False Cast: a small town murder mystery (Frank Bennett Adirondack Mountain Mystery Series Book 5)

by S. W. Hubbard

  No doubt Mrs. Kellum had been horrified by what her daughter had done. She’d probably stepped in to break up the friendship just as Lucy had predicted.

  Frank put his hand on Anita’s shoulder. “Let’s go back to your place so I can check it out. Then I’ll go over to the inn.”

  “Can’t you get the phone company to track her through her cell phone?” Anita asked.

  Frank brightened. “You have that special GPS software that lets parents track their kids?”

  Anita shook her head. “That’s real expensive. We just have the basic plan. But on TV the cops can always track the location of the phone. Can’t you do that?”

  “That’s more effective in a city with a lot of cell towers. But we’ll try. Let’s go to your apartment first.”

  Frank followed Anita back to her apartment. The entrance was up a flight of outdoor steps that led to a rear-facing deck. Anita had left the porch light on, but the dim bulb illuminated only a small circle around the door. There was no sign of forced entry. Frank shined his flashlight over the deck railing into the back yard. Hard to see much but two Adirondack chairs and a small raised bed garden plot.

  “What’s beyond the back yard?” Frank asked.

  “The yard drops off kinda steep at the back end. Stony Brook is down below, but there’s no path. You’d like to break your leg going down that way.”

  Maybe Anita would, but Frank had more confidence in a nimble twelve-year- old. He would check it out later. For now, he followed Anita into the apartment.

  The place was tidy, but Spartan. The main room contained a beige loveseat, a mismatched green easy chair, a TV, and a dinette table with two chairs. There were shades on the windows but no curtains. No artwork adorned the walls. A counter separated the tiny kitchen from the rest of the room. One plate, one glass, and one fork rested in the dish drainer.

  “Are those from your dinner?” Frank asked.

  Anita nodded. “But she musta been here after school. There’s a banana peel in the trash.”

  Frank peered into a mostly empty trashcan. “Anything else? Any sign that someone else was with her here?”

  Anita shook her head. “Not that I can tell.”

  Frank turned down a short hall: a small bathroom; one bedroom with a twin bed, a night stand with a book and a couple bottles of medications, and a card-table and folding chair, illuminated by a glowing laptop screen. Frank took a step into the room. Meaningless letters, numbers and symbols marched across the screen of the computer—computer code, he supposed. He paused to check the bottles on the nightstand: nothing dangerous, just Tylenol and some kind of vitamins. Across the hall, another bedroom. This one had posters on the walls, a fuzzy purple pillow on the bed, a beanbag chair in the corner occupied by a menagerie of stuffed animals. Frank entered and opened the closet door. The short pole was crammed with hanging clothes. A small set of plastic stackable drawers was full of underwear and socks.

  “Is anything missing?” Frank asked.

  “Sure doesn’t look like it. But the kid’s got way more clothes than me. I’ve never seen her wear the same thing twice.”

  Frank tried to ignore Anita’s aggrieved tone. Of course, Olivia had brought with her all the clothes Edwin and Lucy had bought…more, and better quality, clothes than Anita could afford. Had these clothes been a bone of contention between mother and daughter?

  It soon became apparent that Anita didn’t have a clue what the names and phone numbers of Olivia’s friends were. Anita shared her own cell phone with him readily enough, but the string of three and four word text messages between Anita and Olivia dated over the past few days was not illuminating.

  At diner. Home @7

  Stayed after school. Will get ride.

  There’s no milk.

  “Let’s try to call her again.” Frank pressed call. Immediately, a low buzzing noise emanated from under the stuffed animals on the bedroom chair.

  Frank pulled out Olivia’s phone. “Looks like she intentionally left it behind.”

  “I guess she watches those cop shows too,” Anita said.

  “We need to call the homes of all her friends,” Frank said. “Lucy will have their names and numbers. I’m going over to the inn. You stay at the apartment in case she comes back here.”

  Anita nodded. “You think….I mean….She’s just foolin’ around, right?”

  “The only thing I’m sure of is that no one can predict what teenagers will do. We need to find her before she gets hurt.”

