The Survivors Club

He leaned into the microphone.

“Brayden.

“DeKoven.

“McCo

The interrogation went for hours. Wade Poole had a lot to say and nothing to lose. Although he was forthcoming, even jovial, there was an undercurrent of rage Tess could feel. It was always there, behind the friendly mask he wore.

“I lured Hanley out to the ghost town. It was an ambush, pure and simple. He backed up onto the porch and I just kept walking and shooting, walking and shooting. Like that old fifties show, The Rifleman. Bam bam bam bam! Perfect place for a drug hit. When in doubt, always muddy the waters.”

By that time, he told them, he liked the idea of playing vigilante. He’d pla

“How’d you meet Brayden DeKoven?” Phil Arenas asked.

“I was on to them all, but I figured Brayden would be the weakest link, being the youngest and a female. Jesus, was I ever wrong. That simpering little bitch has ice water in her veins!” He laughed. “She made me an offer I couldn’t refuse. She wanted her two brothers and her sister dead. Gave me this song and dance about how she’d waited for a guy like me all her life, batted her eyes real pretty, did things to me you can’t imagine.” He winked. “Told me if I killed them she’d split the inheritance with me.”

“You believed that?” Arenas asked.

His eyes turned to stone, and once again Tess could see the real man behind the friendly mask. “Hell, no. What she didn’t realize, though, was, she was next.”

“No interest in marrying her?”

“It wouldn’t last long, would it? I’m a dead man! Plus, who could live with a crazy bitch like that? And her kid? Jesus. Nope, I wanted money up front and she paid me good. I’ve still got a lot of life left in me and I’ve got one hell of a bucket list. If you’re go

They were just finishing up when he turned pale. “I’m go

But he didn’t make it as far as the door.

CHAPTER 56

On a warm spring day, Elena Christina Rojas was christened at the Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Nogales.

Da

His focus had changed. He was the same Da

Tess threaded through knots of cops and friends and family, the low babble of voices, thinking that for all Da

He had someone.

He had two someones.

Tess had a new someone herself. Last week she’d visited Adele at the vet hospital and ended up paying the bill and bringing her home. Adele wouldn’t fit in Tess’s glass case of mementos, but she’d been precious to two homicide victims: George Hanley and Jaimie DeKoven, and was quickly becoming just as precious to Tess.

Peter Deuteronomy had somehow got wind of it and called her extension at work to offer her his extra coupons for PetSmart.

Tess walked out onto the patio, which had a view of the hills in Nogales, Mexico, and the golden grassland.

The sky an aching blue above.

It was beautiful out here—quiet. But Tess realized how tired she was.

She was haunted by nightmares. The violence she’d seen in Michael DeKoven’s house clung to her and would not let go. She’d always been good at compartmentalizing, always been good at filing things away. But Wade Poole beating Michael DeKoven’s head against the floor replayed constantly in her mind.

The sheer savagery of it left an indelible mark.

Meanwhile, Wade Poole was being treated better than ninety-five percent of the prison population. His brain cancer wasn’t advanced, and he still had days—even weeks—when he wasn’t affected by his illness.

Tess and Da

Brayden DeKoven was questioned but so far there had been no arrest. She’d lawyered up big-time. Tess thought they’d better hurry; the youngest DeKoven was certainly a flight risk.

Even on the incriminating tape of the family boasting about their crimes by the pool, she had managed to appear i

That plain, i

There was a lot of ground to cover. Tess and Da

She owed Alec a call. They’d been playing phone tag the last couple of days. She tapped in his number, and this time, he answered on the first ring.

“I want to catch you up,” Tess said.

It was a long story and it took some time.

Finally, they disco

She heard tires on gravel and the sound of a car door opening and closing. Greetings inside the house, heard Da

Tess was aware that her heart was beating hard, pulsing in her ears. She hadn’t felt this way since grade school.

She turned to the doorway just as Max Conroy stepped outside to greet her.

THE END

Acknowledgments

Many thanks to the experts who helped make this book a reality: John Cheek of Cops ’n Writers; US Border Patrol agent Simon Keller; Ed Love, forensic firearm examiner; my wonderful husband, Gle

It takes a village to raise a book, and I am grateful to every one of the Thomas & Mercer team. Thanks to Courtney Miller, my acquiring editor, who has shepherded me through three books now, and to Kevin Smith, whose remarkable editing skills made The Survivors Club a much better story. And many thanks to the wonderful Thomas & Mercer Author Team: Danielle Marshall, Marketing Manager; Jacque Ben-Zekry, Author Relations (boy is she good at that!); Ali Foster, Merchandising; Reema Al Zaben, Production; Leslie LaRue, Marketing; Kaila Lightner, Merchandising; and Rory Co