by Carolina Mac
“Were you shot, Ranger B?”
“Butcher knife.”
A couple of female reports gasped.
“Lily has a picture of the want and details for y’all.”
“Thanks for the interview, Ranger B. Sorry you got hurt.”
Dental Office. Downtown Austin.
FARRELL left Jesse resting in the truck behind the medical building and went in alone. He strode into a waiting room full of people and some glanced up from their magazines and stared at him, but most didn’t bother. He strode across the carpeted floor to the reception desk and posed his question to the blonde curly-headed girl behind the desk. “Is Doctor Endicott in?”
Her face flushed a bright shade of pink. She seemed frazzled to the point of panic stricken. She leaned forward and asked in a whisper, “Do you have an appointment?”
Farrell slapped his creds down in front of her. “I’m not a patient. I want to know where Doctor Endicott is.”
“Well, so do I,” she snapped back. “He’s not here.”
“Is there someplace we can talk?” asked Farrell.
She nodded. “In the lunchroom?”
“Sure, let’s do it.”
They walked down a hallway away from the waiting area and the girl opened the door to a small room with a sink/cupboard unit, one round table and four chairs. She closed the door and spoke in a low voice. “I’m Hannah Stavert, and I’ve worked for Doctor Endicott for four years. He’s a good boss, and he’s never done this before. He didn’t call, and he didn’t show up. I can’t get him on his cell, and there’s no answer at his house. We don’t know what to do.”
Farrell had his notebook out. “He didn’t let y’all know he wasn’t coming in today?”
“Nope. And so not like him. But lately he’s been acting a bit weird.” Hannah plopped down on one of the chairs.
Farrell sat down opposite her. “Weird how?”
“Like losing his temper and yelling at us for nothing, locking his office door and staying here after we went home. I think he and Renee are having trouble in their marriage.”
“Oh, yeah?” asked Farrell. “Is that just a guess?”
“Sort of a guess.” Hannah leaned closer over the little round table. “I think it might have started after the triplets were born.”
Farrell nodded. “I saw the three little kids.”
“Having three babies at the same time would be very taxing,” said Hannah. “Renee lost a lot of weight.”
Trying to get her back on track, Farrell said, “Did they go away for the weekend to try to work things out?”
I know they loaded up and went somewhere.
She shrugged. “If they did, Doctor Max didn’t tell me.”
“Would he have told any of the other girls who work here?”
“Let me ask Angie. I’ll get her.”
Farrell waited and eyed the coffee maker but resisted. A couple minutes later a dark-haired girl in a nurse’s uniform came in.
“I’m Angela French, the hygienist. Hannah had to go back to the front desk, but she said you were from the police?”
Farrell nodded. “That’s okay, I don’t think she had anything else to tell me. Did Doctor Endicott mention anything to you about taking his wife away for the weekend?”
“Is that where he is?”
Farrell raised an eyebrow. “Then he did say something?”
“Last week I told him I was renting a cabin for the last week of my vacay, and he seemed interested. I gave him the name of the realtor I was using, and I also said I had looked online for rentals. But I don’t know if he booked one.”
“Could you tell me the realtor’s name?”
Angela wrote it down. “Why wouldn’t he let us know if he wasn’t coming back for today’s appointments? It’s not like him to be disorganized.”
“I don’t know. Maybe something happened.”
“What should we do with the office until you find him?”
“You should do whatever makes you happy.”
“I vote we close up.”
Farrell smiled and gave her a thumbs up.
Hyde Park Area. Austin.
TRAVIS parked in the driveway behind the Beemer and a question crossed his mind. “Why didn’t he put the B in the garage if he was going away for a few days?”
“I sure as hell would have, if I had a Beemer,” said Jack. “Letting it sit out like that is an open invitation.”
They hopped out and followed the path to the door. Travis rang the bell, then knocked. The house had that empty feeling and he knew there was nobody home.
“I’ll call Blacky,” said Travis.
