Gone Before Goodbye (Love &Mystery in the--6-oh-3 Book 1)

by Nora LeDuc

  “Well, you picked the right job.”

  “Damn straight. Are you up to speed on the search at Muffy’s?”

  “The whole East Coast knows about Muffy’s. The teachers are stopping by to ask me what’s happening.”

  “You seem to have survived.”

  “Chief told me to sit tight. Said he’d call again if you found anything besides the phone. I take it I’m continuing my interviews since I haven’t heard from him.”

  “The chief’s finishing up at the Mart, and nothing but Lisa’s cell showed up behind the dumpster. At the moment, I’ve a few questions for Lisa’s Latin teacher. Did you talk to him, yet?”

  “Must be your lucky day, Detective Cassidy. I’m about to meet the man in ten minutes, though I don’t expect to learn any new details. All Lisa’s teachers described verbal run-ins with her in their classes. Come on down to the principal’s office and join the fun.”

  Hines’ sunny disposition shone through. When he’d worked patrol, the neighborhood nicknamed him Officer Friendly. His easygoing nature, boyish red-hair and freckles made him an approachable favorite.

  “I thought I was done being called to the office. I’ll be there in five.” Noah drove through the blocks of single and two story residences separated by trees for privacy. The neighborhood closest to the school contained newer homes. A few of the houses sported metal roofs in different colors, ready for the harsh northern New Hampshire winter. Miniature American flags decked out the green lawns and blooming flowerbeds. The Fourth of July parade used All Saints for the gathering and starting points, and the residents had decorated for the holiday.

  A flock of turkeys emerged from the woods on the corner. Noah stopped to allow them to trot by. While waiting, his thoughts cycled back to Teagan. She seemed to have a stubborn streak, but he suspected her doggedness had gotten her through tough spots in the past. The blush that pinked her cheeks when she was mad or flustered, he’d found eye-catching. Never mind the curves she couldn’t hide in her simple summer clothes. A spike of heat caught him in the gut as the roar of a biker’s muffler broke into his thoughts.

  On the road, the turkeys had made it to the other side and loitered near the woods. He hit the pedal and the sprawling All Saints High School came into view. In the lot, he cut the engine.

  A Seth’s Landscaping sign with contact info was tacked to a telephone pole by his parking spot. In another month, he’d change his ad to Seth’s Cordwood. The address told Noah this Seth was Travis’s uncle. He seemed to vary his profession to match the season.

  The chirp of birds filled the air as Noah walked up the front sidewalk to the entrance. Inside, the odor of floor wax and the middle-aged receptionist wearing bright pink glasses welcomed him. After he flashed his ID, she directed him to the first office around the corner.

  Noah entered through a glass door, and Denny Hines jumped up from behind a wooden desk and greeted him with, “About time, Cassidy.”

  “I’m just in time if you’ve taken over the principal’s chair.” Noah took in the bookcases, computer, phone, couch, and file cabinet. A large analog clock on the opposite wall faced the desktop. Noah pointed at the glass divider separating them from the hallway. “Not too private.”

  “I guess they want to show the administration is accessible.”

  “It’s more like the fishbowl approach to education.” Noah sat on the blue couch against the transparent partition and stretched his long legs in front of him.

  Hines reclined in the office chair and put his hands together behind his head. “I’m getting a vibe sitting in this seat. It’s kind of a power trip.”

  “Don’t travel too far on your journey. Teagan Raynes received a death threat through the mail today. It was written in Latin on a holy card.”

  Hines let out a whistle and dropped his arms. “Ah, that explains your meeting with the Latin teacher. His name is Jake Clark. And a warning on a holy card is strange.”

  “Did you learn that last idea at the police academy or church?”

  “Academy Lesson 101. You must have been absent that day. I interviewed Jake Clark’s ex, Lucy Watson, by phone if you’re interested in her. Miss Watson is a friend of Teagan Raynes, knew Lisa, and was often in their home.”

  “Hit me with the rest.”

