Chapter 14
Got the Last Word on the Street
TRE
“Let’s get out of here,” Fiona says, joy lighting her eyes behind the mask as she turns to her bike.
I sling my backpack over my shoulders and grab my own bike.
“Mask on, Tre,” she reminds me before I can take off. “We’re not done yet. We still can’t let our guard down.”
I don’t bother replying. I simply dig my ski mask out of my pocket and pull it over my head.
As desperately as I want to apologize to her, even I recognize that standing near the building we just destroyed isn’t the time or place.
“It’s still dark. Let’s stick to the original plan. I’ll follow you,” I tell her.
She nods and leads us back through the woods faster than when we arrived.
We fly down the trail, powered by adrenaline and a strong desire not to go to prison.
It’s dangerous in the dark, but Fiona’s no longer carrying a condominium’s worth of explosives, so I have to trust that she’s managing her pace while watching for obstacles.
I focus on following where she goes and not falling behind.
I still can’t believe she biked up Bridal Mountain with a heavy pack in the middle of the night. I’m breathing hard keeping up with her on this much flatter trail.
I guess I shouldn’t be surprised she’s so fit. Look at those legs. As dawn lightens the sky, I can make out more details, and the muscles under those tight pants are rippling. No, damn it. Focus before you crash and break your neck.
As the miles wear on, the elation of success fades, replaced by sheer determination to get clear before sunrise. When this ride ends, I may never get another chance to apologize to Fiona in private. I mentally rehearse the best I can, but my attention remains focused on the ride.
Eventually, she slows to a halt, making as much space as possible for me on the dirt path.
Through the trees to our right, I can make out the gravel parking lot of the trailhead.
The forest keeps most of the dawn light out, but past this tree line we’ll be fully visible.
Not many people should be in this remote area at five on Saturday morning, but there’s no reason to risk being seen.
“Alright, we’re here,” Fiona says. She’s breathing hard, but not the way I’m huffing and puffing.
I shift my focus from her chest as it rises and falls and meet her gaze.
Her eyes still have a fierce gleam, and she’s all business.
“We’re a bit behind schedule, but we should stick to our planned exits. ”
“Fiona, before—” I try to interject, but she keeps talking right over me.
“I’ll ride out first and take the road east two miles so I can turn down the county road back to town. Wait here at least five minutes before coming out and taking the south trail.”
“Listen, Fiona. There’s something I want—”
“You did a good job out there tonight, even if it was slow. You’ll wait here, like we agreed, right? We need separation.”
“Yes, of course. Before you go, I have to talk to you about—”
“We’re already late, Tre. It’s getting lighter by the minute.
No time to talk. If we need to do this again, I’ll contact you when the coast is clear.
Remember, we’re back to business as usual in town.
You hate me, I hate you. No one knows anything about us,” Fiona explains, then shifts her weight to start pedaling.
“I’m sorry about your mom!” I blurt out.
Fiona freezes, her entire body rigid.
Shit, not like that. Idiot! Too late now, get it all out there.
“I’m sorry for saying such mean things after she died. I was an idiot back then and—”
She turns to glare at me. I immediately stop talking and lean away. “Don’t you ever talk about my mother,” she demands, ice coating every word. Then she launches forward and rides around the bend, through the gravel parking lot, and out of sight.
My stomach plummets as I realize I should’ve just left it alone. I could’ve found another time.
Fuck. If only she’d let me get a word in. If I could have explained… How the hell do I fix this?
The bell above the door rings an instant before Ewan nearly shouts, “Holy shit, Tre! Tell me you know what’s going on!”
I turn from the coffee maker, having just started a fresh pot, to see him rush up to the counter. “Hey.”
“We just got back from a weekend trip and heard about Hay Creek! What’s the word? Fill me in.”
I force my face to remain neutral as I scan the restaurant.
At three on Monday afternoon, it’s nearly empty.
Sandy is wiping down a table against the back wall.
The sole customer is a middle-aged man with a crew cut sitting at a corner booth on his laptop, sipping the coffee I’ve been refilling for the past couple of hours—Connor, from Portland, he told me earlier.
Kyle walks in and takes a seat on a stool next to Ewan, who’s still standing.
“Well, it’s all anybody’s talking about today. Hey Kyle,” I say.
“Hey,” he replies, flipping his sandy brown hair out of his eyes.
“Yeah? So what the hell happened?” Ewan presses.
“The only thing anyone really knows is probably what you’ve already heard. There was an incident out at the condo development on Saturday. They say the main building was blown up, but all the construction guys tell me it wasn’t even done being built, so I don’t know how that works.”
“They didn’t see who did it? I thought they had security after the gondola thing.”
I shrug, but my eyes dart to a car parked down the street. The Henley and Montank suit is sitting behind the wheel of a nondescript sedan with out-of-state plates, making no effort to hide the fact that he’s watching the diner.
“There were security guards, but they must not have seen anything. Everyone keeps spouting stupid theories about who’s behind it, but if anyone actually knew, we’d all have heard by now.”
“That’s it? This is probably the biggest thing that’s happened around here in our lives and all you know is something took place on Saturday? I thought this was gossip central!”
Connor is watching us now. Sandy carries two glasses of water to the counter, and Ewan finally sits.
“Hey, all I know is what people tell me, and it sounds like they don’t know shit. It only just happened. If you really want, you can try asking some of the deputies. They’ve been in and out of here getting coffee and takeout all day.”
Kyle raises one eyebrow at that, but continues staring at Connor, who returns his focus to his computer.
“You know him?” Kyle asks.
“Not really. We just met today. Connor’s in town from Portland for work.”
Kyle snorts and looks at me skeptically.
“What? We talked earlier. He’s been here long enough he could probably tell you as much about Hay Creek as I can.”
“It’s Monday afternoon.”
“Huh,” I murmur. “Hey Connor, these are my friends, Ewan and Kyle. I was just mentioning you’re in town for work, but when we were talking earlier, I was so busy telling you about the good places to stay, I think I talked right over you. What was it you do again?”
“Nothing exciting.”
Ewan chimes in, “I assume you’re not with Henley and Montank, or you’d be at their sites rather than hanging out in here.”
Connor gives a thin smile. “No, I don’t work for them. I’m a technical specialist. I do chemical analysis, material tracing, things like that.”
“Isn’t that what you went to school for, Tre?” Ewan asks.
“No, nothing that advanced.”
I return my attention to the newcomer. “I don’t mean to pry, but you’ve got me curious. We don’t have too many big companies in the area that would bring people in from out of town. Are you with the lumber mill or the factory over in Green Valley?”
“Actually, I work in the public sector.”
“You’re a fed,” Kyle states flatly.
“That’s one way to put it. I work for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.”
Chills run down my spine.
Ewan perks up. “Why the hell am I wasting my time asking this guy, then? You have to know everything. Since it’s all rumor going around, fill us in on the facts.”
“I’m sorry. I can’t comment on an ongoing investigation.”
“If you’re in town to investigate, why are you here?” I raise my hands to indicate the diner.
“I was informed that this is what your friend called ‘gossip central.’” He smiles again. “You don’t mind if I work here for a while, do you?”
“No. That’s fine,” I say, forcing myself to sound unbothered. I turn back to Ewan and Kyle at the counter. “You guys actually ordering something or are you just here to talk?”
Kyle smirks. “Reuben, please. With fries.”
“Cheeseburger and fries for me,” Ewan says, and I turn to start making their food. “We came all the way downtown to find out what we missed, and we struck out twice.”