THE MISSINGS (Aspen Falls Thrillers Book 2)

by Peg Brantley

  Carol Greene looked a little uncomfortable. Corinn wore a poker face. What the hell?

  “I think we all need to take a step back and re-evaluate what is best for Lily,” the attorney said.

  Terri pulled out more cash than her share of breakfast required and laid it on the table. “I’m sorry to hear you feel that way, but this is neither the time nor the place to discuss this in any kind of depth.” She said good-bye and left—before they could make their re-evaluation on the spot and tell her no. They agreed to be in touch.

  That had been two hours ago and Terri had been ripped to her core ever since. She wondered what had happened to make them suddenly doubt her ability—her commitment. Should she have stayed at the table and risked permanent rejection? Maybe she shouldn’t have a child. Maybe she had no business wanting to be a mother. Maybe another family had entered the picture. One with both a mother and a father to offer Lily.

  She forced her brain to get back to this case and consider her last interview with Leslie James. It took a moment but she got there. The doctor, the setting, James’s words… some little element flitted just out of reach. Maybe a walk to clear her head would help her regain some focus.

  The minute the fresh air hit her, Terri had the answer. Armand Fyfe. Rude, yes. Arrogant, no doubt. But underneath all of it Terri read subterfuge. Slime. A person of interest. And he worked in the ER. She did a one-eighty and walked back into the building. Skipped the elevator and took the stairs to her floor.

  Once back at her desk she googled the man, found his address, and a few clicks later knew that today was his scheduled trash pickup. Without a warrant and sure he had something to hide, she needed to get to his house before the trash company made its rounds.

  Terri wanted to talk to Dr. Fyfe, and some background information would give her the upper hand when they had that conversation. And with a guy like Fyfe, she could use all the surprise she could get. Even if it was refuse inspired. She hated garbage duty, but somewhere in his trash she might get lucky and find an item of interest.

  Terri also wanted to talk to Carol Greene. Soon.

  She grabbed her coat and some large plastic liner bags.

  Chapter Sixty-One

  Armand Fyfe’s Residence

  Tuesday, September 25

  Terri threw her car in park and grabbed some gloves. Fyfe’s house sat at the top of a fairly steep drive, at the bottom of which stood three large rubber bins, one piled with papers for recycling. At least that one would be easy. Terri gave thanks for people who recycled, including the man whose garbage she itched to get into. She didn’t dare hope he also composted.

  The smell coming from the containers told her Fyfe probably didn’t compost. Based on the man’s attitude, she couldn’t really picture him as the gardening type. She fingered out a stick of gum to help with the gag factor, crammed it in her mouth, pulled on latex gloves, then grabbed the large plastic bags she’d brought with her and went to work. Too bad she didn’t have a real reason to call out the CSIs for this little job. Desperate times called for desperate measures.

  Less than ten minutes later, Terri tucked everything into the trunk along with her gloves, stuffed some fresh gum in her mouth and headed back to the station. She hoped there might be something, especially in the paper portion of her haul, that might give them some evidence. The arrogance of the man might just be his undoing. Assuming he had something to undo. Which of course, she knew in the cop part of her heart, he did.

  She wanted to call Carol Greene but didn’t want anything to interrupt their conversation. She needed to know why the grandmother of the girl Terri wanted to adopt—the same woman who had approached her with the idea to begin with—seemed to be having second thoughts.

  That conversation would have to wait. The detective needed to detect. Even if it meant she had to sort through the garbage of a jerk. Things just might end on a high note today, she thought, at least as far as the case went.

  She parked her car and popped the trunk.

  Daniel pulled into the space next to her. “Need some help?”

  “You have no idea.”

  Daniel checked out her trunk. “Please tell me this has something to do with our case. That this isn’t crap from some ex-boyfriend or a neighbor you’re gunning for.” He grabbed one of the bags.

  “None of the above. This here garbage is special order from Hollywood. You know how I feel about Johnny Depp.”

  “Please, Terri. Don’t even tease. This is not the day for it.”

  “Okay. Help me haul these bags in, and while we sort through the crap, I’ll tell you everything you want to know.”

  “You couldn’t get someone else to do this?”

  “It’s just a hunch. But I think we might find a connection.” She grinned at Daniel. “Plus I thought you could use some grounding.”

  Daniel shook his head.

  “Have you seen Chase this morning?” Terri asked after they’d hauled the last bag in to the conference room.

  “Kind of ran into him this morning, as a matter of fact. He’s talking to the kid from the bookstore.”

  “Efraín?”

  “Yeah. The one a lot of people call Tom Hanks.”

  “Why is Chase talking to him?”

  “I think he’s involved somehow with the case.”

  “Which one?”

  “All of ‘em. This one.”

  “The kid?” Terri shook off the idea. “No way could Efraín be on the killing end. You think he’s a target?”

  “Could be. That’s why Chase is interviewing him. Backtrack, check out whether or not he’s been to the ER, try to connect up some of these loose ends.”

  They each took a bag and began going through the garbage at opposite sides of the plastic- covered table. Evidence bags sat nearby in case they got lucky.

