Jackie got out of the car and held her daughter. “Honey, I know this is hard. But there’s a problem. William is dead, and there’s a girl missing. We aren’t sure if they’re related. If she was one of the girls William was stalking, we need to find her.”
In a heartbeat, Catey was no longer crying. She no longer heaved. Wiping her eyes, she asked, “Is the girl’s name Tiffany?”
CHAPTER 11
As much as I didn’t want to call Nick, I needed to know more about the girl that disappeared. Was her name Tiffany? Did she go to the same school as Catey?
We got her back in the car, and I took Jackie and Catey straight home. I’d come get Jackie in the morning if she wanted to come to work. For now, she needed to be with her daughter. This was a lot for a young teen to process. On the way home, Catey kept saying, “I really thought I was smarter than that.”
She was a smart girl, but this guy had years to hone his “craft.” My head was spinning as I drove away from their house. I grabbed my phone and hit the speed dial button. Don’t judge me; I know Nick’s number shouldn’t be in my speed dial.
“Hey, Mimi.” Nick sounded genuinely happy to hear from me.
“We really need to talk.” I didn’t sound as happy, as I was really starting to feel ill.
“I’m working this missing person case,” Nick said. “Maybe later tonight?”
“I’m in my car. Where are you? We really need to talk, like now.”
Exasperated, Nick said, “Mimi, can’t it wait? There is a girl’s life at stake here.”
“It’s about the girl. Is her name Tiffany?”
There was silence on the other end of the phone. “What did Charles tell you?”
I’d been holding my breath. “Charles didn’t tell me, Catey did.”
Nick’s tone turned urgent. “Meet me at your house. How soon can you get there?”
“I’m just pulling into my driveway.”
Nick must have gone lights and siren, because he was jogging up my front lawn before I got to the door.
“What’s going on?” Nick called as he approached.
“Come on in. I’ll make some coffee.” I opened the door and went straight to the kitchen.
I had some gourmet beans I’d ground that morning, so I scooped them into the coffee maker and added filtered water. Looking across the counter, I saw the bottle of wine Sebastian and I had shared the night before, and I smiled for a moment, forgetting the present reality.
Nick came behind me, breaking my moment of peace. “So?”
“Jackie and I talked with Catey. We asked her what happened, and she told us everything. When we told her about the missing girl, she asked if her name was Tiffany.”
“Tiffany Anderson,” Nick stated flatly.
“Tiffany Anderson,” I repeated. “Have you heard anything from Charles?”
“He called just before you did. He’s having a hell of a time getting into Garrison’s computer.”
“Charles?” I couldn’t believe it.
“The man had a lot to lose if he was caught. He wanted to be sure he didn’t get caught. For all we know, everything on the drive could be wiped clean if the wrong password is entered too many times.”
“Did Charles tell you that?”
“Yes. He’s waiting to get some sort of tool from the Naval Postgraduate School. He said one of the officers is trying to get it from an Army base in Kentucky.”
“Why don’t we have this tool?” I’d paid a lot of money for Charles to have the best computer forensics tools available.
“Apparently, it’s something new. Charles said something about it being in beta.” Nick reached in front of me, grabbed a coffee cup from the rack, and poured himself a cup.
I didn’t move, enjoying the close proximity. I resisted the urge to move closer.
Nick finished filling the coffee cup and walked to the table. He sat and stared at the cup.
“What’s going on?” I’d never seen him like this. Not that I’d seen a lot of him lately.
“This case is killing me. I need to find a killer I don’t want to arrest. I want to find him and give him an award. But then again, I want to find him and strangle him.” Nick sipped his coffee carefully to avoid burning his mouth.
“Strangle him? Why?” I didn’t understand. The killer had taken a predator off the streets.
“Because, if William were still alive, he could tell us where to find Tiffany.” Realizing the coffee wasn’t too hot, he took a bigger drink. “This is good.”
“European coffee beans.”
“What’s with you and all of this foreign food stuff? Peruvian chocolate, French wine, European coffee. Whatever happened to good old fashioned Chardonnay, Folgers, or Nestlé’s?”
“It’s called expanding your palate.” I poured coffee for myself. “Besides, it’s delicious.”
Nick took another sip and nodded his agreement.
“So, let me tell you what Catey told us. It might help.” I said, and then remembered I had the recording. “No, wait.”
I ran out to my car, got the recorder, and ran back in. I was a bit winded, so I made a mental note to add running back into my regular routine.
“Here.” I tried to disguise the panting.
“What’s this?” Nick turned the recorder over in his hand.
“It’s a recording of my conversation with Catey. I got her permission to record what she said, so I wouldn’t miss anything.” I pointed to the flippy thing. I had no idea what it was called, but it was the male end of the USB port. “This flips out, so you can plug into a USB port on your computer and download the recording. So when you’re done with it, I’d like the recorder back.”
Nick tossed the tiny recorder up in the air, snagged it, and put it in his pocket. “This is great, thanks. I don’t know if it’ll help, but it’s something.”
Nick’s cell phone rang and he answered it before the end of the first ring.
