“Oh, I’m so glad you’re here early,” exclaimed Momma Pat.
“Honey, we’ve got to talk,” added Little Momma.
“Nothing bad, though. Don’t worry,” Mammaw Sellers explained.
Granny spoke-up, “Now, now. Settle down, ya’ll. We’ve only got a minute before church starts.”
“So, what’s going on?” I asked. “There’s something I need to know?”
“There’s someone you need to know,” Little Momma said, giggling.
“Oh, no. Not another setup,” I complained.
“But, you haven’t heard about this one yet! He’s a fine lookin’ man and he’s new to this area,” Momma Pat informed me.
“He’s a widower and his two children are in college,” Mammaw Sellers stated.
“So good lookin’,” Little Momma added.
“Woah, ya’ll. I appreciate the fact that you spotted this eligible bachelor and apparently learned his entire life history. But, I’m not looking to date anyone right now. Besides, what would I do? Go up to this man and say, ‘hey, my adoptive grannies said you’re fine and single. Wanna go out?’”
“Sure!” exclaimed Little Momma. “Try that! Might work.”
The others giggled and I just rolled my eyes and smiled. It took us a minute to all hug each other before we went to our seats. I left the gaggle with a package of pocket tissues, a handful of individually wrapped peppermints, and a business card from the new man in town.
Pastor Smith delivered a terrific sermon about helping those who can’t themselves. Unfortunately, this brought back that nagging sensation I’d had to uncover what happened to Amber and Lily Tipton. Our excursion to the shed did nothing but convince the cops we were some kind of crazy. Someone needed to find Amber and her daughter, and I felt even more convinced that I was the one to do it. While still in the church parking lot, I sent a group text to the Grannies that I had an unspoken prayer request regarding a case at work. I gave them that little bit of specificity so they wouldn’t think I was praying about the good-lookin’ widower.
That evening, the kids had opted to watch one of the Star Wars movies together while I tidied up the house. One of the things on my to-do list was to set the trash cans out by the road for pick-up the next morning. Usually, Joseph would handle this, but he had aced his English exam so I gave him a night off from chores.
It was already dark outside so I grabbed a little flashlight from the junk drawer in the kitchen. The lights by the back door had a mind of their own. Sometimes the motion sensor would detect the tiniest lizard and flip on the lights. Other times, you could do jumping jacks in front of the thing and still be left in the dark. This was one of those times. The lights refused to turn on. But, the street light by the neighbor’s house illuminated the curb enough I felt confident I could roll the trash out there without incident.
I grabbed the first can and began to pull, but as I took a step backwards, I bumped into something. But then that something grabbed me, an arm around my chest and a hand securely over my mouth.
“You’ve gotten nosy and it’s gonna cost you,” the man growled.
My heart was beating so fast I could feel it throbbing in my ears. I broke out in a cold sweat, and I struggled to get a good breath through my nose.
“Stay away from the compound. Leave all this alone or you’ll regret it,” he whispered ominously while tightening his grip.
Suddenly, Tommy swung open the kitchen door and the lights came on, illuminating the entire side of the house. The stranger released me and took off running. He was dressed in all dark clothes so I couldn’t tell anything about him. He ran until he was out of sight. I never saw a car or bike or anything.
“Who was that?” Tommy asked excitedly.
“No one, buddy. No one at all. Go back inside, okay?”
He did as he was told. I grabbed the trash can, threw open the lid and puked inside. After a few minutes of sobbing, my head in an outdoor trash can, I finally calmed down enough to roll the trash to the curb.
For some reason, I opted to keep silent about the ordeal. I didn’t tell the kids or the Grannies. I didn’t even text Cole. After a long shower, and a thorough check of all the windows and doors, I crawled into bed. Hours passed before I fell asleep, and images of a man in black haunted my dreams.
It was around six Monday morning that I finally texted Cole. He called me right away, and I gave him all the details of the night before.
“You need to file a report with the police,” he instructed.
