An Iron Fist, Two Harbors

by Dennis Herschbach

  “My name is Jeff DeAngelo, sheriff of Lake County. I’d like to ask you a couple of questions.” Storder smirked and held out his hands palms up, a motion Deidre took to mean “Go ahead.” Jeff continued. “The beginning of May, a young lady disappeared in Two Harbors.”

  Before he could continue, Storder asked, “So, what’s that got to do with me?”

  “I’ve checked. You grew up in Two Harbors.”

  “So did a lot of guys.”

  “You get back there quite a bit. Maybe once every two weeks or so.”

  “Yeah, well, even I know it’s not a crime to visit your hometown.”

  Deidre thought Jeff was doing a remarkable job of not losing his cool. “I’ve checked at the restaurant and bar where this young woman was a waitress.” Deidre cringed when he said “was.” Jeff continued. “Employees say you spend quite a bit of time there when you’re in town.”

  “It’s a great place to sit and have a few. Great view of the lake, not too crowded. Peaceful, if you know what I mean.” He grinned at Jeff, and Deidre felt Ben squirm in his chair beside her.

  “This young lady disappeared the second week of May.”

  Storder interrupted Jeff. “You’re wasting your time, Sheriff. I don’t think you’re going to charge me with anything right now. You’re just on a fishing expedition, because if you had anything against me but a guess, you’d be reading me my rights by now.”

  “We’ve got the testimony of the guy who picked you up the night you got rid of her car,” Jeff bluffed, watching for a reaction.

  Storder didn’t flinch. “Oh, yeah. And he identified me?”

  Jeff didn’t answer.

  “Now how about you quit wasting your time and mine? I got other problems right now.” Storder smirked, and Deidre saw Jeff ’s shoulders tense. He called for the guard to take the prisoner away.

  In the parking lot, Jeff said to Deidre and Ben, “I’m sorry to have drug you down here for that. Damn, I was hoping he’d give some kind of reaction, but he’s a tough nut to crack. He seemed pretty cocksure of himself. If he’s bluffing, he’s better at it than I am. Did either of you get a read on anything that I missed?”

  Deidre laid her hand on his arm. “Hey, nothing to be sorry about. Thank you for what you’re doing. We know you haven’t given up on Maren’s case. If this had worked out, it would have put a lot of ghosts to rest. I appreciate your keeping us in the loop. Thank you.” She gave her friend and former colleague a hug. Ben put his arm around Jeff ’s shoulders and mumbled, “Yeah, thanks.”

  Ben decided to call it a day and go home, and Deidre rode with him. She opened the sunroof and let the August air blow through her hair. She closed her eyes and became lost in her thoughts.

  “I don’t know what to think anymore, Deidre. Secretly, I was hoping he’d deny any involvement with Maren. Then I wished he’d have confessed and the whole thing would be over. Now I’m back to hoping it’s proven that Storder had nothing to do with it. That way I can go on believing Maren is still alive somewhere and that she’s going to be rescued any day. Sometimes, in the evening, when I’m sitting alone outside, I think I see her walking up the driveway to me. That must sound insane to you.”

  Deidre sat more upright, and the wind from the open sunroof caused her blonde hair to whip around her face.

  “Right now, nothing you think is insane. Everything about Maren’s disappearance is insane, but you aren’t. None of us are. Believe me, I know,” she thought of Ben’s first wife, “and so do you. There’s a fine line between grief and insanity. After John was killed, my world fell apart. I’m sure yours did too, after Jenny died. What’s different for me this time, is that I have you, and I hope you feel the same way about me.” She paused. “Awhile ago, I talked to Pastor Ike.”

  Before she could continue, Ben took his eyes off the road and looked at her for an instant. “You did?” he asked, surprised. “What did you talk about?”

  “I wanted to know where I would get the strength to make it through this time. Know what he said?” She continued before Ben could respond. “He quoted something from the Bible. I don’t remember his exact words, but they were something like this. ‘A single cord might be strong, but a three-strand rope is almost impossible to break.’ Then he said you and I are two strands. He urged me to let God be the third. Honestly, I don’t know how to do that, but I know you and I are a two-strand rope. Throw in the boys and Megan, we add a few more cords. We’ve got Jeff and Danielle, other friends, and Pastor Ike. We’ll make it through. We have no other choice.”