I waited as he sat for a moment and said nothing, just listened. He stood abruptly and poured out the rest of his coffee in the sink. Then he rinsed the cup, still not saying a word.
I started to feel uncomfortable in the silence, as he never even muttered “Uh huh” or anything.
He looked at me, as he walked out of the kitchen. “Okay, I’ll meet CSU at the scene.”
He flipped his phone shut and put it in his pocket.
“Okay, so I guess you’ll let me know if Catey’s story helps?”
“Sure,” he mumbled. “We’re going back to Garrison’s house. The lab tech got a sample of Tiffany’s hair. We’re going to see if we can find any match at Garrison’s house. It’s a long shot, but we have to try. I just know these two cases are linked.”
I wanted to be able to do something, too. “Give me back the recorder. I’ll give it to Charles, and he can upload it. I’ll have him send it to your email account, or your phone, if you can do that.”
“Have him do it right away, and I need him to call me. Are you headed over there now?” He handed it to me, and our flesh brushed at the wrist.
I wanted to grab his wrist and pull him in close. But before I could do anything, he grabbed my waist and pulled me in close. I didn’t even fight him; I was too shocked to respond.
He leaned in close, and I thought he was going to kiss me. I closed my eyes.
“Be very careful with Sebastian,” he whispered in my ear. Then he stepped away from me.
My internal temperature skyrocketed, and not just from Nick’s close proximity. I couldn’t believe I thought he was going to kiss me. I mean, with all he had on his mind, what was wrong with me? Wishful thinking in a big, bad way.
“Thanks for the warning. But I think I know him a bit better than you do.”
“Don’t be so sure.” Nick turned and walked out the door.
When the door closed, I stomped my foot hard on the floor, like a spoiled child. “Idiot,” I said aloud. “Oh, jeez, how could I be so stupid?” I stamped my other foot, went to the
cabinet to grab a travel mug, and poured myself another cup of coffee.
I pocketed the recorder and headed for the office.
***
Gemma was nowhere to be found when I arrived at the office, though her car was in the parking lot. I walked past the reception area and went straight to Charles’s office.
He sat ramrod straight, which is his “things aren’t going well” position when he’s working on a problem. I was almost afraid to approach him. I decided that instead of asking how it was going, since I knew it was bad, I’d offer up information.
“I’ve got something for you,” I said, as I stepped behind him.
He didn’t jump, but he definitely stiffened. Without turning around to acknowledge me, he said, “What do you have?”
I leaned around him and set the recorder on the desk. I came around and hopped up on his desk. I was trying to lighten the mood, but the look on his face told me to get off the desk before he pushed me off. I slid off until I was leaning against it.
“Jackie and I pulled Catey out of school and had a talk with her.” I pointed. “That’s a recording of our conversation.”
Charles smiled. “Do you think there’s anything that will help find that little girl?”
“She’s not that little, Charles, she’s in Catey’s grade.”
“Compared to us, she’s a little girl.” He leaned back, relaxing a bit. “Were they friends?”
“According to Catey, Anna’s father was friends with her on their social network. She thinks maybe that’s how he contacted her.”
“So, is Tiffany friends with Catey and Anna?”
“Well, even if they aren’t friends in person, they probably are on the ‘net.”
Charles was right back at the computer, only this time it was his computer he was typing away on. “If I can get Tiffany’s information, maybe we can see what transpired.”
“How do we do that?”
“I’m getting her parents’ address now. We can go have a talk with them. Maybe Nick can meet us there. To make it easier, I need to use her computer to log into the sites.” Charles stood and grabbed a sweater from the back of his chair.
“I’m going with you. I’ll call Nick on the way.” I rushed after Charles.
Gemma was sitting at reception as we left. “You have four or five messages from Sebastian.”
“Do you have his number?”
She handed me a slip of paper. I looked at it. Did I really want to call him? I thought about it on the way to the car. Yes, I did. But the next number I dialed was Nick’s.
“We’re on our way to see Tiffany’s parents. Charles wants you to meet us there.” I waited for a reprimand to stay out of police business.
“It’s going to take me a few minutes before I can leave here. I’ll call ahead and let the officer at the house know who you are, in case I don’t get there for awhile.” Nick sounded rushed. “Gotta go.”
“Nick’s going to call ahead, so the officer at the house knows we’re coming. He wants you to start without him.” I disconnected the call, but I didn’t put my phone away. I dialed again.
“Who are you calling now?” Charles asked.
“Hey, what’s up?” I said, into the phone. “Gemma said you called.”
I could hear the smile in Sebastian’s voice. “I just wanted to be sure you got my package, and that everything is cool with us.”
I chuckled. “Everything with us is perfect. And yes, I got the package. Thanks so much for the wonderful chocolates and wine.”
He laughed. “Did you get the note?”
I blushed. “Yes, and thanks. Sorry I didn’t get back to you earlier. We’ve had a crazy day around here.”
“I remember you said things were crazy last night.”
I thought I’d make the next move. “What are you doing tonight?”
There was silence on the other end of the line. “Look, I’ve gotta go. I’ll call you later. Is this your cell phone number?”
Oh my God, I was getting the brush off. This was completely humiliating. I hung up without responding.
