Ollie smiled and sat down next to Cole, saying hello before helping himself to one of the large, dark green pickles.
“What’s up?” Drew said, eager to learn the reason for their visit.
Sheriff Miller motioned for everyone to sit. As they did, Drew saw she was carrying a leather portfolio, which she put in front of her, but didn’t open.
“I assume you’ve told your family what happened today?” Sheriff Miller said. “Good. First off, I wanted to personally apologize for my detective’s behavior. And to reassure you that you are most definitely not considered a person of interest in your sister’s murder. I did check all of the contacts and alibis General McAlister provided. As well as reviewed your record with him. It’s very impressive.”
“Thank you,” Drew said. “And thank you for coming down, but I don’t hold what happened against you or your department at large.”
Sheriff Miller nodded. “Good. I know your experience with the Ember Falls Police Department hasn’t been good. I never believed you had anything to do with the disappearance of Molly Winters. When I came into office, I worked to get you released. When you were, I had planned on speaking to you directly. I was surprised when you didn’t return home with your father.”
“What?” Ashley said. “Dad went to pick you up at prison? I would have come if you’d called me. Why did you call him?”
Drew scowled, locked eyes with Ollie who was concentrating on his pickle, trying to keep his face passive. “I didn’t call. Dad showed up and felt it best for everyone if I didn’t return to Ember Falls. I listened. I’m sorry.”
Ashley started to say something more, but Drew held up his hand. “Ash, later.”
With a grimace that would freeze a lake, she kept her mouth closed.
Seeing whatever pot she had stirred would stay on simmer for the time being, Sheriff Miller moved on.
“Another thing I wanted to speak to you all about,” she said. “As I told Mr. Duncan after he was released, I will not let the murder of Kelli Duncan be forgotten. I’ve spoken to the State. As you know, we’re a small department and while we can hire officers who have gone through training, appointing detectives relies on them. I have been requesting to get more detectives assigned or the ability to promote within the department, but that seems to have stalled, something I’m not very happy about. My son is a seasoned and decorated officer. He’ll be taking over the investigation.”
Ashley looked over at Ollie, a weary smile displayed on her face. “Good,” she said softly. “I’m glad. I know Ollie will do right by my sister.” She reached out to take his hand, which Ollie clearly enjoyed.
“There’s more,” Sheriff Miller said. “Oliver won’t be working alone. A private investigator has been hired, and my department will be working with that investigator. A meeting is being scheduled for Monday morning to review all evidence and move on from there.”
Ashley frowned. “Wait, a private investigator? The department won’t let you hire another detective or promote Ollie, but you can hire a private investigator?”
“We didn’t hire anyone,” Sheriff Miller said with more than a drop of bitterness in her voice. “My hands are tied, but I can choose to work with one that’s been privately hired.”
“Someone is paying to have them find out who killed my sister?” Ashley said, looking confused. “Who?”
Drew shook his head. “If I’m not mistaken, someone we’ve all been eating with at this table.”
Sheriff Miller nodded. “Yes. General Paul McAlister is hiring his own agency, McAlister Securities to do a full-blown investigation. When he arrived in my office this morning, he handed me a ton of paperwork. He made it very clear he was going to do this no matter what I said, but as a courtesy he wanted to give me a heads up and offer to have his man work with our department.
“I’d just recently told Oliver that I’d heard of McAlister Securities and that they had an outstanding reputation, especially with law enforcement they’ve worked with. I wanted to do my due diligence before agreeing to have our departments work hand in hand. I made a few calls to verify details and get opinions on the person McAlister Security are sending and I’m satisfied.”
A feeling of gratitude beyond words spread through Drew as he realized what the General had done for him. He looked towards Ashley who clearly was thinking the same thing.
