by Sara L Foust
“Yeah, right. Just go ahead and kill me and get it over with.”
“Don’t tempt me.”
Cody didn’t care too much what happened to him. “Just leave my mom alone.”
“Scout’s honor.” Jimmy Vern’s disgusting laugh faded behind him as he left Cody alone in the dark once again.
He unscrewed the lid and took a swig. It burned all the way down. He choked and labored to catch his breath. Figured the jerk would leave him whiskey instead of water. He’d seen men on old Westerns use whiskey to sterilize wounds. Maybe he should try it.
He poured a stream onto his hand. If he’d thought it burned going down his throat, he was wrong. He stifled a scream, biting his lip instead. And then took another long swig to ease the throbbing ache.
Cody curled into a ball, with his mouth beneath the water and drank as much as he could. God, if You’re there please help my mom. I don’t want Jimmy Vern to find Paul, not really, but I want this to be over. Can’t You just take me home now?
He’d never thought much about Heaven one way or another. But he imagined it would be a sweet home. Beautiful, peaceful, and painless. Safe. A place without fear or bad men like Jimmy Vern. Cody drifted to sleep, imaging his mother’s sweet face.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
“HAVE YOU BEEN CRYING?” Captain Brooks scrutinized her face.
She dipped her head. “I’m fine. Is Paul ready to go home?” The word home didn’t quite seem fitting anymore, but what else should she call it? The shell where her life used to be normal? The place where she’d hoped to grow old with a man who decided she was too much trouble? She sighed. “I don’t want to talk about it.”
“Paul!” Captain Brooks shouted up the stairs. He turned back to face her. “What’s going on?”
“It’s personal.” She fiddled with her key fob.
“Ah, enough said.” He held up his hands. “How is Celine?”
“She was still out of it when I left.”
“Probably good, all things considered.” He squeezed her shoulder. “We’re going to get them, Annalise. No matter how long it takes.”
“That’s what I’m afraid of. Cody can’t possibly make it much longer.”
“You don’t know that.”
“Right. Think Paul heard you?”
Captain Brooks chuckled. “I’m not sure how he couldn’t. Hang on, I’ll go check.”
Annalise waited at the bottom of the steps, her mind tracking from one bad thing to another. It seemed she couldn’t find a single positive to land and focus on.
Captain Brooks thudded down the stairs.
She spun and felt the blood drain from her face. “What is it?”
“He’s gone.”
“Gone? How can he be gone?”
“I...I don’t know. He didn’t go by me. Only thing I can figure is he went out the window onto the porch roof and jumped off.”
Her heart sank to her stomach. This wasn’t good. Jimmy Vern was hurting people left and right. What if he’d already gotten to Paul? “Are you sure he wasn’t...taken?”
“I can’t be sure.” His voice shook. “I’m so sorry, Annalise. I wasn’t...I don’t know how this happened.”
She placed her hand on his arm. “It’s not your fault, Captain.” How she wanted to be angry with him! To blame the man standing right in front of her instead of the one who seemed invincible and invisible behind all this violence. But she couldn’t. She’d already blown up on Brian for no reason. She wasn’t going to do it to Milt too.
While Captain Brooks whipped out his phone and barked orders for an APB, increased patrols, and an Amber Alert, Annalise called Zach. “Paul’s missing.”
“Oh, Annalise. I’m so sorry.” He sighed. “I just dropped off the samples. I’m on my way.”
“Meet me at Paul and his brother’s house.” Why hadn’t she tried harder to find Paul’s brother? It hadn’t seemed pertinent to her case, but now she wished she could speak with him. Maybe he would know Paul’s go-to places to hide. She dialed the number she’d gotten from Cathy a few days ago. It had been disconnected. Oh, just great.
“We need to add an APB for Paul’s brother Orrin too, Captain.”
He nodded and added the directive to the list he was giving.
What if Paul wasn’t hiding? If Jimmy Vern had gotten to him too...