Within seconds, I had a text.
CHAPTER 12
“Nick’s on his way right now.”
“How do you know this?” Charles parked in front of Tiffany’s parents’ home.
“Text.” I showed him the phone.
“Should we wait here for him, or go ahead on in?” Charles gathered up his bag of “tricks” from behind his seat.
“I vote go.” The sooner we had answers, the better.
We got out of the car, but both of us stalled. This had to be so hard for parents: not knowing was harder than knowing, no matter how bad. As we walked up the pathway to the front door, a woman opened the door and came running out. The house was one of those McMansions erected before the real estate bubble burst.
“Are you from the agency?” She sounded desperate and hopeful at once.
“I’m Charles Parks and this is Mimi Capurro, the owner of Gotcha Detective Agency. We’re here to take a look at your daughter’s computer.” Charles offered his hand.
“I’m Julie Anderson.” She shook his hand as we kept walking toward the door. “Thanks for getting here so fast.”
I just smiled and followed behind. This was out of my league, so I was here for backup. My smile turned into a gasp as we entered the double door entryway.
There are foyers that are amazing, and there are foyers that take your breath away. This one had light grey marble tiles with antiques placed expertly to show their age and grace. I noticed the hall tree first. The oak wood was polished to its natural sheen, and next to it was an umbrella stand. I’ve seen homes with antique overkill, but this was tasteful. Julie led us to a room off to the right.
“This is our library.” She opened the door to a room larger than my house. “We don’t allow the kids to have their computers in their rooms. That way they aren’t being secretive about their online activity. I thought we were being smart.”
We walked into a room with three separate seating areas, all with a couch, two club chairs and a desk. Each area had its own flower arrangement, like the kind you see in five star hotels. All three desks had laptop and tabletop computers. Can we say computer overkill? One wall was floor to ceiling bookshelves, loaded with books.
“Well, hello everyone,” Charles said. He was speaking to the two uniformed officers and three women already in the room.
One of the women stood. “Tim went into the kitchen to see what’s taking Maria so long with the coffee.”
Julie pointed to the women. “These are my sisters: Eva, Baylee, and Morgan.” Each woman lifted a perfectly manicured hand when Julie said her name. They were similar versions of the same woman. About five foot six, less than a hundred pounds, platinum blonde bobs, and perfectly applied makeup. The only thing differentiating them was a minimal number of years and their impeccable clothing. They all wore pencil skirts, showing off their tanned and toned legs to their best advantage, and a silk blouse, different colors and patterns, of course.
I felt like I was in a version of Stepford Wives, but it should be called the Stepford Sisters. It felt surreal. I just put my hand up and waved. I was afraid if I engaged in conversation, I’d walk out of the house looking like Barbie with a bob.
“Ladies, lovely to meet you, but this isn’t a social call.” Charles turned to Julie. “Tiffany’s computer?”
Too much estrogen in a room made Charles queasy.
Julie led Charles and me to the desk on the far side of the room. Suddenly, there was a line behind us, following us to the desk.
Charles looked back. “I’m sorry, Mrs. Anderson, but I can’t work with so many people in the room.”
Julie didn’t hesitate. She flicked her hand to the women and the police, “Out. Now. You heard him, he needs space.”
With that, everyone filed neatly from the room. As they left, Nick walked in.
“I see you’ve met the Stepford Sisters,” he said, as he crossed the ro
om.
I swallowed hard, stunned that he used the very words I’d been thinking. “They’re very nice.”
“Yes, they’re well trained,” he said, as he moved past me to Charles, who was already implementing his hacking skills.
I leaned over Charles’s shoulder. “Well, anything?”
Still typing, Charles said, “Nick smells better than you do. Can you switch places?”
Nick didn’t move. I didn’t, either. Charles sighed.
I watched as he worked his magic and blew right through the passwords. He was in Tiffany’s social accounts and checking out the private messages. Smack dab at the top of the page, Dylan had sent her a message.
“Hey cutie, my plans fell through. I’m stuck at home today. Come see me. We can get nasty just like you showed me in your pictures.”
“This isn’t good.” Charles went into Tiffany’s photos.
This girl wasn’t some innocent teen. There were photos of her doing a beer bong, at least I’m assuming it was beer. Scrolling down, she’d send Dylan photos of herself naked. Her hands covered her jungle and her boobs, but not much was left to the imagination. She was a bit pudgy, quite unlike her mother and aunts. I hate to say it, but she wasn’t exactly cute. She’d been giving it everything she had in those photos. She wanted Dylan to want her.
Nick looked away. “Bet she just loved the attention. She’s sending him pictures.”
Charles said, “Well, since they’re friends, I can look at Dylan’s page, too.”
“I thought you already did.” He’d been in Catey’s computer.
“I have, but I didn’t hack into his account.” Charles logged out of Tiffany’s account, then logged into Dylan’s. “Just need to adjust my tool.”
“By all means, don’t let the fact that we’re standing here stop you.” Nick grinned.
Charles pointed to the black stick on the side of the computer. “This tool, you tool.”
We all laughed, and then realized where we were and cut it short.
Textual Relations Page 9