[Indigo Brothers 01.0] Indigo Fire

by Vickie McKeehan

  Dwight Connelly was full of questions. “Where the heck have you been? I haven’t talked to you since Saturday morning. I knew I shouldn’t have let you go down there without me, especially when you won’t stay in touch.”

  “I’m fine, Dad.”

  “You don’t sound fine to me. Look, baby girl, I think you need to come back home before something bad happens to you, too. I don’t care what Suzanne says, I’ll take the money and hire one of those private investigators to step in and look for Ryan. You get yourself back home.”

  That sentiment was all Tessa needed to hear before she began to tear up. She opened her mouth to speak and everything came tumbling out about the past few days and what she’d found on Walker’s yacht. “So you understand why I can’t leave now. Something bad happened to Ryan on that boat and no one else cares, no one is doing anything about it except me.”

  “That’s it. I’m not leaving you down there alone. I’ll pack up tonight and be on the next plane out of here.”

  Knowing Suzanne wouldn’t let him do that without a fight, Tessa calmed down to give him the impression she was more in control than she really was. But she didn’t want her dad to know how overwhelming the situation was. “Dad, I’ve met some great people down here. What I could use is an influx of cash. Is there any way you could wire me some money without letting Suzanne know about it?”

  “No offense, but screw Suzanne. Of course I will. Are you sure you don’t want me to come down there?”

  “I’m sure. I don’t want you putting your marriage at risk along with everything else.”

  “That’s just it, I shouldn’t have to risk my relationship to find out what happened to my son. Will two thousand dollars keep you afloat for another week?”

  “That’s more than enough. Send it to the Western Union office here and I’ll pick it up.”

  “Not the hotel?”

  “I checked out, Dad.” So he wouldn’t worry about her, she decided to fudge the truth. “I’m staying with the people I met. You know, the ones with the missing family. They offered me a room.” The lie hung between father and daughter like a heavy fog.

  “You think they’re trustworthy?”

  “Sure.” About as trustworthy as their lying brother-in-law, Tessa thought. But she went on in upbeat fashion putting a pretty spin on things with her father. By the time she ended the call, she decided she’d done a good enough job calming her father’s fears.

  Now all she had to do was keep her head above water until her dad’s money arrived.

  The Indigos were embroiled in their own family dynamics inside the house on Quay Avenue. After a second day of searching turned up nothing, the brothers had butted heads on where to send the teams out next. They disagreed on search coordinates, even what time they should schedule the next press conference. Short fuses had them blowing up at each other over every little thing.

  The tension of the demanding day was taking its toll. So it was no surprise when tempers boiled over for real as soon as the state investigator, Dack Hawkins, set foot in the living room. Resentment had built up slowly over the questions about Livvy’s spending habits and her relationship with Walker. Enough so that Jackson got fed up and glared at the two-piece-suit-wearing Hawkins.

  He stepped into the guy’s face. “Why don’t you talk to Walker’s friends? Why don’t you grill Royce and ask him about all his ties to those disreputable developers he aligns himself with and has for decades? Because until you do that, until you’re willing to dig up all the Buchanan skeletons and trot them out where everyone can get a good look, you have no right wasting time interviewing us. Find out what role the Buchanan name played in this and you’ll keep moving forward. Bury your head in the sand and you’ve stagnated the case. We weren’t even in town when all this went down. So what do you think my mom and dad did? You think they did something to hurt their own grandchildren? You’re so far off the mark, it’s scary.”

  The thirty-something Hawkins looked steamed but didn’t flinch. “We’re contacting everyone who knew Livvy and Walker. Everyone. These questions are routine. So I’ll ask you to give me the respect I deserve and start giving me the answers without that attitude.”

  Mitch grabbed Jackson’s arm to jerk him into the neutral zone. And then, even Mitch turned on the cop. “You understand the frustration we’re dealing with here, right? It’s beginning to get to us. We haven’t had a lot of sleep since this thing started. We’re a little touchy when you waste this amount of time asking us ridiculous questions about what Livvy was involved in. She’s your typical soccer mom with a new business. End of story.”