Her chest muscles constricted, forcing her breaths to grow shallow. She clutched her chest and bent over, sudden dizziness claiming her. This had gone too far. Too many innocent people were getting railroaded and run over. Lord, I’m at a loss. I don’t know what to do!
Captain Brooks’s strong hand pressed her back. “Pull it together, Officer. We’ve got work to do.”
He was right, but her bootstraps were so far away.
“You can do this, Annalise. You’re the strongest person I know.”
“I...can’t...breathe.”
He rubbed her back. “Try to take one deep breath.”
She drew in as much air as she could.
“Good. Now another.”
The second one was deeper and slowed her heart rate more.
“This isn’t about the case, is it?”
The compassion in his voice drew her tears. She shook her head. “Dave left me.”
Before she knew what was happening, Captain Brooks drew her into his arms and held her close. “I’ve been there. It’s a terrible feeling.”
She nodded and wiped her tears.
“It will get better, I promise. I know it doesn’t feel like it right now, but it will.”
She attempted a smile. “Thanks.”
“We have a teenager to find. And once we do, he is grounded for the rest of his life.”
“We aren’t even his parents.”
“Don’t care. He’s grounded. That’s final.”
“Do you—” She couldn’t finish the sentence and ruin the idea. Not yet. Did Captain Brooks wish Paul was his son? Would he be willing to foster and then adopt the boy, if it became an option? She smiled.
“What?”
“Nothing. Come on.”
She followed Captain Brooks to Paul’s house. There didn’t appear to be anyone home, but as they entered the front door, she realized someone had been here. The mess was even worse than before. Had his brother done that? Or had Jimmy Vern been looking for his money and torn the place to pieces? The nappy couch cushions had been shredded, the few photos on the wall thrown to the floor, and every cupboard opened and emptied. Fragments of dishes and glasses littered the counters and tile, and the fridge stood open, warm air already having fought out the cold. From the look of the leftover pizza, a while ago.
Annalise wrinkled her nose. “Do you smell that?”
Captain Brooks paused his search of the living room. “Is that smoke?”
“Where’s it coming from?” She whipped her gaze to the oven. None of the knobs were turned on.
“Back here.” Captain Brooks walked down the narrow hallway.
Annalise followed, her heart climbing into her throat. “Paul!” There was no response. She checked the room closest, while Captain Brooks ducked into the next open doorway. The bedroom had been ransacked too, but Paul was not here.
“Fire!” Captain Brooks’s voice boomed from somewhere deeper in the house.
Fire? Seriously? She stepped through the door and collided with the captain.
“Out, Annalise. Now!”
He grabbed her arm and dragged her through the front door. She glanced back in time to see a wall of flames burst out after them. A loud pop and a whooshing roar soared over their heads as she forced her wobbly legs to clamber down the porch steps. She didn’t stop running until she reached her truck at the curb.
Captain Brooks leaned on the hood next to her, doubled over, coughing.
“What. Was. That?”
“Some sort of slow-burning fuse led into a jug of something. Possibly kerosene.”
“Or moonshine?”
Captain Brooks groaned. �
�Possibly.” He grabbed his shoulder mic and requested the fire department, followed by another round of coughing.
“You okay?”
“Yeah. I pushed that back bedroom door open and a wall of smoke poured over top of me. Musta took a big breath or something.”
They backed their vehicles to what she hoped was a safe distance and watched helplessly as the flames licked the window and door frames. She would have thought the cold rain streaming from the sky would help, but the fire burned so hot, the water hissed as it evaporated, almost as loud as the flames. The last time she watched a house burn down, it was her own. She shuddered. Nothing about this line of work was easy. Did finding lost boys and taking down bad guys make moments like these worth it?
Yes.
Except when she failed at it.
Ten minutes later, the squalling fire truck pulled into the driveway, just as the roof collapsed.
“Not much to save.” Had Jimmy Vern found his money? No doubt he’d cleared the house before he’d torched it. And there would be no returning the game system for a refund now. What was she talking about? If they found the money, it was state’s evidence and would never be returned to Jimmy Vern.
