Page 48 of Diamonds in the Mud

Ben pulled out a small bag from his jacket pocket and tossed it to the shadow standing a few feet away.

Seconds later, a lighter flickered, and I held my breath. I’d never seen anyone as skinny as the old man standing before us. You could practically see every bone in his body. He was wearing a pair of old jeans and nothing else. His gray hair reached down to the waist of the jeans, and his eyes… there was something about those eyes. Like a wild animal that had seen one too many days in a cage.

How many times had I seen that look before on the men and women I’d locked up? Too many.

This man would, undoubtedly, kill.

The amount of drugs Ben had given the man wouldn’t last someone this deep in addiction long. I guessed the Reapers had regular meetups. The only question was, what was the man giving them in return?

By the size and shape of the package he’d thrown to Ben, I doubted that it was drugs.

“Show dem, boy,” the man said, waving his hand as he turned to go back into the dark hut.

“Follow me,” the boy said, and we turned to walk through the darkness again. “Right dar,” the boy said when we stopped by a small boat floating in the dark bayou waters.

“Thanks,” Ben said and tossed a small package to the boy.

“Drugs?” I asked with a frown as the boy turned and disappeared back towards the hut.

Ben laughed. “Sugar. Candy. He likes hard candy. Chocolate melts and his pa finds it and whoops him. Hard candy he can hide.” Ben shrugged. “I’m not a monster. The kid is only eight.”

“Right,” I said.

“Help me with these.” Ben motioned to the similarly shaped packages that practically filled the small boat.

The first time I held one bundle, I knew exactly what was inside. Cash. Judging by how many bundles, I’d wager almost a hundred thousand dollars’ worth.

The old man was a mule and a user. Bad combo for the kid.

“Now what?” I asked Ben when we were heading back to the truck.

“On to the next stop,” Ben said with a sigh. He tossed the bags of money under his seat as I climbed in.

We drove back towards Gemsville, taking the main route this time. I realized we’d only been about half an hour away from town using the main road. Why had Ben taken the back road to get there?

My only guess was that he could explain away the money, but if he’d been caught with the drugs…

When he pulled into a long drive and turned off the truck, this time I knew exactly who he was meeting.

“You can stay in the truck for this one,” Ben said, getting out and shutting the door behind him.

Shit, I thought. What in the hell was Ben doing meeting with Henry Taylor?

Chapter Twelve

“The family is like a diamond, with a rock solidity and divine splendor, held by love.”

–Skender Nitaj

Rayne

The day had had the potential to be the best day of my life, but then I’d seen that email when I’d gone into my office in the morning. My workout with Jameson had settled me some at lunch, but then I’d gotten the call about the disturbance at the bar.

What had Declan been doing at the bar that early anyway? The place was scheduled to be open in about an hour, but Evelyn and Declan had been the only ones there. Why?

When I arrived, Owen and Abe, another beat officer, were trying to get into the building.

“We had complaints of a loud argument inside, followed by screams,” Owen said.