Missing in Cottonwood Springs

by Dianne Harman

  Cadence nodded. “Yeah, you’re right. Good luck,” she said.

  Brigid stood up and left the break room. Hurrying through the store, she saw Sheriff Davis leaving the store and heading towards the parking lot. She followed him.

  “Sheriff Davis,” she said as she hurried to joined him outside.

  “Get anythin’ from the cashier?” he asked.

  “Not a whole lot. So far it seems like we’re looking for a service type vehicle with tinted windows. Kind of like one a cable or utility company would use.”

  “Yeah, that’s what I was thinkin’, too,” he said, “jes’ by the looks of it from that surveillance video.”

  “Is it true there are people going missing from nearby towns?” Brigid asked.

  Sheriff Davis became quiet, almost as if he was having an internal debate with himself. It looked like he was going to give her a recited speech, but then he evidently thought better of it. “It’s true. I haven’t looked into those cases, since they ain’t in my jurisdiction. Didn’t want to mention it, but yeah, I’ve heard talk. It’s all been in counties a little farther away until now. But it’s lookin’ that way. I haven’t checked anywhere closer recently, but I have a feelin’ when I start callin’ around, I’ll hear similar stories.”

  A chill ran through Brigid. “What are we going to do?”

  “The only thing we can do,” he said. “Focus on this case and hope we solve it. Ain’t much anyone can do but try to piece things together. If you’re the prayin’ type, that wouldn’t hurt, either.”

  Brigid nodded. “I’m going to see if I can talk to the other people on the list.”

  “Sounds like a plan, Brigid. Ya’ let me know if you find out anythin’. Anythin’ at all, ya’ hear?”

  “Absolutely,” she said nodding. “You have my word.”

  “By the way, Brigid, try not to be a vigilante this time. Gives me migraines and more paperwork than I care to deal with,” he said with a smirk.

  “I’ll do my best,” Brigid said. Even as she gave him her word, she knew she’d do whatever was necessary.

  CHAPTER 7

  Brigid was sitting in her car, trying to decide which one of the people who talked to Olivia at the grocery store earlier that morning she should start with when her phone rang. It was her sister, Fiona.

  “Good morning,” Fiona said enthusiastically.

  “If you say so,” Brigid mumbled as she looked over her list.

  “What’s up with you this morning, grumpy pants?” Fiona asked.

  “Well, I had my appointment this morning to meet with Olivia from Ford’s Flowers,” Brigid began.

  “Oh, dear, did it go badly?” Fiona asked. “Is she too busy to do a bouquet for you?”

  “No, it’s nothing like that. It seems she’s disappeared,” Brigid said as she sat back in her seat.

  “What?” Fiona cried.

  “Yep. She disappeared right out of the grocery store parking lot earlier this morning. I talked to her husband, Mike, and he asked me to help Sheriff Davis find her.”

  “What did Corey say?”

  “He welcomed the help. He told me his department had their hands full processing the crime scene, and he asked me to talk to anyone who Olivia had spoken with at the store this morning,” Brigid said with a sigh.

  “I swear, you need to join the sheriff’s department,” Fiona joked. “I think you’re conducting investigations about as often as they do.”

  “Yeah, but I don’t want to have to write tickets. Of course, all I’d have to do is follow you around, but I’d need a new ticket book every week,” Brigid teased.

  “Hey, that’s not funny,” Fiona said seriously. “I’m calling because I heard there was a going-out-of-business sale at that formal dress shop over on the outskirts of town. I thought maybe we could head over there and see what they have,” she suggested.

  “Sure,” Brigid said. “Why don’t you call Missy and ask her to join us? I need to talk to her, anyway. Sheriff Davis wants me to question everyone who spoke to Olivia in the store this morning, and Missy was one of them. That will save me a trip, because I’ll just talk to her when we go to the shop. By the way, did Holly show up for work?”

  “She sure did. Why are you asking?” Fiona asked.

  Brigid sighed deeply. “It’s looks like Olivia going missing is not an isolated incident. Apparently, several other people have disappeared around here, or so I’ve heard. It could be nothing, or it could all be connected. I’d just feel better if she didn’t ride her bike home.”

