The Hidden Grave (Harriet Harper Thriller Book 2)

by Dominika Best

The waiter came in and set the tea service for two down on the small table to Harri’s right and left them alone. Once they’d made their teas, Harri and Jake settled into the chairs.

  Harri sipped her tea and relished Jake sitting next to her. She enjoyed his closeness after such a terrible day. Crimes involving kids only ever got worse. They took a toll on the detectives investigating them. The world was a cruel place.

  “Things didn’t go as planned today,” Jake said.

  “No, they didn't. No one should ever find a child like that. My heart goes out to his parents.”

  “I agree. Murder is hard. Murder involving kids is unthinkable,” he said. “How are you handling the canceled search?”

  “Not so great,” she said. “I put a lot of work into getting them here.”

  “Lauren would understand your changing direction like this,” he said.

  “I know,” Harri nodded. Of course, Lauren would have understood. It was a child. Lauren loved children and was good with them.

  Harri sighed. “It was a real crappy day.”

  “These kinds of cases are one of the reasons why I retired from the FBI.”

  “Yet, you offered your help.”

  “It was the right thing to do,” he said.

  “They never do get easier,” she said.

  Jake took her hand in his and squeezed it. “I’m glad I was able to be here with you. To support you, at least.”

  “Thank you. It’s so strange. I don’t know how I did it alone before. All those years, coming up here. Going over everything again and again. I don’t know where I got the energy to keep at it.”

  He nodded. “Yes, you do,” he murmured.

  Harri looked over at him. She did know where the drive for the truth came from.

  Lauren.

  If roles were reversed, Lauren would never stop until she found the truth, until she found her sister. Harri would never stop, either.

  Tim and Molly Ledeyen crashed into her thoughts. She knew what they were going through. She remembered it.

  “If we can help bring Dan Ledeyen home then this was all worth it. Once he’s found, I’ll go back to looking for Lauren.”

  “The NecroFind team was a brilliant move on your part,” Jake said.

  “It was. And we did find a body.”

  He squeezed her hand again and she noticed he had leaned closer to her. Close enough for her to feel his breath on her cheek. She turned her face toward his.

  Their lips touched, gentle at first then more insistent. Harri closed her eyes and let the warmth spread throughout her whole body.

  The timing was awful. This was not the time or the place or the circumstances, but his lips were so soft and gentle. He pulled her closer to him and she let him.

  Her lips parted slightly, and his tongue flicked inside.

  This was good. Their kiss was pleasure and sadness and all the things she missed by constantly being alone. By being haunted by Lauren and her parent’s ghosts.

  After a moment, they separated, their faces inches away from each other.

  “I wanted to do this since I saw you in Mitzie’s car,” he smiled.

  “I'm sure you did,” she said.

  “Well, maybe at that dinner,” he said. He went in for another kiss, but she stopped him.

  “I don't want this to start here. Whatever this might be. Let's wait until we get back to Los Angeles and on more neutral ground. This place is haunted,” she said.

  He smiled, his eyes were warm and inviting.

  “I can wait,” he said.

  “Hopefully, I can. I’ll be remembering that kiss for a while,” she teased.

  “Is that right?” he asked, his eyes on her lips.

  “We should get to sleep. We both have an early morning.”

  “If you're sure,” he said.

  Harri nodded. “I’m sure.”

  He stood up and held out his hand for her. She took it and he pulled her up to standing. He embraced her and stole one last kiss. It took all Harri's control to push him away.

  “That's not fair,” she said.

  “No, it’s not,” he said. “I couldn’t help myself.”

  7

  Day 2 – Night

  Richard Miller sat down with his beer in front of the television. Claire liked watching Rachel Maddow at six every night and he was okay with that. Maddow was one of the better news hosts.

  “Dad, I'm thirsty,” Richie whined from the doorway of his room. Claire had put him to bed, but it typically took about an hour of him asking for food, drink, or another story before he finally fell asleep.

