by PJ Fernor
“Why are you even here, Garrison?” I asked. “What good are you right now?”
“I know the woods better than anyone else,” he said.
I looked at Ben.
He nodded and opened the office door.
Laura held up a finger as she finished a phone call.
“Don’t sit,” she said. “I won’t be long here.”
“I’ll help her pack her stuff,” Garrison said. “But can she get one more good coffee before she leaves?”
“Not sure what that’s supposed to mean,” Laura said.
“What can we do for you, Laura?” Ben asked.
Always the one to be the voice of calm and reason.
“Too much time’s been wasted here,” she said. She made fists and put them to the desk. “I’m having a press conference today. I’m bringing in Detective Barby. The Maurowitz family. We’re going to open it up. Lucy and Jessie. With the intention and hope that everyone understands we fully believe Jessie is still alive.”
“You’re not taking us off this case, are you?” I asked.
“Not even close,” Laura said. “But we need all the help we can get. I know the tip lines are going to become flooded. I know a lot of it will be useless. I know it’ll lead to a lot of headaches and dead ends. But this is where we’re at. We’re going to have choppers going over the mountain just in case she’s up there. Maybe she wandered away. Maybe she escaped her kidnapper.”
“Maybe she’s dead,” Garrison said.
“She’s not dead,” I said.
“Really?” Garrison asked. “Use common sense.”
“If the cases are connected, why would she be dead?” I asked. “Whoever took Lucy didn’t kill her for, what, two months?”
“Let’s go with what we have,” Ben said as he moved between Garrison and I.
“I’m just preparing you for the onslaught,” Laura said. “It’s going to get busy around here. We have to work with Detective Barby. And with his department. I don’t like saying it but we’re coming too close to a dead end here on our own. There’s no cameras, footage… all we have is Jessie’s dance instructor claiming to maybe have heard a noise, seen an SUV, and even that hasn’t checked out.”
I felt deflated.
When the chief got involved and started shifting things around, it never left me feeling good about myself. It meant I hadn’t done my job. Or that I hadn’t done it good enough.
Laura’s phone rang.
“Help yourself to some coffee on the way out,” she said.
I was the first to leave, skipping the coffee.
Garrison pounced on the coffee though, like a kid hitting the ground after a piñata broke open.
“Hey, Allie Down, wait up,” Ben called out to me.
“Not now,” I said to him.
“Allie,” he said again.
But I ignored him.
I grabbed my stuff from my office and went right back out to the streets.
I drove the street where Jessie had been taken.
I looked at every building, business, and house on that street.
My stomach eventually started to yell, begging for something to eat.
Shortly after, my phone rang.
Leah.
“Hey, where are you?” she asked.
“What?”
“Allie, we’re all at the restaurant,” Leah said in an almost whisper. “Waiting for you. Remember? I texted you…”
“Yeah,” I said. “Of course. I, uh, I can swing by quick. Just to kind of say hey. Okay?”
“Yeah, sure. Anything.”
I completely forget that I had told Leah I would meet her, Emilia, and Dana for a quick lunch.
They were sitting outside a little cafe a couple miles away from where Jessie had been taken.
Seeing them made me smile and go whoa.
Leah was as beautiful as when I saw her, so that was no surprise. But Emilia had short hair. She had once had blonde hair braided down the middle of her back, almost touching her butt. Now her hair just went past her ears. Her eyes were a darker blue than I remembered. And then there was Dana. She was the fierce fighter of the group, the loud mouth, always in everyone’s face and business. Her hair was definitely dyed an auburn color. She had curves that I’m pretty sure any woman would kill to have.
Time had changed all of us. That was for sure.
“Do you have a gun right now?” Dana asked me as she hugged me.
“Yes,” I said.
“I have a list…”
“Dana!” Emilia squealed.
“Oh, it’s a joke,” Dana said. “She’s still so uptight.”
We all sat down.
I ordered a turkey club and an unsweetened iced tea.
Dana went right in for a mixed drink.
“It’s my day off,” she said.
“What do you do?” I asked.
“Nurse.”
“She takes care of people,” Emilia said. “That’s terrifying.”
I smiled.
“How are you today?” Leah asked me, touching my hand.
“Busy,” I said.
“That poor girl is still missing, huh?” Emilia asked.
“Yeah,” I said. “I’m going to have cut this reunion short. It’s just really busy.”
“Eat and run then,” Dana said. “No worries. It’s just good to see you. So much happened so fast all those years ago.”
“Tell me about it,” I said. “What have… what have you been up to?”
“Well, this one opened a business finally,” Dana said, pointing to Leah.
“I know,” I said. “I’m proud of her.”
“This one got divorced,” Dana said, pointing to Emilia.
“Dana,” Leah said. “Why?”
“It’s okay,” Emilia said. “It’s not breaking news.”
“I’m really sorry,” I said to Emilia.
“It happens. Just wasn’t meant to be. I met him in college. We got married. We struggled to get pregnant. He took it personally.”
