First Born (Lily Moore Series)

by Tricia Zoeller

  “I’m in the road, out front. Please tell me he’s okay.”

  “What the hell are you doing here?”

  “I came to see Mr. Liu. Is he okay?”

  “I can’t discuss anything at this point,” Caldwell said, flustered.

  “Oh, God.”

  “Seth?”

  Nothing. Caldwell ran down the driveway, wondering why Seth was here. Did he have his sister? Climbing under the crime scene tape and passing the barricade, Caldwell looked left before turning and spotting Moore off to the right of the driveway, standing in the Georgia red clay on the shoulder of the road. Seth bent at the waist sucking in air.

  Caldwell approached him slowly.

  Seth straightened up. “Mr. Liu was my dad’s best friend. I need to know he’s okay.”

  “This is a crime scene. I want to know why you’re here.”

  Sighing, Seth put his hands in his pocket.

  “Well?” Caldwell asked.

  “I, I spoke to Mr. Liu after Lily’s disappearance. He’s known me since I was a kid. I wanted to talk to him about Lily and my dad. I was coming back up here to discuss classes with him.”

  “What classes?”

  “He teaches Shaolin Kung Fu and he told me he’d train me,” Seth said. “He wasn’t answering his phone. I’d taken the day off so I thought I would come by. That’s what I did last time.”

  Caldwell analyzed his every word and every move. He was trying to determine if Seth knew that his sister had been on the property.

  “Mr. Moore?” Caldwell heard the Lieutenant step in behind him.

  “Lieutenant.” Seth nodded.

  “What’s going on?” Lake asked. Caldwell turned to fill him in on Seth’s visit to Mr. Liu.

  “You see your sister lately?” Lake asked.

  Seth took a step back, “What?”

  “Did you know that your sister would be here?” Caldwell asked.

  Eyeing Lake first, Seth Moore stood still, his eyes blinking rapidly. “Lily? You found Lily?” Tears started to roll down his face and he clenched his jaw. “Why didn’t you say you found Lily? Is she okay?” he shouted.

  Both detectives stepped forward to block him as he charged forward. He elbowed Caldwell’s chin as he flew past and knocked over Lake. Lake grabbed his leg and Seth spun around, backhanding the lieutenant who flew back on the shoulder of the road.

  “Stop!” barked Caldwell. Seth spun around and put his hands out.

  “Jesus, Son, calm the fuck down,” Lake said while getting to his feet.

  “I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I just...where’s Lily? Is she hurt?”

  Seth was still, but his eyes were not. Caldwell shook his head to get his bearings after the blow from his elbow. My God, this bastard’s strong. “Don’t Move!” Caldwell repeated.

  Lake approached him. “Keep your hands out. We’re going over to my car to have a chat. Got it?”

  Lake darted his eyes toward Caldwell before guiding Seth by the arm under the crime scene tape and out of the line of media scrutiny. Caldwell opened the back door of the Taurus parked off the side of the long driveway.

  Moore looked like a scared four-year-old as he kept apologizing for knocking Lake down.

  “Shut up, Seth,” Lake said. The right side of his face was splotched red from Seth’s hand. Caldwell knew he was already upset about Liu and that Seth’s appearance and outburst had unhinged him.

  He watched as Seth scanned the front and side windows taking in the crime scene. Caldwell rubbed his chin. “Mr. Liu was attacked. Your sister was sighted escaping the scene with a bullet wound in her shoulder-chest area.”

  “You shot her?!”

  “No! She was wounded before we arrived on the scene,” Lake said.

  Caldwell’s throat felt tight. “She ran, Seth. From the back door of the studio, I saw that she was injured. When I went to follow her, she disappeared.” He shook his head because he still couldn’t believe it. “But then we heard a motorcycle start up.”

  “You know anything about a motorcycle, Seth?” Lake asked.

  “Lily doesn’t own a motorcycle.” He glanced out the side window. His eyes followed the two bloodhounds running in the trees. “You haven’t found her?”

  “No, we haven’t found her. That’s why we’re shooting the shit with you!” Caldwell said.

  Lake seemed to have calmed down from being whacked. “You need to tell us right now where Lily’s been.”

