Confer, Lorelei - Deadly Revenge (BookStrand Publishing Romance)

by Lorelei Confer

  “Dad, do you want another cup of coffee while it’s still hot?” Heather asked her father.

  “No, honey, I’ve had my quota of caffeine for the day, but thanks for asking. Are you sure you’ve got everything packed that you’ll need?”

  “Yes, I’m sure. Are you sure you understand all the directions about taking care of Mogwai? You feed him twice a day and fresh water, too. He likes it cold from the fridge. You’ll need to clean the litter box every couple days, you’ll know when. And the big thing is, don’t let him near the door. Every time it opens he tries to escape, okay?”

  “Don’t worry about Mogwai and me. We’re best of pals, aren’t we?” her father said as he petted the huge grey tabby sitting on his lap.

  “When is your ride expected to pick you up?” her father Harold asked.

  “In about fifteen minutes. Let’s see. Is there anything else we need to go over? I stocked the fridge and pantry with all your favorites, but you can always take my car and get groceries if you need to. I’ll be back next Saturday, so you’ll have a mini vacation yourself as well. Are you sure you’re okay with all this?”

  “Of course, it’s a gift from your mother and me as well as from Ralph. I know you weren’t married to Ralph very long before his accidental death, but he would want you, just like your mother, God rest their souls, would want you to have a great time and live your live to the fullest. Do things you’ve only dreamed of doing…”

  “There’s my ride. Thanks so much, Dad, for everything,” she said as she gave him a big hug and kiss good-bye. “I’ll see you in a week. Have a good time and get some rest.”

  “You have a good time, honey, and don’t worry about anything. I’ve got everything right up here,” he said, pointing his index finger to his head. “Hurry now, you don’t want to be late, do you?”

  Heather hurried out the door with her luggage in hand to the cab waiting to whisk her off on her dream vacation.

  * * * *

  A car parked outside a nice suburban house on a dark, moonless night. An hour after all the lights went out in the house, the car’s occupant got quietly out of the car and removed a heavy container from the trunk and carried it to a side door leading into the laundry room in the far corner of the carport. Thinking about how smart it was to have visited the house in advance and make nice with the owner to find out about the gas dryer and anticipating the results from all the hard work that went into soaking the kitty litter with gasoline. Now all that had to be done was to unhook the gas dryer and place the container of gas-soaked kitty litter nearby and kaboom! No one saw the figure in the dark of night making the delivery and driving away.

  * * * *

  Two days later Heather Hall’s father, Harold, sorted his dirty clothes and decided to do a load of laundry. He took the basket of clothes out to the detached laundry room, put the clothes in the washer, added detergent, and went inside to finish reading the morning newspaper. When the washer buzzed, indicating the wash was finished, he went to the laundry room again and took the wet clothes out of the washer and put them into the dryer, turned the dial, and pushed the big start button. He turned to go back into the house but never made it.

  Kaboom! Within seconds the entire house exploded, rocking the entire neighborhood of small Braedden Properties rental homes. Sticks and mortar along with pieces of furniture and personal belongings flew up in the air only to land nearby the large fire now consuming the house. Mr. Hall never made it back into the house.

  * * * *

  Within minutes the fire department arrived from its location a short distance down the street. Once the fire was under control and had cooled down, the Fire Chief found the source and kind of accelerant used for the explosion as well as a torso. Chief Carr arrived and called the funeral director while waiting for a forensic team to arrive as an array of official uniforms bustled about the yard, taking pictures, measurements, and notes.

  Suicide was the initial determination by investigators and police swarming through the remains of the house.

  Neighbors identified Mr. Hall’s remains which were held at the morgue for another five days until Heather returned home to a burned-down house, her father gone, as well as all her possessions. And soon enough, there was another funeral to arrange for the father of another Braedden property tenant and an ex-girlfriend of Matt.

  Chapter 32

  Tory and Sue both knew Heather well. They had been best friends in high school and Sue and Heather remained friends after graduation. Everybody knew everybody in a small town. Heather’s husband died a few years earlier in a construction accident. Now she worked at a local restaurant as a hostess just to keep busy and volunteered at the local elementary school since she and her husband never had any children. Tory met with her at the police station.

  “Heather, I am so sorry about your father. Is there anything I can do to help?”

  “Thanks, Tory, but right now I have so much to do with all the arrangements to make, and I have to find some place to live. I didn’t have tenant insurance so I have to start from the bottom again, I guess.”

  “I can help with the place to live part. You can stay at my mom’s place. She has an extra room right now, and until she rents it out I’m sure she’ll let you stay for free. As for making the arrangements, Sue and I will be glad to help in any way. Just let us know what you need. Let’s go to Mom’s and have a talk, okay?” Tory said as she wrapped her arm around Heather’s shoulder and squeezed.

  “Thank you so much,” Heather said as she turned to Tory and hugged her. “I don’t know how I can ever thank you for your generosity.” Tears ran down her cheeks.

  Tory, Dave, and Heather arrived at the B&B at about the same time as Sue and her family. The arrangements for the funeral were made and everyone agreed they would lend their combined support to Heather throughout this ordeal.