  Deidre reached over and rubbed Ben’s arm, and she saw he was silently weeping for his lost daughter.

  Chapter

  Twenty-Six

  IT WAS A RESTLESS NIGHT for Deidre. Ben quickly drifted off to sleep, but she lay awake, listening to his regular breathing. Once in awhile he would mutter, and she figured he was having a bad dream. Deidre first turned to lie on her right side and curled her knees into a fetal position. Minutes later she flopped to her left side and stretched her legs out. That wasn’t comfortable, either. Eventually she ended up on her back, her head propped up on the folded pillow, staring at the ceiling, which reflected the dim illumination of their night light. Deidre tried, but couldn’t stop the thoughts that streamed through her mind.

  Jamie Storder certainly fit the profile of a person who could have abducted and done away with Maren. She visualized his callousness and the sneer on his face when Jeff was interviewing him, and she found herself becoming agitated when she recalled his words. She wondered why, if he wasn’t guilty, he hadn’t denied any involvement. Then she thought he might be just the kind of person who would try to cause as much distress to as many people as he could, like making her and Ben think they might be looking at their daughter’s assailant.

  Her mind wandered to their decision the past evening not to call Dave and tell him about Storder. She and Ben had decided there was no use getting him worked up over a lead that seemed to be a dead end.

  Deidre thought of something Megan had told her about the women’s shelter and Maren, and then her mind flitted to Dave’s jacket still hanging in the back of the downstairs coat closet. She’d try to remember to give it to him the next time he came to see them. She looked at the clock, which read 2:51 a.m. She still hadn’t fallen asleep, so she slipped out of bed, careful not to disturb Ben, and quietly made her way to the kitchen. She was preparing a cup of chamomile tea when she sensed someone looking at her, and she turned to see Ben standing in the doorway.

  “Couldn’t sleep, huh? he asked.

  “Not a wink. Thought I’d better get up before I woke you. Didn’t work, I guess.”

  Ben sat on one of the stools and rested his elbows on the breakfast bar. “I was awake when you got out of bed. Had a dream that Jamie Storder was ready to confess to Maren’s murder, but at the last minute he laughed at everybody in the room and said, ‘Sorry, folks. I was just foolin’ with your heads.’ I woke up just before you left and couldn’t get back to sleep.”

  “Want a cup of tea?” Deidre offered. “It’s chamomile. Supposed to help you sleep. Seems like all it ever does for me is make me need the bathroom, but I thought I’d give it a try tonight.”

  “Sure. Why not. Like they say, the family that runs together, stays together.”

  They sat up for the next hour, talking. Deidre had come to a conclusion she decided to share with Ben.

  “I’m going about nuts waiting for something to break on Maren’s disappearance, and I’ve decided I can’t be passive any longer. I’m going to start looking into things on my own. I’ll start by talking to the waitresses and waiters at the restaurant. Maybe I can get a better handle on this Storder guy. Also, I want to check with Megan about something she said a long time ago. She told me she thought Maren had an appointment scheduled with the women’s shelter a while ago. When I checked with the shelter, the person answering the phone knew nothing about it, or couldn’t tell me about it. I want to find out if Megan to
ld me that or if I just imagined it. Then, too, I think we made a mistake not telling Dave about Storder. He deserves to know, and I’m going to invite him to dinner tonight so we can fill him in. We haven’t seen him for quite a few days, and I’d kind of like to make sure he’s doing okay.”

  Ben and Deidre finally decided to go back to bed, and they managed a couple hours of sleep before the alarm went off.

  *****

  DEIDRE STUMBLED AROUND the kitchen thinking she must look like a zombie, if there was such a thing. Her eyes were puffy and her hair was a mess. Ben was no better. He sat at the table, a bowl of cold cereal in front of him, and stared at it for several seconds before picking up his spoon. Black coffee didn’t help a bit. Both of them silently lamented the night of missed sleep. Somehow, Ben got out the door and headed to the FBI office in Duluth.

