Chapter 22
Sapphire
The sound of aircraft engines finally cut through the hot afternoon air.
I stood at the cave entrance with Kayden beside me, shielding my eyes against the sun as a fixed-wing plane appeared over the ridge, banking wide before touching down on a flat stretch of dirt that was further from the cave than I wanted.
The pilot landed it easily, like he’d put down in worse terrain than this plenty of times.
The Royal Flying Doctor Service logo was unmistakable on its white fuselage, catching the light as it taxied to a stop.
Kayden and I raced toward the plane.
Two men climbed out, hauling a portable stretcher and two heavy medical kits that they rested on the dirt.
“Boy, are we glad to see you,” Kayden said as we neared.
“Damn, this is a big property.” The pilot offered his hand. “Xander Devlyn. And this is Dr. Izak Torres.”
Izak nodded. “How’s the patient?”
“Still kicking. I’m Kayden Branson, and this is ...”
“Sapphire Delaney,” I cut in. “What shall we take?”
“Grab the stretcher. It’s a gunshot wound, right?” Izak asked. “Lead the way.”
“Yes,” I said as I led them toward the cave. “A bullet wound to his lower back. He could be paralyzed. He’s been down for a few hours.”
“He’s lucky to be alive,” Izak said.
“Yeah, real lucky.” Kayden couldn’t keep the sarcasm out of his voice.
Xander gave him the side-eye.
“He’s my father,” Kayden added. “He’s an asshole.”
“Right, then,” Izak said.
“That sounds like a story I want to hear.” Xander wriggled his brows. “And I want to know more about Bob. Jaxson told us some details.”
“There’s a lot to tell. I’ll wait until everyone is here.”
“Sure thing. Looks like you need medical attention, too,” Izak said, nodding at Kayden’s arm.
“I’m fine,” Kayden said.
“Yes, he does,” I said. “Kayden was shot by Bob. He’s just lucky that bullet wasn’t two inches to the left.”
“Sounds like you guys have had a lot of luck on your side,” Xander said.
“If we were lucky, I’d have Bob in handcuffs,” I said.
“Don’t worry. Now that Aria and Jaxson are involved, we’ll get him,” Xander said.
We were halfway to the cave when the distinctive thump of rotor blades cut through the hot air.
“Here they come now,” Xander said, squinting at the sky.
A helicopter crested the same ridge, red and white against the brilliant blue sky, and settled down fifty meters from the cave in a swirl of red dust.
“Have you met Aria before?” Xander said.
I shook my head.
“You’ll like her. Aria Morgan is the head of Wolf Security. There’s a story you’ll want to hear. Short version: she used to work for ASIO, but the head of ASIO turned out to be the bad guy. So, if Bob thinks his uniform’s going to save him, he’s about to learn how wrong he is.”
Four people emerged from the chopper. Three men and a woman. They moved as a team, and I had a feeling they’d all landed in much more remote places than this. Possibly ex-military, every one of them.
As we reached them, a tall, dark-haired man called to us. “Constable Delaney?” His voice was clipped but not unfriendly.
“That’s me,” I said. “Are you Detective Jaxson Callahan?”
“Just Jaxson, and it’s good to meet you.”
“I wish it was under better circumstances,” I said.
“In our line of business, it rarely is,” he said. He gestured to the others. “This is Aria Morgan, that’s my brother Parker Callahan, and our chopper pilot, Levi.”
I nodded to each of them. Aria had long dark hair pulled back in a practical ponytail, and eyes that assessed me with the same professional calculation as Jaxson’s. Parker was identical to Jaxson. Right down to the last detail. Same height, same build, same chiseled features. Had to be twins.
“Lead the way,” Jaxson said.
Aria’s gaze snapped to me. Sharp. Focused. “Fill me in.”
“The wounded man is Frank Branson,” I said.
“My father,” Kayden added.
“Frank was shot in the back by Senior Sergeant Bob Ackerman of Winton Police Station.”
“Shit.” Aria’s jaw tightened. “You’re certain of that?”
“I didn’t witness it, but the sarge did shoot at Kayden and me yesterday.” I nodded at Kayden, noting how pale he looked. I made a mental note to make sure they treated his arm while they were here.
“There’s an entire story behind all of this,” Kayden added. “You’re going to need a week to catch up.”
“Bob’s crimes go back decades,” I said.
“Bloody hell,” Xander said. “Well, he won’t be on the run for long now that Aria’s onto it. Right?”
Aria’s jaw tightened again.
With Kayden close to my side, I led them into the cave where the air dropped cooler.
I pointed at the pool of blood. “Lyle Henderson was shot here. Lyle confirmed Bob shot him in the stomach.”
“Christ almighty,” Aria said.
We kept walking to Frank. He was still breathing shallow, and his face was gray with pain.
Izak knelt beside him, quickly checking his vitals and assessing the wound. “Gunshot to the left shoulder. Bullet has gone straight through. Second bullet wound, lower back, right-hand side. I need to check for an exit.” He looked up. “Help me roll him.”