  “Okay, wanna tell me why I’m gloved up and digging through a week’s worth of someone else’s crap?”

  “There’s something hinky about this guy. He’s a doctor at Memorial, and aside from being an obnoxious asshole he’s hiding something. And anyone around the ER who’s also keeping secrets is someone I want to know more about.”

  “Jeez, Terri. That’s all you’ve got?” Daniel stopped his search.

  “Do I need to remind you about the time I helped you search a septic tank because you thought you’d seen someone drop something in it?”

  “Fine. You got me.”

  They searched in silence then dumped the last bag open on the table. Paper products.

  “Want to tell me why we didn’t start with paper?” Daniel asked.

  “Too easy. Besides, you’re the one who dumped the first bag. And while I figured we might find something in the paper, that doesn’t mean we could skip the other bags. You know that and so do I.”

  “I didn’t know it had already been sorted for recycling.”

  “You didn’t ask, so don’t go all bitchy on me.”

  The two worked in silence.

  “Well, looky here,” Terri said.

  Chapter Sixty-Two

  Cobalt Mountain Books

  Tuesday, September 25

  “Are you doing a little better, Efraín?” Chase asked the young man.

  Shaking, the sixteen year-old nodded. He took a sip of the water Chase had rounded up for him.

  “It’s just you and me now.” Chase had sent Daniel and Elizabeth packing while Efraín threw up. He didn’t need either one of them for this interview. Daniel needed to think about the decision he’d made earlier and Chase needed to calm down before addressing the younger detective about the danger he’d knowingly put a civilian in. The good news—if you could call anything good news—was that his detective had entered the bookstore visibly upset about Elizabeth’s actions. Daniel had learned a lesson. It was Chase’s job to make sure he wouldn’t forget it.

  “Do you need a few more minutes?” Chase asked the boy.

  “Please. No.”

  “Which is it?”

  “Talk
. Let’s talk.”

  “You’re the one who needs to talk, Efraín. You need to tell me about those two men, about why they were interested in a young kid who goes to school and works in a bookstore. But first I have another question.”

  “Yes?”

  “What’s a sixteen-year-old kid doing working on a weekday morning?”

  “I’m on a work-study program.”

  Common enough. Many families in Aspen Falls, in contrast to their wealthy neighbors, needed to have all of their family members contributing financially in order to make it.

  “How does that affect your school work?”

  “I’ve been an honor student for the last three years.”

  “Is there any question you want to ask me?”

  Efraín’s face pulled back, his eyes wide. “Me?”

  “Sure. What would you like to ask me?”

  Chase watched the young man’s face begin to open. Watched as his brain searched for the best question.

  “When this is over, can I go on a ride-along?”

  Chase heard the request all the time and it always pleased him. Hell, he’d been the same kid twenty-five years ago. “Do you want to go into law enforcement?”

  “No. I want to be a writer.”

  “I think a ride-along can be arranged. Now you need to tell me about the two men.”

  Efraín nodded, but this time with confidence instead of fear.

  “They told me they needed my help. They said their mother is very ill. Dying. She needs a kidney. They said they believe I would be a match for her and could save her life. They also said they would pay me five hundred dollars for one of mine, but they needed my answer in forty-eight hours. After that the price they’ll pay drops to two-fifty.”

  “Have you seen these men before?”

  “No sir. Not before this morning.”

  “How are you supposed to let them know what you decide?”

  Efraín pulled a business card from his pocket.

  “They said I could not call them. Their cell phones could only be used for business. But they said they knew where to find me. They gave me this.”

  “Just set it on the table,” Chase instructed.

  Efraín dropped the card on the table as if it had caught fire. “Prints. I’m sorry. I didn’t think… ”

  “Don’t worry about it. We’ll get your prints and eliminate them. Besides, we already think we know who the two guys are. We just need this to tie them to you and to our case.”

  “Really? I’m connected to a case?” The young man leaned forward, eagerness lighting his eyes.

  How quickly teenagers forget. Fifteen minutes ago this kid’s head and a toilet bowl were doing a dance.

  Chase touched the business card lightly on the edge and turned it to read. One of those cards to remind you of your next appointment. 27/9 was written on the date line. 10 next to the preprinted a.m. Not much, but they now had a little more information. Whoever wrote this didn’t use the American style for the date. Not exactly rare but not what he expected.

  Where were those other Preston Clinics located? He phoned Terri. His call went to voicemail.

  Chapter Sixty-Three

  Aspen Falls Police Department

  Tuesday, September 25

  Terri carefully laid the crumpled sticky note to the side and walked over to another counter where she’d put some evidence bags. Daniel walked around the table to take a look.

  Need new code—old one not working

  “So? Why is this significant?” Daniel’s eyebrows screwed up.

  “Someone in the ER is ordering blood tests using a doctor’s authorization code. I thought maybe they’d been hacked. Maybe it’s a lot worse.”

  “Or it could be a note from his wife regarding their garage door opener.”

  “Could be. Or something else.”

  “Wait. You said blood tests?” Daniel asked. He walked quickly back to his side of the table.

  “Yeah. You got something?”

