by Sara L Foust
“Not much. Your dad bought another motorcycle. He says if he can get this one running ‘right,’ we’re coming cross-country to see you.”
Annalise choked on her Sprite. “By motorcycle?”
“You know your father. Big ideas.”
“Yeah.”
“Big dreams, Annalise. Never hurts to have ’em.”
They’d always told her the same thing, as far back as she could remember. She used to believe it. Maybe not so much anymore since Dave chose her.
“You okay, baby girl?”
“Signed the papers earlier today. And now we have a missing tourist.”
Her mom’s loud sighed echoed through the speaker. “Oh, sweetie, I’m so sorry. I wish we’d known then what we know now about the pond scum jerk.”
Ouch. Was it normal to still love your ex? The one who’d clearly moved on with his mistress and forgotten all about you in less time than it took to plan the beautiful, perfect-day wedding that spring day seven years ago? The wedding where that she-devil mistress was nowhere in sight—either physical or premonitionally.
“I just wanted to say I love you, Mom. I’m about to be out of cell service again.”
“Be careful, baby girl. We love you too.” Her mom kissed the air. “Oh, and I hope you find the tourist.”
“Thanks. Me too. See you soon?”
“I’ll be the one with helmet hair and unable to walk after riding five bazillion miles on the back of your father’s bike.” She laughed. “But I’ll also be the one smiling.”
Annalise envied her parents’s relationship. She thought she’d found the same kind of forever with Dave. Apparently, great investigator that she was, she’d misread him all along. A tear slipped down her cheek. She swiped it away and made sure the person in the car next to her hadn’t seen. Why? She wasn’t sure. But it seemed vitally important no one spot her weakness.
Chapter Four
What on earth could Blu be saying that was so blame funny? And when had Annalise last laughed like that? His mental bear awoke and roared.
“You okay over there?” Kirk cocked his head and glanced at him from the driver’s seat.
“Fine.”
“’Cause you just growled.”
Oops. Apparently, the inner bear controlled the outer goofball.
“It wouldn’t have anything to do with that, would it?” Kirk pointed at Annalise standing with Blu several yards away.
The instantaneous burn of his cheeks gave him away. “We have work to do. Come on.”
Kirk thrust the Jeep in park and hopped out.
Zach took a deep breath. What was going on with him? Annalise was his best friend. He wanted her to be happy. Right?
He wanted her to be protected more, though.
That was all this heat in his belly and scalding in his veins meant. He worried about her with anyone new. It was too soon.
“Hey, Zach. What took you guys so long?” Annalise beamed a radiant smile on him.
“Um, dinner?”
She rolled her eyes. “Of course.”
He sighed with relief when Blu moved on to another group. “What’s happening?”
“We are starting over. Entering the woods with fresh supplies where Gerald pointed out. The plan is to send in teams of five in parallel-to-the-road directions.”
He nodded. That sort of made sense. “What if she went straight in?”
“No way to know, but we’ve got to start somewhere. The dogs are on their way and two mounted rangers. If we don’t find her by nightfall,” Annalise glanced at the sky, “we will camp in separate groups and resume in the morning. Well, you will. Not me.”
“You want me to come with you?” Please let her say yes.
Man, when had he gotten so needy?
“Nah. I mean, I do, but I want you to find Mrs. Beck even more.”
At least she did want him. Probably not as much as he wanted her.
Whoa.
The emotionally charged images that flooded his brain were suddenly not so platonic. He cleared his head and stepped out into a long stride. Anything it took to put some distance between them.
“Zach, wait!”
“We’re losing daylight.” He snapped more than he should have. When he glanced at her, his tone shone in the frown on her face. “Sorry,” he whispered. What was wrong with him?
Lord, a little guidance here? Please. I don’t mean to feel this way. I don’t even really know how I feel. All I know is that something’s wrong. Show me how to fix it, please.
Annalise’s warm hand squeezing his shoulder snapped him out of his prayer. “You okay?”
“Fine.” He sighed. “Thanks. I’ll be fine.”
“You’re on my team, Zach. Hope you like the snacks I packed for you.”
“Snacks?” Her smile made him chuckle.
“You’re like an overgrown teenager.”
“Yep. Ain’t denying that one. Speaking of teenagers, how is Paul?”
“I talked to Captain Brooks day before last. Said that ‘the boy is settlin’ in just fine.’ ”
“Your imitation is spot-on.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment. I think.” She punched his shoulder. “Let’s go.”
