The Negotiator by Kay David

Author:Kay David
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2013-12-15T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TEN

“WHAT HAVE WE GOT?” They were in the War Wagon, Beck struggling into his vest as he made his way to the back where Lena sat.

“A domestic violence with multiple weapons.” She glanced in his direction as he spoke, then focused on the fax coming through the machine. “Caught the call from the Panama City Beach guys. Apparently the suspect is a frequent client of theirs. He’s been in and out of county for petty stuff, but this is the first time it’s been this serious. He’s high on something and he’s inside, waving a knife in one hand and a gun in the other. We can’t tell if the wife is a hostage or what.”

Beck peered out the window of the motor home toward the tiny beachfront shack about a hundred yards from where they were parked. In the growing dusk, it was hard to see the details, but he didn’t need too much light; he knew the neighborhood. The single street ran perpendicular to the beach, and the houses along its rutted path were mostly frame, all run-down, and completely worthless compared to the land they sat on. Lena had already killed the power to the homes so the stretch of road was empty and quiet, but at the end, he caught a flash of white motion now and again—the phosphorescence of the waves crashing on the sandy beach.

In her usual concise way, Lena gave him more details, outlining the positions of the rest of the team and explaining what had happened. A frantic 911 from the neighbors had brought the beat cops out, but when they’d tried to approach the residence, numerous shots had been fired, inside and outside the house. Nodding his head at the narrative, Beck picked up the phone and dialed the number she had handed him.

No answer. He dialed again, an empty ringing sounding in his ear as Lena spoke.

“Where were you when you caught the call?”

“I was at Seacrest.”

“Seacrest? The old folks’ home?”

He disconnected the line, then punched the redial almost immediately. “I think the proper term is retirement facility.”

She shook her head impatiently. “Whatever. What were you doing there?”

“I was with Jennifer Barclay. We were visiting her mother.”

He started to say more, but all of his instincts went on sudden alert as the phone was answered. No one spoke, but he heard a small sound, almost nothing but enough to trigger his attention. “Hello? Hello?” More silence was his only answer. His stomach roiled as he remembered the last time this had happened, when Howard French had refused to speak with him. Beck swallowed to get past the memory. “This is Beck Winters with the Emerald Coast SWAT team. Who am I talking to, please?”

He glanced at Lena. She had raised one eyebrow as if to say “What’s the deal?” He shrugged his shoulders and scribbled on a notepad. “No answer.”

She nodded her silent acknowledgment. They couldn’t risk a conversation being overheard without knowing who had answered the phone. She wrote something on the pad and shoved it toward him.

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