by Charly Cox
All color blanched from Rosenfelt’s face as he set his jaw. ‘Then why are you still standing here, Detective? Why aren’t you out there finding him?’
* * *
The forty-minute drive from Double Eagle II Airport to the foothills of Albuquerque took Alyssa just under half the time because she ran her lights and siren, turning them off only as she neared the neighborhood. Still, Joe and Tony had already arrived by the time she finally rolled to a stop in front of a house that was concealed behind two massive boulders and tucked up a long, hidden driveway. But before she and Cord could climb out of the car, her phone rang. A quick glance showed her it was Joe. She hit the speaker on her Bluetooth screen.
‘We just pulled up, Joe. What’s happening?’
A frustrated sigh filled the air before Joe answered. ‘It appears we’re too late. Yarmini’s already cleared out.’
‘What?’
‘When no one answered the door, Tony and I took a peek inside one of the windows. The place is dark, but there was still enough light to see that it was in disarray, like someone left in a hurry.’
Alyssa pounded one fist on her steering wheel as she cursed. ‘Damn it, damn it, damn it! Okay, I’ll see you in a second.’ She didn’t wait for a response before she ended the call and shot a quick glance over to Cord. The tight lines around his mouth told her he was as infuriated as she was with the news. Together, they climbed out of the car, and when she closed her door, it was with more force than was necessary.
If she hadn’t already been convinced that Bartholomew Rosenfelt’s employee was somehow involved, she was now. She yanked her phone from her pocket and dialed Hal. ‘I need another search warrant,’ Alyssa said as soon as he answered. Then after rattling off the address, she and Cord met up with Joe and Tony and then waited until the evidence technicians arrived so they could go through and process the house.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Friday, May 24
The pungent odor of her own vomit assaulted Rachel’s senses as she gripped the sides of the toilet bowl and emptied the contents of her stomach. Just outside the door, Becca and Faye whispered, but what they said escaped her because all she could hear in her mind were the words of the man who’d delivered their food this morning.
He’d come downstairs, whistling, an ear-to-ear smile stretching across his face, his soulless eyes gleaming with his news. ‘Well, girls,’ he’d said, ‘you’d better enjoy the next few hours because tonight or tomorrow, you’ll be back to work in The Toybox. And from what I hear, we’ve had some pretty impatient clients.’ And then he’d laughed, rubbing his fingers against his thumb in the universal sign of ‘money, money, money.’
And then he’d unlocked the cell, set the tray of cheese, crackers, and water inside, relocked the door, and headed back upstairs, this time laughing as he sang the lines to, ‘Don’t Worry, Be Happy.’ And that was when Rachel had leapt up and raced to the bathroom.
Too weak to move, she chose to lie on the cold tile floor instead of trying to crawl back to her mattress. A fine sheen of sweat broke out on her skin, and she shivered.
She couldn’t survive another trip to The Toybox, the twisted den with a childlike name that held nothing but a horrific menagerie of cruel instruments all neatly organized in The Toolbox. She didn’t want to survive. Tears leaked from the corners of her eyes, and then she was gasping for air as sobs shook her entire body.
How long she lay there, howling in frustration and helplessness, she wasn’t sure, but she finally allowed Becca and Faye to help her up and guide her back to her mattress where they covered her in a sheet before settling themselves next to her. Even as they comforted her, Rachel noticed how Jersey and Cheyenne cocooned themselves around Katelyn as the younger girl sat with her back against the wall, her arms wrapped around her knees as she rocked back and forth, her eyes closed tightly.
Rachel wished she could go to her, help comfort her, but how did any of them go about protecting her from what was to come? They couldn’t escape this nightmare, and they couldn’t save Katelyn from the grips of the evil that awaited her.
So, no one spoke. Even as the shadows in the cell darkened, they remained silent, lost in their own fears. What was left to say?
