by Sara L Foust
He smiled up at her. “Hi.”
“What are you doing?”
“Sitting here for emotional support. I heard you crying.”
Tears welled in her eyes again. God had truly blessed her when He sent Zach to the same sandbox.
“You’re welcome. Let’s eat.” He sprang to his feet and tugged her to the kitchen.
Annalise managed to eat one piece of French toast and a few pieces of bacon, adding two cups of black coffee and hoping it was enough to keep her energy up for a few hours.
Her phone dinged with an incoming email. She opened the attachment from the sketch artist and gasped. “Look like someone we know?”
Zach took the phone. “Well, well, Jimmy Vern Buchanan.”
“We have enough to question him with this.”
“Yes, we do.”
“Okay, interrogation first. Then pop over to give Jimmy Vern another visit?”
“Sounds like a plan to me.”
Zach drove them to the Sevier County Jail and showed her to the interrogation rooms. Their arrestees hadn’t been brought out yet.
Zach offered her a third cup of coffee. “I’ll go find Kirk and see what’s happening. You okay here?”
She smiled, but she knew it didn’t reflect in her eyes. “I’m fine.”
The monitor on the table in front of her blinked between two different views of the room next door. Empty, save for the table and chair.
Empty seemed to be a good theme for her morning.
As she watched the monitor, Kirk slipped into the interrogation room, slid into a chair, and folded his hands atop the table.
How did he and Zach do it? They both were so even-tempered, so calm under pressure. If she could learn half that much composure from them, she’d be happy.
The job was hers if she wanted it. Though Zach hadn’t mentioned it in a day or two, she knew that it was. She squeezed her eyes shut and blew a breath through pursed lips. If Dave was removed from the equation, she could truly admit she wanted the job. More than she expected. But it will be more cases like Cody’s, won’t it, Lord?
She recognized the peace-filled voice flowing through her heart answering yes.
Could she handle that? It would be wonderful to help the families of victims that needed them the most. But what about the cases that didn’t end happily? She grunted. Like this one? It sure seemed to be heading in a sour direction.
As Annalise watched the monitor, an officer stuck his head through the door and said something. Kirk leaped to his feet.
Annalise leaned in. “The sound. I can’t hear the—” Who exactly was she talking to?
More importantly, why was Kirk running from the room?
The corresponding slam of the interrogation room door against the one she occupied made her jump. She raced to hers and grabbed the handle to swing it open, but it moved before she had a chance to pull.
Zach’s grimace inches from her nose greeted her.
“What is going on?”
Breathless, Zach grabbed her hand. “Come on.”
“Zach? What is it?”
“Inmate fight. One of the men we brought in is down. Doesn’t look good.”
“Are you kidding me?”
He shook his head.
One look at his face and she knew he was speaking truth.
They rushed to the surveillance room and watched the chaos ensue on the many monitors there. The officers sitting at the desks in front of them spoke frazzled instructions into two separate landlines. Commands assisting their fellow comrades of each area of the prison and the inmates moving there.
Zach squeezed her hand and pointed with his other. “Look. That’s Wilson on the floor there.”
Her stomach turned. There was so much blood puddling around Mike Wilson’s large frame. No way he was still alive. If Jimmy Vern could reach that man in prison before he had a chance to rat the Moonshine Mafia out, what else was he capable of? She needed to get everyone even remotely connected to Cody’s case into protective custody. But that would be impossible.
Once she returned from the interrogation, Paul was supposed to come home with her. Maybe that wasn’t such a good idea. Was that the message the intruder was leaving her? Hand over the kid who stole the money and they wouldn’t do worse damage?
Well, she didn’t care. They could burn that house down too. As empty as it felt, she would be glad to leave it behind in a pile of ashes. As long as no one else got hurt.
With her legs suddenly weak, Annalise sank into the closest chair and dropped her head to the desk.
She felt Zach squat beside her and place his hand on her shoulder.
