A Dangerous Snag (An East Pender Cozy Mystery Book 8)

by Leona Fox

  “I suppose it's natural for a child to want to explore the world. I was the same at his age. I think I even came around a few of these same spots, although I never did anything as violent as slaying a dragon.”

  “He really liked it when he discovered that skeleton of Mr. Van De Lay. I never knew such a thing was possible to be honest, but he couldn't stop talking about it for days. When the whole thing was happening with the mill, he kept saying he didn't want the evil woman to get it. But he knew that somehow you and Andy would sort things out. You always do. He looks up at you as heroes, I guess all of us do in a way.”

  Ellen blushed a little. “We just do our best to help. Thankfully, it's worked for the most part. I am sorry, though.”

  “What for?”

  “If we made this seem glamorous. If we made Scott go off exploring because he wanted to find something like the skeleton again. The last thing we want is for anyone to be in harm's way.”

  “Trust me, Scott would be out there no matter what. He just can't stop himself.”

  The two women and Scampy continued on. Walking through the woods brought back many memories for Ellen. She remembered how her father and mother often would take her for walks through these same trees. As she passed them she spared a moment to place her hand upon the rough bark, wondering about all the stories they could have told if they could have spoken. They must have seen so many people pass before their eyes and Ellen was just one of them. Her father always had encouraged her to explore, and she used to scurry off in front. Often this resulted in her falling over and scraping her knee. Her mother would worry and scold her father, and Ellen smiled as she remembered them bickering.

  What would they think of her now that she was investigating murders and kidnappings and other crimes? Was her life always destined to lead to that sort of thing? She only hoped Scott was not missing and just had lost track of time. Yet, as they ventured farther and farther into the forest it seemed as though the former was more likely, and this chilled Ellen to the bone. East Pender was supposed to be a safe haven, a place where everyone who lived there could trust and honor each other. For a child to go missing would shake the community to its core.

  The forest was peaceful. The lush green trees waved their branches slightly in the breeze. Slits of sunlight broke through the opening in the canopies above, but otherwise the forest was bathed in a green glow. Leaves were crushed underfoot and occasionally a twig snapped. Small animals scurried along the ground, squirrels clambered up trees, pausing to twitch their noses, then carrying on, and birds flew overhead. Scampy remained close to the two women, sniffing intently, not making a sound.

  Ellen tried not to worry Andrea and attempted to keep the conversation as light as possible, but she could tell the strain the woman was under. She couldn't help but think of what it must have been like for Scott to be out here on his own, only to be kidnapped. The fear and shock must have been overwhelming. Was he still safe? Was the person who kidnapped him keeping him fed and watered, or were they going to find a lifeless body? The latter thought was almost too grim to contemplate but Ellen had to think about all the possibilities no matter how dark. If they didn't find him soon then she would have to involve Andy. Although she was afraid of how he would react to another boy going missing, just like...

  She gasped and stopped walking. Andrea turned.

  “What's wrong?”

  “No, sorry, it's nothing. I just thought I saw something in the distance but I think it was just a bird or something, or my eyes are playing tricks on me,” Ellen said.

  But in her mind her thoughts were whirring. Could it be? Could the person who wrote the letters be behind this in some sort of re-enactment of the crime that had so plagued Andy all these years? Suddenly the missing boy took on a greater significance. If it was true then she dreaded telling Andy because she knew he would blame himself for it. With this new theory simmering in her mind, Ellen's pace quickened. Andrea took her through all of Scott's favorite places, yet there was no sign of him anywhere. The snaking stream was flowing along as always but there was no sign anyone had been there. The great gnarled tree, which stood more imposing than any other in the forest, was in its solitude. The old well had not been disturbed, its bucket still at the bottom. Andrea leaned against the stonework and plucked a coin from her pocket.

  “Do you know if this is a wishing well?” she asked.

