Lone Star Standoff

“What’s the security for this trial?”

“Extra guards at the courthouse and inside where the trial is. I’ve always felt safe at work. Someone coming after me won’t change the fact that Bento Villa is on trial for the murder of Hector Martin.”

“This is a high-profile case.” Sean wrote something on the pad he held. “Can we narrow down the time and place where the rat could have been put in your trunk? Then I can check security cameras to see if I can catch the person on tape.”

“During lunch, I usually eat in my office at the courthouse, but today I needed to get away. The atmosphere is tense. Since we were getting near the end of the selection of jurors, I announced a two-hour lunch period. I still ate in my office and decided to lie down on the couch and take a nap. Since this case began, I haven’t slept as well as I usually do. But I couldn’t fall asleep. So I decided to go shopping for summer clothes for the kids. The dead rat wasn’t in the trunk when I put that bag in there after visiting the store I usually get their clothes at.”

“What store?”

“Clothes Galore on Main Street.”

“Did you go right back to the courthouse?”

Aubrey looked away from Sean’s intense gaze. “No. I went to Sweet Haven Parlor and had a double scoop of cookie-dough ice cream in a waffle cone. Indulging always manages to cheer me up.”

He chuckled. “I’ve been there before. Their ice cream is great.”

“What flavor?” He made her feel at ease during this tense time.

“Chocolate. Don’t tell anyone that’s my weakness.”

She laughed. The sound surprised her even more. For the past thirty minutes, she’d been tied in knots, and in a brief time he’d gotten her to laugh. But she quickly sobered as he wrote on his pad. This visit was about someone leaving her a message. She couldn’t take that lightly.

“I’ll check the security cameras at the courthouse and Sweet Haven Parlor, if they have any. Did you go anywhere else?”

“No. I came right back and had only a few minutes to get to my office and put on my robe.”

“When you drove home from the courthouse, did you stop anywhere and leave your car unattended?”

“No. After this week, all I wanted to do was get home.”

Sean stood and pocketed his notepad. “Show me your car.”

“Let’s go out front. I’ll raise the garage door. If we go through the kitchen, my children will want to come with us. They’re curious and ask so many questions.” They reminded her of her husband in that way. He’d always proclaimed that was what made him a good investigator—and what had probably led to his death. She shivered at the thought.

As she exited her office, laughter from the kitchen drifted to her. She smiled. No doubt Sammy and Camy were competing at clearing the dishes from the table.

“Your kids sound like they’re having fun.” Sean opened the front door.

“They love to compete with each other but are quick to stand up for one another when needed.” Aubrey put in her code on the pad at the garage. The noise of the door rising filled the quiet. She hoped her kids didn’t get curious at hearing the sound and want to check it out.

As she approached the rear of her car, she popped the trunk. The odor of the dead rat overwhelmed her even more than before. Shivering at the sight, she pinched her nose and gestured toward the rat.

Sean took pictures of it then put on gloves to handle the rat. “I need something to put this in. Can I use the bag your children’s clothes are in?”

“Sure.” She moved toward Sean and picked up the bag to remove the outfits. As she pulled them out, something dropped onto the concrete. She heard it before she saw what came out of the bag. Clutching the clothes against her chest, she intended to kneel and pick up whatever fell.

“I’ll get it.” After putting the bag with the rat on the floor, Sean squatted and reached under the vehicle. When he stood, he held his palm out flat toward Aubrey.

She stared at her husband’s hammered-gold wedding band with her name engraved in it. It had been missing since his murder.

The twins’ outfits fell to the concrete as her legs gave out.

TWO

Sean quickly clasped Aubrey’s upper arms and held her upright. Her wide, dark brown eyes stared through him while color drained from her beautiful face and her short dark hair lay in contrast to her pale skin. “What’s wrong?”

She shuddered, opening her mouth for a few seconds but shutting it before saying anything. She took the ring from his palm. Tears glistened in her eyes. She closed them and inhaled a deep breath.

“Aubrey?”

She swiped a wet tear track from her cheek, straightened her shoulders and looked at him. “That’s Samuel’s wedding ring. When he was murdered, the killer took his ring. My name is engraved inside. I didn’t think I would ever see it again, especially not among my children’s clothes.”

