Lady in Red

by Stacy Claflin

  “Not yet. We need to figure out what’s going on first. But if I were you, I’d expect it’s coming.”

  Of course.

  Alex craned his neck to see the woman officer, tried to hear what she was saying but she’d walked too far away. He turned back to the man. “I didn’t do anything wrong.”

  “Save it.”

  “I hope you remember this if you’re ever wrongly accused.”

  His brows drew together, but he didn’t reply. “I’m going to need medical attention, you know. I probably have a concussion.”

  “Noted.”

  A few moments later, the woman returned. “We just need to wait for the others to arrive to assess the scene. Then we can take him” —she nodded to Alex— “to the station for questioning.”

  He gritted his teeth. “You might want to call my attorney to speed everything up. I’m not saying a word without him present now.”

  The two officers exchanged an annoyed look before the woman turned back to him. “You have a lawyer?”

  Alex nodded. “A good one. Maybe you’ve heard of him. Ralph Weiss often represents officers of the law.”

  They exchanged another look, this time less cocky.

  “Give him a call,” Alex said. “I’m not saying one more word until he’s at my side. And don’t forget I need to be seen by a medical professional.”

  Chapter 30

  Ariana stared at the kids flooding into the cafeteria. Her stomach was in knots. There was no way she could eat. It was hard enough just acting like everything was normal while her dad was missing. He had to have found the lady in the red dress—that was the only rational explanation. Nothing else made sense. Not that it really made sense why he’d have gone with her.

  She made her way outside and pulled out her phone. There were a few more texts from Mom.

  Guilt stung for being so irritated with her. Ari had overreacted, getting mad at Mom when she was really upset at the situation. She read through the messages before responding.

  Ari: Any updates?

  Mom: They found a guy in some woods claiming to be your dad.

  Ari: Claiming?

  Mom: He doesn’t have ID. They’re questioning him about something.

  Ari: About what?

  Mom: That’s all I know.

  Ari: It’s not much.

  Mom: I know. I’ll let u know if I hear anything.

  Ari: OK. Sry for getting mad.

  Mom: It’s fine. Talk soon.

  Ari. K.

  She took a deep breath. Her dad was in the woods? Which forest? Or was it someone just claiming to be him? It had to be him. That would mean he was safe.

  A new text came in.

  Damon: How RU?

  Ari: Maybe better.

  Damon: Maybe?

  Ari: They might’ve found him.

  Damon: That’s a relief.

  Ari: I don’t know. It sounds like he’s in some trouble.

  Damon: For what?

  Ari: Don’t know. Cops r questioning him.

  Damon: That’s not good.

  Ari: Tell me abt it.

  Damon: LMK if u hear more.

  Ari: OK.

  They sent strings of hugging and kissing emojis, then Ariana leaned against the building and took a deep breath. If Dad was right about the lady in red, she had something to do with Damon’s dad.

  She needed to talk to Cal. Hadn’t Dad said something about that? If he was being held by the police, he couldn’t ask those questions. Maybe she could do something. Find a way to the prison. They probably wouldn’t let her just walk in and talk to Cal. But she’d need to get inside without her dad.

  Damon.

  But he hated visiting his dad. His entire body tensed when he talked about those visits. The stress could be seen on his face.

  Would he be willing to make another visit if it would help her dad? Cal might be willing to tell his son things he wouldn’t tell an officer. It might actually work better if the two of them went.

  She pulled her phone back out and sent Damon another text.

  Ari: We need to talk after school.

  Damon: Before study group?

  Ari: Perfect.

  Damon: K, cu then. Gotta get to class.

  Ari: Keep an open mind, K?

  Damon: Ur making me nervous.

  Ari: Don’t be. It’s fine.

  It wasn’t really fine, but it was the only thing she could do. And Dad would understand them driving the distance alone if it was to help him. Get him the answers he needed. Maybe get those kidnappers to finally leave their family alone.

  The warning bell rang. How was it already time? Had she been so lost in thought she’d lost track of time that badly?

  She shoved her phone in her bag and headed back inside, her mind racing. If only there was a way to get out of school and go to the prison early. But they had the study group, and they couldn’t just abandon that. Well, she could. It was just extra credit, but Damon was getting school credit for it. She didn’t want to mess that up for him.

  At her locker, someone grabbed her arm. It was Emily. “Do you have your party planned yet?”

  She shook her head.

  “You have the theme, right? What’s that?”

  “I seriously don't have anything in mind.”

  Emily’s eyes widened. “How’s that possible? You always have everything set up the year before.”

  “Not always.” Ari put a notebook in her bag and slammed the locker shut. “There’s a lot going on right now.”

  “Need help?”

  “Maybe.”

  Emily looked deep in thought. “You seriously don’t have any ideas?”

  “Not yet. We’ll talk later, okay?”

  “Are you trying to put me off?” Emily asked. “What’s wrong? Did I do something to you?”

  Ariana shook her head. “It’s not like that. There’s seriously a ton of family drama right now. That’s all it is, I swear.”

  Emily put her arm around Ariana. “Then leave everything to me. Don’t worry about a single thing. I’ve already got some ideas.”

