A Trail of Breadcrumbs

by D E Dennis

  “So the baby...”

  “She went to live with a loving family who cherished her and took care of her until that— That—” Rowan’s face twisted with hate. “That trash Antarr killed her! He took my baby and the world never even knew she was m-mine!”

  “How did you know?” Michael asked gently. “That your baby was one of the children who...” He trailed off.

  “Her mother t-told m-me,” she cried, body wracked with sobs. “After she went missing. She was desperate. She read the letter and found out who I was. Knew I had money and connections. She wanted me to help with the search and I tried. I hired my own private investigators, but it was too late.

  “When she called me and told me what h-happened to her, I broke down. I was a mess. Grieving, depressed, I didn’t care about stupid candy sales. I just wanted to be alone. So I went back to the cabin. It was still there, standing empty and lonely in a wood everyone feared to go. I returned and I never left.”

  “Rowan, I’m so sorry,” he whispered. “I truly am.”

  She just cried. Cried and cried while Monica watched them from the parking lot. The tears on her face letting him know his sister heard every word.

  “So Irina West was your daughter,” Michael said with a sigh.

  Rowan sniffled, looking at him through red, puffy eyes. “What? Irina West? No. My daughter’s name was Andrea Taylor.”

  “Andrea Taylor? You mean Harper’s younger sister was—”

  “Adopted,” she finished. “It’s why I couldn’t turn Harper away. I never could have turned her away.” Slumping over, she squeezed her eyes shut. “Harper was kind. She told me stories about Andrea. Her favorite color was mint green and she climbed into Harper’s bed at night whenever she had a bad dream.” She let out a soft laugh. “She wanted to be a hairdresser. She would practice cutting hair on her dolls.”

  She opened her eyes and turned to him, although Michael felt she was seeing right through him. “Harper told me Andrea loved all of my gifts, especially the doll. She slept with it every night.

  “He killed her,” she whispered. “And then he killed Harper. My daughter’s sister.”

  “He won’t hurt anyone else, Rowan,” Michael said firmly. “We’re going to find the evidence to lock him away for good.”

  Haltingly, she shook her head. “No... you won’t. There won’t be any evidence. There never is. He’ll get away with it again.”

  That was said so softly Michael almost didn’t hear it.

  “Rowan? Rowan?” Her eyes were unfocused. Empty. “Rowan, I promise he won’t—”

  Michael cut himself off the moment he saw her face change. A vicious glare lit her previously dead eyes with fire. She bared her teeth, hissing, “He won’t get away with it again!”

  She lashed out and yanked the door shut. Michael jerked back just in time, missing getting slammed in her car door by throwing himself against the one beside him.

  Rowan gunned the engine and peeled out wildly, tires screeching.

  “Look ou—”

  A crash brought Michael leaping to his feet. Rowan had rear-ended a parked car, but she didn’t stop. She hit the gas, tearing out of the parking lot and leaving a fallen bumper and two incredulous siblings in her wake.

  “Michael, what do we do?!” Monica cried, rushing over to him

  “I don’t know,” he said, his brain still trying to catch up to all that had happened. His eyes were blinking like a camera shutter.

  “What did she mean Antarr wouldn’t get away with it again? Do you think she’s going to go after him?”

  “It sounded like it,” he replied, insides filling with dread.

  Monica caught hold of his sleeve, dragging him to the car. “We have to stop her! He’s a deranged killer with a gun! He’ll hurt her!”

  Michael caught Monica’s arm, stopping her. “Monica, call Samira now. Tell her to get over to Antarr’s place, sirens blaring, and don’t waste time explaining.”

  “Got it.”

  They hopped into his car and Michael tore out of the parking lot, heading for Siren Woods.

  Rowan had a significant head start on them. Michael didn’t spot her busted taillight as he sped through the streets to Liam Antarr’s falling-down heap.

  He escaped the town and turned on to the solitary street leading to Antarr’s cabin. They saw the flashing lights up ahead. Samira was on the way. He only hoped she got there in time to stop Rowan from doing something she would never be able to take back.