No wonder she was stunned. “So whoever left the rat was either your husband’s killer or knew the guy.”

“And neither is good news. Why now, after two years?”

“A connection between Villa’s trial and Samuel’s murder?”

“Possibly. Both involved drugs. Villa is a lieutenant of the Coastal Cartel.” Aubrey held up the ring. “And they’re sending me a message.”

Sean glanced over his shoulder to where his SUV was parked in the driveway. Darkness had settled over the landscape. “Let’s go inside and talk about this. What kind of security system do you have?”

“I have an alarm system with a couple of cameras inside, as well as motion detectors by the porch and garage.”

“Any cameras outside?”

Aubrey shook her head then turned her attention in the same direction. “What if they’re watching me?”

“You need to get a couple for the front and backyard.”

“I’ll call my company tomorrow and arrange for them to add them as soon as they can.”

Sean scooped up the clothes at their feet and gave them to her, then picked up the bag with the dead rat. “Go inside. I’m locking this in my vehicle, then we’ll talk some more.”

She nodded, but before she reached the garage entrance into the kitchen, a little boy with brown hair opened the door and poked his head out.

“Mama, I’m hiding from Abuela.” Sammy clamped his gaze on Sean, and his eyes grew big.

“Let’s get inside.” Aubrey hustled her son into the house and waited for Sean to leave the garage before putting the door down. “I’ll let you in at the front.”

Sean hurried to his SUV, his gaze sweeping the terrain for anything unusual. He assessed several places where someone could possibly hide and watch Aubrey’s house. Not only did he lock his rear door, but also the evidence box built into his car under the back mats. Then he headed for the porch and started to ring the bell.

Aubrey swung the door open before he could push the button. “I promised my son I would introduce you to him. He said you look like how his daddy looked in some of the pictures he’s seen. I told him you were a Texas Ranger like his dad, and he got all excited. Do you mind?”

“Not at all.” His older sister in Amarillo had two boys, ages seven and nine, as well as a five-year-old girl. He loved visiting them. “Where is he?”

“In the den with his sister and my mother.” She closed and locked the door. “This way.”

He followed Aubrey toward the back of the house, realizing he was over a foot taller than her.

Sammy stood in the entrance to the room with a big grin on his face. “Did ya know my daddy?”

“I met him once, but I really didn’t know him. Everyone says he was a great Texas Ranger.”

Sammy’s grin grew even bigger. “That’s what Mama says.” The little boy grabbed Sean’s hand and tugged him forward. “I gotta show ya somethin’.”

Sean accompanied the child as they crossed the room to the fireplace. The boy pointed at the mantel to a photo of his father, wearing a long-sleeved white shirt with a blue tie and an off-white cowboy hat.

“He has on his badge like you. And we have it!” Sammy pulled on Sean’s hand, guiding him to an end table with the star badge framed in a shadow box. “I’m gonna wear one when I grow up.” He thrust out his chest.

“I felt that way when I was a young boy.” Sean turned toward the little girl standing next to Aubrey. “And you must be Camy.”

She nodded but stepped closer to her mother. Seeing them side by side, he noted a strong resemblance between the two.

“She’s shy with strangers,” Sammy said.

Sean smiled and winked at Camy, whose eyes grew round as saucers.

“I’m Camilla Roberts, their grandma, or as Sammy has been saying lately, their abuela.” The petite older woman with black hair and the same dark brown eyes as Aubrey stood and held her hand out.

Sean shook it. “It’s nice to meet all of you.”

“Camy and Sammy, it’s time to get ready for bed.” Camilla peered at her daughter. “The Texas Ranger is here to talk business with your mama.”

While Camy went to her grandmother, Sammy stood still. “I’m not sleepy. I want to stay.”

“Samuel Craig Madison, this isn’t negotiable. Go with Grandma now.” Aubrey’s firm voice emphasized the word now, which drew a big frown from her son, but Sammy left with his grandmother.

“Sorry about that. My son takes his job as the man of the house very seriously. He thinks he’s supposed to know about everything that goes on here. Let’s go back to my office.”