  “I gave you a drink in your thermos,” Claire said, irritation creeping into her voice. “Drink that and don't leave your room.” Claire’s patience was wearing thin.

  “Mom, can you tell me another story?” Richie asked in his little-boy-voice.

  Claire threw down the magazine she had been reading and stomped towards the room. Richard decided to leave them to their arguments and check out the hockey game playing on the local station.

  He flicked over to Channel 7. A newsflash interrupted the commercial for Cheerios.

  “The body of a young boy has been found in the Willamette Forest today. This is just breaking…” The newscaster droned.

  Richard clicked off the TV.

  His body broke out in a cold sweat. He thought back to the phone call from yesterday and the man whispering it was starting again.

  And now this.

  A boy in the woods, in the Willamette Woods?

  Richard stood up and paced back and forth. How could it be? Did they know where he was? Did they know his new name?

  What if they came after him or his boy?

  Who could he call to ask?

  Richard didn't have any of the names from the old days. He had tried to exorcise that whole time away. He did everything he could think of to purge it all from his memory. He didn't want to be a part of that group of boys anymore. He had moved on. He was an adult with a family of his own.

  They found the boy in the woods.

  They had never been so sloppy.

  If it wasn't them, then who could it be? And why would he end up in that same forest? Could it be such a coincidence?

  Claire came out of the room and saw the look on his face.

  “What happened, honey?”

  “Nothing,” he said.

  She didn't know about any of that. He had kept that away, locked up, hidden in a box in a tiny part of his brain. She would not be sullied by that filth. Neither would his son.

  “I gotta go for a drive,” he said.

  “Now?”

  “It's not that late. Do you need anything at the grocery store?” Richard asked.

  “You can get some milk,” she said, unsure. “I'm not sure I want you driving in the state you’re in.”

  “I'll be fine. I just need some fresh air.”

  He grabbed the car keys from the end table and stalked out of the house. He didn't want to have a panic attack in front of her.

  Richard never wanted to have her see how damaged he truly was. He threw himself into the car and started it. The radio blared and he yanked the knob down to zero. He couldn’t breathe.

  He rolled down all the windows. The cold night air was soothing to his burning throat.

  They had found the boy in the Willamette Woods.

  “Have you ever been camping before?” Rich asked Bobby excitedly. They had arrived at the parking lot adjacent to the thick dark forest as dusk was fading into night. Rich had seen the sign for Willamette State Park about fifteen minutes ago as the van entered a heavily wooded area.

  “No, I haven’t. I guess we’ll be hiking there in the dark?” Bobby said. He grinned.

  “So cool,” Rich whispered. He didn’t want to give away just how excited he was for these two weeks. He’d had a hell of a time convincing Donna his foster mom to let him come and had pleaded with her for days until she’d finally relented.

  A small van with seven
seats had picked them up at the Y, an hour ago. He, Bobby, Jim, Nelson, and George had clambered into the van with their backpacks and sleeping bags. Jim, one of the foster kids that always came to the Y with bruises, only had a small satchel. Rich figured that he’s snuck away instead of asking permission from his foster dad. Jim eyed the driver of the bus warily.

  Rich wondered why since Mark, the driver and one of the counselors that had been handing out flyers for this camp, had been nothing but nice.

  “All right, boys. Grab all your things. I have flashlights to hand out for everyone who doesn’t have one. We’ll need to hike for about twenty minutes to get to the lake,” Mark said.

  The boys all obeyed and jumped out of the van. Mark and Jim were the last ones out. Mark pulled out a plastic bag from his backpack and opened it up.

  “Go ahead, grab one. We don’t want you to get lost in the woods now do we?” Mark asked and grinned.

  Rich stepped up and stuck his hand in the bag. His fingers found a round plastic surface and he pulled a flashlight out. He flicked it on and put it right under his chin.

