Merit Badge Murder Read Online Free

bought two.
    I picked up the cell phone and dialed.
    He answered on the first ring. "Finn?"
    "You'd better come over. I just ran over Carlos the Armadillo. He's dead."
    There was a measured silence on the other end before he replied, "I'll be there in five minutes."

CHAPTER THREE
     
    Riley made it to my house in three minutes. I opened the door before he even rang the doorbell, and he followed me into the kitchen. He looked at the empty Oreo carton, then at me.
    "What happened?"
    I told him the whole story. How I'd been driving, minding my own business, when Carlos the Armadillo—the Columbian drug lord—ran out in front of my car. How he'd died there. How the police seemed to believe me.
    Riley listened patiently until I finished. I'd always liked that about him. He never interrupted or argued with you. He listened. Not many field agents did that.
    "They'll send a detective over soon. It's only a matter of time before they discover who he is. You did the right thing, calling me." His voice was reassuring, and I nodded.
    "Why is this happening?" I asked, knowing he had no answers. "I was undercover in Carlos' operation for four months, three years ago. Why are these bad guys from my past turning up here…now?"
    Riley shook his head. "I have no idea. It looks like someone is setting you up on an international scale. This is pretty big—whoever it is. Somehow they managed to smuggle two Watch List terrorists into the U.S. and kill them on your territory."
    I nodded. "That's exactly what's happening. But why? I'm out of service. Is it revenge?"
    Riley ran his hands through his blonde hair. He did that when he was nervous. It was his only tell. "Maybe it is revenge. You were a spy and a damn good one. You'd have a lot of enemies. Trying to narrow down the suspects will be tough. We might have to get the Feds involved."
    I slumped onto the stool next to him. I didn't want to do this cloak and dagger stuff anymore. I was starting to get used to this lifestyle. I was even going to commit to drapes and furniture soon.
    "You did the right thing in calling me," Riley said softly. "I can help. We'll figure this out." He reached out and put his hand on my shoulder. That made me feel a little better.
    "What's the agency's position going to be on this? Will they want to investigate?" I asked.
    Riley shrugged. "How could they not? Two international terrorists got into this country unnoticed. They'll be all over it." Still, in his eyes I saw a shred of doubt, and I wondered. Did he really think the CIA would get involved? Or did he think I was doing this? I filed that information away mentally.
    The doorbell rang. I looked out the window to see who it was and was stunned to see my gorgeous new neighbor standing there. What was he doing here? This wasn't exactly the best time to introduce himself. And wasn't I supposed to be the one to welcome him to the neighborhood? At least someone was worse at domesticity than me. That was a plus.
    I opened the door and smiled. "Hi! I'm Merry!" And then I felt like an idiot. That wasn't how you were supposed to answer the door. You asked can I help you or something like that. Or maybe I should've opened with will you marry me?
    The man smiled and held out his hand. I shook it. "I'm Rex. Your new neighbor."
    "Great!" I answered, still holding onto his hand. Feeling ridiculous, I dropped it like it was on fire. "Um, would you like to come in?" I stood off to the side, making a sweeping motion with my hand (that I'd seen once on TV) to invite him inside.
    "I should probably explain…" he said, still standing on the porch. "I'm not really here to introduce myself as your new neighbor."
    I looked at him in surprise. "No?" Well, maybe that meant he was here to ask me out. He must've seen me drive up in the dented, bloodstained car, my face covered in crumbled Oreos and thought— now that's a woman I need to get to know!
    "No. Actually, I'm Detective Rex Ferguson. They called me up on my day off to handle