not Mary. He had a hard time picturing her as “Mary” anyway. While working, she wore her hair in a utilitarian ponytail. Her eyes and strong cheekbones gave her a distinct Scandinavian look. Nathan had never asked her age but guessed she must be in her early thirties. Never married, it seemed. He’d have to ask about that sometime.
A tanker truck rumbled up to refuel the helicopter. The driver slid out and did a double take at Grangeland. She probably got that all the time. She smiled and the driver smiled back.
Despite himself, Nathan found his mood lifting.
The three of them started toward the jet center.
“You guys realize that you’ve become something of a legend in our Fresno office, don’t you?” asked Grangeland. “Unofficially, you’re known as the Lone Ranger and Tonto.”
“Who’s who?” Harv asked.
Nathan said, “That’s kinda obvious, Harv. A white guy. A brown guy.”
Harv objected. “Hey, I’m the one with the silver horse.”
“You own a horse?”
“Eight of them.”
“I love riding.”
Nathan smiled. “I’ll bet you do.”
She punched his arm.
“What?”
Chapter 15
Nathan used the drive to the medical examiner’s office to fill Grangeland in on everything they could. The call from Holly. The meeting with General Hawthorne. Bullfrog Bay. Stiegler’s houseboat. The Kramer crime scene. Thorny’s removal from the case and the ironclad implication that Kramer’s murder and the abduction of Nichole Dalton and her daughters were all linked to Montez.
Nathan knew she had a ton of questions. He forestalled them by pointing at his face. “We’re after the man who did this to me.”
Grangeland winced. “What can you tell me about him?”
“Not too much. In a nutshell, one of our missions went south and I fell into his hands. Harv got away. I didn’t. I was held captive for three weeks.”
She softened her voice. “Nathan, I’m sorry.”
“It happened a long time ago. When Harvey rescued me, I was close to death. He carried me through two miles of jungle at night.”
“I know you guys are really close, I just never knew why.”
“His name is Colonel Juan Montez de Oca, formerly of the Sandinista National Liberation Front. He’s a professional interrogator.”
“How will you find him?”
“We may not. He’s a trained spook.”
“Did seeing the crime scene spark anything?”
“That’s why we’re here.”
Harv cut in. “As far as we know, Nathan’s the only person on Earth to survive a Montez interrogation. If Montez finds out Nathan’s alive, we might as well paint a target on his forehead. We’re trying to keep our involvement under wraps for as long as possible.”
“Understood. I’m yours for as long as you need me.”
Nathan let Harv continue. His thoughts were elsewhere.
“You’re a proven asset,” Harv said. “We definitely want you on our team.”
“Can you tell me anything about your past? What you guys used to do?”
“We were a Marine scout sniper team, then CIA operations officers. That’s about all we can say. Sorry.”
“I can live with that.”
“Holly said you have a master’s degree in forensics?”
“Criminal science with an emphasis on forensics.”
“You’ve already seen Kramer’s body?”
She nodded.
“What did you think?”
“Well, at that time I didn’t know a professional interrogator had killed Kramer. It looked like some sort of ritual killing, but I wasn’t sure what to make of it. Now that I know a bit more about the suspect, I’d have to say there’s a savageness to the injuries that goes beyond what an interrogator would inflict strictly to extract information. Either way, I suppose my best guess remains the same. Montez is a severely twisted individual, bordering on psychopathic.”
“He’s all that, and more,” Harv said.
The onboard nav took them east, through downtown toward the mountains. The pleasant female voice issued turn-by-turn
A tanker truck rumbled up to refuel the helicopter. The driver slid out and did a double take at Grangeland. She probably got that all the time. She smiled and the driver smiled back.
Despite himself, Nathan found his mood lifting.
The three of them started toward the jet center.
“You guys realize that you’ve become something of a legend in our Fresno office, don’t you?” asked Grangeland. “Unofficially, you’re known as the Lone Ranger and Tonto.”
“Who’s who?” Harv asked.
Nathan said, “That’s kinda obvious, Harv. A white guy. A brown guy.”
Harv objected. “Hey, I’m the one with the silver horse.”
“You own a horse?”
“Eight of them.”
“I love riding.”
Nathan smiled. “I’ll bet you do.”
She punched his arm.
“What?”
Chapter 15
Nathan used the drive to the medical examiner’s office to fill Grangeland in on everything they could. The call from Holly. The meeting with General Hawthorne. Bullfrog Bay. Stiegler’s houseboat. The Kramer crime scene. Thorny’s removal from the case and the ironclad implication that Kramer’s murder and the abduction of Nichole Dalton and her daughters were all linked to Montez.
Nathan knew she had a ton of questions. He forestalled them by pointing at his face. “We’re after the man who did this to me.”
Grangeland winced. “What can you tell me about him?”
“Not too much. In a nutshell, one of our missions went south and I fell into his hands. Harv got away. I didn’t. I was held captive for three weeks.”
She softened her voice. “Nathan, I’m sorry.”
“It happened a long time ago. When Harvey rescued me, I was close to death. He carried me through two miles of jungle at night.”
“I know you guys are really close, I just never knew why.”
“His name is Colonel Juan Montez de Oca, formerly of the Sandinista National Liberation Front. He’s a professional interrogator.”
“How will you find him?”
“We may not. He’s a trained spook.”
“Did seeing the crime scene spark anything?”
“That’s why we’re here.”
Harv cut in. “As far as we know, Nathan’s the only person on Earth to survive a Montez interrogation. If Montez finds out Nathan’s alive, we might as well paint a target on his forehead. We’re trying to keep our involvement under wraps for as long as possible.”
“Understood. I’m yours for as long as you need me.”
Nathan let Harv continue. His thoughts were elsewhere.
“You’re a proven asset,” Harv said. “We definitely want you on our team.”
“Can you tell me anything about your past? What you guys used to do?”
“We were a Marine scout sniper team, then CIA operations officers. That’s about all we can say. Sorry.”
“I can live with that.”
“Holly said you have a master’s degree in forensics?”
“Criminal science with an emphasis on forensics.”
“You’ve already seen Kramer’s body?”
She nodded.
“What did you think?”
“Well, at that time I didn’t know a professional interrogator had killed Kramer. It looked like some sort of ritual killing, but I wasn’t sure what to make of it. Now that I know a bit more about the suspect, I’d have to say there’s a savageness to the injuries that goes beyond what an interrogator would inflict strictly to extract information. Either way, I suppose my best guess remains the same. Montez is a severely twisted individual, bordering on psychopathic.”
“He’s all that, and more,” Harv said.
The onboard nav took them east, through downtown toward the mountains. The pleasant female voice issued turn-by-turn
Similar Books
