‘Of course he is. Where’s Charley now?’
‘On her way home – or already there, I suspect.’
‘What about Amber Culvert? Is she with Charley?’
‘Nobody knows where she is, Lieutenant.’
‘What?’
‘She ran off. But we’re looking for her. We’ve got someone posted at the Culvert home and the Spencer home and they’re searching every inch of the school. No telling where she went,’ Brubaker said.
‘What about nearby parks or shopping centers?’
‘Taken care of, Lieutenant. Along with libraries, hospitals and any other place anyone could think of. I imagine we’ll find her before long.’
‘A lot of harm can come to a twelve-year-old girl before long, Brubaker.’
‘I know, I know. Trust me. We are doing all we can.’
‘Is there anything I can do?’ Lucinda asked.
‘I think we’ve got all the bases covered, but if you think of something we might have missed, give us a call and we’ll get somebody on it right away.’
Lucinda tried to go back to her report but she was too distracted to focus. Maybe a call to Charley would help.
‘Lucy! Did you hear about all the excitement at the school today?’ Charley said when she answered.
‘Yes, Charley. I heard you were hurt.’
‘I didn’t need any stitches. Gotta big bruise on my face and my nose is a little swollen but that’s it.’
‘What about your back?’
‘The doctor said it will hurt a lot tomorrow. But I don’t care. Everybody from school is calling me – teachers, the principal, even boys. I can’t wait to go to school tomorrow. I’m a hero.’
‘Charley, you take too many risks. You could have been seriously injured.’
‘But I wasn’t, Lucy. Really, I’m OK. I couldn’t just sit there and let that nasty woman take Amber away, now could I? You wouldn’t let that happen, would you?’
Lucinda rubbed a hand across her brow. A young girl with a powerful sense of justice was a dangerous combination. ‘Of course I wouldn’t, Charley, but I am a police officer. And I’m a lot taller and stronger than you.’
‘And you have a gun – don’t forget that. You could have just shot her dead on the spot. Do you think I could get a gun?’
Oh, good grief. ‘Did you ask your father that question?’ Lucinda asked.
‘Yes,’ Charley said with a strong dose of disgust in her voice.
‘What did he say?’
‘The same old thing – “When you’re an adult, you can do what you want, but while I am responsible for you, the answer is absolutely, positively no.” He says that about all the fun stuff.’
Lucinda almost argued that her attitude about guns was not appropriate but she knew she’d get nowhere with that point right now. ‘About Amber. Have you heard from her since she ran out of the cafeteria? Do you know where she is right now?’
‘No, Lucy. I’m sorry. I didn’t think she’d do that. I was defending her. It kind of hurts my feelings that she didn’t trust me enough. If I had a gun, I bet she would have.’
For now, Lucinda continued to ignore the gun comments. ‘Where might she go, Charley?’
Charley ran down a list of places that Lucinda had already discussed with Brubaker. Then she added, ‘Maybe she went to a movie.’
‘Which movie, Charley?’
‘I don’t remember the name of it. It was some dopey romance. I told her I’d fall asleep. I needed more action – and the kind of sappy action those love stories have just doesn’t keep me awake in a dark movie theater. So we were going to see something else tomorrow. But maybe she’d go to see that by herself since I didn’t want to go.’
‘Did she have any money?’
‘Some – Daddy gave her an allowance, just like me. He said a girl of her age should have some mad money in her pocket.’
‘You have one nice daddy.’
‘Yeah, most of the time. But he’s pretty mad at me right now. And I don’t get it, Lucy. Both of you are hypocrites. You tell me to do the right thing and when I do you get all on my case.’
‘We’ll talk about that later, OK? Right now, somebody needs to check out the movie theaters. I’ll call you if we find Amber or later tonight even if we don’t.’
‘OK, Lucy. But you really need to work on that hypocrite thing.’
‘Love you, Charley. Later,’ Lucinda said as she ended the call.
