Sawyer's Secret

by Laura Scott

  “Okay.” Naomi’s breathless voice made him long to kiss her again, until she didn’t have the ability to speak at all.

  Bad idea. He stepped back and turned toward the door. He had a job to do. One that didn’t include kissing Naomi until he couldn’t think clearly.

  “I’ll check in later,” he said over his shoulder.

  “Okay.” Naomi remained exactly where she was, as if unable to move.

  He grinned as he left her room to slide in behind the wheel of his squad. It had been a long time since he’d dated anyone. He’d found most women to be clingy and obviously looking for more than he was willing to give. Most women wanted the whole shebang: marriage, a house in a nice neighborhood, 2.5 children, and to hold neighborhood block parties.

  Things he didn’t want or need.

  Yet, for some reason, Naomi didn’t intrude on his normal loner mentality.

  In fact, he felt off balance without her sitting beside him.

  He left the parking lot and headed toward the address the dispatcher had provided. It was a minor miracle that he’d been able to remember anything while cradling Naomi in his arms.

  Better to push those thoughts aside. Being distracted while on the job wasn’t smart. Domestic incidents, specifically, tended to be some of the most dangerous. Especially since many of the state residents held concealed carry permits.

  Thankfully, the disturbance was mild and didn’t result in an arrest. In this way, working day shift was nice. Many domestic disputes took place in the late evening hours when heavy drinking was more likely to be involved.

  The next call that came through was from Louisa’s mother, Francine Marchese. He swung by her house, noting again the close proximity to East Ridge.

  “It’s almost been a full week,” Francine wailed. “Why haven’t you found my daughter?”

  “Detective Turner has the case,” Sawyer reminded her. “I just checked in with him yesterday, and he’s still actively searching for Louisa.”

  “Five days,” Francine repeated shrilly. “My baby could be dead!”

  He truly felt awful for her. He couldn’t imagine what it would be like to lose a child. To not know if your young daughter was dead or alive. “I’m sorry. The entire Chattanooga police force is doing what we can.”

  She buried her face in her hands, and he gently patted her back. He didn’t dare tell her about Kate Palmer also going missing or Naomi’s escape from kidnappers suspected of being involved in sex trafficking.

  To be honest, Turner pretty much felt Louisa had left on her own with her boyfriend, despite Francine’s insistence that her daughter would never do such a thing. Parents didn’t always know what their children were capable of.

  Yet Sawyer’s gut told him Louisa had likely been taken by sex traffickers. When he’d challenged Dewayne Turner, the detective claimed he was keeping an open mind on any and all possibilities, following up on Louisa’s boyfriend and her other school friends. From Sawyer’s perspective, the guy was wasting time going through that much detail.

  Time Louisa didn’t have.

  After consoling Francine Marchese, Sawyer returned to his routine patrol, keeping a sharp eye out for any sign of a black Buick and a boxy white van.

  The rest of his morning passed with routine calls. He’d dished out a couple of traffic tickets and answered a burglary call.

  When he caught a glimpse of a square white van, his heart rate quickened. But then he saw that the side of the van had a logo for a local plumbing company.

  Naomi hadn’t mentioned seeing a logo on the boxy white van, which he felt certain she couldn’t have missed.

  It occurred to him that the sex-trafficking ring could add logos to the van as a disguise. If they had done that, it would be impossible to identify the fake logo from a real one.

  The black Buick Melvin Curtis owned was their best option of breaking open the case.

  Unfortunately, the guy was proving to be as elusive as the mountain mist.

  It rankled that the intruder outside his cabin had gotten away. Granted, Sawyer had been shot at twice, which had forced him to slow down. The trip wires he’d placed between the trees had done their job, but not enough to enable him to catch the guy.

  It was frustrating to have been this close to grabbing the guy twice, only to fail miserably.

  When his stomach rumbled loudly, Sawyer decided to grab fast food for lunch. It made him wonder what Naomi was doing. It was tempting to call and check on her, but he managed to refrain.

  His boss had warned him not to let Naomi’s kidnapping become a personal vendetta. Especially after hearing about the intruder outside his cabin. Sawyer understood his boss’s concern.