  Deidre thought of going back to bed, but before she could act on that thought, Steve and Jack thundered down the stairs looking fit and ready to jumpstart the day.

  “What’s for breakfast?” one of them asked. Deidre didn’t know which boy had spoken, and at the moment, she didn’t care.

  “How about cereal this morning?” she suggested, hoping to get off easy.

  “Naw,” Steve balked. “We’ve had that two days in a row, and I’d like something warm. How about omelets?”

  “How about oatmeal?” Deidre bargained.

  Jack laughed. “Meet us halfway with French toast?”

  Deidre couldn’t help but laugh at the exchange. “Okay, French toast. Bacon with that?”

  “Fried lunchmeat,” Steve finished the deal.

  By the time the French toast was fried and the lunchmeat was in the skillet, Deidre was beginning to feel hungry, and when they began to eat, she had to admit the food tasted good. She finished her third cup of coffee, and checked with the boys.

  “I’m going to be busy most of the day. What can we do to keep you two out of trouble?”

  “You could drop us off at the pool hall,” Steve suggested with a twinkle in his eye.

  Deidre ruffed up his hair. “Oh, I could, could I? Maybe you’d better come up with another idea.”

  Jack suggested they get dropped off at Grandma and Grandpa’s. Maybe he’d take them fishing or something. Deidre thought that sounded like a better idea.

  It was midmorning when they finally got rolling, and going on eleven when she left her in-laws’ house. She looked up the address of one of the waitresses Maren had worked with and called ahead. When she arrived at the small, rented house, the young lady was waiting for her.

  “Hi, Jessica. Thanks so much for seeing me. Like I told you on the phone, I’m Maren’s mom. Can I ask you some questions about her?” Jessica invited her in, and Deidre immediately felt at home in the cozy house.

  “What can I tell you?” Jessica asked after offering Deidre a cup of coffee, which she refused.

  “I’d like to know whatever you can tell me about one of the customers who frequents the bar at the restaurant where you work.”

  Before she could continue, Jessica cut her off. “I don’t think I should talk about our customers. You know, what happens at the bar, stays at the bar. I could lose my job if management found out I’ve been talking.”

  “I understand. Believe me, I do.” Deidre knew she was asking a lot from the waitress whose meager-paying job could be placed in jeopardy. “But this person I want to know about is a bad customer.” She realized she had made an unintended pun. Thankfully, it either went over Jessica’s head or she chose to ignore it. “He’s in the St. Louis County jail, charged with rape and attempted murder. Some of us believe he might have been involved in Maren’s disappearance. I’m asking for your help. I promise that anything you say will be kept between you and me. Please.”

  Jessica thought for a moment before nodding. Deidre took that to mean she’d talk.

  “The person I’m interested in is Jamie Storder. I can’t really give you a description of him. He’s just an average-looking guy, about six-two, slim, athletic looking. He has neatly trimmed hair. He has quite an attitude, which made me feel creepy just looking at him.”

  She watched Jessica’s face redden and saw a look of repulsion cross it.

  “I know him. All of us girls who work at the restaurant do.”

  Deidre immediately picked up on the fact that Jessica wouldn’t have much good to say about Jamie. “Just tell me your impression of him.”

  “He’s a first-class jerk,” Jessica blurted out. “He thinks he’s a real ladies man, hits on anything that walks and has boobs. Gives me the creeps. He always has his hands going, on our shoulders, behind our backs, and if we don’t move away from him they begin to wander, if you know what I mean.”

  Deidre didn’t quite know where to go from there. She finally asked, “Do you think he could be dangerous?”

  “He scares me and most of the other waitresses.”

  “Did you ever talk to management about him?”

  Jessica gave a sarcastic snort. “She said there was nothing that could be done, because Jamie hadn’t broken any law. She wasn’t terribly supportive, just told us to serve him from behind the bar, and not give him a chance to touch us.”

  Deidre didn’t tell her the manager was probably right, but she continued to ask questions. “Did Maren ever come in contact with him?”