“Meaning he wanted to make sure it wasn’t his problem,” Dana said.
“Oh no,” I said.
Emilia shrugged her shoulders. “It happens. It’s life. He’s getting his now though. He got some woman pregnant.”
“Some open for business kind of woman who has three kids from three fathers, with a fourth on the way,” Dana said.
“Emilia, I am so sorry,” I said.
“What about you?” Emilia said. “You lived in the city. You became a cop. Then a detective. I mean… wow…”
“How about those city detectives,” Dana asked. “Are they as hot as they are on TV?”
I smiled. “Oh, Dana, you’re still the same.”
“I’m just asking. Are they built like muscled rocks or are they overweight and unable to chase someone down? I think it’s a fair question.”
“It is a fair question,” I said.
“Forget that question,” Emilia said. “I know you’ve been through a lot recently. Did you have to leave anyone behind? Or are you with anyone?”
“No,” I said. “I’ve just been focused on work. It’s more than a full-time job. And now being back here and taking care of my niece…”
“I am so sorry about your sister,” Dana said. “That whole thing was a shock. And they still don’t know who did it… I mean, are you working on that case too?”
“Dana,” Emilia said.
“It’s fine,” I said. “I’m not involved in that. I honestly haven’t had a second to think about it. To even consider looking into it.”
“Because of Ben, right?” Dana asked with a flirty smile.
“What?”
I looked at Leah.
She cringed.
“I always hoped you would have ended up with Ben,” Emilia said.
“I’m not with Ben,” I said. “We work together…”
“Right,” Dana said.
“I’m serious,” I said. “I have too much going on right now.�
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Defensive much, Allie?
Dana touched my arm. “I’m just playing, Allie. I know. It’s for the better anyway. You have your niece. He has his father.”
“His father?” I asked.
“You don’t know about his father?” Dana asked.
“No,” I said.
I looked at Emilia and then Leah.
“Wow, this is fun,” Dana said with a sigh. “I’m just the gossip queen today.”
“What’s wrong with Ben’s father?”
“Alzheimer’s,” Dana said.
My heart sank. I felt the color leave my face.
“He’s taking care of everything on his own,” Dana said. “I don’t know how he’s doing it. Honestly.”
“I had no idea,” I said.
I stood up.
“Allie?” Leah asked.
“I’m going to get my lunch to go. I’m sorry. I’m going to eat in the car as I drive.”
“Allie, don’t do that,” Emilia said.
“I have to get back on this case,” I said. “We’ll do this again, okay? Once things calm a little.”
“Allie, I’m sorry,” Dana said. “I didn’t mean to…”
Dana showed her hands and looked around the table for help.
“Are you sure?” Leah asked as she stood up.
“I’m sure,” I said. “It was so good to see you again. I know it’s been too long. I know there’s a lot we have to talk about. I just… I have…”
“It’s okay,” Leah said.
I put money on the table and hurried to the hostess to get my turkey club to go.
I wasn’t even in the mood for food.
I felt ill.
It was like one brick wall after another I was hitting. And a surprise waiting behind that wall if I got over it.
I had to talk to Ben.
Right now.
And as much as it made me feel guilty…
It had nothing to do with Jessie’s disappearance.
Chapter Fifty-One
Ben’s office was empty.
I hurried toward the steps to go up to Laura’s office.
I wanted to catch him off guard.
And I didn’t want to do it through a phone call or a text message.
My mind raced. I tried to convince myself that Ben’s personal life wasn’t my business. Getting involved wasn’t good.
There was just something in my heart that said otherwise.
I had to find him.
I had to know the truth.
At the first landing of steps, I turned and saw Ben coming from the second floor door.
He had a folder in his hand.
“There you are,” he said.
“There you are,” I said back.
“I was just talking to Laura,” he said. “Making sure she has all the info for her press conference. Morris is forcing Johnny to give up everything about Lucy’s case. Just in case there’s anything we’ve missed between the two.” He jogged down the stairs. “She has Garrison pulling up maps of the woods just to see if there’s anything we’ve missed. And it’s well known what’s happening here. I just wish we had a more definitive idea of the vehicle, you know?”
The information went through my head.
I heard it.
I understood it.
And it was simple. In a sense.
Things were going to get even more hectic.
Everyone was going to be looking for Jessie.
Which wasn’t the worst thing. Except for the fact that everyone who saw an SUV would be calling in to report it. Or everyone who saw a little girl with blonde hair and blue eyes…
“Why didn’t you tell me about your father?” I asked Ben.
His face dropped.
From happy, cheery, rugged chin Ben to… sad.
“What?”
“Your father is sick? I didn’t know.”
“Why is this important right now?” Ben asked.
He walked by me to the next set of stairs to go down to the main floor.
I touched his arm. “Hey. Wait. Talk to me.”
“About what?” he asked. “We have a missing girl to find, Allie. And there’s another girl who was found dead in our town. Kidnapped in the same fashion as Jessie.”