  Hawkins didn’t give an inch. “It’s never that simple. And your lack of sleep is no excuse for your surly attitude. I’m just trying to get a handle on how routine her life was up to last Wednesday night. Did she have secrets? Was she having an affair? Was she into anything she shouldn’t have been? Stuff like that.”

  “Okay. Then I should be able to pick up the phone and call Royce to see how long you grilled him about those same things regarding Walker, right?” Jackson snapped. “He’ll be able to verify that you asked him about Walker’s personal life, about all the secrets he had, right?”

  The ringing doorbell interrupted the showdown.

  Lenore got up to answer the door and found Jessup Sinclair standing on the porch, his face blank. No one said a word as the police chief sauntered into the living area and surveyed the tension reverberating off the four walls.

  Hawkins scowled at the police chief. “What are you doing here?”

  “My job. I’m giving the family an update regarding a development.”

  Hawkins automatically took out his cell phone. “What update? No one’s notified me of anything.”

  With a smug look on his face, Sinclair drawled, “Then maybe you should check to see if your fancy phone’s quit working.”

  Impatient, Jackson got tired of waiting for the two men to get on the same page. “What’s the development?”

  Sinclair shifted his feet. “Livvy’s minivan was found at the Tampa Bay airport in one of the satellite parking lots. Looks like it’s been there since last Thursday night.”

  “Oh, thank God,” Lenore blurted out. She turned to Tanner. “They’re all right. See, I told you they were okay.”

  Jackson met his father’s eyes. “Tampa Bay is more than seven hours from Indigo Key. If they wanted to fly somewhere why wouldn’t they do it from Miami International? It’s a lot closer. Or better still, from the local airstrip?”

  “I wondered the same thing,” Sinclair admitted. “Just so you know, Tampa PD had the vehicle towed where a crime scene team can comb through it this afternoon. In addition to that, the investigators plan to go through the surveillance video around the airport and see if they can spot your sister and her family going through security to board a plane.”

  Jackson chewed his jaw. He scanned the room, noted the elated look on his parents’ faces. But while his mom and dad seemed relieved, Mitch and Garret had the opposite reaction. Like him, they appeared guarded at what the development meant.

  Were Livvy and the kids off somewhere truly soaking up some rays? In his mind, it wasn’t a likely scenario. No one seemed to understand that Livvy had never done anything remotely like this before in her life, not even during her teen years. She’d never been the rebellious type.

  No matter how Jackson tried to make sense of it, the news left him wondering what could possibly have occurred to make his sister take off to parts unknown without letting anyone know her whereabouts, especially in the middle of the night.

  “Why would she take the kids out of school?” Jackson said aloud. “Why would she allow us all to worry like this, put Mom and Dad through a string of days filled with hellish anguish?” He did his best to walk that fine line between dashing hope and using common sense. “Does that sound like something Livvy would do?”

  Garret shook his head. “I don’t see her taking off like this. Not willingly anyway. Whoever park
ed the van there wanted us to believe she grabbed the kids and left on her own.”

  Mitch was even more skeptical. He walked to where his mother stood. Towering over her, he dipped his head, tilted her chin up so she’d meet his eyes. “Mom, you said it yourself. When you went in the house that day to check on them, Livvy’s stuff was still there. She hadn’t taken her clothes. Who takes off without packing a bag? Ally’s favorite doll was still in her room. Blake’s things were still there. You know more than anyone else what was happening in Livvy’s life. Her van left at the airport doesn’t seem right to me. Does it seem right to you?”

  Lenore’s eyes filled with tears. Slowly, she moved her head back and forth. “My boys know their sister. I know my daughter. Livvy wouldn’t have planned a trip without telling me, or her dad about where she was going. Something’s wrong. I feel it in my bones.”

  Mitch circled her shoulders for support. Jackson, Garret, and Tanner did the same.

