by D. K. Hood
“Nine this morning, I sent Luke up to wake her.” Mrs. Braxton let out a small sob. “I ran upstairs and felt her bed to see if it was still warm but it was cold. We ran around everywhere looking for her, and then I came inside and called her friends. When no one had seen her I called 911.”
“You did the right thing.” Jenna patted the woman’s arm. “Can you remember what she was wearing the last time you saw her?”
“Yes, her PJs are yellow with small white roses on them and her dressing gown is pink with a lace trim around the collar, bright pink buttons and pockets.” Mrs. Braxton stared into space then drew a shuddering breath. “Her slippers are pink, furry with solid soles.”
“Do you have a recent photograph of her?” Jenna made rapid notes. She had to get all the information she could as fast as possible to put out a media release and get a search team out looking for Amanda.
“Yes, on the mantelpiece.” Mrs. Braxton pointed to a picture of a pretty girl with long flowing blonde hair, freckles and an upturned nose.
Jenna got up and used the camera on her cellphone to make a copy. “Thank you. I’ll be making a statement to the media about Amanda. The townsfolk often call in with helpful information.” She explained about setting up a command post in town and the deputies who’d arrive in plain clothes and unmarked cars to monitor all calls. She thought for a moment and had to ask the question: “Has Amanda had any nightmares lately?”
“No, she dreams about her grandma standing at the end of her bed. She figures she’s watching over her.” Mrs. Braxton’s eyes welled with fresh tears. “If she was, she’s not doing a very good job, is she?”
At that moment, Kane came back into the room. “Have you touched anything at all in Amanda’s bedroom, Mrs. Braxton? Picked up anything from the floor or tidied the room?”
“No, I opened the cupboard and looked in the drawers to see if she’d taken any clothes but everything is there.” Mrs. Braxton blinked up at Kane. “Did you find anything?”
“No.” Kane gave her an apologetic look and turned to Jenna. “No sign of a struggle.”
“Okay.” Jenna looked back at Mrs. Braxton. “Do you have a security system?”
“We do.” Mrs. Braxton shook her head. “This is why this is so strange. It was on this morning. If someone kidnapped my daughter, I doubt her abductor would’ve reset the system to activate the alarm. I figure she went out to see that Miller boy.”
“I called him, Mom.” Luke stood in front of the fire. “He hasn’t seen her and said he’d never meet a fifteen-year-old in the middle of the night, he isn’t crazy.”
“What company did you use to install your alarm system?” Kane’s forehead creased into a frown.
“Silent Alarms.” Mrs. Braxton shrugged. “All the houses in this area use the same company. When I purchased the house, the realtor recommended them.”
Jenna frowned. “Who else has been in or around the house?”
“Let me see.” Mrs. Braxton looked suddenly confused. “The Green Thumb Landscaping Service, and Mr. Packer drops by to fix anything I need fixing. They’ve all been very professional and reliable. My quilting club members speak highly of them too.”
With the coincidences piling up, a wave of morbid apprehension crept over Jenna. “Have these men had contact with Amanda at all over the last month or so?”
“Why, yes, I believe so.” Mrs. Braxton sniffed. “The gardening service comes once a week and of course they would have met her. Mr. Packer came by to fix the window in the kitchen. It had gotten stuck over winter.”
“And Silent Alarms?” Kane gave her an enquiring look. “Have any of their technicians spoken with Amanda?”
“I don’t know for sure. They would’ve seen her, I guess, but they worked outside. I had sensor floodlights installed and the CCTV camera. It was a deal they advertised last month.” Mrs. Braxton lifted her red-rimmed eyes to Jenna. “When Mandy went missing, I hit the panic button and they called within a few seconds. The man was very nice, he said the CCTV cameras hadn’t been activated overnight and no intruders had entered our property.”