  A cop needed to keep a clear head when facing danger. Getting emotionally involved could have a negative impact on his ability to function in a crisis.

  Unfortunately, the lieutenant’s warning had come too late. He cared about Naomi, more than he should. And her situation of being kidnapped, along with her missing sister, had already become very personal.

  He’d barely finished eating his burger when the call about the discovery of a dead body believed to be that of a young girl came over the radio.

  Sawyer didn’t hesitate. He threw the squad into gear and headed to the location, which happened to be a stone’s throw from East Ridge.

  That alone had him fearing the worst. Was the dead girl Kate Palmer? Or Louisa Marchese?

  Or a completely different young girl who hadn’t yet been reported missing?

  None of the options were good ones. He detested men who preyed on young girls. When he pulled into the small parking lot, he saw a group of people clustered together off near a thickly wooded area. He quickly shoved his way through them to where another officer, a guy named Brody Jones, was stringing up crime scene tape from tree to tree in an effort to keep the pedestrians and the news media at bay.

  “Do you have an ID on the vic?” Sawyer asked.

  “No.” Brody glanced at him with a grim expression. “Animals have gotten to her, likely coyotes. The condition of the body is not good.”

  Sawyer swallowed hard, glancing over to an area between two trees where several yellow markers had been placed. “Mind if I take a look?”

  Brody shrugged. “Suit yourself, but don’t puke on the crime scene.”

  Sawyer hadn’t done that in a long time, but the freshly eaten burger congealed in his stomach as he carefully moved closer to the victim. This was the absolute worst part of the job, and it never got any easier.

  The scene was worse than he imagined. The animals had gotten to her, so there was no way to recognize her face. But he could see a glint of reddish blond hair.

  Not Louisa, then. Maybe Kate? He grimaced and pulled the picture Naomi had given him earlier from his pocket.

  In the photograph, Kate’s hair looked darker than this victim’s reddish gold strands. But he couldn’t be sure that Naomi’s sister hadn’t changed her hair color at some point.

  What had happened here? He didn’t see any clothing, which wasn’t something animals normally carried off. Had she tried to run away? Or had she been raped and strangled before being dumped?

  It made him sick to think about the terrible fate this young girl had suffered. He turned from the gruesome scene. “Brody? Which detective has this case?”

  The cop glanced at him. “Turner is on his way. Although this vic doesn’t have dark hair like that missing Marchese girl.”

  He nodded thoughtfully. “Who found the body?”

  “Couple of kids. They ran screaming, bringing several parents out to investigate.” Brody shook his head. “No one should have to see that, especially not a little kid.”

  Sawyer agreed. He showed Brody the picture of Kate. “What do you think? Could this be our vic?”

  Brody grimaced. “Maybe. Hard to tell. I’m thinking they’ll need dental records and DNA in order to make a positive ID. Unless we’re lucky enough that her fingerprints are in the system.”

>   Naomi hadn’t mentioned Kate ever being arrested. If she had, getting a fingerprint match in the system would be helpful. He debated calling Naomi, but then thought better of it.

  This wasn’t the type of conversation you had over the phone. Bad news was best delivered in person.

  Chapter Ten

  Naomi left her motel room at lunchtime to eat in a café nearby. When she’d finished eating, she didn’t want to return to the room. She’d stayed in Chattanooga specifically to help find Kate. Unfortunately, her options were limited without a car.

  Walking downtown helped her understand the layout of the city, although she found herself looking frequently over her shoulder. She minimized the risk by sticking with crowds of other tourists. She rather enjoyed seeing the Smoky Mountains, a view she didn’t have from her small house in Dalton. Yet as much as she liked the area, her primary concern was to find the boxy white van or the black Buick.

  Neither vehicle was likely to be spotted by her walking along the side of the road. After escaping the kidnappers, Sawyer had accused her of using herself as bait. Which, frankly, she had.

  Being outside in the open for anyone to see made her feel like that again. And honestly? She didn’t like it. The idea of being captured and held by the kidnappers for a second time made her stomach twist with fear.

