Killing Season

by Faye Kellerman

  “I won’t. I promise.”

  She stared at her son’s face. “Do you honestly think your father and I don’t know what you’re up to? Every time I come into your room, you slam your laptop shut. I’m not stupid. Behavior like that is going to arouse my curiosity. I’m your mother.”

  “I’m not doing anything bad.”

  “I know what you’re doing, Ben. I’ve been on your computer.”

  “You looked at my computer?” He felt bile rise up in his throat. He could barely contain his outrage. “I can’t believe you invaded my privacy!”

  “You’re my son. You’re seventeen. You still live in my house and I have a right to know if you’re doing something illegal.”

  “I’m not doing anything illegal.” He was beyond furious. “Did you go through my drawers also?”

  “Stop being so indignant. I know what you’re doing. Am I telling you to stop? If I told you to stop, would you listen?” She tapped his forehead. “You lock me out of there, so I do what I have to do. I know that boys your age don’t confide in their mothers. But don’t lie to me.”

  “I said I won’t.” He was still pissed. “Don’t look at my computer anymore, okay?”

  “It wouldn’t matter anyway. You’ll encrypt everything as soon as we get home. So you’re mad at me.” She kissed his forehead. “Hate me. I can take it.”

  “I don’t hate you . . . c’mon! I can be pissed at you without hating you.”

  She sighed. “I’ll get your dad. Don’t give him grief.”

  As soon as his father walked into the room, Ben turned his frustration on him. “She looked at my computer. Can you believe that?”

  “You actually expect me to be on your side? She’s your mother. She can do whatever the hell she wants. Now let’s go over this before the detective arrives. What happened?”

  Ben was furious with both his parents, but this was a battle he wasn’t going to win.

  Forget about the battle, just win the fucking war.

  The girls were sitting on hard plastic seats staring at their laps. Laura Vicksburg sighed. They deserved more, way more than what Laura had given them for the last two and a half years. She composed herself and then walked over. “C’mon. Let’s go for ice cream.”

  Haley looked at her mom. “It’s like forty degrees outside. I’d rather shop.”

  “No shopping. Your clothes are falling out of your drawers as it is. If it’s too cold for ice cream, we’ll do coffee and bagels. Let’s go.”

  As soon as the girls stood up, Ro’s mother, Jane Majors, came out of a second interview room with Griffen. He waved to the girls and the girls waved back. Laura eyed Jane—always dressed up like a lady who lunched. She wore dark slacks and a red sweater. Fashion suede boots hugged her feet. Several gold chains were draped around her neck, and two gold hoops adorned her earlobes. Laura had met Jane only briefly, when dropping off or picking up the girls.

  Protectively, Jane linked her arm with Griffen’s. The boy was taller than her by several inches—around five eight. She was trying to steer him away from the girls, but Griffen broke away to talk to his friends. The blond, blue-eyed, shaggy-haired teen always appeared to have a sloppy ease about him that was alarmingly different from his mother. His decision to talk to the girls forced contact between the mothers.

  “Hello, Jane,” Laura said.

  “Laura,” Jane said.

  “We’re going for coffee and bagels,” Lilly said. “Would you like to come with us?”

  “Sure,” said Griffen.

  Jane said, “Griffen, I have things to do at home.”

  “So go home. I’ll come back with Haley and Lilly.”

  “I’d prefer you come home with me.”

  Laura said, “Another time, then.”

  Griffen said, “No. Not another time. I want to go out with the girls.” When Jane stiffened, he said, “Mom, I’m fourteen. It’s coffee and bagels! Lotta guys my age are smoking pot and screwing girls.”

  “Griffen!”

  “Stop pretending I’m a kid. I’m in high school. And if I want to go out for coffee with my friends, you should say, ‘Of course, Griffen. Have a good time.’”

  Laura said, “Maybe this isn’t the right time for this, Griff.”

  “There’s never a right time,” Griffen protested. “Mom, I like Haley. I like Lilly. I also like Ben. Ro likes Ben. I know you don’t like Ben, but you should. He’s a good guy. A lot better than JD, whom you’re enamored with because he’s a football hero and brought you flowers at homecoming.”

