Deadly Revenge (Pearl River #3)

Chapter 30

30

Even as she said it, Jenna wasn’t sure Sebastian would risk going back to jail to carry out his vendetta. Besides, how would he have known they were even at the barn?

“It’s possible it wasn’t about either of us. The path looked worn—as if someone used it regularly. But to what purpose?”

“We busted a meth lab in the county not long ago.” Jenna scanned the trees around them, barely aware of the quiet flow of the river in the background. She’d roamed these woods as a kid, tagging along with her uncle on the days he’d worked at the barn training the former owner’s horses. It’d been a safe place ...

“Maybe someone has set up around here and is using the river to transport drugs out.”

She nodded. “What do you remember about the attack?”

“Very little.” He massaged his temples, and then looked up. “Maybe a sense that someone was behind me ... when I turned around, he was just there. I should’ve been more alert.” Red crept into his face.

She knew how he felt at being caught off guard.

“How did you find me?”

“Once I found Kirk’s ATV, I didn’t have any trouble tracking you—you left a pretty solid path to follow.”

He glanced toward the riverbank. “Let’s see if there’s anything around the river that might help us figure this out.”

Jenna let Max go first so that if he started to fall, she could catch him. Not that she told him that. His pride was already wounded at getting coldcocked.

Max pointed to a bare spot on the bank that looked like a path down to the river. “I remember now—that’s why I was headed this way. See if you can see any footprints.”

Jenna kept her gaze glued to the ground. “I see deer prints, and maybe raccoon ... this must be a watering spot.”

When they reached the bank, she could see that’s what it obviously was. The bank sloped to the sandbar with all sorts of animal tracks.

“Be careful,” she cautioned as Max climbed down on the shelf, then she followed, noticing his shoe prints but no others. She was about to say something when Max pointed to the ground.

“Looks like someone used a branch to sweep the sand,” he said.

Jenna scanned the nearby trees overhanging the bank and noticed a birch tree on the edge of the bank with bark missing at the base of the trunk. “I bet he tied his boat or canoe here.”

Max examined the tree. “Do people normally travel this river? It doesn’t look very deep.”

“It’s deeper than it looks, but a person would have to use something like a kayak or a canoe to navigate the river here. Most people fish from the bank or set out trotlines,” she said. “It’s a good place to catch catfish and largemouth bass. As for people canoeing or kayaking on it, this is the first time I’ve been back here since I returned to Pearl Springs. I don’t know about now, but when I was a kid, those were popular activities.”

“Jenna! Max! Where are you?”

She looked toward the woods. “Sounds like Alex is here.”

Max cupped his hand and yelled, “We’re on the river.”

They quickly retraced their steps and climbed the bank.

“What are you doing by the river?” Before Jenna could answer, Alex shifted her gaze and pointed at Max. “And I thought you were unconscious.”

“He was.” Jenna quickly explained what they thought had happened.

Max nodded toward the river. “Someone was here. We found where he covered his tracks and tied up a boat.”

“He? You know who it was?”

“No, but Jenna said you busted a meth operation not long ago around here.”

“Yeah, in another part of the county,” Alex said. “Maybe whoever attacked you was someone looking to hook up with a drug dealer.”

Jenna shook her head. “If that was the case, he would’ve waited until we left.”

Alex glanced toward the pasture then the wooded area. “Maybe whoever it was didn’t want you to see something, like a boat or a canoe. Did you find anything the CSI team needs to check out?”

Max shook his head. “We searched pretty thoroughly—our guy didn’t leave anything behind.”

Jenna checked her watch. A little after seven. “Bryan grumbles that his grandson is always exploring the woods around here, either on the ATV or horseback—he could’ve seen something.”

“After what happened today,” Max said, “he needs to stay away from here.”

Jenna agreed and would tell Bryan so. She rode back to the barn with Alex while Max trailed behind on the ATV. They found Kirk in one of the stalls helping his grandfather with the other horses in the barn. “Evening, Bryan,” Jenna said, speaking to the older man.

“Evening. Sorry about Ace getting out of his stall.”

She waved off his apology. “It’s happened to me.”

“Did you find Mr. Maxwell?” the boy asked.

“She did,” Max said, coming up behind them. “Thanks for letting me use your ATV. And you’re welcome to call me Max.”

“Why were you gone so long? You said it’d only be for fifteen minutes.”