“And tell them what? A stranger warned me to stay away from the compound? That’s hardly a crime.”
“He threatened you!”
“It was pretty vague.”
“Why aren’t you taking this seriously?” Cole asked, frustrated.
“I am. Believe me, I’m shaken. But, I’m also realistic. The police would have nothing to go on. There’s no point.”
Cole sighed. “This guy…he mentioned the compound? It’s probably Gator.”
“Didn’t sound like him. I’ve never bought that Gator was our guy.”
“Then why mention that specific place? Why not mention the shed?”
“Randy Tipton wouldn’t mention the shed. He’d try to send us chasing after Gator again.”
“Good point,” Cole admitted.
My phone began to beep with another call coming in. I let it go to voicemail.
“Maybe you should take today off and rest. You sound worn out. Want me to bring you anything?”
“No, thanks. I’m coming in to work. Sitting at home just makes me feel worse.”
I hung up with Cole, and played the voicemail message.
“Ms. Ritter, this is Sergeant Atwood with the Palm Bay Police Department. I was notified by the sheriff’s office that they picked up the man suspected of being the one who ran you off the road the other day. Interesting thing is, his name is Roy Tipton and his brother is Randy. I’m thinking you should stay clear of Randy while this is investigated. I informed the sheriff deputy of your situation with Randy’s missing wife and all that. If you have any questions, give me a call.”
With shaking hands, I set my phone down on my bathroom counter. Chills ran down the back of my neck. What had I gotten myself into? This guy was obviously upset that I gotten nosy, and he was willing to harm me to get me to go away. I texted Su asking for prayer, and messaged Momma Pat about going with me to the gun shop. Then I called Cole and I told him I wasn’t coming in to work after all. It was time to be brave and do what I knew needed to be done.
chapter nine
Cole made me promise to wait on him to pick me up in his truck. He came to the door bearing gifts.
“Brought you a bagel and coffee,” he said, handing me one of his own travel mugs full of homemade brew and a bag from Publix bakery.
“You’re the best,” I said, meaning it.
“Or the dumbest. What are we doing, Charlotte?”
“Well, I don’t know about you, but I’m going to the shed to rescue Amber and Lily.”
“I was afraid you were going to say that,” Cole replied with a sigh.
“You don’t have to come along.”
“Yeah, I do. You’ll never get that chain and lock off the door. I brought my bolt cutters.”
I smiled at him. “Of course you did.”
Cole and I arrived at Randy Tipton’s property around seven-thirty, just as the sun was beginning to rise. He stopped the truck and hopped out to open the back. We grabbed the bolt cutters and the two pairs of waders he had pulled from his box of fishing gear. It took a few minutes to ourselves prepared, but once we hit the water we moved pretty quickly. Wading across was easier this time since we knew it was possible…and I wasn’t freaking out over something brushing against my legs every few seconds.
Once we reached the other side, Cole rushed towards the door with the cutters. But, he stopped cold, staring at the door.
“It’s unlocked,” he mouthed, pointing the hanging chain like a mime doing an act.
We started to back away slowly, but the door swung open violently as Randy Tipton charged Cole and the two of them fell backwards. As I stepped towards them, Cole swung Randy to the side and wrestled him to the ground. They were both throwing punches when I ran past to get to Amber who was standing in the doorway.
“Come with me,” I told her. “Where’s Lily?”
“I’m here,” replied the young girl, holding on to her mother’s leg.
They followed me to the water’s edge.
“You can wade across. It’s not deep. Just hold on to each other,” I told them. “I’ve got to help Cole. Go!”
I ran back towards the men, rolling on the ground still trading punches, and jumped on Randy’s back. Wrapping my arms around him, I pulled back to remove him from atop Cole. But, I was no match for Randy’s muscle and adrenaline. He threw me off his back and I hit the ground; my hip landing on a rock and sending a shock of pain throughout my body. Even though my efforts to remove Randy were a failure, I had at least managed to distract him enough for Cole to get in a solid punch and knock him to the ground. Randy’s nose looked broken and blood was gushing from his nostrils. It only seemed to make him angrier. Cole looked at me with what seemed to be astonishment.