  Ari glanced at the time. She’d have to run to make her next class. “Thanks so much. I gotta bolt, though.”

  Emily looked at her phone. “Crap! Bell’s about to ring!”

  They both darted off in different directions. Ariana sprinted into her class just as the bell rang, making it to her seat as it stopped ringing. The teacher gave her a warning look, but he didn’t say anything. Luckily, it was an honor’s class, so they tended to have a little more grace than the regular classes. Everyone was there because they took their studies seriously.

  The teacher started talking and making notes on the white board. A few kids gave Ari sideways glances but then quickly turned their attention to the lesson.

  Once Ari got her book and notes out, she was able to quickly lose herself in the subject matter. Her mind kept trying to wander back to her dad and Cal and the psycho woman, but she shoved those thoughts aside. It would all work out. Things always did.

  When the class ended, Ariana felt somewhat relaxed. But as soon as she entered the hallway, the students were all abuzz about something. It was like everyone else got a memo she missed.

  She found Bogdan from the study group and tapped his shoulder. “What’s going on?”

  He turned to her. “Everyone says there are three dead bodies in the woods.”

  Ari gave him a double-take. “What?”

  Bogdan shrugged. “That’s what they’re saying. No idea if it’s true.” He turned and walked away, laughing with his friends.

  Ari’s shoulders slumped. Was that why her dad was being held? He was found in the woods, though she didn’t know which ones. But what would the connection be to the bodies? If there actually was one. It could just be rumors, like many other times before about other things. Kids were always looking for excitement during the boring school days.

  She needed to talk to the detective, if she was still at the school. But wh
at were the chances of that? She probably had more important things to do than hang around a middle school all day. Especially if there was any truth to what Bogdan said.

  Ariana looked around for one of dad’s officers, or even one of the school officers.

  Nothing. Of all the times for them to not be following her.

  She released a frustrated sigh and hurried to her next class, again barely making it to her seat as the bell rang. If only the principal would call her to the office. How ironic that she now wanted that.

  Things had changed so quickly.

  She was in another honors course, and nobody was talking about the dead bodies. No wonder all the other kids thought they were weird. No one even caught up on basic news. Or rumors, or whatever was going on. If she thought she could get away with it, she’d have checked her phone to see what was online.

  The class seemed to go on forever. She tried willing a call to the principal’s office, but it didn’t work.

  At long last, the school day finally ended. She exchanged her books at her locker and made her way to the study group.

  Damon was already there, wiping the white board with an eraser. She took a moment to take in his appearance, still hardly able to believe he was her boyfriend. Then she went over to him and wrapped her arms around him.

  He spun around and embraced her, gazing into her eyes. “Is everything okay?”

  She frowned. “I hope so, but it doesn’t look good.”

  “For you or your dad?” He cupped her chin.

  “My dad. Have you heard the rumors?”

  Damon’s eyebrows drew together in confusion. “About the bodies?”

  “Yeah.”

  “What does that have to do with him? Is he investigating them? I thought the FBI was on those kind of cases.”

  She sighed. “I really don’t know. My dad went missing, then he was found in the woods. Or at least someone saying he’s my dad.”

  “What woods?”

  “No idea.”

  “Let me get this straight.” Damon took a step back. “Your dad was found in a forest, and there were bodies found nearby?”

  “Maybe. Nobody’s telling me anything.”

  “Do they think he killed them?”

  Tears blurred her vision. “Why would they think that?”

  Damon pulled her close again. “Try not to worry.”

  “Are you crazy?”

  He shook his head. “The police will be on his side—he’s one of them. And besides, I’ll do whatever I can to help.”

  “Anything?”

  “Sure.”

  “Even taking me to visit your dad?” she asked.

  Damon’s eyes opened wide with shock. “How would that help?”

  “Dad is sure that lady in the red dress is connected to his group. He was looking for her last night, then he went missing. Now there are dead bodies. The only way we’re going to find out if it’s all connected is if your dad tells us.”

  Damon laughed. “Sorry. I’m not laughing at you. It’s just that my dad would never tell me anything like that. Even if you’re right, he’ll never admit it. He’d throw me under the bus to protect those guys. You saw for yourself how much he respects me.”

  She frowned. “You don’t think he’d tell you anything?”

  “He hasn’t said anything helpful any of the times I’ve visited.”

  "I guess you're right. It was a dumb idea.”

  “I wouldn’t say dumb. Just—”

  Footsteps and conversation sounded at the door. Ariana and Damon pulled away as the kids entered for study group.

  Chapter 31

  Nick exchanged a glance with Wu as they looked at Alex on the other side of the two-way mirror. He was slumped on the chair, tugging on his hair.

  Wu leaned against a seat. “At least we were able to get the other precinct to hand him over to us.”

  Nick nodded. “Until the feds step in.”

  “You think they will?”

  Nick turned to him. “You think they won’t? Three dead kids—it all points to the ring.”

  “Or a copycat, or someone else entirely.”

  “I don’t buy it. Alex had to have been right all along. The woman in red is involved.”

  Wu scratched his head. “And you think that points to a worldwide kidnapping ring?”

