“When I realized it was your parents’ house, I knew Mick hadn’t done any work there. I thought he sent me into the wrong house. He said he’d made a mistake, but I thought he was lying. By the time I turned fourteen, I was sure.”
Roger shook his head. “Why’d you go along?”
“He knew which strings to pull. When persuasion didn’t work, he switched to threats and blackmail. If I didn’t do this hit, he’d turn me in for the others. Or he’d refuse to pay child support to Mom, not that he did anyway, but I didn’t know that. He said he’d make sure my sisters got into trouble with the law. Sheriff Knutson was one of Mick’s closest friends, so I believed him.” She blew out a breath. “When I let the air out of his tires, he borrowed Sara’s car. When I stayed with friends on the weekends so he couldn’t find me, he’d pick me up from school. The day after graduation, I left.
“A few months ago,” she continued, “they let him out of jail. He came here. I didn’t want to leave. I told myself I could outsmart him.” She rubbed her hands over her face. “I was wrong.”
“You were doing all this while you were going after my brother?”
“I can see how you’d think that. Mick would just show up. I didn’t know when I’d see him next. Then he got desperate. He told me the truth, a secret he’d been hiding for a long time.” She couldn’t help the catch in her voice. Her legs started to shake.
“What truth?”
Tears threatened as she sank to the ground. She leaned her forehead against the bottom rail, and let her feet dangle over the edge. Roger stood next to her, his height giving him the advantage, but she was long past caring. She told him about Joseph Lankin and her encounters with Mick since then, including Mick’s threats and her suspicions about the fire, but nothing about Carley. Not yet, not until she was sure he would help.
“Why are you telling me this?”
She pulled herself to her feet and faced him. “He’s planning another burglary. Tonight. I need your help to catch him.”
Chapter Twenty-Nine
“No way.” Roger shook his head.
“If I could handle this myself, do you think I’d be here?” She threw her arms out to the sides. “Roger, I don’t like asking for help anymore than you want to give it, but this has to stop.”
“Agreed, but you’re a civilian. I won’t let you be involved.”
She managed a half-hearted chuckle. “You’re sixteen years too late.”
“Tell me where he is. I’ll send a squad car.”
“I don’t know where he is, and we need to catch him in the act. It’s the only way I can prove this.”
“We’ll question him.”
“It won’t be enough. Please don’t let your animosity for me get in the way. You need to catch him, and you need me to do it. Tonight’s our only chance.” She could almost see him weighing the pros and cons.
“When are you supposed to meet him?”
“I’m not.”
Anger sparked in his eyes.
“I told Mick I’d never do another burglary for him, and I meant it. I’m not helping him.” She waited a long beat. “This part has to stay between me and you. Promise.”
“I won’t promise you anything.”
Why that surprised her she wasn’t sure, but she could see his point. “If this has no bearing on the situation, will you keep the information to yourself?”
“I’ll decide once I hear it.”
The way he planted his feet and narrowed his eyes made her think of Jordan. She struggled through the pain, until she found the blessed numbness that allowed her to function.
“I’m not helping him. Carley is. He’s blackmailing my niece.”
The fury on his face made her step back. “Carley Anderson? Sara’s daughter?”
“You know her?”
“Of course I know her. She’s Justine’s friend, my daughter,” he added in a tight voice. “They’re the same age.”
“Carley would never do this on her own.” She told him about rescuing Carley, and Mick’s threat to burn Last Chance. “She’ll hate me for breaking my word, but I won’t let him destroy her life. I have a plan, but I can’t do it alone. When it’s over, I’ll repeat everything, except Carley’s role, for the record. You can keep the papers. I listed all the ones I could remember, but I’m sure there were more.”
He was silent so long she started to worry.
“What would you do if he was using Justine instead of Carley?”
Roger looked at her for a long, tense minute. “What’s your plan?”
****
At six, Carley came out of Last Chance. Mel put her overnight bag in the car and waved to Sara.