  Hines flipped through his notes, putting his finger under a line in his notebook. “At first, Lucy Watson thought Jake was a generous caring man. When she figured out the caring was only for himself, she broke up with him. But she doesn’t see him as a kidnapper.” Hines scanned down the page and read aloud. “Jake never displayed violent behavior and showed more interest in his books and plays than in young girls.” Hines glanced up. “Lisa rarely interacted with Jake when they visited.”

  “I’ve heard the same, ‘he didn’t do it’, from the wives and girlfriends of guys who were cheating with underage females,” Noah said. “No leads from Miss Watson, at least at this time.”

  “I learned one more interesting thing about him,” Hines said. “Jake got his job at All Saints based on the recommendation of Father Matthew Hastings or Father Matt as everyone calls him.”

  “Are Jake and Father Matt good friends?”

  “Like Toad and Frog. How’s Miss Raynes doing?” Hines plunked his pad on the desk. “She acted shell-shocked when I spoke with her.”

  “Today, she was functioning. She reminded me we both went to Camp Mighty Joe.” Teagan’s face with her eyes darkened by pain surfaced in Noah’s thoughts.

  “Camp?”

  Hines’ question refocused Noah. “It’s a topic for another time. What’s a holy card for anyway?”

  “The cards usually have prayers on them, not death threats. They’re popular at funerals. It sounds as if someone involved in a church would send it.”

  “Kind of throws the light on Miss Raynes’ close friend, Father Matt. What’s the deal with the priest?” Noah recalled how Father Matt had given him the once over when they shook hands. Was Noah seeing more than was there?

  “Father Matt’s a lifer in the clergy. Similar to other priests, he’s been assigned to different parishes, and by all accounts, all his parishioners have loved him. According to one report, he sang in parish musicals put on as fundraisers and they hit record ticket sales.”

  “Instead of the singing nun, we have the singing padre. What else?”

  He’s been great at organizing parish members who volunteer to search for Lisa,” Hines said as he ran through his notes. “I confirmed his alibi for the night Lisa disappeared. He was at the home of a dying parishioner from noon to the next afternoon.”

  “The exact hour of her disappearance isn’t nailed down. What about his relationships…with women?”

  “He was clean until reports emerged of an affair at St. Jude’s. They coincided with his name being submitted for bishop. He denied a relationship.”

  “But he didn’t get the position.” Noah tapped his fingers on the desktop.

  “True. I interviewed his secretary, Stacey Smith, who also worked with Lisa Grant in the church office. She doesn’t have much of an alibi for the night or morning when Lisa Grant went missing.” Hines consulted his scribbles again.

  “Miss Smith went to her job, drove home, and spent a few hours on her computer before going to bed. The next day, she arrived at nine a.m. as usual.” Hines lowered his notebook. “The secretary is part of the ‘I-love-Father-Matt’ club and had the same observations about Lisa Grant as others. Lisa is smart, mouthy, and engaged in lots of fights with her boyfriend, Travis. Before she vanished, Lisa had lunch with him. She returned angry because Travis was too cheap to buy her a burger and announced they were done. She was unable to work until Father Matt calmed her down.”

  “I met Stacey at Muffy’s. She doesn't seem like the church employee type.”

  “Last year, she was laid off from a dental office, where she was a receptionist. The dentist retired. She’s been in the parish office for eight months.”

  “Don’t tell m
e, she’s the woman in the Father Matt rumors?”

  “Who knows if the mystery woman exists? Religion can be a political beast and members’ motives are as convoluted as in the secular world.”

  A knock interrupted their conversation.

  The door opened and a tall, lanky man entered without waiting for an invite. He wore a navy blue blazer and khaki pants. He rubbed a hand over his clean-shaven chin as though checking for a hint of a whisker. Over his shoulder, he’d slung the strap of a leather briefcase.

  “I’m Jake Clark.” He shoved up the wire-rimmed glasses sliding down his long, narrow nose. He was good looking in an academic kind of way, which explained Lucy Watson’s attraction to him. Noah pictured the teacher wearing a tweed jacket with patches on the elbows and smoking a pipe before a blazing fire.

  Jake glanced from one of them to the other. “Should I be worried that two detectives want to interview me?”

