by Amy Gaudette
“Did you see Doug and Brady?”
“Yes. They were in the woods waiting for Megan. At some point Megan must have wanted to go on alone. I snuck past them until I could locate Megan. I ended up startling her, but I was able to stop her as quickly and quietly as possible. I told her she needed to head back and say her memory hadn’t returned, and that maybe it was all in her mind after all. Play innocent. Whatever it would take to get them off her trail. I didn’t think for a second she wouldn’t make it back to the hotel safely.”
“Did you actually see Richard?”
“Not for sure. Three guys wearing black were walking into the woods at a different location, closer to where the gate is. One could have been Richard because of the hulking body frame and the slight limp.”
“Go on.”
“Megan turned to go back. I waited a few minutes and slipped out after they drove off. I didn’t want to be seen by anyone. I figured I would wait for Megan at the hotel . . . she never showed up.” Sam tried to hold onto hope as he finished filling Gabe in on all the details, including Megan’s missing journal that he was sure he had seen sitting on Richard’s desk. Sam took a deep breath. Having Gabe here was an enormous relief.
“I think it’s time I catch you up on a few things. But not here. We’ll get you out, then talk back at the hotel.” Gabe stood up. “The local police are searching for Megan now. This information you’ve given me will be helpful in getting you out of here. I’m going to go take a look at the camera footage and I’ll be back as soon as I can. This time I’ll bring a lawyer.”
Sam sighed. Where would all of this lead? Would he lose his job? How was Rose doing? Megan, where are you?
✽✽✽
Rose finished packing. It was time she got involved. She had been standing on the sidelines of life, hiding in the gardens for too long. Sam and Megan needed help. And she was going to give it. Rose knew more than anyone about Mayor Richard. It was time somebody else knew it too. She threw her bags in the car and loaded up Bear. There was just one more thing.
She walked with purpose to the den, and opened a closet door. Sitting on the floor by the back wall was a safe. Bending over to open it, she hesitated. I must do this, for Megan.
Pulling the safe’s door open, she reached in and pulled out an old, worn notebook with faded flowers etched into the cover. She took a deep breath as she looked at her trembling, aged hands gently stroking the fragile lettering. Beth. So much time has passed, Beth. My dear Beth, I have missed you so much. Rose took a deep breath.
“For you Beth, and for Megan.”
Chapter 25
Brady shuffled through his dad’s files on the computer. Something was going on, and he was going to find out what it was. Determination motivated him to do what he would never have had the courage to do before. Again his mom had warned him to stay away from Megan, who had run again, and Dr. Timmons, who had been arrested. He knew it wasn’t true. It couldn’t be true. His anger mounted, equaled only by the pain of having trusted his dad, only to realize he had been betrayed. Brady would get even. He would expose Richard and his dad if he had to. Passwords had not been a problem before, they wouldn’t be now.
After at least ten minutes of dead ends. Brady found a backdoor. Dad’s password system was weak, and Brady knew he hated learning different passwords. He simply reworked old passwords over and over. This was his last chance.
Bingo. He was in. Brady started scrolling down, one file after another. Wow. He wasn’t just in his dad’s files. He was into Richard’s. A lot of it he didn’t understand. But enough made sense. This was a list of obstacles that needed to be neutralized before the election. Most of the names and topics he didn’t recognize, until the last listing. M.S.
Could it be Megan’s? A noise startled him. His heart went into overdrive.
It might be Marie. Paranoia had found a home in Brady in regards to Marie. He knew she was often staring at him with those piercing eyes. She could send arrows into his soul with just a glance. When Marie was around, she watched his every move.
He shut the computer down, but too late.
“Brady, what are you doing in here?” Marie’s voice cut like a knife.
He felt his face turning red. He was caught. Once again, he felt like a little kid with one hand in the cookie jar.
“I asked you a question, young man. Your father will hear of this, or shall I go straight to Mayor Richard?”
Startling them both, the door opened further and Brady’s dad walked in. Anger flashed across his face, his fists were clenched. Rarely had Brady ever seen his dad this mad. He knew he was in big trouble.
