by C. M. Sutter
He handed me the file. I wrote down the security officer’s name, phone number, and address. “Thank you, sir. Here are our cards. If you think of anything else, please call us. We appreciate your help.”
I closed the glass door at our backs, and we left the building. We walked through the parking lot back to the cruiser.
“So where does this dude live?” Jack asked.
I opened my notepad. “Let’s see. His name is Ollie Miller, and he lives on the south side of town. Actually, he only lives a few blocks from me. I’ll give him a call.”
Chapter 32
Jeremy sat near the barn on the bench seat of the splintered, paint-bare picnic table. A half-dead basswood tree hung above his head and threw shadows across the yard. He drank a Mountain Dew as he stared out at the overgrown weed-filled land to his south. The screen door slammed, causing him to instinctively turn his head that way. Matt and Cage were walking toward him. Smoldering embers kept the burning barrel hot, and smoke threaded up to the still sky.
“What are you burning?” Matt asked as he passed the rusty fifty-gallon drum. He threw a bright orange Frisbee, and Cage took off after it.
“The damn boots. Those girls will wear what we give them to wear, something suitable like nothing on their feet at all. That will help keep them from running.” Jeremy got up and chased the Frisbee. He gave it a fling across the yard. Cage jumped and caught the plastic disc in mid-air. Jeremy looked at his watch. “Liz’s auction ends in a half hour. Guess I should get back downstairs and see how it’s going.”
“I checked ten minutes ago.”
“And?”
“And she still had three hundred bucks to go before the reserve would hit.”
“Damn it. If she doesn’t sell this time, she’s going in the ground next to Beth. Six grand isn’t asking too much for her. Sundays are slow, but I guess we’ll see.”
Matt picked up the disc and gave it another hard throw. Cage was on it in no time. “What about the two new girls? Are we going to wait until next weekend before we list them? That’s a long time.”
“Nah—I’ll put them on a three-day auction. We’ll start it first thing Thursday morning so it ends Saturday at midnight. They should do well. We’ll start packing up after that.”
Jeremy whistled, and Cage ran toward him. “Come on, boy, get back in the house.”
They walked down to the basement, where Matt handed each girl a banana and a bag of chips through the wires of their enclosures. “Back up so I can put water inside.”
Jeremy leaned against the doorway to the video room and watched as each girl slid to the farthest corner of her cage. Matt opened the gates and passed bottles of water through.
“Why are we here? What are you going to do with us?” Megan asked, choking back the tears.
Matt looked toward Jeremy and grinned. He sat down on the chair across from the cages and cocked his head. “Really? Come on, Meg. You look like a smart young lady. What do you think we’re going to do with you? I’m sure you ladies have had a lot to talk about, haven’t you?” Matt got up and walked around the corner. Jeremy handed him the baby monitor from the top of the jelly cupboard. “Do you know what this is, Megan?” Matt asked when he returned to the chair.
“Yes.” She burrowed her head against her chest and quietly cried.
“Yeah, that’s what I thought. We listen to all of your conversations down here. Remember that. You and Jenna are going to be long gone in a week or so, so I’d suggest you enjoy our company while you can. You never know what kind of freak is going to snap you up at your auction.” He smirked and walked away.
“Come on, let’s check the bids,” Jeremy said. “The auction is going to end in a few minutes.”
Matt joined Jeremy in the video room and closed the door at his back. They both sat on roller stools and scooted in closer to the screen.
Jeremy hit the refresh icon. “Five minutes left, Liz. Your life is hanging in the balance. Either someone is going to save you or you’re doomed to be worm food.”
At the two-minute mark, the reserve button illuminated green.
“Check it out, man. She hit the reserve—sweet!” Matt high-fived his brother, and they both leaned back and relaxed with a sigh. “Anything in the next two minutes is pure bonus.”
The bidding ended, and Liz went for seven thousand dollars to somebody in Tennessee.
“That’s cool,” Jeremy said. “I bet they’ll just drive here to pick her up. It can’t get much easier than that.”
