reveal a man of about sixty in a wheelchair.
“We need shelter,” Flynn said. “We need a phone.”
“Where’s Clara? Where’s my wife?”
Flynn felt Diana tense. He said, “We need to get in out of this.”
The man rolled his chair back away from the entrance as they struggled in.
“Who the hell are you? You ain’t from around here.”
“We were waiting for the bus.”
“No, that’s not the answer. You DEA lookin’ for meth labs. Every other house has a meth lab out here. State don’t care. They let it go. They have to.” He whipped the chair around and rolled toward the back of the house. “Clara! Where in hell is she?”
Briefly, Diana’s hand squeezed Flynn’s. He was thinking the same thing: maybe the whole town had been raided. Maybe the old and infirm were the only ones left.
“She went out?”
“To the barn, see to the horses. The intercom’s down, the cell phones don’t work, the landline is down and she’s been out there more’n a hour.”
“We’re cops,” Flynn said, “but we’re not looking for your meth lab.”
“I told you, I ain’t got any damn meth lab! None! Natha! Find my girl, you two, you’re a damn gift from God.”
There was no time to get warm, they went directly out the back. Flynn pointed to the faint trench in the snow that led to the barn. Diana nodded.
“Guns,” he said.
“Guns.”
“Are you proficient, Diana?”
“I score okay.”
They pushed the door open together. “Clara,” Flynn called into the dark interior. “Clara!”
A horse whickered, that was all.
The barn was unheated, but the two horses in their stalls had been expertly blanketed. A couple of big electric heaters stood in the center of an area of the concrete slab that had been carefully swept of anything that might catch fire. Their cords led to an orange cable that hung from an overhead socket attached to a rafter. No power, though.
“Clara!” he said again, then, “Oh, shit.”
“What?”
“Smell that? That’s blood.” He looked into the darkness. “Over there.” He moved deeper.
A third horse was up against the back wall, deep in the shadows. It lay on its side.
He went to it. Looking down at the maimed animal, he wasn’t sure what to make of its condition.
“You ever see anything like this?” he asked Diana as she came up.
“Oh, no.”
The lips had been sheared off, the eyes cut out, the genitals removed. A large section of the exposed flank had been flayed down to the bone. Where the rectum had been, there was a neat round wound.
“So you have.”
“Only in pictures. Animals mutilated like this have been found for years. None in the context of the kind of disappearances we’re investigating, though, not as far as I am aware.”
“You know more about this whole damn mess than you’re telling me, and I’m getting to really not appreciate that.”
“I can’t—”
“Yeah, you can, and you will, and you’ll do it soon.”
Flynn had seen something like this before, too. Some case file. Then he remembered. It was a rural crime down near Alice, Texas. “I saw some of these. Cattle, not horses. A rancher got the hell knocked out of his herd. Two prize bulls and three breeder cows. Fifteen thousand dollars worth of prime beeves. Sheriff thought it was coyotes. We wrote it up as vandalism so the poor guy could collect on his insurance.”
He remembered that place. Alvis something-or-other had been leasing that property. He’d run it with Aussie cattle dogs. Good beasts, but not good enough to prevent the loss.
“I have a feeling that the help does most of the heavy work. The kidnappings. But this is him,” Flynn said. “Him personally. His help isn’t going to be cutting animals like this.” He looked toward the rafters, then reached back and pulled his night vision goggles from his backpack.
The upper reaches of the barn were empty. He took off the goggles. “Let’s go out the back,” he said.
“Three guys are down, remember
“We need shelter,” Flynn said. “We need a phone.”
“Where’s Clara? Where’s my wife?”
Flynn felt Diana tense. He said, “We need to get in out of this.”
The man rolled his chair back away from the entrance as they struggled in.
“Who the hell are you? You ain’t from around here.”
“We were waiting for the bus.”
“No, that’s not the answer. You DEA lookin’ for meth labs. Every other house has a meth lab out here. State don’t care. They let it go. They have to.” He whipped the chair around and rolled toward the back of the house. “Clara! Where in hell is she?”
Briefly, Diana’s hand squeezed Flynn’s. He was thinking the same thing: maybe the whole town had been raided. Maybe the old and infirm were the only ones left.
“She went out?”
“To the barn, see to the horses. The intercom’s down, the cell phones don’t work, the landline is down and she’s been out there more’n a hour.”
“We’re cops,” Flynn said, “but we’re not looking for your meth lab.”
“I told you, I ain’t got any damn meth lab! None! Natha! Find my girl, you two, you’re a damn gift from God.”
There was no time to get warm, they went directly out the back. Flynn pointed to the faint trench in the snow that led to the barn. Diana nodded.
“Guns,” he said.
“Guns.”
“Are you proficient, Diana?”
“I score okay.”
They pushed the door open together. “Clara,” Flynn called into the dark interior. “Clara!”
A horse whickered, that was all.
The barn was unheated, but the two horses in their stalls had been expertly blanketed. A couple of big electric heaters stood in the center of an area of the concrete slab that had been carefully swept of anything that might catch fire. Their cords led to an orange cable that hung from an overhead socket attached to a rafter. No power, though.
“Clara!” he said again, then, “Oh, shit.”
“What?”
“Smell that? That’s blood.” He looked into the darkness. “Over there.” He moved deeper.
A third horse was up against the back wall, deep in the shadows. It lay on its side.
He went to it. Looking down at the maimed animal, he wasn’t sure what to make of its condition.
“You ever see anything like this?” he asked Diana as she came up.
“Oh, no.”
The lips had been sheared off, the eyes cut out, the genitals removed. A large section of the exposed flank had been flayed down to the bone. Where the rectum had been, there was a neat round wound.
“So you have.”
“Only in pictures. Animals mutilated like this have been found for years. None in the context of the kind of disappearances we’re investigating, though, not as far as I am aware.”
“You know more about this whole damn mess than you’re telling me, and I’m getting to really not appreciate that.”
“I can’t—”
“Yeah, you can, and you will, and you’ll do it soon.”
Flynn had seen something like this before, too. Some case file. Then he remembered. It was a rural crime down near Alice, Texas. “I saw some of these. Cattle, not horses. A rancher got the hell knocked out of his herd. Two prize bulls and three breeder cows. Fifteen thousand dollars worth of prime beeves. Sheriff thought it was coyotes. We wrote it up as vandalism so the poor guy could collect on his insurance.”
He remembered that place. Alvis something-or-other had been leasing that property. He’d run it with Aussie cattle dogs. Good beasts, but not good enough to prevent the loss.
“I have a feeling that the help does most of the heavy work. The kidnappings. But this is him,” Flynn said. “Him personally. His help isn’t going to be cutting animals like this.” He looked toward the rafters, then reached back and pulled his night vision goggles from his backpack.
The upper reaches of the barn were empty. He took off the goggles. “Let’s go out the back,” he said.
“Three guys are down, remember
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