Though as attractive as any woman he’d known, Grangeland had incredible physical strength, which, when combined with her combat training, made her a tough opponent. Under adversarial circumstances when they first met, Grangeland had challenged him to an open-handed fight—minus any head blows—and to his shock and admiration, she’d wrestled him into a half nelson in mere seconds. A rocky start, but their friendship had grown closer ever since. After the dust had settled, she told them she preferred being called Grangeland, not Mary. He had a hard time picturing her as “Mary” anyway. While working, she wore her hair in a utilitarian ponytail. Her eyes and strong cheekbones gave her a distinct Scandinavian look. Nathan had never asked her age but guessed she must be in her early thirties. Never married, it seemed. He’d have to ask about that sometime.

A tanker truck rumbled up to refuel the helicopter. The driver slid out and did a double take at Grangeland. She probably got that all the time. She smiled and the driver smiled back.

Despite himself, Nathan found his mood lifting.

The three of them started toward the jet center.

“You guys realize that you’ve become something of a legend in our Fresno office, don’t you?” asked Grangeland. “Unofficially, you’re known as the Lone Ranger and Tonto.”

“Who’s who?” Harv asked.

Nathan said, “That’s kinda obvious, Harv. A white guy. A brown guy.”

Harv objected. “Hey, I’m the one with the silver horse.”

“You own a horse?”

“Eight of them.”

“I love riding.”

Nathan smiled. “I’ll bet you do.”

She punched his arm.

“What?”

Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Nathan used the drive to the medical examiner’s office to fill Grangeland in on everything they could. The call from Holly. The meeting with General Hawthorne. Bullfrog Bay. Stiegler’s houseboat. The Kramer crime scene. Thorny’s removal from the case and the ironclad implication that Kramer’s murder and the abduction of Nichole Dalton and her daughters were all linked to Montez.

Nathan knew she had a ton of questions. He forestalled them by pointing at his face. “We’re after the man who did this to me.”

Grangeland winced. “What can you tell me about him?”

“Not too much. In a nutshell, one of our missions went south and I fell into his hands. Harv got away. I didn’t. I was held captive for three weeks.”

She softened her voice. “Nathan, I’m sorry.”

“It happened a long time ago. When Harvey rescued me, I was close to death. He carried me through two miles of jungle at night.”

“I know you guys are really close, I just never knew why.”

“His name is Colonel Juan Montez de Oca, formerly of the Sandinista National Liberation Front. He’s a professional interrogator.”

“How will you find him?”

“We may not. He’s a trained spook.”

“Did seeing the crime scene spark anything?”

“That’s why we’re here.”