  Jackson turned to Jessup and then to Hawkins. “I think that tells you everything you need to know about where the Indigos stand. Finding the minivan parked at the airport makes no sense.”

  “You’re saying it was staged to send us off in one direction?” Hawkins demanded. “That’s ludicrous. It sounds to me like your daughter left with her kids on her own. Maybe she and Walker had a fight. Maybe she wanted a vacation.”

  “Then there should be an airline out there that will back up your assumption,” Jackson fired back.

  “And you know what they say about assuming,” Garret tossed out, eyeing the fresh-faced investigator. “Let’s see if your notion holds up when the cops finish going over the passenger manifests.”

  Confident in everything he knew about his sister, Mitch added, “You won’t find Livvy’s name on there, so be sure to let us know as soon as you figure that out.”

  Dack Hawkins stormed out of the front door first leaving behind Jessup to deal with the family’s anger.

  “What will you do when Hawkins and his team head back to Tallahassee tomorrow?”

  Jackson stared at Jessup. “I don’t even know what to say to that. Is it possible the state investigators are that inept?” He bobbed his head toward his mother. “Mom went into Livvy’s house before it was sealed off. There’s no evidence they bought a ticket anywhere.”

  “Where on earth would they go?” Lenore dabbed at her eyes with a Kleenex. “Everything of value was still there in the house. The family computer sat on the desk. The stereo and DVD player was there, along with Livvy’s jewelry left in plain sight on the dresser.”

  A vein popped out on Tanner’s neck as he listened to the exchange. “You should know we’re thinking of hiring a private investigator to get to the bottom this.”

  Surprise showed on Jessup’s face. “You guys don’t have to convince me that something happened to Walker and Livvy. But until we find something concrete that points to foul play, or we get a helluva lot more evidence, I don’t even know which direction to look. It doesn’t mean anybody in my office is going to sit on his hands and do nothing. But then I don’t exactly have jurisdiction in what’s happening in my own backyard.”

  “You were taken off the case fairly quickly. Why is that?” Tanner barked.

  “I wish I knew,” Jessup grumbled.

  The afternoon rolled into evening as the news spread that the Buchanan van had been found at the airport.

  Lenore and Tanner played hosts to a steady stream of well-meaning neighbors who dropped off casseroles. The little house on Quay soon filled with people they’d known for years. Many wanted to pass along good wishes while others offered up stories about Livvy when she was little.

  But when a few began to ask nosy questions and want more information that seemed inappropriate, Garret couldn’t take the crowd any longer. He left the mass of people to go find the nearest bar and grab a beer. Maybe he’d put in another call to the private eye in Miami and bug the guy.

  That left the others to help pour coffee or tea, serve platters of homemade cookies, all the while answering the same tired questions again and again, as friends and acquaintances they’d known for years tossed out an assortment of theories as to Livvy’s whereabouts.

  The Indigos’ longtime pastor, Boone Dandridge, took Tanner aside and told him about the time Livvy admitted she wanted to check out the Molokini Crater on Maui and explore the coral reefs there. “That girl definitely had an itch to see the world.”

  Tanner didn’t take the suggestion very well. “That girl was a wife and mom who thought the world of her kids. And besides, when did she tell you this?”

  “Must’ve been about five years ago after Ally came along.”

  Tanner narrowed his eyes and stared at the man he’d known for more than twenty years. “So you’re suggesting that Livvy waited until Ally started first grade to take both kids out of school so she could see the world?”

  Boone looked puzzled. “Well, I’m sure the kids would enjoy snorkeling with the sea turtles there. Brownie Collier took her grandkids to the crater and brought back an hour and a half’s worth of video memories to prove it.” He chuckled. “I had to sit through her entire vacation highlights.”

  Tanner didn’t see the comparison at all or the humor. “I won’t even bother pointing out how silly that sounds to think my daughter wanted to check out the sights on Maui. If that’s true she had all summer long to do it before now.”

