Yuletide Abduction

by Virginia Vaughan

  She found herself wishing she could talk to Candace about the situation. Her own parents had divorced when Elise was a child and she’d struggled with some of the same emotions, watching her father remarry. It had often been a tumultuous situation, but as an adult, Elise understood the need for Patti to crave adult companionship and romance.

  Didn’t she crave the same thing?

  She pushed that thought away. She’d dated on and off, but no relationship had ever seemed interesting enough to make those cravings take center stage. Her work had always occupied her mind, and most men were turned off by the content of what she saw on a daily basis. Still, she noticed Patti blush and smile as she talked about this new relationship, and her heart waned a bit. Maybe she did crave that kind of relationship...someday.

  Her eyes caught on a photograph of Josh smiling at her from the mantel. She remembered the broad shoulders that merged into muscular arms and strong hands. He’d been a steadying presence for her, one that she’d desperately needed and was thankful to have had. And those eyes that could captivate any woman. A chill rushed through her and she pushed away the thought of those eyes locked on her and the intensity of his gaze.

  Yes, she understood Patti’s smile.

  She forced her focus back to the matter at hand. “May I see Candace’s room?”

  Patti led her down the hall. “I picked up the room before I realized Candace was missing, but I placed the clothes I washed on the bed.”

  Nothing seemed out of place. It looked like a normal fifteen-year-old’s bedroom with posters hung on the wall and books lining the shelves.

  “Did she own a backpack?”

  “Yes, she had it with her that morning. It’s pink and gray. I haven’t seen it since. Daniel believes she took it with her.”

  “What about her schoolbooks? Were they all accounted for?”

  “I’m not sure. She usually had algebra and biology homework. I know she brought those books home most days, but I don’t know if she had them that day.”

  Elise searched through Candace’s desk drawers but found nothing unusual. “Are any of her clothes missing?”

  “Only what she was wearing that morning—her faded jeans, a purple hoodie with the school’s name and her Skechers.”

  “The police report indicated one of Candace’s friends told her she was running away from home.”

  Patti shook her head. “What teenager doesn’t threaten to run away every now and again? I know she didn’t mean it.”

  “Was she having any problems you knew about at school or at home?”

  “We were definitely at odds lately, but I thought it was just normal teenage stuff. It certainly wasn’t anything big enough for her to leave home. Besides, if she was having a real problem, she would have talked to Josh about it.”

  “Josh? Not you?”

  “No, Josh was her confidant. Since he got out of the army and returned home, he’s been like a father to Candace.”

  “How long has he been back?”

  “Nearly a year. He returned to Westhaven to help me with Candace.”

  “Not many men would make that kind of sacrifice, especially for a child that isn’t theirs.”

  “That’s Josh. Family means the world to that man.”

  She could imagine that in him. She’d already seen his passion for finding his niece. It was a nice trait for a man to possess. But if Josh had left the army to help her care for her daughter, how close were they?

  She pushed that train of thought away. What did that really matter to the investigation?

  She made a note to question Josh more about his military involvements. He’d been vague in the car yesterday, but if she was going to investigate all possibilities, that included his time in the military. Could someone be using his niece to get back at him? Or to blackmail Josh? It was a lead she had to at least rule out.

  “Josh said you’re the principal at the high school Candace attended?”

  “That’s right. I’ve worked there since before Candace was even born, but I was promoted to principal three years ago.”

  “Do you have any enemies that might want to harm you or use Candace to harm you?”

  “Me? No! I live a quiet life, Agent Richardson.”

  “Any particular students or parents who have given you any undue trouble lately?”

  “We always have our issues but none I can think of.”

  “What about your staff and faculty? Is there anyone who jumps out that has been outspoken or threatening toward you or your daughter recently?”

  “No. Nothing.” Her eyes widened with surprise and fear. “Do you think this happened because of me? Is someone targeting me?”

  “I simply have to ask. Josh mentioned a particular biology teacher?”

  Patti nodded. “Peter Larkin. Josh feels he’s inappropriate with the girls.”

  “You don’t?”

  “I haven’t witnessed anything out of the ordinary and we’ve had no complaints about him. For some reason, Josh has fixated on him.”

  Was there a personal history between Josh and this Larkin? She would have to investigate that further. Perhaps his accusations were a way of getting back at an old adversary.

  She hesitated before jotting down a note to ask Josh about that. He didn’t strike her as someone so vindictive, but then again, she had to remind herself that she didn’t really know him. Just because he’d risked his life yesterday to rescue her didn’t mean he didn’t have skeletons in his closet.

  “Are there any friends or relatives where Candace might have gone?”

  “Josh is the only family we have, and Candace didn’t have a lot of friends. She was very shy.”

  “What about boyfriends?”

  “She didn’t have a boyfriend. As I said, she was awkward. I think it was difficult for her to make friends with her mother as the principal. Josh got her a cell phone for her birthday and Daniel...Chief Mills...checked her calls, but there weren’t any numbers we didn’t recognize and it’s probably off because they can’t track it. He said they also checked her computer and didn’t find any suspicious emails. That’s odd, isn’t it? If she ran away from home, wouldn’t we find something indicating where she went, a browser search or something revealing an area she was heading?”

