Long Range (Joe Pickett Book 20)(57)

Nate said, “If they hurt or release any of our birds, I’ll have to kill them all. Of course, I’m already going to kill the sheriff. He’s a dangerous idiot and he made Liv upset.”

Joe said, “Nate, don’t talk like that. You forget I’m law enforcement.”

Nate ignored him. “So that means I’ll have to kill the sheriff twice. After they bury him, I’ll dig him up and do it again.”

“Nate, please . . .”

“What are they looking for, anyway?” Nate asked.

“The long-distance rifle that was used to shoot at Judge Hewitt and Duane Patterson,” Joe said. “Apparently someone called the sheriff’s office and told them it was stashed away out here on your property.”

Nate squinted in thought. “Sandburg, I’ll bet,” he said. “I could see that guy doing something like that. He likes to use law enforcement procedures to screw people over.”

“I could see that,” Joe agreed. “But I have to ask. You don’t have any high-tech rifles, do you?”

“Don’t need ’em,” Nate said. “I’ve got my low-tech weapon and it does the job.”

“Is that it?”

“Of course not,” Nate said. “I’ve got a .17 HMR for varmints, a couple of .22s, a twelve-gauge over-under for pheasants and quail, a 6.8mm Ranch Rifle for deer and antelope, and my 7mm Magnum for elk hunting. And I just bought Liv a little .38 revolver to defend herself and the baby.”

By Wyoming standards, Joe knew, it was a surprisingly small arsenal. Guns to locals were like hand tools. Each had a specific purpose. Except for the .454 Casull revolver, of course. That was for taking down people in the most definitive way possible.

*

“AM I BEING charged for something?” Nate asked Joe.

“Resisting arrest and interfering with an investigation,” Joe said. “I heard that over the radio before I got here.”

“That’s bogus,” Nate said. “But not attempted murder?”

“Not yet,” Joe said with gravity. His phone chirped and he checked an incoming text on his cell phone. After he read it, he told Nate, “Liv told Marybeth what happened and she’s already flown into action. She’s on the phone with Kink Beran.”

“Who?”

“Ken ‘Kink’ Beran. He’s a defense attorney out of Cheyenne. He’s in the same law firm as Governor Rulon, but Beran specializes in criminal defense law. With the exception of Marcus Hand, he’s the best in the state. He’s agreed to represent you, so you’re in good hands. Rulon might get involved as well, considering you two know each other.”

“I hate lawyers,” Nate said. “Nearly as much as I hate politicians.”

“Everyone does until you need one,” Joe said. “Man, my wife works fast. She doesn’t want to see you cooling your heels in the county jail, I guess.”

Nate and Joe had skirted around the fact that Marybeth had had maybe a little more than just a soft spot for Nate in the past. But they’d never discussed it.

“Oh good,” Nate said, nodding over Joe’s shoulder. “Here comes Barney Fife.”

Sheriff Kapelow left his deputies and walked toward them across the gravel yard. As he got close, he reached back and once again gripped his sidearm.

“I don’t know what he thinks I’ll do to him like this,” Nate groused.

“Sheriff,” Joe said as he stood up and his knees popped, “I’m no lawyer myself, but I know you’ve either got to charge this man or let him go. I’d suggest cutting him loose.”

Kapelow nodded at Joe and said, “Of course you would.”

“Somebody fed you some bad information,” Joe said to the sheriff. “Plus, I think you’re looking at a situation where you used unnecessary force.”

“I’m not worried about that,” Kapelow said. He pointed at Nate on the ground. “This friend of yours has a long-standing animus toward authority and members of law enforcement in particular.”

“Just the bad ones,” Nate interjected.

Kapelow ignored him and continued. “He’s had federal charges made against him, and there are rumors that he had something to do with the disappearance of a Twelve Sleep County sheriff who was here before me. He was also a member of a special ops sniper team, so he’s a skilled assassin. When we find that rifle and he’s charged with the attempted murder of a county judge and the county prosecutor, I don’t really think the manner of his arrest will matter all that much. Do you?”

“W-well, when you put it like that . . .” Joe stammered.

Nate coughed up some blood and spit it to the side. He asked, “You know what really makes me mad about all this?”

Both Kapelow and Joe turned to hear him.

“I used to operate with my own set of rules before I came back on the grid,” Nate said. “I put all that behind me and went legit. I started a business and a family. I kept my head down and I’ve operated within your rules.”

He said it to both of them. Only Joe winced.

“And now look at me,” he said. “I’m chained up on my own property and I’m accused of things I never did. My wife can see me like this through the window and it’s humiliating. It makes me wonder if it made sense to come back.”