“Kirk! You know better than to talk to your elders that way.”

“It’s okay,” Max said.

“No, it’s not.”

“Sorry, Granddad,” Kirk said.

He wasn’t, but Jenna wasn’t going to call him on it.

Alex gave Jenna a wry grin then held out her hand, first to the grandfather, then to Kirk. “I don’t think we’ve met. Alex Stone, Russell County’s chief deputy.”

“Heard you were running for the office next year,” Bryan Bishop said.

“Thinking about it.” She turned to Kirk. “Have you noticed anyone strange hanging around the woods?”

“You mean like weird, or somebody I don’t know?”

“How about both?”

Kirk’s shoulders lifted in a shrug. “Not really.”

Max leaned forward. “The ones you haven’t really seen—are they people you know or strangers?”

“Strangers—I mean, uh ...” The boy stared at his boots.

“Boy, if you’ve seen anyone in the woods, I want you to tell these officers right now. Unless you want me to take the keys to that ATV for the rest of the month.”

Kirk gulped. “Uh ... sometimes people tie up their canoes at the river and walk through the woods to the Armstrong place.”

“That’s the farm next to us,” Bryan explained. “Belonged to William Armstrong. His heirs sold it after William died, and the buyer rents the house out. The ones renting it now have been there six months at least. I never see ’em.”

“Do you know who bought it?” Max asked.

“Afraid not. None of William’s kids live in Russell County, so I haven’t talked to them.”

Alex turned to Kirk. “Did you see what’s going on over there?”

This time the boy’s shrug was bigger. “I don’t know. I don’t mess around there.”

“Why’s that?” Jenna asked.

“I rode my ATV too close to their barn one time, and they yelled at me.”

“Why haven’t you told me about this?” his grandfather asked.

“I don’t hardly never see them.”

Hardly ever, Jenna mentally corrected. “But you have seen them. What do they look like?”

Kirk tilted his head and looked up toward the barn rafters. “Some of them have big arms with tattoos on them. And one of them has a real creepy smile.”

“One of them smiled at you?” Jenna frowned. “You were that close to him?”

“Yeah. He wasn’t big like the others ... he had muscles, just wasn’t as tall. I thought he was going to yell at me, but he didn’t. Asked me what my name was and told me to be careful in the woods. That’s when he smiled, real creepy like.” Kirk shuddered. “I haven’t seen him down there again.”

Bryan pinned his grandson with a stern gaze. “See to it that you keep away from the river.” When Kirk didn’t respond, the grandfather raised his eyebrows. “You hear me, boy?”

He studied the floor. “Yes, sir.”

“How long ago did this happen?” Jenna asked.

“I dunno ... maybe two weeks ago. I was riding down to the river on Blackjack—that’s my horse—and I didn’t see him until he came up the riverbank. We scared each other.”

“And you haven’t seen him again?”

The boy shook his head. “I mostly just see the ones that yelled at me—they come on Thursday or Friday.”

Alex took a card from her pocket. “Next time you see someone, would you give me a call?”

Kirk took the card and nodded. “Yeah, okay.”

Jenna caught the boy’s eye. “You have to promise you’ll stay clear of these men, and that you’ll stay out of the woods for now.”

“But that’s where I ride,” he protested.

His grandfather crossed his arms. “Don’t argue with her.”

“Maybe it won’t be for long,” Jenna said. “Have you fed Ace yet?”

“Not yet—I was about to when he got out.”

“Why don’t you help me feed him, then?”

“Sure.”

She scooped sweet feed out of a barrel and added a supplement to the mix and handed the bucket to Kirk, then she peeled off two flakes of hay and followed him to Ace’s stall. What if Sebastian was one of the men the boy had seen? She unlatched Ace’s door, tossed the hay in the corner, and then took the feed from Kirk.

Jenna didn’t get the sense that he understood the danger of prowling the woods or going to the river or that he wouldn’t sneak down there when his grandfather was busy. If one of them attacked Max, they wouldn’t think twice about harming Kirk if they thought he’d seen something he shouldn’t have.

“Kirk, it’s really important that you stay away from the river and the place next door.”

“Those men don’t scare me none,” the boy said.

That was the attitude she was afraid of. Jenna would have to impress on Bryan that he needed to make sure Kirk stayed away from the river and the woods. She couldn’t bear the thought of something happening to the boy.