Beach Town

by Mary Kay Andrews

  She switched over to the other line. It was Bryce.

  “I see I have a missed call from you. What is it now?”

  “Sorry, I’ll make it short. Listen, have you seen Allie Thibadeaux around the set today?”

  “The mayor’s kid? No. I thought you said she wasn’t allowed.”

  “She’s not. But Eb just called. She didn’t show up for work at the Inn today, and nobody else has seen her, either. The mayor is worried she might be with Kregg. She hasn’t been with him, right?”

  “I’m not Kregg’s babysitter,” Bryce said. “Anyway, Kregg hasn’t been on set today. We’ve been shooting the scenes with Adelyn and the sheriff all afternoon.”

  “But have you seen Kregg today? At all?”

  “No. Look, I gotta go. I’ve got my guy on the coast on hold.”

  “Wait! Bryce, I don’t have a phone number for Kregg. Could you please do me a huge favor and call and ask him about Allie? The mayor is really upset.”

  “Come on, Greer. I don’t have time to play these games. I told him to stay away from that girl. That’s the end of it as far as I’m concerned.”

  “She’s a kid, Bryce. Seventeen years old. And she’s missing. This isn’t a game.”

  “One call. I’m making a film here, not running a day care.”

  “Thanks. You’ll call me and let me know what he says?”

  “Whatever.”

  * * *

  Greer felt helpless. She called her best friend while she steered the golf cart back toward the motel.

  “CeeJay? Have you by any chance seen Allie Thibadeaux today?”

  “No. Zena already asked me about her, though. What’s up?”

  “She’s missing. Lied and told her aunt she was working at the Inn, but never showed up there. Eb’s worried she might be with Kregg. And I’ve got an awful feeling he could be right. Bryce says Kregg wasn’t working today.”

  “Yeah, that’s right. I haven’t seen him. What can I do to help, honey?”

  “Are you done for the day?”

  “Thank God, yes. I was just about to head back to the motel.”

  “Feel like running a covert op with me?” Greer asked.

  “Whatever it is, I’m in,” CeeJay said.

  “Good. Meet me back at the motel in ten and I’ll fill you in on the way. What are you wearing?”

  “Why, is there a dress code?”

  “No, but it’d be helpful if you looked, um, sexy.”

  “Since it was one hundred ten degrees in the shade today I’m wearing the least amount of clothes I could legally get away with. Although, I must warn you, I smell like a goat.”

  “All good,” Greer said.

  Her phone rang again, and she saw that it was Bryce calling back.

  “Kregg’s phone went right to voice mail,” he reported. “I left him a message telling him he’d better not be with any underage girls. Where are you? I was thinking we could have a dinner meeting at Van’s place tonight to discuss strategy.”

  “I’m still tying up some loose ends at city hall,” Greer lied. “Can we meet tomorrow? I’ve still got a lot on my plate tonight.”

  “Have you seen tomorrow’s call sheet? We’re starting at sunup, at the casino. I’ll see you then.”

  * * *

  CeeJay hopped into the Kia’s front seat. She appeared to be wearing an orange tube top that barely covered her assets.

  “What’s the plan?” she asked, as Greer swung the car on to Pine Street.

  “I’m worried that Allie might be hiding out over at Kregg’s house. Bryce tried calling him, but he’s not answering his phone. So I thought we’d run by there and check it out.”

  CeeJay hoisted her tube top up so that it was covering one more fraction of an inch of her boobs. “Let me guess. I’m some kind of decoy?”

  “Not sure,” Greer admitted. “If Kregg’s there, and his bodyguards are there, I’ll need you to sweet-talk your way in the door, to look for Allie, since Kregg’s probably not my biggest fan.”

  “And if he isn’t there?” CeeJay asked.

  “Let’s play it by ear,” Greer said.

  * * *

  When they reached the guard shack at Bluewater Bay, Greer lowered her window to speak to Marvin, the off-duty cop who was working security. CeeJay leaned forward and waved at the guard. “Hey, Marv!”

  Marvin smiled broadly. “Hi, Miss CeeJay! Where have you been this week?”

  “Oh, here and there,” CeeJay said. “Hey, Marvin, do you happen to know if Kregg’s at his house right now?”