Lucinda knew she was going to have to have a long discussion with Evan about his daughter. She didn’t want to stifle Charley’s spirit but she certainly wanted to keep her safe. She picked up the phone to call Brubaker, thought better of it and hung up. She couldn’t stand sitting still a moment longer. She’d check out the movie theaters on her own.
FIFTY-SEVEN
Lucinda grabbed a copy of the BOLO with a photograph of Amber before leaving the Justice Center for her theater run. She stopped at the Cineplex 12 and showed the girl’s picture to the ticket seller, the checker at the door and the two people behind the snack counter. No one thought they’d seen her that day. She walked the aisles in the room showing a romantic feature, looking down each one for Amber but with no luck.
She decided to come back to check the other eleven after she’d cleared the remaining three theaters within walking distance of the school. At the next movie house, she had better luck. Everyone thought they might have seen her that morning and one of the girls working the snack bar was certain that Amber had been there. ‘She bought a soda and a box of Jujubes. I think I saw her running out about fifteen minutes ago but I only saw her from behind so I’m not sure.’
Lucinda didn’t hold much hope of finding Amber but she walked the aisles just the same. No luck.
The third theater was a bust, too. By now, though, Lucinda thought it was possible she could have walked a little further. She called Brubaker and told him what she knew. She hung up when he started to give her a hard time about searching on her own initiative.
Brubaker called her right back. ‘C’mon. I am not in the mood to argue,’ Lucinda said when she answered.
‘Not calling to give you a hard time. A pair of visitors just walked in the door to see you.’
‘Amber?’
‘No. A woman named Brittany Schaffer and her feminist war-horse attorney, Rita Younger.’
‘Younger? Oh, geez. That woman hates me for being tall.’
Brubaker chuckled. ‘I figured she must know you. The spike heels on her shoes are longer than her legs.’
‘Get someone from my department to take them up to the floor and put them in an interrogation room. I’ll be there in ten minutes or less.’
Lucinda had never worked a case where Rita Younger was the opposing counsel but the lawyer had been involved in complaints against her in the past. Rita produced any number of juicy sound bites about Lucinda. Rita liked to use her as an example of a woman who did not know how to succeed without acting more macho than all the men on the force combined. This interview was not going to be fun.
‘The Rime of the Ancient Mariner’ pounded in her head as she walked down the hall, wondering what she’d done to deserve this particular albatross. She opened the door with a smile that felt like waxed Halloween lips on her face. ‘Good afternoon, Ms Schaffer. Ms Younger. What can I do for you today?’
‘Would you please sit down?’ Rita asked. ‘Your abnormal altitude is putting a painful kink in my neck.’
Lucinda bit her tongue and slid into a chair on the opposite side of the table. ‘OK. What does your client have to say today?’
‘First of all, Lieutenant,’ Rita began, ‘I must tell you that if you hadn’t been so absurdly confrontational with my client, you probably would have obtained her cooperation without any interference from me. You are your own worst enemy, as I imagine you’ve heard me say before—’
‘Yeah, yeah, yeah, fine. What’s the point? Why are we here right now?’
Rita closed her eyes and shook her h
ead before continuing. ‘Oh, Lieutenant, you make everything so difficult. It took my considerable skills to convince my client to come see you and tell you all she knows after you bullied her so badly.’
‘Your client, Ms Younger, has seriously misrepresented our interactions; however, there is no need to argue this point. I will accept your argument, specious as it may be.’
Rita compressed her lips in a straight line. ‘I told her you wouldn’t make this easy.’
Lucinda threw back her head and looked up at the ceiling. ‘Can we get on with this, please?’
Rita turned to Brittany. ‘Ignore her hysterics, dear; just tell her what you know.’
Lucinda dropped her head to look straight at Brittany, noting for the first time the way the teacher was dressed. Instead of a plunging neckline, Brittany sported a business suit as if mimicking the attire of her attorney.
‘As I told you before, officer—’
Rita interrupted, ‘Don’t stoop to the detective’s level of being petty, Brittany. Address her by her proper title.’
