Chapter 52---Here's the latest chapter from this story. Thanks for reading and thanks for the comments!
Matt looked up at them.
"So what do you have to show us," he said, folding his arms.
One of the men stepped forward and extended his hand.
"I'm Fred, from the State Police," he said, "and this is Oliver from the FBI office in Denver."
Matt just looked at them for a moment before finally shaking their hands.
"Nice to finally see you come down to these parts," he said, "You missed most of the fun."
The two men looked at each other.
"We've rounded up some of the Nick's accomplices and we're looking into arrest warrants for some other bad guys."
Matt nodded.
"That's a start," he said, "but it would have been better if you had done all this before they tried to kill C.J."
"Matt..."
"I'm serious," he said to her, "I just love it how we have to do all the work and then they jump in at the last minute and tell us everything's fine."
Fred sighed.
"I'm sorry we weren't more proactive in this case but we didn't have any proof until your friend up in Denver gave us some of those samples from the car that crashed."
"That was days ago," Matt said, "A lot has happened since then."
"We can see that Mr. Houston," Oliver said, "I heard a lot about you."
Matt looked at him wary.
"Not all bad I hope," he said.
"You made a huge impression on Agent Denton," Oliver said.
Matt grimaced.
"Now there's a name."
C.J. turned to the two men.
"What is it that you have to tell us?"
"Oh yes," Oliver said, "We conducted a search warrant of Nick's office and where he stayed there. His wife wasn't too thrilled but a judge signed off on the search."
"What did you find," she said, "It must be something important to want to tell us."
The two men looked at each other again.
"He kept a rather extensive file on everyone in the legal team," Fred said.
C.J. felt a chill run through her.
"What do you mean by that?"
"He must have done some sort of background checks," Fred said, "They were rather lengthy."
Matt frowned.
"Did you find anything that concerned you," he asked.
Oliver hesitated.
"We found something that indicates that he had friends in the FBI or U.S. Attorney's office," he said.
C.J. shook her head.
"How could that be," she said, "Nick was just some hired muscle for Kilroy Developers."
"That's probably true," Oliver said, "but we found evidence in his file on you that never made it outside either of those federal offices."
C.J. was stunned by that news.
"You mean from the trafficking case?"
Both men nodded. Matt looked at the both of them, anger filling him.
"How did that happen," Matt asked, "That information is supposed to be secure. There's still one more prosecution that's not been concluded."
"We know that Mr. Houston," Oliver said, "We've initiated an investigation into both offices to see who leaked the information out ot him."
C.J .ran her hand through her hair.
"Do you want to see your file," Fred asked.
She shook her head, numbly.
"I've got work to do," she said, walking away.
"I'm sorry we had to give you this news," Fred said, "but we felt that you needed to know."
Matt turned towards them.
"Thanks, but like the lady said, we've got work to do."
They both walked away from Fred and Oliver towards Sydney and Bonnie.
"What was that all about," Sydney asked.
C.J. just looked at them, still shocked by the news.
"Nothing," she said, "I've got a case to wrap up."
Sydney brightened.
"So what are you going to do next?"
"We're going to find out where Daniels and Parker hang out when they're not corrupting this town."
"There's a little restaurant in the next town," Sydney said, "You might want to try there."
"What's it called?"
Sydney shrugged.
"I'll tell you if you take me along and give me an exclusive on anything that happens."
C.J. looked at Matt.
"This could get dangerous," she said, "Are you sure this is what you want? Because you weren't really thrilled by our last adventure."
Sydney sighed.
"I'm so over that by now," she said, "and it wasn't all bad. Some of it was exciting."
C.J. almost choked.
"I don't know if I would call it that," she said, "but if you promise to stay in the background, then you can come."
Sydney smiled.
"Do I have time to get Joseph, my photographer?"
C.J. shook her head.
"If you want to go, the car will be pulling out of the lot in a minute."
Sydney hurried with them to the car. Matt pulled out of the parking lot and onto the highway.
"So did the suits tell you anything important," Sydney asked, fishing through her purse.
C.J. just looked out the window.
"They searched Nick's business and home but that's pretty much standard procedure in cases like this one," Matt explained.