Jeremy confirmed that the seven thousand dollars was deposited in their account, powered down the computer, and they walked out. Matt hit the wall switch and closed the door behind them.
“You’re sold, Liz. Guess you aren’t going in the ground after all,” Jeremy said as he reached for the handrail and went upstairs.
Matt headed for the kitchen. He pulled the handle on the freezer door and knelt down to look inside at their dinner choices. “Feel like a pizza?” he asked.
Jeremy had just settled on the couch and reached for the remote. Cage jumped up, spun a few times, and found a spot in the corner.
“Comfortable?” Jeremy patted Cage’s hindquarters, held down the channel selector with his thumb, and began scrolling through the stations. “Yeah, pizza sounds good. What the hell?” Jeremy sat up straight and hit the pause button. “Shit—Matt, get in here.”
Matt looked around the doorframe. “What’s wrong?”
“Sit down and watch this. This just came on the news.”
Matt sat on the chair next to the couch, his elbows resting on his knees while he leaned forward. With the remote in his hand, Jeremy rewound the news to where he’d started watching it. He hit Play. The anchorman explained that the video on the screen had been captured last night at the Westchase Mall in North Bend. The image showed two women loading their trunk with shopping bags, then a white van came into view. It stopped at the car, blocking the camera, then sped off less than a minute later. The women were gone, and the car remained. Jeremy was thankful that the video was somewhat grainy. The anchor went on to tell the viewers the names of both girls, then a split screen showed their faces. After the commercial, the anchor said they had just received more information on a white van seen at the mall yesterday. He said this particular van had solid back doors, Montana plates with an A and an E in the number, and the background of the license plate was a ghost town. The anchorman went on to explain that although that might not be the same van as in the video, anyone who saw this van should call the Washburn County Sheriff’s Department immediately.
“What’s this?” Jeremy’s back stiffened, and he wrung his hands. His forehead furrowed so that his eyebrows almost touched. “Now they’re showing a taped segment from the night before too? We totally missed that one. Son of a bitch, there’s that sergeant from the bar I told you about. See the chick sitting on the right side of the podium? That’s the one who was the sister of the bartender at Joey’s. I’ll be damned. She must be important to be sitting in on that press conference. Damn it to hell, she knows my face too.” Jeremy threw the remote across the room.
“So what if she knows your face? She doesn’t actually know who you are. You were just another person getting two beers at the bar.”
“Right, but I talked to her.” Jeremy ground his fists into his eyes.
“If we’re never caught, it’s a moot point, dude,” Matt said.
“Okay, I have to think about this. First off we have to paint the van and steal some local plates. We’ll get the paint tonight. Daylight is too risky. See where the next largest town is north of here.”
Matt did a Google search on his phone. “We’ll have to go to a superstore that’s open late. Everything else closes early on Sundays.”
“Yeah, let’s go. We’ll hit a few of them. You’ll go in and get paint at one, then I’ll go in and get more at another. Put a baseball cap on and cash only. So where are we going?”
“There are two big-box stores in Deerfie
ld, about ten miles north of here. I’ll grab the flashlight and some tools. We’ll need them for the license plates. I guess the pizza can go back in the freezer for now.”
Chapter 33
Jack and I had just wrapped up our interview with Ollie Miller. He told us his routine was to walk the mall interior for a two-hour stretch, then he patrolled the parking lot in his security car for the same amount of time. He went back and forth regularly for the length of his shift except for a half-hour lunch break in the food court at seven thirty. All of the security guards did it the same way, according to him.
We thanked him, got in the cruiser, and left.
“Okay, so Ollie’s shift is from three until eleven, and he always starts inside. That means he was outside patrolling the parking lot from five to seven and then again from nine until eleven. He never saw the van outside, just like he said.” I watched as cars whizzed by from both directions. “Okay, you’re good to pull out.” Jack turned left and headed east. I continued with my train of thought. “The girls were abducted just after eight fifteen. The first time Ollie noticed the car sitting there was after the mall closed and the parking lot emptied out. He doesn’t know anything—another dead end.”
