Paradise Ranch (Jack and Ashley detective series Book 2) Read online

  “That’s great,” Jack responded. “I believe in a man’s right to bear arms too. We should get along just fine.”

  The sheriff rolled his eyes at Jack’s cavalier comment. It was obvious Sheriff Tubbs was not keen on Jack’s strategy but even the country lawman knew he was trumped by the federal agent.

  “Now, if it isn’t too much trouble, could you loan us one of your cars?” Jack continued. “That would be a mighty long walk out there.”

  Tubbs eyed the agents for a minute before rubbing out his cigarette on the hospital table.

  “I sure hope you folks know what you’re doing,” Tubbs said. “I’ll have Kyle take you back to the jail and set you up with one of our vehicles, that is, unless you want me to take you out there.”

  “No, sheriff,” Jack said. “I think we’ll go out and pay a courtesy call ourselves, but I sure do appreciate the offer. Besides, like you said before, they don’t like you much out there. Why push the matter. Maybe they’ll like us better.”

  The sheriff gave the cocky federal agent one more glare before stalking out of the morgue.

  “That went well,” Jack muttered to Ashley as the sheriff slammed the door behind him. “I don’t think he likes us too much.”

  Ashley made her move toward the door, seeking fresh air. “He doesn’t like you, Jack. I don’t think he even noticed me.”

  Breathing in the hot Arizona air as soon as she got outside, Ashley felt the knot in her stomach begin to loosen. However, she realized that until she was able to get a shower, the smell of death would stay on her. It wasn’t a pleasant prospect. Sometimes her keen senses were a curse rather than a blessing.

  “I suppose we’re going out there right now,” Ashley stated, knowing the chances she would get to freshen up were remote.

  “There’s no time like the present, sugar,” Jack re-plied. “Strike while the iron is hot; don’t put off till to-morrow what you can do today; a penny saved is a pen-ny earned and all that crap. We’ve got some daylight left. Let’s use it.”

  The pair sat silently crammed into Deputy Ward’s passenger seat as they headed through the old down-town section of New Hope. There was no banter about spreading waistlines or receding hairlines this time. Ashley, now recovered thanks to the fresh air, was stewing about why she’d been kept in the dark about the purpose of their mission. She intended to find out once they were alone. She didn’t like the idea of Jack keeping secrets from her when it had to do with a case, especially since he had hand-picked her to assist him. It was hard to do her job if she wasn’t privy to all the facts.

  “That was real bad, about that girl and all,” the young deputy finally spoke up to break the awkward silence. “We went out there and brought her - well, what was left of her - in yesterday.”

  “Do you think you could show us where that was, where you found her?” Jack asked. “I wouldn’t mind taking a look around out there later.”

  “Sure,” the deputy replied. “I have the location co-ordinates on the GPS. I can give them to you if you want. It should take you right to the spot.”

  “That’d be great,” Jack responded. “Give them to me and we may stop by there on our way back from the ranch.”

  “Paradise Ranch?” the deputy asked, his expression one of concern. “You’re going out there? Just you two, I mean? Over the hill?”

  “Yeah,” Jack replied. “We figured we’d go out there and pay them a friendly visit.”

  The deputy shook his head. “I don’t know about that. The sheriff won’t even allow us to go out there. Says it’s dangerous, that they’re all crazy out there. You know, that one guy, he thinks he’s the Messiah.”

  “Oh really. Has a high opinion of himself, does he?” Jack said in a light tone. “I used to know a guy who thought he was Elvis Presley reincarnated.”

  “Really?” the deputy asked.

  “Yeah, he was crazier than an outhouse rat. Ended up getting locked up in a loony bin,” Jack laughed.

  “And, the worst part – he didn’t even sound like Elvis – thank you very much.”

  Jack’s Elvis impersonation didn’t register with the young lawman.

  “Seriously, be careful,” the deputy continued in his concerned tone. “The sheriff has been sheriff a long time and if he says it isn’t safe to go around there ... well, he’s the toughest man I know.”