  “No problem. I’ll start giving her a ride when I can. Until then, you find this creep. If anyone can do it, it’s you,” Fiona said confidently.

  “I hope so. I don’t like the idea there could be someone out there snatching women out of parking lots,” Brigid said. “Freaks me out.”

  “Me, too,” Fiona said softly. “Meet me at the bookstore around 3:00?

  Missy, you, and me can all go together.”

  “Sounds good. See you then,” Brigid said as she ended the call.

  Brigid decided the first stop she’d make would be to visit MaryAnn Thompson. Now that she had the new baby, she’d probably be at home. She, along with Missy, would be the easiest ones to find. She started her car, pulled away from the grocery store, and headed towards MaryAnn’s home.

  Brigid hadn’t seen MaryAnn in over a year. The last time she’d really spoken to her was when she was investigating the murder of Holly’s mother. Her beautiful home hadn’t changed. It was clearly still the most beautiful residence in Cottonwood Springs.

  MaryAnn opened the front door in response to Brigid’s knock . “Brigid Barnes, how good to see you. Come in,” MaryAnn said, holding a little baby girl in her arms.

  “How are you doing, MaryAnn?” Brigid asked as the women greeted each other. They’d seen each other in passing since then, a smile across the store, or a wave as they drove past one another, but other than that, they hadn’t really talked since the murder investigation. “And this must be your baby girl. She’s beautiful.”

  “Thanks. I’m doing wonderful. Much better than the last time we spoke. And yes, this is our little girl, Cameron. How’s that young lady, Holly, doing?” she asked.

  “Very well,” Brigid said smiling politely.

  Just then, MaryAnn’s husband, Mark, walked up to them. He smiled at Brigid as he made faces at the little girl MaryAnn was holding. Her chubby little cheeks were rosy, and her hair had a bright red bow on it. She was grinning from ear to ear at the faces he was making at her.

  “Did you eat that whole cookie?” he growled playfully, which only made the little girl squeal louder.

  “How are you two coping with a baby?” Brigid asked.

  “Exhausting,” MaryAnn admitted. “But oddly satisfying. I’ve never been so happy and yet tired all at the same time,” she laughed.

  “I bet,” said Brigid. “Apparently you’re doing something right. It looks like she’s a very happy baby.”

  “Thank you. Yes, she is,” MaryAnn said. Mark took Cameron from MaryAnn and began to bounce her up and down as he made silly noises. He said a quick hello to Brigid and disappeared with his daughter. “So, what did you stop by for? Want to talk to us about getting a new bed or something from the furniture store? By the way, I heard that you’re engaged. Congratulations!”

  “Yes, I am,” she said smiling. “But unfortunately, I’m not here for fun. Do you know Olivia Ford?”

  “Of course. I just saw her this morning,” MaryAnn said softly. “What’s wrong?”

  “It seems she’s gone missing. It looks like someone snatched her right out of the parking lot at the grocery store this morning,” Brigid informed her.

  “You know, I thought something wasn’t right,” MaryAnn said, crossing her arms. “I knew she’d left the store before me, but I saw her car in the parking lot when I went out to my car. I didn’t pay any attention to it. I thought maybe she was sitting in her car talking on the phone or looking
at her email. I do remember noticing her car and thinking that was odd.”

  “According to what we know, shortly after she made it to her car a white van with tinted windows pulled up and blocked the grocery store’s security camera. It seems they loaded her up and took off. The cashier heard their tires squeal when they left, but that’s about all we have so far. I’m going around and talking to people who were at the store this morning to see if anyone noticed anything,” Brigid said with a sigh.

  “Wait a minute. Did you say a white van?” MaryAnn asked.

  “Yes, why? Did you see something?” Brigid asked anxiously.

  “Not really. It’s just, as I was walking up to the store when I first got there, I noticed a white van. It was parked near the edge of the parking lot. I noticed someone inside, but whoever it was had a newspaper raised up in front of their face, as if they were reading it, so I couldn’t really see who it was, but it looked like a man. He might have had dark hair, but I’m not sure.” She thought for a moment before continuing, “The side windows appeared to be tinted, because they had a bluish color to them.”

