Where Angels Fear (Detectives Kane and Alton)

Rowley gave him the details of the attempted assault on Holt and the information Kane had gotten out of the mailman. “Levi Holt is at home and we need to interview him first, then send a message to the sheriff. She wants to see if the stories match and if they do, we have to eliminate the chance the pair are working together.”

“Two people working together makes more sense and having Holt make out he was attacked along the same straightaway would be pure genius.” Webber opened his cellphone and accessed the online case file. “His statement is practically useless. The deputy who took this down must have had the brains of a monkey.”

Rowley took the exit ramp into Blackwater and turned off the music to listen to the GPS guiding them to Holt’s residence. He pulled up behind a snow-covered SUV in the driveway to a ranch-style house and slid from behind the wheel. A blast of cold air hit him full in the face. Winter had a smell and a taste, like digging into a freezer for that last quart of ice cream. He led the way up the steps to the porch and pressed the bell. The door opened and a man in his twenties, with ruffled brown hair and a sleepy expression, stood to one side as if he’d been expecting them and waved them through the door. Rowley removed his hat. “Levi Holt?”

“Yeah, that’s me.” Holt led the way down a narrow hallway and into a toasty kitchen smelling of bacon and coffee. “You’ll be deputies Rowley and Webber. Sheriff Alton called earlier to make sure I’d be home. You’re here about the man who attacked me.” He went to the counter. “Take a seat. Coffee?”

Rowley pulled out a chair. “Yeah, thanks, I’m Rowley.”

“How about you, Deputy Webber?” Holt placed three large cups on the table then all the trimmings, before returning with a full pot of coffee.

“I’d be obliged.” Webber removed his hat and dropped into a chair. “I read the statement you made to the local deputy and it has more holes than a leaky bucket.” He leaned on the table and eyeballed him. “What really happened out there?”

Wondering why Webber had jumped straight to the chase rather than put the witness at ease, Rowley took out his notebook and pen. “How about we start with what time the incident occurred?”

“Late… before midnight, I guess.” Holt sat opposite them, poured the coffee and pushed the cups toward them. “It all happened so fast. I was freaking out, I thought for sure the guy was gonna kill me.”

Rowley took notes as he explained what had happened. “Can you describe the man? How tall was he?”

“Big, six two, maybe.” Holt rubbed his chin and stared into space. “He was white and had dark eyebrows, small eyes. Real intense like Dracula or somethin’. Man, when he came at me with a wrench, I was out of there.”

“Did you get a good look at his face?” Webber added cream to his cup.

“Nope, he was wearin’ a hoodie with a cowboy hat and had a scarf tied around his face. He was like an old cowboy out of a movie headin’ off to rob a bank.”

Holt’s carefree attitude was setting off alarm bells for Rowley. People who experienced trauma rarely made jokes. It was as if he was being too helpful. “Can you describe his vehicle, the make or color?”

“He had his headlights and flashers on so everything looked orange but I figure it was a late-model white pickup. I’m not sure of the make, a GMC maybe?” Holt shrugged. “I was runnin’ for my life, not lookin’ at the make of the jerk’s car.”

Rowley nodded. “Are you sure it was a wrench he threatened you with?”

“Yeah, I got to see it real close.” Holt narrowed his gaze. “But I got a hit in. I smashed him hard with my flashlight, hurt him too.”

“Where did you hit him?”

“On the right forearm or wrist.” Holt shuddered. “Then he came at me again. He smashed my window and put a dent in the side of my door. It’s outside if you need to see it. The deputy wrote up a report for my insurance but I can’t get it repaired until after the shutdown.”

“Yeah, we’ll take a look before we leave and take some photos if you don’t mind.” Webber leaned back in his chair. “Where were you coming from?”

“Louan. I work at Tire and Mechanical and rent a house there. I was on my way home to spend the holidays with my folks.” Holt reached for his cup. “I left work, went home, showered and changed. I had my bags packed. I stopped in for a meal then drove straight through.”

Rowley looked up from his notes. “Did you leave Louan anytime in the last two weeks?”

“Nope.” Holt looked at him with a suspicious glint in his eye. “Why?”

“So you don’t go out at night drinking or chasing women?” Webber smiled at him. “I sure do.”

“So do I but not in the last two weeks.” Holt narrowed his gaze at Webber. “Tire and Mechanical closes down for four weeks and we had to stay back the last two weeks to catch up. People wanted their vehicles ready for the snow and we had them linin’ up. I finished up, went home as late as nine and fell into bed most nights.”

“Can anyone verify that?” Webber leaned both forearms on the table. “We’re checking on everyone who came through Black Rock Falls in the last two weeks.”

“Yeah, sure.” Holt took Rowley’s notepad and wrote down three numbers. “My boss is the top one and the other two are the guys who share the house with me.”

“Okay.” Rowley indicated toward the notepad. He’d prepared a statement from the Blackwater file and added the extra relevant details.

“Read through my notes and if that is a true and accurate account of what happened on the night of the incident, sign and date it.” He waited for Holt to read the pages.

“Yeah, that’s everything I remember.” Holt signed the pages.