  Ellen shrugged. Sighing, Andrea tossed the coin into the well, and a moment later heard a satisfying plop. She closed her eyes, then looked in all directions.

  “He could be anywhere,” she said morosely. Ellen walked up to her.

  “We will find him. It may take a little while but we'll get there,” she said.

  Ellen's confidence seemed to fill Andrea with hope, and they began talking about where to look next. Then Scampy began barking and raced off, with the women in hot pursuit. Ellen didn't believe in the supernatural or in luck, but if indeed Andrea's wish had been granted then she was all for it. They followed Scampy through the forest, their hearts lifting with hope. At this point Ellen even would have seen it as a blessing if had Scott been injured. Anything would have been better than the idea of him being kidnapped. Yet when Scampy stopped there was no sign of a little boy.

  “Why? Why has he stopped?” Andrea said.

  Ellen ignored her pleas and went to kneel by Scampy's side. He seemed to be concerned with something on the ground. Ellen caught his head and pulled out the piece of red cloth he had caught in his mouth.

  “Andrea,” Ellen called out, “what color top was Scott wearing this morning?”

  Andrea rushed to Ellen's side. As soon as she saw the piece of cloth, her hand went to her mouth in shock, and she fell to the floor beside Ellen.

  Chapter 4

  Ellen rose and looked around the woods, suddenly feeling unsafe, as though eyes were watching her. Perhaps they were. If this person knew where Andy lived, then they could be in the town right now. They could have been anyone. Ellen pulled Andrea up to her feet, although the woman was too weak and shocked to stand, almost collapsing back to the ground under her own weight.

  “Come on, we have to go,” Ellen said.

  Andrea didn't protest. They walked back to town and made their way as quickly as possible to the police station. Ellen marched up to the front desk and declared she needed to see Andy.

  “Now,” she said, and the officer on duty showed her through to Andy's office.

  When he saw Ellen appear, Andy was relieved and happy. Yet those feelings soon disappeared when he saw the weary look on her face and Andrea's worried expression. He welcomed the two women into his office and caught Ellen's eyes. Something was wrong. As quickly as she could she updated him with the occurrences of the day. As soon as he heard what had happened he sank back into his chair and exhaled sharply.

  The same thought crossed their minds; that this was the same person who had written the letters, but neither Andy nor Ellen wanted to make that a point of conversation with Andrea there. She already had enough to worry about. However, it was difficult for Andy to concentrate. His face turned ashen as Andrea explained what happened and he soon lost himself in his thoughts. When Andrea stopped speaking, she and Ellen realized Andy hadn't been listening to a word she was trying to say. It was up to Ellen to pull Andy aside.

  “We have a job to do here,” she said, having sent Andrea out to get some water. “I know this is tough but we need to show her we can handle it. Don't lose yourself because of this. Remember Andrea needs us to be strong, and so does her son.”

  She finished speaking just as Andrea returned but her words had the desired effect. Andy smoothed down his shirt, took a deep breath, and addressed Andrea.

  “Apologies for being a little distracted earlier. I had a case similar to this a long time ago. Now then, usually we would wait for twenty-four hours before we sent out a search party but I know how stressful these things can be. I don't want you worrying for all of that time, especially since you found t
he scrap of his clothing. Now, I would like to reassure you that that scrap of clothing doesn't necessarily mean he has been kidnapped. However, it is a possibility and we should prepare ourselves for that outcome. I will put together a search party and we'll do our best to find your boy,” Andy said.

  He showed her to a waiting room where she was paired with another officer who took down a formal statement. Andy returned to his office, where he now could speak freely with Ellen.

  “What the hell is this?” he asked.

  “It's the same person, isn't it?” she said.

  “It has to be. I don't want it to be, but it has to be. It's too much of a coincidence. Somehow, they found me. Whoever this is, they want to repeat the crime. It's happening all over again. Ellen, what am I going to do? What if I fail again?”

