by Ann Mullen
Twenty minutes later, Billy emerged from his office and said, “I talked to the Carroltons and told them we’d keep them posted on any new developments. They were pretty upset. They wanted to pick up the purse, but I told them it would be held as evidence. They said they’d wait to hear from us. What else can they do?”
“What are we going to do next?”
“Mrs. Jordan should be here any minute. After we talk to her, we’re going for a little ride.”
“Where’re we going?”
Before answering my question, he stood there as if in a daze. After a minute he asked, “Do you think your mom would let us use your dad’s little truck? Call her and ask. Seems to me she said one of the reasons your dad bought the truck was so he’d have something he could drive through the woods. That’s why we need it... to drive through the woods. I don’t want to take my truck through the brush, and I sure don’t want you to take your new Jeep. I know the Mercury would have a hard time of it.” He was rambling as he left and walked back toward his office.
“Hold on, pal. What’s going on?” I asked. He wasn’t making any sense.
He stared at me. “We’re going to follow up on your crazy suspicions and we need a tough, old rugged truck that can make it through the woods. So call your mom.”
I dialed the house and explained to Mom what we had in mind. She was more than glad to see someone get some use out of Dad’s truck. She said that he never really got to use it much. I told her we’d be home to pick it up around noon.
“I’ll have some lunch ready when you get here,” she said.
I sat in and took notes while Mrs. Jordan explained to Billy about her problem. Her daughter, Angela, had been dating a college freshman at the university she attended. When she decided to break it off, he didn’t take it well. He started calling her all the time and kept leaving notes on the windshield of her car. He began following her everywhere she went.
“The police are doing all they can, but they said until they get some hard evidence of wrongdoing, their hands are tied,” she explained. “He knows they’re on to him, but he’s smart and sneaky. They can’t catch him at anything. It’s been two months. My daughter’s going out of her mind. She’s scared to death. We need your help.”
“I’ll need to know everything about your daughter’s habits: a list of her classes; where she eats; who her friends are; the whole nine yards. Any information about her lifestyle you can think of would be helpful. Don’t worry, Mrs. Jordan,” Billy said. “We’ll take care of this guy.”
Billy sounded like a hit man. All I did was sit there and take notes. It was not my job to judge. I’m sure Billy knew what he was doing.
“What was that all about?” I asked after she left. “You sounded like you were going out to hunt this guy down, and heaven forbid what would happen when you found him.”
“That’s about the size of it,” he said. “You might want to change your clothes. Maybe dig something more comfortable out of the back of your Jeep. You know... dig something out of that Pandora’s box you keep back there.” He knew me all too well by now.
Billy and I were about to embark on another wild adventure. I could see it coming... jail was just a footstep away.
I changed clothes in the bathroom down the hall, while Billy waited impatiently by the front door. He was no longer dressed in his suit with the cowboy stringed tie, but was clad in his familiar attire of jeans and a T-shirt.
“You sure are fast,” I grunted.
Billy sat quietly in the passenger seat. I didn’t have a whole lot to say either. The one thing that kept coming back to me was that Cole had done his job. He reported my statement to his superiors. Billy was right all along. Cole was an honorable man and would do what he had to do, regardless of the consequences. What I had to deal with was the fact that I wouldn’t be able to confide in him about certain aspects of my job. In other words, I had to keep him at arm’s length. This didn’t make for a good relationship, in my eyes. Communication was an important aspect to any relationship.
“You’re awfully quiet, Jesse,” Billy spoke up. “What’s on your mind?”
“I was just thinking about Cole.”
“Yeah, I guess you know where the line’s drawn now.”
“Like my mother would say—true love has no boundaries.”
It was eleven-thirty when we reached the house. Mom and Claire were just beginning to prepare lunch, while the kids sat in front of the television watching cartoons. We had barely gotten in the front door when Jack and Dennis pulled into the driveway.
“It looks like the whole crew’s here,” I pointed to the window. “Jack just pulled up.”
