Deadfall (38 page)

“Don't hesitate to put another round into him.” Kevin followed at a distance.

Mac reached the cliffside. No way could Clovis have walked down. Holding onto a tree limb, Mac leaned forward, expecting to see Clovis at the bottom. Instead he lay on a rocky ledge a few feet down, panting like a wounded animal. His jacket sleeve and shoulder were saturated with blood. The gun lay several feet away, but Clovis made no move to recover it.

Mac removed the sling from the shotgun and dropped to his stomach. “Clovis, grab the sling. I'll pull you up.”

Kevin came up behind him. “Careful, Mac. Does he still have his gun?”

“It's on the ledge, but he's not going for it. Grab the sling, Clovis. Come on!” Mac yelled again.

Clovis spit a mouthful of blood on the rock next to his battered face. The wound from the slug was bad. Mac wondered if his bullet had shattered the bone. “No thanks. I'll take my chances here. Besides, isn't this where you ask me why I did it?” Clovis winced in pain.

“Just grab the strap,” Kevin urged. “We'll talk when you're safe.”

“You ever try to make a living as a logger in this country? Hard work. Hard work,” Clovis gasped. “How's a man supposed to make a living with all these tree-hugging wackos crying over their spotted owls? You can't. I couldn't. I had to find some way—that's why I turned to the bear galls and hunts. It was the only way I could keep my place.”

“I understand, Jack,” Mac hollered into the howling wind. “Just grab the strap, and we'll work this out.”

“No.” He groaned. “I need to tell you this now. I didn't mean to kill the boy. He walked in on me and Troy on a bear kill. I was gonna try to bribe him—just talk to him—when he ran. I panicked and shot him. I didn't want to, but I couldn't have him telling anyone. I'm a respected man in the community. I have ties, even to the cops. Just ask Sam. I shot the kid on impulse.”

“How'd Brad end up in the river?” Mac asked.

“I went back to pick him up later that night. Dumped his body in the Columbia below the dam. I burnt his clothes. I knew I was done for when I heard Sam Wyatt was at my place looking for me with a half-dozen other deputies. I figured right that Troy had talked. I picked him up and took him out to the cabin—told him I needed him for another hunt. I was crazy mad by then. Sorry about shooting at you guys; I was hoping you'd kill me first. Lost my nerve, I guess.” Clovis wiped at the blood streaming from his nose.

“Troy said you threatened to kill him and feed him to your dogs if he talked,” Mac said. “If you're such a nice guy, why would he say something like that?”

“Probably because of what I did to that ex-con. Norton threatened to turn me in if I didn't cut him a bigger share.”

“Ex-con.” Mac glanced over at Kevin. “The guy at the sawmill?”

“Unbelievable.” Kevin shook his head.
Not so unbelievable,
Mac thought. He wouldn't tell Kevin he'd considered the possibility— at least not yet. Right now they had more important matters to attend to.

Mac had wanted to kill Clovis for shooting Dana and Troy. He'd even aimed for his chest when they'd exchanged fire. Now he wanted the guy alive—wanted him to pay for the lives he'd taken.

“Okay.” Mac leaned forward, dropping the sling lower. “You got that off your chest; now let's get you off this cliff. You need a doctor.”

Clovis stood up, weaving like a wounded bear. With what must have been his last bit of strength, he launched himself off the cliff.

“No!” Mac wasn't certain which of them yelled. Maybe they both did. They watched Jack Clovis tumble into the deep ravine. Then silence. There were no screams, no groans—nothing but the wind rustling through the trees.

Mac couldn't move. He was still hunkered down on one knee, holding the rifle sling over the cliff 's edge. Kevin stood behind him. The wind tore through their hair and their clothes. Several long minutes later, Kevin grabbed Mac's hand, pulling him to his feet.

The landscape blurred. Mac couldn't have said why he felt the way he did—as though he'd lost a friend. Jack Clovis was a murderer. The man didn't deserve a second thought. He finally placed the blame on the aftereffects of nearly losing Dana and of losing his informant.

Kevin settled an arm around Mac's shoulders and hugged him. Mac felt a little better seeing that his partner had been moved to tears as well.

