by Jill Sanders
She grabbed one end of the blanket and tugged, eager for another source of warmth and wanting some connection to whoever was keeping her captive.
“Why are you doing this?” she asked. The person on the other side of the door let go of the blanket and seemed to go still. When there was no reply, Kristen asked, “Does this have to do with Tyler?” No response again.
Since she’d had nothing but time while trapped in the cave, she thought she’d worked a few things out in her mind and took a chance. “Did Dennis Rodgers send you?”
That got a response. Suddenly, there was a bang on the other side of the door as if someone had kicked it. She jumped back, expecting it to open, and held her shoe up as a weapon. But instead of the door opening, she heard footsteps receding.
She couldn’t stop the tears from falling as silence once again filled the cave. She moved over to her corner, tucked herself into the ragged blanket and sleeping bag and cried, shivering, until she fell asleep.
Tyler gave up on sleep. He had a couple hours until sunup when he knew that everyone would be spending the day searching for Kristen.
Deciding he needed a shower and some space to clear his head, he rolled out of the guest bed and headed to his car. He’d drive into town and try to retrace Kristen’s path before the search started. He needed to be moving.
He was at the outskirts of town when he passed a truck. At first, he didn’t think anything about it, lost in his thoughts of Kristen. The snow was gathering in big drifts, swirled by the biting wind.
Something nagged him about that truck. Who else would be out at this time of day, in this weather?
He was more than a little tired but knew that he couldn’t rest until he found out something about who had taken Kristen. He pulled off the road, waited for the truck to pass him, then followed.
When he saw the truck pull into a residential area, Tyler parked a block away and killed his headlights. Tyler watched Dennis Rodgers get out of his truck and sneak back into his house. The way Tyler figured it, either the man was cheating on his wife of ten-plus years or he was hiding something.
When he saw the light inside go off, he waited ten minutes before getting out of his truck and walking over to Dennis’s work truck.
Tyler pulled out the flashlight that he’d tucked in his jacket pocket. Using it, he searched the inside of the man’s truck. He was about to turn away when something caught his eye. His heart stopped for what seemed like a full minute, until he heard buzzing in his head, and then it sped up.
Without thinking, he reached for the door handle, opened the back passenger door, and bent down. There, on the floorboard of Dennis’s work truck, was one of Kristen’s shoes.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Tyler marched toward the house. When he banged on the door, both his hearing and eyesight had narrowed. He was ready for anything. Anything except Dennis’s second wife, Crystal, opening the door a minute later, instead of Dennis himself. Her hair was tousled and she held a bathrobe tightly around her body against the chill wind outside.
“Where’s Dennis?” Tyler barked. He wanted to shove past the woman but knew they had two small kids in the house and he didn’t want to scare them.
“He’s asleep. Is there a problem?” she asked, looking worried. Crystal was easily half Dennis’s age and everyone had wondered why the woman had married the man several years back.
“Wake him.”
As Crystal disappeared, he punched a text to Trent.
Over at Dennis’s place. Found one of Kristen’s shoes in his truck. Call Mike & get your ass over here. Now.
He tucked his phone back into his pocket without waiting for a response. Thankfully, he hadn’t touched the shoe. The police should still be able to gather the evidence they’d need.
Just as Dennis walked out of the back room, Tyler heard the far-off sirens and smiled.
“What seems to be the matter?” Dennis started. For a man who was supposedly asleep a moment ago, he looked awfully alert.
Tyler didn’t give him a chance to say anything else before he had the man pulled into the cold and pinned against the front door.
“Where is she?” he growled. His entire body was ready, eager for the man to fight back. When he did, Tyler gave him two quick jabs in the gut and had him back up against the wall. “I’ll ask again.”
He heard Crystal screaming, then heard her calling the police for help.
“I’ve already called the cops.” He glanced over his shoulder. “And, from the sounds of it, they’re already on their way.” He turned back to Dennis. “Why don’t you do yourself a favor and answer my question before they get here?”