"Did they find any damning evidence," Sydney asked, "You know to put Kilroy and the others away for a long time?"
"I think they did," Matt said, "They're just trying to see what they can find out about some of the players they haven't rounded up yet."
Sydney paused.
"You mean like the ones whose party we're about to crash," she said.
C.J. listened to them talk, but even though she knew it was important to keep focused on the situation they were going into, she found it difficult. The revelation that Nick had information from the criminal prosecutions being done by the Justice Department really threw her. Not that there hadn't been leaks in the federal agencies that hadn't compromised her safety before but this latest news made it clear that her trust in those entrusted to protect her was misplaced.
Matt looked at her and knew that she was reacting to what she had just heard but he couldn't talk to her about it now. And if he tried, she would refuse to answer as she was focused on going after Daniels and Parker so that she could close the book on this chapter of her life, knowing that the ranchers' way of life in the valley had been restored.
Sydney looked up ahead.
"It's the next off ramp," she said, "Copper Meadows, population 200."
Matt prepared to leave the highway.
"Another former mining town," he said.
Sydney nodded.
"It was until it went bust about 20 years ago," she said, "but they've got hot springs to keep the tourists happy."
They drove down the main strip where there were some small stores and a restaurant or two. Sydney pointed out a building at the end of the street.
"There it is," she said.
Matt pulled up short of it and turned off the engine.
"Now let's not make a big fuss when we approach," he said, "You think you can handle that Sydney?"
She rolled her eyes.
"I can handle it if you can."
They walked up to the dusty building with a life-sized Palomino horse in the front.
"Looks lively," Matt said.
"It attracts a bit of a lunch crowd for about 20 minutes," Sydney said.
Matt turned to C.J.
"Are you ready for this?"
She nodded.
"I've been ready," she said.
The three of them entered the building which had emptied out with only a regular or two sitting in the booths while a waitress poured them water.
"I don't see them here," Matt said.
"That's because there's a special dining room in the back for the VIPs," Sydney explained, "I'll call Ray over and he'll take us there."
Ray turned out to be the part-owner of the place who sat near the kitchen in case they needed him.
"I did a profile on Ray and his restaurant so he…"
Matt put up his hand.
"No need to explain," he said, "You became good friends."
Sydney nodded.
"Something like that," she said.
Ray saw her and walked over.
"What is it that you want Ms Roth," he asked.
Matt thought he saw wariness in the man's eyes. Sydney smiled widely.
"You know you can call me Sydney," she said, "No need to be so formal."
"I've been warned about you…Sydney," he said, "by some of my best customers."
Her smile didn't dim.
"That's why we're here…Ray," she said, "We need to talk with them."
Ray folded his arms.
"No, they left strict orders not to be disturbed," he said, "by anyone."
"But…"
Matt looked around the two of them and crept away from Sydney and Ray. C.J. saw him and nodded.
"Ray," she said, "This is a really nice establishment you have here. Tell me, is the food as good as the atmosphere?"
He smiled at her.
"Would you like to try something?"
Matt walked slowly down the hallway, his hand on his firearm ready to pull it if necessary. He saw a closed door at the end and figured that was probably where Parker and Daniels were hanging their hats. He gently pushed the door open and stuck part of his body inside the room. Daniels and Parker were eating lunch at a table and at first didn't notice him.
"Excuse me gentlemen…"
Parker looked up suddenly and when he did, so did Daniels. Neither man looked happy to see him.
"What are you doing here," Daniels said, "This is a private dining room."
"Ray the owner is busy elsewhere, so I thought I'd check out his restaurant," Matt said, "It's a pretty nice place."
"One of the best in the area," Parker said, "And it's for the right price although I imagine money's no object for you."
Matt set his jaw.
"I would say the same about the both of you except the law's about to catch up with your behavior."
Parker looked at Daniels and chuckled but Matt noticed Daniels wasn't smiling.
"That's very amusing Mr. Houston," Parker said, "I haven't done anything since I've been elected mayor by the people of Silver Lode except try to improve the standard of living in my town."
"By hiring people to kill and threaten those who get in your way," Matt asked, "You've sent two good people to the hospital and tried to kill two other ladies who tried to stop you."