It was like déjà vu. Jenna couldn’t believe what Mrs. Braxton was saying. Two of their prime suspects had been in contact with Amanda and both girls had left a secure environment with CCTV cameras as if they’d been ghosts. One she might believe, but two was way past coincidence. Cold fingers tickled the back of her neck in a gruesome warning, and she forced her expression to remain calm and in control, but inside turmoil raged. If she received a message from an unknown number right now, she wasn’t sure what she would do. She gathered her thoughts. “You did the right thing checking in with the security company. Could you make a list of anyone at all you know who met Amanda recently? Not just friends, anyone at all you can think of, and I need a run-down of her movements over the last weeks.” She handed Mrs. Braxton her notebook.
“Sure, Luke will help me.” Mrs. Braxton straightened in her seat. “Anything to find Mandy.”
“Wolfe and Walters are here.” Kane turned and headed out the door.
Jenna stood. “Shane Wolfe is our medical examiner and our forensics expert. He and his assistant Deputy Webber will need access to Amanda’s room and her laptop.” She turned as they entered the room. “Deputy Walters will remain here and set up a recording device to your landline in case anyone contacts you about Amanda.”
“Do you think someone has kidnapped her?” Mrs. Braxton looked horrified.
Jenna gave her a comforting squeeze. “We’re covering every angle, Mrs. Braxton.”
After updating Wolfe and collecting a large evidence bag from his kit, she turned to Mrs. Braxton. “I’m going with Kane and Atohi Blackhawk to search the grounds for any trace of Amanda. We’ve a bloodhound tracker dog with us as well. Do you have anything she’s worn lately we can use to give him her scent?”
“Yes, I have her jeans in the laundry basket. I’ll go get them for you.” Mrs. Braxton got up and took a few unsteady steps toward the doorway.
Jenna followed her to the laundry room and handed her the evidence bag. “If you could place them in here, please?” She took the bag. “Thank you.” She glanced at Luke, who was hovering in the hallway. “Why don’t you make your mother a cup of coffee?”
With the bag tucked under one arm, Jenna made her way outside to meet the others. She glanced up at Kane. “I’m guessing the Shadow Man has struck again.”
Twenty-Five
The heady perfume from the flowers each side of the porch washed over Jenna but the delightful scent didn’t remove the awful sensation that it was already too late to save Amanda. As she walked down the steps beside Kane, a blast of cold wind rustled through the trees and seeped into her clothes, giving her goosebumps. The blue sky that had greeted her earlier had turned an angry gray as storm clouds rolled over the mountains. She shivered, then, zipping up her jacket, walked across the driveway to greet Blackhawk. “Thanks for coming out again, Atohi. I really appreciate your expertise in tracking.”
“I will always be here when you need me, Jenna.” Blackhawk indicated with his thumb over one shoulder to Duke. The dog’s head hung out the SUV’s window and he was whining and giving the odd discontented bark. “Although, you have your own tracker right there.”
“Yeah, but he can’t exactly tell us what he’s seeing. I’ll go get him.” Kane hustled over to his truck to collect Duke and returned with the crime scene kit.
“That’s because you don’t listen to him, Dave.” Blackhawk shook his head. “Dogs are not as complicated as people.” He turned to Jenna. “Wolfe mentioned we’ve another teenager who up and walked out of her home at night. Is it the same as last time?”
Jenna nodded and stared into the dense wooded area bordering the driveway. “I’m not sure but it appears this one locked up before she left. I can’t imagine a kidnapper taking the time to reset the alarm – but hey, this is Black Rock Falls, anything is possible.” She turned to Kane. “Ready?”
“I sure am. Open
the bag for him to take a sniff.” Kane led the dog to Jenna’s side.
Jenna looked over at Atohi. “If it’s the Shadow Man again, he’d have bundled her into his vehicle. We found no evidence he chased Lindy outside – in fact we found zip.” Jenna bent and opened the evidence bag for Duke to sniff.
“Seek.” Kane unclipped Duke’s leash. “Seek, Duke. Find the girl. That’s right.”
The dog ran around in circles for some moments with his nose to the ground, and then headed for a path leading into the woodland. Jenna stared after him in disbelief. “I can’t imagine a young girl would wander in there at night voluntarily. It looks creepy enough in daylight.”
