The Abducted: Odessa

by Roger Hayden

  She stood up, taking his hand in hers as he rose from the floor, his face beaming with joy. He took her face in his hands and kissed her passionately as the candles burned beside them.

  Miriam woke in the early hours of the morning when it was still dark outside. Her bedside alarm clock said 3:03 a.m. Lou lay next to her sleeping with his arm around her naked body. She felt relaxed, with lingering excitement from within. She and Lou were officially engaged. There’d be much to talk about, so much to plan and celebrate.

  Despite her enthusiasm for the future, the missing girls, April and Natalie, came rushing back to her. She could still see their smiling faces from the wallet-sized photos Detective Hayes had shown her. Was it an emotional ploy to get her to join the case? If so, it was certainly working.

  She had always wished she had been more vigilant in pursuing the Snatcher. She felt that she could have saved more of his victims before they perished. There was a predator out there, not entirely removed from her own world, and he was looking for her. Who was this person, and what was he looking for? Naturally, she was inclined to wonder.

  Miriam took a sip from her glass of water on the nightstand and then tugged at Lou’s arm, trying to wake him.“Lou…” she whispered. “Lou, wake up. I have to talk to you.”“What is it?” Lou groaned. His eyes remained closed, and Miriam knew that he was barely awake.“There’s a job I have to do tomorrow. Could take a few days.”“Huh?” he said, not moving.“An investigation I’m assisting. Two missing girls in a town not too far from here.”“Huh?” he said again, opening his eyes. She guessed that her words had begun to sink in at that point. “What are you talking about?” he asked, lifting his head.“I’ve been asked to assist in the investigation of two missing girls,” she repeated. “Only issue is that it’s out of state, and I could be gone a couple of days. Maybe even a week. I’ll need you to take care of Ana while I’m gone.”

  Lou plopped his head back onto the pillow, staring at the ceiling as though he couldn’t figure out whether he was dreaming or not.

  He sat upright, exposing his bare chest as the covers fell away. “You’re not a field agent anymore. What would you be doing assisting an out-of-state investigation?”“Two detectives from Ector County, Texas, contacted me today and requested my assistance with a case,” she explained. “I told them I would think about it, and now I think that my mind’s made up.”

  Lou twisted and turned, confused and agitated. “What are you talking about? They want you to look at files and stuff?”“They want me to fly there and act as an advisor.”

  Lou sat up, shocked. “And where in Texas exactly will you be going?”

  Miriam took a deep breath. “A town called Odessa.”

  Lou’s eyes widened, and he nearly jumped out of the bed. “That’s not going to work, Miriam.”“Lou… listen to me,” she began.“No,” Lou said, slicing his arm to the side. “We agreed that you’d stay away from field work.”“That was your agreement,” Miriam said, rather defensively. “And that was over a year ago. I’m better now. I promise.”“The trauma is still there, Miriam. I can see it sometimes.” He paused, frustrated, and then held an arm out across the bed. “I worry about you.”“You don’t have to anymore. I can do this,” she said.“Those detectives need to do their own job and leave you alone,” he said, turning to the window, where stars glimmered in the night sky.“I have to help them,” Miriam said, her voice growing louder. “You know that.”“Then I’m going with you.”“No,” she said. “I need you to take care of Ana for me. Let me do this, and I promise no harm will come to us.”

  Lou waved her off. “You can’t guarantee that.”

  Miriam took his hand in hers with her eyes pleading. “You have to trust me. I need your support.” She paused, and silence came over them save for the circling ceiling fan above.“Okay,” Lou said, conceding. “Sleep on it first.”“I’m doing it,” she said.

  Lou shook his head and pulled the covers back over him. “How could your boss agree to this?”“They want me to go,” she said.

  Lou fell back against his pillow and stared at the ceiling. “I don’t know what to say, Miriam. If you must go, promise me that you’ll be careful.”“I will.” Miriam took a deep breath, and a stillness again fell between them.