  Patti Adams had done her homework. It seemed as if she’d checked all avenues available to her.

  They both turned at the sound of a car outside. “That will be Josh now. He thinks he has to check up on me.”

  Elise closed her notebook. Josh would not be pleased to find her here, but she reminded herself she wasn’t in town to please Josh Adams.

  * * *

  Josh bit back anger as he pulled up to Patti’s and noticed Elise’s SUV parked by the curb. What was she doing driving, and more important, why had she gone behind his back and met with Patti? Why hadn’t she waited as he’d asked? The truth was foul on his tongue. She was FBI. They did what they wanted, no matter who it hurt.

  He couldn’t believe he’d actually started to trust her.

  He found them in Candace’s room. Elise was digging through Candace’s dresser.

  “Josh, I wasn’t expecting you,” Patti said as he entered the room.

  “I imagine you weren’t,” he said, his eyes shooting darts Elise’s way. He’d actually begun to trust her. So much for that.

  Elise stood. “I think I have all the information I need. Thank you, Mrs. Adams, for answering my questions and letting me look around.”

  Patti grabbed her hand. “Please call me Patti. And thank you, Agent Richardson. Thank you for not giving up on my little girl.”

  Elise visibly stiffened as Patti hugged her tightly. “I’ll do my best to find her,” she responded before hurrying out.

  Josh turned to Patti. “I’ll be
right back. I want to talk to Agent Richardson.” He followed Elise out the door and down the driveway. “What did you think you were doing?”

  She turned to face him, her hazel eyes daring him to question her again. “I was doing my job...interviewing the girl’s mother.”

  “Stop calling her ‘the girl.’ Her name is Candace.” He raked his hand over his hair. He hadn’t wanted this. He’d wanted to give Patti a heads-up before Elise swooped in upon her. “What did you say to her?”

  “Only what was pertinent to the case.”

  “You gave me your assurances that you would wait.”

  “I know. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have agreed to that. Time is too valuable to waste on our personal concerns.”

  “What if she had suspected who you were?”

  “But she didn’t.” She folded her arms. “For what it means, Josh, I am sorry about your brother. He was a real hero.”

  “Yes, he was. And now his daughter is missing. This family cannot lose another member, Elise. You find her. You owe it to us to find her.”

  Josh stormed back toward the house, his anger still burning that Elise would go behind his back that way. What if Patti suspected who Elise really was? He had no idea how she would react.

  He turned back to remind her not to let on to Patti who she was when he spotted a car slowing down as it approached the house. As if it were happening in slow motion, Josh saw the window lower and the barrel of a gun pushed through. A moment later the explosion of gunfire filled the air.

  THREE

  Elise felt Josh’s weight as he grabbed her arms, threw her to the ground and leaped on top of her, shielding her with his body. The air around them lit with rapid gunfire, screams and the roar of a car engine taking off. Amid all that, Elise heard the rapid beat of Josh’s heart, felt the warmth of his breath on her neck and inhaled the musky scent of his cologne. So why, in the middle of a firefight, was it the feel of his chin stubble against her skin that caused the hairs on her neck to stand on end?

  As quickly as those sounds filled the air, they ended until only screams coming from inside the house were audible.

  Josh leaped to his feet and rushed back inside. Elise followed him to find a terrified Patti crouched beneath the kitchen table, her eyes wide with fear.

  Her hands shook as she clasped them together, trying to stop the overwhelming sobs that racked her body. Josh reached for her and she allowed him to pull her into his comforting embrace. Elise couldn’t help but notice how the woman calmed. Josh and Patti seemed to have a very close relationship. Elise remembered what Patti had said about finding love again with someone she’d known for a long time. Could she have been talking about Josh? It made sense. He’d left the army to help her raise her daughter and she’d had nothing but good things to say about him.

  Elise should be happy for them, but instead a twinge of jealousy swept through her as she remembered the way her hair had stood on end or the feel of his touch. What would it feel like to have those strong arms wrapped around her for more than lifesaving benefits?

  She shook away those thoughts. Josh and Patti deserved to find happiness with one another...especially after she’d cost each of them a vital part of their lives and left a hole where Max should have been.

  She turned her attention back to the practical matters at hand. “Did either of you get a look at the shooter? The make of the car? Anything?”

  Patti shook her head. “I didn’t see anything. I was hiding.”

  Josh squeezed her hand. “You did the right thing.” He looked at Elise. “I think it was the same car that tried to run you down, but I can’t be certain. I only got a glance.”

  “I was thinking the same thing. Regardless, this was no random drive-by shooting. They were targeting us, and I believe it may have something to do with Candace’s disappearance. Someone is trying to stop us from investigating. I think it’s safe to say we’re dealing with more than a runaway situation.”

  * * *

  You owe it to us to find her.