  But how else would she find out what had happened to her sister?

  Naomi sent up a silent prayer for God to continue guiding her on this journey. To keep Kate safe from harm and to bring her sister home.

  Only this time, she didn’t experience the reassuring sense of peace.

  Naomi wasn’t sure how long she wandered around Chattanooga, but she suddenly stopped when she realized her surroundings were not at all familiar.

  With a sigh of disgust, she was forced to admit she’d gotten lost.

  “Idiot,” she muttered. She pulled out her phone to call Sawyer, frowning when she realized the disposable phone screen was blank.

  Had she accidentally turned the phone off? Or had the battery died?

  Naomi attempted to power up the phone without success. Feeling foolish for being irresponsible, she glanced around for a pay phone to use. There wasn’t one anywhere in sight; however, a police squad pulled up next to the curb. Recognizing Sawyer behind the wheel, she approached the passenger side as he lowered the window.

  “Where have you been?” His harsh tone instantly put her back up.

  “Walking, why? Is that a crime?”

  “Of course not, but I’ve been calling you without an answer. I was worried something bad happened to you.”

  “I’m sorry.” She flushed, realizing he had a right to be concerned. “I didn’t realize my phone battery died.”

  He sighed and gestured for her to get in. The interior of the squad was amazingly cool compared to the sticky summer heat. “I hope you weren’t driving around looking for me.”

  “That’s exactly what I’ve been doing.” Sawyer still sounded irked.

  “I’m sorry,” she repeated. What more could she say? It wasn’t as if she’d cut off all communication with him on purpose.

  “Has Kate ever been arrested?”

  Sawyer’s question came from the stratosphere. “What? Why?”

  “Please, Naomi.” His dark gaze was compelling. “Just tell me if she has or hasn’t.”

  “Never.” She eyed him warily as he navigated the traffic to head back to her motel. The area looked familiar now, so she must not have been too far off track.

  “I have bad news,” Sawyer said slowly. “And I need you to understand we don’t have a positive ID yet.”

  A chill snaked down her spine. She gripped the armrest of the car door. “You found Kate?”

  “No, as I mentioned, we don’t have a positive ID,” Sawyer said firmly. “But a young girl is dead. And she isn’t Louisa.”

  Dead.

  The word hit her hard, despite his insistence there was no positive ID. He wouldn’t be telling her this if he wasn’t concerned that the dead girl could very well be Kate.

  “I need to see her.”

  “No, you don’t,” Sawyer swiftly countered. “Trust me on this. The unknown female victim was left in the woods where the wildlife has gotten to her. There isn’t a way to make a positive ID except by fingerprints, and if that doesn’t work, dental records.”

  Her stomach lurched, and she had to swallow the urge to throw up. This was the news she’d dreaded since the moment she’d known Kate was missing.

  She squeezed her eyes shut, trying not to imagine a ravaged Kate being found in the woods.

  “Naomi, please don’t do this.” Sawyer’s voice was softly pleading. “I only mentioned it because if we don’t get a match on a set of fingerprints in the system, we’ll need to look at dental records. Kate’s records.”

  Her stomach lurched again, and she pressed her hand to her abdomen. She took several deep breaths before she could manage to speak. “I can get in touch with our dentist in town.”

  “That would be helpful,” Sawyer admitted. “Any chance your sister may have dyed her hair? The color on our girl in the woods doesn’t exactly match your sister’s from what I can tell.”

  A surge of hope hit hard. “Not that I know of. So the girl in the woods may not be Kate?”

  “I warned you that we didn’t have a positive ID.” Sawyer reached over to take her hand. “For your sake, I hope our unknown female isn’t Kate. But we’ll need to find out for sure one way or the other.”

  She gripped his hand tightly and nodded. “Okay.”

  Sawyer drove her back to her motel room. Rummaging in her duffel bag, she found the phone charging cord and plugged it in.

  “Here, use mine.” He handed over his smartphone. “I’m sure you don’t know your dentist’s number by heart.”

  “I don’t.” Taking his phone, she performed a quick search for Dr. Lee Radtke in Dalton. With trembling fingers, she punched in the phone number.