“What are we going to do?” Carley asked in a small voice as she buckled her seatbelt.
“We aren’t going to do anything. You’re sleeping over with your friend Justine. I’m going to take care of Mick.” Keeping Carley out of it was the only thing she and Roger agreed on.
“He’ll be mad if I’m not there.”
“I have a plan.” She hoped Mick did get mad.
“What plan?”
She tweaked Carley’s nose. “It’s a secret.”
“That’s not fair. If Grandpa finds out I told—”
“Where are you supposed to meet him?”
“Outside Rings and Things.” At Mel’s blank look she added, “A new store by the freeway.”
“Okay.”
When they reached Roger’s house, the same dark-haired girl Mel had seen with Carley at the store ran out. Bouncing with excitement, she talked non-stop as she grabbed Carley’s hand and pulled her to the house. Carley stopped. “Auntie Mel, aren’t you coming?”
She shook her head and smiled. “Go. Have a good time.”
“But I want to stay with you.”
“You can’t, sweetheart. I’d worry about you, and I can’t concentrate if I’m worrying. You can help me the most by staying here. I’ll call you later. When it’s done.”
“Even if it’s late?”
She grinned. “Even if it’s two in the morning. I’ll ask Beth to wake you up.”
“I guess that’s okay.” Her friend pulled her inside, and their girlish chatter drifted out the open door.
Roger came out. “Beth will keep them busy. Let’s go.”
“I don’t want to go to the station to get ready.”
“We already covered this.” Roger opened the door of the Honda.
“If you lock me in a cell and go after him on your own, he’ll get away.”
He ignored her. She put the shopping bags she’d picked up that afternoon on the floor of the back seat and crawled in with them.
“Put your seatbelt on. It’s the law.”
She stretched out on back the seat. “And risk being seen with you? That’d ruin my reputation.”
****
Jordan drove around aimlessly. Mel said she would tell him everything tomorrow, which obviously meant something was going to happen tonight.
He wanted to call Roger, but Mel hadn’t given him anything he could use, and he didn’t want to hear how stupid he was for letting Mel get under his skin.
With an oath, he turned around and headed to her cabin. Even if she wouldn’t talk, at least he’d make sure no one got close to her. He’d even sleep on the damn porch if he had to.
When he realized he was going twenty over the speed limit, he forced himself to slow down. The minutes stretched like hours, and the roads seemed twice as long as they had yesterday. Finally, he turned into her empty driveway.
Too late, he thought as he hit the steering wheel. Frustration and worry had him driving through town, searching for her car. He checked the outskirts of town, the parks and trailheads with no luck. By the time it got dark, he had nowhere else to look. Roger could do a search and locate her on her cell phone, but he wouldn’t. Not unless she was missing. And just because Jordan couldn’t find her, didn’t mean she was missing.
Jordan drove home, put on his tool belt
, and cranked the volume on the stereo. If he couldn’t help, at least he could try not to think about her. He found a crowbar and a sledgehammer and began demolishing a wall.
****
Ten minutes before nine, Mel walked down the sidewalk of the strip mall. Light spilled out the store windows making the shadows between them deep and dark, even though the sun still shone on the higher hilltops. She passed the door to Rings and Things and sat, as planned, in the shadows with her back to the concrete wall.
Officer Andrea Willis did what she could to make Mel look like a tall twelve-year-old. Going from a picture of Carley, Officer Willis used temporary dye to cover her highlights, plucked her eyebrows and added layers of makeup to downplay her eyes. A wide band squeezed her chest nearly flat.
Leaning back against the wall, she crossed her ankles and waited. Holes gapped at the knees of her black jeans, and her high-top sneakers were untied. A car drove by, and she tugged the bill of her black cap lower. Nerves skittered up her spine. How could she think Mick would ever mistake her for Carley?
“Use the darkness to your advantage,” Roger had told her. “Hunch. Don’t speak directly to him. Mumble. Nod. Sit in the back seat. Act nervous.” The list went on and on.