Brittany appeared peeved but followed her lawyer’s direction. ‘As I told you before, Lieutenant, I did loan my truck. I did not loan it to a student. I did loan it to a former student. He told me he needed it to move his things out of his mother’s place and into his new apartment.’
‘And what is the name of this former student?’ Lucinda asked.
‘He is a very troubled young man. He lost his father in a horrible automobile accident when he was quite young. He has suffered through adolescence without a man to guide him. His mother has done her best but she is very limited in her ability to help him in any constructive way. She’s not the kind of person he could take in public.’
‘You mean, because she’s black?’ Lucinda said.
‘He is not a racist. He just has other problems,’ Brittany objected.
‘Fine. So what is his name?’
‘He needs help, Lieutenant. Not persecution. Quite frankly, I think it is impossible that he had anything to do with the explosion at the high school. If he was there, if my truck was there at the school, it was just a coincidence. And it frightened him.’
‘His name, Ms Schaffer?’ Lucinda insisted.
Brittany glanced at Rita who nodded and said, ‘You need to tell her.’
After a long, dramatic sigh, Brittany said, ‘Jimmy Van Dyke. Please be gentle with him. Deep inside, he’s such a sensitive boy.’
‘You seem to be quite close to this young man,’ Lucinda said.
‘He’s bared his soul to me – and, believe me, it is a place of torment. I have every faith that once he climbs the great mountain of adolescence and reaches the summit, he will be ready to tackle all that the world has to offer.’
Lucinda thought she’d be sick all over the table. Does her lawyer know what a pile of crap her client is? ‘And was this all pillow talk?’
Brittany furrowed her brow. ‘Excuse me.’
‘Post-coital pillow talk?’
‘I do not like what you are implying, Lieutenant Pierce,’ Rita snapped.
‘All she has to do is deny it,’ Lucinda said.
Rita turned to her client. ‘Do not say a word.’ The attorney pivoted back to Lucinda. ‘This is so typical of women of your ilk. You always assume the worst of other women. You parade your superiority by turning every other woman’s success into a sexual conquest.’
‘Not another word about your client’s relationship with Jimmy Van Dyke, then. I do have a few other questions if that is acceptable,’ Lucinda said.
‘You may proceed,’ Rita said. ‘But from now on, please direct your questions to me, Lieutenant.’
‘Did your client teach a student named David Baynes?’
Brittany turned pale. ‘Yes, I did. That poor, poor boy.’
‘Nothing more, Brittany. Lieutenant Pierce, I believe you are fishing,’ Rita said. ‘That is the young man who died in the explosion at the high school and I do not appreciate your obvious efforts to upset my client. And besides, if I recall correctly, my client has already admitted to that. Asked and answered, Lieutenant.’
‘I was not trying to cause distress to your client, Ms Younger. I simply wanted to know if her link to David Baynes was a typical teacher–student relationship or if it was something more.’
‘That’s it, Lieutenant. We’re leaving now,’ Rita said, rising to her feet. ‘I can’t believe that you are not expressing gratitude toward my client but have chosen instead to make baseless accusations. If I hear a whisper of this matter in the press, you will regret it – instantly and eternally. Let’s go, Brittany.’
Lucinda now knew for a fact that Jimmy had possession of Brittany’s truck at the time of the explosion. She thought it close to a certainty that the tire track comparison would prove that vehicle was at the school on that morning. She knew that Jimmy had access to the school – but did he have access to explosive materials? She hoped the lab would find some trace in or on the truck. She had to find Jimmy Van Dyke.
FIFTY-EIGHT
Jake and Lucinda sat out on their balcony overlooking the James River as they sipped on glasses of Pinot Grigio and tried to de-stress. They both said they wanted to talk about anything but work but soon slipped from the mundane to brainstorming ideas for finding Amber Culvert and Jimmy Van Dyke.
Jake asked, ‘Are you sure that Charley will let you know if Amber contacts her?’