  “I appreciate your concern, son,” Jack replied. “We’ll be careful. We’ll be back by nightfall.”

  “Okay, but if you aren’t, I’ll come looking for you,” the deputy volunteered.

  “Why thanks, Kyle. You don’t mind if I call you Kyle, do you?” Jack quipped.

  “Not at all,” the deputy responded, obviously flattered he was now on a first name basis with an FBI agent.

  The back and forth between Jack and Kyle didn’t shift Ashley’s focus about finding out why she was left out of the loop. She bided her time until they got into their loaner vehicle, a sheriff’s department SUV much like the deputy’s. They bid Kyle farewell as they headed out of town. Ashley couldn’t help but notice the deputy’s expression as he stood watching them drive out of sight. It was obvious the young lawman was deeply worried about their welfare and that he had a healthy fear of Paradise Ranch.

  “Now that we're alone, will you please explain why you didn’t tell me your reason for bringing me on this case?” Ashley asked as they reached the edge of town and headed into the barren wilderness outside New Hope. “It’s a bit irritating, you realize, to be constantly kept in the dark about things. We promised, the last time we worked together, that we wouldn’t keep secrets and now you’re at it again.”

  Jack answered Ashley’s query by stomping the gas pedal on the SUV, accelerating the vehicle up to a hun-dred miles per hour on the straight two-lane road.

  “Quite responsive for a larger vehicle, wouldn’t you say?” Jack said as the cruiser cut a swath through the sand-covered blacktop. “I wonder what size engine it has in it. Maybe a special police package?”

  Ashley glared at Jack. He was obviously evading her question. That made her doubly mad.

  “I asked you a question and you’re ignoring me,” Ashley demanded. “Why do you always do that? It’s so irritating. Now, I want an answer. Why did you …”

  “You don’t see many of these anymore,” Jack said as he tapped a finger on the cassette deck in the dash. “I wonder what your average redneck cop listens to these days. You know, I have buddies who swear cassettes sound better than compact disks or your fancy new iPod. My dad used to have an eight track. Boy, did those ever sound …”

  “I don’t care about cassettes or eight tracks!” Ashley yelled. “I want to know why you drug me out here and left me in the dark about …”

  “Blue Hawaii,” Jack interjected to Ashley’s rant. “My father had Blue Hawaii on eight track in his car and it was the best sound I’ve ever heard. It was like Elvis was right there, and not my crazy friend who thought he was Elvis. I mean the real Elvis. I used to sit out there at night when I was a kid and just listen to that eight-track over and over.”

  Ashley growled. She could feel her blood pressure spiking. Her face was beet red with frustration. She was tempted to punch Jack square in the jaw but considering he was now her boss and the fact that they were travel-ing at over a hundred miles per hour, she chose to hold her temper.

  “I swear Jack, if you don’t start leveling with me, I’m going to …”

  She was cut off as Jack shoved the tape into the cassette deck and immediately started bellowing.

  “Blame it all on my roots … I showed up in boots … and ruined your black tie affair,” Jack began singing loudly along with Garth Brooks while giving Ashley a cheesy grin. “I love Garth. Sold more albums than Elvis, ya know.”

  “I don’t care about Garth, Elvis or your crazy friend who thought he was Elvis,” Ashley snarled. “I want to know …”

  She was silenced as he cranked the knob to the stereo.

  “And I saw the sur
prise … and the fear in his eyes … when I took his glass of champa-ay-agne,” Jack bellowed along with the music, still topping a hundred on the speedometer.

  Now at the point of blowing up, Ashley reached over and turned the knob down, muting Garth.

  Jack immediately slapped Ashley’s hand and gave her a glare.

  “Don’t you ever touch a man’s radio,” Jack yelled and turned the knob back full blast.

  “Cause I’ve got friends in low places … where the whiskey drowns and the beer chases my blues away … And I’ll be okay,” Jack continued singing off key. “Come on, join in. Don’t be a square. I bet you got some pipes on ya, doll.”

