Missing in Blue Mesa

by Cindi Myers

  Ethan rose and pulled Metwater to his feet. “Want to tell us what that was about?” he asked. “Who are the idiots you were referring to?”

  “I want to talk to my lawyer.”

  “Fine.” Ethan pushed Metwater toward the door. “Lance, call Montrose lockup and tell them we’re bringing in a prisoner.”

  “You can’t arrest me,” Metwater protested. “I haven’t done anything.”

  “We’ll start with assault on a police officer and go from there,” Ethan said. “Simon, take him for me. I’ll catch up in a minute.”

  Simon took hold of Metwater, and Ethan crossed the room to Michelle. “You come with me,” he said.

  She folded her arms over her chest and took a step back. “What if I don’t want to?”

  His expression softened. “Please?”

  “All right.” She followed him back to the office where she had been waiting before.

  He closed the door behind them and faced her. “Did you find anything else interesting online?” he asked.

  “I printed out a few more articles, but none of them had any new information.”

  “We’ll have a couple of people take a look at them—maybe we’ll spot something.”

  “What happened with Metwater?” she asked. “I saw you brought him in in handcuffs—did you arrest him? Did you find something to link him to Hunter? Did he tell you where Hunter is?”

  He put a hand on her shoulder. “We don’t know anything more about Hunter,” he said. “I’m sorry.”

  She struggled not to let her disappointment show. “Then tell me what’s going on.”

  “Andi Matheson—Asteria—has disappeared.”

  She definitely hadn’t been expecting that. She gaped at him. “What?”

  “She left camp this morning with Metwater—in your car. He returned a few hours later without her. He admits that much, but he won’t say where she is—only that she went away to rest.”

  She swallowed hard. “I can’t believe he would hurt Asteria. Not that he cares about anyone but himself, but she was worth a lot of money to him.”

  “Do you know if she had a will? It’s possible she left everything to him, in which case she might be worth more to him dead than alive.”

  She shook her head. “I don’t know. But I don’t think so. She never said anything about it. Wouldn’t she have to see a lawyer for something like that? She never mentioned it.” She hugged herself, trying to ward off the chill that engulfed her. Asteria had been her one friend in the camp, and she was so close to having her baby.

  “It’s possible Metwater is telling the truth and is just being a jerk by not telling us where she’s hiding,” Ethan said. “Do you know where she might have gone? Did she mention a favorite place, or a friend or relative she might turn to?”

  “No. She always said she had no one—that the Prophet and his followers were her only family now. She said she never wanted to go back to her old life.”

  “We’ve alerted area law enforcement to be on the lookout for her, and we’ll contact area hotels in case he stashed her in one of them. And we’ll lean on him to reveal her whereabouts, though his lawyers will try to prevent us talking to him.”

  “Simon said he went crazy when he saw the ransom note,” she said. “What was that about?”

  Ethan stepped back. “We don’t know. He shouted ‘those idiots’ and lunged at me.”

  “It sounds like he knows whoever wrote the note.”

  “Yeah. It sounded like that to me, too.” He grasped the doorknob. “I have to go now, and I’m not sure when I’ll be back. If you want to get out of here, you can ask someone to take you back to the duplex.”

  “I want to stay here, in case some news comes in about Hunter,” she said. “I just wish there was something more I could do.”

  “I know it’s hard,” he said. “But you need to hang on and let us take care of this. We’re doing everything we can.”

  She nodded and he left. She sagged into the desk chair. She wanted to believe that he would take care of this, but wasn’t that the polite thing that people said? In the end, Hunter was her child. She was the one who suffered most from his disappearance. And when this was all settled, one way or another, she was the one who would have to deal with the outcome. Ethan and the others would go on with their lives and she would have to find a way to go on with hers. Alone. That was the way things always ended up for her. She couldn’t let herself believe that would change now, just because she’d met a cop who showed more compassion than most, and he was a man who touched parts of her no one else had ever been able to reach.

  * * *

  METWATER’S LAWYER WAS waiting for him when he arrived with Ethan and Simon at the Montrose County Jail. “What are the charges against my client?” the attorney, a stocky man with a full head of silver hair and a reputation as a legal bulldog, demanded as soon as the two Rangers marched Metwater into the building.

  “Assaulting an officer, and interfering with the investigation of a crime, for starters,” Ethan said. “He’s also a suspect in the disappearances of Hunter Munson and Andi Matheson, aka Asteria.”

  “Defending oneself against police brutality is not assault,” the lawyer shot back. “Refusing to answer questions without an attorney present is not interfering with an investigation, and you don’t have as scrap of evidence to tie him to the disappearance of either of those people.”

  “Amazing,” Simon said. “You know all this before you’ve even spoken with your client.”

  “I’m familiar with how you people operate.” The lawyer glanced at Metwater, whose stony expression hadn’t changed. “I want a conference room and the opportunity to speak with my client in private.”

  “You can do that,” Ethan said, “after we process him.”

  Even as he filled out paperwork, then led Metwater downstairs to be photographed and fingerprinted, Ethan held out little hope that Metwater would stay in jail for long. He had money and influence, and the best they could expect was to keep him a few hours before he posted bail.

