“Seems it was Potter and his cronies.”
Potter. Jaris’s gut tightened.
“After the bastard made his false apology to Kaylyn at Dragon Week, Jacob followed the man all the way to his vehicle to make sure he didn’t start anything. When Jacob and Josh came upon an empty white truck next to some pens holding Kaylyn’s dogs, Jacob thought the vehicle might have been Potter’s. When he saw the license plate, he knew for sure it was Potter’s. Before he and Josh could dismount, they were fired upon.”
Jena’s voice came through Shane’s ROC. “Sheriff, I’ve got an update you need to hear.”
“Go ahead,” the sheriff said.
“I’m at TBK headquarters. You were right to ask me to check the credentials of Potter’s attorneys. Turns out the two scumbags are mob lawyers, working for the Russian syndicate, and in particular Anton Mitrofanov. Once I found that out, it was easy to uncover the connection with Potter and the other men. I dug a little deeper and found a few lines of code hidden in their medical credentials that had Lunceford’s signature digital fingerprints all over them. Potter and his friends are all on Mitrofanov’s payroll. Not Russian mobsters but paid mercenaries.”
“Good work, Jena. I already put out an APB on those bastards. I’ll be sure to add your findings to it. Whatever Lunceford’s plan was, it looks like we’re ahead of him this time.”
“I hope so,” Jena said. “Sheriff, is Jaris with you?”
“No.”
“He’s with me,” Shane said. “He can hear you, Jena.”
“This isn’t about Lunceford or Potter, but I wanted to let him know I did find out something on Bayless’s background he might find interesting.”
Shane handed Jaris the ROC.
“What did you find, Jena?” Jaris was glad to have someone as talented as Jena as a friend. “False credentials?”
“No. Bayless is legit. He has a dog training school. That’s a fact.”
“So what else did you find?”
“Bayless was brought up on charges several years ago for heading up a dog fighting ring in Mississippi. The charges were dismissed on a technicality.”
Rage rolled through him. Treating dogs that way was cruel beyond words.
Kaylyn and Chance came up beside him, clearly just as angry about what they’d learned as he was.
Jaris gripped the ROC with his hand, trying to keep calm. “Thanks, Jena. We needed t
o know that.”
“There’s more. Bayless filed for bankruptcy a few months ago. He’s about to lose everything, including his dog training school. He’s not here with his four dogs just to help Kaylyn out of the generosity of his heart. He’s here for money and I wouldn’t doubt to also try to steal her clients.”
“Where is Bayless now?” the sheriff asked.
“He’s not here.” Jaris squeezed Kaylyn’s hand. He knew she was upset by all they’d just learned about Bayless. “Lyle saw him leave early this morning. He didn’t say where he was going but did tell him he would be back sometime today.”
“Jaris, when Bayless returns, hold him there. I’ll send Nicole up to talk to him. I’m thinking there’s more to the story than just dog fighting.”
“I agree.” Jaris hadn’t ever met a better lawman in his life than Jason Wolfe. “When Bayless returns, Chance and I will make sure he stays put until Nicole arrives.”
“Great. Dylan, are you on?”
Dylan’s voice came over the speaker. “Here, Sheriff.”
Jaris handed the device back to Shane.
“We’ll wrap things up here where we found the guys in about thirty minutes. My team will head back to Destiny. Nicole, how are things in town?”
“Quiet. No rush to get back. Finish what you need to do. I’ve got two citizen deputies out patrolling the area. We’ve got a few hours before today’s Dragon Week events get underway.”