  “I came on duty at two and I haven’t seen him go in or out,” the guard said. “You want me to call up to his house to check if he’s home?”

  Greer and CeeJay exchanged a glance. Greer nodded.

  “Yes, please.”

  A moment later Marvin walked out of the shack and back to the Kia. “Nobody’s answering on the house phone, but you know that gang of his. They might be out at the pool, as hot as it is today.”

  “Okay. We’ll just run up there and check,” CeeJay said.

  * * *

  There were no cars in the driveway at Kregg’s leased waterfront home. “No Hummer,” CeeJay noted. “Which means the posse must be out.”

  “And no Porsche,” Greer added. “Which means Kregg’s not home, right?”

  “Probably,” CeeJay agreed. “Kregg and his homeys like to shoot hoops at the city park, but they usually don’t start playing until after dark, because of the heat.”

  “Although maybe the bodyguards took the Porsche and the Hummer,” Greer said worriedly. “I wish I knew if they were together. Guess we should take a look around back, to see if Kregg’s back there in the pool with Allie.”

  “I’ll go check it out,” CeeJay volunteered. “If Kregg is there, I’ll just tell him Bryce sent me over to deliver a message about tomorrow’s shoot. I doubt he realizes Bryce and I are no longer an item.” She pointed to the vacant house next door, with the large FOR SALE sign in the front yard. “Park in the driveway over there and play lookout, okay? If the guys roll up while I’m still back there, call my cell.”

  She plucked her phone from her pocketbook, tucked it into her cleavage, and climbed out of the car.

  Greer pulled into the circular driveway at the vacant house, parking with the Kia pointed in the opposite direction, on the off chance that Kregg’s bodyguards might notice a strange car parked there.

  It was after six, but still ferociously hot, so she kept the Kia’s motor and air conditioning running. She trained her eyes on the road, hoping no cars would approach. After fifteen minutes, she started to worry. What was taking CeeJay so long? What if Kregg was in the pool, or in the house? Would he believe whatever pretext CeeJay came up with? And if he didn’t believe it, what would he do?”

  She felt sweat beading up on her neck, dripping down her back. After thirty minutes, she felt so anxious she knew she had to do something. She drove slowly up the driveway at Kregg’s house, so that CeeJay would have a fast getaway, if need be. Her heart thudded in her chest, and the palms of her hands were slick with perspiration.

  Greer was glancing in her rearview mirror for the hundredth time, when the passenger-side door opened and CeeJay slid onto the seat.

  “Let’s go,” CeeJay said calmly.

  “What took you so long?” Greer fretted. “I was afraid you were being held hostage or something.”

  “I was being thorough,” CeeJay said. “I went up to the deck, just to see what I could see, and I noticed that the French doors were unlocked. I might have thought I heard somebody tell me to come on in. And I might have looked all over the house, just to check it out.”

  “You broke into Kregg’s place? What about Kregg’s bodyguards? What if one of them had walked in on you? Not to mention, I think that house has a security system. What if the cops showed up?”

  “I thought he invited me in,” CeeJay said. “Turns out I was mistaken. Nobody was home. No bodyguards. As for the cops, I was in a
nd out in five minutes. But Kregg better hope the law doesn’t show up at his place. He’s got bongs and weed scattered all over the place, and a cute little coke stash in his medicine cabinet.”

  “You checked his medicine cabinet? Are you insane? I just wanted you to check for his car, I didn’t ask you to do a search and seizure.”

  “I had a headache, and I went looking for an aspirin,” CeeJay said airily. “It’s not my fault if the guy has absolutely no imagination. Or discretion.”

  “Did it look like a teenage girl might have been there earlier?”

  “I didn’t see any Taylor Swift CDs lying around, if that’s what you’re asking,” CeeJay said. “It just looked like your typical piggish man cave—beer cans and pizza boxes all over the place, the biggest flat-screen TV I’ve ever seen, a weight bench, like that.”

  “Slow down,” CeeJay said, as they approached Bryce’s house. “I want to see if Miss Richy McBitchy’s Jeep is there.”

  Both women craned their necks as they passed the house. But the driveway was empty. “Nobody home,” Greer commented.