Jack groaned and raked his fingers through his hair. “Give the lieutenant a call. Maybe Todd and Billy got a hit on the plates. The news must have aired the segment already too.”
“Yeah, good idea.” I dialed the lieutenant’s office phone. He answered right away. “Hey, boss, anything on the plates?”
“Yeah, they were reported stolen several months ago. The news just aired the segment about the girls and showed the mall footage. Guess we jumped the gun on the plates, but if our perps are stupid enough to leave them on the van, it could still help us identify the vehicle.”
“True, but that sucks. They sure know how to cover their tracks.”
“We’ll get them, one way or another.”
“I know that, boss. I never doubted it. Jack and I are heading back. We’ll see you in a few.”
Jack pulled into the lot and parked the cruiser. We went inside, and I handed the lieutenant my gas receipt from that morning.
“Isn’t there a designated person that’s supposed to keep the cruisers full of gas?” I asked with a huff.
“Yeah, I’ll get on them tomorrow. Do you two want to watch the news footage from earlier?”
Jack spoke up, “Sure, why not? Jade, do you want a soda?”
“Yes, please.” I walked into the break room and plopped down at the long lunch table facing the TV on the wall. Jack dropped two quarters into the vending machine, hit the button for root beer, gave the machine a swift kick, and two cans dropped out. He turned and grinned while I shook my head.
“Someday you’re going to get busted, mister.”
“Not unless you rat me out.” He carried the cans over and sat down next to me.
I clicked on the TV to the recorded news segment from earlier. We watched it together as we drank our sodas. Anyone that might have been parked in that vicinity could have seen the van sitting at the back of the lot. Hopefully, that news segment would spark a memory for somebody and they would call in details that we could use.
I turned off the TV after the news segment, and Jack hit the light switch. We walked the hallway back to the bull pen.
“If there’s nothing else, boss, I’m going to head home. It looks like everyone else is packing it in too.”
“Yeah, go ahead and get out of here, Jade. I’ll update Jamison and Horbeck when they get in. All of you have put in a full weekend, and I appreciate it. Get a good night’s rest. Tomorrow starts a brand-new week.”
I groaned. “Don’t remind me.”
Jack and I walked out to the parking lot. Billings and Clayton were right behind us.
“Good night, guys.”
“Night, Jade. Night, Jack. See you in the morning. Don’t forget, that new ME is starting tomorrow. I’m sure Jason will bring her upstairs and introduce her to everyone.”
“Do you know her name?” Jack called out.
“Um, I think her name is Leona something,” Billings said.
“Leona? It sounds like she’s seventy years old.”
I elbowed Jack. “Be nice. We’ll find out for ourselves tomorrow. Go home and get some sleep.”
“Yes, Mom. Good night.”
I watched as Jack drove away, then I got into my own car and left. I drove through town, heading south to my new condo, my cathartic place. Occasionally I sat on my deck late at night with a glass of wine. I needed that time to relax before bed, to wind down and look off into the deep woods ahead of me. The quiet kept me grounded. My job was hectic lately, but it was what I’d signed up for and what I loved. It kept me on my toes, and I couldn’t imagine anything else I’d rather do. Taking down the bad guys was in my blood, something I’d wanted to do from early on. My pop instilled that in me as a teenager. I never took anyone’s guff, not then and not now.
My car idled at the red light at the intersection of South Main and Highland. Ideas bounced around in my brain about ways to capture the villains that were abducting these innocent young women. I could only imagine how frightened they must be, and it fueled my need to catch these men quickly. Tomorrow, we would recap everything we’d done so far and plan new tactics. Hopefully the news broadcast would bring in fresh leads too.