“Seriously?” He said as Randy rushed at him again.
Cole shoved me out of the way just before a right hook caught his jaw. He went sailing into the wall of the shed and wood splintered as he made contact. I winced and started to go help him but before I could move, Randy was already there and was drawing back to give Cole some more. Just as he got close Cole ducked and Randy hit the hard, wood wall. This time it was bones that were splintering. Randy screamed in agony but Cole didn’t waste any time as he gave his opponent a forearm to the nose. This sent Randy through the door of the shed and onto the ground. He was out cold.
The two of us managed to get the broken door shut and locked it with the chain. Cole noticed my limping. He wrapped his arm around my waist and practically carried me through the water. I felt bad because he looked in a lot worse shape than me. Amber and Lily stood huddled near the truck, soaking wet and in a bit of shock.
“Are you two alright?” I asked them.
Amber nodded. “Who are you? How did you find us?”
“That’s a long story,” Cole replied. He reached in the truck, grabbed his cell phone and called the police. “We can tell you all about it while we wait for the authorities.”
Sergeant Atwood was the first to arrive on scene. He was not, however, too thrilled with our recue.
“I don’t know what made you think this was a good idea,” he said first thing.
“You couldn’t do anything. Your hands were tied,” I told him.
“Tied by the law. Not enough evidence. No warrant,” he stated.
“I know. That’s why I took action. Because I knew you couldn’t, and I knew it could be a long while before anyone else could get here.”
“You two could’ve been killed. You could’ve gotten them killed,” he exclaimed, motioning towards Amber and Lily.
“But, we didn’t,” I replied.
The sergeant huffed and gave Cole a look over. “You’re pretty beat up.”
“You should see the other guy,” Cole quipped. The sergeant didn’t laugh.
More officers arrived, and it wasn’t long ‘til we heard Randy banging on the shed door demanding to be released. He was sorely disappointed when two sheriff’s deputies released him from the shed just to put him into handcuffs.
Standing together near the sergeant’s car, Cole and I began to ask him questions.
“I don’t get it,” I admitted. “Why did Randy hold his own wife and daughter hostage?”
“From what we’re piecing together, Amber had attempted to take Lily and leave the state when Randy hired his brother Roy to kidnap them and keep them locked up in that shed. His plan was to convince her to stay with him.”
“Nothing says ‘I love you’ like being kidnapped and held against your will,” Cole replied snarkily.
“After a couple of weeks, he realized his idea was flawed. But, he couldn’t just let them loose. She would have reported him right away. So, he kept them in that shed; taking them food and supplies once a week. He held them at gunpoint off and on and even beat Amber a few times to make a point. Didn’t take long for her to be so scared and intimidated that she wouldn’t dare attempt an escape.”
“Dear Lord. They’re going to need a lot of therapy and support to get over this,” I added.
“I’m glad they’re safe and that he’s going to jail, but there’s still one piece of unfinished business we need to take care of,” said Cole. “What started all of your amateur investigating in the first place…?”
“Oh! Yes! I need Amber to sign some paperwork concerning her guardianship rights of her nephew Maddox. He’s up for adoption. Is there any way we could speak to her?” I pleaded.
“Come to the station and we’ll get you a sit-down with her,” the sergeant acquiesced.
“You go ahead,” said Cole. “I’m going home to sleep another hour or so.”
“Thank you, Cole,” I told him, placing my hand on his arm. “You didn’t have to support me like this.”
“What are big brothers for?” he joked. He walked slowly towards his car, and then turned around. “By the way, I’m younger than you.”
“What? Really?”
“By two years. Born in seventy-eight.”
Ugh. I was born in seventy-six. “But, you’re bigger than me so it still works,” I yelled towards him as he continued to walk away.
“Yeah, whatever,” he replied.
I arrived at the office just before noon. Thankfully, Cole had informed Mr. Baker of the morning’s events.