Xander kneeled at Izak’s side, and as they rolled Frank slightly, Frank groaned.
“No exit,” Izak said. “Bullet’s still in there.”
“Please,” Frank rasped. “Just put me out of my damn misery, will ya?”
“Shut up, Frank,” Kayden said.
Izak pulled supplies from his kit. “Xander, help me stabilize him for transport. Then we’ll get him onto that stretcher.”
“I’m dyin’, ya fuckin’ idiots. Cancer. Just ... just finish me.”
“Sir, I need you to stay still,” Izak said, his tone neutral. “We’re going to get you out of here.”
“For fuck’s sake. Will ya damn well listen?”
“Nobody’s listening to you, Frank,” Kayden said. “So, shut up.”
Levi grabbed the stretcher, settled it into position, and then he helped Izak and Xander lift Frank onto it.
As they carried him toward the cave entrance, Frank’s pleas got louder.
“I’m dyin’! Just let me die! Fuck, just let me die!”
No one answered him. No one even looked at him.
We stayed at the cave entrance as Frank was carried out into the sunlight.
Kayden pressed his hand to my lower back. “You all right?”
“Yeah, I guess. He better live. I’m not letting him off that easy.”
“Never thought I’d say this, but yeah, I want that bastard to live, too.”
I smiled at him and turned back toward the cave. Inside, Aria was studying the gun I’d left on the rock, and Jaxson and Parker were taking photos.
Within minutes, the plane’s engines roared to life. We watched it take off, and the roar was quickly swallowed by an eerie silence.
Jaxson approached, his expression serious. “Do you have any new information about Doug Walker’s disappearance?”
The question caught me off-guard. We had much more important things to discuss. But I nodded anyway. “Yes, his boot and some tattered clothing were found a few weeks ago. That discovery was reported to Bob Ackerman, but he didn’t take any action on it.”
Jaxson’s jaw tightened. “Any idea why he didn’t?”
“Believe me, there’s a whole lot more you need to know before we get into that.” I pointed at the rusty drum in the middle of the cave. “For example, we believe a young girl was buried under that drum about fifty years ago.”
Aria leveled her gaze at me. “Don’t tell me Bob was involved in that.”
“I believe he killed her,” I said.
“Jesus. What makes you think that?” Parker said.
“Frank faked his own disappearance several weeks ago. He’s been hiding in a house in Winton all this time, writing memoir notes,” I explained. “Confessions. Detailing decades of crime and corruption.”
As they all blinked at me, Levi returned to the cave.
“Why would Frank confess to murder?” Parker asked.
“He’s dying of cancer,” Kayden said. “Bastard wanted to get it off his conscience, or some bullshit.”
Parker’s expression darkened. “How many victims are we talking about?”
“We know about the girl under that barrel, and he’s mentioned another girl from twenty years ago, but he ...”
“What girl?” Parker’s expression hardened.
“I’m not sure, but ...”
“Did he give a name? Say what happened?”
I cocked my head. “No name, but … what?”
Jaxson sighed. “Our sister, Charlotte, went missing twenty years ago and hasn’t been seen since.”
“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that,” I said. “But I don’t know if this is related.”
Parker and Jaxson shared a look that had me bracing myself.
“Bob Ackerman was one of the cops assigned to investigate my sister’s disappearance,” Parker said.
“They never found a trace of her,” Jaxson added, swallowing hard.
“Jesus.” My chest tightened. “I’m so sorry.”
“Yeah. Thanks. We’ve been searching for Charlotte for two decades, and we always knew something didn’t add up.” Parker shook his head at his brother.
“It’s the reason we joined the force. K-9 for me,” Jaxson said. “And Parker’s a cold case detective. We still hold hope Charlotte’s alive, but ...”
The sadness in their eyes cut straight to my core. These brothers had been through hell. Not having answers could be just as devastating as the brutal truth.
The implications of Bob’s involvement in Charlotte’s case settled over me like a toxic cloud. Bob’s corruption went back decades. How many cases had he touched? How many investigations had he compromised?
How many families had he failed?
The cave felt smaller.
“Where are the notes?” Parker asked.
I hadn’t planned to hand them over just yet. Not until I understood everything they contained, not until I’d processed what Frank had done, what Bob had done, what I’d been blind to for so long.
Parker exchanged a look with Aria. “I need those notes. There could be a dozen cold cases connected to Bob Ackerman that I could solve.”
“Okay. Just hang on a sec.” Aria turned to me. “When did you learn Bob was corrupt?”
“When we saw him compromising a murder scene,” I said.
“Yeah, that’s when he shot at us,” Kayden said. He turned his bloody arm toward us.
“Shit, Kayden. I meant to have the medics check your arm,” I said.
“I’m fine.”
“I’ll get the first aid kit from the chopper.” Levi sprinted away.
“When did he shoot at you? Where? And why?” Parker’s questions came without pause.