“We’ll get through this, Lise. All of it. Together. Remember?”
She nodded without looking up. “Once the other two hear the news, they’ll never talk.”
“You’re probably right.”
“That’s encouraging.”
“We’ll find another way.”
“It’s too late, Zach. Cody’s dead. He has to be after this much time has passed.”
“You don’t know that.”
Tears ran down her nose and dripped onto the desktop. “I can’t do this.”
“Are we still talking about Cody?”
How did he know? She shook her head. “It hurts too much, Zach. I feel like I’m dying.”
“I know.”
“How?”
“My dad left me, remember?”
Of course she did.
“I was only fifteen, and he walked away. Never felt pain like that in all my life.”
“I remember. I’m sorry.”
“And look at me now. Handsomest devil in the Smokies.”
Annalise chortled and lifted her head to stare at him. Her smile faded. He really was handsome. “Awfully full of yourself, aren’t you?”
“I told you I’d never lie to you.”
She laughed again. “So you did.”
The frenzy on-screen had slowed down. The officers had the prisoners lined against the wall in the dining hall. A nurse hovered over the prostrate victim and shook his head.
Exactly what Annalise expected, but it was a hard reality to swallow.
Chapter Twenty-Six
THE URGE TO KEEP ANNALISE in sight, and within grasp, almost held Zach in the monitor room, though Kirk requested his presence elsewhere. Things seemed to be under control, but what if they spiraled into a full-blown riot? Had he ever seen her looking so frail and broken? So fragile and shaky?
“Hey,” he leaned in close, “I’ll be right back. Do not move.”
“I can take care of myself, Zach.” Her muffled voice filtered through her arms and the wood of the desk, where she kept her head pressed and eyes hidden.
“I can see that.”
She pointed a stern finger at the door. “Just go, you big goofball.”
As soon as he cleared the door, Kirk waved to him from the end of the hall. “What’s up?”
“Lockdown is going to last another hour or so. After that I’m going to go at these last two boys hard.”
“Okay.”
“I wouldn’t hold my breath though. By the time we get them out of the general population, they will know every detail of what just happened. No doubt whoever ordered the hit will be scarier than me.” He chuckled. “You know, since I have to actually follow the law and all.”
Zach figured as much. “Why don’t we work while we wait? Brainstorm a little?”
“Good idea. Annalise up for it too?”
“Dunno. Probably would welcome the distraction.”
“What’s going on with her today?”
“Not my story to tell, but she needs prayers. Bad.”
“You’ve got it.” He turned. “See you in the interrogation watch room in five.”
Annalise perked up when he told her the plan, and they both made the quick walk back to meet Kirk.
He waited with an open notebook and three pens. “Let’s make a map of what we know so far.”
Zach grabbed a pen. “Okay, we found Buster’s body in the Little Pigeon River.” He jotted down the information on a sheet and tore it free. Using the magnets already in the room, he attached it to the white board and added, “In his pockets they found a Sawyer water filter.”
Annalise met him at the board. “I found a gun in a little red wagon in Norris, sent it to Nashville.” She put the sheet up and began another. “And then Cody was kidnapped with no real leads. His mom and dad are both cleared as suspects, for now.”
“Zach and I found the bullet in the tree at the abandoned camp, postulated that was the murder scene, and sent everything for testing.” Kirk handed Zach the paper he had written, and Zach added it beside the others. “Oh, and add that ballistics were a match to Annalise’s gun.”
“Which is what tied the two cases together.” Annalise wrote Kirk’s statement on the paper and then tapped the pen against her thigh. “Oh, then we found out about Paul, and I brought him into unofficial protective custody.”
Zach smiled as she wrote this last bit on a new sheet and tore it free to put on the board. He loved that spark in her eye when she was puzzle-solving.
“Then my house got broken into and vandalized.”
“It did?” Kirk snapped his gaze her direction.
“Yeah, and I suspect it was the kidnapper slash murderer.”
“Why?”
