Never Look Back

  Jack Noble

  Book 16

  L.T. Ryan

  Copyright © 2023 by L.T. Ryan. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be copied, reproduced in any format, by any means, electronic or otherwise, without prior consent from the copyright owner and publisher of this book. This is a work of fiction. All characters, names, places and events are the product of the author's imagination or used fictitiously. For information contact:

  contact@ltryan.com

  https://LTRyan.com

  https://www.facebook.com/groups/1727449564174357

  Contents

  The Jack Noble Series

  Part I

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Part II

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Part III

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Also by L.T. Ryan

  About the Author

  The Jack Noble Series

  The Recruit (free)

  The First Deception (Prequel 1)

  Noble Beginnings

  A Deadly Distance

  Ripple Effect (Bear Logan)

  Thin Line

  Noble Intentions

  When Dead in Greece

  Noble Retribution

  Noble Betrayal

  Never Go Home

  Beyond Betrayal (Clarissa Abbot)

  Noble Judgment

  Never Cry Mercy

  Deadline

  End Game

  Noble Ultimatum

  Noble Legend

  Noble Revenge

  Never Look Back (Coming Soon)

  Receive a free copy of The Recruit. Visit:

  https://ltryan.com/jack-noble-newsletter-signup-1

  Get your very own Jack Noble merchandise today! Click the link below to find coffee mugs, t-shirts, and even signed copies of your favorite L.T. Ryan thrillers! https://ltryan.ink/EvG_

  Part One

  1

  The dust-covered road jutted out of the packed earth and blocked half of the faded-brown silhouette of Lewistown, Montana. A mile or two stood in front of Jack Noble and a hopeful reunion with Reese McSweeney, a woman he’d fallen in love with twice before. A woman he’d lost twice before. The first time, she’d been taken from him. The second, he from her. This reunion would be more bitter than sweet. The news he brought would tear her soul apart.

  Her brother had died.

  And it had happened on Noble’s watch.

  Noble had taken a week to make the drive from Austin, Texas. Partly because he stopped for a couple of days outside of Denver. Partly because the Jeep Wrangler he’d made the trip in decided to make a stop of its own shortly after he’d crossed into Wyoming. He enjoyed the break. The anonymity. The respite from thinking about an upcoming job. While not as dangerous as what he typically faced, it would be one of the hardest conversations he’d ever had.

  He pulled off the road and cut the engine a few hundred yards from town. A cloud of dust took its time dissipating in the still air. During his detour in Douglas, Wyoming, he’d read up on Lewistown. Studied maps and learned the locations of various businesses. There wasn’t much to the place. Like most small towns, activity centered on Main Street. The heart of the city spread out ten blocks northwest and southeast of the thoroughfare before giving way to the plains.

  He felt the approaching vehicle through his boots before he heard the sound of the old V-8. A primer-gray pickup truck shimmered on the horizon behind him. It advanced quickly, right turn signal flashing as it decelerated until finally pulling off the road and coming to a stop a dozen yards behind Noble’s Wrangler, kicking up a fresh cloud of dirt. A longhorn skull was attached to the grill, wrapped in place with barbed wire. The grimy windshield obscured the driver. There was no passenger. The driver’s door opened and a pair of brown cowboy boots hit the ground. An older man with a cropped beard and silver hair hanging past his shoulders stepped around the door and walked up to Noble, one hand in his pocket, the other resting on his .357 which he open carried in a worn leather holster that had more cracks in it than the old guy’s face.

  “Car trouble, friend?” the older man asked.

  Noble shook his head. “Taking in the scenery.”

  The man turned in a semi-circle and back again. He didn’t look impressed by the plains behind him, or mountains rising to the west. Majestic, even though they were some fifty miles away.

  “To each their own, I suppose,” he said. “You ain’t from around here.”

  Noble shook his head, said nothing.

  “Where you coming from?”

  “South. Texas.”

  “That where you call home?”

  “Don’t call any place home at the moment.”

  “Where’d you used to call home?”

  “Florida at one time. More recently, New York, but even that’s been a while.”

  The old guy lifted an eyebrow. “The city?”

  Noble shrugged. “It has its benefits.”

  “Might not think it to look at me, but I lived in Manhattan at one time.”

  “Get the hell outta here.” Noble smiled. “Manhattan, Kansas, right?”

  The older man brushed off the suggestion with a sweeping gesture of his hand. “So what all was between New York and here?”

  “You ask a lot of questions.”

  “And you don’t like answering them.”

  “Cop?”

  The old man shook his head. “Nothing that exciting.” He glanced back at an approaching SUV, stuck out a hand and waved. After the swirling dust settled, he said, “You just passing through our quaint little town?”

  “Might stick around for a bit. Do some fishing. Sightseeing.”

  “Got a job to do here?”

