by Kristi Holl
“Has that changed your plan of action?”
“We are presently reevaluating the evidence, yes. Even though no one on Main Street actually saw the van, I think it may, in fact, have made it through the Two-Mile Stretch and kept going. We plan to broaden our search.”
“Isn’t that a bit late?” Jake’s voice was sharp. “Nearly twenty-four hours have passed since the students disappeared. Couldn’t an abductor have escaped from the country by now?”
The police chief’s eyes flashed. “I won’t speculate on what might have happened.” His clipped words were gritty, like broken glass. “We only deal with facts. When more become available, you’ll hear about it.” He pivoted abruptly and stomped off.
The camera swung toward Jake. “That was Police Chief Reynolds. Ground and air searches reveal that the van is apparently not in the area. Although he can’t speculate, it is accepted fact that the driver, Keith Reeves, is the only one who could have voluntarily driven the van to some unknown location. There are four possibilities. One, Mr. Reeves could be suffering from amnesia or stroke, though that’s highly unlikely. Two, it could be a voluntary disappearance. People sometimes leave home to escape burdensome responsibilities.”
Jeri gritted her teeth. She hoped that Mrs. Reeves wasn’t watching this.
“Three, this could be a kidnapping, with ransom as the purpose. Although an earlier ransom note was a hoax, a genuine note could still come.”
A hoax? What happened?
“And four–and this would be a true nightmare–we could have a multiple murderer who’s dumped all the bodies in some obscure location.”
Jeri thought she might faint. Why did he have to say that? The possibility had flitted around the fuzzy edges of her brain, but now he’d actually put it into words.
“This is Jake Philips, coming to you live from Landmark Hills, Virginia.”
After Lindy shut off the camera, Jeri stormed up to Jake. “Why did you say that about Mr. Reeves? He’s innocent! Hal at the gas station said Mr. Reeves was fixing the van’s engine yesterday. It could be broken down somewhere. He couldn’t have kidnapped those girls or murdered them! You don’t know him.”
“True.” Jake patted her shoulder kindly and then clipped his cell phone to his ear. “Therefore, I’m not prejudiced.”
She grabbed his sleeve. “You don’t understand. Mrs. Reeves probably heard you hint that he’s a murderer.”
“You take things too personally. A reporter has to be objective.”
“I know, but you’re making it sound worse than it is.” Abby stepped forward then and linked arms with Jeri.
Jake shrugged. “Ratings, my dear. People won’t tune in to hear me say there’s nothing new to report.”
Jeri stared at the reporter. That was true, but weren’t reporters just supposed to report facts? Things that had really happened? That reminded her … “What was that about the ransom?”
Abby spoke up then. “It was on the news an hour ago. The note was fake. The police traced it to the boys’ school.” She squeezed her arm. “Actually, the police want to talk to you about it.”
“Me?”
“A boy named Taylor wrote it, and he blamed you.”
“I don’t even know any Taylor!”
“Jonathan passed on your email alert to him. That email was traced back to you.”
“I still don’t get it.” Jeri’s shoulders sagged. “How did that Taylor get Heather’s parents’ email address to send a ransom note?”
“They said he found the address on Mr. Langley’s business website.”
“I can’t believe it.”
“Well, I can!” snapped a familiar voice.
Jeri whipped around to face the livid headmistress. Her words cut through the cold air like a knife. “You’ve done nothing but cause additional trouble–for the school, for the parents, for everyone involved! You invited that reporter, who is sensationalizing everything. The phony ransom note was written by someone who got your email alert. Do you have any idea how that ransom note raised the parents’ hopes, only to have them dashed again? Because of it, Heather’s father is now threatening to withdraw his financial support for our scholarship program. He provides three scholarships, including yours …” She paused and then pointed to Abby. “And hers.”
Each accusation was a bruising hammer blow. If only Jeri could disappear. She felt sick that she’d made things worse for people: Mrs. Reeves, the disappointed parents, and now Abby. She’d tried so hard to help! The pressure inside her chest wall felt like she might explode. What could she say? The Head was right. All her efforts to help had backfired.
