CLOSE TO HOME by Blake Pierce

Author:Blake Pierce [Pierce, Blake]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2025-09-15T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Danny Torres had been a security guard for fifteen years, the last three with Sunburst Energy, and he'd dealt with everything from drunk teenagers using construction sites as party spots to hardcore eco-terrorists trying to sabotage million-dollar equipment.

But these ritual murders had him jumpier than anything he'd faced before.

"Just another night," he muttered to himself, climbing out of his company truck to begin his final patrol of the evening. The dashboard clock read 10:47 PM, late enough that most protesters had gone home but early enough that the real troublemakers might still be active.

His supervisor, Carl Finkley, had held an emergency meeting that morning after the news broke about the second body. The whole thing had been picked up by national media now, with CNN running a segment about "Ancient Curses and Modern Conflict" that made Danny want to throw his remote at the TV.

"I don't care what the news says about curses and ceremonies," Carl had told the assembled security team. "Your job is to protect company property and document any suspicious activity. But—" and here his voice had taken on an edge Danny had never heard before, "—nobody patrols alone anymore. Always in pairs, always in radio contact."

Except tonight Danny was alone because his partner Rick had called in sick with what sounded suspiciously like a hangover, and Carl needed coverage more than he needed to follow his own rules. The overtime pay was too good to pass up, and besides, Danny had his radio, his flashlight, and the .38 revolver he was licensed to carry.

What could go wrong?

He started his rounds at Station 7, where survey equipment worth about thirty thousand dollars sat locked in a reinforced cage. The locks were intact, no signs of tampering. He made his notes on the clipboard—old school, but Carl didn't trust tablets in the field—and moved on.

The night was cooler than recent days, a hint that autumn might eventually arrive despite the desert's stubborn grip on summer. Danny had grown up in Phoenix, but his wife Eleanor had convinced him to take the job up here in Flagstaff when their daughter started showing signs of asthma. The higher elevation and cleaner air had worked wonders for little Sofia, now six and starting first grade at Sacred Heart Elementary.

Station 8 was also secure, though Danny noticed fresh graffiti on a nearby rock: "BLOOD FOR BLOOD" in red spray paint. He photographed it with his phone, made another note. The company would send a cleanup crew in the morning, but by afternoon, there'd probably be new graffiti to replace it.

As he drove between stations, Danny thought about how much had changed since the murders started. Before, the protesters had been almost polite in their opposition—signs and chants and the occasional attempt to block access roads. Now, there was an edge of real menace in the air. Yesterday someone had left a deer carcass at the main gate of the field office, its throat slit and herbs stuffed in its mouth in what Danny assumed was a grotesque imitation of the murders.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.