  Noble paused a beat. Who was this guy? Why’d he phrase it like that? “Of sorts.”

  “Not selling anything, are you?”

  Noble glanced down at himself. “Do I look like a salesman?”

  “No.” The old guy stared past Noble. “Do I?”

  “You from here?”

  “Born and mostly raised.”

  “What brought you to New York?”

  “Work.”

  “What kind of work was that?”

  The older man turned and headed back to his truck. He looked over his shoulder. “Come on, follow me. Let’s go grab a beer.”

  Noble returned to the Wrangler, shifted into first, and waited for the beaten-up truck to pull past him. He followed a few car lengths behind. The map of downtown formed in his mind, and he thought of every street that branched off of Main. Then he planned routes that branched off of those if he was led too far astray.

  The truck’s brake lights hardly shone through what must have been years of grit and grime built up on the plastic housings. The Wrangler screeched to a stop. The other man stuck his arm out and waved Noble up next to him.

  “Go up four blocks and make a right. Place called Lacy’s. Best bison burger you’ll ever have. Grab two spots at the bar and I’ll meet you there in fifteen.”

  Noble nodded. “Sounds good, friend.”

  The drive through eastern downtown had been uneventful. He took the four blocks well below the posted twenty-five miles per hour, studied each face he passed, hoped to see the only one he’d know in town. Most everyone he passed was older. It seemed like the minimum age to be a resident was somewhere in the sixties. There were a few groups of kids though. Young ones on bikes. Older ones on the corner. Had to be parents somewhere in town, too.

  He glanced at his watch. Barely noon. What were the kids doing out? It wasn’t a holiday. He passed a group of four that looked to be thirteen or fourteen, squished together on a bench outside a hardware store. They stared ahead, not interacting with one another. Arms and ankles crossed. It was only a few seconds, but Noble noted he was never that still at that age, especially when unsupervised.

  The fourth cross street approached. Jack slowed, signaled, took in as much of the stretch of Main Street ahead as possible before turning right. Lacy’s was a block away, on the left. He shifted out of gear and cruised the final hundred feet, cutting the wheel and coasting into an empty parking spot between two super duty trucks. Both white. Both with stickers along the body that read Leak Geeks Plumbing. Noble chuckled as he slid off his seat.

  Gravel crunched underfoot as he made his way to the entrance. The front door was red, freshly-painted. A window was cut in the center of it, heavily-tinted, same as the windows to the side of the door. Was no one meant to see inside? For a moment, he wondered what kind of bar Lacy’s might be. He shuttered the idea. Too close to the center of town for a strip club.
< br />   No one looked up at the stranger as Noble let the door fall shut. The bright slice of sunlight diminished into a tiny sliver that managed to sneak through the space between door and jamb. He strode to the bar. Took off his windbreaker. Set it on an empty stool and climbed onto the one next to it.

  There were three empty stools to his right separating him from the only other patrons. The Leak Geeks themselves, he presumed. It took all of three seconds to determine they were father and son. The same heavy brow. The same Roman nose. The older one’s hairline a few inches farther back than the younger’s.

  A woman in her mid-fifties came through the kitchen door and stopped in front of Noble. Lacy, he presumed. She asked, “Get you something?”

  “Anything local on tap?”

  She nodded and took a few steps toward the center of the bar and poured his beer. The tap handle read Highwoods American Wheat. He glanced at the chalkboard behind the bar and saw it was brewed by Big Spring Brewing right there in Lewistown.

  He noted the lemon scent as he lifted the glass and took his first sip.

  “Well?” the woman asked.

  Noble nodded, wiped away the head on his upper lip. “I dig it. Hear you make a hell of a bison burger here.”

  She smiled. “That’s what we’re known for.”

  The older of the Leak Geek’s straightened up. “Ah, hell, Lacy, you know you’re known for your sweet smile and service.”

  “Fuck off, Ron,” she said. It was met with laughter by the plumbers.

  “Regulars?” Noble asked.

  “Unfortunately,” she said.

  The room and Lacy’s face lit up as the front door opened. She squinted against the sunlight. A smile formed as the light diminished. She nodded. “Benjamin. Good to see you.”

  Jack felt a strong hand land on his shoulder. He saw the older man in his peripheral as he swung his left leg over the stool and perched atop the seat.

  “I see you’ve met my new friend,” he said to the bar owner. He glanced at Jack’s beer and nodded. “Good choice, but you really ought to try their scotch ale next.” He redirected his focus to Lacy. “Pour me a Big Ern, would ya?”

  She stepped to the side again.

  “Benjamin,” Jack said.

  “Dunston. Ben Dunston. I never caught your name.”

  “Jack.”

  “Got a last name, Jack?”

  “Jack’s sufficient for now.”

  “Suppose it is.” He took a sip of his scotch ale and gave Lacy a nod. “Fire me up one of them bison burgers?”