  “A staff memorandum for some meeting. An agenda item that might have a connection.” Daniel fingered through the pile of items he’d already inspected. “Damn. I know I saw something.” He shoved more papers around, careful not to mix them up with the items he still needed to examine.

  “Here. Medicaid / Blood Tests / Additional MD Support Required. It caught my eye because notes had been made next to every other agenda item. But not this one.”

  “Great. Bag it. I’ll run it by Leslie and see what she has to say.”

  Terri and Daniel went through the rest of the collected trash piece by piece but didn’t find anything else of significance.

  She stripped off her gloves and checked her phone. Three messages. Carol Greene, Krysta Corinn, and Chase. Ignoring the first two and the sudden tight sensation in her gut, she pressed the button to call Chase. Her job she could handle. Adopting a little girl? Maybe not so much.

  “Daniel with you?” Chase didn’t waste any time.

  “Yeah.”

  “Neither of you were answering your phones. Tell him he needs to get back to the bookstore. His one and only assignment for the next two days is the safety of Efraín Madrigal, unless I personally pull him off of it.”

  “Is Efraín in danger?”

  “He is. Now tell me why you weren’t answering your phone and refresh my memory as to the locations of the other Preston Clinics.”

  After bringing Chase back up to speed, she asked him when he planned on coming back to the station.

  “Right now I’m tailing Carlisle to see what he’s up to. I picked him up by accident. I’ll see what else I can learn before I bring him in for questioning. I have a feeling this guy isn’t going to give up anything. Then I need to make a run to Aspen and pick up my father-in-law.” He paused significantly. “I’ll answer my phone if you call.”

  Chastised, Terri hung up, gave Daniel his instructions, and moved to a private location to call Carol Greene. She’d rather get any bad news from the grandmother she knew rather than the attorney she’d just met.

  Chapter Sixty-Four

  Tailing the Black Mustang

  Tuesday, September 25

  Chase had picked up the black Mustang by accident. He’d needed some nourishment before he drove to Aspen to pick Stuart up at the airport and decided to grab something at a fast-food place near the middle school. Before he could place his order in the drive-up, he spotted the Mustang pulling away from the curb in front of the restaurant. Thankful the lunch rush hadn’t begun, Chase drove past the window, gave them a wave, and followed the car. Chase had very little doubt that Carlisle reported to someone further up the chain. No sense in getting his guard up.

  He popped open the glove compartment and pulled out an open bag of Twizzlers. Six left. Probably better for him than fast food. But not as filling. He also grabbed a digital camera.

  Carlisle drove back to the downtown area and parked by the drugstore. Chase found a spot in front of the bank, about a half-block before the drugstore, and watched Robert Carlisle sit.

  One minute. Then two. No move to get out. Definitely something going on.

  After four minutes, a Bugatti rolled around the corner and parked illegally. Chase loved those cars, but not necessarily their owners. The driver of this one walked briskly in his direction, then without hesitation slid into the passenger side of the Mustang. Less than a minute later the door opened and the man emerged. Chase had the camera ready and snapped several pictures.

  Carlisle pulled out but Chase decided to wait and see if the Bugatti took him someplace interesting. Even in Aspen Falls, a multimillion dollar vehicle got attention. The car rolled through town, and even the glitz-hardened residents took notice. The business district behind them, Chase watched the car round a curve like butter on a warm plate. He imagined what it must be like to drive a machine like a Bugatti.

  The car put on its left-turn signal and Chase drove on, not surprised. The car turned in to the Preston Clinic.

  A patient?
Maybe. A doctor? Maybe. A coincidence? Not a chance.

  His cell phone rang.

  “Waters.”

  Stuart Wentworth’s voice filled his ear. “I’m landing in ten minutes. If I’m not your priority, I promise you, you will be mine.”

  Damn. Forcing a quick reunion for Bond and her father had better work. Chase continued on the back road to Aspen to meet the private plane from Chicago.

  Chapter Sixty-Five

  Aspen-Pitkin County Airport

  Tuesday, September 25

  Chase loaded Stuart Wentworth’s carry-on into his trunk and closed the lid. Moments ago the two had shaken hands, done their version of a hug, and now Stuart sat in the car waiting for an explanation. The man had left his business, his home, his wife, and flown to Colorado at Chase’s request.

  Maybe Chase had overreacted. Maybe lack of sleep had made him turn this into a drama. Maybe.… No. He remembered the look in his wife’s eyes as she told him the story. The pain etched on her face. He’d made the best move based on the information he had available. Time would tell if he’d made the right one.

  The fifteen-minute drive home to Bond stretched before him.

  “You’re not going to tell me, are you?” More of a statement than a question.

  Chase shook his head.

  Stuart Wentworth half-mumbled. “It’s bad or you wouldn’t have called me. I wouldn’t be here if it was a walk in the park.”

  Chase said nothing. Their conversation earlier this morning had told Stuart that much. Men didn’t hold the wealth and power his father-in-law enjoyed by being stupid. He knew how to read people and situations. He could go from point A to a whole new alphabet without blinking, and getting to the truth was rarely a gamble.