  Knowing the situation was impossible, Ashley crossed her arms and stared angrily at the horizon as Jack continued singing the lyrics along with Garth. She wasn’t going to get anything out of him.

  “I hate you,” Ashley growled through her pursed lips. “You are such a jerk, Jack Looper.”

  “Think I’ll slip on down to the oh-ay-sis … oh, I’ve got friends in lo-o-ow places,” Jack continued, sound-ing like a dog howling at the moon.

  The pair continued speeding down the deserted highway, the sound of Garth Brooks blaring from the stereo much the way Ride of the Valkyries preceded the gunships in Apocalypse Now. Jack slaughtered the last chorus of the song as they topped the hill and got their first ground-level view of the large compound through the heat waves rising off the blacktop.

  “I’ll never listen to Garth again,” Ashley snarled with her arms still folded as Jack clicked off the stereo.

  Jack whistled as they began spanning the perimeter of the compound. It was much larger than it appeared from the air, with the 15-foot-high metal fence encompassing the entire complex. It ran along the flat terrain as far as the eye could see.

  “I bet the fence alone cost a fortune,” Jack spoke up as he slowed to a more moderate speed to take a closer look at the fence and what lie on the other side. “You know where I was the last time I saw a perimeter fence this big?”

  “Prison,” Ashley said flatly. “That’s what it reminds me of.”

  “Bingo,” Jack agreed. “The question is why do you need a fence that big out in the middle of the sticks?”

  “To keep people out?” Ashley asked.

  “Or to keep people in,” Jack countered as he approached the access road that led up to the front gate. A large metal arch bearing the name Paradise Ranch loomed over the entrance to the short road.

  “This must be it,” Jack quipped as he made the turn under the arch. “I hope somebody’s home.”

  They were soon able to make out the main entrance to the compound, which was guarded by a large gate. A guard house sat just inside the enclosure. Two men were standing by the house eyeing their approach.

  “They’re packing,” Ashley said, touching Jack on the shoulder as she saw their guns.

  “Don’t worry, so are we,” Jack wryly replied.

  Ashley felt a fluttering in her stomach. They weren’t even to the gate and she was already stricken by a sense of nervous anticipation. In her job as a profiler, back during her time with the Texas Rangers, Ashley had never been called upon in matters that required force. She was the one they’d call in to inspect secured crime scenes and interview witnesses and suspects. Much of her work back then was done from the comfort of an air conditioned office. She hadn’t really experienced the more dangerous side of law enforcement, that is, until she met Jack.

  “Just play it cool, sweetie,” Jack said as he eased up to the gate.

  “Don’t worry, Jack. I’m not going to freak out and start screaming,” Ashley countered, a bit insulted that he would warn her when it was he who tended to go off the deep end once in a while.

  Jack came to a stop outside the fence near an inter-com system. He sat looking at the two men on the other side of the gate, waiting for them to approach or say something. Instead, an awkward silence ensued as they looked at one another through the fence.

  “Hello,” Jack called out. The men continued looking at him, not making a move to let him in or even walk over to the gate to see what he wanted.

  “Maybe they don’t speak English,” Jack mumbled dryly to his partner before sticking his head back out the window. “I was wondering if I could speak with Elijah Quinn.”

  “You do realize we’re in a sheriff’s department vehicle,” Ashley noted, prompting Jack to roll his eyes.

  “Yeah, I know,” Jack brushed her off.

  With the men still standing, looking at him but not making a move to answer him, Jack leaned out his door and stretched out his arm. He was about to push the intercom button when gate began to swing open. Ashley and Jack looked at one another.

  “I guess they want us to come in,” Ashley said.

  “Looks like an invitation to me,” Jack agreed as he slowly pulled forward through the gate.

  He eased up to where the men were standing at the guard house and stopped. He was about to announce who he was when one of the men broke the silence.

  “Just follow this road and it will take you right up to the main office,” the man said in a surprisingly pleasant tone. “It’s just past the assembly hall and right before the factory. It’s the biggest building on the ranch. Stay on this road and you can’t miss it. Elijah is expecting you.”

