Page 59 of Crosshairs

“Oh, Linc, I had no idea you blamed yourself for Blake’s death. I’m so sorry,” Ainsley said. “Blake didn’t know you hesitated, though.”

“Yeah, he did. I told him. He never blamed me, but sometimes I think if he’d gotten angry at me, I would’ve felt better.”

“That’s a hard load to carry around,” she said. “Have you seen a therapist?”

He barked a laugh. “Several.” Linc shifted his gaze to Ainsley, not sure what he’d see in her eyes. Hopefully not disappointment... or pity. “Ever since that night, I haven’t been able to pick up a gun, let alone fire one.”

Tears glistened in her eyes. “We all make mistakes,” she said.

“Most of them don’t cause someone to take their life.”

“You don’t know what was in his mind before he took those pills.”

“Sarah told me he was suicidal. I should have done something, but I didn’t believe her. Blake seemed to be getting better. He was making plans...”

“Did she say it was because of losing a leg?”

Had she ever come out and said that point-blank? “She didn’t have to. He’d been depressed ever since it happened.”

Ainsley’s hand covered his, squeezing it.

“I’m okay most days ... it’s just that Wednesday it’ll be two years since Blake died, and I’ve promised Sarah to spend part of the day with her and her dad. Blake loved the water, so I thought we could have a picnic at Natchez Lake.”

“I’m sure they’ll appreciate it ...”

He looked up. “There’s a ‘but’ in your voice.”

Her shoulders lifted. “Don’t take this wrong, but from the tone of your voice—it sounds like you’re doing it more out of guilt than because you want to.”

Ainsley could still read him, even after sixteen years. Linc raked his fingers through his hair. “To tell the truth, the anniversary had slipped my mind until Sarah reminded me.”

“She guilted you into it?”

“It’s hard to tell Sarah no.”

She laughed. “So I’ve noticed. I’ve also noticed she still has a crush on you.”

“I keep hoping she’ll get past it.” Sarah’d had a crush on him when he and Blake hung out together as teenagers, but Linc had never had eyes for anyone except Ainsley. “She’s a beautiful woman, and there are a couple of nice guys at church I want to introduce her to, but she never comes.”

Ainsley tilted her head, staring at him, and he warmed under her scrutiny. “You had such a strong faith when we were dating. Do you still?” she asked.

He dropped his hands from the mug. “It’s the only thing that gets me through the days.”

28

Troy Maddox drove slowly by the two-story house, searching for the SUV he’d followed earlier, but there was only the pickup and a Prius parked in the drive.

He knew it! He should’ve kept following the SUV earlier, but the ranger and Beaumont turned off the main highway onto a deserted county road. He feared they would catch him tailing them and backed off, driving back to the highway to wait. Except he’d somehow missed them. Maddox turned around in a drive and retraced his path, halting at the four-way stop. He glanced to his right and a sign caught his eye. “No Thru Traffic.”

But that wasn’t the only thing that caught his eye. A maroon SUV was parked behind the house. Looked like the same one he’d been tailing. If he could get the license plate, he could hack into the DMV and learn who it belonged to.

Maddox craned his neck to see if anyone was out and about. The area was deserted, but he did see a dark house with a for sale sign. He could park there and sneak across the street to get the license plate number.

He pulled in front of the empty house, opting not to use the drive. A few minutes later Maddox crept through the adjoining backyard and stood across from where the SUV was parked.

The floodlight shining against the back of the house posed a problem. If he tried to approach the vehicle, he’d stand out like alighthouse. Just as Maddox turned to retrace his steps, the back door to the house opened and the man he’d seen driving the SUV walked to it. Now he didn’t need the license plate.

Maddox narrowed his eyes. The ranger was a complication. Might as well plan on killing him when he took care of Beaumont. He scanned the neighborhood, looking for a place where he could easily surveil the house in the daylight hours. First he’d have to do a little research, and he knew just the place to do it.

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