Prospect -J.B MAUNEY

8. Loose Ends

JB's POV

The horses were waiting to be put away and the cops were staring me down but I wasn't gonna move until I heard that door shut. I opened the barn door and patted down my jeans to look for that old familiar box. I acknowledged the serious looking officers by tipping my head up they both waved and I made my way to them.

"James Mauney? I'm Officer Schrader, this is my partner Officer Smith." I positioned myself so they'd be facing away from the windows. Knowing Mallory she can't help but peer through the window out of worry or curiosity. "You recruiting?" I sparked my lighter and started puffing away. One of them, the smith one, laughed at my good joke and the other had a strained smile on his face. Good cop bad cop routine?

"Do you mind?" Schrader was eating up all the smoke blowing in his face but I wasn't going to waste a perfectly good cigarette. "I'll smoke it quietly." He cleared his throat obviously losing his temper. Being rude wasn't illegal like he wished it was. "Look sir we have two men in the hospital at the moment. Both have severe head trauma and your name was brought up. Were you at Jack's the bar last night?" I laughed at what I was about to say but bit my tongue. "I was at Jack's last night. It was my buddy's birthday and I left at about 11." I wasn't breaking a fucking sweat. Jack's had no cameras, that why we frequent that place so often. "You sure they don't have a concussion?" I could tell they were considering what I had just said.

"Thank you for talking with us. We'll let you get on with you day." They reached out to shake my hand before making their way over to their car. I looked up towards the second floor window and sure enough those pretty brown eyes were looking down at me. "Hold on." I walked over to their car window. "Any news on the kids that crashed around here a couple weeks ago?" Officer Schrader leaned outside the window. "The girl ended up dying at the hospital. The guy we were actually after was released because he had nothing in his car. Some think he threw the drugs out the window but other officers say they saw someone jump out of the car." My lip twitched at the last bit. "That second option is the most plausible. We had some of your neighbors report missing clothes and muddy boot prints. Give us a call if you see anything suspicious Mr. Mauney."

I watched them back out of my driveway and made sure they made plenty of distance before I walked inside."Mallory!" I yelled loud enough to make the house shake. She peeked her head from the top of the stairs. Her eyes are big with worry. "Grab that fucking backpack and bring it to me." She began to march towards the bedroom. "Put the money in plastic." My body revolved towards my garage and I hunted for gasoline and a shovel.

As soon as she ran into the garage I ripped the damned bag out of her hands. A quiet cry made my eyes snap towards her. Shit. "Go back upstairs. I'll explain everything once I'm finished." Her mind was going into a witness protection program. She looked beyond worried, borderline shell shocked.

I dropped everything I was carrying and grabbed her face. "You're not in trouble yet baby. Can you go wait for me in our bedroom?" I asked her calmly and she reluctantly complied. I was anything but calm. I started the fire and threw in the backpack after taking out the money.

Chances of us getting out of this mess we're slim but I can put up one hell of a fight. The plan began to unfold and I knew what to do by the time the money was buried.

I reached the bedroom and sat next to my crying Mallory. The guilt was almost as strong as my stomping heart. "Mallory we're gonna hit the road. I've got some rodeos to hit in a couple of states. You want to come." Her head found itself on my lap. "Are they looking for me?" I didn't know what to tell her since I wasn't too sure myself. If the cops weren't looking for her, that idiot that was released was definitely looking for his 10 grand buried in my backyard.

"No. I just want you to come with me." My voice was normal but I could tell by the look in her eyes that I wasn't fooling her. She was gracious enough to play along. "I'll start packing." She gave me a quick kiss and did just that.