  The inn’s lights were blazing when Frank pulled up. He found Lucy and Edwin in the kitchen, Edwin pacing, Lucy already on the phone. Everything about the kitchen looked the same—cheerful mismatched china on the shelves, overgrown herbs crowding the windowsill, stacked tins full of Edwin’s cookies—yet everything felt off-kilter.

  “I’m sorry to call you so late, Marie, but is Olivia sleeping over with Katie?” Lucy held the phone to her ear with her left hand and scribbled furiously on a note pad with her right.

  “She’s already called Olivia’s three best friends,” Edwin explained. “No one has seen Olivia since the end of the school day. According to these kids, Olivia rode the bus home and said she’d see everyone later at the Spring Fling.”

  Lucy hung up and massaged her temples. “I’ve called every single girl in the eighth grade, even the ones Olivia never socialized with. No one has seen her. She definitely wasn’t at the Spring Fling, and her best friend Ava was surprised. She texted Olivia, but Olivia didn’t answer.”

  Now the tears spilled over. “Where could she be? She would never have missed the Fling. She’s been talking about it since before….before she left us.”

  Edwin attempted to put his arm around his wife, but Lucy twisted away. “She left her alone. Anyone could have broken into that apartment. Someone abducted Olivia.”

  “There’s no reason to think that.” Frank sat at the kitchen table and extended a hand toward Lucy. “I’ve been to the apartment and there’s no sign of forced entry or struggle.”

  Lucy twisted the sash of her bathrobe, resisting all efforts to console. “This never would have happened if they hadn’t taken her away from us.”

  “Anita gets home from work by five-thirty every day. Olivia is only alone for a few—”

  “She was never alone here. I never left her unsupervised!”

  This was no time for parenting advice, but Frank suspected Olivia might have enjoyed a little unstructured downtime. And twelve wasn’t too young to stay at home in the afternoon. But Lucy was clearly beyond reason. He turned toward Edwin. “Have you talked to Olivia at all recently? Do you have any idea if she was unhappy?”

  “We’re not permitted to have any contact,” Lucy jumped in before Edwin could answer. “But her teacher told me—” Lucy pursed her lips.

  “What?”

  “I can’t say. Ms. Elkins could get in trouble.”

  “We ran into Olivia’s teacher at the Stop’N’ Buy and she mentioned that her grades are slipping, that’s all.” Edwin set three mugs of tea on the table. “Hardly surprising, with all this upheaval.”

  “But have you talked to Olivia?” Frank turned from Lucy to Edwin, waiting for his response.

  Edwin turned his back, rooting through some containers on the counter. “Olivia and I used to do most of our talking while I was cooking dinner for our guests. I still have to cook, but she’s not here.”

  Before Frank could challenge this non-answer, Lucy started in again.

  “What about Olivia’s things? Was anything missing from her room?”

  “Anita couldn’t tell,” Frank admitted. “The drawers and closet looked full, but that doesn’t mean she couldn’t have taken a few things with her.”

  Lucy slammed a glass on the counter and poured herself some red wine with a shaking hand. The tea was forgotten. “Let me go over there. I could tell you what’s missing. I know every article of clothing my girl has. I know all her books, all her stuffed animals…” She took a swig of
wine and choked on it, collapsing into a chair with mix of coughing and wailing.

  “That’s not a bad idea, but for now, let’s stay focused on the friends. You said you called all the girls in her class. What about the boys? Could she have—”

  “She’s only twelve! She’s not interested in boys. She thinks they’re gross and dumb.”

  “Boys are gross and dumb, but that doesn’t mean she’s not interested. What if an older boy showed her some interest? Any ideas?”

  Lucy’s eyes widened. “Oh, dear Lord—not that!” She grabbed the school directory. “I’ll start calling the parents of all the boys.”

  “Luce, it’s nearly one in the morning,” Edwin objected. “Wait until tomorrow.”

  “She’s out there.” Lucy gestured to the wide outdoors. “Alone. And I won’t stop until I find her and get her home safe.” She began dialing. “Wherever home may be.”

