Jack Ford - Dead Edge - the gripping political thriller for fans of Lee Child

‘What did I say, Earl…? I told you, didn’t I? I made myself real clear… I said, Earl, don’t say her name. But what do you go and do…?’

Cooper punched his fist into one of the cubicle doors, swinging it wide open. Any other time a guy sitting on the john with his pants round his ankles and a face full of shock might’ve made him smile. Right now, there was nothing funny about anything.

‘… You went and said her Goddamn name.’

Earl shook his head. His left cheek going into tiny pulsating spasms. Always did when he was under stress. Always did when he was about to say something he knew Cooper wasn’t going to like.

‘You listen to me right now. You’re freefalling, man. I don’t know exactly what’s happened in the past couple of weeks, but I do know you’re going backwards. We all love you. I don’t know another guy who’s got a big a heart as you do, or is as loyal. But since you got back from the Congo, I don’t recognize you.’

It was Cooper’s turn to shake his head but he added his hand, interweaving fingers through his strawberry blonde hair. It needed a cut. Hell, when didn’t it? ‘You sound like my wife.’

‘I would do if you even had one anymore. And that’s my point. Why throw it away because of…’

Cooper’s hands pounded into Earl’s chest. He stumbled back. ‘You really going to say her name again?’

‘I don’t have to because we both know who we’re talking about. Judge Saunders is right. It’s been almost eight years since the accident. Eight . And you know something, Coop? You’re as dead as she is.’

Cooper’s fist found Earl’s mouth before he’d decided what he was going to do. It split open like the skins of the fried red tomatoes at Mama’s diner on Main Street.

‘What is it with you? What is it with any of you? You of all people, Earl. You really saying that I shouldn’t at least have tried to find her? You think I was wasting my time looking for someone I loved? Do you, Earl? Is that what you think?’

Cooper watched Earl get up from the floor. Wiped his suit before his mouth. He said, ‘What I think is you need to let it go.’

Cooper stepped in close. Real close. Close enough to smell the blood on Earl’s lip. ‘I don’t care what you think I need to do, Earl. I don’t care what the others think. But for your information, I have given up on it… on finding her, but the guilt… the guilt, Earl, it kills me. From the moment I open my eyes to the time I go to sleep.’

‘Coop, listen… ’

Earl stretched out his arms, with his six-foot frame three inches shorter than Cooper’s. Giving Cooper that look which cut him down like a cotton plant at harvest back in Missouri. The look which told Cooper he was being unreasonable. The look Earl had given him when they’d had their first fight back in high school over twenty-five years ago. And like then, Cooper knew Earl was right. But like then, Cooper pushed those feelings away and looked right past him.

‘Coop, come on. This is me. Earl. What you trying to do? Drive me away? Because that’s never going to happen. Come on, dude. I’m your friend.’

‘If you’re my friend, you’ll get off my back.’ He opened the restroom door to go.

‘Coop!’

It took five paces along the highly polished floor of the court house corridor before Cooper turned round. Five paces and one thought…

‘Earl, I’m sorry… I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I appreciate what you’re trying to do, but…’

Interrupting, Earl glanced at his inexpensive wristwatch. ‘Shut the hell up and listen. We haven’t got time. There’s many a bar in town and many a beer we can do this over, but for now we gotta put everything aside and work out how we’re going to keep you out of jail. You’ve given Judge Saunders all the ammo he needs. So we gotta have a plan when we go back in there… Coop…! Coop! What the hell are you doing?’

Cooper lurched forward and grabbed hold of the woman who’d just hurried past him in her tight cream suit and curls done up too high. ‘Ma’am, what did you say to that man?’

She looked flustered and affronted all at once. ‘What?’

‘To that man back there… I heard you say something. I need you to repeat what you’ve just said.’

Maybe it was because she heard something in Cooper’s voice, or it was the fact he was still holding onto her arm, but she answered. Real quickly. As quickly as Earl had done back in the courtroom to the judge.

‘I… I heard on the news. There’s been a bomb. Suicide bombers apparently. Several in fact. Also shootings. Lots of people dead. Memphis, Washington… Denver. Apparently they’re saying the President was there.’

‘Where? Where was he?’

‘He was in Denver when one of the blasts went off. They said on the news he was visiting an elementary school…’

Cooper shook her as if trying to shake the words right out of her rouged mouth. He said. ‘What else?’

‘I… I… I don’t know.’

‘But is he okay?’

‘I don’t know… I guess.’

‘But you don’t know? You don’t know for sure?’

‘No… No… They didn’t say.’

Cooper didn’t even bother looking at Earl. Just ran. Heard him calling after him. Didn’t stop. Didn’t turn. He needed to go. And fast. Problem was he’d forgotten how fast his friend was.

Earl caught up with a heavy pant. Holding onto Cooper as they stood under the glass dome of the Jeffco court house.

‘Coop, what’s going on? What the hell are you doing? Where are you going?’

Cooper couldn’t see for the sweat which ran down his face in rivulets. ‘Let go of me, Earl. I gotta go.’

‘Is this something to do with the President?’

‘I’ll call you. I swear.’

Earl’s words followed Cooper. Landing on nothing but the still, dry heat of the afternoon.

‘Don’t bother… You hear me, Coop…? Don’t you bother!’

6

Be2 e5

The hard concrete of Jefferson County Parkway pounded through Cooper’s sneakers. Pounding through his head as he sprinted along the tree-lined sidewalk. Pulled down heavy from the drugs whilst the Colorado sun scorched a pattern of fire on his back. Parked car after parked car. Empty vehicle after empty vehicle fuelling his alarm.

He stumbled as he ran, looking for a cab in the deserted streets and not realizing the loud cry for help he’d heard had come from him, until the call of panic cut at the back of his throat. The only thought making sense to Cooper was somehow he had to make the twelve mile trip to Denver.

The sound of a car, an engine, had Cooper spinning round. He squinted. Shielded his eyes from the sun. And there on the other side of the road, driving down the public highway, like water to a thirsty coyote, was a rusting grey Honda.

Cooper exhaled. Long. Hard. Tasting every second of the relief because although the driver didn’t know it yet, Cooper knew that car was going to be his one-way ticket to Denver.

Quickly he darted across the middle section. Scrabbling up and along as the Honda began to drive past him. Briefly Cooper thought about hailing, waving the guy down like he was summoning a yellow Checker taxi in NYC. But for once, sense kept his mouth shut and his hand firmly by his side. His mind was messed up, but even he wasn’t going to bet on the driver stopping for a sweat drenched, wild-eyed guy.

Cooper dug for an energy he wasn’t sure he had, trying to push himself forward, feeling the burn of his legs as he ran to get in front of the station wagon.

He dived.

Threw himself round in a one eighty.

Closed his eyes.

Heard the slamming of brakes accompanied by the noise of the horn which told him he was still alive.