“Loman’s staying. I’m going to find Carl’s closest neighbor.”
Tina gripped the dash for stability as the cruiser spun back onto the county road in a shower of loose gravel and mud. Her body ached with a void where Lily belonged. She cradled her center with a weak, desperate arm.
She’d counselled her baby’s kidnapper for more than a year without a single clue about what he had planned for her family. West blamed himself for what was happening, when in truth this was her fault. She should’ve seen Carl for what he was and stopped him. Instead, she’d assumed he had a rough past to work through. She’d thought he would open up eventually. If she was patient. If she didn’t push. Now, she just wondered if Carl had ever needed her help at all. How much of what he’d let her see was even real? And why hadn’t she been able to tell the difference?
Tina had failed her job as mother and therapist.
Now, her poor baby was in the clutches of a madman, and no one had any idea how to find her.
Chapter Eleven
West jammed his brakes and skidded to a stop near an elderly woman checking her mailbox at the edge of the winding road. Her eyes went wide at the sight of the sheriff’s cruiser tossing gravel into the trees and over the berm. He crammed the gearshift into Park and turned to Tina. “Wait here.”
The woman stepped back as he approached.
West tapped a finger to the brim of his hat. “Morning, ma’am. I’m West Garrett, Cade County Sheriff, and I have a few questions about the man who lives down the road about a quarter mile. His name’s Carl Morgan. Do you know him?”
She narrowed her milky eyes on West and cocked her head. “I don’t make a habit of gossiping.”
“It’s not gossip. A little girl’s gone missing, and I think Carl Morgan has her, but he’s not home. You’d be assisting in an investigation.”
She shifted her gaze to Tina in the cab. “I don’t know anything.” She cleaned out her mailbox and turned to walk away.
“Wait!” Tina’s door flew open, and she ran for the old woman. “Please,” she pleaded. “My name is Tina Ellet. I was in the parking lot with my patients yesterday when one man was shot and killed. Did you hear about that? Did you see that on the news?”
The woman straightened. A gleam of recognition lit her face. “I remember you. They play that clip every few minutes. Your daughter’s missing. I know because there’s an Amber Alert, and they play that, too.”
Tina seemed to shrink at the sound of her words. “Please help me.”
The woman’s weary expression faded into something kind and motherly. “I’m Celia Hickman.” She extended a hand to Tina, who shook it gratefully. “My husband knows more about Carl than I do. Carl keeps to himself.”
“Thank you,” Tina said, breaking the handshake and stuffing her fingers into her pockets.
Celia motioned for them to follow her up the lane, and Tina matched her pace.
West brought up the rear, keeping watch on the woods around them.
“Celia?” A man in bib overalls rocked in a chair on the porch. He planted his boots on the floor and sat taller at the sight of them.
“That’s my husband, Frank,” she told Tina. “These folks want to know about the neighbor,” she called to her husband.
“Neighbor?” Frank struggled to stand. His gray beard and hair fluttered in the growing breeze. He unhooked a cane from the porch railing and met them in the yard. “Everything okay?”
A small, ratty-looking dog pranced into view. It gave a dismissive bark before retreating, uninterested.
West offered the man a hand. “Sir, I’m Sheriff Garrett.”
“Sure you are,” Frank answered. “I knew your daddy. You look just like him.”
West forced a smile. “We have reason to think your neighbor, Carl Morgan, was involved in a series of crimes yesterday.” He rested a palm on Tina’s shoulder. “We think he has her daughter.”
Frank’s expression fell. “He said he was babysitting.”
“What?” West asked. “When? Did you see the baby?”
The women turned on Frank with wide eyes and slack jaws. Shock jolted from Celia, and hope rose in waves from Tina.
“Frank,” Celia screeched. “You didn’t tell me he had a baby over there! I could’ve called the police.”