  Frank pulled Edwin into the dining room.

  “What did you two talk to Olivia about on your last night together?”

  “Lucy and I sat down with her. We wanted to let her know that we weren’t angry. But Lucy couldn’t keep herself from crying. And that upset Olivia and she ran up to her room and refused to come out. So I ended up sitting on the hall floor outside her room, talking to her through the door. I told her how much we loved her. I told her we would always be there for her no matter what. That she could always come to us if she needed anything.”

  Frank forced Edwin to hold his gaze. “And has she?”

  A split second of hesitation. A blink. “No.”

  Frank took a deep breath. “Edwin, this is difficult for me to ask, but I’d like to look around the inn—upstairs, the basement.”

  “What? You think I have her hidden here?” Edwin’s eyes bulged. “How dare you!”

  “I’m sorry, but the way you were talking when you first learned Anita wanted Olivia back, about running off to South America—I have to explore every possibility. It’s my job to rule things out.”

  “She told you to do this, didn’t she? She sent you over here because she’s a paranoid nutcase, just like her old man.”

  “Anita thought it was possible Olivia might have returned here. She doesn’t suspect you of taking her.”

  “But you do? My friend?”

  “If Olivia doesn’t turn up tomorrow, we’ll have to call Trudy. She’s bound to ask that question. It would be incompetent of me not to search here. This is hard for me, Edwin. Don’t make me get a warrant.”

  Edwin spun around. “Fine. Search my home. Look in all the closets and under the beds. See if you find Olivia bound and gagged.”

  Frank put his hand on Edwin’s shoulder. “I’m just ruling out the possibility.”

  Edwin shook free. “Fuck you, Frank.”

  The smell of coffee woke him. He’d stayed at the inn until nearly four, looking though the rooms Edwin and Lucy and Olivia occupied as their home, as well as the guest rooms, all vacant in the off-season. He went up to the attic and down to the basement, all the while avoiding Edwin and Lucy.

  He found nothing suspicious.

  Unwilling to wake his wife when he came home, he had stretched out on the sofa to catch a few hours of sleep. Now the sun poured through the east-facing window and Penny appeared in the living room bearing a mug of coffee. Frank sat up, massaging his stiff neck.

  Penny sat beside him and offered the coffee wordlessly. After he’d drunk half of it, she began. “I feel like I should have met you at the inn last night.”

  Frank had filled her in with a quick phone call as he was driving to the Iron Eagle, but had insisted that she stay home.

  “You couldn’t have helped. It wasn’t a social call.”

  “How are Lucy and Edwin?”

  “Lucy is frantic. Edwin….” How was Edwin? Furious. Outraged.

  Penny squinted without her contact lenses. “Why are you so quiet?”

  He told her about the search.

  Penny’s eyes widened. “You thought they were hiding her there?”

  “I had to rule out the possibility. I don’t think she’s at the inn, but that doesn’t mean they’re not involved.”

  “You don’t think…it’s not possible that… Edwin and Lucy arranged—” She couldn’t continue.

  “It’s crossed my mind. Not Lucy—she was distraught at the news Olivia was missing. I know she’s not that good an actress. But Edwin.” Frank leaned back against the sofa and shut his eyes.

  “Why? Was he acting strange?”

  “No. He was consoling Lucy, trying to keep her calm. Which is what he might do if Olivia really were missing, but also if he’d taken her off somewhere and wasn’t ready to let Lucy know.”

  “So, why…?”

  “Because he didn’t seem terrified, not like Lucy.” Frank gulped his coffee. “And he was so furious at me.”

  Penny fussed with a ribbon on her nightgown. “People react differently in a crisis. You can’t suspect him just because he wasn’t hysterical.”

  In the kitchen, the theme music of the morning news program drifted from the radio. Outside a chickadee sang.

  “It can’t be a coincidence that she disappeared on the night of the Spring Fling.” Frank spoke more to himself than to Penny. “The entire town was at the high school, including me and Earl. Anita thought Olivia was there. The streets were empty.”

  “But that would be a perfect situation for a kidnapper, too.” Penny’s worried eyes opened wide and she laced her fingers through his.

