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Back This Side of Night Save as PDF
Chapters (110)
  1. Cover
  2. ALSO BY J. TODD SCOTT
  3. Dedication
  4. Epigraph
  5. PROLOGUE
  6. I
  7. II
  8. PART ONE
  9. ONE
  10. TWO
  11. THREE
  12. FOUR
  13. FIVE
  14. SIX
  15. SEVEN
  16. EIGHT
  17. NINE
  18. TEN
  19. ELEVEN
  20. TWELVE
  21. PART TWO
  22. THIRTEEN
  23. FOURTEEN
  24. FIFTEEN
  25. SIXTEEN
  26. SEVENTEEN
  27. EIGHTEEN
  28. NINETEEN
  29. TWENTY
  30. TWENTY-ONE
  31. TWENTY-TWO
  32. TWENTY-THREE
  33. TWENTY-FOUR
  34. TWENTY-FIVE
  35. TWENTY-SIX
  36. TWENTY-SEVEN
  37. TWENTY-EIGHT
  38. TWENTY-NINE
  39. THIRTY
  40. THIRTY-ONE
  41. THIRTY-TWO
  42. THIRTY-THREE
  43. THIRTY-FOUR
  44. THIRTY-FIVE
  45. THIRTY-SIX
  46. THIRTY-SEVEN
  47. THIRTY-EIGHT
  48. THIRTY-NINE
  49. PART THREE
  50. FORTY
  51. FORTY-ONE
  52. FORTY-TWO
  53. FORTY-THREE
  54. FORTY-FOUR
  55. FORTY-FIVE
  56. FORTY-SIX
  57. FORTY-SEVEN
  58. FORTY-EIGHT
  59. FORTY-NINE
  60. FIFTY
  61. FIFTY-ONE
  62. FIFTY-TWO
  63. FIFTY-THREE
  64. FIFTY-FOUR
  65. FIFTY-FIVE
  66. FIFTY-SIX
  67. FIFTY-SEVEN
  68. FIFTY-EIGHT
  69. FIFTY-NINE
  70. SIXTY
  71. SIXTY-ONE
  72. PART FOUR
  73. SIXTY-TWO
  74. SIXTY-THREE
  75. SIXTY-FOUR
  76. SIXTY-FIVE
  77. SIXTY-SIX
  78. SIXTY-SEVEN
  79. SIXTY-EIGHT
  80. SIXTY-NINE
  81. SEVENTY
  82. SEVENTY-ONE
  83. SEVENTY-TWO
  84. SEVENTY-THREE
  85. SEVENTY-FOUR
  86. SEVENTY-FIVE
  87. SEVENTY-SIX
  88. SEVENTY-SEVEN
  89. SEVENTY-EIGHT
  90. SEVENTY-NINE
  91. EIGHTY
  92. EIGHTY-ONE
  93. EIGHTY-TWO
  94. EIGHTY-THREE
  95. EIGHTY-FOUR
  96. EPILOGUE
  97. I
  98. II
  99. III
  100. IV
  101. V
  102. VI
  103. VII
  104. AUTHOR’S NOTE
  105. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
  106. Excerpt from LOST RIVER
  107. LITTLE PARIS
  108. DILLON
  109. ABOUT THE AUTHOR
  110. What’s next onyour reading list?

Marco’s coyotes were a good reminder that even in all this apparent emptiness, you were never truly alone. It was just too damn easy to find trouble you weren’t even looking for.

—

CHRIS PUT THE PEN and yellow legal pad away, grabbed his A5 and the Remington from where they lay in a patch of sunlight on the kitchen counter, and got up to make another endless, useless circle around the house.

FIFTY-SEVEN

Danny arrived at the ranch and immediately disappeared into a bathroom, and when he came back out, he was in his desert camo fatigues.

America had seen them before, hanging up in Danny’s closet at his place. He’d brought several pairs of them back from Afghanistan, but he’d never worn them, until now.

He was carrying his department-issued AR-15, but slung over his shoulder was another long gun that America didn’t recognize. It must have been what he’d brought into the sheriff’s house wrapped in the Dallas Cowboys blanket.

At his feet were two backpacks.

He had his Colt in his holster, too, and she could pick out the bulk of his deputy’s body armor beneath the fatigues. Her vest was still leaning against the wall by the front door.

He had magazine pouches across his chest and more on his tactical rig.

Yesterday, he’d refused to drive his department truck or wear his deputy’s uniform, and he’d given his Bullhide hat over to Zita. Now, standing in his old fatigues, he’d truly abandoned all pretense of being a sheriff’s deputy.

She’d helped make Danny a soldier again.

FIFTY-EIGHT

Chris walked into the kitchen from out back to find both Danny and Amé standing there, and stopped short. He’d run over a dozen things he wanted to say to Danny when he returned, but now seeing his deputy for the first time in his old combat BDUs, armed with a rifle he didn’t recognize, he didn’t know where to start.

He just said, “Danny, no . . .” and Danny finished for him anyway.

“I’m sorry I’ve been gone, but I needed to take care of a few things.”