“Because Cody stole the gun from the campsite, but Paul confessed he stole money.”
Kirk grinned. “This is exactly why we need you on our team, Annalise. You connect the dots so beautifully.”
Annalise blushed. “Thank you.”
Zach filled in another piece of paper. “We arrested the three moonshiners, one of whom is now dead, and we probably won’t get a word out of them.” He sighed. “But we do know they all have Moonshine Mafia tattoos, just like Jimmy Vern and the dead man, Buster.”
“We got the sketch back just a bit ago.” She showed it to Kirk.
“Bears a pretty striking resemblance, I’d say.”
Annalise nodded. “Yep. Do you think along with this and the missing horses, and our suspicions that they are at Jimmy Vern’s, it would be enough for a warrant?” Annalise tilted her head as she studied the board.
Kirk rubbed his chin as he leaned back into his chair. “No. Even though the moonshine still was on a beeline between Cataloochee and Jimmy Vern’s house, there is too much coincidence and not enough hard evidence.”
“When Annalise and I interviewed him, he was slick as a snake. If he truly is the one behind the murder, the moonshine, the kidnapping, and now the hit on Wilson, he isn’t going to talk either.”
“Gee, good optimism, Zach.” Annalise rolled her eyes. “You never know, once we get out of here, maybe he will give us something.”
Silence filled the room. She was getting her hopes up too much.
Kirk rose and began pacing the rear of the room. “What are we missing?”
Zach studied Annalise while she studied the sheets. Her intensity radiated in almost palpable waves. This was good for her. And there was no doubt she was in her element. Was he wrong in wanting to protect her from the SMIF team and its inherent risks? Clearly, she thrived on situations like these.
“Oh, we have the receipt for the water filters. We can stop by Bass Pro Shops on the way to Jimmy Vern’s and see if they’ll show us the videos.” She snapped the lid on and off the marker. “The money.” Annalise spun. “Paul said he spent it all. He told me some things, but they would only total up to maybe $1500. Is that worth Jimmy Vern risking his entire empire over?”
Zach shook his head. “You wouldn’t think so.”
“Fifteen hundred would be a drop in the hat for a man like Buchanan. No way. Annalise, we need to talk to Paul again.”
She nodded. “As soon as this lockdown—”
The door swung open, and an officer stuck his head in. “Y’all can go now.”
Zach smiled. “Perfect timing.”
HE WAS GOING TO DIE in this stinking hole, and his mom and dad would never know what became of him.
Cody no longer had the energy to try to sit up and no longer had the moisture to cry any tears, though he wanted to.
God? I’ve never been much on talking to You, and I’m sorry about that. I need to ask You for a favor. Please watch over my mom. Help her get through this. Tell her somehow I’m sorry and I love her.
He watched helplessly as his beloved daily sunbeam shone, changing angles with each passing minute, and then moved on. He wouldn’t ever feel the sunshine again. Or taste his mom’s homemade tacos or chocolate milkshakes or anything else for that matter. He’d never get to go to school again. Ha. Get to. He’d never thought of school in those terms before.
But more than anything, the fact that he would never get to say those words to his mother burned inside his heart. She had worked so hard to take care of him and keep everything going when Dad left, and all he’d repaid her with was snarky teenage attitude and bad grades. If only he could go back and fix it all.
It was too late. Jimmy Vern had him stashed somewhere good, apparently, and no one was coming to his rescue.
THEY HAD GONE FROM zero leads to so many that Annalise wasn’t sure which was the best to follow first. All of them tugged at her. Though she longed to speak with Jimmy Vern, it did make sense to take the time and stop at Bass Pro Shops on the way.
“We need to speak to the manager on duty, please,” Annalise said and showed her badge. “It’s urgent.”
The young cashier’s face paled. “Sure, um, hang on a sec.” She paged someone on the phone and just a few minutes later, a thick gentleman sporting a fisherman’s vest and hat approached. Interesting get up.