She shouldn’t be jumping to conclusions. There was still no hard evidence of Jimmy Vern’s guilt. And she knew better, but the idea of anyone besides Buchanan being responsible sure didn’t sit well. He was guilty. They just had to find a way to prove what her gut already knew.
The sun crept toward the horizon as the men fought to put out the blaze. By the time the fire smoldered to black ashes, there was not much left. She knew all too well what that looked like and felt like.
A bobbing glow in the back woods caught Annalise’s eye. What on earth? She tapped Captain Brooks on the elbow and signaled.
“On your lead, Baker.”
Her weapon drawn, she took much the same route she had the other night and cautiously approached the trees. The light flicked off. “Paul, I know it’s you.” She was taking a gamble here. She held her breath. Lord, let it be him please. “Don’t run. We are worried about you.”
The silence pressed in so heavily, she could scarcely breathe. What if it was Jimmy Vern, out there in the dark taking aim for her head?
“I know there’s more money than you told me. As long as you keep trying to hide it, you’re in danger.”
A rustle in the leaves sounded a bit closer than before.
“And you’re signing Cody’s death certificate.”
“Fine.”
Annalise jumped at the sound of Paul’s voice nearby. She spun and shined her flashlight into the inky darkness.
Paul stepped from a tree not five feet from her.
Behind her, Captain Brooks sighed. “Glad to see you’re okay, boy.”
“Paul, listen to me.”
Paul met her eyes.
“Tell me where the money is. It’s our last hope of bringing him home alive.”
“I overheard the captain on the phone. If that guy attacked Cody’s mom so bad, what’s to say Cody’s still breathing?”
He had a good point. Lord? “Nothing. But I have hope.” Sort of. There was just enough left in the drying well to keep her going.
“If I give him back his cash, you really think he’ll let Cody go and leave me alone?”
It sounded ridiculous spoken aloud, but there wasn’t much else left to do. “We have to try.”
Paul dipped his chin. “Come on.”
Captain Brooks followed on her heels while Paul led them farther into the forest. She should have known he would have hidden the stash out here. Maybe for a scared teenager with a jerky, incompetent brother as his caretaker, invisibility in the dark woods felt safer than home.
Paul led them to the creek’s edge, still swollen with the rains, and squatted next to an old stump. He pulled a large, black backpack from its hollowed out base. “Here. Ten thousand big ones.”
Annalise’s heart nearly stopped. “Are you serious?”
He nodded.
No wonder the kid had wanted to keep the money. It meant a new lease on life for him. And no wonder Jimmy Vern wanted it back.
Chapter Thirty
ZACH COULD SEE THE glow on the underside of the dark clouds long before he reached Paul’s house. The sinking feeling in his gut accompanied the instant thought of fire. And he instinctively knew it was at his destination.
He rounded the last bend and pulled to the curb next to Annalise’s truck. “What happened? Is Paul hurt?”
Annalise smiled. “Glad you could make it, slow poke. But, no, Paul’s fine.” She pointed to her back seat, obscured by her dark windows.
He could just barely see the outline of a head and shoulders in the rear. “Good. How did the fire start?”
Captain Brooks rubbed a hand over his stubbly chin. “Some sort of accelerant in a jug. Possibly whiskey.”
Zach clamped down a sarcastic chuckle. “Of course. Why did I even have to ask?”
Annalise elbowed him. “It was out, but they’ve had another flare up. I can’t imagine what is left to burn.”
She had a good point. Maybe just the carpet and floor, and the few pieces of furniture illuminated by the glow. “I’m glad no one’s hurt.”
“Me too. The captain and I had a bit of a close call.”
He swallowed hard.
Annalise placed a hand on his forearm. “I’m fine. I promise.”
He managed to nod. “What now?”
“We’ve got the money. And a bargaining chip.”
“What’s your plan?”
“Let’s visit Celine first, and I’ll tell you on the way.”
She opened her back door. “Paul, you need to stay with Captain Brooks a little longer.”
Zach heard him mumble something.
