Page 41 of In Cold Blood
He swallowed a mouthful of coffee. “My boss. Harry Carter. Owner of the High Peaks Pub and Brewery. He owns a lot of real estate around this county.”
“Did Luke interview him?”
“You’d have to ask the cops. There’s a female deputy I used to see him with at times. Good looking woman. Um. Dark hair.” He brought two fingers up to his eyes. “She has these super icy blue eyes.”
“Deputy Thorne?” he asked.
Dax tapped the air with his finger. “That’s it. Yeah, speak to her. Though to be quite frank, Noah, if I was you, I’d be careful what you say, who you say it to, and I would get as far away from High Peaks as possible. Leaving this place was probably the best thing you did. I mean, I’ve missed having you around, buddy, but it’s just not like what it used to be. It’s gotten a lot darker and it’s hard to know who to trust nowadays.”
His gaze shifted around the diner, then down at his food as he stabbed a pancake and drove it into his mouth. That was the second person who had told him to stay clear of the case. Locals like Alicia and Dax weren’t easy to scare. They had spent long enough around the area to know when people were full of hot air. Something or someone had rattled them. He was beginning to wonder if maybe leaving it in Parish’s hands was the best thing.
After finishing breakfast, Noah thumbed off some green to cover the bill, for which Dax seemed overly appreciative. Dax waited outside having a cigarette while Noah hit the bathroom. Once he came out, Dax had given it some thought. “Look, um… there is one guy that comes to mind.”
“What?” he asked, sliding his wallet into his pocket.
They walked side by side back to the truck.
“You asked me who might be responsible for your brother’s murder. I’m not saying it’s him. Okay! Let’s get that straight. So don’t go pissing up his tree but… well, there’s a guy in town that your brother locked heads with multiple times and eventually arrested. Cyrus Keller. Shady character. He’s a big-time hunter. Spends a lot of his time in the woods stalking elk, and shit.” Dax hopped into the passenger side.
As Noah fired up the engine, he asked, “And what was Luke’s interest in him?”
“Something to do with a warden that went missing.”
Noah thought back to what Alicia had told him about Keith Erikson.
The truck rumbled as they peeled out of the lot full of cars onto the busy road.
“And if you want to know more about Keller and the cops are tight-lipped, you should ask your ex. She’d fill you in.”
“Why’s that?”
“Because of her brother.”
Noah cast a confused expression his way.
“You really haven’t been here in a long while. Her brother Jack Grayson is friends with him. They go hunting together.”
“Huh…” Noah said, gripping the wheel tightly and thinking back to the crazy wall. It was starting to make sense now. If Jack was friends with Cyrus, Luke might not have just put him under surveillance but the whole Grayson family too.
Noah returned Dax to his home — if his minivan could be called that. It still baffled him that his old friend was living out of his vehicle. Dax looked hesitant to get out. He glanced into the forest and then back at Noah.
“Our childhood seems like a lifetime ago. You ever miss it?”
“Being young?”
“No. Being free, unshackled from the responsibilities and weight of living?”
Noah shrugged. “I guess.” He hadn’t stopped to consider it. His life had been moving at a hundred miles an hour since taking the position as a State investigator.
“Some days I wonder if I’ll ever feel like the way I did back then.” Dax smiled at him and for a brief second, Noah saw his old buddy hidden behind a weathered face and years of trials and tribulation. “Well, it’s been good to see you again. If you stick around, drop by the Pub and Brewery. I’ll buy you a drink.”
“Only if it’s non-alcoholic.”
Dax’s eyes widened. “You really have changed.”
Noah patted his forearm before Dax got out, slammed the door, waved, and climbed back into his vehicle like a wild bear might retreat into its den. Never in his wildest dreams could he have ever imagined Dax would end up here.
He couldn’t help feeling sorry for him.