  Lou leaned in and said, “But I want to know everything there is to know about this case and what exactly you’ll be doing.”“Deal,” Miriam said as he pulled her closer. They hugged in the moonlight, holding each other tight, with nothing left to be said until morning.

  ***

  Day 2

  The next morning, Miriam made pancakes. She had already called Detective Hayes and confirmed that she was in. There was no going back now. Lou and Ana were both due at middle school within the hour. Miriam, on the other hand, was ready to take on a most unusual case. She poured their orange juice as they sat at the table and ate without speaking. As the grill steamed behind them, Miriam couldn’t help but see through her own ruse of earning their affection before she left on an investigation neither of them wanted her to be a part of. She hoped it wasn’t as obvious to them.“Did you finish your homework last night?” Miriam asked Ana as local news played from a portable radio on the counter.“Yes, Mom,” Ana said, taking a bite of pancakes.

  Lou turned around to face Miriam standing by the kitchen faucet. “What time are you heading to the station today?”

  Miriam stared out the window, deep in thought, and barely heard Lou’s question.“Hello? Earth to Miriam,” he said.“I’m sorry,” she said, snapping out of her daze and turning to face him. “I have to leave in an hour. Still need to pack though.”

  Ana looked up from her plate, slightly sad. “How long are you going to be gone?”

  Miriam thought to herself, trying to muster the best estimate she could. “My flight has been booked for four days.”

  Lou pushed his chair out and stood up, walking toward Miriam with an empty plate, placing it in the sink. “I want you to call me every day. And please… please don’t try to do everything yourself. Let those detectives do their jobs.”“I’m only going there to observe and assist. The kidnapper left a note with my name on it, and I want to find out why.”“What?” Lou cried out. This was news to him.

  Oh no, Miriam thought. She hadn’t gone into that with Lou, and now he was finding out there was more to it than he’d initially supposed.“It’s nothing,” she said, placing her hands on his smooth cheeks. “Don’t worry. I’m not going to put myself in any danger.”

  Lou sighed and looked down, both sad and upset. “I don’t know, Miriam. It seems like you already are.”

  She suddenly felt arms hugging her around the waist only to find Ana, up from the table, squeezing tight. “I’ll miss you, Mom.”

  Miriam’s hands lowered and rubbed Ana’s warm back. “I’ll miss you too, honey.”

  Standing in the kitchen with her fiancé and daughter close now in a brief embrace as if consoling each other nearly brought Miriam to tears. For a moment, she considered backing out, but she knew that if she did, she’d regret it for far too long. She had enough regrets as it was.

  Lou and Ana said more goodbyes, with more kisses and reassurances, and then they were out the door, and she heard the car starting up and pulling out. She enjoyed the bittersweet feeling of the warmth in the sunlight of the kitchen window, if only to take a little piece of them with her. She assumed that once she arrived in Odessa, she’d need it.

  Miriam arrived at the station later that morning with a small suitcase resting in the back seat, packed with four days’ worth of clothes. She had to check in with Captain Watterson, close out some things at work, and call Detective Hayes to ensure that her flight was set up—so many things to do with so little time.

  The detectives planned to pick her up at the Midland International Airport near Odessa, where she would check-in at a local hotel during the duration of her stay. Hayes didn’t elaborate on who was paying for it all, but the money was most likely coming from their department.M
iriam asked Detective Hayes what exactly they wanted from her again, and he reiterated that they were asking for nothing more than her guidance and expertise.“I trust you,” she had told him over the phone. “But if anything changes, I’ll be back on the first flight out of Odessa.”“Understood,” he had replied.

  Her supervisor, Captain Watterson, was all for it, strangely enough, and Lou and Ana had come to terms with her decision. What else was holding her back?

  April Johnson had been missing for more than a week, and Natalie Forester had vanished from a Food Mart parking lot only yesterday. There was no evidence that linked the disappearances of the two girls, but Miriam had a hunch that they were related.

  Detective Hayes had sent her a text image of the “ransom note,” with the letters cut and pasted from a magazine.

