Missing in Cottonwood Springs

by Dianne Harman

  Shaking herself, she realized what she’d seen was a white van. It was parked on the back side of the old Star Motel. Not many people stayed at the old seedy motel unless they were broke or didn’t know any better.

  “Hey, Missy? Would you pull in here?” Brigid asked as she pointed to the gas station located next to the motel.

  “Sure, do you need to use the ladies’ room?” Missy asked, but Brigid didn’t answer. Instead, she patiently waited until the car came to a stop, and then she hurriedly got out.

  “What is she doing?” Missy asked when she realized Brigid wasn’t going to the gas station.

  “I don’t have a clue,” Fiona said, as they watched her.

  Brigid half-walked, half-jogged across the empty parking lot in the direction of the van. It was parked in the very last parking space behind the motel, which sat angled on the property. From the looks of it, the van may have been sitting there when they first drove by, but coming from the other direction, it had been hidden from view.

  Reaching for her phone, she realized she’d left her purse in the car. No matter, she thought. I’ll just get closer to it so I can make sure it’s the same van, then I’ll head back to the car. Drawing closer, Brigid held her breath, as the front of the van came into view. There it was, the damage both Eve and MaryAnn had both described. Part of her told her she should turn around and head back to the car. She knew where the drivers of the van were staying, at least for now, and she also knew the sensible thing for her to do was return to the car and call the sheriff.

  Her body didn’t listen to her mind, and her feet continued to carry her closer to the van. No matter what she rationally thought, she knew she wasn’t done yet. She couldn’t quite get her feet to turn around just yet. Once she was beside the van, she walked around to the back, looking for the license plate.

  “New Mexico, XJB 102,” she whispered to herself. She continued to recite it, as her feet carried her to the motel room the vehicle was parked in front of. Steeling her nerve, she knocked on the door.

  Brigid heard the television volume turned up loudly to a news channel. She knocked again, louder this time.

  Suddenly the door jerked open, and a young man with black hair was standing in the doorway. His white shirt was wrinkled, and he was wearing sweat pants. He fit the description Eve had given her of the younger man.

  “Oh, excuse me. I thought this was my friend’s room,” she lied.

  He gave her a lecherous grin. “We could be friends, chica,” he said giving her a wink.

  “Sorry,” she said, waving as an older man joined him at the door. A chill ran through Brigid’s body when she realized he fit Eve’s description, too. Hurrying away, she didn’t slow down until she heard the door click behind her. She turned to make sure they weren’t following her before letting out a huge breath of air.

  “What in the devil was that all about?” Fiona asked as she climbed back in the car.

  “That’s the van,” Brigid said, winded. Her heart was beating so fast she thought it was going to explode. “And the two guys in the motel room match the description Eve and MaryAnn gave me.”

  “So you decided to go say ‘what’s up’ to them?” her sister shrieked.

  “Pretty much,” Brigid said as she clicked her seatbelt.

  Missy pulled back out onto the road. “If I’d known you were having me pull over so you could try to do some of your vigilante stuff, I would have kept on driving,” she said disapprovingly. “What would you have done if they snatched you right then and there?”

  “I knew you two were watching me. If anything bad happened, you could have called Corey,” she pointed out.

  “Yeah, and hope you weren’t diced up or put on the black market in the meantime!” Fiona yelled.

  “I’m sorry,” Brigid said. “I wasn’t really thinking. I just know we have to find these guys fast, and I didn’t want to wait. Now, we have the license number on their van, and we know where they’re staying.”

  Missy and Fiona looked at each other. “True,” Missy said.

  “Shouldn’t I pull over so you can call Sheriff Davis and tell him what you’ve found?” Missy asked.

  “No, he’s out-of-town this afternoon attending some meeting with other nearby county sheriffs and won’t be back in town until later today. I’ll call him as soon as he gets back,” Brigid replied.

  “All we have to do is tell Sheriff Davis, so he can arrest them,” Brigid pointed out. She couldn’t help but feel as if she’d accomplished something today. First a wedding dress, then, finding two bad guys. It was turning out to be a very good day.

  CHAPTER 11

  Holly was watching the clock, counting down the time before she could close up Fiona’s bookstore. There were two ladies who had been wandering around in the store for quite a while looking at books, which helped pass the time. Holly loved to watch people as they selected their books and moved through the store. There was something about watching people when they didn’t realize they were being watched. It was as if you could see who they really were by their mannerisms. It simply fascinated Holly.

  She’d recently been debating what kind of a career she wanted after she finished college. Part of her had been leaning toward police work, but once she’d started working at the bookstore, she began broadening her horizons. Perhaps her love for watching people meant she should explore psychology or something like that? Holly knew she was getting to that point in her life when she needed to make a choice, but she still felt very uncertain about the future.

  “Are you finished looking?” she heard the shorter brunette woman ask the blonde.

  “I think so,” she replied.

  “Are you ready to check out?” Holly asked as the two women approached the counter.

  “Yes, but it’s just so hard to choose. There are so many good books here,” the first woman said.

  “I know what you mean,” Holly said smiling. “That’s why I like working here. There are a lot more perks than just the coffee.”