“Well.” Frank stroked his beard, looking a bit frightened. “I didn’t see the baby. I only heard it, and I didn’t think nothing of it anyway. Babysitting is babysitting.” He swung his attention back to West. “The dog took off last night, and I tracked him all the way over to Carl’s trailer. Dog was on Carl’s porch barking up a storm. I got there at about the same time Carl came outside to complain. I apologized, tucked the mutt under my arm and said good-night. Then I heard the baby crying.”
Tina clutched her hands to her chest. Terror bleached her face. “Was she okay?”
Frank looked past her to West. “I don’t know. I didn’t see her. He said he was babysitting for the night, then taking the little one home first thing in the morning.”
Tina seemed to age before West’s eyes. “Could they be at my house? Waiting?”
West worked the cell phone from his pocket and tapped the screen. “I’ll ask Blake to get over there.” He refocused on Frank and Celia. “Is there anything else you can tell us?”
“Afraid that’s all.” Frank frowned at Tina. “I know you probably don’t think you should, miss, but you ought to lie down before you fall over.” He shot West a pointed look. “She’s not well.”
West wound one arm around Tina’s back and nodded. “Thank you. If you think of anything else, please call the sheriff’s department. Tell them what you remember. They’ll see to it that I get the message.”
Celia leaned into Frank’s side and rested her head on his chest. “We’re going to be praying for you and your baby girl,” she said.
Tina coiled in on West, releasing silent sobs against his ribs as they made their way back down the lane to his cruiser.
* * *
TINA WANDERED BACK to the cruiser, guided by West’s strong arms. She’d done plenty of wrong things in her life. She probably deserved the pain and heartache she was feeling, but Lily didn’t. Lily was pure and innocent and perfect. Why was this happening to her? Tina had no idea what her baby was going through, but whatever it was, she deserved better.
West zoomed through town toward her neighborhood, honking at intersections and waving apologetically at folks with gaping mouths. He arrived outside her home in half the time it would’ve taken to get there legally. Maybe there was a rule breaker under his perfect, upright facade. Or maybe the last twenty-four hours were wearing away everyone’s composure.
Blake and two men in navy FBI windbreakers stood beside a large black SUV in her drive. No sign of the red pickup truck anywhere.
West charged forward to meet his brother and the other men.
Tina bumbled along on unsteady legs. Why weren’t the agents inside? Where was Lily?
“No one’s here,” Blake announced. “Windows and doors are locked. Perimeter’s secure.”
Tina fell back a step. “He told his neighbors he was taking her home.”
Blake offered a sad smile. “Wasn’t his home. Wasn’t yours.”
West turned in a slow circle. “What do we know about Carl Morgan? Who are his people? Where else might he consider home?”
Tina collapsed onto the bottom porch step. Defeated. Drained of hope for the second time in an hour. “He moved here to be with his mom when she went into the assisted living facility.”
Blake nodded. “We talked to her. She’s got no love for her son. Says he’s a thorn in her side. Always has been. Never happy. Always acting out.”
West looked to Blake. “Any word from his hometown police department?”
“Yeah.” Blake braced his hands over his hips. “I
got ahold of them on my way here. They had a file on the mom, nothing on Carl, but he was in the older reports. As a minor, he was present at the time of multiple police calls to the home. Mostly noise complaints by neighbors with an occasional drunk and disorderly for Mom. Home conditions were described as cramped and unclean. Neighbors speculated abuse and neglect, but I don’t have any arrests to back that up.” He angled his back to Tina. “I sent some men around last night to ask her neighbors about the truck you saw. I didn’t get anything concrete.”
West folded his arms. “Cole added the vehicle description and Carl’s photo to the Amber Alert. He can’t get far with this kind of coverage. Folks are going to recognize him, and someone’s going to turn him in.” He gripped the back of his neck. “I read all the reports and findings last night.”
“Dead ends,” Blake said.
“Yeah. Any chance Carl kept the family home in Pine Hurst? Maybe that’s where he went.”
“Nope,” Blake answered. “Sold to pay for the nursing home.”
“Right.” West turned to face Tina. “I think you should talk to the neighbors. They know you. They’re going to be more at ease talking to you than to some federal agent. Maybe if they’re really trying to help, something useful will shake loose.”