As they left the den, Sean said, “I understand. My father died when I was fourteen. I was the oldest male. I have two sisters, one younger and one older, and a younger brother. I thought I needed to protect them and be the man of the house, too.” Yet he hadn’t been able to protect his youngest sibling. He’d failed to accomplish his dad’s last request.

“Sammy’s only four and a half. He got that idea from a kid at church about six months ago.”

“Kids are growing up too fast today.”

“You don’t have to tell this mother.” Aubrey walked toward the doorway. “I need to put these new clothes in the washing machine. The idea that someone might have handled them in addition to the faint odor of a dead rat are more than enough reasons to wash them before they wear them.”

Sean glanced up and down the hallway before asking, “I wish you had answers to your husband’s death. It’s hard to get closure when there are so many unknowns. Do you mind telling me again about what happened? I haven’t had a chance to work on his case for a couple of months.” The influx of drugs had increased in the past few months, and he was determined to do what he could to stop the flow. He often wished there was more time in a day to do all he wanted. He’d even neglected Jack’s missing-person case.

“Sure. Have you had dinner yet?”

“No. When you called, I’d just arrived home.” He entered the kitchen.

“Knowing my mama, she put the leftovers in the refrigerator for me to have later. It won’t take long to heat them up in the microwave. It’s lasagna. Mama is a great cook, a trait I haven’t inherited from her.” She crossed to the utility room and disappeared inside.

Like the rest of the house, the kitchen was clean and neat, with little evidence they had just eaten dinner. He was glad that Aubrey had help with her children. He’d been there for his mother after his father died in a ranch accident. He’d tried his best to do what his dad had done at the family’s ranch and go to high school, then later college. Being a parent was hard, but being a single one was even more difficult. Reflecting on Sammy showing him the picture of his father and his badge brought a smile to Sean’s face. But then he remembered Camy’s shyness, and he thought about his younger sister, who’d been a lot like Aubrey’s daughter.

When Aubrey returned to the kitchen and opened the refrigerator, she shot him a look around the door. “Are you really hungry? There’s a lot here.”

He nodded. “I’m always really hungry when it’s a home-cooked meal. Can I help?”

“Put this plate into the microwave on three and a half minutes, please.” She gave him her meal with plastic wrap covering it.

Ten minutes later, they were seated across from each other at the table in the alcove. The aroma of lasagna teased his senses, but before digging in, he bowed his head and said a silent prayer for help from God in solving what was going on with the dead rat and Aubrey’s husband’s wedding ring. He didn’t have a good feeling about this. Someone was playing games—possibly deadly ones—with her, and it was likely connected to the cartel.

When he looked up, their gazes connected. He realized she’d been praying, too. Sean took a bite of his dinner, savoring the delicious Italian dish. “Mmm. Tell your mom this is great.”

Aubrey smiled. “I will. She loves to hear that. Once she thought about being a chef and having her own restaurant.”

“Why didn’t she?”

Her smile vanished. “My husband was killed. She told me the deal fell through, but I’ve always wondered if that was the case.”

“Speaking of your husband, tell me again what you recall about his death.”

She scooped up a forkful of lasagna and ate it. “When he didn’t come home from work, I tried getting in touch with him, and it went to voice mail. I left a message to call me. I thought I would get a return call, but as the night turned into the next day, I knew something was terribly wrong. Even before the kids were born, he always kept in regular touch with me throughout the day. I called the Weslaco office to see if they knew anything. They didn’t but said they would look into it and get back to me. I then called the Port Bliss Police Department and reported my concerns. That day was the longest twenty-four hours I’ve ever gone through.”

Around the time of her husband’s death, Sean had received the notification of his brother’s disappearance. When the police described Jack’s destroyed apartment and the blood at the scene, he’d known his brother was probably killed, especially given some of the people he’d associated with. “Do you know what Samuel was working on? When I took over shortly after his death, I only found two open cases he’d been looking into.”

“Which ones?” Aubrey reached for her iced tea.

“A shipment of guns missing and the disappearance of Jack McNair.”

She stopped in mid-motion and looked toward him. “Any relationship to you?”