  “This is not appropriate, Griffen,” Laura said sternly.

  Jane was red-faced, but she managed to keep some dignity. She held up her hand. With wet eyes, she said, “You’re right, Griff. You are old enough . . . to determine . . . if you want to go out for coffee or not.” A forced smile. “I’ll see you all later.”

  Laura put her hand on Jane’s wrist. “Come with us. And don’t be embarrassed about Ben. He’s different. There are times I’m not too crazy about him myself.”

  “I really do have things to do at home.”

  “Okay.” Laura gave her a strained smile. “Another time.”

  “Of course.” Jane’s eyes were still moist. “Laura, I never got a chance to tell you this. I never made the time . . . but I am . . . truly sorry about what happened to your daughter.”

  “Thank you.” Laura’s eyes watered. “I appreciate your words.”

  “I don’t know how you cope.” Tears rolled down Jane’s cheeks. “All the pitying looks—”

  “Mom!” Griffen spat out. “Put a sock in it.”

  “Doesn’t it drive you crazy?”

  “Shut up, Mom!” Griffen told her.

  Jane kept on: “The way they look at you like you did something wrong!”

  Laura had stiffened, but kept calm. “You deal with everything one day at a time.”

  Jane clutched her arm. Then the words just came tumbling out. “I lost my daughter, Laura.”

  “Oh my!” Laura was taken aback. “Oh my goodness, you never said anything.” She drew her into an embrace. “I am so sorry, Jane!”

  “Can . . . cer.” She was actively crying. “She was . . . sixteen.”

  Dumbfounded, Haley gawked at Griffen, who simply shrugged. She said, “Why didn’t—”

  Griffen shushed her and pointed to his mother, who was sobbing on Laura’s shoulder.

  “Oh,” Haley said.

  “Yeah.” Griffen rolled his eyes. “Oh.”

  Lilly took them both aside. To Griffen she said, “I’m sorry. How long ago?”

  “Almost three years ago. I was eleven.” Griffen folded his arms across his chest. “To her, I’m still eleven.”

  Haley was dry-eyed. “I was eleven also.”

  “I know.” Griffen looked down. “Haley, my mom swore us to secrecy.” He shuffled his feet. “I’d appreciate if you didn’t tell anyone else. I know my mom. After the confession, she’ll be all embarrassed.”

  “I won’t say anything,” Haley said. A pause. “Does Ben know?”

  “Yeah, Ro told him.”

  “But you didn’t tell me.”

  “It never came up and I didn’t see the need to talk about it.” He was irritated. “To tell you the truth, Mom is right about some things. I hate the pitying looks. I know I wouldn’t get them from you guys, but it’s nice to be just Griffen. A plain dude. Not Griffen with the dead sister.”

  “Is that why you became friends with me? Because I had a dead sister?”

  “No!”

  Lilly said, “Guys, don’t fight.” She looked at the mothers. Laura and Jane were deep in conversation. “Why don’t we let them stay here and we’ll find a coffee shop or something.” A beat. “I’ll go tell them the plans.”

  Haley looked at Griffen. “Ro tells Ben but you don’t tell me?”

  “Ro is Ro and I’m me, and if you don’t like it, that’s just too bad.”

  “Fine.” Haley became wet-eyed.

 
Griffen looked away. “C’mon, Haley. This is crazy.” When she didn’t answer, he said, “C’mon. Pinkie truce?”

  “Oh, fine!” Haley huffed. “Pinkie truce.”

  He offered her a pinkie. She hooked his little finger with her own. Then they both dropped hands. Haley said, “So who do you know that’s fourteen who’s doing it?”

  “Just talking.”

  “No, you’re not. Who?”

  “Russ Lopez. He’s doing Shawnie Baker. You can’t tell anyone. Russ would kill me.”

  “He told you?”

  “Maybe it isn’t true. He could be bragging. Don’t say anything.”

  Lilly came back. “Okay. I told them we’ll be back in a half hour. Let’s go.”

  Haley said, “Did you know that Russ Lopez and Shawnie Baker were doing it?”