Blake dipped his chin. “Agreed. I can be intimidating.”
Tina tried to laugh, but the sound was lost to despair. “I’ll do it.”
Blake turned toward his vehicle. “I’ll reach out to the Pine Hurst Police Department again.”
West took Tina’s hand. “And check on the warrant. We need inside that trailer.”
Tina moved beside him on numb legs, the late morning chill seeping into her bones. Her heart was empty, as hollowed out as the jack-o’-lanterns on her neighbors’ doorsteps.
West rang the doorbells one by one. He explained the horrific situation to every homeowner on her street, while Tina stood dumbly at his side. She’d begun to disconnect from the day, from the pain. Her emotions pulled back, shut down to protect her. The tingling in her limbs was dreamlike, as if she might soon wake up from the nightmare. The neighbors’ faces blurred into one abstract frown.
They moved methodically along her street. Up one side, then down the other, collecting the same information. Everyone had heard the truck last night. No one had gotten a look at the driver or the license plate. No one knew if her baby was in the vehicle.
“This isn’t working,” Tina said as they climbed the steps to the last house on her block. “We have to do something else.”
West rang the bell and waited, tapping his palms against his thighs. “We’re planting seeds. That’s important. If nothing else comes from this, you’ll at least have reinforced your home with a personal neighborhood watch. One that’s educated about the situation and aware of what to do if they see something unusual happening at your place. If Carl comes back here, we’re guaranteed to hear about it now.”
A moment later, the door opened several inches, and a woman Tina knew as Darcy peeked out. “Yes?” Darcy was a young mother of two. She had a husband who mowed the lawn and chased their kids through the sprinklers all summer. They seemed like a nice family, but they’d never spoken to Tina.
Tina edged around West, finally finding her voice. “Darcy?” Humiliation swirled in her gut. Tina didn’t have a husband or a partner of any kind in this. She was Lily’s only protector, and she’d failed her. “I’m Tina. I live across the street. This is Sheriff Garrett. Can we talk to you?”
Darcy gave West a long look, then pulled the door open and motioned them inside. “I thought you looked familiar.”
West gave a limp smile. “How are the kids?”
“Good. Napping.”
Tina held her questions. It was a small town. Of course they’d come across people who knew West and his family.
Darcy led them to the kitchen, where plastic toys peppered the floor and dry cereal dotted the table beside brightly colored bowls. “You have to excuse the mess. I wasn’t expecting company.”
“It’s fine.” Tina forced the words through gently chattering teeth. Excess adrenaline and stress were leaking from her in every form. She’d fallen asleep just before dawn, certain today would be better, but she was wrong. Yesterday was packed with shocking news, but there was still hope. Today, her hopes had been repeatedly crushed. Her heart along with them.
West took a seat at the cluttered table and dusted a space in front of him with one hand. “Darcy dated one of my brothers a while back,” he announced. “Blake?”
“Ryder,” she corrected.
“Right.” West nodded.
Tina tried to control her expression, which was surely twisting into anger. She didn’t care who Darcy dated. She cared where her baby was.
West tapped his cell phone to life and turned the screen to Darcy, as he had to every neighbor before her. “Do you recognize this man?”
“Sure.” She cast a curious look at Tina.
Tina blinked. “You know him?”
“No.” Darcy dragged the word out for several syllables. “I don’t, but I recognize him. I’ve seen him at your place a bunch of times. I thought you two were a thing. Or related.”
“Related?” West asked.
“Yeah. I started seeing him after your husband...” She trailed off, a look of remorse on her brow. “After the funeral, there were lots of folks coming and going. Bringing you food and looking after you. I assumed he was one of them. He came a lot. Addison had colic then, and I’d pace the house all day and night, hoping he’d fall asleep and wouldn’t disturb the neighbors.”
West leaned across the table. “Have you ever seen him go inside?”
“No. I don’t think so. I’ve seen him go around the house, and I’ve seen him leave flowers.” She shifted her gaze to Tina. “That’s why I thought you two might be dating.”