Mom stopped what she was doing and walked over to the wall phone. “I told Cole I’d call him when y’all got here.”
“What does he want?” I objected.
She turned to me with the phone in her hand and said, “He’s having lunch with us. He said he wanted to talk to you before he goes on his four-to-twelve shift this afternoon.”
“It’ll have to wait,” I snapped. “Billy and I aren’t staying for lunch. We’re in a hurry. Can we have the keys to the Toyota, please?”
She hung up the phone and went over to the key rack hanging by the bar, removed the keys and handed them to me. The expression on her face said she knew something was going on, but was gracious enough not to bring it up in front of everybody.
“You might need to put gas in the truck,” she said.
“Thanks, Mom.” I gave her a quick peck on the cheek, and Billy and I made a fast exit. I waved to Jack and Dennis as we entered the side door of the garage. I hit the door opener to raise the garage door.
“What was that all about?” Billy asked as he tried to squeeze his large frame into the small truck.
“Nothing,” I said, adjusting the seat up as close as I could, so my feet would reach the clutch, and then I turned on the ignition.
“Oh, this is going to be fun,” he joked, pointing to his confined leg space. “Hey, I know you’re angry about something, but could you give me another notch for my legs? My knees are under my chin.”
“Sorry,” I said as I adjusted the seat back a little.
The truck lurched and jerked as I tried to back it out of the garage, and then it stalled. It had been a while since I’d driven a stick shift. Billy threw his hands up on the dashboard and laughed at me.
“I’ll get the hang of it in a minute,” I said, restarting the truck. Billy rolled his eyes. I backed down the driveway and pulled up to my Jeep. After carefully loading his equipment into the back of the truck, we bucked and jerked our way down the driveway.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to drive?” Billy asked, holding on for dear life. “You’re giving me whiplash.”
“See, I told you I’d get the hang of it,” I said as we reached the end of South River Road.
“Yeah, but at what cost?” he asked. “My back will never be the same.”
“Whine... whine... whine,” I joked, stopping at the stop sign. “Before we go any further, I want to know what we’re doing. My last brush with the law was enough for one day.”
“You’re not quitting on me, are you?”
“You know, I didn’t sign up for this,” I said, irritated.
“I know you didn’t,” he said, with a hurt look on his face. “If you want out, now is the time to tell me. We can turn around...”
“No,” I said. “I’m sorry. It’s just that I’m mad at Cole and I’m taking it out on you. I shouldn’t be like that, but I can’t help it. I’m so furious.”
“I figured that much,” he whispered. “Do you want to tell me why?”
“I think you know. I don’t want to talk about it right now.”
“Whatever,” he said, pointing to the road. “We’re off to the crossroads. Let’s go 4-wheeling.”
“This doesn’t have four-wheel drive,” I said as I pulled onto Rt. 33 and headed to Zion Crossroads. We’d made this trek so many times that by now t
he drive only took us forty minutes. We were cruising, listening to a radio station that Billy had picked out.
“What’s this junk?” I motioned to the radio. “It sounds like somebody’s dying. I feel like I should have a beer in my hand.”
“It’s country music,” he stated. “Randy Travis is the best!”
“He makes my ears hurt.”
“Listen to the words and you’ll wind up loving... hey, what’s this?” Billy asked as he turned and stared. Just ahead of us was a police roadblock, closing off the road to the Hudgins’ house.
“Aren’t we supposed to turn here?” I asked. “What do you want me to do? Speak fast!”
“Keep on going!” he demanded.
The police gave us a fleeting glance as we passed by. I tried not to draw attention to us by driving erratically, while Billy absorbed everything in sight.
“What did you see?” I asked.
“A couple of police cars, that’s for sure. Keep on driving.”
“Shall we have lunch?” I asked Billy. We were fast approaching the Piney Mountain Grill, and I was hungry.
