to. No search would ever find the truck or the man who had attacked Katy. Without a license plate, the trail would be cold by now, let alone morning. Any investigation would merely be an exercise in logging statements and the case would forever be open until a clerk deemed it no further action. Unless a conscientious mechanic recognized the damage he was paid to repair as a vehicle collision and reported it. But that seemed unlikely because cash talked in these parts and most people did not pry into another persons’ business.

  When Maude and Howard finally left them alone, Katy collapsed on the bed and said, “I’m sorry. I just felt safer with you, somehow.”

  “I get that a lot,” Stone replied.

  “I bet,” she said. “A safe pair of hands. Were you a cop?”

  “No.”

  “A soldier, then?” Stone nodded, but the devil was in the details. Talk of units or deployments created a trail and he had enough problems right now. Katy smiled. “I’m sensing a reluctance to talk about yourself.” She paused. “I guess that’s Alaska, right? Don’t worry, I’m used to it by now. My grandpa had a checkered past all of his own. That’s why he settled here from Texas.”

  “He was first to mine your family’s claim?”

  Katy nodded. “He was. He should have been the last, too. But after he died my father took over.”

  “What was the folly element?”

  “McBride’s Folly,” she mused somewhat wistfully. “Grandpa was a bold man. Behind the claim is a savage waterfalls and gully which my grandpa dynamited and diverted. Because of some fissure or other, he ended up accidentally bringing down half the mountain and where the river once flooded across at least half his claim, it created a gully. He always maintained that the riverbed would be full of gold deposits, but it wasn’t.”

  “And this was his folly?”

  “And his end.” Katy paused. “The falls is now called McBride’s Falls, because in a fit of rage after years of failing to find decent quantities of gold, he went back up there and was going to dynamite the gully and redivert the river. This was welcomed by the local people, because further down the river course the water flows so fast that it can create heavy flooding in the spring thaws. Not just that, but it is a raging torrent for most of the way until it hits the Pacific. And even there it causes problems because the currents are treacherous for over two square miles from the shore. It’s a boat user’s nightmare.” She paused. “Anyway, he wasn’t seen again. Some say he slipped and fell and went out to sea. Others say a bear could have got him.” She shrugged. “Who knows? But he was never seen again.” She paused. “But the legacy of the Falls remains because up here people always heed this advice… Don’t ever cross the river east of McBride’s Falls. You’ll end up washed away and lost forever…”

  “That certainly sounds like a powerful river…”

  “Too powerful by far. It was diverted to a gradient that simply could not cope. But there are stretches further down that are popular with white water rapid canoeists, but there have been many fatalities as a result.”

  “And then your father took over the mine,” said Stone. “How well did he do?”

  Katy finished her bourbon and shrugged as she put the empty glass on the bedside table. “Boom and bust. Some good years and some bad. That seems to be the way of the gold miner in Alaska. Canada, too. Except for the big concerns, I suppose. Hell, anywhere there’s gold there’s some guy close to losing the shirt off his back saying, ‘next year will be my year…!’ it’s a fickle and unreliable process that leads to heartbreak and disappointment more than to joy and contentment.” She paused and shrugged, as if accepting her fate. “Do you know who made the first million in the Gold Rush in the eighteen-hundreds?” Stone looked at her and shook his head. “The guy selling the shovels and pans and picks. True story. And therein lies the reality.”

  “It sounds like you’re about ready to quit.”

  Katy looked someplace in the middle distance. Stone hoped it was somewhere she found some comfort, but he suspected it wasn’t so. She looked tearful and rubbed at her right eye with the back of her hand. Stone thought it rather like something a young child would do, and he felt drawn to protect her vulnerability. He handed her a tissue from the box on his bedside table. “I can’t quit,” she replied quietly. “Too many ghosts. I n
eed to put them to rest.”

  “Ain’t that the truth…”

  “What are you running from, Rob?” She lay back on the bed, pulling part of the cover over her fully clothed body. “I can tell you’re a good man. I wouldn’t be here if I thought any different.”

  Stone took a sip of coffee and shrugged. “I was set up,” he said. “It’s complicated.”

  “And you can’t clear your name?”

  “I thought I had. I sent USB drives full of information, even had the testimony of a guilty party, and that of a solid witness as well, but so far nothing has changed.” Suddenly it felt good to share, if only in a vague outline.

  “Would it help if you went to your bosses in person?”

  Stone smiled. “I don’t think you understand who my bosses are, and their lack of understanding.”

  “So, what are we talking about? Larceny, skimming, sexual harassment?” she ventured playfully.

  “Sexual harassment?” Stone laughed. “You’re sharing a room with me, so you’d better hope not!”

  “Seriously, how bad is it?”

  Stone could hear the recording of the speech in his head, the words he had woken to in the early hours for over eight months. “I am former Secret Service agent Rob Stone. I have been the President’s bodyguard and worked both on his security detail and on special projects for him during his two terms of office,” the recording paused. Stone remembered bucking against his bonds, tethered to the chair in front of the bank of monitors. The President at the World Trade Centre memorial gardens, the place where every year since the Twin Towers had fallen, the press and families gathered, in front of the eyes of the world to remember the fallen. Stone can see the President’s family in those monitors, but also in the reticule of the three rifle scopes, all recording their sight picture. The internet biding, the deranged man – a former enemy – staring coldly at Stone as he counted down on that fateful day. “On my first tour of Afghanistan I was taken prisoner. During my incarceration I came to sympathize with my captives, my Islamic brothers. I converted to Islam back on home soil. I have been committed to their cause ever since. I will strike at the heart of America, the Great Satan, at the September Eleven Memorial and Museum. And I intend to do it now, in front of the press and the eyes of the world…” As hard as he tried – and he had thought of little else all these months later - he could not let the memory die until he had seen the three blood-splattered corpses on that stage, the sight of the President staring in disbelief, barreled into by his security detail and taken off the stage as his family twitched and bled and died in front of the world.