Page 32 of Hell on an Angel
Opening the door, Cree looked back at the quiet street before following Maliki inside. The two men headed straight for the kitchen island. Cree moved around it, taking three mugs from a cabinet and setting them on the island. He needed to know what was going on.
When Kennedy poured the coffee, she asked Maliki why he’d come by so early. She saw the shared look between the two men and knew something was wrong. “What’s wrong?”
Maliki looked at Cree, and Cree held his hands out as if to say ‘go ahead’. The whole situation had her palms sweating. She listened as Maliki told them two men in a dark sedan were seen driving around Red Lake. “I pulled them over myself, inquiring their being on the reservation. They said they’re here to do some ice fishing. I’m sure they knew I didn’t believe a word of it.”
Smoke from the stove had Kennedy rushing back to the food she’d been cooking. Turning the stove off, she set the sausage to the side. Taking a breath, she focused on what needed to happen. “Maliki, can you get me off the reservation and to a bus station?”
“Yeah.”
“You’re not going to a damn bus station.”
Kennedy slammed her hands onto the counter. Turning around, she glared at Cree. “You can’t get me out of here. You’re hurt.”
“We’ll leave together or we’re staying right here.”
“You and I know all it will take is those two men showing my picture to the right person and the jig’s up, Cree.”
Ignoring Kennedy’s comment, Cree brought the food to the table along with plates and flatware. He needed time to think, time to come up with a plan that would keep her safe. If they left the reservation, they could pop over the border. That had been his plan when they headed to Red Lake. Now, with them being there on the reservation, they needed to rethink that idea. The big question on his mind was, how did they track them there?
“Kennedy, is there anything you haven’t told me about what happened? Any detail that might shed some light on how they’ve ended up here on the reservation? Did you hear anything that was said before your boss shot the other man?”
“Mr. Angelini called the man George. Said he stole from him. George told him that he didn’t take the money, that another man stole the money.”
“What money?”
“Mr. Angelini had a large duffle bag of money that he’d kicked and a crap ton of money bundles fell out at George’s feet.”
“How’d you see all that without being seen?”
“I used my phone.”
What?”
“I used my phone. I stuck it right at the edge of the glass and used it to see what was going on.”
“Too bad you didn’t video it.”
“I don’t think I did. But we tossed my phone back in Sioux Falls because it was being tracked.” Knowing the two men were on the reservation looking for her, Kennedy’s heart beat rapidly in her chest. “Can you arrest them for being part of a murder in Reno?”
“No.” Maliki drummed his fingers on the counter. “I have no authority to detain a non-native individual.”
“So, they can do whatever they want to us and drive off the reservation, no questions asked?”
“If they commit a crime against a native or reservation property, they can be arrested.”
Cree was already coming up with a plan in his head. If he caused an altercation between himself and the two men hunting Kennedy, then Maliki could arrest them. That would give them time to get off the reservation and put some distance between them.
“I’m done.” Kennedy’s comment cut into his thoughts.
“What?” Cree asked, staring at her as she sat down and started eating.
“I’m done. I’m calling the FBI and telling them I witnessed a murder in Reno and that I’m on the run from hitmen.” Kennedy took a bite of food and continued explaining her point of view. “Cree can cause a scene with them. You, Maliki, can arrest them so they’re detained for the FBI. After that, we can head to Montreal, and when they need me to testify, I’ll be happy to help.”
It wasn’t a half bad idea. Before they did anything, they needed to know where the two men were and where Kennedy’s boss was. And whether the FBI would come to the reservation. If all else failed, they’d make a run for the border.
Sitting on the barstool, Cree pulled Kennedy over to him where she stood between his thighs. “Let’s slow down and think this whole thing through, okay?”
“Okay.”
