by Scott Pratt
“I hear you. I do. But—” She choked back a sob. “Dad, I don’t know if I can do this.”
“The last thing you want to do is sit here being a victim. If you do and something happens to Sierra, you’ll never forgive yourself. Use your resources. All of them. Your mother and I raised you to be independent and strong, and you’re both. So, stop feeling sorry for yourself and start thinking like a cop. Evaluate the situation, look at the facts, trust your instincts. Hunt down leads and follow them. Get my granddaughter back.”
She breathed in and slowly exhaled. “Okay, Dad,” she said. “I’ll try.”
As they emerged from the room, Danny Smart approached them.
“Can we talk?”
“Sure.”
Danny introduced Brooke to the team that would call her home theirs until the situation was resolved. He explained in detail what she was to do in case of a ransom call, or if Dolan contacted her by any means. She knew the drill. She just never imagined she would be on this side of it.
“Let’s cut to the chase,” Brooke said. “What’s this guy’s agenda?”
“I can’t be sure. But off the top of my head, I don’t think we’re going to be hearing any ransom demands. I know this is going to sound a little strange but think about who we’re dealing with. I think he took your little girl because he knows you’ll come after him hard. I think he wants you to find him.”
“Why would he want me to find him?” Brooke said.
“So he can kill you.”
“And why would he want to kill me?”
“Because you’ve gotten in the way of him doing what he needs to do, and he wants revenge.”
“What does he need to do? Kill hookers?”
Smart nodded. “Exactly. He was just getting revved up, and you got in the way. He thinks you have to pay for what you’ve done to him.”
Chapter Thirty
Brooke walked over to the French doors and stared into the back yard. The tire swing that her dad had tied to the large oak near the back of her property for Sierra last spring was swaying slightly in the breeze. It seemed like an eternity since she’d sat on the deck and watched Sierra swing.
Her mind skipped to the cameras that Dolan had used to spy on her. She opened the doors and walked through the yard to the tree line.
It took her a while to find them, but she eventually located all three. Before she thought it through, she was smashing them on the ground. She stood there looking down at the broken cameras, breathing heavily. How long had they been there? How many times had he sat there in the comfort of his own place watching her and Sierra? The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. She heard a noise behind her and spun around to see her dad walking through the field. She had to get hold of herself.
John Stevens looked down at the smashed cameras and then back at his daughter. Brooke knew the cameras were evidence and should have been processed, but she didn’t care. He didn’t chastise her. He didn’t say anything. Instead he walked up to her, put his arm around her, and walked her back to the house.
As they entered, Brooke heard some type of argument going on, and quickly realized Alex had arrived. Apparently, he had started an argument with the first available person he could find, which turned out to be one of the FBI agents. It was getting heated, and although she could tell the agent was trying hard to keep his composure, he was starting to lose his temper.
Her father broke away and walked up to the two of them.
“Can we try to remain civil, please?” he said. “I understand you’re upset, but—”
“Don’t tell me to remain civil. How would you feel if it was your daughter?” Alex’s tone was demeaning.
“Alex, that’s enough!” Brooke said.
“Shut up. I’ll deal with you in a minute.” Alex took a step toward her, and John Stevens moved to block him.
“Tell her to shut up again, and I’ll break your jaw,” Brooke heard her father say. “Lay a hand on her and I’ll kill you with my bare hands, right here, right now.”
The look on her father’s face and the tone of his voice froze Alex in his tracks. It surprised Brooke, too. She’d never heard that tone from her father. There was genuine menace in his voice.
Danny Smart came to the rescue. “Look, we’re all upset. Let’s try to remain calm. The man to blame is out there.”
Brooke sat down on the love seat. She felt exhausted. She looked up as her dad walked over.
“I’m sorry honey. You shouldn’t have had to hear that with everything else that’s going on.”
“Alex was out of line, and you’re a genuine badass.”
“He’s upset. He’s right about Sierra being his daughter, too.”
Brooke looked around the room. Danny had returned to his task force. They were standing close together in the corner of her living room among the computers, tracking devices and other equipment. It was a scene right out of Criminal Minds.
“I can’t believe it, Dad,” she said. “How? How could this happen?”
Chapter Thirty-One
Lukas needed to keep moving. He left headquarters and drove back to Dolan’s apartment. He checked in with the undercover units that were assigned to watch the house and headed inside.
The apartment was dark. He flipped the light switch next to the door, and a small lamp in the corner of the room switched on. Dark rooms for dark minds, he thought. He took out his mini MagLite and used it to supplement the abysmal lighting so he could take some pictures with his phone. He started with the table the scanner sat on. He found an assortment of pens and scrap papers and a partially-completed crossword puzzle.
A large bookcase was positioned in the back of the room with a mismatched selection of books. He shined his light on the spines of the books. There was a collection of short stories by Edgar Allen Poe, along with several true crime books, all of which dealt with serial killers.
“Does this tell me anything I don’t already know?” Lukas said out loud.