“I’ll try the neighbors on each side,” said Jack.
Travis sat behind the wheel and called Blacky. “The house is empty, but there is one weird thing.”
“Like what?”
“They went away in the wife’s SUV with lots of luggage and coolers and stuff according to Jack, but the doc left his Beemer on the driveway.”
“If they took enough supplies for several days, why didn’t he put the car away?”
“Good question. Was he dropping her off and coming right back?” asked Travis.
“Farrell called and said he didn’t reschedule any of the patients. That means he was planning on being back in time for his Monday appointments.”
“But he didn’t come back.”
“The question is why?”
“Somebody that might know the answer is the person who has the kids.”
“Are you and Jack questioning the neighbors?”
“Doing it now.”
Blackmore Agency. Austin.
LILY parked Blaine’s truck by the front porch trying to stay out of the way of the activity going on all around the house.
Blaine hopped out of the back seat, strode around and helped Misty out of the shotgun seat. He held her for a moment in a hug, then took her hand. “Let’s see what’s happening in the yard.”
Olivia, looking hot dressed in her usual cut-offs and tank top was digging in one of the new flower beds. Men were planting trees around the perimeter and the hole for the water feature had been dug.
Carm was carrying a tray of red Solo cups full of sweet tea to the workers, and the dogs were laying on the porch in the shade.
“Wow, lots happening.”
“It’s so huge now with my house gone,” said Misty. “I love the iron fence.”
“I’ll introduce you to Olivia,” he said.
Misty turned with the look in her eye and said, “I know you were dating her before I messed it up.”
“Only two dates and you didn’t mean to mess me up,” said Blaine, “and now things are the way they were supposed to be all along.”
“I love you for saying that.”
“I mean it, Mist. We never should have broken up. You should have moved in with me months ago and we would have been solid.”
“We both made mistakes.”
Blaine touched her face. “I didn’t sleep with Olivia.”
“I love you, Blaine.”
They walked over to where Olivia was breaking a sweat digging a hole. She looked up at them without smiling. “This is Misty,” said Blaine. “Olivia Green.”
“I’m sorry for your hurt, Miss Green,” said Misty in her soft Louisiana drawl. “I didn’t mean to cause you and Blaine a problem.”
Olivia stared at Misty, taking in the bruises on her face and not knowing what to make of her. “Thank you for your kindness.”
BLAINE sent Misty upstairs for a nap and he settled in his office to try to find out who would be brave enough to babysit triplets. “First choice would be the grandparents.” He researched Renee Endicott, found her maiden name—Moffat, and her parents—Bill and Linda. She was born in Round Rock and her parents still lived there. He jotted down their number and called.
“Mr. Moffat, this is Blaine Blackmore from Violent Crime in Austin, I wonder if I could ask you a couple of questions about your daughter and your son-i
n-law, Doctor Endicott?”
“Is this a joke?”
“No, sir, it’s not a joke. If you like, call me back at this number. This is Ranger Blackmore and I’m calling from the Blackmore Agency.”
“Sorry, sir, I know who you are. You just caught me off guard there for a moment. Please go ahead.”
“Thank you. Are you and your wife taking care of your daughter’s and Doctor Endicott’s children?”
“Umm… yes we are. What are you getting at?”
“I’m trying to locate Doctor Endicott and your daughter. Would you know where they are?”
“Not the exact location, but I know they rented a cabin north of Johnson City, out in hill country.”
“For the weekend?”
“No, longer. Renee brought enough stuff for the girls for a whole week.”
“A week. I see.”
“Why are you asking me these questions?”
“It seems that Doctor Endicott didn’t rearrange his patient schedule, and when he didn’t show up at his office, his staff became worried and upset.”
“Doesn’t sound like Max. He’s Mr. Organization.”
“I sent a Deputy by the house and of course there’s no one there, but he noticed that Doctor Endicott’s Beemer was left on the driveway. It seems odd if he planned to be away for a week.”