A car turned into the parking lot, and she glanced at her watch. Right on time. A battered black hatchback stopped at the curb. She hunched as she walked. He’d get suspicious if she sat in the back, no matter what Roger said, so she got in front and sank low in the seat.
“How’s my little girl?” Mick asked as he pulled out, but she kept her mouth shut. “Don’t worry. It’s a game. That’s all, just a game.” When he gave her ponytail a tug, she had to fight the urge to swing at him.
She pulled the sleeves of Carley’s over-sized black jacket over her hands. Mick took the back roads and bypassed the freeway. Headlights flickered behind them. Roger couldn’t tail them and remain incognito on the deserted back roads. She touched the cell phone in her pocket. Roger wanted to put a GPS on her, but they didn’t have time to find one. When she knew what house they were burglarizing, she’d call Roger. Then she’d find a way to keep Mick there long enough to get them caught.
She kept her head down. Her mental map wasn’t lining up with the turns Mick took. They must have crisscrossed Cedar Valley four times before he stopped. She stole a glance at her watch. Nine forty-five.
“Here’s the plan,” Mick said as he pulled onto a gravel road. She turned just enough to see his chin. “These are long driveways, but they’re not far apart. We’re going to leave the car here and cut through the woods.”
Mick gave her a pair of gloves and a flashlight. “These bastards owe me five grand, so we’re going in together. Come on.”
As she followed him into the trees, she figured he must still be shaken over letting Carley get trapped or he’d never go in. A mosquito buzzed near her ear, and she swatted at it. The frogs went silent. They crossed one driveway and headed into the trees again. Her hand brushed a spider web, and she jumped to the side, slapping at the sticky strings.
Mick spun around. “What?”
“Spiders.” Her squeak didn’t sound like Carley, but he bought it. They reached the next driveway and started toward the house.
“The place is empty,” Mick whispered. “Owners are out of town.”
They stayed close to the trees until they rounded the bend. A porch light showed a wide, country style porch. The forest stopped at the edge of a large lawn, scattered with big shadows from leafy trees. She didn’t need to worry about Roger having to break in. He’d have a key to the front door of his parents’ house.
Mick started across the lawn at a hobbling trot. She followed as they went around back. He gestured for her to check the windows while he worked on the door. Since she’d never seen him pick a lock, she wondered what else he’d been practicing in the last ten years.
The windows were locked so she went around the corner. She bypassed the sliding glass door because Carley never mentioned going in that way. Mick stuck his head around the corner and hissed. When she returned, he walked in the open door.
“Go upstairs and get started on the closet. Look in the jacket pockets. Everyone thinks that’s a great hiding place.” He snorted in disgust. “I’ll be up in a minute to help with the mattress, and the safe if there is one.”
Fighting back the chilling sense of deja’vu, Mel climbed the stairs. Pictures still lined the walls, but she didn’t look at them. Bypassing the room that once belonged to Jordan, she went into the master bedroom and called Roger.
“Where are you?”
“In your parents’ house,” she whispered. “He’s inside, too. Get over here.”
****
Jordan hadn’t planned on tackling the demolition of the entire interior wall for a few more weeks. Now he studied the fractured pieces. It’d been satisfying, even took the edge off his anger, but he was too keyed up to sleep. He took off his tool belt and lifted a water bottle for a long drink.
Thoughts of Mel drifted back into his mind. Since he couldn’t come up with another distraction, he might as well go look for her again. After he cleaned up, he tried calling her, but she didn’t bother to answer so he got in his truck and headed to town. When he got there, he kept on going. He’d go by her place one more time. If she was there, he didn’t know if he’d pull her into his arms or shake her until her teeth rattled. Probably both.
Her driveway was still empty. After another drive through town, and all the places he could think of, he still couldn’t find her. Worry for her clawed at him like an invisible animal, to insubstantial to get a hold of, but powerful enough to hurt.