“Sorry, I model some of the sale items for the day. This way, the men see how functional it is, even if they never make it to the fishing department.” He rubbed his hands together. “So, how may I help you?”
Zach spoke first. “We have a person of interest in custody, possibly involved in a disappearance. We were hoping to check video feeds.”
Annalise handed him the receipt.
The manager studied it and then shook his head. “I’m sorry. The feed is on a loop. If we have no incidences for the month prior, they are recorded over. The feed you’re requesting no longer exists.”
Her breath caught.
“Thanks for your time.” Zach directed her outside. “Hey, we still have the sketch, and Kirk just sent me a still-shot from the gas station. Unfortunately, all we got is plates. No image of him. But the truck for sure belongs to Jimmy Vern. The little mom and pop store’s video cameras are mostly for show, but maybe we will get lucky and he’ll slip up when we go see him.”
She nodded. Zach was right. There was still reason to hope, at least the little bit she’d allowed to pop back up this morning. All of the new leads couldn’t come up empty, could they?
Zach aimed the truck toward Pigeon Forge.
Gatlinburg lay just beyond. Was Dave there now? With his mistress? Nausea stirred her stomach to life. She had to find a way to squelch the images of him and her together, before they took full shape and made her actually vomit. How had life gotten to this point?
“You okay over there?”
She snapped her gaze toward Zach and forced a smile. “Yeah. I’m fine.”
“No, you’re not. And it’s okay. You’ve been through an awful lot of emotional stuff the last couple days.”
“Yeah.”
“Why did the chicken cross the road?”
“Huh?”
“To prove to the possum it could be done.”
Despite herself, she chuckled. “Thanks, Zach.”
“Anytime.”
Several quiet miles later, he turned into Jimmy Vern’s driveway and parked in the same spot as before. The same dogs came scrambling out to bark and bite at their tires.
Jimmy Vern stepped onto the porch. He didn’t call the dogs back this time.
Zach rolled his window down as far
as he dared with the Rottweiler on his door. “We need to talk, Jimmy Vern.”
“Ain’t got nothing to say to you two.”
“We’ve got enough to bring you in for questioning. It’s your decision. Here or at the station.”
Jimmy Vern looped his fingers through his overall straps and then whistled. The dogs retreated.
Zach and Annalise stepped out together. Her first few tentative steps, she thought the Rottweiler eyeballing her was sure to charge. She sighed when he didn’t.
“Officer Baker needs to show you something, Jimmy Vern.”
Annalise pulled the photo from the envelope and held it up. “This is a sketch from an eyewitness who saw you at a gas station in Maryville the night Cody Moss was kidnapped.”
Jimmy Vern glanced at the image. “Ain’t me. Dunno what to tell ya.”
Zach pulled the new photo up on his phone and showed it to Jimmy Vern. “Really? ’Cause this is your truck, isn’t it? With your license plate number. Quite a coincidence wouldn’t you say, Officer Baker?”
Annalise held back her smirk. “Yep. Sure is.”
“So what if I was there? Needed gas.”
“Who was with you?” Zach pressed.
Jimmy Vern grinned. “I had Jack and Daniels with me.” He pointed toward the boards under his feet. “It’s all coming back to me now.”
Oh, yeah right. Of course his dogs were named after the most infamous Tennessee liquor ever.
“Glad to see your memory is nice and healthy there, Jimmy Vern.” Zach crossed his arms over his chest. “Anything else you’d like to add?”
“Nope.”
Zach turned toward the truck, stopped, and leaned on the hood. “You wouldn’t know anything about that still we busted over the mountain, would you?”
Jimmy Vern opened his mouth but closed it and shook his head.
Figured. No one was talking. No one was willing to save Cody. Brittle hope burst inside her. If only she could cross the line and look in that barn without some stupid piece of paper. Or pin Jimmy Vern to the side of the house and force him to speak.
“We will be back, Jimmy Vern,” she said through clenched teeth. “It’s just a matter of time.”
