“He said something about Mobile. Like Garrity was already there.”
“Alabama?” Forrest thought about this. “That doesn’t make any sense. Garrity would run to Texas if he was running at all. Do you know where you were when he dumped you off?”
Ozan said, “I’ve got it pinpointed about as close as we can get it. Catahoula Parish. But given the elapsed time, and the fact that Cage has a vehicle, he could be a hundred miles from that point by now.”
“What about our roadblocks?”
Ozan shrugged. “It’s the boonies, boss. If Cage knows those roads, he could get a long way without hitting a roadblock.”
“And he was born in Louisiana.”
“His wife, too,” Ozan said. “She grew up right around there. I’ve sent some guys to check, on the off chance he’s hiding with relatives.”
Forrest tapped on the desk. “Where the hell is Garrity? Why did they split up at all?”
Grimsby shrugged.
“Garrity was a Texas Ranger,” Forrest said thoughtfully. “Mackiever was too, back in the day. He only came to Louisiana to take the superintendent’s job. I wonder if he and Garrity knew each other? Or even served together?”
Ozan was nodding. “Good thinking. I’ll check it out.”
“You do that. We’ve got Mackiever by the balls right now. The last thing we need is a hardass like Garrity giving him hope that he can save himself.”
Forrest gave the Monroe cop a last measuring glance. “You let an arthritic old man kill your partner. How does that feel?”
The cop’s eyes smoldered with hatred and embarrassment. “Not good.”
“You want to kill Dr. Cage?”
“Just give me one shot at him, Colonel.”
“You already had your shot. And you didn’t take it.” Forrest leaned back in his chair. “Go out to the bunkhouse and get a few hours’ rest. You’ll have new orders when you wake up.”
The cop didn’t move.
“Go, goddamn it,” Forrest said mildly. “Before I have Captain Ozan here give you the punishment you deserve.”
The cop stood, and with an awkward salute he left the room.
After the sound of his boot heels faded, Forrest sighed and shook his head. “That’s some piss-poor manpower right there, Alphonse. A sad state of affairs.”
Ozan let some time pass before he spoke. “What you think about Dr. Cage’s message? If he can do what he said, it kind of throws a new light on things, don’t it?”
Forrest smiled. “It offers the possibility of a low-body-count solution, which we could sorely use right now. If we start killing public officials, even if we blame it on Snake, we’re asking for trouble we may not be able to handle. But—Dr. Cage’s solution requires trusting not only him, but also his son and the Masters girl to go along with his promise to protect us. And that would take a lot of convincing for me to buy.”
Ozan didn’t reply to this.
“I’ve been giving a lot of thought to the good doctor,” Forrest mused. “And what I’ve decided is, I don’t know what all the fuss is about. Dr. Cage was never really any threat to me. He might be to Snake and Sonny and the other old men, but he can’t hurt me at all.”
Ozan looked intrigued by this idea.
“And if he really killed his old nurse, he probably did us all a favor.”
“What do you mean if?” Ozan asked.
“I’m not so sure he did it. Hell, all we have to go on is Snake’s word.”
“And Sonny’s.”
“Sonny Thornfield wouldn’t cross Snake—not if Snake told him to lie. And neither of them would want to tell me they’d disobeyed my orders.”
“But if Dr. Cage didn’t kill the old woman, why did he jump bail?”
Forrest shrugged. “We’ll ask him that when we find him. We’re talking about a man and a woman, Alphonse. Ain’t no telling what might have gone on between them over the years, or in that house that night. But I know Snake wanted her dead. He always did. The Eagles had a death warrant on her if she ever came back to Mississippi. I don’t know what she knew, but cancer wasn’t quick enough for Snake. He nearly busted a gut when I told him he couldn’t waste her. Anyway, my point is, the Double Eagles themselves are more of a threat to me than Tom Cage ever was. The Eagles truly know shit about me.”
“I think you’re forgetting something,” Ozan said in a cautious voice. “Dr. Cage and Garrity had Sonny Thornfield in the back of that van before Deke Dunn pulled up and got hisself killed. So Cage and Garrity might know whatever Sonny knows about you.”
Forrest couldn’t believe he’d forgotten something so obvious. “You’re right. So we either have to cut a deal with Cage or kill him, tout suite.”
“Then we’re basically back to our original dilemma,” Ozan said. “Sit tight, kill ’em all, or try the doc’s approach?”
As Forrest nodded, he realized he’d already decided to hold off on the scorched earth strategy. “I’m going to take a chance on Tom Cage. But step one is to find him. I’m not about to cancel that APB until he looks me in the eye and swears he can do what he claims he can.”
“And then?”
“Then we need to verify that his son and the Masters girl will follow suit. God only knows what Brody might’ve said to them before he died. I guess we might read it in this morning’s paper, no matter how fast we move.”
“That’s one uppity bitch,” Ozan said. “At the hospital, she got right up in my face even after Kaiser had backed down. I wanted to pistol-whip her so bad I could taste it.”
Forrest shook his head. “That’s one pleasure you’re unlikely to get. If anybody kills her at this point, it’ll be Snake.” Forrest got up from behind the desk and stuck the dead cigar in his mouth. “Change the orders to our people. Find Dr. Cage, but don’t kill him. Not unless he forces the issue.”