He stepped back and looked at the bookcase. There was something a bit odd about it, he thought. He remembered a couple of training seminars he’d taken that dealt with searching residences. One of them dealt with a tactic some people used to hide things in false compartments. The top of the bookcase was much thicker than the shelves. He began to tap at it, and it sounded hollow. An ornamental lip protruded from the front and Lukas pushed up on it with the heel of his hand. The thing lifted. Lukas shined his flashlight into a large compartment and whispered, “Whoa. This dude was ready for a shootout if it came down to it.”
Inside the compartment was an AR-15 assault rifle, five thirty-round magazines, five hundred rounds of ammunition, a stack of hundred-dollar bills, a K-Bar knife, and a driver’s license. Lukas picked up the license. The photo was of Dolan, but the name on the license was John David Danson. The address was in Chattanooga. There was also a book of matches from a place in Gatlinburg called The Woodbriar Inn.
Lukas called CSU and told them to get someone to Dolan’s place to collect what he’d found. Then he called Danny Smart and told him about Dolan’s alias and asked him to have someone check on the address that was on the license. Danny said they’d start a search on the alias and get banking and property information as well. Lying beside the license was a key with a blue plastic tag that read Anytime Storage. The number 515 was inscribed in gold on the tag. Bingo.
Lukas dialed Rafe’s number and told him what he had found. He asked him to start an application for a search warrant for the storage facility, and to have someone keep an eye on the place until they could get the paperwork completed.
Lukas walked through the apartment one last time and found nothing else. He left and drove the short distance back to headquarters. Snow was falling again.
He walked into the station and went straight to the intelligence analysis office. The office was
staffed twenty-four-seven to assist in any investigative matter that demanded immediate attention. Analyst Hana Fujimoto was on duty.
“Well, look what the cat dragged in. What brings you to my humble place of business?”
“Hey, Hana. Would you run stolen vehicle reports and see if anything comes up regarding a green Ford pickup?
“Sure, no problem.”
“And could you possibly look at the traffic cams from between say 4:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. to see if there are any green Ford pickups coming into Johnson City on any of the routes from Kingsport?”
“That’ll take a little more time.”
“Thanks. I need it as soon as possible.”
Lukas walked back to the detective’s squad room. He looked through the evidence sheets to see if CSU had turned up anything at all. Nothing really jumped out. He turned on his computer and searched for John David Danson. Not a single entry. He wondered how long Dolan had had that alias. If he’d had it for a while, he’d been extra careful about using it.
His cell buzzed. It was Hana.
“Hey, Hana that was quick.”
“I have something you need to see.”
Lukas hurried to her office, and Hana wasted no time giving him her chair as she cued the video on the monitor.
“Here’s a green Ford truck coming in on State Route 36 from Kingsport. It’s not clear enough to see the driver.” The screen changed to the traffic cams at a different intersection that Lukas didn’t immediately recognize. “But here is the same vehicle leaving the city ten minutes later on Highway 11-E.”
Lukas moved closer to the image on the screen. He still couldn’t see the driver, but it had to be Dolan. There was no sign of Sierra, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t in the truck.
“Can you get the tag number from this video?” Lukas said to Hana.
“Hmm, not sure. I might be able to clean it up some.”
“Okay. I’ll relay the information that a green Ford pickup was seen leaving Johnson City, heading west on 11-E, at 5:15 p.m. See what you can do about getting a tag number and call me when you get more details.”
Lukas turned his attention back to where Dolan might be as he walked out of Hana’s office. He didn’t think Dolan could get far in the truck. Every cop between Johnson City and Knoxville would be looking for it. An Amber Alert had been issued, which meant every citizen would also be looking. Halfway back to the squad room, he ran into Rafe, who waved some papers at him.
“Got the warrant for the storage building. Ready to roll?”
“Let’s go.”
The drive to the storage units took less than ten minutes. The owner of the property met them there in the event they needed access, but the key Lukas had found at Dolan’s fit the lock on the door. Lukas opened the door and flipped on his flashlight.
“Holy shit!” Rafe said. “What is this place?”
The room was large.
“It looks like a torture chamber,” Lukas said.
There was a wooden bed in the middle of the room that had chains suspended from the head and foot boards. A pair of stocks were in the corner, and from the looks of them they had been used recently. In the other corner a leather chair swing was suspended from a wrought iron fixture.
On the left side of the room sat a wooden table with a fluorescent light hanging from the ceiling. There were tools lying on top of the table stained with what appeared to be dried blood. The table had numerous stains that Lukas couldn’t identify, but it didn’t take much imagination to figure out what they were. There was a putrid, almost rotten, smell to the place.
“Looks like we found where he tortured and killed them,” Lukas said somberly.
“I’ll get CSU down here,” Rafe said.
“I’m going to head over to Brooke’s and see what’s going on.”
“I’ll stay outside here and wait for CSU. No way I’m staying in this place alone.”