  Elise couldn’t get Josh’s words out of her head as the police arrived and started surveying the scene. He was right. She owed this family much for her part in Max’s death. Finding Candace was the least she could do. She only hoped she could uncover what had happened to this girl.

  Statistics were not on her side. If Candace had been abducted by the ring she was tracking, then it was likely she had already been moved out of town, out of the vicinity, probably even out of the state. But the trafficking ring wasn’t necessarily what had caused Candace to vanish. There were all kinds of dangers for a young girl to fall into. Josh suspected this teacher, Peter Larkin, and Elise could hardly wait to question him about the girl’s disappearance. Of course, if Candace had indeed been abducted by someone she knew, her chances of survival decreased. Elise hadn’t wanted to tell Josh that, but statistically speaking, Candace’s chances for survival were not good.

  The best option for Candace was that she had run away from home, but this family seemed so certain that wasn’t the case. However, Chief Mills seemed convinced that was what had happened. In fact, the missing persons file he’d opened on Candace focused very little on other, more sinister avenues of investigation. She caught the chief’s gaze and saw accusation in his face. This incident would only add to his suspicion that she’d brought this trouble to town with her.

  She pulled out her phone and dialed Lin’s number. She needed someone to give her theory some credence and trusted Lin’s discernment.

  “It’s not enough,” he told her. “There’s nothing conclusive that this shooting had any connection to the missing girl. It’s just as likely to do with the uncle as it is with her.”

  “But it’s the same car that tried to run me over, Lin.”

  “And who pulled you out of danger? Think about it, Elise. He was there. They could have been targeting him then and you got in the way.” Lin chuckled. “You do have a way of tripping over danger.”

  Elise hadn’t considered that aspect. Josh had stated he was on his way to find her when the car approached her. Was it possible they were targeting him? It seemed a logical angle to follow.

  “But why trash my hotel room and steal my files?”

  “They didn’t know why you were in town. For all they knew, you could have been investigating whatever he’s involved in. It makes more sense than a human trafficking ring you can’t prove exists is trying to shut you up or scare you off.”

  Elise suddenly felt defensive. “Just because I can’t prove it yet doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist.”

  She heard Lin pecking at the keys of his computer. “Let me do a background on the uncle—”

  “His name is Josh Adams.”

  “Right. Perhaps Uncle Josh has more going on than we know...” She heard him typing again. “Like a Special Forces background.”

  She was stunned by that piece of news. “Josh was Special Forces?”

  “Yes. The Army Rangers.”

  Elise glanced across the yard at Josh, who was giving his statement to one of the officers on the scene.

  The Rangers were often called into perilous situations. He could have been part of a dangerous mission or had a high-level clearance. He might have made enemies during his time in the service, enemies that wouldn’t hesitate to use his family against him.

  Perhaps Lin was right when he said the man in the car had been after Josh. He’d been nearby when the car tried to run her down and with her here at Patti’s house when the same car fired at them. He’d tracked Elise down before anyone else even knew she was in town. He’d been the one to press for the investigation into Candace’s disappearance. He, more than anyone, was adamant that something had happened to his niece. Did he know more than he was letting on? Was he hiding something, something about his time in the military that he couldn’t share?
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  She gritted her teeth. He’d been vague in the car when she’d asked about his time in the military. And she’d let it pass.

  Stupid, stupid, stupid.

  She flushed with embarrassment, realizing she’d allowed a flash of attraction to someone she hardly knew to cloud her judgment. What would Lin think of her if he knew? She would be a laughingstock at the Bureau.

  “Thanks for your help, Lin.”

  “Be careful,” he said before hanging up.

  Elise slipped her phone into her pocket. At some point, she and Josh were going to have to have a further conversation about his military past.

  * * *

  Josh had been in plenty of firefights in his time with the Rangers, but none that elicited the kind of fear he felt tonight. This wasn’t right. This was a drive-by shooting in his own hometown, at his sister-in-law’s house, involving civilians, people he cared about.

  The police surveyed the scene, gathered evidence and took their statements about what had happened, but Josh knew they wouldn’t be much help. He hadn’t got a good look at the car or the inhabitants, and none of Patti’s neighbors reported seeing anything out of the ordinary before the shooting. Josh watched the forensics team pull bullets from the house, the Jeep and Elise’s SUV. Surprisingly, both vehicles still ran, although Daniel was less than thrilled about the damage to his Jeep. Fortunately for Josh, he was more concerned about Patti’s safety. He insisted she not stay at the house alone, and Patti agreed to go stay temporarily with a friend.

  When they were gone, Josh inspected the damage and knew they’d been fortunate no one had been hit. Bullet holes lined one side of the house and had busted out the front windows. Those would need to be boarded up before he could leave.

  Elise approached him as he was searching through the shed for wood and nails to secure the house.

  “I’m heading back to the hotel,” she told him.

  He was glad for once that she had her own vehicle because he wasn’t sure he wanted to be alone with her in such close quarters.