He and Annalise joined their other three team members and stepped into the forest. If this worked, it would be a wonder. A miracle, like finding Cody alive half a year ago. Hikers that went into the Smokies off-trail were rarely found alive. Bears, cliffs, starvation...so many things could go wrong.
“How much outdoor experience did Mrs. Beck have?”
Annalise didn’t turn at his question, but her voice carried over her shoulder in the otherwise quiet forest. “Her husband said they hiked frequently, but always on trails. He didn’t think his wife had ever been backcountry before.”
Not good. What was that woman’s name who disappeared off the AT in Maine? He couldn’t remember. They’d searched for her for months and finally had to give up when winter set in. It took something like six years to find her body. And then, it was on accident.
If it wasn’t for the fact there was a missing woman somewhere ahead—or behind or left or right. He sighed. Only God knew for certain where Mrs. Beck was—it would be a beautiful day for hiking. Warm in the sunshine but cool under the canopy of hemlocks, oaks, and maples.
A few hundred feet into the forest, they spread into a line and pressed ahead slowly like soldiers on a front. Instead of eyes on the horizon though, their gazes were pinned to the ground. Any trace of a footprint or wrapper or broken twig would be flagged and GPS marked.
Was his father a hiker? Did he like being outside as much as Zach did?
Zach ground to a halt. How many years and years had it been since he’d had a thought like that?
“Find something?” Annalise called from a knoll nearby.
He shook his head. Nothing pertaining to Olivia Beck. Maybe something he’d rather leave behind. He resumed his slow pace.
In the distance, a woman shouted. Almost as one, the entire team froze. They were probably all thinking the same thing as he. Was that her? Was she calling for help? He held his breath and waited for a second cry. Their collective sigh filtered through the trees when five minutes of silence passed.
“Could anyone tell which direction that originated?” Kirk shouted.
In turn, they each answered no.
What if that was their one chance? Their one shot at locating the missing wife and mother.
It’d be just fantastic if Annalise’s first official case with SMIF ended in tragedy. Or worse, open ends that could never be solved. He could hear her argument already. “I’m not a kid, Zach.” No, she certainly wasn’t. Not anymore. Why did he insist on handling her with kid gloves then?
Again, they moved forward as one multi-limbed unit. No one whispered or hollered jokingly back and forth this time. Had the reality of the challenge ahead settled heavily on them like it had Zach? A woman whom three people loved very much was out there surrounded by so many
unknowns it felt as if there weren’t any knowns at all.
Just like his dad.
Gone without a trace before Zach was man enough to not need a man’s influence. Gone before Zach could tell him how much he loved him, and then, over the years, how much he hated him. For what he did to his mother. For what he did to him. For just not being there at all.
ANNALISE CAST ANOTHER sidelong glance toward Zach. What in the world was going on with him? She hadn’t seen that deep furrow in his brow in...well, she couldn’t remember the last time. And that snappy tone he kept lobbing her way. When had he ever spoken to her in that voice? When they were teenagers? Possibly. When his dad—
Annalise sucked in a breath. When Zach’s dad left. That’s the last time he’d been so touchy that he was off-limits. Was that it?
She opened her mouth to yell her question to him. There were too many onlookers. If she thought he was agitated now, wait until she embarrassed him in front of Kirk and the others. She clamped her mouth shut and made a mental note to ask him as soon as they were alone.
The evening sun pierced the canopy in long shafts. It would be fully dark in two hours, and their search would be slowed down even more. But, at least Olivia would probably be stopping too. If she wasn’t already forced to stop by injury or... Annalise forced her focus on the ground. No sense borrowing trouble.
Three hours and two slow, heart-in-her-throat miles later, with the glow of the campfire and the men’s voices keeping the quiet forest companionable, Annalise pulled Olivia Beck’s file from her backpack and began studying the woman’s life.
Short, light brown hair in a stylish pixie cut framed a slender face. Paired with Olivia’s petite nose and bright green eyes, gorgeous wasn’t an overstatement.
Olivia held a master’s degree in elementary education and for the last five years had taught at Coalfield Elementary. Educated locally at The University of Tennessee. She’d probably been on campus at the same time as Annalise. They may have passed each other in the halls or on the sidewalks. If only Annalise had known then what she knew now.
Annalise frowned. If she had known what she knew now, what would she have done? Run up to the woman, shaken her shoulders, and said, “Never go off the side of the Cades Cove loop trail and get lost in the woods.” Right. That made so much sense.