  He was surprised, therefore, when only a few moments after Metwater was led into an interview room to meet with his attorney, the Prophet sent word that he was ready to speak with Ethan and Simon.

  “My client is prepared to make you an offer,” the attorney announced when Ethan and Simon were seated across the table from Metwater and his counsel.

  “How generous,” Simon said. “What makes him think we’re interested?”

  “Mr. Metwater is prepared to tell you where Asteria is staying, in exchange for you dropping all charges against him. Charges, I might add, which will never hold up in court.”

  “If they won’t hold up in court, why does he want to deal at all?” Ethan asked.

  “He would like to avoid the hassle of a trial and return to his home. His followers need him.”

  “His followers need him like they need hemorrhoids,” Simon muttered.

  Ethan cleared his throat. “Your client needs to tell us what he knows about the disappearance of Hunter Munson.”

  “There’s nothing to tell,” the lawyer said. “He doesn’t know anything.”

  “When we showed him the ransom note we received, he said something about idiots—and then he exploded,” Ethan said.

  “You must have misunderstood him. He doesn’t know anything.”

  Metwater sat with his arms folded, expressionless, a silent, brooding figure more statue than man. Ethan glanced at Simon. “We need to talk about this.”

  The lawyer gestured toward the door. “By all means.”

  In the hallway, Simon paced. “We’ve got him cold on the assault charges,” he said. “We’ve got video of him trying to hit you.”

  “And what will that get him?” Ethan asked. “A slap on the wrist. Everything else we’ve got is weak. Meanwhile, Andi Matheson co
uld be the key to this case.”

  “How do you figure that?” Simon asked.

  “I don’t think going away was her idea. I think Metwater sent her away so that we couldn’t get to her. She knows something about Hunter’s disappearance. She’s eight months pregnant and Hunter is a missing baby—no matter how loyal she is to Metwater, that’s got to be preying on her mind. She’s going to tell us what she knows.”

  “Maybe if we talk to her, we can persuade her not to go back to Metwater’s camp,” Simon said. “She needs to see what a creep he is.”

  “Right, but we need to talk to her. And we can’t do that if we don’t know where she is. Given time, we might find her on our own, but depending on where Hunter is, we might not have the time.”

  Simon stopped pacing, shoulders slumped. “So we take Metwater’s deal.”

  “We take the deal, and gamble that whatever Andi gives us will be enough to nail him with a bigger charge later,” Ethan said. “We’ve still got the assault on Michelle we can hold over his head. I think I could persuade her to press charges now.”

  “Why wouldn’t she press charges when it first happened?” Simon asked.

  “She has a bad history with the police. They took her through the wringer when that little girl she was babysitting disappeared.” It still angered him when he thought about her going through that, so young and so alone. “It didn’t help that Metwater was making so much noise about her being responsible for her son’s disappearance. She thought we would believe him.”

  “I don’t believe anything he says.” Simon glanced toward the closed door to the interview room. “How do we know he won’t just tell us a lie this time? What if we let him go and find out Andi isn’t where he says she is?”

  “Then we pick him up again,” Ethan said. “That will be part of the deal—he can’t leave town until our investigation is over. We’ll have someone watch the camp to make sure he stays put.”

  “The commander will love that idea—not.”

  “But he’ll agree, because he knows how important this is.”

  Simon nodded. “Let’s do it, then.”

  Metwater and his lawyer broke off their conversation when the two Rangers returned to the room. “Well?” the lawyer asked.

  Ethan ignored him and addressed Metwater. “You tell us where Andi Matheson is and if she’s there, we drop the assault charge and the charge of interfering with our investigation.”

  “She’s at the Brown Palace in Denver,” Metwater said. “I took her to the airport this morning, and arranged for a car to pick her up and deliver her to the hotel. She hated to leave me, but I persuaded her it would be best for her and her baby to get out of this tense situation for a while.”

  The lawyer stood. “I believe we’re done here.”

  “You can go,” Simon said to Metwater. “But we’ll be keeping an eye on you. And we had better not find out you lied to us.”

  In the hallway once more, Ethan looked up the telephone number for the Brown Palace Hotel and Spa. “Pretty fancy retreat,” Simon said. “You ever been there?”

  Ethan shook his head.

  “It’s one of the oldest hotels in Denver—very Victorian and luxurious. Lots of presidents and famous people have stayed there. Metwater might have made a mistake, putting her there.”

  “How do you figure that?” Ethan asked.

  “It will remind her of her old life as a rich socialite,” Simon said. “A few nights of sleeping on expensive sheets and having spa treatments and she might not want to come back to the wilderness.”

  Ethan transmitted the number and listened to it ring. On the third ring a pleasant woman’s voice answered, “The Brown Palace Hotel and Spa. How may I help you?”

  “This is Special Agent Ethan Reynolds with the FBI. Do you have an Andi Matheson registered there?”

  “One moment please, Agent Reynolds.”

  Ethan waited, and a moment later a man came on the line. “This is the general manager, Roger Able,” he said. “How may I help you?”