“Max would never leave that car on the drive for a week. He babied that car.”
“Did your daughter say anything else when she dropped the children off?”
“She said they needed time away together and that made sense. Renee is exhausted and on her last nerve. The babies have turned their lives upside down the past eighteen months.”
“I can see that happening,” said Blaine.
“Umm… the only thing that seemed out of character for Renee was the gun.”
“She had a gun?”
“No. She would never have a gun. Renee hated guns, but she borrowed one of my rifles saying Max planned on doing some hunting during the week at the cabin.”
“And did Max do a lot of hunting?”
“Now that I’m thinking about it, I don’t think he ever mentioned it.”
The wife took a gun. The husband didn’t come back.
“If you hear from the doctor or from your daughter would you call me at this number, sir?”
“I will. My wife will be worried if I tell her about this call. Maybe I’ll wait, and things will turn out okay.”
CHAPTER NINE
Tuesday, September 11th.
Hilton Hotel. Panama City. Panama.
RENEE woke from the best sleep she’d had in years. Alone in a king-sized bed with no Max crawling over her and no screaming toddlers to disturb her sleep, she woke feeling renewed.
She padded barefoot across her beautifully appointed hotel room and pulled the curtain back. Sun shone brightly over the Pacific at the Equator, and from the twenty-second floor of the Panama Hilton she watched the tide roll in. Contentment washed over her.
Over the course of their marriage, Max had turned into a monster. But there was no more Max and she was free at last.
Maybe later today she’d call and see how the kids were doing. She would miss them in her new life, yet they were far better off with her mother than they ever would be with her. She’d never wanted children but when she’d become pregnant accidentally, her mother was so thrilled, Renee had gone through with the birth. And after the babies were born she’d tried. She’d tried hard. She just didn’t have that mother instinct. She’d begged Max for a nanny to help her and he said they couldn’t afford one. She knew it was a lie, but Max controlled their finances and there was little she could do about it.
I was a terrible mother. Some people aren’t cut out for that role and I’m one of them.
Blackmore Agency. Austin.
BLAINE drained his second cup of coffee and refilled his mug before going to his office. He called Jesse and asked his partner to begin trying to connect the three previous murders to the new one. A name, a place, an activity. Anything. They had no place to start.
He glanced at his emails and there were too many. After skimming through, the one he opened was from Mary with the copy she was running with Brad Mulligan’s picture.
Hope to hell somebody sees that asshole. He needs to be taken out.
He wrote a reply and thanked her. Adding Mary Polito as his press liaison had been one of the best moves he’d made. Seeing Mary and Farrell at odds made him sad. His foster brother had known little happiness in his life and Mary had been one of the bright spots.
The Chief called. “The notification has been done for Sherri Lynn Temple. She was a student at the U and her parents said she’d never been on a dating site. The lab is checking her computer and her phone if you want to check with them.”
“Jesse is doing the initial work up,” said Blaine. “I’ll have him do it.”
“I’m glad he’s back,” said the Chief.
“Me too.”
The dogs kicked up a ruckus signaling the arrival of Olivia and her crew. Blaine felt a pang of guilt over his sudden departure from Olivia’s arms, but there was nothing he could do about it. Despite their differences, and Misty’s… strangeness… Blaine had realized in the face of nearly losing her, how much he loved her. Now that they were a couple again, he felt grounded.
He had set Lil on digging up incident reports in a radius around Johnson City, thinking something might turn up. Endicott didn’t go to either of the cabins Jack had tailed him to, those had been double checked, but that didn’t mean he hadn’t rented a third one. Blaine stood up, stretched and strolled down the hall to Lil’s office. “Anything show up yet?”
“Fire call to an isolated cabin off route sixteen is the only one. Burned to the ground. Nobody around.”
“Who owned it?” asked Blaine.
“Not there yet,” said Lil. “Do you want me to pursue it?”