Doug turned to Marie. “I’ll handle this, Marie. Thank you. Oh, Bev asked if you would head over to the mayor’s headquarters, they could use an extra hand.”
Brady thought Marie would have shot venom had she been a snake.
She turned sharply on her heels and left. Doug closed the door. He stared at his son.
“How did you know?” Brady tried to diffuse what was coming.
“I’m alerted anytime someone accesses those files. I get a text.”
“I’m going to Sam.”
“With what? I know you couldn’t get access.”
“Why, Dad? Why couldn’t you have been real? Why did you have to be a traitor?”
Bitter, hot tears threatened to release, making Brady feel worse than he already did.
“I trusted you, Dad. So did Megan.” Pain wove through Brady’s voice.
“I can’t explain things right now. I know it looks bad. But believe me, there’s more going on here than you can see. You have to trust me.”
“Right. Time’s up. Megan has disappeared. Dr. Timmons, who wouldn’t hurt a fly, is in jail, and you are right there in the middle of all of it. If anything happens to Megan . . .”
Brady didn’t finish his sentence. His cell phone ringing broke the tension.
“Hello?”
“Brady. It’s Sam. Are you okay?”
“Dr. T! Are you out?”
“Yes. I have a lawyer now as well as a friend from my town who is a police officer. We’ll find Megan. Can we pick you up? My friend would like to ask you some questions over here at the hotel. If we can find your dad, he should come to, since you are a minor.”
“I’ll be right over,” Brady quickly responded, deliberately not mentioning his dad.
Brady brushed past his dad, dropped his gaze, and walked out the front door. He was not oblivious to the pain etched on his dad’s face. Something in him wanted to shake his dad until he told the truth about everything. But Brady knew the man had sold out. And he wanted nothing to do with him ever again.
✽✽✽
Doug watched Brady walk past him and out the door. He let him go. The numbness he had carried around to shield his heart crashed to the floor with the door slamming behind his son. Pain and despair dropped him into a nearby chair. With his head in his hands, hatred for himself fueled an already kindled fire.
Richard. He has destroyed me, my family, and who knows how many others. His tentacles have preyed on more women than I can count. Women who have families, jobs, friends. What do I have in return for the loyalty I have given? A stranger for a wife, a son that hates me, and I’m over my head in debt. In the midst of his internal struggle, he laughed grimly. Oh yeah, and a cook that has spied on us for eight years.
He momentarily wondered how deep Beverly was mixed up in all this, but his thoughts were quickly diverted at the realization that the very foundation under his feet had just collapsed. He was left with no family, no money and possibly facing jail time. He didn’t even know which way was up anymore.
This thing is unraveling. Despair crawled inside his mind and heart, infecting his entire body like a virus. He stood up and headed into his office. Spinning the combination lock, he opened his safe and pulled out a small 9mm handgun. His hands shook as he flipped it over and over. Standing back up, he shoved it into his suit pocket and headed out the door. It’s tim
e to end this charade. I have nothing left to lose. But first, I have some house cleaning to do.
With that, Doug headed to his computer. He turned it on and started deleting files. Anything that could implicate his family was removed. Bev had nothing to do with any of the trouble he was in, he made sure that was clear. Before he signed off, he transferred funds from his savings account into Beverly’s. She would have more than enough while the paperwork was being sorted out.
Time to head to work. This is going to take a while, but it will be worth it. He’d access everything he could lay his hands on and make copies of anything he could that would implicate Richard. He’d mail them to someone outside the Piedmont Police Department, if he couldn’t find someone he trusted implicitly. He took a deep breath. After that, there would be only one thing left to do.
✽✽✽
Sam picked up Brady, and they returned to the hotel. Gabe was waiting for them in Sam’s room. Sam made the introductions, but could see the blue uniform made Brady uncomfortable. Brady’s face was guarded, his eyes dull.