“Can I ask who he’s sending?” Drew said. “I’ve worked with most of our investigators. They’re all good, but I know some are tied up in other cases around the country.” He paused for a moment, running through the itinerary of seasoned detectives that he’d worked with. “Sanders is good, but last I heard she was in Maine working on a case already. Unless she’s finished, I’ve been out of the loop for a couple of weeks. Jordan was nearly done last I heard, but his wife was due to give birth soon and he was talking about taking a leave to be with her. I’m surprised that whoever it is didn’t contact me the moment it was assigned.”
Sheriff Miller stood up, her eyes showing just the hint of a smile. “Actually, the investigator hasn’t been notified as of yet.”
Drew frowned. “Really? Any idea when they will be?”
“Quite soon,” Sheriff Miller said. “In fact, when I called General McAllister to let him know I planned on working with his agency, he decided I could deliver the notice in person as long as I used his words.” She picked up the leather portfolio and handed it to Drew, pulled out a note for herself and cleared her throat. “He said, and I’m quoting him exactly, “Consider your leave cancelled and your ass back on the clock. And don’t dick around because I’m not paying overtime.”
Stunned looks were exchanged all around. “I’m being put in charge of the investigation?” Drew said as he slowly rose, accepting the pouch.
Sheriff Miller nodded. “General McAlister assured me you’d be able to remain professional. I’ll be honest with you Mr. Duncan, I wasn’t convinced it was a good idea. Nobody could blame you for being emotionally invested here and quite frankly, it doesn’t look good when it gets to court, so you have to take extra precautions to preserve the integrity of the case.
“You cannot examine a single piece of evidence, interview a single witness, go to a single crime scene, without one of my officers accompanying you. And both you and any officer involved are going to have to wear body cameras.”
Drew nodded, accepting any and all of her terms. Ollie, however looked confused. “Body cameras? Since when do we have money in the budget for those?”
Sheriff Miller looked towards her son and frowned. “We don’t. They’re being provided to us by McAlister Securities. And you’ve got pickle juice on your tie.”
Ollie looked down and rolled his eyes. He went to dip a napkin in a glass of water and just ended up spilling the water. He, Cole and Lilly worked to clean it up. Sheriff Miller closed her eyes and shook her head. “I was going to ask if you thought working with Officer Miller would be an issue, but…”
Drew laughed. “No, I’m good with Ollie. Looking forward to it.”
Ollie looked up, tried to send Drew a smile that said he was too, but then went back to work on his tie.
“Oh, for Christ’s sake,” Ashley said. “Take off the tie and give it to me. I’ll get it clean. You’re such a dork.” Impatient, she reached over and undid Ollie’s tie herself, causing Ollie to blush a light shade of pink. Ashley leaned in and kissed his cheek. “Thank you for what you’re going to do for my sister.” As she walked away from the table, Ollie tried to ignore the fact he’d turned from light pink to a deep red.
“I’ll be honest with you, Mr. Duncan,” Sheriff Miller said. “I wasn’t too sure when General McAlister came into my office to let me know he intended to have you investigate Kelli’s murder. You are her brother, and it would be a terrible burden to place on you. And even if you could stay professional, it would still look wrong.
“However, General McAlister made it clear that since you have all of the qualifications, and you’re one of his best
, and he was running a private investigation, I didn’t have the authority to stop it.”
She smiled and leaned closer to Drew. “That was all before I saw how you handled yourself in that interrogation room. You were a real pro in there, which leaves me with the headache of what to do with Wilson and Harrington.”
Drew nodded. “Harrington was farther away. He can claim he simply believed his partner identified himself, although I don’t believe that. And they didn’t do a good job searching the area. Did you listen to the entire recording?”
Sheriff Miller nodded, holding his gaze just long enough.
Drew pictured the small rock hidey-hole, with the hidden box and scratches, felt that chill down his spine as if a ghost had walked right through him.
“Drew,” Sheriff Miller said, addressing him for the first time since she arrived by his first name. “I know you’ve worked these cases before, but you usually are working bigger cases in much more violent towns. Ember Falls may not hold many happy memories for you, but it’s a good town with a very low crime rate. The last murder that took place here was…”
Drew let out a small, dry, humorless laugh. “Molly Winters, I know, but let me ask you something. Her case was classified as a murder, what about missing persons?”