  “I’m going to get you…arrrggh,” he joked. Bobby giggled and pushed his way past him for his own flashlight. After the three other boys were outfitted with their own flashlights, the group started towards the woods, Mark taking the lead.

  Rich inhaled the smell of pine and smiled. His heart jumped in anticipation of the fun they would have. Swimming in the lake, canoeing, talking with the guys over a campfire. He’d pinch himself to see if this wasn’t a dream if Bobby hadn’t shoved him a second ago almost making him trip. The pain in his ankle told him he was wide awake. The smile on his face grew as Mark stepped into the woods. This was going to be life-changing; he knew it. He’d been in foster care most of his young life and none of his foster parents had paid much attention to him. They made sure he was clothed and fed and made it to school. That was it. But to have fun in the woods and experience something like camping? No way.

  It hadn’t even been a possibility until Bobby brought the brochure to him. He could hear Bobby whistling behind him.

  Richard shook the memory off with a scowl. They had all been so naïve. It pained him to remember his excitement. He slammed the wheel with his palm. He had to talk to his old friend. Discover what was really going on. Go back to the horrifying summer that had nearly destroyed his life.

  8

  Day 3 – Saturday, September 29, 2018

  Harri Harper pulled away from the curb and took one last look at Jake Tepesky's receding back as he entered the Eugene PD station. He’d been called in to give a preliminary profile for the detectives working the Atticus Menlo case.

  While he was working that case, Harri would be diving into Dan Ledeyen’s life by way of his friends. And for that, she needed to know who they were. She hoped that Tim and Molly were knowledgeable as to who he’d been spending time with.

  Her drive to Tim’s house took about fifteen minutes from the city center. When she pulled in front of the house, she noticed that both cars were in the drive. She’d thought of calling them to make sure they would be home, but Harri and Jake left so early she wasn't sure if calling at seven in the morning would be such a great idea. So, she hadn’t. She pulled her cellphone out of her bag and called them. Better late than never.

  “Good morning, Tim. I was hoping to stop by and speak to you about Dan. I'm sure you've heard there was a boy found in the woods. My search for Lauren's remains has been postponed. I want to do whatever I can to help find Dan.”

  She hung up the phone and hoped that they would get the message. She took a sip of her coffee and waited for a response.

  The warmth of the coffee made her mind go back to last night. There was a little bit more kissing in front of her hotel room door before she finally said good night. She had lain in bed thinking about Jake and Lauren and all those long-ago summers in high school.

  Lauren would find it hilarious to find Harri hooking up with her best friend. At least, that’s what she hoped. She knew above all else Lauren would want to see her happy, and for some inexplicable reason, Jake Tepesky made her happy.

  Her phone buzzed with a text message. Tim Ledeyen had received her phone message.

  Tim: Is that you outside?

  Harri: Can I come in?

  Tim: Yes.

  Harri: Coming.

  Harri stepped out of the rental car. She hadn't traversed the entire yard before the door opened. Tim and Molly crowded into the doorway watching her progress. They looked exhausted. By the red streaks on Molly's face, Harri could see she was still crying.

  “I'm sorry I'm here so early, but I just dropped Jake off at the police station and I wanted to get an early start,” she explained.

  “We want all the help we can get to find our boy,” Tim said. Harri nodded and they let her inside.

  “Do you want some coffee?” Tim asked her. Molly was visibly shaking and Harri touched her shoulder.

  “I'll do whatever I can to bring him home,” she said. Molly nodded.

  Tim led Molly back to the living room and gently helped her sit down on the couch. He came back to Harri, his face grim.

  “Follow me into the kitchen, I'll make you some coffee,” he said.

  “Thank you, I’d love another one,” she said.

  “We've talked with the detective that you put us in touch with, Gavin French,” he said.

  “Any news?”

  “No, not yet. And now of course with this boy found, I know all of Eugene's detectives are all on deck. Dan is going to slip through the cracks,” he said, stress and anger filtering in his voice.