  “Excellent,” Brigid said as she took down a few notes, so that she’d be sure to remember and tell Sheriff Davis. “Can you think of anything else about the van? Where exactly was it parked?”

  “You know that fence on the north side of the parking lot? It was backed into a parking spot over there. It’s the closest one to the store, kind of tucked out of the way. Oh, I just remembered that the bumper was messed up. The grill, too. Like maybe they’d been in a traffic accident recently because there was quite a bit of front-end damage to the van.”

  “Great, that really helps, MaryAnn. The security camera didn’t really catch much but the passenger side of the van, so we don’t have a whole lot to go on.” Brigid finished writing in her notebook what MaryAnn had told her. “Can you think of anything else?”

  “No, I’m afraid not,” she sighed. “I wish I’d paid more attention. If I’d known...,”

  “I understand. Don’t beat yourself up about it. There was no way you could have known at the time. Did Olivia say anything that stood out to you?” Brigid asked.

  “Not that I recall. We spoke about Cameron, my daughter, and we chatted about last week’s church service. Nothing too important,” MaryAnn said shaking her head. “Sorry.”

  “No, this is good. Really. You’ve helped a lot. We think it’s a kidnapping, but I want to make sure she didn’t say something that might indicate otherwise. If you remember anything, please call the sheriff or me, okay?” Brigid asked softly.

  While she was glad no one had been murdered this time, the thought of Olivia being in danger was stressful. She wasn’t sure what was going on and just as importantly, if anyone else would be next on the disappearance list.

  “I will. I hope you find her. She’s such a good person. I can’t imagine why anyone would want to take her.”

  “Right now, there’s no way to know,” Brigid said. Her imagination had already gone into overdrive. The only way she could focus was to put those thoughts away until she had time to deal with them.

  MaryAnn nodded. “You’re probably right. I’ll be praying for her safe return. Hopefully she’ll be found soon. Good luck in your search,” she said.

  “Thank you,” Brigid said as she turned to leave. Once she was outside, she took her phone out of her pocket and dialed Sheriff Davis.

  “Brigid, what have ya’ found out?” he asked as he picked up her call.

  “According to MaryAnn Thompson, a white van with front end damage to the bumper and grill, was parked on the north side of the grocery store parking lot early this morning. Whoever was driving it had backed it into the first space closest to the store,” she said.

  Sheriff Davis turned away from the phone and started barking orders for someone to check the empty parking space. “Okay, got my men on it. Anythin’ else?”

  “Not yet. I’m still working on it. MaryAnn Thompson saw the van before she entered the store. I’m thinking maybe this guy was watching and waiting for the perfect opportunity to kidnap someone.” Brigid could almost see it in her mind’s eye. The guy sitting there, hiding behind his newspaper, watching everyone enter the store and then leave. Did he know who he wanted to kidnap by the way they looked, or maybe it was something else altogether? “MaryAnn mentioned that he may have dark hair, but this guy was behind a newspaper, so she couldn’t be sure.”

  “Okay, keep on it, Brigid. I know if there’s anythin’ to find, you’ll find it.”

  “Thanks, Corey, I’ll do my best,” Brigid said before she ended the call. She was happy Sheriff Davis had so much confidence in her, because everything felt a little different this time.

  CHAPTER 9

  Brigid left MaryAnn’s home knowing she had one other person she needed to talk to before meeting Fiona and Missy at the bookstore. Eve Sterling. She’d heard that Eve had gone back to a day shift since her father-in-law had passed away, but Brigid wasn’t sure what hours she worked. Crossing her fingers, she headed towards her house.

  As she drove down the tree-lined street, Brigid took a deep breath and spent a moment enjoying the view. The trees were starting to get small leaves on them, so that the faintest bit of color was beginning to show. Pinks and greens were everywhere, making Brigid smile. As she pulled up to Eve’s house, she saw a car in the driveway, hoping that meant Eve was at home. She parked next to it and turned off her engine.