As Duke bounded down a narrow trail, birds lifted from the branches and flew into the air with discontented squawks. Jenna stood to one side to allow Kane and Atohi to go ahead of her; they could translate Duke’s whines and behavior far better than she could and by bringing up the rear, she would catch anything they’d missed.
Shrubs and vines had spilled over the pathway, giving the impression no one used it very often. Bushes and low pine branches seemed to reach out and grab at Jenna’s clothes. It would have been much worse for Amanda last night. The sensation must have been like ghostly hands dragging her into a dark abyss. Jenna quickened her pace. Ahead, Kane’s head moved from side to side as he scanned the area in all directions. Atohi followed close behind Duke, his attention not on the dog but on the ground. Jenna moved slowly over the uneven path, negotiating exposed tree roots, then stopped mid-step when Atohi held up one hand.
“I have something.” He paused and looked over one shoulder. “Here.” He indicated to a strand of pink thread caught on the lower branches of a Douglas fir. “See? And strands of hair here on the ninebark.” He pointed to a shrub at the base of the tree. “Do you want me to keep following Duke, Jenna?”
“Sure.” Jenna pulled on gloves, and then used her cellphone camera to take photographs before removing the evidence and waiting for Kane to mark the site with flags. “What do you figure could lure a teenager here in the middle of the night?”
“Search me. It looks as if she pushed her way through the bushes. Maybe she was following someone? But there’s no evidence of another person coming this way.” Kane placed the flags, and then straightened. “Did you ask her mother if a flashlight had gone missing from the house?”
Jenna shook her head. “No, but I will.”
At the sound of Duke’s loud bark, they both turned and stared into the distance, but the winding trail had hidden Atohi and Duke from view. Ahead, the twisted dark branches lining each side of the trail, combined with the rumble of thunder overhead, painted a scene from a horror movie. Dread dropped over Jenna like a shroud and she swallowed hard. Memories of murder victims found in forests rushed to the front of her mind and she gripped Kane’s forearm. “Duke’s found something. I sure hope it’s not a body.”
“Nah.” Kane picked up the bag and headed along the dim path. “We’d have smelled a corpse by now unless he chopped her up and placed her in garbage bags.”
Jenna snorted. “Well that makes me feel a whole lot better.”
They’d wound their way another fifteen yards into the darkening woods when Duke came bounding back and sat at Kane’s feet. Jenna looked up at Kane in dismay. “What does that mean?”
“The trail must have gone cold just ahead.” Kane patted Duke on the head. “Stay.” He glanced at Jenna. “She must have come this far then vanished.”
Jenna smothered a chuckle. “Next you’ll be saying she was abducted by aliens.”
“Hold up.” Atohi came out of the gloom. “You’ll need a flashlight. The trail leaves this switchback in a few yards and goes into a clearing. I found signs of a struggle and a partial boot-mark in the mud. You’ll need Wolfe to take a look at it soon – I smell rain.”
Jenna unclipped the flashlight from her belt. “Later, show me what you’ve found. Don’t worry, we’ll take some pics and make a cast of the footprint before it starts raining.” She turned on the flashlight and followed Atohi into a small clearing.
“The ground here is disturbed, dirt kicked up.” Atohi pointed to a patch of long grass. “See, here it’s as if someone plucked at the grass, as if they’d gotten bored waiting for her to arrive.”
Jenna peered at the ground. “Shame he didn’t chew on it and spit it out, we’d have his DNA.”
“The branches are broken over here as well.” Kane moved his flashlight over the trees, then down onto the ground. “It’s too rocky here for any footprints.” He sighed. “More hair here on the branches. She put up a good fight.”
“Okay, photograph it, mark and bag it.” Jenna turned to Atohi. “Show me the footprint and I’ll make a cast.”
“I’d say he rendered her unconscious and carried her to his vehicle.” Kane marked then photographed each piece of evidence, then plucked fibers from the branches, bagged them and labeled each one. “That’s why Duke couldn’t track her from here.”
“Makes sense.” Jenna took photographs of the print. It was a heel of a boot for sure, with a distinctive circle in the center. “At last, one single shred of evidence. Check all the trees and shrubs; the kidnapper must have snagged his clothes or hair too.”
