Eye of the Falcon (Psychic Visions #12)(58)

A noise in the distance had him tilting his head to listen closely.

When the engine shifted, he knew somebody had taken the turn onto his driveway. Bright headlights shone in the darkness. He watched as a second vehicle came behind the first. One he might handle; two was another story. He got up and walked into the living room and shut off the lights. Then he slipped to the side, rifle at hand, dogs at his heels. Until he knew who was out there, nobody was coming onto his place. The first truck pulled up to the gate. The windows were rolled down, and a familiar face turned to look at the security feature.

“Eagle, it’s me, Tiger.” Tiger’s voice was faint, and yet it moved across the yard.

Eagle’s face lit up with joy. As he headed toward his former teammate from the unit back in the military, the second vehicle pulled up with a honk.

When Tiger looked in the rearview mirror and frowned and didn’t get out, Eagle froze. As Tiger sat and waited with his lights shining through the locked gate, Eagle could see the sheriff markings on the car from where he stood.

The engine turned off on the official county car. The driver’s door opened, and a deputy stepped out. He stood, looking up at the truck in front, and yelled out, “Are you going to drive into the yard?”

Tiger yelled back, “Can’t. The gates are locked.”

As Eagle watched, another deputy got out of the passenger side. “Any idea where the owner is?”

Tiger shook his head. “I just came unannounced. No idea.”

The two uniformed men walked up to the gate and stared through it. The gate was built in such a way they couldn’t slip through it; Eagle had made sure of that. And they’d have to be pretty damn skinny to slide underneath the bar at the bottom.

Deciding this was the best time to have a talk with the deputies, Eagle walked toward them, carrying the rifle loosely in his hand. The two froze at the sight of him.

One looked at the weapon in Eagle’s hand and said, “You got a license for that?”

Tiger sniggered behind them.

Eagle’s face was cold and his voice cutting. “Yes. Do you have one for yours?”

The first deputy frowned at him. “We just want to ask you some questions.”

“Go ahead. Ask.”

“You going to let us in?”

“Why can’t you ask questions where you’re standing?”

Eagle took several more steps forward and stood in front of the headlights so the deputies could see him. He hoped they saw the glint in his eye that said he didn’t give a damn who they were. They weren’t coming on his property without a warrant. They were already too far in on his acreage for his comfort.

“State your business,” he said calmly.

The two deputies looked at each other, and one said, “An injured unconscious man was picked up earlier today just down the road a few miles from your place. Unfortunately I got word on the drive over that he has succumbed to his injuries.”

Eagle kept his face completely blank as he said, “And?”

“We think he came from your place,” the first man said.

“There’s a lot of acreage here. Somebody could have dumped him on the highway and taken off, hoping he’d die before he could tell what had befallen him,” Eagle said drily. “I haven’t seen anyone here.” At least he could say that honestly.

The deputy nodded. “That could be. The nights are getting too cold for games like that.”

“It’s not that cold yet,” Eagle said calmly.

The deputies glanced around, seeing the raptor cages. “Anybody ever give you any trouble over your raptor center?”

Eagle gave him a thin razor-sharp smile. “Never.”

The two officers glared at him. “Make sure you stay on the right side of the law,” the second deputy said with more bravado than steely determination. “We can shut you down.”

Eagle’s gaze slid toward him. The younger man involuntarily backed up a step.

In a low voice, Eagle said, “I’m well within my rights. Are you?”

“We don’t want no trouble. We’re just trying to find out where this man came from.”

“Now that you brought it up, I want to know too.” He turned to glance around at the pens. “I haven’t checked them tonight. Always do a check before bed. But normally, if there’s an intruder, the birds let me know.”

Just then one of the big eagles named Borgan screeched. Eagle thought to himself the bird was grandstanding more than anything. He didn’t like strangers.

“Like that?” the deputy asked.

“Something like that, only two hundred times worse. I do have several hundred birds here.”

The two men nodded. “You didn’t hear anything disturbing them in the last twenty-four hours or so?”

Eagle tilted his head as if thinking. “A couple coyotes came through. Normally my dogs chase them away, but the dogs were in the house. Once I opened the door, they took care of them.”

“Did you kill them?”

Once again Eagle stared at the younger deputy. “No, we don’t kill senselessly here. The coyotes just needed a reminder there were better places for them to go hunting,” he said gently.

The men nodded, and the younger one said, “Well, if you hear anything, please call the sheriff’s office.”