Page 18 of Maddox

“Impersonating an officer.” Gray sneered. “A tough lady. I think the two of you might hit it off.”

“So the fuck what?”

“I’m just telling you that the woman is cut out of the same cloth you were and undoubtedly still are.”

God help her then.

I thought about what he was saying. “I own a cattle ranch, Gray. A few horses. Almost four hundred acres. I’m being pressured to turn it into some kind of tourist destination. You know, like a dude ranch for idiots who need to relax from their insidious eight to five jobs. That sounds like crap to me, but it’s a working ranch, which means I spend eighteen hours a day, usually seven days a week on renovating the house and handling all the shit that comes with owning it all. Now, with only so much money, as you might imagine, time is valuable. In other words, I’m not interested.”

“Would you do it for five hundred thousand?”

He had me laughing once again. “You’re not in the business of paying me that kind of money. What the hell did you get into, Gray?”

“Not me. Her family and some people I know.”

“People.”

He nodded, obviously determined not to let me in on his little secret.

“Like I said. Not interested. The danger alone is worth more than that.”

“A million.”

I rubbed my jaw. With that kind of money, I could do a hell of a lot with the house as well as replacing the fencing. How many cattle had gotten free since I’d bought the place? “How long are we talking?”

“A day down, a day to convince her to listen to you, and a day to get back. Not bad for three days’ worth of work.”

“Convince her,” I repeated.

“From what I’ve heard and if her reports are any indication, she’s a tough lady. She doesn’t like being told what to do.”

I finished the beer, now wishing I hadn’t since I was actually considering the shit. “Let me guess. You and your mystery buddies wouldn’t mind getting your hands on the information. I doubt it’s to provide solid evidence that Alfaro is a savage. You could run a raid any time you wanted. You want the properties in the new compound.”

“Can’t say one way or the other.”

The entire thing sounded unseemly as hell. I pushed back the bottle and stood, tapping the bar. “Nice to see you, Gray, but lose my number. I’m not interested.”

“Just wait a second. I want you to look at something.” He yanked a cocktail napkin from the huge stack and pulled a pen from his jacket. “This is a link that will take you to several of the reports she’s done. She even did some freelancing for some network television shows. You’ll get a solid feeling about her.”

“And why would I want to do that?”

“She’s a good gal, someone who doesn’t deserve to have her life ended. Just take a look. I’m staying at a dive motel not too far from here. I’ll be there for twenty-four hours. Just hit redial and I’ll answer.”

Against my better judgment, I snagged the napkin and shoved it into my jeans pocket. “Don’t hold your breath, Gray. I’m happy to be out of the service. I did my time. I served my country.” And I lost everything that mattered to me in the process. Why the hell would I want to be reminded of the tragedy of my life?

“Like I said. Just think about it. You’re the only person capable of saving her life.”

“What the hell is her name?”

“Charmaine Douglas.”

CHAPTER 6

Maddox

“Kill the motherfucker.”

The words had never meant anything to me. Until Alfaro had said them. After that, he’d hopped on a private jet for Tahiti or where the hell ever he’d taken his family on a much-needed vacation.

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