Page 65 of Chasing Justice

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“That’s a chance they’re willing to take. Are you willing to take that chance?” Carson reached up and pushed the gun out of his face. “Now, I’ll investigate things on my end, but I think you better also look into your business. Don’t assume things. We all know what that word starts with, and you’re acting like an ass.”

Lana holstered her gun. “You are a dead man if you don’t get me the money. You need to figure out who’s stealing. First there were missing drugs. Now the money. You won’t get a third chance.”

“The problem is taken care of,” Carson said, thinking of Bobbi. If money and drugs were missing, maybe she had stolen them as evidence. He would look around the property to see if anything was stashed.

“I hope so,” Lana said. She turned on her heels and then paused, glancing back. “Because if you don’t take care of the problem, I will. I’ll be back to see what you find out.”

Then she strutted out the door. Carson realized he’d balled up his fists. He’d wanted to make her shut up but had to bide his time. Right now, he still needed her for the codeine, but as soon as Jenna finished figuring out her recipe for synthetic codeine, he could cut ties with Lana. Make her disappear. People went missing all the time in the mountains.

He turned around to his men. “Thanks, now we have to figure out who’s stealing from us. Is it one of us or someone in Lana’s crew?”

The men nodded in agreement. They all holstered their weapons and headed to the meeting hall to discuss the next step. As they left the room, Cody trailed in. Carson walked over to him and put a hand on his shoulder. “All good?”

Cody tipped his hat back and smirked. “All good.”

“Then let’s go figure out how to run this business ourselves.”

Chapter Thirty-Five

The morning sun glinted off the mountain peaks as Maya drove to her office, sipping her coffee and hoping the caffeine would hit her system soon. Juniper was curled up in the back. Apparently getting up at 0500 was early for her too.

Maya had spent the whole night tossing and turning. Trying to stay clearheaded, she hadn’t had a drop of beer, which made sleeping even more difficult. When she did sleep, the nightmares came. They were a mixture of explosions, death, and her grandfather being tortured and killed.

I have to find him.

Josh was meeting Maya at her office and they were going back up to the Baker cabin. If her grandfather’s disappearance was tied in with the explosion, going back to the crime scene made the most sense and might give them a much-needed break in the case. Josh would provide backup.

Maya had been ready to go last night, but Josh told her to go home and relax. She had been restless all night long. The cabin seemed too quiet and she dozed off and on. She had tried calling Josh before it got too late to see if he wanted to meet even earlier, but he didn’t answer. Where had he been?

She’d thought through every person in the sheriff’s department she knew. She couldn’t come up with anyone who would give out inside information except for Josh. Maya thought about the information Sam had divulged about Josh’s mistake getting his partner killed. She convinced herself she was being paranoid about Josh, but when she had a chance, she would go through the files in her grandfather’s office. For now, she would watch her back.

At least I know I can trust Juniper.

As Maya approached the edge of town, she slowed down for a cow elk to cross the road. Its calf trailed behind it. Up ahead, Maya could see Josh parked by her office, waiting for her. She had brewed an extra cup of coffee for him complete with cream like he asked for at her cabin. After the elk scampered into the trees, she pulled up window-to-window so she and Josh could talk before leaving.

Juniper leaped to her feet, instantly awake, and started yipping. Her paws started making a tapping noise as she danced in the back. Maya told her to be quiet. Juniper grunted, but at least listened. As a reward, Maya opened up the door between the front of the vehicle and Juniper’s compartment. Juniper stuck her head through along with a giant paw smacking Maya on the shoulder. Maya rubbed Juniper’s ears and face. The dog responded with a few slurps on Maya’s face and then Juniper retreated into her compartment, lying back down on her shredded blanket.

Maya handed Josh the coffee with cream. “How’d you know I take my coffee like that?” he asked.

“I spied on you.”

“Seriously?”

“No. You asked for cream with your coffee when you came to my cabin and we live in a small town. The coffee shop barista shared the information with me. Apparently, you’re one of her favorite customers.”

“Oh, busted. I’m a coffee junkie and tip well.”

“I’m not sure that’s why you’re a favorite, but it sounds good.”

“I do stop there often. Glad we didn’t get Juniper any caffeine,” Josh said.

Maya agreed as her dog started yelping in excitement. She took a sip of her coffee, grateful for the caffeine. She could have used about ten coffees after her lack of sleep. “Tried calling you last night, but you didn’t answer. Everything okay?”

“Everything is good,” Josh said. “Just had to take care of some things.”

Maya wanted to ask more, but held off, making a mental note to see if she could figure out where Josh was. This was a small town, after all. Someone had to have seen him.

“Ready to head up there?” Josh said. “Make sure you drink that before we head off on the Jeep road. You don’t want to spill coffee all over that nice uniform. That would make the Forest Service look bad.”