  “We’re following procedure. Detective Cassidy is my partner, and I’m Detective Hines. You’re the Latin teacher?”

  “I am.” He sent a searching glance over Hines and then seemed to be studying Noah until Hines asked him if he was ready to talk.

  “I’m here to do my civic duty,” Jake assured. “You’ve been taking a lot of heat from the public about those missing girls.” His large smile revealed even, white teeth.

  Jake thought they were sharing a joke. Noah’s skin prickled with dislike. “You should worry about yourself, not us. We have a few questions about Lisa Grant.”

  “I’ve nothing to hide. I’ve been employed by All Saints for five years, and I teach summer school four days a week, Monday through Thursday, until mid-August. Lisa was in my classes during the year and this summer. She needed the practice for Latin II.” The teacher flicked a glimpse at his watch. “Will this take long? I’m hoping to catch the afternoon show of Midsummer’s Night Dream at the Indie Theater. It’s in Italian. Thought I’d give my translation skills a workout and skip the subtitles. You know how it is.”

  “No, we don’t,” Noah said. Was this guy for real? “We don’t have hours to waste sitting around in a dark building.”

  Jake’s smile disappeared at Noah’s rough tone, and his gaze wavered with uncertainty.

  “We’ll be done before you can say goodbye in French.” Hines motioned Jake to a seat.

  Noah’s partner was definitely playing the good guy, which worked well since the teacher had already gotten on Noah’s nerves. The guy’s Indie Theater talk and acting like his time was more important than a missing girl put him in the scumbag category.

  Jake relaxed in a student chair facing Hines. “Will I have to sit under a hot light while you threaten me with your nightstick?”

  Noah pinpointed his gaze on Jake. “We don’t carry nightsticks.”

  “Of course, not.” The teacher stretched out his legs.

  Noah rose and leaned into his face. “We prefer tasers. They’re more painful.”

  “You’re joking, right?” The man swallowed and threw a wide-eyed glance at Hines. “Detective humor.” Hines folded his hands on the desk. “Tell us about Lisa Grant.”

  Jake tidied his blazer while composing himself. “Before we begin a formal interview, I brought something to share.” He dug a book out of the brief case. “Travis Bodell attends my summer class once in a while.” Jake shook his head. “He always sits in the same place. Today, I looked in the desk and found his Latin text along with this note stuffed inside the pages.” Jake opened the cover and pulled out a ripped page from a notebook.

  Noah took it and read the words written in red ink. “I love you. But I cry. Slash slash you cut my heart with your lies. Our fights slice it into little pieces. Soon you will hurt until you cry. But we’ll be free to bleed our love until we die.”

  Whoa, what a find. Noah handed the paper to Hines. “Travis wrote this?”

  Jake shrugged. “It’s his handwriting and his book. Not very good either. I can’t imagine who else would write it.”

  “We’ll need to verify his script,” Noah confirmed. If it was by the kid, the composition showed a little about his state of mind. “We’ll take his book, too. Does Travis always express himself like this?”

  Jake let out an exasperated breath as he handed over the tome. “I’ve never held a conversation with him. He barely utters a sound. I know Lisa better.”

  Hines bagged the letter and book. “Tell us about Lisa.”

  The professor adjusted his glasses. “She’d taken Spanish at her previous schools and received dismal grades.” Out of the corner of his eyes, Jake tracked Noah pacing around the room and angled his body toward the door. He appeared ready to run at any moment.

  “So she signed up for your class,” Noah prompted.

  “We viewed Lisa’s education differently at All Saints from the public school system. I encouraged her to enroll in Latin to improve her grades and college admission prospects.”

  “Was she competent?” Noah agreed with Lucy Watson’s assessment. The man was all about himself. Noah walked the floor, unable to sit while the Latin teacher spoke in his pretentious manner.

  Jake twisted toward him. “She’s intelligent and pulled a B, but she stayed after school for tutoring sessions with me and worked for the grade. Her foster mother, Sophia Raynes, insisted she put in the extra study time, and you don’t go against Sophia. She had a big effect on the girl. Lisa idolized her. Everyone knew and respected Sophia. Lisa thought that was cool. I’m sure she’s the main reason Lisa straightened out.”