  “I bet,” the other one said. “I don’t think I’d ever see a paycheck if I worked in a bookstore.”

  “It’s definitely a challenge,” Holly admitted. “At least I don’t have to worry about bills or anything yet.”

  She handed the first woman her bag with the books she’d purchased and her receipt and started scanning the second woman’s books.

  “That must be nice. I wish I would have thought to work at a bookstore when I was a teenager,” the brunette said.

  “Agreed!” exclaimed the blonde. “Or even the library.”

  “Oh, yeah, the library. That would have been the best.”

  Holly wished them both a good evening and followed them to the door. They began talking about the jobs they had when they were teenagers and started to compare whose was the worst. The brunette said she’d been a waitress while the other one had worked on her grandfather’s farm.

  As far as Holly was concerned, neither job sounded like much fun. She threw the deadbolt on the front door and turned off the open sign. She was five minutes early, but she didn’t think there was going to be a rush on the store this close to closing time. Most people were out enjoying the spring weather.

  Holly stood in the window and watched the trees sway in the gentle evening breeze. People were hurrying home from work or wherever they’d been. Soon they’d be sitting down to dinner and watching the evening news.

  Brigid’s words echoed in her ear. “A woman has disappeared. I don’t want you to go anywhere by yourself, okay?”

  “But I’ve been going places by myself my whole life,” Holly said aloud to herself. “Nothing’s ever happened to me.” Holly tried to take the warning seriously, but people went missing all the time. That didn’t mean someone kidnapped them. Most of them probably disappeared on purpose.

  Holly recalled all the times her mom had gone out on a bender and not come home for days. The first few times Holly had been worried. Of course, she’d only been around seven years
old or so back then. It didn’t take long before Holly had learned how to take care of herself.

  Her phone buzzed with a text, and she picked it up to check it. It was her aunt asking how long Holly wanted to stay with her and what dates she had in mind. She wanted to take Holly to their favorite places while she visited.

  Holly smiled. She had to admit she was really looking forward to this trip. Although she’d never been out of Colorado, she’d always been curious about what the rest of the United States was like. When her mother died, she hadn’t wanted to move out of state and away from everything she’d ever known, but going to visit her aunt was a whole different thing.

  Ever since she’d found out she lived in Springfield, Missouri, Holly had been on the internet looking at images and checking the place out. Although it wasn’t a large city like Denver, it was still bigger than the Cottonwood Springs Holly was used to. She’d never been to Denver before she’d started living with Brigid, so bigger cities were somewhat new to her. She tried to imagine what life would have been like if she hadn’t asked Brigid if she could live with her. Would she have loved it in the city or would she feel out of place?

  Shaking off the thought, she decided it didn’t matter. After all, this was her home now and Brigid was her sorta’ mom. Sometimes she wondered if Brigid regretted letting her stay, especially now that she was going to be marrying Linc. Holly loved them both, and they were great people, but that didn’t mean they wanted a teenage girl hanging around. What if they decided to adopt kids? Brigid was a little too old to have her own, but since neither one of them had had children with their previous spouses, maybe now they’d want to.

  Women were having babies later in life, so it wasn’t out of the question for them to adopt one. Brigid didn’t think they’d have any problem being accepted. Brigid seemed fairly healthy, and Linc acted as though he was much younger. If it weren’t for the grey hair and wrinkles, she’d have been fooled.

  Holly scanned the rows of books in the bookstore, looking for any that needed to be put back before sitting back down at the register. Closing the bookstore for Fiona wasn’t hard. All Holly had to do was straighten it up, count the money in the register, and put the cash drawer in the safe. Easy.

  After counting the money and putting it away, she looked over at the box of new books in the back room. Normally, she’d just head home, but she was dragging her feet tonight. She didn’t want to bother Linc, and she was sure she would have heard from Brigid if they were finished shopping. While she looked through the new books, she debated whether or not she should call them.

  She pulled out a book that looked interesting and tucked it in her backpack. Fiona had told her numerous times she could borrow a book to read if she was gentle with it. She could probably read this one in a day or so. It was about a young girl solving a mystery surrounding her family. Holly felt like she could identify with that.

  Sighing, she decided against calling anyone to pick her up. What was one more ride home going to hurt? One of Holly’s favorite parts of her day was when she was able to ride her bike in the spring air. Winter had been brutal, and she hadn’t ridden as much as she would have liked. Now though, she could. Why pass up great riding weather?

  Pulling on her backpack, she pushed her bike out into the alley. She flipped off the lights before locking the door behind her. Stomach growling, she pulled out her wallet.

  “Just enough money for a bite to eat,” she said. She wasn’t sure what Brigid had planned for dinner, but she was starving. She could swing by somewhere on the way home and get something quick.

  Holly climbed on her bike and began pedaling. Rather than heading home, she circled around to make a quick trip by the burger place. If she hurried, nobody would be any the wiser she hadn’t called for a ride. She began to pedal faster, hoping to make good time.

  CHAPTER 12

  “I’m so glad we were all able to find dresses at such a great price,” Missy gushed as they pulled up to the bookstore.