As he often did when his thoughts were a jumbled mess, he headed for his parents’ house. Then he remembered his mother’s plants. If they were dead, he’d never hear the end of it. So he’d water them and toss any dead ones in the back of his truck. Sal at the nursery would help him replace them.
****
Hoping to keep Mick busy until Roger arrived, Melanie trotted down the stairs. A rustling noise came from a room off the hall, and she found Mick going through a file drawer.
“I can’t find the safe,” she whispered.
“Look through the closet, like I told you to,” he said in a tight voice.
She headed back up. A minute later, she heard the thud, THUD, thud, THUD as he worked his way up the stairs. She tossed some jewelry on the bed, next to a pillowcase.
Mick’s breath wheezed in and out. As he followed her into the closet, she heard a car. Finally. She coughed until Mick glared at her, then she rustled the clothes while Mick looked for a safe. She tugged on a stack of boxes piled on a shelf, and jumped out of the way as they crashed to the floor. Mick swore.
“Sorry.” She coughed and pantomimed drinking water. When he turned back, she went into the pretty bathroom and waited. Headlights flashed through a window and disappeared. When she heard a car door open, she grimaced and turned the water on full blast until she heard it close. If this was how Cedar Valley Police taught its officers to be sneaky, it was no wonder she’d never gotten caught. Roger was louder than Grandma Lilly, and she’d been half blind and used a walker.
When enough time passed for a dozen men to come inside, she turned off the water and helped Mick.
Since she hadn’t expected Mick to come in, Roger planned to catch him after she got back to the car. No version included Roger coming inside, but they hadn’t expected to be in his parents’ house either. Then she froze. What if it wasn’t Roger?
Chapter Thirty
An image of Roger’s startled parents prodded Mel to tiptoe out of the bedroom and halfway down the stairs. A tall figure passed the front windows, briefly silhouetted by the porch light. The broad shoulders were familiar, and the billed cap would have the Mariners logo. Roger hadn’t taken it off all evening, not even at the police station. Relieved, she went back upstairs.
“Nothing,” Mick said in disgust as he came out of the closet. He didn’t bother to whis
per. “We’ll have to make do with that.” He pointed to the jewelry. “Pack it up. I’ll check the bed.”
When they finished, he led the way to the door. “Let’s search the office again. There should be more in there.” They reached the bottom without a sign of Roger, and she followed Mick into the office.
While Mick flashed his light on a file cabinet and started opening drawers, she stood next to the window, waiting.
“Hot damn,” he said a moment later.
The office door slammed open. The overhead light went on, and Jordan stood there, a bat raised to strike.
Jordan looked at Mick, then pinned her with a vicious glare. “Who is he?”
The burning anger in his voice took her breath away. He knew Mick, everyone in Cedar Valley did. Then she realized Mick had slunk into the shadows behind her.
“Who is he?” Jordan yelled as he took a threatening step toward her.
She struggled to speak, but could only manage a whisper. “Mick. My father.”
“Police!” Yells filled the night, and Jordan was shoved aside as Roger and three others ran into the room, guns drawn.
“You’re under arrest,” Roger said, with his gun pointed at Mick. “Get the cuffs on him. Hey, bro.” He grinned at Jordan.
“You bitch!” Mick lunged at her.
She reeled back, tripped and fell. Roger rushed forward. A shot rang out. Mick hit the floor next to her.
“Get the cuffs on him,” Roger snapped. “Cunningham, put your damn gun away and cuff him. My mother is never going to forgive you for shooting a hole in her ceiling.”
While they put handcuffs on an un-injured Mick and hauled him to his feet, he spouted curses and threats. “You back-stabbing little bitch. Don’t let her get away. She killed a man. She forced me to come here tonight. She’s done it before.”
“Get him out of here,” Roger said in disgust as he holstered his gun. “You can get up now.”
“Thanks.”
He pulled her to her feet. She didn’t see Jordan. “Where’s Jordan?” A car door slammed.
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