  “Mr. Clark,” Hines said drawing the man’s attention to him. “Did Lisa ever mention problems or a place she wanted to visit?”

  “No. Once in a while, she asked my opinion on curfews or the school’s dress codes. She seemed curious and was often anxious about being popular, which isn’t unusual at her age. She was out of her depth socially at All Saints despite Sophia’s help. Lisa was more likely to frown at someone than smile. Given her history, I understood.”

  “You always got along with her?” Noah asked, pausing in the front of Jake.

  “We sometimes disagreed. When I mentioned her pink hair didn’t fit the image of an All Saints student she called me prehistoric.”

  “Must have made you mad.” Noah glared down at Jake.

  “Of course not. Lisa and I could discuss a topic in a civilized manner.”

  According to Hines, Jake was the only one of Lisa’s teachers who didn’t have a run-in with her. Yeah, like he believed that.

  “Detective Cassidy,” Jake said. “Did you attend parochial schools?”

  “Me?” Was Jake about to tell Noah he was less educated because he didn’t go to a private school? He wouldn’t put it past the pompous ass. “Hawick Falls Public. I’m a product of our taxpayers’ generosity.”

  “Then you don’t know.” Jake’s voice held a tired note. “I’ve taught for ten years. Students at All Saints aren’t perfect. I’ve been sworn at, had a chair tossed at me, and graffiti sprayed on my car. Lisa’s response was on the mild side.”

  “Mild, huh? Where were you on the evening of July fifth?”

  “I’m impressed.” Jake sat with his hands linked in his lap. “You operate the same as detectives in the movies. If you need my alibi, I spent the evening at home reading while I listened to Verdi’s Requiem.”

  “Cheerful music.”

  “You’re familiar with it?”

  Jake probably thought a detective in Hawick Falls was too ignorant to enjoy Verdi. “Not my type of music. My old man liked it. Let’s get back to Travis Bodell. He wasn’t a student with potential?”

  The teacher’s lips tightened, and his smugness disappeared. “Travis was failing and resisted help. He was supposed to attend summer classes, but blew off at least one or two days each week. I don’t know how Travis made it as far as he did in school. Father Matt tried to intervene last fall, but the kid wouldn’t listen to him either. Teachers often gave him a break because of his home situation, but I doubt he
has enough credits to graduate next June.”

  “How about his home life?” Noah asked.

  “The boy lives with an uncle, Seth Bodell, who’s not involved in his life unless he wants to complain. Seth doesn’t put much value on education. He once told me at a parent conference that he graduated high school and never went further. The man has never impressed me as much of a scholar, but his customers claim he delivers what he promises and works hard.”

  “Seth wasn’t much of a role model for a high schooler.”

  “He thought the school would take care of Travis for him once Seth got the boy a financial scholarship. Too bad Travis didn’t inherit his uncle’s athletic abilities.”

  “Tell us about what he thought of Lisa,” Hines said.

  “Seth didn’t approve of Travis going out with Lisa, and Teagan didn’t support Lisa dating Travis. I’m surprised the kids stayed together all year, but I heard they had lots of fights.”

  Noah’s radar picked up. “How did you learn this fact?”

  “Teenagers love to gossip even to teachers. A couple of my students witnessed the couple arguing at the food court and reported it to me. I gather it was the day she was last seen.”

  “We’ll need your students’ names.”

  “They quit the summer session and won’t be around until Labor Day. Their parents took them out of state for the rest of the vacation. I’ve no idea where.”

  “We’ll find them,” Noah said. “We’re detectives. Write down their information.”

  Hines ripped off a piece of paper from his notebook and passed it to Jake.

  “What is your relationship with Teagan Raynes?” Noah leaned a hip on the corner of the principal’s desk and folded his arms. The man didn’t seem like someone who’d be her friend.

  Jake sat forward in his chair and used the desk to scribble the names of his pupils and their parents while he talked. “Teagan and I had a few disagreements when she inserted her views into my personal life.”

  “What does that mean?” Hines asked.

  “Teagan sided with my ex when she and I had a difference of opinions, but I’m over it.”