Head Long stalked away. Jeri stared at the ground, fighting back tears.
Abby patted her back. “She didn’t mean it. She’s just worried. Heather’s dad is on her case constantly. No wonder Heather wants to run away to Florida.”
Jeri frowned. “Huh?”
“Yup. Florida. She has a friend there.” Abby lowered her voice. “And something else. Mr. Reeves isn’t the only one in that van who can drive. Heather can.”
“No way!” Jeri declared.
“You know her roommate, Shauni? This morning she showed me a letter she found in Heather’s desk. Heather wrote it to a friend in Florida. She talked about some partying they did there last summer and about learning to drive. She said she couldn’t wait to live with her!”
“For real? But why leave school now?”
Abby’s breath made tiny puffs of white. “Because Heather was copying Shauni’s papers and tests. Shauni warned her to stop cheating, but she wouldn’t. Shauni planned to report her on Monday, and Heather knew it.”
Jeri felt a tiny fluttering of hope. “Has Shauni told the police? Or Heather’s parents?”
“No. She said Mrs. Langley was worried enough already, and Heather’s dad is a hothead. Shauni didn’t want to mess with him.”
Jeri hoped she never saw him again herself. “The police should be told though. Parents would rather think a runaway kid stole the van. I don’t think she’d hurt anyone.”
“Probably just dump them somewhere in the boonies … unless she crashed the van first.”
Standing on tiptoe, Jeri spotted Police Chief Reynolds. Grabbing Abby’s arm, they pushed through the crowd to his side. She scanned the area, just in case, but Jake was climbing into his TV van. And the Head was clear down by the last parked car talking to two teachers. Should be safe.
“Need something?” the officer asked.
Jeri quickly told him what she’d learned about Heather. “I bet she’s not dangerous at all. Don’t you think the parents and Mrs. Reeves would feel better if they knew this?”
“Maybe, but I’d need to see that letter.”
“Um, I don’t have it.”
“But you read it?”
“Well, not exactly. I – ”
“Come back when you have some proof.”
Jeri glanced at Abby, who stepped forward reluctantly. “Here it is.” Her hand shook. “Heather’s roommate was afraid to tell Heather’s parents the truth about her.”
“Because it’s a forgery!” thundered Heather’s father directly behind them.
Jeri jumped, and both girls whipped around.
His face was almost purple, and his eyes full of red veins. “Heather can’t drive.” He stuck his face just inches from Abby’s. “What kind of frame-up is this?”
Abby’s hand quivered, making the letter shake. Jeri stepped between them and pulled Abby behind her. Her own knees felt wobbly, but he couldn’t hassle Abby like that.
“Let’s move back, Mr. Langley,” the police chief said. “I know you’re upset. We all are.” He took the man’s arm and forced him to step back. “I’ll look into this. If it’s not your daughter’s handwriting, we’ll know soon enough.”
Heather’s mom stepped forward from behind her husband. “It looks like Heather’s handwriting,” she said quietly. “And it’s true. Heather can drive. She took my car keys at Christmas and we
nt joyriding.”
“No! You never told me this!” Heather’s dad spluttered.
Not hard to figure out why! Jeri thought.
Heather’s dad turned to the police chief and bellowed, “If you go after my daughter, I’ll sue your police force and the school and your whole hick town!”
His yelling drew a crowd, including Lindy with her camera.
Heather’s father pointed at Jeri. “I’ll sue that girl’s parents too! She slandered my daughter! I demand to have her expelled!”
“This mess isn’t Jeri’s fault,” Abby’s voice squeaked. “You can’t single her out.”
“Who are you?” he barked.
“Abby Wright.” Her tiny voice dissipated like mist.
Heather’s father gave her a mean, slanty-eyed grin. “The girl from England?”
Surprise written on her face, Abby nodded.
“I thought so,” he said with satisfaction. “Fine. I won’t single your friend out.” His mustache twitched. “I provide three scholarships for sixth-grade girls. You’re one of them.” He leaned closer. “Correction. You were one of them.”
“Lance, no!” his wife said, grabbing his arm. He shook her off.