“Just dig in a little more. See if there’s an ongoing investigation.”
“Sometimes those tiny villages have a volunteer system and there isn’t a Fire Marshall,” said Lily.
“If it sounds interesting, I’ll send Farrell and Travis out there to have a look.”
He left Lil and headed out to the back porch to have a smoke before starting research on the new victim. Misty, dressed in denim shorts and combat boots was helping Olivia dig fertilizer into the freshly worked beds. The day was heating up and would be a killer for outdoor work, but both girls were smiling as they flung manure, so Blaine opted to leave it alone.
He returned to his cool air-conditioned office, relaxed into his chair, looked at his screen and a chill ran through him. A message flashed.
Superior skills afford short-cuts.
Blaine let out a groan. “Fuck, the guy’s a hacker.”
Hope he’s not better than me.
Hill Country. West of Austin.
FARRELL and Travis headed out route two-ninety after Lil found out that the local fire department had written the cabin fire off as accidental due to faulty wiring.
“If the dentist isn’t the killer we’re looking for,” said Travis, “why do we care if he set his own ass on fire?”
“We don’t. But Blacky found out the wife borrowed her father’s hunting rifle and he got the vibe.”
“So you and me are poking around in a pile of smoldering ashes looking for what exactly?”
Farrell shrugged, and then winced when his shoulder sent a bolt of pain to his brain—he’d have to remember not to do that. “Anything that got missed by the local volunteers, I guess. Those boys ain’t real firemen. They all have regular jobs. They probably poured water on the mess until they figured it wouldn’t set the rest of hill country ablaze and went home to bed. And they don’t have a Fire Marshall sifting through every fuckin piece of ash.”
“Shit,” said Travis. “Sounds like Kandahar. Poking around for pieces of our crew after those fuckin IED’s went off.”
Farrell made a face and p
ulled into a gas bar with a convenience store. “Let’s gas up and get a Coke.”
After their pitstop, they followed the co-ordinates Lily had obtained and a half hour later were driving along a narrow dirt road bordered with thick bush on both sides.
“Nice in here,” said Travis when they came into the clearing. “Not as nice as Annie-girl’s cabin on the lake. “That is one prime piece of land.”
“I’ve never been up there yet,” said Farrell. “Heard the fishing was optimum.”
“Fuck, yeah,” said Travis. “Ever see the whale I’ve got mounted over my bed?”
“Why in hell would I be in your bedroom, you asshole?” Farrell rammed his truck into park. “Get out.”
Travis walked towards the charred remains of the cabin that were still smoldering and stinking up the pure hill country air.
Farrell screwed up his face as he got closer. “You smell what I smell?”
“A big stink?”
“Bigger than a big stink,” said Farrell. “Burned body. Even if it’s almost all burned to a crisp you can still tell.”
“I couldn’t tell,” said Travis and I been around tons of them. Maybe it’s an animal.”
“It ain’t,” said Farrell. “I’m phoning the boss.”
Blaine answered on the second ring. “Hey, are you guys there?”
“We’re here and it’s burned black to the ground. Nothing visible, but I can smell a crispy body.”
“You sure, Farrell?”
“Fuck, yeah. Once that smell is in your head, you can’t get it out—even with Clorox. Want us to poke around or do you want to call for a CSI team to meet us?”
“I’d better send a team—if you’re sure.”
“Jesus in a handcart, bro, would I be calling you if I wasn’t fuckin sure?”
“Nope.”
“Well, then.” Farrell pressed end and loped back to where Travis had walked around the perimeter.
“Nice sized cabin,” said Travis. “Wonder how much it rented for?”
Farrell sat on a rock and lit up a smoke. “Cheaper now.”
Blackmore Agency. Austin.
BLAINE opened the Sub-Zero for a beer and noticed Misty sitting at the table by the window staring outside. She’d been so quiet it was eerie—even for her. He walked over and sat down. “Do you want a cold drink?”