Without a word, they headed back to the car. They still had work to do.

Mac and Kevin were more than happy to hand the crime scene over to a detective unit from the Oregon State Police office from The Dalles. They were witnesses in this one, all of them active shooters in the attempt to take Clovis into custody. Mac learned the only good part about being involved in an officer-involved shooting was he didn't have to type a report; that was left to the other investigators. All Mac had to do was come to grips with his actions and make sure Dana was all right.

34

S
EVERAL DAYS LATER, Mac met Dana at their usual coffee shop. They were both off work for a while—Dana with broken ribs and a scheduled psych evaluation after having been shot, and Mac on administrative leave. Though Mac had accompanied Dana to the hospital right after the shooting, they hadn't gotten together for social time, or what Dana preferred to call mentoring sessions, until now.

“Hey, Mac.” Dana settled into the chair next to Mac and closest to the big fireplace. “How's it going?” She was wearing a soft pink sweater that matched the flush in her cheeks.

Mac grinned. “Good. But I should be asking you that.”

“I'll be fine, Mac.” She settled a hand on his. “We need to talk.”

He groaned inwardly. Her tone was reminiscent of the one Linda had used on him. What was it with women and their need to
talk?

She laughed and pulled her hand back. “Relax, Mac. It's not what you think.”

“How do you know what I'm thinking?”

“I just do.” She gave him a knowing smile. “I didn't get a chance before to tell you how much I appreciated your treating me like one of the guys out there.”

“What do you mean?”

“Don't play innocent with me. I know what was going through your head. You wanted me safe and out of the way.”

Mac looked down at his coffee. “I'd want that for any of the people I work with.”

“I saw that look in your eyes, Mac.” Dana took a sip of her drink. “You were afraid for me.”

Mac shrugged. “Okay. And when you went down I about went crazy. I care about you. So sue me.”

“Oh, Mac.” Dana's gaze turned watery. “We need to talk about that too.” She licked her lips. “Just not right now. I need you to bring me up to date. I heard you had to take some admin leave.”

“Right, just until the powers that be rule the shooting as justified.” No doubt he'd made a complete fool of himself. Dana had a boyfriend.

“Good. So you get a vacation.”

“Of sorts. I'm using the time to catch up on paperwork and wrap up loose ends. The latent guys at the lab matched the prints on the duct tape and boot print from the sawmill to Clovis, so looks like his story checked out on the first victim. No wonder Troy was so scared of him, if that's what Clovis did to other associates in the poaching business. The prints Clovis left on my rifle, in addition to the confession he gave me before going over the cliff, tied the case up nice and tidy.”

“Can I help? I'm sort of at odds too.”

“Hmm.” Mac considered her request. He'd already written a letter to Troy Wilson's daughter via his ex-wife, telling her how her father helped in the investigation and helped police catch a killer.

“I need to talk with Brad's family and answer any questions they have.”

“Would you mind if I tagged along?”

“I'd like that.” He'd been putting off the task, thinking it would be too emotional. “I was planning on heading up there this morning.”

She nodded. “I have some good news.” Dana's dimples deepened as she flashed him a wide smile.

He leaned forward, elbows on his knees. “You're getting married?” Mac wasn't sure why he'd said that. Maybe because she looked like a woman in love.

“Married?” Her smile faded. “No.” She laughed then. “I made detective. Mac. When I'm ready to go back, I'll be working in your office.”

Mac grinned and leaned back. “That's great.” He wanted to be happy for her, and he was. But the position opening in detectives was probably Kevin's.

“Why in the world would you think I was getting married?”

He shrugged. “You looked so happy.”

Dana rolled her eyes. “Mac, I'm not even dating anyone.”

“You're not?” Mac studied her for a moment. “Did your boyfriend have a hard time with you being a cop?”

She sighed. “No. I broke it off. I decided Jason wasn't my type.”

“Am I your type?” Mac asked hopefully. Her silence made him wish he could take the words back.

She smiled again. “It won't work, Mac.”

“Why?” He set his cup on the table. “We had a lot of fun together once. We could again, if you'd give it a chance.”

“We're too much alike. And now that I'll be working with you, it's just not a good idea.”