  Twigs and gravel went flying as Michael yanked the car right on to Antarr’s dirt road.

  Samira’s plain work-issued car and two police vehicles were parked haphazardly in front of the house.

  He saw her and Spencer hop out just as he slammed on the brakes.

  “Stay here!” she shouted at them as she pulled out her weapon. “Do not get out of that car, Grimm, or I’ll arrest you!”

  “Toss that into the sea,” he scoffed, grabbing the door. “I’m not letting her go in—”

  A rough hand on his collar brought his exit, and his breathing, to a halt. “Don’t even think about it, Michael! Let the people with the weapons go first!”

  “But, Mo,” he gasped. “What if Mira needs help?!”

  “She’s got Spencer. And I got you.” She released him only to pop him over the head. “You can’t abandon your partner.”

  With herculean effort, Michael pulled his leg back in the car and closed the door.

  “Thank you,” she said softly. “The good news is I don’t see Rowan’s car.”

  He nodded, eyes fixed on the scene in front of him. The police spread out, scanning the area. Spencer knocked on the front door and waited, but predictably it didn’t open. He gestured at the others, and they disappeared around the back.

  The siblings sat in nervous anticipation. Michael’s hand clutched the wheel in a death grip, only letting up when a familiar raven-haired officer reappeared, trudging toward them.

  Michael shot out of the car, ignoring Monica’s shout.

  “Mira?!” he cried. “What happened?”

  “You tell me, Michael,” she said, stopping in front of him. “Monica said it was an emergency, someone was after Antarr, and we had to get here before she killed him. We just burst in on Antarr, and almost got our heads sawed off for the trouble. He was working on a project when we came in and there was no sign of any attacker.” She jerked her thumb over her shoulder. “Spencer and the uniforms are sitting on him now, so you can fill me in.”

  He took a breath. “We spoke to Rowan Presley,” Michael said, “and that was no easy conversation. She was Andrea Taylor’s birth mother, Mira.”

  “Her birth mother?” Her mouth fell open; clearly this was news to her as well. “So Antarr—”

  “—killed her daughter. And by all accounts, he killed Harper too. The one person she could share her pain with. So when she zoomed off like the gates of Hades were opening up under her, shouting about not letting him get away with it, I thought I should call you before I followed.”

  Mira lost her defensive stance, shaking her head in disbelief. “Biological mother,” she breathed. “You did the right thing calling us, Michael. I wouldn’t have assumed she had good intentions either. But whatever she meant, she’s not here.”

  “That doesn’t mean she isn’t coming.”

  “No,” she agreed. “She could have gone to get a weapon or something. We’ll have to stay on Antarr. Make sure Presley doesn’t come here and carry out her thinly veiled threat.” Samira heaved a sigh. “This is not how I thought my day would go. Protecting Antarr, instead of slapping cuffs on him.”

  “Are you any closer to slapping cuffs on him?”

  Mira glanced over her shoulder, before stepping closer. “Honestly, no,” she said quietly. “We have re-interviewed Harper’s husband, mother, coworkers, and neighbors. We searched her car, home, and desk again after you told us about the flash drive, but came up empty.

  “We’ve asked around town, but
no one saw Antarr or Harper that night. The ballistics don’t match the gun Liam has registered, but he could have others we don’t know about. Something a search of his property could turn up, but we can’t get a search warrant. We have nothing to tie Antarr to Rowe except for an article everyone swears wasn’t going to feature him. Judge says our case is built on nothing, but hearsay and past crimes and she’s right.” She looked him in the eye. “Antarr is going to walk on this one if we don’t find something soon.” She cursed. “Antarr was smart, hiring someone to wipe her computers.”

  “Did you find out who he could have hired?”

  She shook her head. “There are a couple of hackers on our radar. This one guy, Diggle. Dougie. Something like that. Busted a few years ago for hacking into Castle Rock Prep’s database and changing students’ grades. He could, and would, do something like this, but he’s denying it. He’s never been seen in the company of Antarr, and if he paid him, we have no way of tracking it. Antarr doesn’t have a bank account that we can find so it would have been a cash transaction.”