Instead, they listened, jumping at every unexpected noise, their hearts pounding at the prolonged periods of quiet. And they watched the door at the top of the stairs, willing it to stay closed a little longer and wondering how any of them had allowed themselves to foolishly hope they’d be spared further torture.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Friday, May 24
By the time Alyssa and Cord made it back to the precinct, she was in a full rage at having not only hit the proverbial brick wall, but completely crashing into it. Steve Yarmini was on the run, and right now, she was putting the blame squarely on Bartholomew Rosenfelt’s shoulders because if he had answered her calls, had they obtained Yarmini’s address last night, they may have gotten to him in time. Instead, she’d had to rely on obtaining a search warrant to go through Yarmini’s home, only to come out empty-handed there, as well.
From the obvious disarray of the man’s house, the way clothes were strewn about his room as if he’d grabbed whatever he could, and anything that fell was left behind, it was clear he’d left in a hurry. There was a chance he might’ve slipped through their grasp anyway, but she didn’t know that, and so she chose to blame the man’s boss.
Not to mention that the surveillance team outside Hotel Camino had reported nothing but the usual one-hour comings and goings of the clientele they were known for. No young girls had been brought in and stolen out, drugged or otherwise.
Her expression thunderous, Alyssa’s path to the conference room was clear as Cord followed in her wake. She was disappointed the door was already open because she really wanted to slam it against something. Instead, she settled for tossing her phone onto the table, feeling both better and worse when it slid off and landed on the floor.
Hal had something projected on the screen, and before Alyssa could ask, he told her what it was. ‘Here’s that list of missing persons ranging from thirteen to twenty-one you asked for earlier. There were 183 females reported missing in New Mexico this year. Roughly one-third of those were under the age of fifteen and taken by a parent; approximately two-thirds of those left are runaways. Of the remaining individuals on the list, more than half fell outside the age limit parameters you requested or were already located, leaving the number that we’re going to need to look into at around fourteen.’
‘God, why can’t Liz be back now? We could use all the help we can get.’
‘Well,’ Hal said, ‘I can’t help with that, but what I have done is divide the fourteen girls into sections of the state from where they went missing, and I’ve already started cross-referencing data from this list to that of Meghan Jessup, Rachel Otis, Jersey Andrews, and Katelyn Phillipson.’
‘Any luck so far?’
‘Not yet.’
‘There has to be something. We need to find it.’ She was interrupted by her phone ringing, and it took her a second to realize it was still on the floor. Cord bent over and retrieved it, passing it her way before going back to help Hal.
Alyssa glanced down and saw Leigh Ann’s name flashing on her screen. Why would her daughter’s friend be calling her? All the blood rushed from her face as the thought that something had happened to Holly filled her head.
‘Leigh Ann? What’s going on? Has something happened with Holly?’
Cord’s head snapped in her direction, his eyes boring into hers as he waited.
‘Holly? No, not that I know of. Why?’
A rush of air escaped Alyssa’s lungs, and as the fear lifted, she felt almost weightless. ‘What can I help you with then?’ The tension visibly fell away when Cord heard that Holly – who he knew had a very well-known ‘secret’ crush on him – wasn’t in danger.
A nervous titter escaped Leigh Ann. ‘Um, I have something important to tell you, and I t
hink I’m going to be in trouble, and I don’t want to go to jail…’
Alyssa waited… and waited some more. Then biting back her frustration, she employed her mom-detective voice. ‘Leigh Ann, I can’t help you unless you tell me.’
‘I didn’t do… do… anything. Well, I kind of did. But.’ Alyssa heard Leigh Ann suck in a deep breath before blurting out her purpose for calling. ‘I was at the same frat party where that girl went missing? Rachel Otis?’
Of all the things she could’ve guessed might fall from the lips of her daughter’s friend, this was nowhere on the list, and Alyssa went still, blinking several times to make sure she’d heard correctly. ‘What were you doing at a frat party?’
‘I was trying to see where I’d fit in when classes start this fall, and I know I shouldn’t have been there. Please, please don’t tell my mom,’ she implored.
Somehow, through the red haze that filled her mind at the fact that her daughter’s friend was just now coming forward with this information, Alyssa was able to temper her voice… for now. ‘Did you see something, Leigh Ann, that night? Something that would help us locate Rachel?’
‘I don’t know,’ she whispered. ‘But I can’t keep his secret anymore. It’s just not right.’