“My younger brother. Did Samuel ever talk about him? There wasn’t a lot in the case file on his death.” On the side, he’d been searching for any information on his missing brother and had come up empty. According to everyone he’d talked to, Jack just vanished one day.

“Not that I can remember. When Samuel died, everything got crazy. I felt for months that all I was doing was going through the motion of living. Attending his funeral was one of the hardest things I’ve done. The coffin was closed due to the grisly nature of the murder.”

The pain in her expression and voice twisted Sean’s gut. From the pictures of Jack’s apartment, his little brother had been tortured, too. He wanted to know why. After two years of searching for answers, Sean hadn’t come close to solving his death, nor Samuel Madison’s.

“I couldn’t even box up Samuel’s possessions. Mama took care of that while I was trying to act like everything was all right for Camy’s and Sammy’s sakes and trying to keep up with two toddlers who didn’t understand where their daddy was.” She stared at her half-eaten lasagna for a long moment then lifted her head, looking right at him. “And now someone returned my husband’s wedding ring. It doesn’t make any sense. Why now?”

“If I knew that, I could figure out who killed him.”

“I want justice for my husband, but dragging it all up again also brings pain.”

“I know. I feel the same way about my younger brother.” Sean finished the last bite of his lasagna. “I need to leave, but if you think of anything more I should know, please call me. And if you receive another threat, call immediately.”

Aubrey rose and stacked his empty plate on hers. “I will. Should I notify the local police?”

He brought their glasses to the sink. “Yes, and the sheriff’s office. The guards at the courthouse need to be aware of what happened. I’ll be talking with the police chief and the sheriff about the incident. Tomorrow I’ll go look at the security tapes to see if there’s anyone acting suspicious. Also, I’ll check at Sweet Haven. It’ll give me a good reason to have a chocolate ice-cream cone. I might just have a triple-dip one. I haven’t been there for months, not like someone I know.” He grinned, winked and picked up his cowboy hat then set it on his head.

Aubrey accompanied him to the entry hall. “I appreciate you coming over. I wasn’t sure what I should do.”

He stepped out onto the porch and turned back to her. “Ma’am, it’s my pleasure to help you.” He tipped his cowboy hat then left her.

When he slid behind the steering wheel, he swung his attention to the front door. Aubrey still stood there, her petite body framed in the entrance. She had a reputation of being a tough judge, but at the moment there was nothing tough about her. Her vulnerability drew him to her.

As he drove away, he called the police chief. “Juan, I need a police car posted outside Judge Aubrey Madison’s house.”

“Why?”

Sean explained what had happened. “I’m looking into this threat, but with the trial she’s overseeing, she should have someone escort her to and from the courthouse as a precaution for the time being.”

“I’ll have one out there right away.”

“Thanks, Juan. I’ll keep you up-to-date on what I find out.”

“But you don’t have a good feeling about this?”

“No.” He thought about the recent cartel violence in the past few months. He was afraid Aubrey was caught up in the middle of what was going down. Bento Villa was the right-hand man for the head of the Coastal Cartel and like a son to Sanchez, who ran the whole organization from Mexico. Now the man was in jail and on trial for murder. And her husband’s murder had no doubt been carried out by a cartel member or possibly Villa, a hands-on leader, according to his informant.

* * *

Saturday morning before everyone else was up, Aubrey made another cup of tea and sat at the table, staring out into the backyard at the bright sunlit day. She’d gone through the house and opened all the blinds over the windows on the sides and rear of the house. She kept the front ones closed because there was a patrol car parked in her driveway.

When Sean called her last night to tell her about the police officer assigned to guard her, she’d had mixed feelings. Sammy had told her on a number of occasions that he was going to be a police officer when he grew up—just like his daddy. Having a police officer around would keep that dream in the foreground for Sammy. She didn’t want that for her son. She’d lost her husband to the job, and she didn’t want to lose anyone else to it. She’d even prayed for the Lord to change his mind before he was an adult.

With this new trial, she didn’t see any way around the protection. It had been a good move to have a police presence at her house to discourage anyone who wanted to do her harm. But she didn’t want Sammy to know she could be in danger.

“There’s police outside.” Sammy ran into the kitchen, still in his pajamas, with the biggest smile on his face. “Can I go out and say hi?”