  Frank squeezed her hand. “Despite all the publicity they attract, stranger kidnappings are extremely rare.”

  “You think Edwin paid someone to steal her? Planned it for last night? How would he do it?” Penny whispered.

  “He’s smart. He has resources. He used to live in Manhattan.”

  Penny shook her hand free of his grasp. “Edwin doesn’t know people like that. He worked in publishing. How can you even think such a thing?”

  Frank turned away from his wife’s dismay. It was his job to think the worst about people, to think of all the crimes desperation might drive a good person to commit.

  “The things Edwin said when Anita first came back—that was just talk,” Penny said. “He calmed down after the hearing, once he realized—”

  “Once he realized the legal system had let them down. Maybe that’s when he started planning for this.”

  “Oh, Frank, no! He can’t have done anything illegal. Not Edwin!” Penny paced around the room. “Olivia must have run off. Today she’ll get scared and come home. Right?”

  “I hope so.”

  Penny plopped down beside him again and forced him to look her in the eye. “What if she didn’t run away? What are we going to do? Edwin and Lucy are our friends.”

  “Not we. Your job is still to be their friend. I’m the one with the problem.”

  Chapter 32

  As soon as he got to the office Frank reported Olivia missing to the state police and to Trudy Massinay.

  But Trudy already had the news.

  “Edwin called me at daybreak. He says this disappearance is evidence Anita isn’t supervising Olivia adequately.”

  Edwin hadn’t wasted a moment getting that message out. “How did you respond?” Frank asked her.

  “I assured him I was on top of the matter, but I had a hard time getting off the phone with him. Edwin can be very persistent.”

  “Yeah. Tell me about it.” Frank wasn’t about to share his suspicions about Edwin, but he did want her take on Olivia’s disappearance. “Trudy, what do you think is going on? Were you aware that Olivia was unhappy living with Anita?”

  “I don’t think this episode is necessarily an indication that Olivia is unhappy with her mother. She’s just very confused. She’s been forced to choose between two sets of people she loves, two loyalties. It would seem she wants to get away from both of them. Unfortunately, I have no idea who she’d turn to as a neutral party.” Trudy sighed. “Not me, obviously
.”

  Frank set Earl to work filling out the paperwork to have her listed as a missing person. In the middle of the furor, Doris entered the office.

  “Frank, Denise Kellum is on the phone. I told her you were real busy, but she insisted she has to talk to you.”

  Denise Kellum. Olivia’s friend’s mother. Owner of the fateful post office box. Frank snatched up the phone.

  “Chief Bennett, I thought you should know. Jenny just went on Facebook and she says Olivia posted a selfie late last night and the message says she’s fine and no one should look for her because they won’t find her.”

  Earl quickly located the picture on Olivia’s Facebook page.

  The girl stared at the camera defiant, impudent.

  “She doesn’t look scared,” Earl said, giving voice to Frank’s thoughts. “I mean, someone could force her to post the picture, but they couldn’t really force her to have that expression.”

  “She doesn’t have her phone with her. So she used someone else’s phone or computer to access her Facebook account. There must be a way to trace that.”

  Earl nodded. “I’ll work that angle. It will take a while, though. For an adult’s page, we’d need a search warrant. But since she’s a minor, Facebook will consider our request without it. There are still hoops to jump through though.”

  “Well, start jumping.”

  What a day!

  A cop should receive a hazardous duty bonus for interviewing middle-schoolers. He’d talked to every eighth-grader at High Peaks Middle School and every single one claimed to know nothing about the whereabouts of Olivia Veech. Kid A thought Kid B might know, but Kid B was the person who’d referred Frank to Kid A in the first place. And so it went, around and around in circles. On one point everyone—teachers and students alike—agreed: Olivia had been quiet and withdrawn since the return of her mother to Trout Run. Frank drove home with the sounds of high-pitched squealing, clanging locker doors, and garbled loudspeaker announcements ringing in his head. Someone at that school had to know something. Olivia wasn’t Ronnie, living a hermit’s life in the mountains. A twelve-year-old had to be with someone. Who?