‘A couple of days ago, I would have said that I am absolutely positive that Charley would call me right away. But earlier today she called me a hypocrite – and her dad, too – because we tell her to do the right thing and, when she does, we chastise her for taking so many risks.’
Jake laughed. ‘That doesn’t surprise me. She’s learned well from you.’
‘What does that mean?’
‘How many times have you said that it’s easier to ask forgiveness after taking action than to get permission beforehand?’
‘But I never said that to Lucy.’
‘Sure, you didn’t say it. But actions speak louder than words. You’re going to have to find a way to make risk assessment an intellectual exercise for Charley – challenge her reasoning power. You might make more headway with that tactic than pointing out the dangers she seems to run toward with glee.’
‘Might work. But she may out-think me on that one. She’s a scary-smart kid.’
‘How about Charlotte Van Dyke? And do you think she will call if she hears from Jimmy or he shows up at her home?’
‘I forgot to tell you. I got a message from her earlier today. She said she’d changed her mind about calling a lawyer. She said if Jimmy did something wrong, he needs to answer for it, and if he didn’t, he needed to show up and clear his name. But I don’t know, Jake. She seems to realize that, while he’s on the run, he’s taking a big risk and, because of that, she’d call me right away. But I worry that if she thinks her son is about to be charged with a serious crime, she might help him get far, far away to keep him out of prison.’
‘It’s a difficult position for any mother, I guess. But it might be tempered by wanting to set a good example for Tamara.’
‘I wonder if Tamara told her mother that she talked to me. And does Jimmy know she did?’
‘Maybe we ought to go see Charlotte this weekend,’ Jake said.
‘Be best to do that tomorrow. Sunday is Mother’s Day – not likely to be very productive to talk to her about turning in her son on that particular holiday. Besides, I promised to take Charley and Ruby to a mother–daughter tea that afternoon. I was going to ask Charley to invite Amber to come along with us, but now … Damn, I am worried about that girl. Too many predators and users out there waiting to take advantage of a twelve-year-old’s innocence.’
‘Unfortunately, she’s not as innocent as she should be. But perhaps her experience will make her more cautious.’
‘It could also make her run from someone who actually wants to help her,’ Lucinda added.
They both sig
hed and stared out over the river, lost in thought, making them startle enough to splash wine when Lucinda’s cell burst into song. ‘Pierce,’ she said.
‘Marguerite Spellman, Lieutenant. I thought you’d want to know right away that traces of the same material used to construct the bomb were found on the floorboard of the passenger’s side of Brittany Schaffer’s pick-up truck. We also found an excellent palm print on the driver’s door as well as some good prints around that seat and picked up prints for both Todd Matthews and David Baynes and a host of others all over the truck – a lot of them smeared beyond recognition. I imagine that some of them belong to the owner, but until you bring me known prints, I can’t do much else on that score.’
‘Thanks, Spellman. I hope you’re going home now and enjoying your weekend.’
‘I’m going to try but one of you guys will probably find a body somewhere before it’s over.’
‘I’ll put out a memo: “No dead bodies till Monday.” Will that help?’ Lucinda teased.
‘Yeah, right. If they listen, they’ll be sure to call me between midnight and one, Monday morning.’
Lucinda hung up and told Jake about the call. ‘I just wish I knew what was going on with those three boys. What puts them all together at the same time in that truck?’
‘We don’t even know if they were there at the same moment, Lucy. We just know that they have all been in that vehicle. No date stamps on prints.’
‘Damn. I need another glass of wine,’ Lucinda said, going inside to retrieve the bottle from the refrigerator. When she returned, Jake was on the phone and he looked excited. As soon as he disconnected, Lucinda asked, ‘Who was that? What was that?’
‘That was the tire impression guru – and we have a match. Absolutely no doubt at all. A perfect match down to every little tiny defect.’
‘But really we knew it would,’ Lucinda said. ‘It will be a great piece of evidence in the courtroom. But we need more to get us there.’
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