  Though lacking any distinct handwriting, the message was clear: the person intended to strike again. The arrogant, assured tone was reminiscent of how the Snatcher had carried himself. Whoever had taken Natalie had left the note, and they knew of Miriam some way or another.“Four days,” she said to herself. “Then I’ll go back home.”

  She stepped out of her car and into the busy station parking lot. It was already half past nine. She grabbed her purse and approached the Phoenix PD building—a large three-story brick building. She swiped her card at the front entrance and walked into a busy lobby full of police officers and civilians going about their business.

  Dressed in her black business-casual slacks and long-sleeved purple dress shirt, Miriam made her way down the long gray-carpeted hallway toward the elevators and headed to the third floor, where she worked alongside Records and Accounting.

  Her hair was brushed back, and her light makeup accentuated her high cheekbones. She knew, in a self-conscious way, that she’d be meeting a few new faces that day, and she wanted to make a good first impression. Upon reaching the third floor, Miriam stepped out of the elevator and received several nods and greetings from coworkers as she walked down the hall to her office. Suddenly, Janice, a case worker, called to Miriam as she passed her cubicle.“Hey, the captain wants to see you,” Janice said, rising from her chair.

  Miriam stopped and sighed quietly to herself. Not even at her desk yet and already being summoned to his office. She could only imagine why.“Sure thing,” she said.

  Despite being summoned, she walked three doors down and unlocked her office door anyway, placing her purse inside. It would be good to establish the ground rules with Watterson before the trip. She wanted to make sure that she had the full support of the department before leaving. She’d never crossed jurisdictions in such a manner, at least as far as she could remember. She checked herself in the mirror and stepped back out into the hall.

  She approached Captain Watterson’s office and could already see him sitting at his desk, typing on his computer. As she entered, Watterson greeted her with a hearty “hello” and asked her to sit. “I talked with Captain Vasquez, and everything is set.”“Yes, I spoke with Detective Hayes. My flight leaves this morning.”The captain pointed to a chair across from his desk and beckoned her to sit. “Close the door, please. If you don’t mind.”

  Miriam turned to his thick glass door and gently closed it. She’d never been to Odessa before and had no knowledge of the town or its community. Hayes had described it as a small, close-knit town, a place where crime was low and kidnappings were relatively unheard of.

  As she sat, Captain Watterson leaned forward with his hands folded. “We think you’ll be a tremendous asset to this unfortunate case. Make sure to update us on any progress, and please, do your best out there.” He smiled like a proud father as he looked at her, exposing wrinkles above his cheeks and on his forehead.“I plan to,” Miriam said. “I just hope I can help. I’m a little rusty with field work.”“I think you’ll do great,” Vasquez said. “With your skills, you’ll knock this case out in less than a week and find those girls before it’s too late.”

  Miriam certainly hoped so too but felt troubled by their expectations. “I need a weapon,” she said outright. “I qualified six months ago.”“I’m sorry?” he asked.“I’m not going out there without a piece. And I need the clearance papers to board the plane.”

  Captain Vasquez looked around and ran his hands across his crew-cut hair. “Yeah… we’ll get you set up. See the armorer before you leave.” He then pointed at her with sternness. “But don’t do anything rash out there. Keep things low-key.”“I will,” she said.

  He handed her a file labeled with her name. “Here’s all your paperwork. The department put all of this together in a very short time, which should show you the degree of faith we have in your abilities.”“I appreciate it, sir,” she said, taking the file. “Good luck out there, Lieutenant. We’ll see you in four days. I want a daily report of your status.”“Yes sir,” she said. “Thank you.”

  Miriam departed the captain’s office, file in hand. She swung by her office one last time to grab some files and case notes, placing them in a satchel. She was about as prepared as she was going to get. Her next stop was the armory. A 9mm Beretta would do just fine.

  She left the station that morning feeling a nervous anticipation of things to come. She was excited but also afraid. Someone was waiting for her in Odessa, and they weren’t going to stop. Miriam’s mind raced with a profile of their suspect. White male, late thirties to early forties. She knew the type. If he turned out to be any different, she’d be surprised. She taxied to the airport with her carry-on luggage in the trunk. Uncertainty awaited her in Odessa, but she couldn’t remember a time in the past year where she felt so alive.