“Gabe is taking us back to the woods to look around tomorrow morning. Would you be willing to show us where you and your dad were? And anywhere else you think would be helpful. If we retrace footsteps and conversation, we might pick up on something we didn’t know before.”
“Brady, my department will be working with Piedmont Police in this. You can be sure even now we are doing everything we can to find Megan.”
Sam made note of the change in Brady. He seemed harder, angrier.
“Brady, I spoke with your dad. You’re welcome to spend a few nights here. We’ll rent you a room next to ours if you would like.”
Brady nodded. “I’ll be glad to get out of my house. My parents wouldn’t notice anyway.” Anguish for Megan was written all over Brady’s face. “I think I’ll head to bed, Dr. T. If I can sleep, tomorrow will come quicker. We’ll find Megan tomorrow.”
The night dragged by. Sam’s mind was in a constant state of reruns and flashbacks as he played the past few days over and over again, trying to pick up something new.
Finally, a knock at the door told Sam he must have fallen asleep. He opened the door to Gabe, Brady, a pile of donuts, fresh coffee, and a large orange julius.
“Ready, friend? Let’s eat on the run if you don’t mind. We have a lot of ground to cover.” Gabe wore his usual good-natured grin. Brady wore his frown.
“Sounds good. But I think I’ll get dressed first.”
Gabe laughed. “Meet you out at my car. Better hurry. Brady and I will down these donuts before you can say ‘black coffee.’”
Within minutes they were under way. Sam gave a prayer of thanks for the day and asked for guidance. He surprised himself at how much he found he was praying lately. Nothing big or elaborate, but more like keeping a phone line open.
Standing at the old fire pit, Gabe asked Brady to take him on the same walk he and his dad and Megan had been on.
Sam stood by himself at the picnic area near the woods. He needed time to think. His heart was sick. They still had no sign of Megan. The sound of an approaching vehicle urged Sam to step out of sight behind an old gutted tree.
It was Doug. He must be looking for Brady. He pulled up near the woods and got out. He appeared to be fiddling with something in his pocket. Sam watched intently as he walked with hunched shoulders into the woods. He wasn’t headed towards the path that Brady and Gabe were on. He seemed to be headed toward the infamous clearing.
Sam had a bad feeling about this. Something was really wrong. He didn’t have time to find Gabe.
Sam followed from a distance, not wanting to startle him, but not wanting him to get too far ahead. What on earth was he up to? Sam’s chest hurt from the little hike. Breathing was labored. Once again, he prayed hard. Strength, Lord. He picked up his pace, still trying to walk lightly. He was thankful for the wind rustling the leaves, as it helped mask his footsteps.
Sure enough, Doug led him straight to the infamous clearing. Was this where it had all happened? Had Doug known all along? Sam feared the worst. He slipped silently behind a tree and waited. Doug stood staring up at the sky. A small opening above permitted a few beams of sunlight to radiate around him.
Sam felt like he was violating a private moment. Wondering if he should leave, movement turned his attention back to Doug. He had fallen to his knees, and was weeping silently. His shoulders heaved up and down. Sam began to pray. Crying out to God for Doug. A broken man. Chains bound him, he had given away his soul, and now the reaper was calling. Doug was helpless to fight him off.
A click sounded. Sam opened his eyes to see Doug pulling out a small gun from his jacket pocket. His heart pounded. No! Doug lifted the gun and pointed it toward his head.
Sam jumped from the woods at a dead run. He plowed into Doug. The gun went flying, and he and Sam ended up tangled on the ground.
Doug sat up. “What are you doing here?” His voice was exceedingly annoyed, his face white.
“Doug. I don’t know how to say this, but God must have brought me here.”
“God?” Sarcasm laced Doug’s voice.
“Yes. God. The only one who can get you through the mess you are in.”
A desperate man glared at Sam. “It’s too late for that.” His voice rasped as he wiped dirt from his face. His eyes fixed on the gun a stone’s throw away.