  “Hmm,” CeeJay said. “Maybe I should run inside and ransack his place, too.” She sighed dramatically. “Probably not necessary. I know he’s sleeping with her.”

  Greer gave her a sympathetic glance. “I thought you were over Bryce.”

  “I am. Totally. Okay, semi-totally. I knew he was a player when I hooked up with him, but like the dumb bunny I am, I talked myself into believing that true love and great sex could make Bryce change his ways.”

  “Not so much, huh?”

  “Players gonna play,” CeeJay said. “To tell you the truth, I’m mostly bummed because it means I’ve got to move again, when we’re done with this gig.”

  “Since you brought it up,” Greer said, “Bryce wanted me to meet with him for dinner at Vanessa’s house tonight, so we could discuss our strategy for getting the damned demo permit for the casino.”

  “What did you say?” CeeJay asked.

  “I lied and told him I had some other loose ends to tie up for tomorrow’s shoot,” Greer said.

  When they reached the security gate, Marvin waved and stepped out of the guard booth. Greer rolled the window down and he leaned in.

  “Hey, Miss CeeJay, Dooley, the guy who works morning shift, just came by to pick up his paycheck, and I asked him if he’d seen Kregg or his bodyguards today. He said Kregg left out of here before nine. He was alone, and driving the Hummer, and he thought that was kinda odd, ’cuz since he bought the Porsche, his bodyguards usually drive the big car. Kregg hasn’t been back all day.”

  “Thanks, Marv,” CeeJay gave the guard a finger-wave.

  * * *

  “Well, that was fun,” CeeJay said brightly, as Greer pulled into the parking lot at the motel. “Almost like high school days with my tight girls, rolling past the head cheerleader’s crib. All we’re missing is some toilet paper and shaving cream.”

  “Maybe we can TP Vanessa’s house when this shoot is over,” Greer promised.

  “Where are you headed now?” CeeJay asked. “You’re not gonna just drive around town looking for the kid, right?”

  “No, but I can’t just sit in my room, waiting to hear something,” Greer said. “I’m going over to Eb’s place to see if he’s heard anything.”

  “Let me know,” CeeJay said.

  * * *

  When her phone rang again, she snatched it up.

  “Have you heard anything?” Eb asked. “Have any of your folks seen her?”

  “No and no,” Greer said. “Kregg wasn’t on set today, and CeeJay and I just drove over to Bluewater Bay. No sign of her at Kregg’s house.… Has Allie ever done anything like this before?”

  “No! But then, she’s never been this pissed off at us before. God, this is like a nightmare.”

  “Did you check her room, to see if there’s anything missing? I mean, if she’s really run away…”

  “Allie’s room is your typical teenage rat nest,” he said. “It looks like a bomb went off in there, but that’s how it always looks. Damned if I can tell if there’s anything missing. Ginny says Allie’s suitcase is still in the closet. And her iPod is still on her dresser, if that means anything.”

  “How about her purse? And her phone?”

  “I took her phone away, remember? Anyway, Allie usually carries a little backpack thing. It’s not at Ginny’s.”

  “How about her computer? Does she have a laptop?”

  “Her laptop is at Ginny’s.”

  “Does Allie have any money? Or a credit card?”

  “No credit card. We’d talked about getting her one, once she buys a car, just for emergencies. As for money … yeah, she’s been saving her money from waitressing for two years, for a car. I’m cosigner on her bank account, and I went online and checked—she hasn’t made any withdrawals. But she also hasn’t deposited her last paycheck, which was for about one hundred fifty bucks. She also has tip money, which she usually keeps in a jar and uses for walking-around money.”

  “So she’s got a little money, but not a lot.” Greer hesitated. “Eb, you don’t think … I mean, there’s no chance, right, that something really bad has happened?”

  “I called Chief Bottoms as soon as we realized Allie was gone,” he said abruptly. “She’s got patrol cars out looking for Allie. We’ve never had anything like this happen around here. This is Cypress Key, for God’s sake. Who would take her? And why? We’re not the Rockefellers.… I still think she’s with that son of a bitch Kregg.”

  “She’s not with him right now,” Greer said. “CeeJay kind of let herself into Kregg’s place. She walked all around the house and checked and didn’t see any sign a girl had been there.”