By now the commotion had drawn a large crowd. The Head, whose nostrils were pinched so tight they disappeared, took Jeri’s arm and led her away from the crowd. Then she turned. “That’s the last straw. Stop talking to the parents. Stop giving interviews. Stop ‘helping.’ “ She bent down and stared into Jeri’s eyes. “Leave the area now.”
Jeri was too shaken to reply. From out of nowhere, Ms. Carter appeared and put an arm around her. “I’ll find other things for her to do,” she assured the headmistress. “Come along.” They walked several yards away before she
whispered, “I’m sorry. Everyone’s nerves are stretched so tight. Miss Barbara can take you back to the dorm.”
“Okay.”
“Can you do me a favor when you get there?” asked Ms. Carter.
Jeri nodded, staring at her boots. Her ankle was throbbing worse, and her toes had gone numb.
“Tell Houston I cancelled our trail ride for this afternoon. I tried the Equestrian Center, but he’s not by the phone. Look for him in one of the corrals.”
“I will.”
Ms. Carter pulled Jeri close. “You didn’t cause this crisis, and you can’t control what other people say and do.” She leaned back and looked Jeri in the eye. “I know you. You have a good, caring heart.”
A lump formed in Jeri’s throat, and tears threatened to spill over. She blinked them back. “Can I get my bike? The wheel’s bent.”
“I’ll help you. I’m sure it’ll fit in Miss Barbara’s trunk.”
Five minutes later Jeri was huddled inside the assistant’s car, the heater blowing blasts of cold air. She’d never felt so defeated and unwanted and misunderstood and disliked in her life.
7
a snowy excursion
Friday, 3:09 p.m. to 7:18 p.m.
Miss Barbara removed Jeri’s bent bike from her trunk, and Jeri limped into Hampton House. The assistant grabbed a granola bar before returning to the Stretch. When Jeri walked into her room, she noticed that her answering machine was blinking. She pressed the button. Her mom’s voice filled the room, and Jeri nearly sobbed. If only she’d been here to get the call!
“Hi, Honey. Sorry I missed you. I expect you’re still out searching. I’m praying constantly for you all.” Jeri frowned. Her mom’s voice sounded odd. “I was told today that my company reduced my territory. That’s a pay cut, but I know the Lord will provide. Let’s pray for a full scholarship for you for next year. I’m not sure I’ll be able to pay even half the tuition. We’ll talk later, Sweetie. Love you!”
Jeri sank to her bed. She couldn’t believe it. The very day she alienates Mr. Langley–the man behind her scholarship–is the day her mom says Jeri needs even more financial help.
Rubbing her neck, she listened to the wind whistle through the pines outside. She couldn’t sit there and do nothing! Time was running out fast to find Mr. Reeves and the girls alive. She could at least deliver Ms. Carter’s message to Houston. She pulled on heavier wool socks, then her hiking boots. Her boot pressed hard against her swollen ankle. Grabbing her coat, striped scarf, and dry mittens, she limped down the stairs. Outside, she made her way north across the snowy campus toward the Equestrian Center.
As she came around a storage shed for lawn mowers and snowblowers, she spotted a familiar dark coat and blue-and-red striped stocking cap ahead. “Jake!”
Jake stopped and turned.
“Where are you going?” she asked.
“The infirmary.”
Jeri caught up with him. “Why? Are you hurt?”
“No, but some rescue workers are. Frostbite. Exposure.”
“Miss Barbara said the windchill’s supposed to be minus twelve tonight.”
Jake whistled. “Frostbite’s deadly. If your skin freezes, your flesh turns black and falls off,” he said with relish. “Sometimes fingers and toes have to be amputated.”
Jeri shuddered. “No one’s hurt that bad, are they?”
“Maybe not,” Jake admitted. “But if they get that bad, I’ll be the first to report it.”
Or make it up? Jeri wondered, recalling the Head’s anger at Jake sensationalizing the news. However, she clapped her mittens together and stomped her feet in case he was right. She preferred to keep all her fingers and toes. “Where’s Lindy?”
“Down at the lake, filming background stuff mostly. I drove the TV van up here.”
“Hey, Lindy said you were in Rock River and didn’t drive all night from Connors to get here.”