“Roger that.” Kane handed her the casting kit from his bag and went to work meticulously checking every square inch of the area.
Jenna finished making the casts as the first big splashes of rain bounced off the branches and splattered onto the forest floor. The small amount of remaining light vanished, plunging them into total darkness. The smell of rain and damp vegetation closed in around her. Zigzag lightning flashed across the sky, illuminating them all for a split second, then the ground beneath her boots shook as if angry that someone had taken another girl against her will.
The sky opened up and rain poured down in sheets, slicing through the trees and forming little rivers around her feet. Squirrels bounded across the ground then scampered up trees to take shelter. The sky alternated between day and night with each flash of lightning. Jenna pulled up the hood of her jacket then gathered up the evidence bags. She hated storms and wanted to get out from under the trees as fast as possible. “We can’t do any more here. Let’s get back to the house and see if Wolfe has found any clues.”
“Roger that.” Kane waved at Atohi. “You coming?”
“Yeah, shame about the rain, it’s washed away the evidence.” Atohi followed behind them. “Just as well you took a cast of that print, Jenna.”
“Yeah, it looks unusual with that circle in the heel.” Jenna glanced down at the bag in her hand. “We should be able to determine the brand by that mark; it may be the breakthrough we’ve been looking for at last.” She turned into the switchback and stared at the place they’d left Duke. “Now Duke’s missing.”
“He’ll be hiding under my truck.” Kane smiled at her. “He’s obedient right up to the first clap of thunder, and then it’s every dog for itself. He trembles with fear; it makes me wonder what happened in his past to make him so scared.”
“Ah, I remember what happened. As you know, we raised Duke on the res. He was washed away in a storm as a pup.” Atohi shrugged. “My cousin came close to drowning saving him from the falls.” He glanced at Kane. “Dogs have long memories, but he won’t leave your side if you’re injured and gunshots don’t bother him.”
“That’s good to hear, about the not leaving me if I’m injured, I mean.” Kane grimaced. “Not good about him near drowning. No wonder he hates having a bath.”
“Most dogs hate having a bath.” Atohi smiled. “Jenna, do you want me to stow the evidence bags in Wolfe’s van?”
The wind howled and the rain came down so hard Jenna could hardly hear him. She turned and handed him the bags. “Yeah, thanks.”
“I’ll wait in the van, no need for us all to go dirtying up Mrs. Braxton’s house.” Atohi jogged out the woods and into the storm.
As the rain pelted down, Jenna dashed to the front porch and
Mrs. Braxton ushered them all into the mudroom and handed them towels. “We believe Amanda went into the woods to meet someone. My deputy has already put out a BOLO on her and I’ll speak to the media as soon as I get back to town.” She steeled herself for the next part of the conversation. “We found signs of a struggle in the woods and, at this stage, we believe Amanda was kidnapped.”
“Oh, sweet Jesus no.” Mrs. Braxton collapsed against the wall. “Who would kidnap her?”
Jenna frowned. “We aim to find out. Have you completed the list? Once we trace her movements and speak to her friends, we might find a clue to who took her. In the meantime, we’ll have every available person out searching for her.”
“I have the list.” Luke emerged from the hallway and thrust the notebook at Jenna. “I included everyone else I could think of as well. Lucy is her best friend and she hangs with her, then there’s a boy at school, Peter English, who was pestering her for a date. He’d gotten out of hand, like a stalker, so I talked to him a couple of weeks ago to warn him off and he hasn’t bothered her since.”
Mind reeling at the idea of a younger suspect, Jenna glanced over the list. “Okay, we’ll hunt down these people and see what they have to say. In the meantime, I’ll have a deputy with you around the clock to monitor the phone in case anyone calls with demands. I’ll be arranging for plain-clothed deputies from Blackwater to come here, as my team will be involved in the search for your daughter. I’ll make sure Deputy Walters keeps you up to date.”
She gave Mrs. Braxton’s arm a squeeze. “Rest assured I’ll do everything in my power to find Amanda.”
“Thanks.” Mrs. Braxton leaned into her son’s embrace. “I need to lie down.”
