Badge and a Saddle (Heroes in the Saddle Book 2) by Randi Alexander

Rex that
Sontag had been inside, scouring the house for signs of Mina.
    “You been
hunting?” Sontag gestured to his gun.
    “Nope. Just
walking the property.” He picked up the rifle and made a show of checking the
bullet in the chamber. “Can’t be too careful.” Tucking it under his arm, he let
the barrel point at his partner for a few seconds before shifting it down.
    The man’s brows
dropped. “Anything new on that missing persons case?”
    Now it would
start. “Which case? We’ve got three going right now.”
    Bennet shifted,
his hand going to his lower back, squinting as if he was feeling pain.
    Sontag didn’t give
him a glance. “The astrologist from the college. The woman doctor.”
    The guy didn’t
know the difference between an astrologist and an astronomer? Had he even
cracked the file on Mina’s case? Probably not, the lazy fuck. “No. Nothing
before I left Fort Worth. Why?”
    His partner looked
down and shoved his hands in his coat pockets. “Some cops are looking for her.
They’re from Austin and San Antonio. Say she’s into something illegal, and
that’s why she’s in the wind.” He glanced up at Rex, then looked down the
driveway again.
    Someone was
waiting down there, and Rex pretty much knew who it was.
    “Captain know
about this?” Rex reached for his back pocket where he’d tucked his phone. “I
should call him.”
    “No.” Sontag
gritted his teeth and hissed out a breath. “Fuck, Rex.” He met his gaze. “Don’t
make this go the wrong way.” He hitched a thumb over his shoulder toward the
house. “I know she’s here. We have people watching for her to show up in
Austin, but when the captain said you’d gone on leave right after he closed the
doctor’s case file, I got a gut feeling about the whole thing. I went to your
house and…went in and found evidence that you’d had company.”
    The fucker had
broken into his home? Rex had been an idiot, leaving without scouring the
place, but he’d never have guessed how desperate these men would be. His
mistake, and it was going to cost him.
    Sontag tipped his
head. “Just give her to me, I’ll take her, and go.”
    Rex could play
stupid, but they might as well get this over with. He inched his gun up to
point it at Sontag. “You’ll go, but without the doctor.” He nodded toward the
road. “Those cops you’re working for are dirty. They killed a man and must have
disposed of his body. They’re looking for Mi…Doctor Cooper to kill her because
she’s a witness.” He slowly stepped up onto the porch, his rifle still pointed
at Sontag’s big belly. “You want that on your conscience?”
    His partner held
up his hands. “I’m just doing my job, Tarrow. You don’t want to give her to me,
they’re ready to come and take her.” He looked at Bennet. “There’s four of
them, two of you. I know how this’ll turn out.”
    Rex had to choose
quickly whether to reveal all the facts or not. Yeah, he had to go for it. “She
recorded the whole thing through a camera she had hooked up on the telescope.
It shows the men’s faces, up close and personal. And she’s not stupid. She sent
the memory card of the video to the governor’s office.”
    Sontag’s mouth
opened and his face fell like melting gelatin. He went silent for a few minutes,
then smirked. It wasn’t a happy look. “Well, fuck. That’s the biggest lie I’ve
ever heard you tell, Tarrow.” He shook his head. “Listen, these guys are paying
me big to bring the doctor to them. I’ll cut you in on that. I mean big money . ”
    “What are they
into? Drugs? Human trafficking? Gambling?”
    “I don’t know.” He
nearly shouted the words. “You think I’m gonna ask these guys what they do to
make extra money on the side? Just…” He fisted his hands. “Where is she, Rex?
Give her up or this is gonna get bloody.”
    “Then it’s gonna
get bloody, because I’m not a fucking dirty cop like my asswipe partner.” He
let his anger flow, let it bring