  The Arrival

  The flight to Midland International took just under two hours. As soon as they were settled in their seats, Miriam typed into her laptop, planning her next steps. She’d have to visit the crime scene and read every report and witness statement on file. She typed her assessment of both detectives and what she knew of them. Hayes was naturally interested in the Snatcher case and had acknowledged the similarities between the two cases, from the ages of the girls to their stunning disappearances.

  Turbulence rattled the small plane as they prepared to land. From her window seat, Miriam looked out at the homes below them, surrounded by desert, much like Phoenix. It was mid-fall, and the heat index was lowering.

  They hit the runway, and Miriam watched the runway blur past the windows. The twenty-passenger plane slowed and taxied to its gate farther down the runway, and Miriam was struck with the realization that she was doing this.

  After landing, Miriam exited the gate and entered the moderately-sized terminal. She walked toward arrivals, pulling her small wheeled suitcase across the tile floor, past turnstiles and finally past the baggage-claim carousels and toward the exit.

  The automatic doors opened, blowing warm outside air into her face. She continued outside to see Detective Hayes’s dusty silver Crown Victoria parked outside. Both men sat in the front seat and waved to her. Detective Shelton stepped outside of the car as Hayes popped the trunk. “Welcome to Texas, Ma’am,” Shelton said, taking her bag.“Thank you,” she said as he closed the trunk and opened the front passenger door for her to step in. She thanked him and settled back as he closed her door. There was a collection of empty Styrofoam coffee cups and wrappers on the stained, carpeted floor, and his ashtray was pulled out and filled with pistachio shells.

  Shelton opened the door behind her and sat in the back seat as Hayes drove off, wipers clearing the dust from the windshield. The entire car needed a good cleaning.“The department’s about twenty minutes away,” Hayes said, merging into traffic.“Ector County PD?” she asked.“That’s the one,” Hayes answered.“What kind of police station does Odessa have?”

  Shelton laughed from the back seat. Miriam turned her head and glanced at him, curious.

  Hayes calmly interjected as they pulled onto a busy three-lane highway. “What my partner is trying to convey is that Odessa’s police department is second only to Mayberry’s
.”

  Shelton then cleared his throat and changed the subject to the case at hand. “Based on what you’ve read so far, Lieutenant, do you think our suspect is a local or an outsider?”“I think we’re looking for a Caucasian male, early thirties to late forties,” Miriam said.

  Shelton glanced down at his open pocket-sized notebook. “That’s our assessment as well.”

  Sunlight flashed against Miriam’s face between intervals of utility poles along the road. She then held her cell phone and sent Lou a text to let him know that she had landed while continuing the conversation. “Is he an outsider? I highly doubt it.”“I hope not. That’ll make him easier to catch,” Detective Hayes added.“That’s not always the case,” Miriam said. “If he’s local, he knows the area. He’s aware that the police are looking for him, and he’ll be doing his best to stay hidden.”

  Hayes grabbed the hand mic from a police radio hanging below the dashboard, announcing their near arrival.

  “This is Hayes. We’re back and en route to the station.”

  After a brief pause of crackling static, a voice responded. “10-4, Detective. I’ll let the captain know that you’re close.”“Any update on the 207 from yesterday?” Hayes asked. Miriam recognized that as police code for kidnapping.“Nothing yet,” the dispatcher said. “Roger that. Over and out,” Hayes said, relinquishing the hand mic to its clip. They continued some distance, and then Hayes asked if anyone was hungry. “There’s a truck stop up the road we can stop at.”

  Both Miriam and Shelton declined, and although she was hungry, she wanted to get settled in and get a feel for the town as quickly as possible. Four days wasn’t a very long time, but she wanted a schedule in which to push herself.

  Shelton leaned forward and handed her a thick file folder. “Here you go, Lieutenant. This should catch you up on everything.”