“You don’t really want to do that, do you? You have a wonderful family. I’ve gotten to know Brady some. He has a heart of gold. It may take some time, but I know he will forgive you. He loves you very much. I know you must feel like your house is falling down all around you, but houses can be rebuilt. Doug, If you go through with this, there will be nothing left but a pile of ashes. Hasn’t there been enough pain?”
Doug was silent for a few moments. His chest still heaving.
“This is where it all began, did you know that?” Doug stood up and brushed a few leaves off of his slacks. “The day of the picnic. It had been good . . . until then. A little, sweet, red-headed girl fearlessly darted into the woods to find a baby rabbit for my son, ran into Richard jogging, and life was never the same again. I still ask myself the all-important question. Why Megan? Why did Richard have it in for her? I allowed myself to become a puppet, a well-paid puppet, and I made sure Megan made a quick exit. I was to keep tabs on her but after a few years of her moving, running away and moving again, I lost track of her. She seemed to fall through the cracks of the foster care system. Beverly didn’t want anyone to make waves. But I knew she missed Megan . . . we all did.” Doug’s face held years of regret and pain. “Especially Brady.” His voice now only a whisper.
Sam had stood up, he glanced at the gun still lying on the ground. “Please don’t do this, Doug. For Brady’s sake if nothing else.”
The broken man in front of him looked up at the sky above. His face a mask shattered into pieces. “I have no idea what to do. I’ve taken orders for so long . . . I can’t even think for myself.” He kept his gaze turned away. His shoulders heaved a sigh. He turned back toward Sam. “I don’t know where Megan is, Sam. If I did I would tell you. But I think it’s time I go talk to Brady. I’ve heard about your friends from Rogan’s Pass Police Department, I think I should talk to them as well. Richard’s blood will boil when he finds blue uniforms in there he can’t control.” Doug’s fight seemed to have left him. His shoulders drooped. His steps were slow.
Sam bent down and picked up the gun. “Do you want me to take this?”
Doug hesitated then nodded. He pulled out a handkerchief and wiped his face. “Is this between you and me?”
“Absolutely. Anytime you want to talk — call me.”
“Are you a preacher as well as a doctor now?”
Sam laughed wearily. “I might be able to help heal the body but only God can heal the soul.” He slipped the gun into his coat pocket. He would give it to Gabe later.
Sam and Doug walked out of the woods together.
“Hey guys, ov
er here.” Sam hollered. Gabe motioned to Brady.
“Hello, Brady.” Doug’s greeting was subdued.
Anger flashed across Brady’s face. “Why are you here?” He spat his words at his dad.
Brady wouldn’t look at him. “I don’t trust my dad. He could be leading us all into another trap like he did Megan. He has to know where she is! I don’t understand why we’re all standing around talking. We should be out looking. Richard should be in jail . . .”
Brady broke down under the weight of his own pain and fear.
“Do the bad guys always win? Where is God, Sam? He must be busy somewhere else, ’cause he sure isn’t here right now.”
He lowered his head and kicked hard at the dirt. Sam knew his wounds were raw and exposed. He put his arm around Brady and took him a few steps to the side.
“Brady. All we can see is what is in front of us now. I admit, it looks darn bleak. But this is not the end. It’s an exceedingly dark time in the journey we’re on, but it’s a chapter in a book, not the whole book. I’m not giving up and neither are you. I can’t tell you how this will all play out. I do know this. Even in the darkest coldest night, God is with us. Right now, right here. We have to hold on to that and not give up hope.”
Sam felt Brady’s shoulders shake with a tsunami of emotion.
“Megan has to be okay, Sam.” His voice shook. “I’ll never forgive my dad if she isn’t.”
Sam watched Gabe and Doug conversing off to the side, Doug’s shoulders hunched over, his face lowered. This family had so much to go through. Walls of bitterness, anger and hurt had been built solidly over the years.
Brady took a deep breath and turned to Sam. He pulled a tissue out of his pocket and wiped his face. “What’s going to happen to us?” He whispered as his gaze fixed on his dad.
“I don’t know. However, I do know this. You are not alone, Brady.”