A flash of white zapped me out of my thoughts and back into the present. A white van just passed through the green light, heading west on Highland. I quickly looked over my shoulder to make sure nobody was in my blind spot and pulled into the right lane. Being off duty and in my personal car didn’t give me the right to pull over any random van just because it was the same color as a vehicle we had a BOLO for. I spun around the corner and followed three car lengths behind, my pulse racing. The van turned into a subdivision near the hospital. I continued behind it, inching up closer to check the plates. I knew by now the criminals we were after could have easily swapped out the plates with another set of stolen ones. The van turned again and pulled into a driveway. I slowed down and waited along the curb with the house in plain sight. Relief and disappointment swept across me when I saw a man, woman, and three kids get out and walk up the sidewalk to the front door. I pulled away from the curb when they went inside, then I headed for home.
Chapter 34
“Here’s the list of things for you to get. Fifty bucks should cover it.” Jeremy parked the van a half block away from the store entrance.
Matt clicked on the overhead light and looked at the sheet of paper. “Okay, five cans of primer and a roll of masking tape.”
“Yeah, that’s it. I’ll get the paint and a roll of paper towels to cover the windshield and door windows at another store. Keep your head down and the baseball cap on at all times. Make it fast. Walk tight along the building where the cameras can’t see you. I’ll scope out the parking lot while you’re inside. If I see a vehicle parked far enough away without cameras close by, we’ll swap the plates when you come back out. Oh yeah, add work gloves to your list—two pair of large ones. Call me when you’re coming out. I’ll be on the far right end of the lot.”
Matt nodded and exited the van. Jeremy waited until Matt was inside the building then began to troll the outer edges of the parking lot. He wasn’t having any luck. Cameras were attached on the tall light poles scattered throughout the lot. He’d have to come up with another plan.
He parked along the right side of the lot across the street from the store. Jeremy waited for fifteen minutes, then his phone rang out.
“You done?” Jeremy continued to check the side mirrors as he talked.
“Yep, I have everything. No problems. I’ll be out in a minute.”
“Good.” Jeremy hung up and watched the lit entryway to the store.
Matt exited and hugged the side of the building as he walked. He crossed the street and climbed into the van, then Jeremy took off.
“We aren’t swapping the plates here?”
“Nah—there’s cameras every fifty feet. Let’s go to the next store. I’ll get the spray paint, then we’ll find a quiet residential street, someplace dark to snag different plates.” Jeremy drove seven blocks to the next superstore and parked the van just outside the lot. “Keep your eyes peeled for trouble. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”
He got out and stayed in the shadows. He was gone for barely ten minutes. Back at the van, he tossed the two plastic bags full of spray paint and paper towels into the back and climbed in.
Matt turned the radio on and scanned the stations, trying to find one that wasn’t playing commercials. He settled on a country station and tapped his fingers on the dash while Jeremy drove, skirting the outer edge of the parking lot. Jeremy noticed Matt staring out the side window at families exiting the store. Kids rode the bottom rail of the carts, squealing as they zoomed through the parking lot and heading toward parked cars. They both chuckled.
“It’s gotta be nice.”
“What’s that?”
“You know, to be a kid. No cares, no worries—having decent parents. That sort of thing.”
“You getting sentimental on me, bro?”
Matt smirked. “Nah—just wondering what it feels like, that’s all.”
Jeremy turned down the radio. “Maybe we’ll both have kids someday.” He glanced across the van at Matt and laughed. “Or not. Come on. We have to focus. There’s bound to be exactly what we need parked along the curb somewhere. Look for a quiet residential neighborhood.”
He pulled out onto the busy street and drove a few more blocks. Large overhead lights illuminated the area, and retail stores lined both sides of the street. Jeremy looked down every side street and finally turned right. A quiet, older neighborhood lay ahead. With his neck craned, he looked up through the windshield and grinned. “Hope Street—a fitting name. I hope we find a car parked along the curb, away from streetlights. He continued on until the street intersected with Melody Lane. A pickup truck sat at the last house on Hope Street. Two cars filled the driveway, making it nearly impossible for the homeowners to see anything the brothers might be doing out on the street. The drapes on the front window of the house had already been closed for the night, and the porch light was off.