Horn leaned back from the intercom and Raines saw the guard inside get up from his desk. He looked like a retired cop. Carried himself that way.
Raines took a step forward into the road.
He tightened his grip on the pistol.
But the moment passed as the guard opened the door and ushered Horn inside. The guard looked over at Raines before turning to go inside the building.
Raines went to the car, sat inside and dropped the gun on the seat.
He picked up his mobile and dialled the number for the compound.
‘Change of plan for tomorrow morning,’ he said when his call was answered. ‘Bring everyone.’
Part Nine:
1
Logan was alone in the main part of the office when Cahill came in through the door from the reception area. Cahill walked over and sat on the edge of the desk beside him.
‘What’s up?’ Logan asked. ‘Looked like something was causing excitement.’
‘Yeah, you could say that. One of the soldiers in the group showed up. Guy called Matt Horn.’
‘Seriously?’
Cahill gave him a look.
‘What are you, a sixteen-year-old girl?’
‘What?’
‘ Seriously,’ Cahill repeated, shaking his head.
Logan stood and went to the window. He looked down on to the street and saw a car parked on the other side of the road. He watched it for a moment before it drove away, then turned to Cahill.
‘So what’s the story?’
‘Well they’re still no closer to knowing if their investigations are on the same thing. The cops and the Feds, I mean. Maybe this guy who’s coming in will clear it up.’
‘Why is he here?’
‘Who knows? Guilty conscience.’
‘What did you find out?’
‘I don’t know if I can tell you.’
Logan frowned. Cahill played it straight but couldn’t hold it together long enough to be convincing.
‘Screw that. I didn’t sign anything in there.’
‘You always were trustworthy.’
‘This guy Horn and his sergeant, Seth Raines, apparently got caught up in an ambush over in Afghanistan a while back. Horn got injured real bad. Lost his legs. Almost died in hospital.’
‘And how do we get from there to here?’
‘Seems Raines wasn’t happy at Horn’s treatment when they got him to hospital back here. Bottom line, this Raines guy went postal.’
‘They still don’t know if it’s drugs, though?’
‘Right.’
Logan sat down again. Cahill stretched his arms above his head, joints popping as he did it.
‘They were all in the ambush?’ Logan asked. ‘The other soldiers who dropped off the radar?’
‘Don’t think so. But there was a Brit caught up in the thing.’
Logan stared at Cahill.
‘What?’ Cahill asked.
‘I don’t know. Maybe nothing.’
‘Spit it out.’
‘It’s Becky. I mean, she’s been pulled into some drug squad operation back home.’
‘I’m not following.’
‘I don’t know if I am either.’
Cahill frowned.
‘Listen,’ Logan said. ‘Becky told me about this the other day and it was in my head when Hunter was going over his investigation earlier. But it didn’t mean anything at the time. But then Becky said tonight that she got information about soldiers being involved in her thing.’
‘So?’
‘I’m not making myself clear. She got pulled into the drug squad case like Hunter did. Unexplained overdose deaths in suspicious circumstances.’
Cahill rubbed at his eyes.
‘What was the soldier’s name?’ Logan asked. ‘The British one.’
Cahill closed his eyes, thinking.
‘Johnson,’ he said. ‘Andy Johnson.’
‘He’s one of them. I mean, in Becky’s case. Or at least he was.’
‘Was?’
‘He’s dead. Murdered.’
The door to reception opened again and Webb came in with Grange. They came over to where Cahill was sitting.
‘We’re going to speak to Horn alone,’ Grange said.
Cahill looked at Webb who nodded.
Cahill was half inclined to have a fight with Grange and Webb because, well, just because he enjoyed it and it would wind Grange up. But he was sick at the thought of what appeared to be happening. He couldn’t quite comprehend how soldiers, people like him, could start up some sort of drug operation that spanned the Atlantic.
But if there was one thing he had learned over the last few years it was that human beings are capable of anything in extreme circumstances.
‘We need to speak to Becky about this now,’ Logan said after the others had left.
2
Randall Webb and Cooper Grange sat patiently at the table in the conference room while Ruiz helped Matt Horn into a seat. When Horn was settled, Webb nodded at Ruiz who went out of the room but left the door open. Hunter and Collins came into the room, closed the door and sat at one end of the table. Horn looked at them until Webb spoke, introducing everyone at the table.
Horn said nothing.
‘What can we do for you, Mr Horn?’ Webb asked.
Horn shifted in his seat and grimaced. He looked at Hunter and Collins.
‘Shouldn’t you, like, read me my rights or something?’
‘Why would we do that?’ Grange said.
‘I don’t know. Isn’t that how it’s done?’
‘Why don’t you tell us your story and we’ll see where we go from there,’ Webb told him.