  “I’m looking for a woman named Andi Matheson. She hasn’t done anything wrong. I’m merely trying to determine that she’s safe.”

  “Our guest information is confidential. How do I know you’re who you say you are?”

  “I’ll give you a number you can call to verify my credentials.” He rattled off the number and Able promised to call it, then call him back. Ethan ended the call.

  “We should have held Metwater in custody until we had this all settled,” Simon said.

  “We know where to find him,” Ethan said. “And Michael is following him.”

  His cell phone rang and he answered it. “Agent Reynolds, I’ve checked our registration, and we don’t have an Andi Matheson registered here,” Able said. “We don’t have anyone named Matheson.”

  “How about Asteria? Or Metwater?”

  “One moment please.”

  Simon’s scowl deepened. “We should have asked Metwater what name she was registered under.”

  Able came back on the line. “I’m sorry, but we don’t have anyone by those names, either.”

  Ethan bit back a groan of frustration. “We’re looking for a blonde young woman, very pregnant, who checked into the hotel this morning,” he said.

  “I don’t know of anyone here who fits that description,” Able said. “But I only came on this afternoon.”

  “Then I think the best thing is for you to send me a list of all your registered guests.”

  “I can’t supply that information without a warrant.”

  It was the answer Ethan had expected, but he had to try. “I’ll be in touch,” he said, and ended the call.

  “I’ll go to the hotel in Denver,” Simon said. “If she’s there, I’ll find her.”

  “That’s probably the best way to make sure she’s really safe,” Ethan said.

  “I’ll clear it with the commander,” Simon said, and pulled out his phone.

  While Simon talked to Commander Ellison, Ethan called Michelle. “You must be exhausted,” he said. “It’s going to be a while before I’m free. Let me take you back to the duplex while I have a few moments free and you can try to get some rest.”

  “All right. Your side or mine?”

  Was it a good sign that she was asking the question? “Wherever you feel more comfortable,” he said. “You’re welcome to stay in my side.”

  “All right.” He wasn’t sure how to interpret that—was she going to stay in his side of the duplex or hers? He guessed he’d find out when he got home—whenever that ended up being.

  “Have you heard anything from the volunteers who are looking for Hunter?” she asked.

  “I’m sorry, no.”

  “I watched a local news broadcast and they showed his picture. Maybe someone will see him and recognize him.” She sounded so down—clinging to this frail hope with her last strength.

  “I hope so.” He wanted to be able to give her good news, but right now the only positive in this whole case was that they hadn’t found Ethan’s body. “Hang in there,” he said. “I’ll be home as soon as I can.”

  “I’ll be okay.” But the words held no conviction.

  Simon approached as Ethan stowed his phone. “I’ve got the okay to go to Denver to find Andi,” he said. “I’ll drop you back at headquarters, then head over to my place to clean up and pack.”

  “All right.” Ethan planned to spend some time going over the printouts Michelle had compiled about Metwater. Maybe he would see something there that would give him a clue to the man’s thought processes, why he was targeting Michelle and what his next move might be.

  Activity was winding down at headquarters when Ethan arrived. The commander and a few others had gone home, though they would be in early in the morning to start another round of searching for Hunter Munson. Michelle looke
d drained, dark half-moons beneath her eyes and skin so pale it was almost translucent. “Is there anything you need before I take you back to my place?” he asked. “Anything you want to eat or drink—ice cream?”

  She tried to smile but didn’t quite make it. “Thanks, but I don’t need anything from a store.”

  No—all she needed was the one thing he couldn’t give her—her son. “What are you going to be doing this evening?” she asked as they climbed into his cruiser.

  “I’m going to do some more digging into Daniel and David Metwater’s backgrounds,” he said. “I’m hoping I’ll spot something that will tell me why you have him so worried. If I can figure out his motive, maybe I’ll have a better handle on what he’s done with Hunter.”

  “So you really do believe Metwater took Hunter,” she said.

  “I believe he probably had something to do with Hunter’s disappearance, yes.” He glanced at her. “That doesn’t mean I’m not keeping my mind open to other possible suspects.”

  “I overheard people talking today,” she said. “Rangers and volunteers and others—and some of them still think Hunter wandered away on his own.”

  “At this point we can’t risk ruling out anything or anyone,” he said. “We don’t want to look in the wrong direction and miss the one clue that will lead us to finding him.”

  “I know, but—”

  His phone rang, shrill and insistent. He glanced at the dash screen that showed an incoming call and sighed. “What is it?” she asked.

  “My mom.” He tapped the button to ignore the call.

  “Why aren’t you going to answer it?” Michelle asked.

  “She probably just wants to talk, and I don’t have time for that right now.”

  “I don’t mind if you pull over and talk to her,” Michelle said. “It’s not as if I’m in a big hurry to get to the duplex and spend more time waiting.”

  “It’s not that.” He shook his head. “Sometimes I don’t know what to say to her. When she talks about Dad, it makes me sad. When she asks me things like what color she should paint the living room, I have no idea. I mean, what’s wrong with the color it is now? And things she should ask me about—like that new car—she doesn’t say a word.”