  Michael kissed his teeth. “It’s just one roadblock after another, but we might be able to get around this one. Monica’s got a friend who’s good with computers. He’s going to hack into Harper’s accounts and see if he can track how she got hit with the virus, and who sent it.”

  “What friend?” she demanded.

  “That’s... uh... not important.” No way was Michael going to say the name Dougie. He couldn’t have the guy arrested before they found what they needed.

  “So you’re thinking the virus could have been sent by email,” she stated.

  “Yes, and speaking of mail, Rowan finally received the letter Harper sent her. She showed it to us.”

  Samira perked up. “What did it say? Did it have anything to do with Antarr or the case?”

  He held up his hands in the face of her eagerness. “Sorry, I misspoke. She refused to show us what was inside and knowing what we do now it makes sense. She wanted to make sure there was nothing in there revealing her connection to Andrea before we saw it. Then everything got out of hand and she tore out of there before we could convince her to let us see it.”

  Samira frowned. “That letter could be evidence and we’ll be the judge of whether it is or it isn’t. Spencer and I will speak to her ourselves.” She looked around. “She may even come to us.”

  “If she doesn’t, you’ll have to track her down in... all this.” He waved his hand to encompass the woods leering over them. “How would you even find her? She can’t have an address.”

  “She isn’t the first suspect to think fleeing into the woods is the best way to shake us. We can borrow tracking dogs from the next county and, if necessary, we’ll commission a helicopter.”

  “Wow,” Michael said, impressed. “But I’m hoping it doesn’t come to all of that.”

  “It will be what it is,” she said simply. She stepped away from him, eyes growing hard. “You did the right thing, Grimm, but you should get going now. We got it from here.”

  “No, that’s okay. I’ll stay and—”

  “That wasn’t a request,” she said bluntly. “This could get dangerous. Go.”

  With that, she pivoted on her heels and took off, leaving the heavy atmosphere of this morning in her wake.

  After a while, Samira long gone, Michael walked back and climbed into his car.

  “So?” Monica burst out. “What happened?”

  Michael filled her in on everything Samira told him.

  “Also,” he added. “Please tell me there is no chance your friend Dougie is the one who created the virus in the first place. Have we just paid the culprit to investigate themselves?”

  She laughed. “There is no chance.”

  He looked over at her as he backed on to the road, his face telling her he wasn’t convinced.

  “Trust me, Michael. We went to school together. I know him and even though he likes to push boundaries, he wouldn’t stoop so low as to help Liam Antarr. Everyone knows who he is. What he is. Dougie would never do business with him.”

  He breathed a sigh of relief. “Well then, let’s hope he turns up something on Antarr before Mira turns up something on him.”

  “Where to next?”

  “The office. Mira is right, there is nothing more we can do. We don’t know where Rowan is and lying in wait at her home is impossible. We’ll have to leave this one to them.”

  “Andrea’s biological mother,” Monica whispered. “Who gave her daughter to the Taylors, and then her daughter is killed by Antarr. Who later appears in her wood, abandoning the kids she saved.” She shook her head. “You’re right about how this all seems to connect. A trail of breadcrumbs leading to one horrible time twenty years ago.”

  Michael squeezed the wheel. “You know Samira said something to me once. About how murder was like a baseball hitting a windshield. The murder was the initial impact, but the cracks and splinters were the people affected. The Siren Woods Killer splintered so many lives and... and it never could have ended there, twenty years ago with him not truly brought to justice. I think it was always coming to this, Mo. Eventually, someone was going to do something about the person who hit that baseball.”

  “That’s a dark thought,” Monica murmured.

  “Yes, but as we can see. It was true.”

  ELLA LOOKED UP FROM her computer when they walked in.

  “Hey, guys. How’d it go?” She looked Michael up and down. He was still damp. “Did someone spray you with a hose again?”

