Terror Trail by Don Pendleton

Author:Don Pendleton
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Worldwide Library
Published: 2012-10-15T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

The Grier Ranch

New Mexico

When Schwarz touched his knee he could feel the swelling through his pants. Now he was unable to put his weight on it. He opened the 4x4’s door and hoisted himself up onto the seat. He heard his sat phone.

It was Sanford. “Be with you in a couple of minutes. There any others around I should know about?” he asked.

“They would have made themselves known by now,” Schwarz said. “Only Everson and Ash.”

“Only?

“Things could start to hot up any time, Deputy, so watch your back.”

Schwarz’s words turned out to be an understatement.

As a precaution he slid off the seat, and using Ash’s rifle, he hobbled across to where Everson lay. He picked up the SMG Everson had dropped. It was a 9 mm Uzi. Schwarz hadn’t seen one for sometime. The Israeli standby was still an efficient weapon, with a 32-round magazine, auto- and semiauto function. There was a second magazine tucked in the waistband of Everson’s pants. He must have had the weapon stashed inside the house, picking it up when he walked away from Schwarz.

Schwarz retrieved his finds and returned to the 4x4, leaning against the side of the vehicle. He caught a glimpse of dust rising back along the trail where he had driven in himself a short time ago. Then an SUV appeared. It was blue and white, a light bar on the roof.

Sanford’s department vehicle splashed across the creek and slid to a stop just short of Schwarz’s 4x4.

The door opened and Sanford climbed out. He had a 12-gauge Remington 870 shotgun in his left hand and his SIG Sauer P226 was holstered on his belt. He took a slow walk around the parked 4x4 and then looked at the pair of bodies lying close by. He drew a long breath, puffing out his cheeks.

“Man,” he said, “that’s something I don’t get to see every day.”

“They were set on killing me,” Schwarz said. “One way or another our showing up in Junction Crossing has set the wheels in motion.”

“Sebastian must be real nervy about something.”

“That illegal consignment of weapons is what he’s nervy about.”

“So he wants you guys out of his hair because you’re in his way.”

“That’s the way it looks.”

“Your partner said you were hurt.”

“Right knee. That cowboy Ash had one hell of a kick with those damn boots.”

“It broken?”

“Don’t know. Except I can’t put any weight on it.”

“Okay, let’s get you in my SUV and back to town. See what Doc Stone can do.”

The desert silence was broken by a sound Schwarz had heard many times: the approaching thwack of a helicopter’s rotors.

“Sebastian have a chopper in his collection?” Schwarz asked.

“Yeah,” Sanford said.

“Black and orange?”

“How’d you know that?”

Schwarz pointed above the ranch house. “That’s how I know.”

The helicopter, a Bell 206, swooped in over the ranch site, making a 360-degree turn before coming in again, this time at a lower elevation.

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.