West’s expression crumbled in disbelief. “He gave you flowers?”
“No,” Tina protested. “Of course not.”
Darcy scoffed. “He did. I saw him do it plenty of times. Big wildflower bouquets.” She mimed the size with her hands. “I had the kids out in a stroller one morning after your baby was born. Everyone on the block had gone to work, and he was there. He saw me looking, so I told him how much I admired the flowers. He said they were a surprise, so I shouldn’t tell. I swear I had no reason to think that was weird. I thought it was kind of sweet.” She let her lids fall shut. “I should’ve known.”
“You couldn’t have known,” West interrupted. “Did he say anything else? Anything at all.”
Darcy reopened her eyes. “I asked how you two met, and he said you bought him a coffee when he needed it most. He said he knew then that you understood him, so he joined your group, and the two of you became quite close.”
Tina’s stomach dropped. “I always pay for the car behind me at the Cup of Life drive-through. Is that what he meant?” She replayed Darcy’s words. “Oh, my goodness. Carl was following me before he joined my group? Everything he’s told me was a lie.” Tina pressed a cool palm to her burning face. “Buying coffee for strangers is an act of kindness. That’s all.” She cast her gaze at West. Her lips began to tremble. “He’s stalking me because I was kind when he needed kindness, and this is my punishment.”
West took her hand in his and squeezed. “Do you remember getting wildflowers?”
Words lodged in her throat. Images of the beautiful arrays burst through her mind. She’d loved the wildflowers. Even looked forward to them. “I received the first bundle on the day of Thomas’s funeral. I get them every month now.”
Darcy leaned against her counter. “Are you telling me I stood there with my kids and talked to a killer?”
Tina rolled her eyes up to meet Darcy’s. “I’m sorry.”
West tugged her hand in his. “Was there ever a card with the flowers? Did you keep it?”<
br />
“No,” Tina answered. “Never. They were just flowers.” Her tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth as all the facts of the day snapped into place, like a sick, demented puzzle. “He’s been stalking me all this time. Through my pregnancy. All through Lily’s life. I feel sick.”
Darcy sprung away from the counter. She pointed around the corner, beyond heaping baskets of unfolded laundry. “Bathroom is opposite the laundry room.”
Tina darted inside and pressed her forehead to the door. She’d been violated, deceived and plotted against for more than a year by someone who wanted to steal everything she’d worked all her life to earn. And why? Because she’d bought him coffee? She wanted to scream. To cry. To crawl into bed and let the heavy sheet of darkness, now nipping at her conscience, pull her under and take her away.
“No.” She smacked her palms against the door and went to splash cold water over her burning face. She stared at her haggard reflection. I will find my baby, she vowed.
And she knew what she needed to do next.
She needed to talk to Carl’s mother.
Chapter Twelve
West scanned the lot outside the assisted living center in town. The sun had finally gotten a grip on the day, drying puddles and dew from the roads and grass. No signs of Carl, Lily or the red Ford pickup.
Tina popped her door open and headed for the building in long, purposeful strides.
“Wait.” West caught her wrist in his hand and stopped her progress. “Slow down. You can’t go in there hot, pouring everything we know out for her inspection and demanding answers. We don’t know what kind of relationship Carl has with his mother, or if she’s as strange as he is. Take a breath.”
Tina pulled free. Something new and feral burned in her eyes. “That woman’s son has my daughter. What do you want me to do? Play coy? Make small talk while he holds her hostage?”
“No.” He planted his feet and dragged her to him, until her heart raged against his own. “I want you to remember Carl spent more than a year planning this. You need to choose your words carefully. Don’t tell her more than she already knows from watching the news. If she has any information beyond that, we’ll know it came from Carl.” He rubbed his forehead, hoping it wasn’t a complete mistake to bring Tina on this interview. He’d hoped her presence would add emphasis and encourage Carl’s mother to share, but Tina’s heated state of mind could do more harm than good. She needed to pull it together before she ruined the potential lead.
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