“What the hell are you talking about?” Dennis asked, but Tyler pushed him again, causing Dennis’s head to bang on the wall.
“What did you do with Kristen?” he asked.
“I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about. You’re crazy,” Dennis said.
“Then why the hell is her shoe in the back of your truck?” Tyler watched as shock and fear crossed the man’s face.
“It’s probably one of Crystal’s.” His lame reply was nearly drowned out by the wailing sirens at the curb.
“Crystal,” Tyler said, looking over his shoulder at the woman. “Do you own a pair of Jimmy Choos?”
“N . . . No. I could never afford . . .” She dropped off as her eyes moved to her husband. “Dennis?”
Just then Mike and Tom rushed to the front door, yelling at Tyler to get his hands up. He still held Dennis firmly against the wall.
“Where is she?” he asked again as Mike screamed for him to let the man go. “Mike, I’m not letting him go until he tells me where Kristen is.”
A moment later, he was tackled by Tom and shoved to the cold ground.
Handcuffs were placed on him as Dennis started spewing lies.
“He’s gone crazy. He broke in here and tried to kill us,” Dennis screamed.
“Mike,” Tyler said calmly as he looked up at his friend and the chief of police. “In the back of his truck, there’s a caramel-colored shoe. It’s Kristen’s.”
Hearing this, Mike took Dennis by the arm and held him in place.
“He took Kristen,” Tyler said again as Tom helped him up. “Let me loose. I won’t fight you.” He said to Tom.
Tom looked to Mike, who nodded.
Dennis broke free, shoving Mike forward into Tom and Tyler. The four men went sprawling into a snowdrift. Since the handcuffs were biting into Tyler’s wrists, he had a harder time getting up than Dennis and Tom.
Mike wasted no time rushing after Dennis while Tom helped Tyler back up.
“I’m fine, go help,” he yelled, but Tom stayed put. Before he could ask Tom to remove the handcuffs, he heard a scuffle halfway down the block. Mike and Trent appeared, dragging an unconscious Dennis between them.
“Thanks for your help,” Mike told Trent.
“No problem.” Trent smiled. “I’ve been wanting to punch that son of a . . .” Trent stopped when he saw Crystal standing in the doorway, watching everything that was going on. She was shivering, looking shocked and very pale.
The next hour was spent hauling Dennis down to the police station. He’d regained consciousness moments after they’d cuffed him for the ride downtown, and had started screaming and demanding he be released and that Tyler and Trent be arrested for assault.
That was until Tom pulled Kristen’s shoe from the back floorboard of Dennis’s truck and placed it in an evidence bag.
Tyler was thankful when Tom released him from the handcuffs, but he knew he was in deep trouble when Mike informed him that he was to follow them down to the station.
By the time they had booked Dennis, Tyler was completely exhausted. The sun hadn’t quite risen, but the snow had slowed some. He was sitting at Tom’s desk along with Trent when his mother and Trey walked in. They were followed by a woman. Her eyes were red like she’d been crying.
She had green eyes—the same green eyes as Kriste
n.
Silently, he walked over and gathered Kristen’s mother in his arms and held onto her as she cried.
“We’ll find her,” he said. “I promise.”
“What made you go over to the Rodgers’ place this morning?” Tom asked when he sat back down.
“I followed him back into town. I was restless, driving around . . .” Tyler stopped himself from admitting he hadn’t slept at all the night before. “I noticed his truck, out in the weather at an odd hour, and so I turned around and followed him home. I watched him sneak back into his house.”
“Why look in his truck?” Tom asked.
“It was just a hunch,” he said.
“You didn’t plant the shoe there?” Tom looked up at him over his reading glasses.
“No.” Tyler narrowed his eyes.
“Dennis is saying that you did.”
“He’s lying.” He leaned back.
“Where were you?” Tom asked. “Before you followed Dennis home.”
