Heartbreaker

Chapter 27

The sheriff was the last to arrive at the scene. His Ford Explorer rounded the corner on two wheels. Swerving to avoid hitting Little Lorna, the car skidded to a stop.

Lloyd left his SUV in the middle of the street. Grunting as he eased his bulk out from under the steering wheel, he got out of the car and stood there with his hands on his hips, surveying the crowd. He tried to look important. Frowning so that anyone who might be watching him would know he considered this situation a serious matter, he hiked his pants up with his belt, straightened his shoulders, and strutted into Laurant’s front yard. "What’s going on here?" he shouted.

"What do you think is going on?" Joe asked. "The house is on fire."

Lloyd scowled at Joe to let him know he didn’t appreciate his sarcasm. Then he noticed Brenner’s hands were behind his back and there was blood all over his face. Leaning to the side, he saw the handcuffs.

"Hey, now, what’s Steve wearing those cuffs for?"

"Breaking the law," Joe replied.

"Bullshit," Brenner ranted. "Lloyd, I didn’t do anything illegal. Make them take these damn cuffs off me. They’re chafing my wrists."

"In due course," Lloyd assured him. Then his eagle-eyed gaze homed in on Joe, and he took a threatening step toward him "Aren’t you that fella who was fixing Lauren’s sink? What are you doing here? Did you strike this citizen? His nose looks to be broken. Now I’m asking you straight out, boy, and I want a straight answer. Did you hit him?"

"I hit him," Nick said. "I should have shot him."

"Don’t you be a smart mouth, boy. This here is a serious matter."

"Yes, it is," Nick agreed. "And if you call me boy one more time, I’m going to handcuff you. Got that, Lloyd?"

Lloyd nervously took a step back to put some distance between him and Nick, and acted like he was contemplating the situation. In reality, the sheriff was getting the feeling that he was in over his head, but he knew that Brenner would kill him if he didn’t get him out of this mess. He warily looked up at Nick. The FBI agent reminded him of a mountain lion, relaxed one second, and sinking his teeth into his prey the next.

"Lloyd, do something," Brenner demanded. "He broke my nose. I want him arrested."

Lloyd nodded and forced himself to look Nick in the eyes. The frost there gave him a chill. He was proud of himself for resisting the urge to look away. "That’s battery, hitting a citizen," he said. "You don’t think I can arrest an FBI agent?"

Nick’s answer was immediate. "No, I don’t think you can."

"Shit," Brenner muttered.

"We’ll just see about that," Lloyd blustered. "Steve’s got to get to the hospital and get that nose fixed, and I’m going to take him there. I’m in charge, ‘cause this here is my jurisdiction."

Joe looked at Nick before answering. "This here is my prisoner, and you aren’t touching him."

Nick moved to stand beside Joe, a show of unity against the sheriff, but also he wanted to he able to keep his eye on Laurant.

"Say now, what are you wearing a gun for?" Lloyd asked Joe, seeing for the first time the weapon and holster attached to his belt. "You got yourself a permit for that thing?"

Joe smiled. "I sure do. I’ve got a badge too. Want to see it? I’ll bet it’s bigger than yours."

"You being a smart-ass, boy?"

"He’s FBI," Nick said.

Lloyd was losing ground fast and needed to find at least one area over which he could take control.

"Are you responsible for this here fire?" he asked Nick.

Nick didn’t think the question merited an answer. He shoved his hands in his pockets to keep himself from grabbing the sheriff by the neck.

Lorna was standing about five feet away from the two men, taking furious notes on a Big Chief tablet. She took a tentative step toward Nick, saw the look in his eyes, and backed away.

Joe motioned for Wesson to join them.

"What do you think you’re going to arrest Steve for?" the sheriff demanded. "Burning down his own house?"

"He’s already been arrested," Joe informed him.

"On what charges?" Lloyd asked.

"Is there a problem here?" Wesson called out as he came running over.

"Who the hell are you?" Lloyd asked.

"Senior officer in charge," Wesson responded.

Joe grinned. "He’s FBI too."

"How many of you fellas are there in Holy Oaks? And what are you doing here anyway? This is my town," he stressed. "And you all should have come directly to me if you knew about a problem here."

A heated exchange followed. Lloyd kept insisting that he was taking Brenner with him, but there was no way that Wesson was going to let that happen. He also wasn’t going to tell the sheriff what the charges were, despite Lloyd’s protests that Wesson’s secrecy was plain unconstitutional.

"It’s an ongoing investigation."

"Investigation of what?"

Nick was seething, but his anger was fully directed on Wesson. He wasn’t going to wait much longer to get some answers, and if that-meant having an argument in a public forum, then that’s the way it was going to go down.

"Can you believe this?" Joe whispered. "The two of them are in a pissing contest."

"Yeah, well, they can figure out who’s the bigger man later. Hey Sheriff, where’s your son?"

The question distracted Lloyd. "Why do you want to know?"

"I’m going to arrest him."

Lloyd’s bushy eyebrows shot up. "The hell you are. My boy hasn’t done anything wrong." Making a wide sweep with his arm he added, "You can see for yourself, he ain’t even here."

"He was here."