Sheriff Miller pursed her lips as she ran the question in her brain. “Yes, I believe we have a few. Why?”
“Any chance you can get those files?” Drew asked. “Anything that indicates a person disappeared?”
She folded her arms, considering. “How far back?”
“Anytime between now and the last ten years.”
Drew watched as the sheriff mulled his request over in his head. Clearly, she wasn’t happy about the idea. She wanted him to concentrate on Kelli’s murder and not start some sort of panic within the town. On the other hand, she was thinking about it. “We’ll talk about it on Monday. I’ve got to go, but you have a good weekend.”
Ollie got up as well, kissed Ashley and Lilly on the cheek and said goodbye to Cole, who he didn’t touch. He was replacing his tie that Ashley had cleaned and started to follow his mom out.
“Hey, Ollie,” Drew said. “Does Sam know about this particular turn of events?” Drew held up the leather pouch.
Ollie shook his head. “No, she left early.”
Drew nodded. “That’s right, she was doing something with her Nana tonight, wasn’t she.”
Ollie looked confused as he held open the door for his mother. “Nana? No, it’s Friday. She’ll have her weekly country western dance and she never misses those.”
Drew scowled. “Does Sam ever go with her?” He said, even though he felt certain he knew the answer.
“Sam?” Ollie said with a laugh. “Just once when she first rolled into town. Her Nana was the youngest one there and she kept getting hit on by seventy-year-old Garth Brooks wannabes. I don’t think you’d be able to pay her enough to go back there.”
Drew nodded, more to himself than anyone else. “Right.”
Ollie followed his mother out as Ashley and Lilly walked back into the kitchen, each carrying the leftovers from their late lunch.
Drew stewed for a few minutes, his hand clenched in a fist, wishing he had something to punch, before he went out the front door.
Chapter 13
The Punching Bag
Drew supposed he should have asked Lilly before he’d gone and bought anything from Joe’s Sporting Goods, but when she saw him hauling out the punching bag from the back of his car, she seemed to think it was cool. It took him less than an hour to get the bag hung properly and to set up the free weights he’d also purchased. He quickly changed into sweats and started to stretch before using his new equipment.
The apartment over the garage was small, but private with plenty of strong wooden beams in the perfect position for the punching bag. There was a bed in the corner, with a small bathroom. It housed an old, green couch and mismatched brown chair, both more comfortable than they looked, and an old tube TV the General used to watch reruns of old TV sitcoms on.
The TV remained off now. Instead Drew put an old heavy metal CD on, keeping the level low enough to not rattle the walls, or Lilly’s nerves, but with just enough volume for him not to detect the sound of little feet coming up the stairs.
Cole watched as his Uncle finished his warm-up and stretching exercises.
Cole had never seen his uncle without a shirt on. Although Cole knew Drew had both muscles and tattoos, this was the first time he’d ever gotten to see them so clearly.
Drew’s smooth skin was light, his muscles well defined and flexing as he stood up straight, slowly bringing each arm up to his chest, lifting a dumbbell that looked heavy enough Cole would need two hands to move it an inch. As one hand went down, the other came up in easy, practiced strokes. It looked effortless to Cole, as Drew continued to pump for a solid ten minutes.
Cole studied the black tattoo lining his uncle’s right arm, circled his right peck and, when Drew shifted, some on his back.
The tattoo had many curves— sharp, black lines that formed the picture of a bird escaping from flames. They weren’t too busy as they swirled around the muscles and skin. As Drew continued to sweat, his skin started to shine which highlighted how toned and defined he was.
In the back of Cole’s mind, he couldn’t help but think how he would simply have no chance if this man, who claimed to love him, decided to attack. There was only one other man he’d ever seen this well-defined and could block out the world as they worked out. Seeing his uncle like this terrified Cole, but Cole was tired of being scared all the time.