  Not looking a gift horse in the mouth, Jack gave the men a slight wave and headed on in to the compound as the gate closed behind them.

  “That was way too easy,” Jack said as he looked at the two men in his rear view mirror, their side arms still holstered on their hips. “They didn’t even ask what we wanted.”

  “I think they already know what we’re here for,” Ashley said. “Didn’t you hear? They said Elijah is expecting us.”

  Jack continued slowly down the well-maintained lane that led to the heart of the compound, tapping his fingers apprehensively on the steering wheel as he scanned his surroundings.

  “I just hope it’s as easy to get out as it was to get in,” Jack said in an ominous tone that did little to relive Ashley’s growing concern for their situation.

  Topping the rise from the front gate, they were greeted by the green they had seen from the air earlier. The interior of the ranch was unlike the outlying regions nearer to the fence. It was like they were entering a different world as the neared the main portion of the ranch.

  “Have you ever seen anything like this?” Ashley asked.

  “The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them, and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose,” Jack said, not taking his eyes off what was before him.

  “What?” Ashley asked.

  “Isaiah, 35:1,” Jack replied. “It’s the Bible. It’s a good book. A best seller. You ought to read it some-time. I won’t give away the ending just in case.”

  “I know it’s the Bible,” Ashley shot back. “I just didn’t realize you were a theologian.”

  “There’s a lot you don’t know about me, sweetness,” Jack assured.

  “Yeah, you can say that again,” Ashley dryly responded.

  “You know, some of his followers believe that Elijah Quinn is the actual Elijah from the Bible,” Jack said matter-of-factly.

  “You’re kidding,” Ashley cocked her head.

  “Elijah never saw death, according to the scripture. He ascended to heaven on a chariot of fire,” Jack explained, his knowledge of the scripture again catching Ashley by surprise. “Some of them believe he has been sent back as a prophet of the end times. Either way, they look to this guy as some kind of modern-day messiah. That makes him very dangerous.”

  Jack’s Bible lesson was silenced as they arrived in the main part of Paradise Ranch. It wasn’t what either of them expected. Instead of drab buildings and unremarkable dormitories that they expected, they were greeted with a quaint downtown reminiscent of some-thing out of a Norman Rockwell painting. Aside from not having paved streets, Paradise looked like any other small western town with buildings on either
side of the avenues and houses spanning out from its center. The houses were all well-kept with lush green yards and even some white picket fences gracing a few of the small residences.

  “This is surprising,” Ashley said as they continued toward the heart of town. “This isn’t a compound; it’s a small city.”

  “A nice one at that,” Jack said as he casually waved to a couple of the residents who stood watching as they drove by. “I don’t think they see many cops out in these parts.”

  They continued getting stares as they continued through the unmarked streets, many residents stopping dead from their walk to glare at the passing patrol vehicle.

  “That must be it,” Jack said as he gestured to a large building that sat where all of the streets and avenues appeared to intersect. “You don’t get no more dead center than this. Whatever it is, we’re right in the middle of it.”

  “Yeah, thanks for inviting me,” Ashley drolly re-plied.

  “Come on honey, this will be fun,” Jack encouraged as he detected his partner’s apprehension.

  Jack parked in front of the large wood-frame building, its scale making it several times bigger than any of the other buildings. Two men stood near the front door. Both had guns strapped to their hips.

  “Looks like everyone is packing around here,” Ash-ley remarked as they sat inside the SUV.

  “It’s the wild west, darlin,” Jack replied as he climbed from behind the wheel. Ashley quickly fol-lowed him but was met in front of the vehicle by Jack.

  “I want you to stay with the car and keep an eye out,” Jack said as he stopped his partner. “I’ll go talk to Elijah.”

  “Keep an eye out for what?” Ashley asked. She wasn’t keen on splitting up like in some Scooby Doo episode.

  “Just see what you can see, Agent,” Jack replied. “Surveil. Observe. Nose around.”

  “I don’t think we should …” Ashley began to argue.

  “Agent, I want you to stay at the car and keep an eye out,” Jack repeated.