  Seth was ashen. “I’m going to be sick.” Caldwell hit the unlock and jumped out to open the passenger door allowing Seth to vomit on to the driveway rather than all over the back seat.

  “Shit,” Caldwell said, looking at the spittle hanging off Seth’s chin. As Seth leaned out of the car, Caldwell handed him a napkin from the stash in the center console.

  “Sorry,” he said pitifully as he sat back in the seat. Caldwell returned to the front seat and sighed. He felt sorry for him, but he couldn’t completely forget that the kid was holding back on them. He turned his body around so he could look at him.

  “We don’t have any information for you about your sister at this time. You need to tell us if you have any idea why the hell she is running from us,” Lake said.

  “Someone wants her dead,” Seth answered, his voice cracking. He was watching Ernie and the hounds out the window again.

  Caldwell sighed. “We didn’t shoot her, but someone else out there did. She won’t be safe until she comes in. You were with us this morning, but I know you’re not telling us something.”

  “I don’t understand any of this,” he said putting his head in his hands.

  Lake sighed.

  Caldwell’s temples felt like someone had put his head in one of those fancy apple corers. Part of him wanted to shake the kid, the other part wanted to hug him. His eyes were huge, his face tense, completely devastated.

  “Can I go?” Seth asked.

  “Stay accessible. We may have more questions. We want to know immediately if Li Liu or your sister makes contact. Got it?” Caldwell said.

  He nodded. Caldwell dropped him off at his truck. “If we hear anything, we’ll inform you.”

  “Thanks,” Seth said.

  Ten minutes later the two detectives headed to Decatur. The hospital had discharged Phillip Miller that morning. No one was answering the phone. Time to pay him a visit.

  Chapter 22

  In Search of Lily

  I can’t believe it. Where is she? As soon as he pulled away from Mr. Liu’s neighborhood, Seth checked his phone. Nothing. Next, he called his mother. Emanuel answered. Seth grimaced. He knew the guy hated his guts. “Hi Emanuel, I need to speak to my mom.”

  “Well she’s not here.”

  “I guess I’ll try her on her cell.”

  “No you won’t.”

  “Excuse me?” Seth was pissed.

  “She’s in route to China. Her mother is very sick. Maggie doesn’t need your shit right now, Seth.”

  “As always, thanks for your help,” Seth said, gritting his teeth. He hung up and tried his mother’s cell. He felt bad leaving her a message about Lily's situation so he told her to call him, that it was urgent.

  Emanuel made his blood boil. The only thing he had going for him is that he seemed to take good care of Seth’s mom.

  Seth weaved through traffic with his phone in hand willing it to ring. He almost dropped it when it did. Koko. He was in no mood, and let it go to voicemail. The headache hit him hard causing him to squint, making his eyes sensitive to the light.

  He drove erratically back to town, daring any cop to pull him over at this point. Once in the city, he hit Peachtree Street, which was a nightmare due to the earlier rain. Finally, after an hour of driving, he pulled into Peachtree Place Apartments. As he got out of his car, he knew he wasn’t alone. His problem was standing in the parking lot five feet away, smoking a Marlboro. She was wearing a tight black knit top, jeans, and high heels.

  “Where ya been, Seth?” Koko Hitomi glared up
at him. Even in high heels, she came up to his chest. He instinctively took a step back. She emitted a raspy laugh as she closed the gap between them, and her brow crinkled. She must have caught a whiff of the vomit, despite his spearmint gum.

  “You used to be so much fun, but now you act like you’ve been neutered.”

  Seth clenched his jaw. He reminded himself that indifference was the best way to cope with her. So instead, he riled her up, “Wow, does the clinic know you’ve escaped?”

  “Come on. You know you wanted to see me.” She attempted a girlish pout, but her intense eyes deflected any softness in her face.

  “Have you been following me?” He stared at her while taking a threatening step forward. She tilted her head, stood her ground, unfazed.

  “Aren’t you paranoid? No, I haven’t been following you.” He actually believed her. He looked over and saw her familiar white Range Rover. He would have noticed if that car had been following him. While he hadn’t seen a vehicle in his pursuit, his instincts never lied. Someone other than Koko was stalking him.