“Yeah!” he yelled. “That’s a great idea. It’ll give us a chance to see if anybody at the restaurant knows what’s going on back there. You never know, we might get lucky.”
“I just hope the food doesn’t kill us.”
I parked the truck in front of the grill and Billy and I got out. There were only two cars in the parking lot off to the side, and one of them was the Mustang. The other one was an old, beat-up Ford truck.
“Hey, isn’t that Rose’s car?” I asked. “I’m willing to bet the truck is Bubba’s. I think you might be right, Billy. Maybe we’ll get lucky. The joint looks empty. We should be able to have a long talk with Rose.”
Inside, Rose was sitting on a barstool reading the paper, while someone in the back was banging pots and pans. I assumed it was Bubba making that racket in the kitchen.
“Oh, it’s you,” she said, folding up the paper and staring at us. “Can I get you something to eat?” She slid off the stool and walked toward us. “As you can tell from the heat, the air-conditioning is broken. If you can’t stand the heat... well, you know the rest.”
Billy found a booth at the far end of the room away from the rays of the sun. “We’ll sit over here,” he replied. “If you could just bring us a couple of ice teas and a menu, we’d be grateful.” He motioned for me to sit down.
I leaned over the table and whispered, “It’s too hot in here, Billy.” The restaurant had several ceiling fans, and they were working overtime. Yet, they still couldn’t alleviate the heat. “I’m going to suffocate.”
“Hang in there, kid,” he said. “People sometimes act strange and say things they don’t mean to when they get overheated. I want to see how hot I can get Rose.”
“That’s gross,” I uttered. “Is this a sexual thing?”
“I hope you’re joking.”
Rose returned with our drinks and said, “The special for today is fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and string beans.” She handed us a menu. “We also have a hamburger boat for $2.95. It comes with fries or potato chips. Just shout when you’re ready to order.” She started to walk away.
“I’m ready now,” I called to her.
She turned back around, pulled out her order pad and said, “What can I get you?”
“I’ll take a cheeseburger boat, and perhaps you can tell us what the police are doing at your house?”
She glared at me. “Why don’t you ask them yourself?” She put her hands on her hips. “I’m sure you already know. Why don’t you tell me? They weren’t there when I left this morning.”
Billy butted in. “I’ll take the cheeseburger boat, too.”
“Two cheeseburger boats,” she yelled at the top of her lungs and walked away. She acted cool, but I knew I’d rattled her chain.
My ears were ringing from the noise. I stuck my finger in my ear and cried, “Give me a break!”
Billy scolded me. “This time, be quiet and let me do the talking. You’re going about this all wrong. You’re going to make her mad.”
“But I thought that’s what you wanted.”
“I said I wanted to get her hot and make her sweat, not rile her up. There’s a difference.”
“I’ll shut up,” I said. “You talk to her, and I’ll stay out of it.”
The phone rang somewhere in the back and Bubba came out with a large pair of tongs in his hand. Rose had gone back to reading the newspaper in a feeble attempt on her part at ignoring us. He whispered something into her ear, and she jumped up and ran to the back.
“Ah, perhaps she didn’t know the cops were at her house,” I said to Billy, who by this time was engrossed in picking at his fingernails. “I bet that call is from someone at home. I thought she was a little too calm when we told her about the cops being there.”
“I was just thinking the same thing myself,” he replied. “We’ll find out in a minute, if she goes rushing out the door.”
Two minutes later, she did exactly what Billy had said. She ran out the door, purse in hand, with tears streaming down her face.
“I guess that answers our question,” Billy said. He jumped up, pulled his wallet out and threw a five-dollar bill down on the table. “Come on. We’re going to follow her.”
“What about lunch?” I cried. “I’m starved.”
“Forget lunch. We’ll eat later,” he insisted.
We were just getting ready to walk out the door when Bubba walked up and blocked our exit. He stood poised and defiant, ready to react at a moment’s notice.
“You folks don’t want to leave without eating your meal first, now do you?” he stated in a most demanding way.