“He was with us at home, at our mom’s place. We all were there,” Trent answered.
“Dennis claims you planted the shoe in his truck,” Tom said again.
“I didn’t,” Tyler said plainly again. “Besides, Mike has already confirmed that I was in my office when Kristen went missing. Where was Dennis?” Tyler uncrossed his arms.
“We’re checking his whereabouts. He claims he was at home.” Tom wrote down a few things.
Just then, Crystal walked in. She had one child in a stroller and another one walked behind her, holding her hand. Everyone watched as Tyler’s mother walked over to meet the weary mother and picked up the sleepy boy.
“Hi there, Jack. Why don’t I take you and your sister into the other room?” His mother glanced to Crystal, who nodded her agreement. His mother pushed the stroller as she carried the boy into the waiting area.
“Where is my husband?” Crystal asked Tom, glancing a few times at Tyler.
“We’re questioning him.” Tom pulled out another chair for her. “Why don’t you sit down? I have a few questions if you feel up to it.”
She nodded as she sat down.
Tom glanced down at his notes. “Do you know where your husband was when Kristen Howell disappeared?” He listed the date and time for her and Tyler could see that Crystal was thinking about it.
“I’m not sure. Usually, he doesn’t get off work until later in the evenings.”
“Does he ever come home for lunch or on breaks?”
“No,” she said firmly. “He used to, but it’s been almost a year since . . .” She twisted her hands and glanced toward the waiting area. Her son, Jack, was sitting on Tyler’s mother’s lap as she rocked the stroller slowly, trying to keep the baby asleep. “No, he normally doesn’t come home during the day,” she said again.
“What about yesterday?” Tom asked.
“No,” she whispered. “Is he in trouble?”
“Do you own a pair of . . .” Tom glanced down at his notes. “Jimmy Chow shoes?”
Tyler sighed. “Choo,” he corrected.
“Oh, right.” Tom made some changes in his notes. “Choo.”
“No, like I said, I can’t afford . . .” She shook her head. “No, I don’t.”
“Do you know how one might have gotten in the back of your husband’s truck?” Tom asked.
“No,” she replied softly.
“Where was Dennis this morning?” Tyler asked.
“He was home. Asleep with me,” she answered.
“That’s not true. I watched him sneak into the house just before I knocked on your door.”
He watched Crystal frown. She’d been a year behind him in school. He remembered a time when she’d been pretty and popular. Now, she looked tired and stressed out. Her sandy hair was tied up, away from her clean face. Her clothes were baggy. Even though she’d lost the baby weight, she hadn’t ditched the maternity clothes. He supposed being married to someone twice her age had caused her to age prematurely. He knew that Dennis’s first wife had left him years ago and moved to California. What Crystal ever saw in Dennis was a town mystery.
“He was in the bathroom when I heard you pounding on the door,” she said.
Tom wrote a note. “When was the last time you’re sure he was in the house?”
She thought about it before answering. “We went to bed shortly after nine. Since the kids have come along . . .” She shook her head and sighed. “We don’t usually stay up late after dinner. The second Beth goes down, we get what sleep we can with a one-year-old.” Her eyes moved over to where her kids were.
“Where is he keeping Kristen?” Tyler asked, only to have Tom break in.
“Tyler,” the man warned.
“What?” Tyler replied. “We’re running out of time.” The weather forecast had promised more snow in a few hours, and temperatures had been consistently frigid since Kristen had disappeared.
Tom sighed and then nodded. “Does your husband have someplace he likes to go? By himself?”
Crystal glanced around, then nodded slowly. “He has a cabin.”
“Where?” Tom asked, then wrote down the location when she told him the address. “Anyplace else?” he asked.
“There’s the cave. He’s taken me there several times. Well, we used to go hiking there, before the kids.” She sounded sad and frustrated.
“Can you tell me where?” Tom asked and jotted down the directions as she gave them out.