“I assume you have paper signed,” Mr. Baker greeted me as I walked in the door.
“Yes, Sir! She loves Maddox, but she’s going to have her hands full getting herself and Lily settled into a new life. She wrote him a note that she would like for us to give his adoptive parents. They can choose whether or not to share it with Maddox.”
“Excellent. I’m sure they’ll be open to reading it at the very least. You did good, Charlotte. Not exactly work that fits your job description, but still…a good deed.”
“Thank you, sir.”
“You really helped the police find a missing woman and her daughter?” Ginny asked.
“Cole helped, too. That’s what we were working on when we were away from the office. I brought you a little something as a thank you for putting up with our absences. You had to do a lot of extra work, and I appreciate it,” I told her as I handed her a Starbuck’s gift card.
“Thank you, Charlotte. That really means a lot.”
I felt good. Peace had been made with Ginny.
“You know,” she started, interrupting my moment of tranquility. “I didn’t mind the extra work. I mean, I do this to help children. It’s my gift! My passion! My husband makes a lot of money so I can do this sort of thing; you know, work for just a little over minimum wage. No wonder you aren’t really dressed to the level of your position, Charlotte. A single woman with children can’t be expected to survive on such minimal pay. Of course, I don’t mind for myself because, well—“
“You’re rich and it’s your passion. We get it,” snapped Cole. “I’ve got those forms you wanted. Come on, Charlie, we’re going to lunch.”
“But you just got here,” whined Ginny.
“We all gotta eat,” replied Cole.
“I’ll come, too,” said Mr. Baker. “I’m starved. Thank you, Ginny, for covering the office.”
The three of us left and went to a local diner for burgers; not feeling one bit guilty about leaving Ginny there alone. Well, okay…maybe a little guilty. Fine, yes, we felt guilty so we took her a milkshake after we enjoyed our lunch. Geesh.
The day of Maddox’s adoption was truly special. Mr. and Mrs. Murphy had been anxiously awaiting this day for some time. Everyone was happy an
d excited. Afterwards, the judge posed for pictures with the Murphys and their extended family which included Amber and Lily. None of us could have asked for a better outcome.
Randy Tipton and his brother Roy were behind bars, having plead guilty in hopes of leniency. Praying for them would be even more difficult than praying for Ginny. But, being a believer, I knew that praying for them would bring freedom to me—freedom from fear, bitterness, anger. I shared this belief with Amber; hopeful that she would find freedom, too. I teamed up with the Grannies to bless Amber and Lily with some love, prayer and baked goods. With those women praying for them, no doubt Amber and Lily would be just fine.
epilogue
You ready? Got everything you need?” asked Momma Pat.
“Yes, Granny Oakley. I’m all prepared,” I teased.
We walked into Femme Fatale Arms, and I headed straight to the gun case.
“That’s the one,” I said, pointing to the Glock Gen 5.
“I knew it,” said Marcy. “I knew when you left here the other day, you’d be back for that one.”
“Good choice,” said Momma Pat, smiling.
“And I want to sign up for the concealed carry class,” I added.
Marcy nodded and went to get the appropriate papers. I turned around and surveyed the store, and a t-shirt caught my eye. It read:
P.M.S.
Pretty Mean Shot
I pulled a shirt from the rack and looked at it closely.
“And this. I’ll take this, too.”
Momma Pat laughed. “Another good choice!”
I had been sitting in the shade enjoying a cool breeze at the park, texting with Su about my week spent as a would-be investigator. She wasn’t completely surprised that I had taken things so far. I did have to promise her I’d be more cautious should I ever want to pursue a rescue again, and she had to promise me phone call once her final exams were done.
Carrie, Joseph joined me at the covered picnic table, and we ate fried chicken from the Wal-Mart deli along with a shared large bag of generic potato chips. Tommy was busy going down every single slide on the playground.
Coffee, Kids, and a Kidnapping (A Charlotte Ritter Mystery Book 1) Page 7