The words were spoken low, as if they weren’t meant for Alyssa to hear. ‘Whose secrets, Leigh Ann? Who are you keeping secrets for?’
‘Jersey’s boyfriend.’
Alyssa stiffened. ‘You’re keeping secrets for Beau Cambridge?’ Again, Cord’s head snapped up, his face freezing into a mask of hardness as he abandoned any pretense of assisting Hal and openly listened to Alyssa’s end of the conversation.
‘Yes, ma’am. I mean, no, not really for him. I mean, I don’t even think he knows I know.’
‘Then what secrets did you mean you’ve been keeping?’ Alyssa was finding it harder to keep the anger and impatience out of her voice. The lives of at least three girls, and probably more, hung in the balance. If Leigh Ann knew something, if Beau Cambridge was involved, she needed to know right now. Actually, she needed to know five days ago.
‘He was there that night, too.’
Alyssa’s pulse doubled in speed. ‘You weren’t there together?’
‘What? No! No, of course not. I’d never do that to Jersey. Never! I told you I don’t even think he knows I was there.’ Leigh Ann blew her nose before continuing. ‘I don’t remember what time it was, but I was starting to feel uncomfortable and guilty for being there, and so I was about to leave. And that was when I saw him. He was in the kitchen talking to Rachel. Actually, she didn’t really look like she wanted to be talking to him, you know. To be honest, she kind of looked frightened of him.
‘I mean, not at first. The truth is, I watched them for a while. I mean, I was shocked to see Jersey’s boyfriend there at all, especially with another girl, you know. I was going to snap a picture to have proof, but I was afraid he’d see me.
‘Anyway, she – Rachel – seemed annoyed. And then she kind of put her hands up between them, like she was pushing him away, but he just leaned in. I thought he was going to kiss her or something, and then someone bumped into his back, and that’s when Rachel escaped. And then I left before Beau saw me.’
‘Why didn’t you tell me this days ago, Leigh Ann?’ This time, her anger did seep through.
‘I was afraid of getting into trouble myself, and then when Jersey went missing, I knew Holly and Sophie would be so mad… and I was just afraid.’
‘What did Beau do when Rachel walked away?’
‘What do you mean?’
‘I mean, what did he do? Did he go after her? Did he get angry? Grab at her?’
‘Well, um, he watched her, I guess. And yeah, he seemed a bit pissed, but he didn’t follow her or anything. Not that I know of anyway. Like I said, I left right after that.’ Leigh Ann swallowed audibly. ‘Am I in trouble for withholding evidence? Do you have to tell Holly?’
‘I don’t tell my family about my ongoing investigations, Leigh Ann. But my advice to you is that you need to come clean with both Holly and Sophie because when they find out you knew and withheld this information – and they will find out somehow, I’m sure – they’re going to be understandably upset and hurt. You need to try to fix the damage now. It’ll only get worse the longer you wait.’
‘I know. You’re right. It’s just they’re going to be so mad at me. I guess I deserve it though.’
Alyssa didn’t have time to reassure the girl, especially when she was pretty pissed herself. ‘Is that everything you wanted to tell me, Leigh Ann?’
After a brief pause, Leigh Ann admitted, ‘There is one more thing. So, the other day, when Beau came over to your house – I’m sure Holly told you about that – the reason I invited him in was because I wanted to see if he was truly distraught over Jersey’s disappearance or just pretending.’ She snorted. ‘Like I’m some kind of detective or something, right?’
Alyssa clenched her teeth, unclenching them only when a burning pain radiated through her lower jaw. She was still upset that Beau had been at her house with Holly and her friends while she and Cord had been trying to locate him in order to question him about his possible connection with Meghan Jessup.
She pushed her anger aside for the moment. ‘Leigh Ann, listen to me. I want you to stay away from Beau. I wish you’d told me all this sooner, but at least you’re telling me now.’ What Alyssa really wanted to say was If Beau is involved, and we could’ve saved these girls that much sooner, it’s on you.
‘I know you’re disappointed and even mad at me for not coming forward earlier, but I was afraid, you know.’
At some point, Cord had begun pacing, stopping only when Alyssa said goodbye.
