Texas Outlaw (A Texas Ranger Thriller) by James Patterson

Author:James Patterson [Patterson, James]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company
Published: 2020-03-30T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter 61

I TOSS AND turn all night, hardly sleeping. The rash on my fingers itches, but that’s the least of the reasons for my sleeplessness. I keep thinking about a plan that would allow Ariana to escape arrest—and whether I should actually go through with the plan or not. When I was talking to Ariana in her house, I felt confident that it was the right thing to do. But in the darkness of night, alone with my thoughts, I can’t be sure. Is this just another of my impulsive shoot-first, ask-questions-later solutions? Have I really thought this through?

When the sky starts to turn blue and the sun is on the verge of rising, I’m already up, dressed, and staring out the window at the arroyo and the hills behind Tom and Jessica’s property.

I’m taken for a moment by how beautiful the country here is. This land is different from my hometown—browner, drier, more desolate—but it’s all Texas.

I love this state and the people in it. I don’t want to betray this land I’ve sworn to protect.

I’ve stepped over the line before, not doing things by the book, but I’ve never so blatantly or egregiously broken the law. A Texas Ranger helping a suspected murderer escape from justice—any judge in the state would toss me behind bars and throw away the key.

I consider myself a lawman.

If I go through with this, I’ll be an outlaw.

I walk down the stairs, past Jessica’s berry bushes, and stand at the back gate of their property. Outside, in the peaceful morning air, I watch the sun peeking up from the horizon and igniting the hills in a brilliant gold light.

I pull out my cell phone.

In the last twenty-four hours, I’ve missed several calls from Willow. I know I should call her back, but I don’t want to talk to her right now. I don’t want to lie to her and tell her nothing’s going on. But I don’t want to worry her, either, so I justify silence as the best strategy.

But there is someone I do want to talk to.

“Hey, Dad,” I say when my father picks up. “Did I wake you?”

“Hell no,” he says. “Somebody’s gotta get up and feed the horses.”

He’s delighted to hear from me and wants to know when I’m coming home.

“Not any time soon,” I say, and I tell him I’m having trouble on the case in Rio Lobo.

I don’t get too much into specifics—that might take all day—but I tell him I’m at a crossroads, split between doing what I feel is right and doing what I’m bound to by the law.

My father is quiet for a minute and then he speaks.

“Rory, a Texas Ranger is more than just a government official. More than just a badge and a fancy title. A Texas Ranger is an idea. A higher standard. A Ranger swears an allegiance to Texas. Not just the state government but Texas itself.”

My heart pounds as he puts into words my own thoughts and feelings about the job.

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