Dead and Gone by Jack Patterson (universal ebook reader .TXT) 📕

a star employee without cause. Don’t suddenly act like you can just sweep this under the rug.”

“Okay, Kelly. I get it. You think Cal was set up by someone and wronged by us. We’ll do our best to make it right.”

She sighed. “You better. Cal would sweat blood to get you a breaking story first.”

“I know. I’ll let you deliver the good news to him. Hopefully, you can convey how much I appreciate him when you speak with him.”

“I’d love to tell him right now—if only he’d pick up his phone.”

Kelly spun and turned toward the elevator at the opposite end of the room.

Once she reached her car, she climbed inside and dialed Cal’s number again. After the second ring, he answered.

“Where have you been?” she asked.

“Long story. I’ve been trying to get ahold of you. Are you okay?”

“Long story. But I’m alive. Let’s just say your panic room and monitoring equipment proved rather handy tonight.”

“Where’s Maddie?”

“She’s with my mom. No need to worry. It was weekend with grandma.”

Cal sighed. “That’s a relief.”

“Yeah, so here’s what you need to know. I think the culprit is J.T. Beaumont—or at least somehow connected to him.”

“Beaumont? Really?”

“Yeah, it was his cousin Clint Beaumont who was stalking me.”

“How’d you find all this out?”

“I called one of your FBI buddies and he told me who owned the car of the man who was parked outside our house.”

“And you found out he was Beaumont’s cousin after that?”

“Well, I verified it was the same guy by checking the driver’s license in his wallet after I knocked him out with a frying pan.”

“You did what?”

“Like I said, long story. Anyway, I did a quick search on Clint Beaumont and came across an article talking about how he and Beaumont used to race on a local dirt track circuit—and it mentioned they were cousins.”

“Good work, detective.”

“Where are you?”

“I’m talking to Jessica Tanner right now. She was threatened by some thugs about some supposed gambling debt her husband had. I wish I had more time to tell you about it.”

“I wanna hear all about it when you get home. But I actually called to give you some good news.”

“Oh? What’s that?”

“You’re temporarily reinstated.”

“Temporarily?”

“It’s not all great news, but Folsom called the publisher and said they’d investigate when you got back, after seeing all the evidence I presented. Plus, those photos were fake.”

“Thanks, honey. I appreciate you believing in me.”

She didn’t say anything.

Cal took a deep breath. “You do believe in me, don’t you?”

She waited for a moment again. “Cal Murphy, if you ever go to a strip club—” She broke out into a laugh.

“That’s not funny, Kelly.”

“Of course, I believe in you, Cal. Now be safe and go find out why Beaumont would want to murder Carson Tanner — and silence you.”

“I think the answer’s pretty obvious.”

“It’s never obvious, Cal.”

***

CAL HUNG UP and turned to Jessica, who sat hunched over on a couch. She chewed her fingernails and stared through the window at the party-like atmosphere just outside.

“Anything?” she said.

“Yeah, that was my wife. A couple of good things. One, I’m reinstated, so I actually have an outlet to report this story. And two, Beaumont’s cousin was the one monitoring her at our house in North Carolina tonight. It seems at least that J.T. Beaumont was involved somehow.”

“And the bad?”

“I’m sort of a fugitive after I borrowed a rental car without proper authorization while somebody was trying to kill me. We need to return that car tonight before I become the subject of a manhunt.”

“Is that all?” She stood up. “Let’s go to the authorities with this right now and tell them the truth.”

“It’s not that simple, Jessica. We’ve got two people we need to take down—the person who sabotaged Carson’s car and the person who’s trying to get money out of you.”

“And you think we can deliver proof to the police?”

“We’ve gotta try. If we don’t make sure both these guys go to jail, you’ll never be safe.”

CHAPTER 48

EARLY SUNDAY MORNING, Owen Burns adjusted his Davis Motor Sports cap and waved at the guard standing by the tram stop just outside Phoenix International Raceway. The guard had been stationed there every morning and recognized Burns and his gear; he didn’t even take the time to ask for his credential. Burns slipped past him and walked underneath the tunnel leading to the track infield.

He said hello to several of his friends who’d been on the circuit for as long as he had. If it weren’t race day, they would’ve struck up a conversation with him. But now wasn’t the time for small talk—it was time to focus in on the task at hand: winning.

However, Burns had a different task in mind.

Since his sudden firing, he managed to make several copies of the video depicting the tampering, complete with a time stamp. He’d have no problem causing a stir once he convinced a few journalists to look at the video. His biggest challenge was staring him in the face.

“I’m sorry, sir, where’s your pass?” said the guard positioned by the garage gate.

Burns tapped his chest with his hands and then patted his pockets. “Aww, man. I must’ve left it at the hotel.”

“Better hustle back.”

“Seriously?” Burns stared him down. “I’ve got a job to do and I don’t have time to run back to the hotel.”

“I’d sure hate to have an absent-minded crew member like you working on my car.”

“Hey, buddy, better stop with the wise cracks. I’ll get someone over here in a minute.”

The guard folded his arms and stared at Burns. “Go ahead, tough guy. I’ve got all day.” The guard waved a few more crew members through.

Burns turned to one of the men walking through the gate. “Cory, can you vouch for me? This guy thinks I’m trying to sneak in.”

Cory turned and nodded. “He’s legit.”

The guard snarled. “I don’t care who vouches for you or if you’re the NASCAR president’s son. No pass, no entry. Got it?”

Burns seethed as he