  “Oh, yeah. She seemed to be his favorite target. He was always throwing suggestive remarks her way. He would sit with his back leaning on the bar and watch her as she waited tables. You could see his stare following her wherever she went. We talked to her about it, and told her to be careful when she left work.”

  “Speaking of that, was Jamie at the bar the night Maren went missing?”

  “I’m sorry. I don’t really know the exact day of Maren’s disappearance, and anyway, that was over two months ago. I can’t tell you who was in the bar two weeks ago, let alone two months.”

  “Were you working the night Maren tripped on the stairs?” Deidre switched to another train of thought.

  “Yeah, I was helping take down some of the decorations, heard a loud thump, and she let out a cry. Then I heard her hit the wall. We thought for sure she had broken a bone or something. But she got up and said she was getting clumsy in her old age. We all laughed, thankful she hadn’t been badly hurt. The next day, when she showed up for work, her face was pretty swollen on one side. When we asked about it, she said she had gone face first into the wall, and her cheek had gotten puffy during the night. I remember she went to the ice bin behind the bar and made an icepack for herself. It was a slow night and she took a few minutes from time to time to place it on her face.”

  “Did Maren ever talk about anyone hitting her?” Deidre slipped the question into the conversation.

  Jessica looked puzzled. “You mean hitting on her?”

  “No. Hitting her, beating on her?”

  Jessica shook her head. “Not that I know of. Course, we weren’t as close as she and Andra were. Why do you ask?”

  “Just wondering if she had ever mentioned anything.” Deidre commented.

  “Never. She was always upbeat and willing to pitch in. I know she was looking forward to starting back to school this fall.”

  Deidre asked for and got the full name and address for Andra, thanked Jessica, and hurried away to her next stop. She didn’t take time to call ahead.

  Chapter

  Twenty-Seven

  ANDRA STEVENS RENTED a duplex near the north side of town. When Deidre rang her doorbell, it took her several seconds to answer. She opened the door a crack and peered through the narrow slot.

  “Yes?” she asked apprehensively.

  “Hi. I assume you are Andra,” Deidre began, not giving her time to confirm or deny her identity. “I’m Deidre Johnson, Maren VanGotten’s mother. Can I come in for a few minutes and talk to you?”

  Through the crack of the partially open door, Deidre could see Andra relax. She opened the door wider.

  “Please, com
e in.” She smiled a sad smile and motioned Deidre to enter.

  The place was as neat as Jessica’s had been. The only thing that bothered Deidre was that the drapes were closed and the only light was artificial.

  “Thank you for taking time to speak with me,” Deidre began, trying to gain Andra’s confidence. She sensed the young woman was extremely ill at ease. Andra swept her hand at the closed drapes.

  “Excuse the darkness, but since Maren’s disappearance, I’ve been terrified of being here alone.”

  “Can you explain to me why you’re so frightened?” Deidre asked, expecting that Andra may be the kind of person who tends to blow things out of proportion.

  “Maren was my best friend at work. Sometimes we would have a drink together at the bar after working hours. She was always there for me, there to listen, there to encourage me. I was going through some tough times back then. I have to admit, the last couple months before she went missing we didn’t do that much. She said she had to get home to Dave. That was understandable, I suppose. She really loved him.”

  Deidre tried to get Andra back on track. “I’m so glad to hear that you were good friends, but why are you so terrified now?”

  “Oh, yeah. I guess I didn’t answer your question. There was this guy who started to hang around the bar several evenings a week. He freaked all of us out, but he seemed more interested in Maren. He was always watching her or trying to get close enough so he could touch her. Nothing overt, I mean things like patting her shoulder or touching her hand. Or he’d brush against her backside when he walked past. Made it look inadvertent. We all knew better. A few days after Maren didn’t show up for work, he came in and asked why she wasn’t working. I told him she was missing. He leered at me and said, ‘I suppose you’re going to be next in line, then.’ Ever since that night, I’ve been scared stiff.”

  Deidre looked at Andra through new eyes. “I don’t blame you a bit. I’d be scared, too. But let me ask you, was this guy named Jamie Storder?”