  He was sitting in his chair with his head in his hands, looking up at her desperately. Ellen went to his side and fell to her knees, clasping his hands in hers.

  “This isn't the same case. You're not the same man you were then. Whomever is sending you the letters is playing some sick game but we're going to beat him at it together. We're going to get Scott back and we'll figure out who is doing this, and why.”

  Her words were determined and they galvanized Andy. He nodded and rose from his seat, then strode out of his office, gathering a troop of officers to go searching the woods.

  “All of you, listen up. There's a possible missing child. This scrap of clothing was found in the woods. We all know how easy it can be for someone to disappear in there. We're going to be treating this as a possible kidnapping but there is a chance the boy just has become lost, and possibly injured. Either way we need to find him as quickly as possible, so gear up and get out,” he barked.

  Ellen loved seeing him like this, a man of action, yet she noticed the worrying glint in his eye. The ghost from his past had reappeared and even Ellen was afraid of what it might do. She joined the police on the search and was helping direct the efforts. The officers were like a black swarm, sweeping through the forest, calling out Scott's name. The disturbance was enough to get everyone else in the town interested. Soon enough there were many volunteers who joined in, notably Kelly and Matthew.

  “What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be planning your wedding?” Ellen said when she saw them approach.

  “Some things are more important than that,” Kelly said.

  “I remember Scott from when he came into the cafe. I can't believe anyone would do such a thing. I couldn't live with myself if I didn't do something to help,” Matthew said.

  “Sadly, there are people in this world who do these things,” Ellen said gravely.

  “And we're just lucky there are people like you who do the right thing,” Kelly said. Ellen smiled appreciatively.

  “How's Andy doing?” Kelly added.

  “He's okay, all things considered. There's, well, there's more going on here than you might think. But I'll tell you about that later,” Ellen said, glancing at all the people around.

  They didn't need to know Andy had been receiving letters, not yet anyway. Matthew glanced at Kelly, and she told him she would explain the significance of this case while they were searching. They went off and joined a search party and, soon enough, it felt as though the entire town had turned out to search for Scott. Even his friends had been let out of sports activities to join in with the search. When Andrea arrived she was overwhelmed with the response from the town.

  “Quite something, isn't it?” Ellen said when she saw Andrea's reaction.

  “I had no idea they all would be here,” Andrea replied.

  “They're all good people. They come when they're needed.”

  “I just hope they manage to find my son,” Andrea said.

  Ellen didn't have anything in reply to that. The day continued and the more hours that went by, the more people began realizing they weren't going to find Scott. Andrea was becoming distraught as some of the search parties returned with bowed heads. Whenever they did so she looked at them to see if there was any sign of her son but there was nothing. Eventually they all had to call it quits.

  “You can't just give up; you can't leave him out there!” Andrea cried as she thought of her son locked in some dank hole somewhere, or lost with a broken leg, unable to move, just as the night encroached upon him.

  Andy tried reasoning with her, tried saying they had to stop because they'd never stand a chance of finding Scott in the darkness but his words fell on deaf ears, and Andrea had to be dragged away. Not that Andy was much better. After everyone had left he still was standing there, looking into the forest. Ellen walked up to him and stood by his side.

  “Come home Andy,” she said softly.

  “I should stay out here. I should go in there alone. Scott's there. Somewhere in that forest somebody has him and the longer we wait the harder it's going to be to find him.”

  “But this isn't the same case as back then--” she began, but Andy quickly interrupted her.

  “Isn't it? So far it's been exactly the same. Whomever is sending me these letters is recreating that case. I didn't do enough then and I'm not going to repeat the same mistakes.”

  “You also can't push yourself to the breaking point. If we're going to find Scott we're going to need you at your best, not scrambling around the forest in the dark. Come back with me and get some rest. We'll resume the search tomorrow.”

  Her words found a way through to Andy and they returned home, although he understandably was distracted all the way.

  “This isn't your fault, you know. Whomever took Scott, that's on them,” Ellen said.