  “Not if I have anything to do with it. I'm a cop and I know how to find people,” she said. Tim cocked his head at her.

  Fair enough, she thought.

  “No, I haven’t found Lauren yet. But in all fairness, I wasn’t a cop back then. I am now.”

  “I wasn't even thinking of that,” Tim confessed.

  He made the cups of coffee as Harri sat down at the kitchen table and opened a little notebook.

  “I need to talk to some of Dan's friends. I know that addiction centers are not going to give me much information. His friends might be of help to us, especially when they realize he's gone missing and might be using again.”

  “He only had one friend in there. Thomas James. I think he's actually still in there,” Tim said.

  “Relapse?” Harri asked.

  “From what Dan told me he felt that he needed to be there another month to be safe. He felt that he was too vulnerable still to go back into his life.”

  “And what is the facility called?” she asked.

  “It's called the Morning Sunrise Institute,” he said.

  “Really?” she asked.

  “That's what I thought when I first saw the brochures, but it's supposed to be the best in the state.”

  “Hate to ask you this, but what was Dan addicted to?”

  “Opiates.”

  “Did he start with OxyContin?”

  “Yeah,” Tim sighed. “One of his friends in middle school was stealing the pills from his grandpa. Got my son hooked when he was twelve years old.”

  “Someone that young, he doesn't stand a chance against that kind of drug,” Harri said.

  “Damn right. We’re in one of the lawsuits suing the drug company that was selling the opiates here in the state. But it's too late for my son. He's had two relapses, but this time it really seemed like it was going to stick.”

  “What was the boy's name that got him hooked?” Harri asked.

  “Alan. Alan Prentiss. From what I’ve heard he lives on the street. His parents kicked him out after his third rehab didn't take. He'd been stealing from them again.”

  It was amazing to Harri to see how deep the opiate epidemic had gone into the schools and how young the kids were starting. The epidemic would take years to overcome. So many lives had been ravaged by greed and the powerful drug.

  “What were his usual hangouts when
he was using?” Harri asked.

  “You mean Dan? He mostly scored downtown. Of course, OxyContin was too expensive for a kid to get. Heroin was much cheaper. He stole from us, but he also told us he’d become a street beggar to pay for a fix.”

  “What area downtown did he most frequent?” Harri asked. Parents typically had no clue where their kids were scoring. Harri hoped Tim was different.

  “Yeah, around Eighth Avenue and High Street. The street changes at night and the homeless come out. I'm sure you’ll find Alan Prentiss down there if he hasn’t overdosed yet.”

  “And what about his friends now? Since he’s been clean. Does he have a sponsor?” she asked.

  Harri knew the sponsor could not tell her any specific details, but he'd be able to give her an idea of Dan’s state of mind. He would be a better judge of whether or not Dan has fallen off the wagon.

  “His sponsor's name was Harvey Weissberg. He met him at one of the youth shelters in downtown Eugene. I think it was called Cochran. He’d been an addict and had managed to pull his life together.”

  “Does he still work at the shelter?” Harri asked.

  “I think so,” he said. “I really thought this time was going to be different. The first time he came back a mess. He was easily excited and hyper. Like he was on uppers or something. It didn't take him long to meet one of his old buddies. He was shooting up within days.”

  “This time was different?”

  “He was calm. Dan stayed away from his old friends. He started studying to pass his GED. He wanted a job. He started talking about a future,” Tim said.

  He covered his face with his hands and sobbed. Harri waited silently next to him. There was nothing she could say to help him. She sat for another couple of minutes and waited for him to calm down somewhat. When his sobbing has subsided, Harri spoke again.

  “I have everything I need to start piecing together his life in the last two weeks. Thank you, Tim. I’m going to start with the last three days. Where did he go? Who did he meet? If we piece together his movement, we can see who he crossed paths with. Do you have his cell phone?” she asked.