Tyler knew exactly where both were and stood up.
“Tyler,” Tom warned. “Mike will want to . . .”
Tyler glanced down at the man. “One way or another, if I find anything, I’ll be back for Dennis,” he said as he walked out.
“I’ll take the cabin,” Trent said, heading toward the parking lot.
“I’ll go with you,” Trey added, following Tyler.
Trent said, “If I don’t find anything, I’ll meet you up at the cave site. If I remember, it’s a labyrinth up there. You might want to stop by the house and get some flashlights.”
Kristen struggled to wake up. Her entire body was frozen. Her muscles screamed at her from dehydration. The two small bottles of water weren’t helping much. Her hands and fingers were frozen. She’d gained several blisters from working on breaking through the wood. She had a few cuts and splinters that she was thankful she couldn’t feel much. Her feet were red and covered in blisters from either the cold or the stone floor.
She’d given up trying to pry the wood away. It was just too thick and strong. Instead, she tucked the sleeping bag around herself and sat in the corner, shivering as she felt a new blast of cold air enter the cave.
Closing her eyes, she couldn’t even muster enough strength to cry anymore. She’d retreated into the depths of her mind, so far that memories from so long ago seemed like just yesterday.
Scene after scene flashed in front of her eyes. Images of the people she loved. Even those she didn’t like, such as her aunt, haunted her mind.
A memory of her father surfaced. She’d been eleven years old when he’d left, too young to lose her father because he’d found someone better to love.
She remembered she’d cried as he packed his things up. Her mother stood in the doorway and watched him leave. Kristen could remember seeing the other woman, now his wife, sitting in the front seat of the car, smiling.
Maybe that was why she’d always feared intimacy? It was her father’s fault that she had a fear of being hurt like her mother had been.
Sure, she’d owned up to the fact that she cared deeply for Tyler, but she had yet to admit to him that she loved him. After all, how could she fall so hard for someone so quickly? Love didn’t work that way. Did it?
Memories of Tyler flooded her dull mind. Seeing him for the first time as she stood on the ladder of the plane. His rugged, handsome face as he laughed at her fur boots. The frustration she’d seen in his eyes after dealing with his uncle. The hurt in his eyes when she’d told him she was leaving. The joy when she’d
told him she was staying. The pleasure in his eyes when he’d kissed her. The heat in his eyes as he’d seen her standing in the doorway in barely anything.
She shifted and held in a cry as her bones felt brittle, ready to break in the cold. She was past the point of shivering. It was too cold and she knew that as she drifted off, it would be the last time she’d fall asleep.
In her dulled mind, she realized that the one thing she would regret the most was not telling Tyler how she felt.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Tyler drove like the hounds of hell were chasing him. He knew that Tom and the guys from the station were following him, but didn’t care if they issued him a ticket . . . later.
He made it to the parking area in record time. “I’ve got a flashlight in the glove box,” he told Trey.
“We should have stopped . . .” Trey stopped talking when Tyler pulled out the other flashlight from his pocket. “Never mind,” he said, following Tyler out of the truck.
“There are three caves,” he said, starting up the path. “Let’s hit the first one together, then we can split and take the last two separately.” He broke into a run.
His body screamed at him. He’d gone without dinner and the frigid cold seeped through his heavy jacket. Snow and ice made the trail treacherous.
“The first cave is about a quarter of a mile up,” Trey said, just behind him.
Their flashlights barely lit up the pathway, causing them to slow to a stumble.
“It’s got to be below freezing,” Trey said, earning him a glare from Tyler.
“She’ll be okay,” he kept saying over and over as they made their way up the trail.
When they reached the first cave opening, his cell phone buzzed.
“She’s not in the cabin. I’m heading your way,” Trent said quickly, then hung up.
“He’s coming to us,” he told Trey. “She’s here,” he said, feeling it in his bones. “She’s got to be here.” His light hit the dark cave and he knew instantly that no one had entered it in months.