He inched his way further into the room, moving soundlessly and keeping out of sight. Drew moved to the side, his eyes fixed now on the small window. There was something about his face, the narrow slit of his eyes, the clenched jaw, which told Cole his uncle was still angry. He’d seen it in the dining room as Ollie and his mother, the police sheriff, were leaving. Something Ollie said made Drew mad.
No.
Cole continued to watch Drew pump metal while the small iPod dock bellowed out how they were on a Highway to Hell.
No, angry wasn’t right.
Uncle Drew was pissed.
And it was that quiet, silent kind of boiling anger Cole feared more than anything. That’s when someone was most likely to be at their cruelest and do the most inhuman things.
Aunt Ash got angry all the time, but she yelled and cursed and five minutes later, she’d be laughing again. He’d seen Lilly get mad once, at Aunt Ash, but it was mostly funny and when she was mad she cooked and cleaned.
Cole wanted to run, but he needed to know what would happen if he was in the same room with his uncle when he was this kind of angry. He wouldn’t tell his aunt or Lilly if Uncle Drew took out his anger on him. Despite the way she talked, Aunt Ash was happy her brother was back. It’s not like Cole didn’t know how to not complain. This place was nice and he believed his uncle was a good guy. So if he had a temper and hurt Cole, at least Cole would know when to stay out of his way.
Yet he stayed there, hidden at the top of the stairs, able to see and not be seen, as his uncle placed the weights on a rack and headed over to the large punching bag. He grabbed a roll of a white material, hooked his thumb into something on the end and wrapped his hands tightly, starting with the thumbs, moving to the wrists and eventually the entire hand, including the knuckles. Then he grabbed two padded gloves, wiggled his hands into them, and used his teeth to tighten the Velcro. Drew moved to stand directly in front of the punching bag, gave it a few test jabs, and then attacked.
The bag retreated each time a gloved fist slammed into it, but kept swinging back for more punishment, which Drew seemed to have no problem supplying. Cole watched how Uncle Drew hit, not just extending his arm out, but using the power of his full body. The muscles in his legs and back flexed as much as his biceps as he blasted the bag over and over again.
Stepping back, Cole was shocked to see his uncle continue his assa
ult with his feet, kicking the bag high enough that it easily could have been a grown man’s head. The bag seemed desperate to escape, but had no place to go as Drew continued to pummel it from different angles, with his hands, his elbows, and his feet. But while his tactics changed and evolved, the anger contained on his face didn’t. His eyes remained windows to a hellish, cold rage that was as terrifying as it was mesmerizing.
With one final thump Cole felt could kill a man, let alone a young boy, Drew placed his hands on either side of the punching bag and stopped its dance.
Changing his mind, Cole prepared to slip down the stairs. He’d seek the comfort of his books and solitude of his stories where if things became too scary, he could save his place and close the book and look for something happier until he felt courageous enough to try again.
“You planning on coming up or were you just here for the show?”
Cole froze at the sound of his uncle’s voice. He pressed his back against the wall, trembling and prayed he wouldn’t pee in his pants.
His uncle used his teeth to open the gloves, pulled them off and tossed them to the side. He walked over to the fridge, opened it up and took out a bottle of water. Twisting off the cap, he took a long pull before putting it back inside the fridge. Drew stretched again, and glanced casually in Cole’s direction.
“You ever hit a punching bag before?” Drew said, making eye contact with Cole for the first time.
Cole forced himself to speak, keeping himself where he’d have a good chance of dashing to the house. “Doesn’t look too hard.”
Drew nodded, an impressed look on his face. He scanned a table for something and signaled Cole to come up.
Cole took his time, willing his legs to move. Slowly, he managed to climb the rest of the stairs and over to his uncle who was holding something in his hands.
“How long did you know I was there?”
Drew smiled as he sat down on the couch, indicating for Cole to stand in front of him.
Torn Away (The Torn Series Book 1) Page 22