  “It’s the only thing to explain why there have been so many kidnappings in this small area. I’ve lived here my whole life, and I’ve seen more abductions than in most of the big cities around the country.”

  “Yeah, but we have no proof that any of the previous cases had anything to do with something so immense. Each other time, we were dealing with one or two twisted individuals, not a criminal empire.”

  Nick paced. “Or so we think. It makes too much sense not to be true. I want to look into older cases and find out if they didn’t run deeper. Some of these people took quite a few kids—and this has been going on for decades. Look at the bodies found at my future in-laws’ home. Decades!”

  Wu frowned. “One deranged man.”

  “Working alone? Or did he have help? Wouldn’t that make more sense?”

  “Maybe.”

  Nick glanced over at Alex. “It makes a whole lot more sense than our small area being the Bermuda Triangle for kidnappings.”

  “Let the feds handle it. We need to focus on proving Mercer’s innocence.”

  “That reminds me. Is Weiss here yet?” They couldn’t talk to Alex because he’d lawyered up—not that Nick blamed him. It had been a smart move.

  Wu shrugged. “If he’s not, I’m sure he isn’t far off. I’m sure he’d talk to us without Weiss present.”

  “We need to follow everything by the book. No small favors for our own. This is huge, and we can’t afford to let one little detail ruin anything.”

  “I’ll go check.” Wu left the room.

  Nick drew in a deep breath and studied Alex, who now spoke to himself while playing with his bottle of water. “What have you gotten yourself into?”

  Wu poked his head. “Weiss just got here. You ready?”

  “Yeah.” Nick waited for the attorney in the hall.

  The tall, stocky redhead gave Nick a firm handshake. “Good to see you, as always.”

  “You too, Ralph. I hope we can get to the bottom of this quickly.”

  Weiss nodded solemnly. “From what Mercer told me at the other station, we’re dealing with something far bigger than we’re used to.”

  “And because of that, I expect the feds to be here at any moment to take over.”

  “Let’s hurry, then.”

  They went inside, and Alex looked up but didn’t say anything. Looking at him closer, he had dark circles under his eyes, scratches on his arms and face, and some bruising near his hairline. He also wore a mustard sweat suit that was at least one size too small. Clearly, something he’d been given after having to give up his clothes for processing at the other precinct.

  Alex nodded to Nick but didn’t say anything. Weiss sat next to him, and Nick sat on the other side of the table.

  “What happened?” Nick asked.

  Alex glanced at Weiss, who indicated for him to speak. Alex swallowed and clenched his jaw. “That woman in the red dress showed up at my house again last night, so I went out to confront her. That was when someone hit me upside the head. Next thing I knew, I was in the woods, my clothes were bloody, and she’d left a note telling me which direction to go. It was all a trap!”

  Nick nodded. “I already know that much, Alex. We need more details if we’re going to help you. Especially about the lady. Her taking you isn’t consistent with her MO. She’s been abducting children.”

  Alex narrowed his eyes. “She’s after Ariana! Think about it—Ari was there at the sleepover when Tinsley went missing, claiming to be following a woman in a red dress. Ariana has seen the lady multiple times since then. It’s personal.”

  “Because of your blog?”

  “Of course!”

&nb
sp; Nick mulled over all the facts before continuing. “But you took your blog down. You didn’t put it back up, did you?”

  “No!” Alex glared at him with wild eyes.

  “I’m on your side,” Nick reminded him. “I want to get this squared away before the feds arrive, and we all know they will.”

  Alex nodded. “So, there are more bodies? Not just the one I found?”

  “Correct.” Nick licked his lips. “One was found in a lake near my place.”

  “You mean the one with the park that has the really tall slide?”

  Nick just nodded.

  “What now?” Alex demanded. “I was clearly set up.”

  “I managed to keep you from being charged formally. So far, you’re just being held for questioning. You know the drill there—we can hold you for up to forty-eight hours in extreme cases.”

  Alex slumped even more. “You’re giving me the max? Not the typical twenty-four hours?”

  Nick gave him a sympathetic look. “There isn’t anything normal about this case.”

  “I didn’t do anything! I’m the victim here!”

  “And I couldn’t agree more, but we have to follow due process.”

  Knock, knock!

  Anderson poked his head in. “Captain, you’re needed out here.”

  Nick clenched his fists. “This case is my priority. I want you to handle everything else in my stead.”

  “One of the feds is here, sir. She wants to see you immediately.”

  “Already?” Nick’s stomach knotted. “Tell her I’ll be right there.”

  Anderson nodded, then disappeared.

  Nick turned to Alex. “Write down everything. Don’t leave out any detail. Give it to Weiss. I want to see it later.” He waited for both to nod their agreement before he headed into the hallway.

  Anderson gestured toward Nick’s office.

  His stomach tightened even more. Having the feds in the precinct felt like enough of a violation, but having the woman in his office was worse. It was like she was in his own home. He drew in a deep breath and mentally prepared himself for the power struggle. No way he’d give up easily—not when his best friend was in such a predicament.

  When he opened the door, a short blonde woman with a ponytail and glasses turned to him from the couch.