Page 88 of Edge of Steele
“I appreciate that, but we can’t let this Horne guy skate.” Russ marched out to his patrol car.
She had to jog to keep up and climb in at the same time as he did while balancing her coffee. She set her cup in a holder and buckled her seatbelt.
Russ tapped Horne’s address into a GPS program. He got his belt on and ripped out of the parking lot.
“There are kids around,” she said. “You might want to slow down.”
“I know what I’m doing,” he said, but the vehicle slowed some. “Keep an eye on your email for any updates from Colin.”
She took out her phone and laid it on her knee face up so she could see the screen flash with a message or text before it even sounded an alert. She would normally rely on the signal, but she figured seeing her take action might help Russ calm down.
He had the radio on low, and the dispatch calls played in the background. That couldn’t be good for his nerves either. She would try to get him involved in small talk until they got closer to Horne’s place and had to pay attention.
She glanced at the address. “Why do all these ecoterrorists live out in the boonies?”
“That’s a question for Colin, but if I had to guess they’re probably free-spirited and don’t like the rules of living in a town. Plus, they like to be self-sufficient. Grow organic veggies and free-range chickens. I’m just guessing based on what my mom and Poppy have said, as some of the people they grew up with would probably be called ecoterrorists today.”
“Your mom was once part of a commune, wasn’t she? But I never knew the details.” Ryleigh sat back and picked up her cup. “Tell me about her, and how she met your dad.”
“Nothing to tell really,” he said, sounding as if he didn’t like the topic. “Her parents moved out here in the sixties from the Midwest and joined a hippie commune. She was born and raised there, but when she hit eighteen, she took off to see the world. Met Dad at a Rod Stewart concert one of his buddies dragged him too.”
“Really? Your dad doesn’t seem like a big rock concert goer.”
“He’s not. Has always been kind of buttoned down. He followed in my grandpa’s footsteps and became an accountant to support the family. But he always loved the outdoors more, so he invested wisely and bought the resort. Then he set up his own CPA business and took as many clients as he could handle while also managing the resort.”
“And starting the guide business.”
Russ nodded. “By then he only had a few accounting clients he’d kept on for years so he could focus on the outdoors more.”
“Why did the resort close?”
“Business got to be too much for Mom and Dad, and we were all doing our own thing.”
“And none of you wanted to take over for them?” She took a sip of the coffee. Strong and black just like she liked.
He glanced at her. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but after being in the hospitality business all our lives, none of us wanted to do it. Too many demands and complaining campers. But then Reid’s wife died, and he decided to leave the FBI to be with Jessie more. Ryan was just next door, so we figured we could get a survival business going and make enough money to at least support Reid. Turned out better than we could’ve hoped.”
“But you really don’t want to join in the family business full-time?”
“No.” Russ clicked on his blinker. “I’m more like my dad than my mom, and this job suits my personality. Cut and dried with a lot of rules.” He laughed and glanced at her. “I’m surprised you left the FBI. A lot of law enforcement officers would do just about anything to get into the bureau.”
“Family has to come first, right?” she asked.
“I suppose, but I’m not sure I would be as selfless as you.”
“Don’t get me wrong, I did it primarily for the family, but it also got to the point that I didn’t feel like I was making much of a difference anymore.”
“I get that, but I do see the difference I make on a daily basis.”
“Cybercrime is a lot different than local policing. You shut one group down and another group can be up and running, creating a huge problem worldwide so quickly your head spins.”
“Yeah, I can see that. Our crime is pretty finite. Though the drug trade has gotten to be a big problem that isn’t so easily policed. Especially with the fentanyl issues. It’s changed everything overnight, and I honestly fear for our future.”
The light flashed on her phone. “Email from Colin.”
She opened the message. “He included satellite photos and background on Horne. Guy’s nearly seventy. Was big in Sovereign Earth in the eighties. Colin couldn’t find much since then except one photo of him with Keenan at a logging protest in Alabama about twenty years ago. He was arrested twice for disturbing the peace during similar protests.”
“Sounds like he might not be active or our bomber, but he could still know where Keenan is located.”