  Heather sat quietly sobbing, grieving and thankful for such good friends.

  Chapter 33

  Tory and her family arrived at the Oak Hill Cemetery, named after all the mighty oaks throughout the area, along with the procession. They didn’t think twice about the fact that Matt was at the funeral. They didn’t think twice about his wife’s absence. It was rumored Matt and his wife happened to be on the “outs” this week again. It was a small town joke that Matt was in the dog house for a few weeks and that divorce was imminent every time she caught him cheating. Again. She always took him back until the next time.

  After the funeral graveside service, Tory made her way to the car while Dave stopped to talk in private to Chief Carr. All the other mourners had already left and only Dave’s car and Chief Carr’s car remained.

  As Tory was about to enter Dave’s car, a woman in a long black coat and hat with sunglasses stepped out from behind a large oak tree. Tory was startled and tried to get into her car.

  The woman pulled out a small gun, pointed it at Tory, and said, “Get out of the car or I’ll drop you right here and now. Keep your mouth shut and no one gets hurt.”

  Tory’s entire body trembled as she stepped out of the SUV. She looked away for a second to try to get Dave’s attention, but both he and Carr had their backs toward her.

  “Walk backward toward me with your eyes to the right. Do it! Now!” she whispered loudly so as not to attract any attention.

  “What do you want from me? Do you want my purse, my jewelry? You can have it. Here!” She handed her bag to the lady in black, who simply knocked it out of her hands, spilling the contents on the ground including her camera and rolls of undeveloped film.

  Tory gasped. “Why did you do that?”

  “Turn around and walk toward me. Now! I won’t say it again.”

  As Tory turned around she again tried to look toward Dave for help when she was hit with something on the side of her head. She fell to her knees and was hit again. Tory felt herself falling forward onto her face before total blackness consumed her.

  Chapter 34

  Dave and Chief Carr finished their
business talk at the graveside and walked to their cars. When Dave reached his car he was astounded to not find Tory waiting in the truck. She had planned to ride to and from the cemetery with him. Had she decided to take a ride home with her mother or Sue and Brandon since he got hung up with Chief Carr? Before he got in the truck he took out his cell phone while he surveyed the cemetery in hopes he would catch sight of Tory. No such luck today. He called Anne on his phone.

  “It’s Dave. Did Tory get a ride from the cemetery with you or Sue?”

  “No, she insisted on waiting for you. Is something wrong?” Anne answered with fear in her voice.

  “Okay, thanks, Anne. Talk to you soon.”

  Dave hurried to catch Chief Carr before he left. “Chief, have you seen Tory?”

  “Not since the funeral service. Why?”

  “She’s missing. She wasn’t waiting for me in my car like we agreed,” Dave said as they both walked to his truck. A short distance away, Dave saw something scattered on the ground and went to investigate. He found Tory’s purse and all its contents all over the ground as if it had been thrown there, along with her camera and rolls of film having rolled some distance away. She never went anywhere without her camera.

  Chief Carr and Dave searched the area grounds looking for further evidence. They saw what appeared to be parallel grooves in the dirt as if someone had been dragged along the dirt road. The tracks disappeared and near tire tracks. She was gone. She’d been kidnapped.

  Chapter 35

  Tory woke up with a splitting headache. Her vision was blurry. She was in a small compartment with almost total darkness and felt like she was moving. A car trunk perhaps? She tried to remember what had happened to get her in this situation. She listened intently for any sounds to indicate her location, but she heard nothing over the sound of an engine. The vehicle rounded a turn and she rolled across the trunk, closer to the interior, toward the backseat. She heard voices but couldn’t make out the words. They were garbled.

  Her purse and all her possessions were left at the cemetery. She prayed Dave would find them and come looking for her. She checked her jacket pockets and found her cell phone. She tried to call Dave but there was no signal. Frightened, out of contact with Dave, she was alone and dependent on herself. She dozed off again with the vibration of the vehicle. Her head was ready to burst or so she thought.

  * * * *

  Dave sat in his SUV, his hands on the wheel and his forehead of his flushed face on his hands. His jaw clenched, nostrils flared, and his mouth dry. He was so angry with himself for not keeping a better watch on her. Especially when he suspected someone was stalking her or threatening her. He broke out in a cold sweat.

  He sat back, folded his arms, and chewed his lip. And thought, would the kidnapper call her mother and ask for ransom? He would have to tell Anne her daughter was missing just in case anyway. He arched an eyebrow, wondering how she would take it. How strong would she be?

  He looked across to the other seat and saw her camera with the untouched rolls of film. Maybe he would find a clue by searching through her pictures. He started his truck and left the cemetery on his way to the pharmacy to get the film developed.

  After dropping off the film and finding out it would take one hour to get the pictures developed, he decided to visit Anne and prepare her for any phone call she may receive, but first he stopped by Chief Carr’s.

  “Hi, Dave, come on in.”

  “Chief, Tory’s missing and we have to find her before she becomes the fifth victim. I’m on my way over to her mother’s to tell her and want to take some audio recording equipment in case there’s a call for ransom. Do you have that kind of recording equipment or do we have to go outside to the county or to the state guys?”