  Jack stuck a finger in the air. “Put it all on my tab.” He looked down the other end of the bar. “Their bill, too.”

  Lacy’s smile faded into a disgusted look. “You really wanna cover those hooligans?”

  Ben laughed. “Don’t pretend like you didn’t love that man just ten years ago.”

  Noble raised an eyebrow, but Lacy waved him off.

  “Ancient history,” she said. “Plus, he wasn’t as fat back then.”

  The younger of the Leak Geeks got a laugh out of that one. “Mom, don’t rag on Dad so much. I gotta work with him the rest of the day.”

  “And you gotta live with him, too. Thank God it’s not me stuck in the house with that man.”

  The elder Leak Geek smiled and shook his head. “Still in love with ya, woman.”

  She waved him off with a roll of her eyes and slipped back into the kitchen. The door swung back and forth a couple times before coming to rest. The bar quieted down for a few minutes as the men drained their mugs and ordered a second round.

  Jack spoke up. “What’s with all the kids on Main Street? It’s not a holiday. Why aren’t they in school?”

  Ben’s smile faded. He cleared his throat, took a moment before replying. “School’s closed for the next week or so.”

  “They got termites or something?” Noble smiled, but the other man’s face hardened.

  Ben turned in his seat, draped his left arm over the bar, revealing a Panerai watch. “You really don’t know?”

  “Know what?”

  “Shit, I figured that’s why you were here. Thought they sent you to investigate the disappearance.”

  2

  A river of ice snaked down Noble’s back. One thought came to mind. One image. The same one he carried around everywhere he went.

  Reese.

  He resisted the urge to take out her picture and show it to Ben. If by chance it was Reese who had gone missing, he’d make himself a person of interest at the least by doing so. Possibly a suspect. The coincidence could not be ignored, though. He hesitated before replying, thinking through Ben’s statement. The older man had assumed Noble was there to investigate. Who was this guy? Noble had done nothing to indicate his background, but Ben had picked up on the fact that Noble had a specific history.

  What did that say about the older man?

  Ben’s eyes bore into Noble as he awaited a reply. This was a game Noble knew well. Ben wouldn’t say a word until Noble spoke up.

  “Investigate?” Noble forced a laugh. “Like I said, just passing through town. Planned on staying a couple days before continuing west to Bozeman.”

  Ben nodded, slapped Noble on the shoulder once and left his hand there. “Guess I read you wrong.”

  Noble couldn’t let it lie there. He had to press for more information. Had to be subtle about it. “Was it a student?”

  A sad smile formed on Ben’s lips. “That went missing?”

  “Yeah.” Jack paused a beat. “Gotta be a pretty big deal in a small town like this.”

  “Wouldn’t it be anywhere?”

  “Connections are tighter in communities like this. Everyone knows someone who knows everyone. Tragedy hits harder, especially when it’s a kid.” Jack glanced over his shoulder and saw that the father and son at the other end of the bar had turned in his direction.

  “That’s true,” Ben said. “Wasn’t a kid, though. God, could you imagine?”

  Jack could. It wasn’t hard to retrieve the memory. He didn’t delve into that part of his life, only nodded.

  Ben continued. “A teacher by the name of Brenda Cresswell. Vanished. Name mean anything to you?”

  Noble felt as though he were at the beginning of an interrogation. “Can’t say I’ve ever heard of her.”

  “She went missing last week, after school, and I’m at my wits end trying to figure out where the hell she went. In my experience, people don’t just vanish without a trace.”

  “You’re a cop. I know you said you aren’t, but it all adds up.”

  Ben shrugged. “Of sorts.”

  “That’s what you did in New York?”

  Ben offered a weak smile. “Sort of.”

  He wouldn’t get any more out of the man. Not yet. Not until he offered something. “Tell me more about Brenda Cresswell.”

  “You the sort of guy who can help with this, Jack?”

  It was Jack’s turn to shrug. “You seem to think so. Let’s leave it at that.”

  The older man sipped the head off his beer before taking a larger swig. He stared at Noble for several seconds, perhaps contemplating whether the stranger in front of him could be trusted, or if Jack might have information Ben could use. A small line of foam on his upper lip disappeared. There was something behind the guy’s eyes. He wasn’t a simple man, no matter what his truck or his clothing or even his worn holster looked like. Every line on his face held years of experience and wisdom.

  “Can you give me a definitive answer, Jack?” Ben said. “Every minute matters. We’re well past forty-eight hours now. I don’t want to talk bad about anyone, but local law enforcement, well, they aren’t exactly equipped for this.”

  The elder Leak Geek said, “They ain’t equipped for nothing,” and he and his son belly laughed at the joke.

  “That’s your brother and uncle you’re talking about,” Lacy said. “You’d do well to learn some respect for them.”

 

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