  “Look, I don’t have time for this. What do you want?”

  “You don’t have time for me?” She put her hand on her slender hip. “I’m the only one that gets you. You’ll make time for me.”

  “Or what?” he asked.

  “Well, perhaps I’ll fill the police in on what your true nature is like.” She did have some dirt on him, which was the only reason he tolerated her bullshit.

  Yes, Seth. I know all about your sister.

  He grabbed his head. Koko had communicated to him telepathically. He really didn’t want her in his head, but when he fought it, the headaches struck. She took another pull on her cigarette, which repulsed him. He usually didn’t have trouble blocking her out. She exhaled smoke at him.

  “What do you know about my sister?”

  “Everything,” she spat. Smoke streamed out her mouth and nostrils. It made Seth think of a dragon, the evil kind that ate knights. “She offed her little twerp of a boyfriend then the pathetic sickly neighbor, and now she’s in hiding.”

  He stepped toward her, studying her carefully. “Did...did you hurt her?”

  No. But I could if I wanted to.

  “Go to hell, you crazy bitch.” Seth squeezed his fists, feeling his nails dig into his palms.

  “I’m already there.” She threw her cigarette at him and flounced to her Range Rover. A minute later, Seth stepped back on to the curb as she drove by him, rubber squealing.

  There was definitely more to Koko than she was sharing. Her fascination with Lily disturbed him.

  Seth turned back to his apartment. A quick search proved that Lily hadn’t been there. He headed over to Ansley Park Manor going fifty in a thirty-five. He tried to steady himself in order to think logically. He parked in the driveway and headed straight to the back. Lily had mentioned Frank and Larry stashed a key under the Buddha. At 7:30 at night, he wasn’t sure if Larry was home.

  As he turned the corner of the house, he saw broken branches and debris scattered across the yard. “Lily!” he called.

  The fading light cast dark shadows across the yard, but Seth followed his instincts and saw subtle movement in the huge shrubs that clung to the house. He dashed to the hedges to peer behind them. Lily lay in Shih Tzu form, covered in blood, barely able to move. The sour smell of vomit hit him.

  “Lily!” Her body twitched ever so slightly. He could hear her ragged breathing.

  With extreme care, he swaddled her in his shirt. She didn’t move.

  She was breathing, but it was weak. “Hold on, okay.”

  She needed medical help, but he couldn’t take a Shih Tzu to a doctor. Lily had been to regular doctors all her life, but they wouldn’t know what to do with her in her different forms. Where had Mr. Liu taken Barney the night he was shot? The vet at Cobb Central Animal Hospital.

  Seth broke land speed records driving north on I75. I should have protected her. I should have insisted she stay with me. I should have... His phone rang. He ignored it. Fucking Koko.

  Chapter 23

  The Millers

  A small strand of saliva clung to the corner of Phillip Miller’s mouth. Caldwell counted to ten as he waited for the man to answer their question. Mr. Miller now lived with his mother in a ranch home in Decatur. He listed to the port side of a 1970s olive-green La-Z-Boy recliner and stared blankly at them.

  “See I told y’all,” said his mother standing with a dish towel on her shoulder and hands on hips. She wore her bleached blonde hair in a frizzy pile atop her head.

  “How much Lithium is he on?” Lake asked, looking exasperated.

  “’Nough for him to stop screaming about that demon woman.”

  Miller didn’t blink, but his eyes widened when his mother mentioned the demon woman. “He’s not been right since the attack. Look at ’em. You put his brains in a bumblebee, it’d fly backwards.”

  “Where were you and your son this afternoon?” Caldwell asked.

  “Well he just got back from the hospital this morning. Since then I’ve been fielding phone calls, scheduling outpatient therapy and follow-up appointments with doctors. I had to call off work at the Big Lot just to get him settled. Oh, and I had to run out and get his prescription filled from the pharmacy.”

  “You have anything that can substantiate that?” Caldwell asked.

  “What’s this all about, anyway?”

  “We had an incident today and we need to verify Mr. Miller’s whereabouts,” Lake said.

  “What kind of incident?” she asked, narrowing her eyes.

  “An attack that could relate to the crime committed at Grady High School,” Caldwell answered.