The snow was starting to come down harder. Big, soft flakes fell lazily through the darkness as Lukas began the drive to Brooke’s. Snow had covered the roads. He decided to drive to his house and pick up his Jeep. He tuned the radio to his favorite classic rock ‘n’ roll station and waited for a weather report. Just before he got home, the station got around to the snow report. More snow was on the way, maybe up to six inches.
He made the trip back to Brooke’s where he was let into the house by Brooke’s father. He found Danny bent over a laptop, squinting at the screen with his reading glasses pulled down low on his nose, and walked over to him.
“Any news?”
Danny stood and looked over his glasses in the direction of Brooke, who was lying on the love seat. “I don’t want to sound the general alarm just yet. Is there somewhere we can talk?”
“Sure, follow me.”
Lukas walked out of the living room, down the hall, and into a spare bedroom with Danny in tow. Danny pushed the door shut behind them.
“When we were called in on this, we started watching the financials for Dolan and Pam Wilcox in the event he used bank or credit cards from the accounts. Just a few minutes ago, the bank card that belonged to Wilcox was used at an ATM just outside of Gatlinburg to withdraw five hundred dollars.”
“So, he’s on the grid.”
“We don’t have a location on him. Just the ATM transaction. We’re not absolutely sure it’s him, but the good money says it is. We have a security officer from the bank heading in now to pull the footage to see if it’s him, and we should know something within the next couple of hours. He probably needed money and thought if he used her card instead of his, nobody would notice. In any event, at least now we know what direction to start looking. I contacted the field office in Knoxville and they’re on high alert along with the TBI, the Highway Patrol and the locals. Oh, and we’re up on the financials on his alias, too.”
“That’s great, Danny.”
“We don’t know if he’s just passing through there or whether he’s thrown out an anchor. And we’re still trying to get some information on cell phones and a possible vehicle description.”
“I may be able to help with the vehicle,” Lukas said. “I had our intelligence people pull up the traffic cams, and we found a green Ford truck leaving the city headed in that direction. Couldn’t see the driver, though, and couldn’t make out a tag number.”
“It’s still worth putting out,” Danny said. “Have you found anything at all in his background that linked him to someplace else?”
“I was at Dolan’s place earlier looking around and found a book of matches from a motel in Gatlinburg. The Woodbriar Inn, I believe. It seemed inconsequential, but with the ATM hit it might be important.”
“We might just be closing in on him,” Danny said. “I’ll call and have the locals check it out.”
“Make sure they know who they’re dealing with.”
“What about his co-workers?” Danny asked. “Do you think they would have any information?”
“The ones I talked to didn’t seem to know him very well.”
“What about Gabriele? Would she have any ideas?”
Lukas contemplated the question. He didn’t think he could talk to Gabriele right now. She’d made it clear that she needed space. And deep down, he knew the relationship was in trouble. Probably over.
“Maybe you should call her.”
Danny gave Lukas a sympathetic look. “What happened?”
“I don’t want to get into it. Let’s just say things aren’t good between us right now.”
“Okay, I’ll talk with her to see if she knows anything that might help. Meanwhile, you look like you could use some rest.”
“No way, man. I’ll hang around here in case something breaks.”
Danny smiled at Lukas. “I figured you’d say that.”
Lukas followed Danny down the hall and out to
the living room. He looked over and saw that Brooke had stirred and was sitting up on the couch. She had a strange look on her face, one that told him something was up. He walked over to her just as she stood.
She took him by the arm. “Hey, let’s go out and get a coffee.”
“Are you sure? It’s pretty bad out there.”
“Yes. I’m sure.”
Lukas picked up his jacket and watched Brooke as she bypassed the FBI people and headed straight for the closet in the foyer. She grabbed her service pistol and a thick parka that had POLICE emblazoned on the back and chest. The road in front of Brooke’s house had recently been plowed, but a new film had already started forming. Lukas started the Jeep and knocked the snow off the windows while Brooke went to her cruiser and retrieved a water-resistant parka, her ballistic vest, and a go bag she used for general investigations. Lukas wasn’t sure what she was doing, but it didn’t take long for him to find out. Satisfied that he could see through the windows, he jumped in just as Brooke climbed into the passenger seat and tossed her things in the back.
“Lukas, I heard everything that you and Danny said earlier,” Brooke said. “Sound travels well in my house.”
“Okay, well, Danny didn’t want to wake you up until we knew for sure it was a lead on Dolan.”
“I was never asleep.” Brooke shook her head. “I couldn’t. Just the thought of closing my eyes gives me nightmares. I know you and Danny meant well, everyone does, and I appreciate it. But this is my daughter we’re talking about. We have to do something. I can’t just continue to sit here. Not when I know where she is.”
“We don’t know where she is, Brooke.”
“Let me make sure I have this straight. You saw a green Ford pickup heading out of town toward Gatlinburg on a traffic cam. Then Danny Smart tells you that a credit card owned by a woman Dolan killed was used at an ATM near Gatlinburg. Then you tell Danny you found a matchbook from a place in Gatlinburg in Dolan’s apartment. All true, correct?”