"Bullshit." Lloyd dragged the word out. "I’m saying he wasn’t here, and I’m not gonna let you pin this on my boy. He was home with me all evening. We watched wrestling together on the television."

"I saw him," Nick said.

"You couldn’t have seen him ‘cause, like I just told you, he was home all evening with me."

Nick addressed Wesson. "I want a word in private with you. Now."

He saw Lorna start toward them and turned around and walked toward the empty lot, away from prying ears. Wesson looked perturbed but followed Nick.

"What is it?"

Anger punctuated Nick’s words. "Where the hell were the agents you told me you assigned to watch the house? If they were here, then how come Lonnie got past them? The kid went out the back door."

Wesson’s lips formed a thin line of disapproval. He didn’t like anyone questioning his decision.

"They left yesterday."

"They what?"

"They were given new assignments."

The muscle in Nick’s jaw clenched. "Who gave the order?"

"I did. Feinberg and Farley were sufficient backup. I felt that was all the manpower I needed."

"And you didn’t think it was necessary to inform Noah or me?"

"No, I didn’t," Wesson answered very matter-of-factly. "You volunteered to be Laurant’s bodyguard, and you’re the one who brought in Noah to guard her brother. Frankly, if you hadn’t gotten Morganstern’s approval, you wouldn’t even be on this case. I certainly wouldn’t have approved it. You’re too personally involved, but because you’re one of Morganstern’s golden boys, he bent the rules and let you in. I don’t bend the rules," he added. "And I don’t want or need your input. Have I made myself clear?"

"You really are a son of a bitch. You know that, Wesson?"

"Your insubordination is definitely going to be reported, agent."

The threat didn’t faze Nick. "Be sure to spell it right."

"You’re off the case."

Nick exploded. "You put Laurant in jeopardy by trying to make this a one-man show. That’s what’s going in my report."

Wesson was determined not to let Nick know how furious he was. "I did no such thing," he said coolly. "When you have had time to calm down, you’ll realize that I didn’t need a dozen agents running around town, sticking out like sore thumbs. It’s the bottom line that counts. I got the unsub and that’s all the boss is going to care about."

"You don’t have enough evidence to prove Brenner’s the unsub."

"Yes, I do," he insisted. "Look at the facts. Not everything has to be as complicated as you think it should be. Brenner was out of town and cannot account for his whereabouts. He had plenty of time to get to Kansas City, threaten the priest, and get back to Holy Oaks. He was careful about filing off the serial number on the camera, put it in her house, and the only reason he went there tonight was because he thought you and Laurant were at the party. He’s been careful, but he made a mistake. They all do " he added sagely. "We also know from witnesses that he was obsessed with Laurant and that he had plans to marry her. We can make a strong case that he snapped when she spurned him."

"What witnesses?" Nick asked.

"Several people in town I’ve already gotten statements from Brenner’s always been the primary suspect. You knew that. One of my agents is on his way back from the judge now with a warrant, and when he gets here, I’m personally going to go through Brenner’s house. I’m sure I’m going to find more evidence to convict him. By the book," he added smugly.

"It’s too pat, Wesson."

"I disagree," he countered. "It was solid investigative work that nailed Brenner."

"You’re letting your ego cloud your judgment," he said. "Don’t you think it’s odd that he decided to bring another man in?"

"You’re referring to Lonnie, and the answer is no, I don’t think it’s odd or out of character. Brenner simply took advantage of an opportunity. He probably figured he could pin the crime on the kid."

"What are you going to do about Lonnie?"

"I’ll let the local authorities take care of him."

Nick gritted his teeth. "The local authority happens to be his father."

Wesson didn’t want to be bothered with that detail. Tying up all the loose ends was a job for the underlings. "If everything goes according to schedule, Feinberg and I will be pulling out of here by tomorrow night at the latest. Farley’s leaving now," he added. "And I really don’t see any reason for you or Noah to hang around. I meant it when I said you were off the case."

Without a word or a backward glance, Nick walked away from the complacent bastard. Wesson was in his glory, and Nick knew he wasn’t going to listen to anything he had to say. Brenner was the unsub. Case closed.

When Nick got into the car, Laurant took one look as his face and asked, "What happened?"

"I’m officially off the case. Not that I was ever really on it," he added derisively. "Wesson’s convinced that Brenner’s our guy. He’s waiting for a warrant so he can go through his house."

"But that’s good, isn’t it?"

He didn’t answer her. Wesson was waving at him, trying to get his attention, but Nick ignored him and started the car.

"Nick, talk to me."

"This is all wrong."

"You don’t think it’s Brenner."

"No, I don’t. I don’t have any concrete reasons, but my gut’s telling me he isn’t the unsub. It’s too easy. Maybe Wesson’s right. Maybe I’m trying to make this more complicated than it really is. He’s kept Noah and me in the dark, so I don’t know what evidence they’ve got that convinces them. Hell, let’s get out of here. I’ve got to get some distance so I can think."

"The Vandermans offered us their extra bedroom, and Willie and Justin also offered us beds. I told them we were going to sleep at the abbey."

Nick pulled out into the street. "Do you want to go there?"

"No."

"Okay. Then let’s get the hell out of Dodge."