“I left a five on the table,” Billy pointed. “We’ve changed our minds. We’re not hungry anymore.”
“That’s a load of crap,” Bubba barked. “I know what you’re doing. You’re going after Rose.” He raised a finger and poked it at Billy’s chest. “I’m telling you right now, leave her alone!”
Billy’s face turned red. Normally, he’d never stand for anyone getting in his face like that, but Bubba’s next move gave him pause.
Bubba took a step back, lowered his finger and spoke in an octave lower. “She’s a good kid. She don’t know nothing about that missing girl. Do us all a favor, and get off her back, please.”
I just knew the situation was going to get out of hand. Billy’s a big guy. He’s over six feet tall, and weighs close to two hundred pounds. He’s strong as an ox. However, Bubba made Billy look like a kitten up against a mountain lion.
Billy’s face started to get the normal color back as he calmed down. “We’re not after Rose. All we’re after is the truth. We don’t think she had anything to do with the missing girl. Unfortunately, the cops have evidence that was discovered on the Hudgins’ property. They’re all over it. They have cop cars blocking off the entrance to their road, search dogs in the woods, and helicopters flying overhead. It’s a real circus.”
“What evidence?” Bubba asked.
“I can’t go into that,” Billy said, acting like the hotshot investigator that he is. “It’s classified and I can’t give out that information. I can tell you this, somebody had better get at the truth before Rose and her whole family winds up in jail.”
Finally seeing the light, Bubba suggested, “Somebody should check out that gas station guy, Tommy. He’s Jay’s best friend.” He leaned in toward us and whispered, “They’re both bad news. I can tell you that!” He then stepped back to let us pass.
Billy and I made a quick exit, which was something we’d been doing a lot of lately. We were constantly on the run.
“What kind of malarkey was that?” I asked, digging for my keys. “They have helicopters? Search dogs? Did I miss something?”
“Just get in the truck,” Billy commanded.
As usual, I did what he said. I got in the truck, cranked it up, and drove out of the parking lot.
“I did
n’t realize Helen’s purse was found on the Hudgins’ property,” I stated. “I knew it was close, but was it right on their property?”
“It could’ve been. I wasn’t there the whole time, so I don’t know for sure. Anything’s possible.”
“You’re awful!” I admonished him as I shifted gears. The truck made a loud, grinding, clanking noise. “Oops.”
Rose’s brake lights came into view as we rounded the curve and came up on her road.
The two police cars were gone.
Chapter 26
Billy told me to drive down the road a bit, and then make a U-turn. He said he wanted to give Rose time to get home without seeing us. “We don’t want to tip our hand.”
I drove for about a mile until I found a place to turn around. Just before we reached her house, Billy motioned for me to keep going.
“Find a place to park where we can see them, but they can’t see us.”
“I thought this was a dead end,” I replied. “There’s a dead end street sign at the entrance to the road, but this sure doesn’t look like a dead end to me. What’s the deal?” As soon as the words were out of my mouth, the paved road came to an abrupt end, and a dirt path filled with ruts began.
“Darn!” I moaned, slamming on the brakes. I was unable to stop in time to avoid bouncing in and out of several potholes. Billy hit his head on the roof, and the truck stalled.
“You’re the worst driver I’ve ever met!” he said, rubbing his head.
“Don’t yell at me. I’m doing the best I can.”
“You’re supposed to use the clutch, too... or did that slip your mind? You think you can turn this thing around without running into a ditch, or do I need to drive? I will if you want me to.”
“I can handle it!” I smarted. I pushed in the clutch and restarted the truck. After several attempts at trying to get the truck turned around in such a small area, I backed into a huge pothole and the truck cut off once again. The rear bumper was now touching the ground.
Billy jumped out and slammed the door. “That’s it!” he said. “I’m driving from now on!”
I started crying. I don’t know if it was from stress or an inside desire to make him feel bad, but it didn’t work.