Parker shook his head.
"I had nothing to do with that sordid behavior," he said, "Nick was a renegade. He acted on his own."
"Not according to what they found in his office," Matt said, still not sure exactly what the authorities had found, "The feds and state police found a lot of evidence connecting Nick's actions to Kilroy Partners and Kilroy's money trail to your office."
Parker's face turned red.
"How dare you throw out such accusations," he said, "If Kilroy hired Nick to kill people, I had nothing to do with it and no knowledge of it."
"I'm not saying that you did," Matt said, "I'm saying that there's been evidence uncovered that strongly indicates you did."
Daniels threw down his napkin.
"He's bluffing," he said, "I've not had a single law enforcement agency tell me that they found anything linking you to any crimes."
"Well that's because you see Daniels, they are investigating your actions," Matt said, "and they've found evidence implicating you in some of these escapades as well."
Matt saw Daniels shift and knew he was reading for his gun. It didn't matter much because Matt was one step ahead of him.
"If I were you, I'd leave that gun of yours in its holster," Matt said, "and just turn yourself into the authorities to save me the time and energy of having to bring you in myself."
Daniels folded his arms.
"You wouldn't dare," he said, "They'd have your head first before they would go after a brother law enforcement officer."
Matt scratched his chin.
"Well that's what I thought too at first," he said, "but ironclad proof of criminal acts has a way of softening that adherence to the blue code."
Ray brought out plates of taquitos to both Sydney and C.J. steaming hot. Sydney just looked at them after he left.
"Are we supposed to eat this," she asked.
"We're supposed to keep him occupied so that Matt can get the goods on Parker and Daniels."
Sydney sighed, picking up a taquito and taking a bite. Her expression changed as she tasted it.
"These are really good," she said, "You should try it."
C.J. did but she was too nervous to appreciate the cuisine. She wondered if Matt had found the two men and if so, what he was doing.
"I'm sure he knows how to handle himself," Sydney said in between bites.
C.J. played with her fork.
"I know he does," she said, "but it's two against one."
"You must really love him," Sydney said, "I wonder what that feels like."
C.J. looked at her startled.
"It feels great," she said, "I think I've loved him my whole life."
Sydney paused.
"I didn't mean to make things difficult for you with that whole "sexiest millionaire bachelor" deal," she said, "If I had known…"
C.J. shrugged.
"It's all right," she said, "I got a kick out of it and he is the sexiest guy in the world."
Sydney smiled.
"Can I quote you?"
Matt shook his head at the two men in front of him. Parker looked at Daniels.
"I don't think he's going to go away," he said.
Suddenly Daniels lunged up with his gun drawn. Matt beat him to the punch pulling his own weapon and pointing it at the sheriff.
"What, you're going to shoot a law enforcement officer," Daniels said, "They'll hang you for that."
Matt's aim remained steady.
"Not if I can prove it was self-defense," he said, "After all, you worked very hard to help Nick try to eliminate some folks who were trying to stop Kilroy's master plan."
Daniels didn't drop his gun but tried to grab Matt, who dodged him causing Daniels to collide with the wall. Before Matt could grab him, Daniels started kicking outward, nearly tripping Matt up but he was able to stay just out of reach. While they were struggling, Parker tried to creep out of the room.
"Hold on there," Matt said to him, but he had his hands full with Daniels who was able to pull away and fled the room.
Parker stopped and just looked at him.
"I swear I'm innocent in all this," he said.
Matt pointed his gun.
"You sit right back down in that chair right there and wait until I can deal with you," he said.
Parker didn't argue but sat down, looking unhappy and pulling at his collar. Matt left him and went down the hallway. Daniels had entered the main part of the restaurant and waved his gun at everyone, telling them not to move or he would start shooting. C.J. just rolled her eyes but she stayed still, her mind working a mile a minute to come up with a plan. She looked up and saw Matt approach. So did Sydney but for once, she kept quiet, much to C.J.'s relief.
Daniels stepped backward still waving his gun.
"No one move or I will shoot you," he said, "I'm not surrendering."
Matt and C.J. looked at each other, wondering what to do next.