  “Me, too,” sighed Brigid. “Now I can mark another thing off my list.”

  “Let me talk to a lady in the congregation about the wedding cake. I’ve heard she does spectacular work,” Missy suggested.

  “Oh, is it Lewellen?” Fiona asked as they sat in the car with the engine running.

  “Yes, it is,” Missy said, nodding.

  “I’ve seen her work and I agree. She does a great job,” Fiona said turning to her sister. “I’m sure she could come up with something you’d love.”

  “Thanks. I’d appreciate it if you’d talk to her,” Brigid said. She looked at the darkened store front and sighed, “Looks like we missed Holly.”

  “That makes things easier for me,” Fiona said. “Now I don’t have to be the one to close up the store.”

  “I just hope she called Linc, since I told her not to go anywhere alone until those kidnappers are caught,” Brigid said as she picked up her purse.

  “I’m sure she did,” Missy said brightly. “Holly’s probably at home now, anxious to hear how the dress shopping excursion went.”

  “I hope so,” Brigid said as she scooted toward the door. “I won’t be able to sleep well until these people are caught.”

  “I don’t think anyone will,” Fiona said in agreement. They told each other goodbye and then went their separate ways.

  As Brigid drove home, she kept an eye on the sides of the road just in case Holly had decided to go home alone. She knew the route Holly took to and from the bookstore, so when she pulled up to her house and didn’t see Holly’s bike on the porch, her brow furrowed.

  “Maybe she’s over at Linc’s,” she said aloud to herself, since the lights in her house were all dark, she could tell no one was home. After she’d unlocked the front door and gone inside, she pulled out her phone and called Linc.

  “Well, hello, beautiful,” he said as he answered her call.

  “Did you pick Holly up from the bookstore?” she asked.

  “No, why? Was I supposed to?” he asked.

  “Well, not really. I told her that since Olivia was missing, I didn’t want her to ride around on her bike and go places alone. She was supposed to call me or you to get a ride home rather than ride her bike. I followed her route home and didn’t see her. I assumed she was with you.” Brigid felt a knot beginning to form in her stomach.

  “She’s not here at my house. Why don’t you see if she’s at a friend’s house? Maybe she stopped there for something. I’ll be over in just a minute,” Linc said as he ended the call.

  Brigid went to her text messages and typed up a message. She copied it and pasted it, sending it to Holly’s boyfriend’s father and her other friends’ parents. She crossed her fingers as she sent each one, hoping that someone would text her back that she was with them.

  While she waited to hear from them, Brigid opened the back door and let Jett come inside. He trotted in and headed down the hall towards Holly’s room before returning to the great room where he let out a small whine.

  “Yeah, I know Jett. She’s not here,” Brigid said as she tried her best to stay calm. Her phone vibrated, and she checked the message. As she was reading the first one saying Holly wasn’t there, the rest began to come through, all stating they hadn’t seen her.

  Brigid stood up and began to pace. Where could Holly be? Torn between looking for Holly and calling Sheriff Davis about the possible kidnappers, she couldn’t decide what to do first. Jett, upset at not finding Holly in her room, flopped down on the loveseat in the corner that served as his bed.

  “I know, I’m worried, too, big guy,” Brigid said to Jett as she sat down on the couch. She couldn’t bring herself to sit back, so she simply perched on the edge of the cushion, ready to spring into action.

  A knock on the door pulled Brigid away from thoughts of Holly being kidnapped. “Come in,” she called out, knowing who it was from the knock.

  “Have you found her yet?” Linc asked as he stepped through the door and shut it behind him. Jett
hopped up from his spot and slowly went over to Linc. He seemed to sense that something was wrong.

  “No. I messaged Wade’s dad, along with all the other friends’ parents she’s been to visit. Nobody’s seen or heard from her for a while.” Brigid stood up and began to pace again. “Linc, what if they took her?”

  “You don’t know for sure if Olivia’s been taken,” Linc began, but Brigid silenced him with a shake of her head.

  “I saw them, Linc. When I talked to Eve Sterling, she told me about two men who were driving the vehicle that appears to have been used to take her. She described the van to me, and I saw it when Missy, Fiona and I went dress shopping. I made Missy pull over at a gas station near the motel where it was parked. I went to their room and…,” she was interrupted by Linc.

  “You did what?” Linc bellowed. The sheer volume of Linc’s voice shocked Brigid.

  “The van was right there. I had to make sure it was the same men that Eve and MaryAnn had seen. I didn’t want to send the sheriff over there on a fool’s errand,” Brigid said trying to defend herself.

  “Of all the reckless things,” Linc muttered as he stood up. He walked over to Brigid and pulled her into his arms. He held her for a long time before finally letting her go. “Brigid, please listen to me. You have to think about the possible consequences of what you’re doing. You can’t go off halfcocked.”

  “I knew what I was doing,” Brigid said, jutting her chin out. “Missy and Fiona could see me the entire time. And don’t worry, they’ve already yelled at me about it.”

  “Good, someone’s got to talk some sense into you,” he muttered as he shook his head. “I always knew you were brave, but that was a crazy thing to do.”