Jake raised one eyebrow. “I never said we did. We were just a couple hours away when you called.”
Jeri’s mouth fell open. She could swear … Jake stared down at her, as if daring her to argue. Instead, she pulled the voice-activated recorder from her pocket. She rewound it a few seconds, then hit “play.”
“No one’s hurt that bad, are they?”
“Maybe not. But if they get that bad, I’ll be the first to report it.”
There was silence, then clapping and stomping sounds.
“Hey, Lindy said you were in Rock River and didn’t drive all night from Connors to get here.”
“I never said we did. We were just a couple hours away when you called.”
Jeri clicked off the recorder. “I borrowed this from the media lab for interviewing people. If you did tell me you drove six hours to get here, it’s somewhere on this tape.”
Jake stared at her, and Jeri tried to stare back without blinking. She honestly didn’t think his earlier comment was on the recorder because he’d told her over the phone. Hopefully Jake wouldn’t remember.
Jake’s voice was cold. “It’s illegal to tape someone without their knowledge. If you use it, you’ll be arrested.” He left without another word.
Jeri watched till he disappeared around the corner of the science building. Then, head down against the wind, she plodded over to the Equestrian Center. She hoped Houston was inside the warm barn and she wouldn’t have to hunt for him outside.
She shoved the sliding door far enough to slip inside, then dragged it closed. Ahhh … warm air. She sniffed the hay and horses and leather. It reminded Jeri of summers spent on her grandparents’ Iowa farm.
“Houston?” Bright lights lit the indoor ring, several inches deep with sawdust, but he wasn’t there. She started down one aisle. Rows of stalls held horses of all breeds, who were mostly yanking hay from mesh bags or slurping water from buckets. Around the corner, she passed the tack room, with its rows of saddles, bridles, and blankets.
The giant clock on the wall, shaped like a horse head, read 3:30 already. “Houston?”
“Yeah?”
She found him mucking out a stall. “Ms. Carter said to tell you she cancelled the trail ride for today.”
Houston tossed a forkful of dirty straw into a wheelbarrow and then leaned
on his pitchfork. “C-c-can’t say I’m surprised.” His face was all sharp angles, with deep-set eyes in shadow under his heavy brows. “Not with everything g-g-going on.”
Jeri nodded, almost numb from thinking about Rosa and praying for Rosa and worrying about Rosa. Could it really have only been twenty-four hours since the van disappeared?
“Did you know Rosa was one of the girls missing?”
“Yup, and I’m sorry.” He tossed another load into the wheelbarrow. “She’s a nice g-g-girl, not like those rich snobs.”
Jeri shifted uncomfortably. She knew he meant girls like Nikki who made fun of how he looked and talked.
“How’s Prancer?” Jeri asked.
Houston removed his hat, wiped his forehead, and replaced it. “Prancer picked up a rock yesterday. He’s limping a bit today.”
“Rats.” Jeri always rode Prancer. He was an older horse, and he didn’t try to rub her off against a fence or break away on trail rides and gallop off. “Is it bad?”
“Nothing a little rest won’t c-c-cure.” He grinned. “Or a handful of oats from his favorite rider.”
“Okay. I think I will.” Jeri recalled when the center had inherited Prancer and a dozen other horses last fall. In fact, that’s how she’d gotten to know Houston. “Remember when I went along to pick up the horses donated by that widow who moved away?”
“Yup.” Houston grinned briefly. “Wish someone would g-g-give me free horses! I’d start my own stable.” He wiped his calloused hands on his jeans. “Well, if the trail ride’s c-c-cancelled, I’ll put the trailer away and g-g-go help with the search again.”
Jeri waved to Houston and then went to feed a handful of oats to Prancer. Stroking his nose, she glanced out the window to the woods up the hill behind the horse barn. It was part of the Landmark School campus. They rode horses there year-round.
If the van had made it through the Two-Mile Stretch, couldn’t it be hidden up there in the woods? The towering, thick evergreens could easily keep the van from being seen from a helicopter. After the police called off the search and got rid of the barricades, a van hidden there could safely drive out.