  It wasn’t just Boone who went out of his way to plant the seed that Livvy had taken off to parts unknown. Carson Frawley, the baker at Glazed & Dazed Donuts, retold the story that Livvy had been in his store three weeks earlier to say she planned to take a trip to the Big Apple. “She made a point to tell me she wanted to see Central Park in the fall.”

  Roger Baskin, owner of the garage on Prospect, claimed Livvy had mentioned to him how much seeing the Golden Gate Bridge meant to her.

  Mayor Dave Oakerson went on to say he’d been at the Vitamin Hut buying supplements one day when he’d overheard Livvy say she’d often thought long and hard about moving to Santa Fe.

  But it was Antoinette Gray, Livvy’s longtime hairdresser, and Cristina Newman, Blake’s teacher, who dashed any such notion.

  Antoinette pushed back her purple-streaked black hair and puffed out, “That’s ridiculous. I just trimmed Livvy’s bob ten days ago. She was already talking about buying Halloween costumes for the kids and the matching outfits she and Walker intended to wear. A trip out of state didn’t even come up. I’ve been doing the woman’s hair since I rolled into town eight years ago. She would’ve told me if she meant to fly off the radar just to see the world. It’s absurd.”

  Cristina, a slender thirty-four-year-old with kids of her own, nodded. “Blake never once mentioned taking a trip anywhere, except maybe to go out on his Uncle Mitch’s boat. You know, to look for treasure. Blake talked about that quite a bit.”

  Mitch overheard that last part and his heart dropped. He remembered making a promise last Christmas to take the kid on one of his hunts. But he’d gotten busy over the summer and forgotten to follow through.

  It wasn’t until everyone cleared out that Lenore turned to her family. “Did you get the sense that was a united mission to make sure we believe that Livvy up and left on her own?”

  “That was certainly my take,” Mitch answered.

  “Mine too,” Jackson stated. “The question is why? They didn’t even bother to get their stories straight. They had Livvy leaving to go all over the country. What’s it to them what we believe or where we look? It’s as if they’re making not-so-subtle suggestions we give up searching.”

  “Pretty lame if you ask me,” Tanner added. “Especially that part where Livvy wanted to see practically every state in the union.”

  “Then why the full court press? Why make us believe something that flat out isn’t true? A lot over the top if you ask me,” Jackson grumbled. “It didn’t seem to matter to them that their pitch was so obvious. I’ve no doubt they stopped by just to let thei
r tongues wag.” But despite his demeanor, panic began to set in, a realization that they were no closer to having any real answers than the day before or the day before that.

  Garret walked into the kitchen holding a legal pad scribbled with handwritten notes.

  “Nice of you to show back up again,” Mitch muttered. “Where did you disappear to?”

  “Not that it’s any of your business but I went down to Mattito’s for a beer.”

  “We got a crazy-ass caller while you were gone who claimed they saw Livvy and the kids at Disney World. We passed the information along to Sinclair.”

  Lenore poured herself a glass of iced tea. “Even I know that isn’t true. Livvy didn’t like the crowds there. When Blake was five he got lost at Magic Kingdom—for about five minutes—scared Livvy into the next county. She swore she’d never take the kids there again.”

  Garret rolled his eyes and tossed the legal tablet on the kitchen table. “So let the crank calls begin. A side effect of the large reward we posted.” He turned the paper around so he could share what he’d jotted down. “I finally got a callback from Marcelli’s office. He’ll be here tomorrow. Apparently, he’s been keeping up with the case through the media so he’s pretty much up to speed. Although I did have to assure the guy I spoke with that Livvy wasn’t the type to leave town without letting people know where she was going. He seemed to agree, at least over the phone.” Garret looked around the room at the faces for a reaction. “I thought for certain y’all would be whole lot more excited than this. What gives? What’d I miss?”

  Jackson helped himself to a beer out of the fridge and twisted off the top. “Well, for starters, a series of performances from the stalwart community we’ve known and loved for years.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Jackson replayed all the different conversations.