“You will stay put this time, mister. You understand me?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Paul slinked from Annalise’s vehicle and got into the passenger seat of Captain Brooks’s.
“I’ll duct tape him to the stair rails if I have to this time, Annalise.” Captain Brooks chuckled.
“I don’t think that will be necessary, sir. I bet he’s not going anywhere this time.”
Annalise spun and grabbed Zach by the elbow. “Let’s go.”
He dropped his truck off in Annalise’s driveway and climbed into hers. Forty-five minutes later, they pulled into the University of Tennessee Medical Center and wound their way up to Celine’s new room.
Annalise stopped in the doorway, and Zach crashed into her back. She stood riveted, open mouthed. “What? What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. She’s awake.”
He peeked around the door frame.
A much-bruised-but-smiling Celine waved at him. “So good to see you ali—awake, Ms. Moss.”
She giggled. “I’m glad I’m alive too, Officer Leebow. Thank you.”
“Forgive me if it is none of my business, but you seem so at peace, Celine.” Annalise pulled a chair up and sat next to the bed.
“I had a dream you found my Cody. I think it was a sign from God.”
Zach’s pulse skipped. What must Annalise be thinking? He had serious doubts about Cody’s health and safety by this point. He had been in the kidnapper’s custody far too long.
“Ms. Moss, I...um, please don’t get your hopes up too high.” Annalise’s voice hitched. “I really am trying my best, but it’s been nearly five days. The odds of him coming home alive are, well, not great.”
Celine’s face paled, but she patted Annalise’s hand and smiled. “I have hope.”
Zach crossed his arms over his chest, his gaze glued to Annalise’s face. He could read the emotions crossing there like an open diary. She had hope, too, but it was wavering and ringed with a thick dose of fear and doubt. Not to mention self-criticism and a broken heart.
“Celine, I...” She dropped her head. “I’ll do my best.”
“Officer Leebow, would you pray with us?”
He jerked his gaze t
o Ms. Moss’s. “I...um, of course.” He stepped forward and took their hands. “Lord, please help Ms. Moss continue to heal, with no residual effects from the injuries she sustained. Above all else, please watch over Cody, wherever he is right now, and help us bring him home, safe.” His thudding heart began to slow with a new peace. “Lead us to the man responsible and let him face justice. Strengthen Mr. and Ms. Moss while they wait for You to answer their prayers. Amen.”
Celine squeezed his hand, and he opened his eyes.
“Thank you.” Tears shone in the corners of Celine’s eyes. “Bring my baby home to me, please.”
All he could manage was an unsteady nod. What if they failed? What if they found a body instead of a breathing boy?
Annalise cleared her throat. “How are you? What are the doctors saying about your recovery?”
“Still have all these broken bones.” Celine chuckled. “But my brain imaging seems to be normal.”
“That’s wonderful. Can you remember anything about the attack?”
“I have some vague blips that come up in my dreams. I know it was a man. Average height.”
A nurse entered the room. “Oh, Officer Baker, good. I was just trying to phone you. Ms. Moss is awake.” She smiled at him and turned away. “I guess you can see that.” She checked Ms. Moss’s vitals. “Do you need anything?”
“No, thank you.” Celine smiled.
The nurse caught his eye briefly as she passed, and a quick blush spread up her cheeks. Too bad he wasn’t interested. She seemed sweet, and she was certainly attractive. The blush told him she was thinking the same thing, but he didn’t need a new relationship right now. Not with Annalise’s situation. He wouldn’t be able to focus on helping her if he was distracted by a beautiful brunette with big, brown eyes and—No. He forced his attention back to the women’s conversation.
“He wore a mask, I think. One of those generic ski masks, if my nightmares are accurate. He kept asking me about money, but I had no idea what he was talking about.”
“He clearly didn’t believe you,” Annalise said.
“No. Then he asked me about Paul, I think. I must have passed out, because I don’t remember him leaving. I woke sometime later on the office floor and stumbled upstairs. I needed to clean myself up.”