  “Dr. Radtke’s office, can I help you?”

  “This is Naomi Palmer. I’m, uh, calling about dental records for my sister, Kate Palmer. She’s missing, and the Chattanooga police need them to . . .” She couldn’t finish.

  Sawyer took the phone from her hand. “This is Officer Sawyer Murphy from the Chattanooga PD. We have an unknown female victim that we’d like to identify. Kate Palmer has been missing for several days. I have her guardian, Naomi Palmer, here. If you could send a copy of Kate’s dental records to our precinct, we can use them to help us identify the victim.”

  Naomi couldn’t hear what the response was, but when Sawyer rattled off a fax number, she knew they were willing to cooperate.

  Her knees went weak. She sank down onto the edge of the bed, her mind spinning. Was this why she hadn’t felt God’s peace earlier? Because her sister was already dead?

  Sawyer sank down beside her and put his arm around her shoulders. Grateful, she leaned against him.

  “I’m sorry, Naomi.” He kissed her uninjured temple.

  She nodded. “H-how long does it take to complete the process of identifying the girl?”

  There was a brief pause. “I’m not sure,” he admitted. “But she’s been taken to the morgue where they’ll do an autopsy. We should hear something once they’re able to check her fingerprints for a match in the system and have a chance to review her dental records.”

  Her beautiful, outgoing younger sister might be lying on a cold metal table in the morgue. It was all so surreal. So inconceivable. This kind of thing didn’t happen in Dalton, Georgia. Naomi’s job as a clinic nurse was mundane. Her life was centered around providing a stable home for Kate. They’d even planned to visit some colleges in the fall. Kate had expressed a desire to go to Tennessee, while Naomi had hoped she’d attend Georgia State to save money on tuition.

  Then Kate had disappeared, and Naomi had been kidnapped.

  The thought of burying her sister beside her mother made her eyes well with tears.

  Why,
God, why?

  There was no answer.

  Despite his warnings to the contrary, Sawyer knew Naomi was imagining the worst.

  That her half sister was dead.

  He wished he could assure her otherwise, but he couldn’t. He’d debated telling Naomi anything at all about the girl they’d found. Yet on a practical level, having Kate’s dental records would help, especially since he’d had a bad feeling their unknown female victim’s fingerprints wouldn’t pop in AFIS, the Automated Fingerprint Identification System law enforcement had access to.

  The hour he hadn’t been able to find Naomi had been the worst thing he’d endured since escaping the Preacher. And that was saying a lot. He’d done the same thing she was doing, imagining the worst-case scenario, while fruitlessly searching for her. When he’d caught a glimpse of Naomi strolling along without a care in the world, he’d hit the brakes so hard he’d nearly caused a chain reaction collision.

  He’d mentally thanked God for keeping Naomi safe before he could stop himself.

  If there really was a God, He wouldn’t listen to him, not after what Sawyer had done thirteen years ago.

  “What about her clothing?” Naomi’s abrupt question pulled him from his dark thoughts. “I’m sure I could recognize what she was wearing.”

  Oh boy. He tightened his grip around her shoulders. “I’m sorry, but we didn’t find any clothing.”

  She gasped. “Naked? She was found naked?”

  “Yes. But we don’t know that the girl is Kate.” He sounded like a broken record, but he understood she was upset. “Please try not to go down that path, Naomi.”

  “Even if she’s not Kate, she’s still someone’s daughter, sister, or friend.” Her voice was so soft he could barely hear her. “She didn’t deserve to be left naked in the woods.”

  “I know.” The crime scene would haunt him for a long time too. And he found himself hoping that his foster sisters Darby, Jayme, and Caitlyn hadn’t suffered a similar fate.

  In that respect, he’d been fortunate to have had Joseph Kohl pull him off the streets. Offering food and shelter with no strings attached. After a few months of living together, the cop admitted to losing his wife after four years of marriage. When Sawyer asked why he wasn’t seeing anyone now, Joe had claimed Sharon had been his soul mate and irreplaceable. Then Joe had gone on to tell Sawyer he was the son he and Sharon had never had.