“No. You’re in your pj’s.” Before she could say anything else, her son whirled around and raced out of the kitchen.

Aubrey started to go after him in case he decided to ignore what she said, but the sound of him stomping up the staircase stopped her. Most likely he was going upstairs to get dressed. She took a sip of tea then stood. Knowing Sammy, she headed for the entry hall and leaned back against the front door, arms crossed over her chest. Aubrey had left the alarm system on, and she didn’t want her son to trigger it if he tried to sneak outside. Both her mother and daughter were still sleeping. And as expected, he came down the steps, wearing shorts, a T-shirt and cowboy boots.

He didn’t notice her until she asked, “Where are you going?”

“To see if Brad can play.”

Sure, with a stop at the police car. “It’s too early, and you haven’t had breakfast.”

Sammy plopped down on the last step and frowned.

There was no way to hide the fact that a patrol car would be there for the time being. She didn’t want to scare her son, but she couldn’t ignore that she was being protected. “Tell you what. Let’s both go eat a bowl of cereal, and then I’ll get dressed and we’ll go out front to say hi to the police officer.”

Sammy jumped to his feet and ran toward the kitchen. Aubrey followed at a sedate pace, wishing she had her son’s energy.

It was an hour later before Aubrey opened the front door and her two kids raced outside and down the porch steps. She’d called the police to let the patrol officer know her kids wanted to meet him. She’d also received a text from Sean saying he was coming by, and he should be here soon. Heat suffused her face when she thought about the extra care she’d gone to when he texted her about seeing her today. She’d hurried back up the stairs and changed into a new pair of jeans and a white blouse instead of sweatpants and an old T-shirt.

While her twins sat in the front seat of the patrol car, the officer told them about the different things he did as a law enforcement officer. They got to turn on the red lights, but the young man stopped short of sounding the siren.

So intent on her children, she didn’t realize that Sean had parked along the curb and approached her until he said in a soft voice right behind her, “One day I’ll let them try the siren in my car.”

Her heartbeat tripled its rate, leaving Aubrey sucking in shallow breaths. With a laptop bag slung over his shoulder, Sean moved to her side while the officer showed her kids the equipment in the trunk. Sammy was smiling from ear to ear while Camy began looking bored. Aubrey turned toward Sean. “Did you find out who put the rat in my car?”

“Not who, but at least where he did it, I believe. I went through all the surveillance tapes available last night and this morning. After talking to you, I left here and went to the courthouse to look at its surveillance tapes. Nothing happened in its parking lot that I could tell, but your vehicle was parked in a blind spot at Sweet Haven. I went by the ice-cream parlor first thing this morning. Their security cameras were focused on the front and back doors and inside the place, not the parking lot. They didn’t show anything unusual. I’ve obtained traffic cam footage around the time you went to Sweet Haven and would like you to view it with me. The rat must have been placed in your trunk during the twenty minutes you were inside the ice-cream parlor. Did you notice a car following you when you left at lunchtime yesterday?”

“No, but I have to confess—” she paused, hating to admit she’d been careless “—I wasn’t paying attention. I was relishing getting away from the courthouse for an hour. I’ve felt so confined since the Villa trial started.”

“For a good reason. Bento Villa is high up in the Coastal Cartel and its drug ring component.”

“He sure isn’t cooperating with the prosecution. He was offered a good deal in exchange for information on the cartel. He refused it. Not that I thought he would take a deal.” Thinking about the threat now hanging over her, she approached the police officer. “Sammy and Camy, it’s time to go back inside. What do you say to Officer Carter?”

“Thank you,” Sammy said in a loud voice that half the neighborhood probably heard, while Camy mumbled her thanks.

“I appreciate you doing this,” Aubrey said then tried to corral her two children toward the front porch. Finally Sammy glued himself to Sean while Camy took Aubrey’s hand and practically dragged her toward the house.

“Is your car like that?” Sammy asked Sean, slowing his pace.

Sean patted Sammy’s shoulder and kept walking right behind Aubrey. “Similar.”

Her son pointed to the top of Sean’s SUV. “Where’s your siren?”