  “I know,” Andy replied, although his words were distant.

  As soon as he got home he turned to Ellen. “I think I'd rather be alone tonight,” and Ellen was crestfallen, but she didn't want to argue with him, didn't want to cause any more tremors right now.

  However, there was a futile air about him, as though their failure was inevitable. She knew she would have to be strong for him and help him get through the coming days. She even thought perhaps she should go back to the well and make a wish herself. If it eventually turned out that Scott had been killed she didn't think there was any way to prevent Andy from giving up everything and spiraling down into depression again. With a heavy heart she drove off and went back home, praying that Andy wouldn't torment himself.

  Andy slammed the door behind him and cursed loudly as he took off his uniform and threw it on the floor. He stared at the badge he wore so proudly and sneered at the thought of it. What good did having this power bestowed upon him mean if he couldn't protect the people who needed it most? He walked to the kitchen and pulled out a bottle of whiskey, staring at it. A long time ago he had drunk from this too many times, had fallen down into an abyss and only just managed to climb out of it.

  He poured and watched as the golden liquid filled up the glass. He breathed in the harsh scent and closed his eyes, remembering the sweet relief it used to bring him, an escape from his torturous existence. He brought the glass to his lips, then he thought of Ellen and Scott and that he had to be at his best to beat this thing. Somebody was trying to tear him down. He had to be stronger than that. He pushed the glass away and moved to the phone, where he dialed a number he had not used for years. It rang a few times, then a voice answered, surprised to hear from him.

  “He's back. I don't know how, but he's back,” Andy said, and his words were met by a stunned silence.

  Chapter 5

  Ellen was saddened that Andy had told her to leave him for the night. As she drove away she almost wished she had been stronger and had insisted she stay with him. Being alone now...it was probably the worst thing. From what he had told her about his time in the city he had distanced himself from his whole life, and that was the beginning of the problem. Now Ellen feared that history would repeat itself. She tried telling herself it would be different because this time he had her in his life. She would be more patient with him than Louise, his fiancé at the
time, had been, and yet part of her worried deeply for him. When she returned home to her empty bed she crawled in and stretched her arms out to the space in which he usually would lay, and with open eyes she silently prayed he would be alright. It wasn't just for Andy's sake that she wanted him to be healthy, but for Scott's as well. If they stood any chance at rescuing the boy, then they would need the police chief at his best.

  A restful night did not greet her but she assumed that this would be the case for most people in the town. Who could sleep peacefully when there was a young boy being held against his will somewhere in the town? The very thought of it shook her to her core. At around two in the morning she rose from bed and did some stretches, then strolled around the house in an effort to calm her mind, for it was not letting her sleep. Her thoughts turned to Andy as she half-considered calling him. She did not expect he was sleeping any better than she was. Yet, she was reticent to reach out after he asked her to be left alone. It was a difficult thing, to see the man she loved take on this burden. She wanted to be there for him, wanted him to know they could face this together but she didn't know how.

  All the romantic relationships in her life had been light and breezy. Never had she reached the level where she had to face desperate situations with the other person, the kind of situations that either broke apart a couple or strengthened their bond. Now she worried that this was the latter. She stood leaning against her kitchen counter with a glass of warm milk, staring at the digital clock on the microwave, reminding her that it was a stupid hour of the morning. She promised herself she and Andy would be the second type of couple, the type where they came through adversity hardened and stronger, like a sword forged in blazing fire.

  With that decided, Ellen returned to bed and managed to fall asleep fairly peacefully and, though she only got about five hours sleep, she still felt rested. However, when she went to Andy's house first thing in the morning she found him looking disheveled with bags under his eyes and a shadow on his jowls. He shaved every day, and thought it was important as a cop to appear friendly and clean-shaven. His genes were such that he grew a thick beard very quickly. So even though it only had been one night since she last had seen him, the shadow around his jaws was evident.