‘What’s going on?’ His voice was tight, controlled.
‘I’ll tell you on the way, but right now, it’s time we bring Beau in for questioning.’
It took them less than twenty minutes to reach Beau Cambridge’s house, and only when they’d pulled into the drive, blocking his Jeep in, did Alyssa consider whether or not it was a good idea for Cord to have come along. Maybe it would’ve been wiser to have Joe or Tony meet her here.
But it was too late now, so together they climbed out of the Tahoe and approached the house, ignoring the doorbell in favor of pounding on the front door.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Friday, May 24
Ninety minutes later, Beau Cambridge sat in the chair across the table from Alyssa and Cord in the smallest interrogation room they had. It wasn’t the room Alyssa would’ve chosen – especially given her concerns about Cord’s potential volatility – but it was what was available, and the closet-like atmosphere seemed to intimidate Jersey’s boyfriend far more than the detectives did. She was okay with that. Whatever worked.
Sweat dripped down his forehead, splashing into his eyes, and every few seconds, he reached up to wipe it off. Though his posture indicated he was cool, calm, and collected, the physical evidence pouring off him stated otherwise.
Alyssa scooted her chair in closer, purposely crowding into Beau’s space. As she did, she saw Cord’s fists clenched in his lap, but aside from the ticcing in his jaw that told her he was holding onto his temper by a fine thread, his face remained impassive. ‘So, Beau, let’s play a game, shall we?’
He blinked but otherwise remained quiet, so Alyssa continued. ‘Let’s say you’re at a frat party, and…’
Beau’s face paled at frat party. ‘I won’t be hitting college until August, so what would I be doing attending a frat party?’
‘That’s a great question. What would you be doing at a frat party? Yet, I have witnesses who not only put you at one, they put you at the one. You know the one where a girl went missing. You might’ve heard her name. Rachel Otis?’
Looking smug, he crossed his arms over his chest. ‘You’re lying. No one there knew me, and I didn’t even know I was going. I was just cruising the area when I saw the party and decided to crash it.’
&n
bsp; Alyssa remained silent and stared, waiting for Beau to catch his own blunder. It took him about ten seconds.
Immediately, he began squirming in his seat, his head snapping back and forth until he realized what he was doing. ‘Who saw me?’ he asked weakly.
She almost told him to gauge his reaction, but it was clear he hadn’t seen Leigh Ann. ‘So, for the record, you’re admitting you were at the frat party, Saturday, May 18?’
The way his eyes darted all over the room, Alyssa knew the wheels were spinning as he tried to decide the ramifications of copping to the truth. ‘Okay, listen, I was there, but I swear I don’t know anything about a missing girl. I don’t even know anyone by that name you said.’
‘Rachel Otis disappeared from a party you attended a day before your own girlfriend went missing near the same area. Pretty coincidental, don’t you think?’
Beau again wiggled in his chair. His left eye twitched, and his head jerked toward the door as if he was making sure no one else was listening. ‘Like I said the other day, I don’t know where Jersey is. I swear to God.’ Right hand up, he lifted two fingers in the traditional Boy Scout oath. As if he were the epitome of a Boy Scout. Fingers still in the air, he added, ‘Hell, maybe the two are off together. Has anyone thought of that?’
‘Funny you should mention that, Beau, because not only have we thought of that, we happen to think the same thing. It’s where they are that we’d like to know.’
Perspiration beaded on Beau’s lips as his eyes widened. ‘Wait just a second. That was a joke, lady. I was kidding.’
Despite the temper brewing just below the surface, Cord’s next words were posed in a calm manner. ‘See, here’s the thing, Beau; like Detective Wyatt said, witnesses place you at this party. More importantly, they say you were talking to Rachel, who suddenly dropped off the face of the planet after that party. According to these witnesses, you put the moves on Rachel, and she turned you down flat. Now, I’m thinking to myself: a big, handsome guy like you doesn’t like to get rejected, especially in front of a group of people. You get pissed. You decide to do something about it. And then the next day, your girlfriend does the same thing, rejects your kinky fantasy, and now that’s two rejections in a couple days, and you snap. Decide to make Jersey pay…’