“Professional ethics.” Mac knew she was right. Still, he didn't have to like it.

“Something like that.”

Mac finished his coffee. Lifting his jacket off the back of the chair, he said, “Well, Detective Bennett. Are you ready to make a visit to the Gayneses?”

MAC AND DANA CALLED AHEAD, and Todd and Vicki were eager for them to come. They arrived at the house at ten.

“Jessica?” Mac stared open-mouthed at the attractive young woman who opened the door. She was wearing a maternity top and had her hair hanging loose around her shoulders.

She smiled and reached out to shake hands with Mac and Dana. “Surprised to see me here?”

“Yes,” the two detectives said together.

She leaned forward and, in a conspiratorial tone, said, “Me too.”

Vicki came around a corner. “Mac, Dana. It's so good to see you. Thanks for coming.”

She took their coats. “Come on in and sit down. Todd's in the family room.”

Jessica led the way and asked if they wanted anything to drink.

Neither did. They greeted Todd and took the proffered chairs.

Vicki came in and settled an arm around Jessica's shoulders.

“You don't need to wait on us, Jess.”

“I want to.”

Vicki gave her a warm smile. Her animosity was completely gone.

Jessica had apparently been vindicated, but Vicki seemed to have made a complete turnaround.

Vicki's gaze drifted to Mac. “Todd and I wanted to thank you for everything. Finding Brad's killer—well, it answers so many questions.”

Mac nodded.

“And Dana.” Vicki sat down next to her husband. “When I read that you'd been injured . . . Are you all right?”

Dana raised her eyebrows. “I'm sore, but thanks to my bulletproof vest, I'm alive to tell about it.”

Mac cleared his throat. “Did you have any questions or anything we can clear up for you?”

Todd shook his head. “We read the report you sent. The only bad thing is not being able to confront this Clovis guy. He should be in jail for what he did.”

“I agree,” Mac said. “It doesn't seem fair in a lot of ways. But if it's any consolation, Jack Clovis said he didn't mean for Brad to get hurt.”

Mac still felt responsible for Clovis's death in a way. He'd been the one to pull the trigger. Maybe if he'd tried to lower himself to the ledge, he might have stopped the man from jumping. He'd never know. Clovis had jumped to his death. They'd airlifted the body out; he'd been pronounced DOA at the hospital. Mac had replayed the incident a hundred times over, trying to convince himself that, under the circumstances, he'd done the best he could.

“I met him,”Vicki said. “That first day of the search. He seemed like such a kind, decent man.”Tears filled her eyes. “He knew where Brad was the whole time. I don't think I'll ever be able to forgive him for deceiving us like that.”

“Not to change the subject,” Dana said, “but I have to know. What happened between you guys and Jessica?” Dana slid her gaze from one to the other.

Vicki took hold of Jessica's hand. “I made a terrible mistake. I was judgmental and cruel. Jessica's heart was breaking and . . . I can hardly imagine what she must have been going through.”

“It was my fault, really,” Jessica insisted. “I should have told you I was pregnant.”

“No. You tried to tell us that it was Brad, not you, who was doing drugs. But I was so sure my son would never . . .” Vicki shook her head. “Anyway, I was wrong. Jessica was the best thing that could have happened to Brad. I'd like to think that had he lived, he'd have done the right thing. I think Brad would have given up drugs and alcohol. I think he would have chosen to marry Jessica and be the kind of father that his father is.”

Todd watched his wife, admiration in his eyes. “Brad isn't here to look after Jessica and the baby, but we are.” He smiled at Jessica.

“She and the baby are welcome here anytime, and so is Aaron.”

Vicki sniffed. “Aaron is coming in today. We just want to make up for all the grief we've caused Jessica and be the best grandparents a kid could have.”

“I'm so glad it's worked out for you,” Dana said.

Mac and Dana stayed for another hour. Then they headed back to Vancouver, where they both lived. “Want to have dinner with me tonight?” Mac asked. “Not a date. I just thought we might talk about your new job and all. We could go to that great Asian restaurant that serves sushi.”

“I'd like that,” Dana agreed. “Two old friends talking shop.

Yeah, I can handle that.”