  “No,” he cried, offended. He sniffed. “She just threw a glass of water on me.”

  Ella smothered her giggles but Monica didn’t. She laughed out loud and clapped him on the back. “It could have been worse, bro. At least we finally got the full story out of her.”

  “Sad story,” he said faintly. “You were right about there being more to the story of how Roland Presley died.”

  Michael told Ella everything Rowan shared with them.

  “Oh my,” she said mournfully. “How awful. That poor woman. I can’t imagine what she’d gone through over the years. She must have felt so alone.”

  “Until Harper,” Monica said. She passed Michael a mug of coffee. “She must have cherished those times they spoke. Hearing those stories of her daughter.”

  Ella looked down. “Yeah, that... would have been special.”

  Michael’s heart twisted. He could only imagine what it must be like for Ella, whose mother had died from cancer when she was two. She then shortly after lost her father in a car accident.

  “Are you going to tell Mrs. Engelbert?” Ella asked. “That you know about the adoption?”

  He shook his head. “If it comes up, but honestly, it had nothing to do with Harper’s death and that is what she is paying us to investigate. I’m glad we understand that connection, but we need to focus on what actually got Harper killed, and it’s whatever was on those computers.”

  Monica spoke up. “I’ve been checking my phone every five minutes, but it’s still stubbornly telling me Dougie hasn’t texted. He said he would the moment he had something.”

  He sighed. “You have any news, Ella?”

  “Yes,” she said, surprising him. “A guy named Nelson Finley called and said he wanted you to stop by and see him again. It sounded important.”

  “Alright, we can go tomorrow morn—”

  “Also, Hazel Antarr was here like I told you. She was all set to wait for you, but then she got a phone call and ran out. She said for you to call her tomorrow so you guys can make plans for dinner.”

  He nodded. “Fine. I’ll—”

  “And,” Ella continued.

  Michael snapped his mouth shut. Maybe I’ll just wait until she is finished.

  “Auntie Kimona called,” said Ella. “She’ll be here in”—Ella glanced at her cell—“twenty minutes for dinner.”

  “Do we have dinner plans?” Michael asked, swinging around to look at his sister. He got a shrug in return.
>
  “She said you would ask that and she told me to tell you, ‘you do now.’”

  Michael didn’t know whether to laugh or roll his eyes, in the end, he went with both.

  “I guess we’re having dinner with Mom. I’ll try to get some work done in the meantime.”

  Michael strode into the breakroom. His whiteboard and suspect list stood in full display, waiting for him and another murder-mapping session. He frowned.

  “Ella? Didn’t I—”

  He cut himself off, shaking his head.

  “What was that?”

  “Nothing. Never mind.”

  Picking up a marker, he got to work, adding in new lines for Rowan Presley: one connecting to Andrea Taylor.

  “There isn’t much on the other children.”

  Michael jumped out of his skin. “Stop doing that,” he hissed.

  Snickering, Monica stepped to his other side. “The Wests left Castle Rock and moved to Snowhaven. While the Miltons have refused to answer any more of our calls after the first conversation Mrs. Milton had with Ella. She said speaking to Harper dragged up all the painful memories and she doesn’t want to keep re-living the worst moment of her life. I can’t blame her, but I have this feeling.”

  “A feeling?”

  She nodded. “I know those are usually reserved for you; but lately, I’ve been wondering why? Why those three kids? The disappearances didn’t all happen at once. First Irina West disappeared, then Nicholas Milton a month later. Then six weeks after Milton, Andrea Taylor went missing. Then there was nothing again. No movement from Antarr until the children were found in the woods. Soon after that, he tries to kill his children, but why the gaps? And why did he pick those children in particular?”

  Monica reached out, tracing a line under those three names. “They were around the same age and went to the same school, but that’s where the similarities stopped. Different gender, different hair color, different ethnicities, different socio-economic backgrounds. They all lived on our side, but the Taylors were doing alright for themselves, living closer to the gate.