  “No, fortunately we do have some of the equipment and a specialist to go along with it. Now keep in mind this is older equipment, not as technically advanced as what you may be used to, but it does the job. I’ll send Bob over to Anne’s right away.”

  “Great. I dropped off all the rolls of film to be developed thinking maybe we’d find some kind of clue in the pictures.”

  “I already BOLO’d her, but in these mountains just as at the cemetery there are so many places hidden and obscure.” Chief Carr sat in his big, high-back chair.

  “I look for missing people for a living and none of the cases are easy. The first twenty-four hours are critical. Sometimes we’re too late. We have teams of people especially trained for just this situation. I’d like to call in a team if within a few hours we haven’t found her. Okay with you?” Dave sat, solemn now, in the other chair.

  “Absolutely. Because chances are, if we find Tory’s kidnapper we’ll find the murderer who’s been terrorizing this town.”

  * * * *

  Dave left the police station perspiring, breathing rapidly, ready to hyperventilate. Anxious to find a clue, any kind of lead, he hurried over to the pharmacy to pick up the pictures before going to Anne’s.

  “Anne, can I come in?” Dave asked when he arrived at her door without Tory.

  “Sure, sure, come on in. Is something wrong?” Anne asked as she opened the door and ushered him in.

  “Let’s have a seat.”

  “Okay.” She sat down on the couch while Dave sat in her husband’s favorite chair.

  “Tory left the cemetery but not with me. I’m not sure who she went with, but I don’t think it was a friend. Her purse and its contents were strewn about on the road a short distance from my truck. She also left her camera behind, and you know how she’s never without the darn thing.”

  “Who did she leave with then?”

  “I don’t know. Chief Carr and I were the last to leave and I thought she was waiting for me in my truck. Chief and I found her things and some different tire tracks we’re following up on now. He’s already put out a bulletin on her, so if anyone sees her they should call the police.”

  “Let me call Sue and make sure she’s not there. They’re very close you know,” Anne said with a snarky smile.

  Chapter 36

  While Anne called Sue to tell her the news, Dave stepped outside to call his best friend and partner, Wyatt Bowman in Stoney Creek, Virginia.

  “Dave, how are you?” Wyatt answered the phone.

  “I’m in deep doo-doo and need your help, buddy. Remember Tory, the girl I told you about?”

  “See how the mighty fall.” Wyatt chuckled.

  “She’s been abducted and I need you and a team here pronto.”

  “Hold up now, partner. I’m no longer on the force or I would drop what I’m doing to help you. Isabella is ready to have the baby any day now and I can’t be away.”

  “Oh, I didn’t realize her time was so close. What about a team?”

  “Listen, I’ll talk to Mullins and get a team up there ASAP. Everyone on any team is good, so you should have lots of help. It’s what they do for a living, just like we did.”

  “Thanks, Wyatt. I knew I could count on you. Give Isabella my best and let me know when I can expect the guys.”

  “Right, talk to you soon.”

  Dave walked in the house. Anne was crying, almost hysterical.

  “What’s happened?”

  “Tory didn’t get a ride with Sue. Sue hasn’t seen her. It’s just sinking in. My baby girl’s gone.”

  “She’s not gone for good if I have anything to say about it,” Dave told Anne as the doorbell rang.

  He answered the door to a clean-cut guy with audio recording equipment. Dave wasn’t taking any chances.

  “Can I see some ID?” Dave asked.

  “Sure, I’m Bob Elkins, Detective on the Hickoryville Police Force.” He flashed Dave a badge and ID, but Dave took it from him and thoroughly looked at the information.

  Then he called Chief Carr who verified the data. Once that was done, Dave ushered Bob into the house with the equipment and watched as he began attaching it to Anne’s phone so they could trace a call if one was to come in, and also to record an
y portion of a call. Dave looked outside and noticed he drove a plain minivan. Good undercover.

  * * * *

  After the equipment was arranged and set up properly, Bob stepped outside for a smoke while Anne cried softly on the couch.

  “Anne, come help me look at Tory’s photos.” Dave wanted to ease her pain as well as his own by keeping them both busy. “Maybe we can find something in them that would give us a clue.” He opened the package and spread the pictures out on the table. He saw images of himself at the town house the second time they met, beautiful landscapes, pictures of the azaleas out front, picturesque sunsets, parked cars along busy streets downtown, Ted’s pizza parlor, Wal-Mart, the pharmacy, practically every building and person in town. Lots of people pictures. Most of the people Dave had never met and didn’t know but Anne did and pointed them out to him as he made notes and attached them to the pictures.

  “She loves the architecture of the buildings,” Anne said through trembling lips. “Look at this one, how she captured the likeness of Ted along with the street and his pizza shop.”

  Dave studied the illustration of downtown Hickoryville and put them together as he’d seen them downtown. He needed Anne’s help with most of them. When he finished he had re-created downtown Hickoryville. It was truly amazing.

  The front door opened and Sue and Brandon rushed in. Sue’s eyes were red, and she had dark streaks running down her face from her mascara. She immediately went to hug her mother.