“I know,” I said. “I’m balancing the line of breathing and feeling guilty. But your father…”
Ben sighed. “It’s called life. Things happen, okay?”
“You’re doing it alone though?”
“Who told you all of this?”
“Dana,” I said.
“Dana…” Ben shut his eyes. “This is just like back in high school, isn’t it?”
“Ben, stop,” I said. “This is serious.”
“Serious? Of course it’s serious. And it’s not Dana’s job to say anything. Or any of the others. It’s my business and life. And I’m not doing it alone. Okay? There’s help. There’s nurses. Caring for him. I’ve worked my butt off to make sure he’s home and he’s taken care of.”
“Ben…”
“You want to know what it’s like? He started messing up at the garage. Little things. Not charging someone for work. Or saying he did work that he never did. Ordering the wrong parts. Forgetting to show up. We laughed it off as old age. I ragged on him for it and that was it. Then it got worse. He showed up one day with a birthday card for me. It was months from my birthday. Then he showed up in a suit wanting to go to court. For some kind of legal issue that happened when he was in his twenties. Okay? Understand?”
“I don’t want you to be upset,” I said. “I just want you to know I’m… I’m so sorry…”
“I don’t need that,” Ben said. “That doesn’t fix anything. He took care of me. My entire life, he took care of me. Okay? It was always just me and him. The least I can do for him is return the favor. And it’s nobody else’s business in this department, in this town, in this world.”
“Dana didn’t mean anything by it,” I said. “We were just all talking. Trying to catch up. It’s a small town…”
“I know that,” Ben said, his voice raising with irritation. “And when my father got the diagnosis, you know what he did?”
“What?” I asked.
“He refused to believe it. So he got into his car the next day and started to drive. I’m not sure if you remember over on Lincoln, but when we were kids, it was one straight road with that small curve in it. Then they added those houses and split the road.”
“I know where you’re talking about,” I said. “That went down to the tracks. Down to the river too. Lots of memories there.”
“Yeah, well when they redid the road, it caused a lot of problems because everyone was used to that curve. They took it out, remember?”
“I remember, Ben.”
“My father didn’t,” he said. He swallowed hard. “Instead of staying straight or cutting down the road where it split, he tried to go around the curve. And he crashed.”
I shut my eyes for a second. “Ben…”
“He obviously survived,” Ben said. “But it gets worse. He totaled his car and was walking on the road, confused. And drunk.”
“Drunk?”
“He was drinking whiskey for breakfast,” Ben said. “And he didn’t remember it. You can’t imagine what that was like. A man with Alzheimer’s looking at a DUI. He was lucky he didn’t kill himself or anyone else on the road.”
Ben went silent.
He looked around and took a deep breath.
I grabbed his arm and moved to my toes and kissed his cheek.
It all just overcame me at once.
Not wanting to cross that line… but…
“I’m so sorry,” I whispered. “I didn’t mean to pry. I just want you to know you can talk to me about it.”
I made a move for the stairs and made it down two steps when Ben grabbed for my hand.
I looked back at him.
He squeezed my hand tight.
We both nodded at the same time.
An understanding.
Maybe something more.
Maybe not.
It was complete silence as we stood there.
And in that silence we made an agreement.
We’re going to find Jessie alive and bring her home.
Chapter Fifty-Two
“Hey, Down, want to see something?”
I turned my head and saw Garrison staring at me with the same beady kind of eyes that always irritated me. It still amazed me that someone allowed him to have a gun, a badge, and a sense of authority.
“I’m busy,” I said.
Garrison pointed to a map on a table. “You’ll appreciate it.”
I sighed and walked over to the table.
“I’m going to pour over these and see what I can think of.”
“Don’t think too hard, you’ll catch the paper on fire.”
“Look at that quick hit back at me,” Garrison said. “That’s city talk, isn’t it?”
“That’s just me being honest.”
“So, just for visual,” he said. “This is where Jessie’s father lives.” He pointed with his right index finger. “This is where her mother lives.” He pointed with his left index finger.
“I know this,” I said. “They’re not all that far apart.”
“Except in this town going a mile could change everything. You know? You go from middle class to lower class in one stop sign.”
“Are you suggesting then that something happened to Jessie because of where her mother lives?” I asked.
“No,” Garrison said. “Now watch.” He moved his right index finger along the map, bobbing his head like he was listening to music. “This is the dance studio. Where the ever so perfectly pretty Nelle does her thing.”
I rolled my eyes. “Right. That’s where Jessie went missing from.”
“You said Nelle thought she saw an SUV, heard a noise, whatever,” Garrison said. “Just watch though. This street, run it back… you go into town, right? You’ve got a few places closed up. But mostly it’s the normal stuff in town. Pizza. Hair salon. Accountant’s office. Lawyer. Pharmacy. My point there is it obviously could go back to the parents. But… if Nelle saw the back of the SUV, then it was pointed this way, coming up the street.”
God help me, but Garrison sort of had me hooked in his thinking.