  “Breaking and entering? I like her style,” Eb said.

  “We also talked to the cop at the guard shack, and he said Kregg left there around nine this morning in the Hummer. Alone, and without his usual posse.”

  “If I get my hands on that punk…”

  “I don’t blame you,” Greer said. “Have you talked to Allie’s best friend yet?”

  “I just called Gail. Tristin is on the way back from Gainesville, and their bus should be dropping the girls off at the high school any minute now. Which is where I plan to be. I better go. I need to keep this line open, just in case Allie calls.”

  “I understand,” Greer said.

  43

  It was nearly seven when she drove alongside Eb’s pickup truck in the parking lot at the high school. He stood leaning against the hood, arms folded across his chest. He wore jeans and a collared golf shirt. He raised one eyebrow as she got out of the car and walked over to join him.

  “I thought maybe I could help,” Greer said shyly. “I hope you don’t mind.”

  He shrugged.

  “If Allie really has gone off with Kregg, I feel responsible.”

  He pushed his glasses off the end of his nose and sighed. “What did you have in mind?”

  “Maybe let me talk to Tristin? I mean, you’re the mayor, and Allie’s uncle, and you can be kind of an imposing authority figure. I was thinking we could play good cop/bad cop.”

  “I’m the bad cop?”

  “Somebody has to be.” Greer leaned up against the bumper. “Any thoughts about where Allie would have gone? If she actually is with Kregg?”

  “I hope to God I’m wrong,” he said grimly. “I think she might have gone to Starke.”

  “The prison? Where her dad is?”

  “Was. Ginny had the same idea. She checked with the state corrections department. Jared was released at noon today.”

  Before Greer had a chance to process that thought, a short yellow school bus rumbled into the parking lot. A few minutes later the doors opened, and two dozen tanned and chattering teenage girls started spilling out into the concrete lot.

  Eb pointed to a pretty girl with blond-streaked brown hair worn in a ponytail. She wore a sleeveless white T-shirt and bright green gym shorts that showed off
long, lean legs. She had a Cypress Key High School logo gym bag slung over one shoulder and earbuds dangling around her neck. “That’s Tristin.”

  The girl started walking toward a green VW Beetle.

  “Hey, Tristin,” Eb called. “Can we talk to you for a minute?”

  Tristin approached slowly. “Hey, Mr. Thibadeaux,” she said, her voice meek. “I, uh, kinda have to get home. My mom’s waiting on me.” She adjusted the strap of her gym bag.

  “This won’t take very long,” Eb said. “I think you know why we wanted to see you. Allie’s missing.”

  The girl’s expressive brown eyes widened. “For reals?”

  “She didn’t show up for work today. Do you know anything about that? Do you know where she’s gone?”

  “No sir,” Tristin said quickly. “I’ve been at soccer camp all week.”

  “She didn’t call or text you to tell you her plans?”

  Tristin stared down at her feet. She wore bright pink Havaiana flip-flops, and her toenails were painted neon green to match her shorts. “Um, no.”

  “Tristin, could you look at me, please? This is serious. I need to know where Allie went today. Is she with Kregg?”

  “I don’t know,” Tristin said. Her eyes darted from Eb to Greer. “Allie doesn’t tell me everything.”

  “Come on,” Eb said bluntly. “You two talk on the phone ten times a day. You’re texting each other constantly. I don’t believe she wouldn’t tell her best friend if she was planning something like this.”

  “Like what?” Tristin flipped a strand of hair behind one ear. Her fingernails were painted green, too, with tiny white smiley faces etched on each one. “Anyway, she couldn’t call me, because you took her phone. Right?”

  Eb gave a snort of frustration. Greer shot him a warning glance.

  “But maybe Allie got a new phone,” Greer said gently. “Maybe Kregg gave her one?”

  “No. I mean, I don’t know.” Tristin shifted her weight from one foot to the other. “I really have to get home, Mr. Thibadeaux.”

  Greer decided to take another tack.

  “Tristin, we know you’re trying to be loyal to Allie. You’re her best friend, right? You don’t want to rat her out. We get that. But we think she’s really in a dangerous place right now. How about this? We’ll tell you what we think is going on, and you just tell us if we’re right. Okay?”