Missing in Mudbug (Ghost-in-Law #5)(63)

He paused for a moment, listening to Gordon. “No problem,” he said. “Have a good evening.”

“Let me guess,” she said. “Mr. Pickett is a happy camper.”

“I could practically hear him dancing.”

“You think he’ll move on this tonight?”

“I have no doubt.”

Jadyn nodded, her excitement growing. If everything went as planned, Gordon Pickett would finally go down, and with any luck, he’d give up Raissa’s kidnappers to lessen his time. They’d all be behind bars.

Then she remembered their other problem and sobered. “What about Bart? Are you going to arrest him now?”

Colt frowned. “No. Pickett is the threat. What Bart’s doing is illegal, but we have no reason to suspect he’s harming anyone. If I arrest him today, it might muddy the water and Pickett might stand down for the time being.”

“I agree,” Jadyn said. Everything he said made perfect sense, but she also got the impression that Colt was stalling. Not that she blamed him. The situation with Raissa held a positive ending as far as Mudbug was concerned—no residents were involved in the diamond smuggling or in the kidnapping—but Bart’s illegal activities were just one more black mark on the small community.

One more thing that had flown right under Colt’s radar.

“So how do you want to handle arresting Pickett?” she asked.

“We’re only expecting Pickett. I can handle him alone.”

“No way. Pickett could bring backup, or the family could send the second wave of idiots to make sure Pickett doesn’t screw up again.”

Colt shook his head. “Pickett won’t risk telling them he knows where the diamonds are. That would be asking for the second crew to take the job out from under him. No, he’ll show up alone, and I’ll be ready to take him down.”

“Well, you’re still not doing it alone. I’ll back you up.”

Colt’s lips quivered with a smile. “Trying to extend your jurisdiction again?”

She shrugged. “You could always ask Deputy Nelson. I’m not sure if he’s as good a shot as me, but…”

Colt’s grin broke through. “Twist my arm, will you?” His expression turned serious. “Thanks.”

It was only one word, but Jadyn knew he meant so much more. She wasn’t just backup. She was in this with him until the very end, and she knew he appreciated and respected her for it.

Jadyn couldn’t help but wonder what their relationship would look like when it was all over.

[page]###

“I don’t know, Maryse.” Jadyn stood in the kitchen at the hotel, frowning down at her cousin, who sat with Mildred and Helena, having blackberry cobbler. The fact that it was approaching evening and both Maryse and Helena were wearing bathrobes was slightly odd, but Jadyn wasn’t about to ask questions she didn’t want answer to.

“It makes perfect sense to videotape him,” Maryse said. “Colt said that Pickett always manages to skate by without arrest. If you arrest him breaking into the garage, that’s all you have on him. He can always claim he wanted to see his car and that he had no knowledge of the diamonds. Then it’s your word against his.”

“One would hope the word of a game warden and the sheriff would carry more weight than that of a known-although-not-convicted criminal.”

“I bet the past judges and juries had the word of cops too,” Maryse pointed out. “Didn’t seem to make a difference. But if you had video of him going straight for the diamonds, it would be impossible for him to argue his way out of what everyone could see. Not only that, without hard evidence, what incentive does he have to give up the other guys straight off? If you have to go to trial, it could take forever to pin down the guys who kidnapped Raissa.”

“I hate to agree with her,” Mildred said, “but she’s right. If a jury sees him go into the garage, raise the car, and immediately remove the box and go for the black bag, there wouldn’t be any possible question as to his motive. And if Pickett sees that footage first, he’s far more likely to deal.”

Jadyn worked to control her frustration. She didn’t think Maryse was wrong—in fact, she thought the idea of video was a great one, except for the part where someone had to sit in the loft above the garage office and turn on the camera when Pickett arrived. Jadyn needed to back up Colt and couldn’t do a good job from the loft. But the last thing she wanted to do was get her cousin involved in an arrest. What if something went wrong?

“It’s too dangerous,” Jadyn said finally. “Why can’t Helena run the camera? That would give us what we want without putting anyone else at risk.”

“I’ll do it for another blackberry cobbler,” Helena said.

Maryse rolled her eyes. “I don’t doubt for an instant your dedication to acquiring more cobbler. What I doubt is your ability to turn on the camera when the time comes. What if, all of a sudden, you can’t touch things? It’s not like your inability to do things on command is an isolated thing.”

Helena frowned. “As much as it pains me to agree, she’s got a point. No matter how hard I try, I can’t seem to get consistent on things, and when I’m stressed, it’s even worse. And if I know there’s a chance people will start shooting, I’ll definitely be stressed.”