  “You won’t tell anyone, huh?” Griffen said.

  “Lilly doesn’t count.”

  “I already knew it.” Lilly hooked one arm with Haley and the other with Griffen. They walked out the door linked together. “Stop being so immature. My father’s first wife was sixteen when they married. She was already knocked up. Sex is just part of life.”

  “I like that,” Griffen said.

  “Shut up, Griff!” Lilly broke away and linked Haley and Griffen together, hand in hand. “I know the score, guys. I know destiny when I see it.”

  Haley blushed and so did Griffen. But they remained holding hands. Lilly grinned. “Let’s get some cappuccinos. I’ll pay.”

  “No, I’ll pay,” Haley said.

  “No, I’ll pay,” Griffen said. “I’m the guy.”

  “No, I’ll pay,” Lilly insisted. “I’m the only one here who can’t trot out the pity card.”

  Chapter 19

  Ortiz had finally made it back an hour later. He was dirty and exhausted, but for the first time in a long time, hopeful. When he came into the interview room, the kid was sitting near the wall with his father on the left. The man introduced himself as William Vicksburg and hands were shaken all around. The father’s suit was pressed and his shirt was wrinkle-free, but his face looked haggard. Not that he appeared nervous, just worn-out. Kids could do that to you in a heartbeat.

  “Are you comfortable?” Ortiz asked Ben and his father.

  “Fine.”

  “Feel better now that your father’s here?”

  “Yes.” Ben was grinding his teeth. He was being given the honor of having two detectives to grill him—Ortiz and McLaren. “Thanks for waiting for my dad.”

  “I had no choice.” Ortiz smiled.

  “No, you didn’t,” William Vicksburg added. “Not that Ben needs me. He’s pretty independent. But I wanted to be here.”

  “No problem with that.” Ortiz focused in on Ben. “Can you just walk me through the day?”

  “Okay.” The kid unfolded then refolded his hands and set them on the table. “I left the house around six.”

  “With the girl? Can you give me her full name?”

  “Dorothy Majors.”

  “So, the two of you decided to go hiking together.”

  “No, she wasn’t originally part of the plan,” Ben said. “She just showed up at my house at five in the morning. I told her a couple of days ago that I was hiking Mount Baldy. It was meant to discourage her from coming to see me. She’s not a hiker. But she just kind of forced her way in.”

  “So why didn’t you just tell her to leave?”

  “I should have.” Ben cleared his throat. “But it seemed easier to let her come. Not to deal with the drama.”

  “Yeah, girls are like that sometimes. They can make you mad.” Ben didn’t say anything. Ortiz said, “Go on.”

  “We left around six.”

  “For Mount Baldy?”

  “No. I never had any intention of hiking Baldy. I lied to her because I didn’t want her with me. I wanted to be alone.”

  “You hike alone often?”

  “All the time. It helps me think.”

  “What do you think about?”

  William said, “That might be getting personal and I don’t see the point in it.”

  “Okay,” Ortiz said. “Now, you arrived at the trailhead at what time?”

  “Around seven thirty.”

  “With Dorothy Majors, the girl.”

  “Yes.”

  “You decided to hike with her anyway.”

  “I didn’t have much choice.”

  “Because you didn’t want to deal with her drama. Go on.”

  The kid was grinding his teeth again. “We ate something and then we started to hike at Master’s trailhead.”

  “But you didn’t hike the trail. You hiked in the backcountry.”

  “I hike in the backcountry all the time. It’s more interesting.”

  “That’s not a smart thing,” McLaren told him.

  “I’m prepared. I can read a compass, Detective. I had bear Mace even though it’s late in the season.”

  “Do you carry a gun?”

  William said, “He’s not answering that.”

  Ortiz said, “If you had this girl with you and she wasn’t an experienced hiker, why would you hike in the backcountry?”

  “Okay.” Ben threw up his hands. “I’m done with the dance. I was looking for Katie Doogan.”

  “I know you were.”

  “Maybe I found her.”

  “Maybe.” Ortiz was casual. “It’s an odd thing to do, Ben.”