  “Brigid, is that you?” she heard a voice say as she got out of her car. Eve had stepped out onto the front porch, a flannel shirt wrapped tightly around her.

  “Sure is, Eve. How are you doing?” Brigid said as she walked around her car and turned towards the front porch.

  “Wonderful,” Eve said smiling. “Why don’t you come in and make yourself comfortable? What brings you here?”

  Brigid stepped up onto the porch and sighed. “Nothing good, I’m afraid.”

  “Oh? Well then, we definitely need to sit down. Come on in.”

  Since she and her husband Frank were no longer having to care for his father in their home, they’d made some dramatic changes, and it looked so much better than the last time Brigid had been there. Previously the curtains had been drawn and everything was dusty and sad, as if all the life had been drained from their little home. Now, the place was spotless, and the curtains were wide open. The home had a much more inviting and pleasant feeling to it than it had before.

  “Did you paint the inside of your house?” Brigid asked as she looked around while she sat down.

  “Yes, I did,” Eve said proudly. “I wanted something a bit more cheerful.”

  “I really like it,” Brigid said admiringly. “It reminds me of a light mint chocolate chip ice cream.”

  “I know,” Eve said as if it were a secret. “That’s my favorite kind of ice cream, but don’t tell anyone,” she said with a laugh.

  “Well, I should probably get right to it, Eve. I understand you had a conversation with Olivia Ford at the grocery store this morning. Is that correct?” Brigid asked.

  Eve’s eyebrows furrowed. “Yes. We’re sort of friends. Why do you ask? What’s happened?”

  “It seems someone may have abducted Olivia from the parking lot of the grocery store. Security footage shows her leaving the store and heading to her car. She put her shopping bags in it, and then a white van pulled up beside her. Shortly after that, the van sped off and Olivia was gone. We’re trying to figure out what happened.” Brigid didn’t enjoy having to be the bearer of bad news. This was the one real drawback to helping with criminal investigations.

  “Oh, no,” Eve gasped. She covered her mouth with her hand and her eyes teared up. “That’s terrible. You mean, she never got to tell Mike?”

  “Tell Mike what?” Brigid asked, confused.

  “I’m not supposed to know anything. She swore me to secrecy,”

  Eve whispered as if there were someone else in the room.

  “Is it important
to the case?”

  Eve bit her lip. “I’m not sure. I only know about it because I was at the store the other day and ran into her. I wouldn’t want to spoil it for her.”

  Brigid could see that Eve was clearly conflicted. She began picking at her fingernails as she bit her lip. Brigid could imagine how Eve felt. Knowing something that is someone else’s secret, and then having them disappear had put Eve in a very delicate situation.

  “Eve, why don’t you tell me what it is? I promise I won’t tell a soul. This way, if it is important to the case, at least someone on the inside knows about it,” Brigid suggested. There was no way she would pass on the information if it wasn’t relevant, but she was worried it could be something vital to help her find out where Olivia had gone.

  “Alright,” Eve said softly. “The other day when I ran into her, I noticed she was buying a pregnancy test kit. She thought she might be pregnant, but she wasn’t sure. Olivia told me she was going to go home that night and take the test. When I ran into her this morning, I asked what the results were. She said they were positive, but she hadn’t told her husband yet. She wanted to come up with a creative way to tell him.”

  Brigid felt the blood drain from her face. If Olivia was pregnant, that was all the more reason she needed to be safe. Who knew what her abductors could be doing to her? What if something had already happened? Time really was of the essence now. She was absolutely certain Olivia hadn’t left of her own free will when she was making plans to tell her husband she was pregnant.

  “In that case, it’s even more important we find her as soon as possible. Can you remember anything odd about this morning? Possibly something having to do with a white van?”

  Eve had been shaking her head no, but when Brigid mentioned the white van she stopped and looked at Brigid.

  “Wait, there was a white van when I got there this morning,” she said softly.

  “What can you tell me about it?” Brigid said as she dug her notebook out of her purse.