  “That Moore girl again!” she spat. “Look what she did to my boy. She’s trouble. Alls I know is that y’all said he hurt that girl. I don’t care what you say about blood spatter and DNA under his fingernails, it was self defense.”

  Caldwell bristled. He had heard enough about Phil Miller from acquaintances to believe otherwise, but it was definitely a “he said/she said” scenario and “she” wasn’t around to plead her case. Lily Moore was somewhere bleeding to death because he wasn’t quick enough and his communication with the Kennesaw Police sucked and...well the whole thing was a cluster-fuck.

  Lake cleared his throat. “Discharge papers from the hospital, receipt from the pharmacy. Anything with a date and time stamp will suffice.”

  “Yeah, okay,” she said. She walked over to the couch close to Phillip and rummaged through her purse while mumbling. “Don’t know what the heck you could do. You’re wetting and drooling yourself. Let me check my room.”

  She was gone for a few minutes. Caldwell stared at her son. Mrs. Miller returned with forms from Piedmont Hospital and the pharmacy receipt with the date and time stamped on it.

  “Thanks for your time, Mrs. Miller,” Lake said.

  “Uh huh. I hope you officers find her before she hurts someone else.”

  Lake grabbed Caldwell by the bicep preventing him from spinning around and putting Mrs. Miller in a similar state to her son.

  She showed them to the door.

  Chapter 24

  A Visit to the Manor

  Caldwell sat in the passenger seat as Lake headed to Ansley Park to check on the dog. It was 9 p.m. They had spent the early part of the evening hashing over details and adding Li Liu to their crime board. The Missing Persons Unit continued to interview Liu’s circle of neighbors, friends, and family. The lieutenant had sighed when Caldwell insisted it was Larry Jones’s Shih Tzu in the woods. To shut him up, Lake finally agreed to ride with him to their home.

  I did see that dog. I’m not a mad man. Although he had been losing sleep and thinking disturbing thoughts about Lily Moore since the case began.

  As the lieutenant swung the Taurus on to the Prado, Northeast, Caldwell drummed his fingers on the passenger door. What’s the protocol for taking a dog into custody?

  “Caldwell!”

  Caldwel
l stilled his fingers, realizing it was putting Lake on edge.

  Lake parked in the driveway. Caldwell puffed air like he had just bench-pressed three hundred pounds. It sure felt like he had.

  “S’up with you, Simms?”

  He breathed out long and slow. “It’s just, you didn’t see her, Lieutenant.”

  “Not your fault Simms.”

  “She...someone had worked her over.”

  “She’s alive. We’ll find her. Can’t blame yourself. Whoever is doing this is smart. Li Liu was a master in Kung Fu. He let the perp into his studio. This guy knew his weapons. You gotta pull it together or you’ll get reassigned.”

  Caldwell whipped his head around.

  “Not my decision, so don’t look at me like that.”

  “What? The captain wants to pull me off?”

  Lake didn’t look at him. “Just stay focused. Now let’s go talk to these gentlemen and get DNA from their dog, okay?”

  “Okay.”

  They walked up the lit path to the Jones/Harding residence. Lake rang the doorbell and waited. Frank Harding opened the door wearing plaid pajama bottoms, a white undershirt, and a serious shiner.

  “Mr. Harding?” Caldwell asked.

  “Yes?”

  “Sorry to disturb you at such a late hour. I’m Detective Simms and this is Lieutenant Lake. May we come in for a moment?”

  “Sure.” For a fleeting moment, Frank Harding looked like he had been blind-sided, but he quickly regained a calm demeanor.

  The detectives stood in the grand foyer. “I’ll just let Larry know you’re here. He’s already in bed.” Mr. Harding went upstairs calling for Larry Jones.

  “Nice place,” Lake said, looking toward the double chandeliers in the dining room to the right.

  “Yeah,” said Caldwell, distracted. “Where’s the dog?”

  “What the hell happened to his face?” Lake added.

  Jones came down the stairs, eyes averted. He clutched Kleenex in his hand and wore the same lavender paisley bathrobe from when Caldwell initially interviewed him. When he raised his eyes, it was evident he had been crying.