  “If you don’t look for something, you’ll never find it, right?”

  “Why are you so interested in finding Katie Doogan?”

  “Because I think her abduction might be related to my sister’s case.”

  “You’re trying to solve your sister’s case?”

  “In a word, yes. I think you know that. And I’ve been about as successful as the police.”

  Ortiz paused. The kid was trying to get under his skin. It was working. “Why do you figure that your sister’s case is related to Katie Doogan’s? Katie may even be alive. We don’t have a body.”

  “Well, you just might have one now. So how about a thank-you?”

  “You like being a hero?”

  William put his hand on his son’s arm. “Do you have a point?”

  Ben said, “I know you’re in contact with the Doogans. You must know that I went with Bryan almost every weekend for about six months to look for his sister because the police simply gave up.”

  Despite himself, Ortiz bristled. “No one gave up, Ben.”

  “Excuse me,” Ben said. “You were allocating your resources to other cases.”

  “Katie Doogan is still an active case,” McLaren said.

  “That depends on your definition of ‘active.’”

  “Ben, take a breath,” William said.

  Good advice for all of them. Ortiz said, “Detective McLaren is correct. Katie Doogan is still an open and active case. And just like Detective Shanks is in contact with you and your family, I am in contact with the Doogan family. You don’t sweep something like this under the rug, Ben.”

  The kid looked away. “Glad to see all of us are on the same page.”

  Ortiz said, “Bryan Doogan is in college now.”

  “I know. We keep in touch.”

  “I know you do. And you’re telling me that you came here to look for Katie Doogan? With the girl.”

  “Dorothy Majors. She tagged along. I really wish she hadn’t done that.”

  “Is she your girlfriend?”

  “No.”

  “So, what’s the deal?” McLaren said.

  “We’re friends.”

  “Would you like her to be more than a friend?”

  William said, “This isn’t relevant, Detective.”

  “Maybe it is . . . looking for a body,” McLaren said. “Maybe you were trying to impress her?”

  “He’s not going to answer that,” William said.

  “I wasn’t trying to impress her,” Ben said. “I didn’t want her there, but I’m happy she cam
e. She saw the area first. Once she pointed it out, I knew we had something.”

  Ortiz said, “When was the last time you searched for Katie Doogan?”

  “I have to think.” A pause. “I went twice in the summer.”

  “And?” McLaren asked.

  “And I didn’t find anything, obviously. As soon as I did spot something, I called the police.” He looked at Ortiz. “You specifically, because it’s your case.”

  “I appreciate that, Ben. Where do you look for Katie? I mean, the Sandias are vast.”

  “I have a log, Detective. Places I’ve tried before. I try not to duplicate my searches.”

  “You have a log?”

  Ben closed his eyes. It was a mistake to mention that. “Yes.”

  “I’d like to see it.”

  Ben turned to his father. William said, “Do you have any objections? If you do, say no.”

  “I don’t like people looking at my stuff.” Silence. Then Ben said, “It’s in my backpack.”

  “Can I look inside your backpack?”

  Ben kicked it over to him under the table. Ortiz bent down and sorted through the teen’s belongings. Ben kept his material organized: walking sticks, compasses, pens, pencils, a camera, an analog waterproof watch, a notebook, a poncho, a change of socks, and a cooler bag of food and water. There was a Swiss Army knife that the police didn’t find when they initially searched his backpack. But it didn’t set off any alarms in Ortiz. If the boy hiked a lot, it was something he’d use all the time. He took out the notebook and scanned the contents.

  Lots of diagrams and coordinates, each one of them with a date and time. There were some notes, and the printing was meticulous: no cross-outs or smears.

  “Can I keep this?”

  “No,” Ben said. “But I’ll make you a copy.”

  “Can I have a copy made while we’re talking to you?”

  “No one touches my stuff except me. I’ll make you a copy later. Please put it back.”

  Ortiz paused. “You’re pretty possessive.” When Ben didn’t answer, the detective put it back and said, “Make me a copy. I did notice that the dates go back to over a year ago.”

  “When Bryan and I first started looking on our own.”

  “What about your sister?”