No criminal history. Not even as much as a parking violation.
Married to Jonah Beck in 2011.
Same year as she and Dave. Apparently Jonah was better at keeping his marriage vows than Dave.
Two kids, Andi and Drew, ages five and four. Soccer, minivan, house in a quiet neighborhood, two dogs, one horse. Olivia checked off all the “perfect life” boxes.
Annalise returned to the photograph, something niggling the recesses of her mind. The eyes. There was something about them that seemed so familiar. Could it simply be that they’d gone to school together? That they may have shared a class at some point?
Maybe. But that was eons ago. There was something else there. If she could just remember it.
“Don’t you think you’d better head back, Annalise?”
Zach’s quiet voice close to her shoulder made her jump. “Yeah, probably.” She turned to face him. “This was an accident, right?”
“What makes you ask?”
“She had the perfect life. No one in their right mind would leave it. It has to be an accident.”
“You had the perfect life too, Annalise. From the outside looking in, I mean.”
He had a good point. “Did you believe Jonah was being forthcoming with us?”
He tilted his head and glanced away for a moment. “Yeah. I think so. He seemed genuinely distraught, didn’t he?”
She nodded. He was right. Besides, it would’ve been impossible for Jonah to sneak away from the crowd and do something to Olivia. She stretched the tension from her shoulders. “I had better go. Big day tomorrow.” Big day that she dreaded was more accurate.
“Want me to hike back with you?”
“Nah, I’ll be fine.”
“I know you will. But I don’t mind.”
She put her hand on his shoulder and smiled. “Thanks. Stay here. Get some rest. I’ll be back after court.”
“Be safe. I’d like to see your beautiful face again. You know, not mauled by a bear.”
She chuckled. “That would be quite inconvenient for my face.”
“Agreed.” He dipped his chin. “And for me.”
“Oh, please!” She punched his arm. “You’d be glad to be rid of this pest.”
He grinned. “Right.”
She returned his grin, but something different about the look on his face made her pause. Zach was acting weird. Were the sparks igniting his gaze just reflections of the firelight?
Chapter Five
Annalise’s fitful sleep made her more tired than if she’d stayed up all night. Her hands shook as she pulled on each of the outfits she’d thought might work. The first one was too low-cut. The second, too tight. Too loose. Too short. Too bright. Finally, twenty minutes after she intended to leave, she walked out the front door and headed for the court room. In the first outfit, with a different undershirt.
It was going to be a long day.
Court rooms in real life never looked like the fancy-smancy ones on television. Annalise was relieved. There was too much pressure in those grand cinematic rooms. At least in real-life, the room’s expectation of its witnesses was far less. Show up, be honest.
She could do that.
In the hallway, she ran into Cody and Celine Moss. Cody’s father, Brian, and his family waved to her from farther down the plain-walled area. “It is so good to see you guys.” She embraced each in turn. “How are you feeling, Cody?”
“I’m better, ma’am.”
“I’m so glad. Celine? All healed up?” The man they were there to see trialed today had inflicted some nasty damage on this strong woman.
“I can tell when it’s going to rain now, but other than that, I’m better.” Celine wrapped an arm around her son’s shoulders. “As long as my boy’s home, I can’t complain.”
Annalise smiled, but it quickly fell. “Are y’all ready for today?” They were both to be called as witnesses too.
Celine and Cody nodded.
They didn’t seem to have a single jitter. Resolute was a good word.
For them.
A quaking, unsure mess was more accurate for her. It was ridiculous. She was a professional, and she had testified before. The only difference now was all the awful things Dave had said. How could one man’s ugly comments affect her so severely?
She leaned against the wall next to them and crossed her arms over her chest. Was Jimmy Vern already in there? With that smug look on his face and total lack of remorse. Two days after his full confession, he’d retracted his statement, claiming he was under duress and tricked into talking without a lawyer. Figured. The man would say or do anything to avoid responsibility for his own actions.
A bailiff poked his head out the door. “Quiet in the hallways. Trial begins in five minutes.”
Annalise turned her cell phone off. Lord, help Zach and the others this morning. She wished she was there instead. Ugh. She wished she was anywhere other than here.
Another courtroom, in another city, in another lifetime, materialized in her memory. She’d testified against a powerful politician then, not a backwoods, moonshine-making, mountain man. Both men flooded their respective markets with illegal products harmful to the community.
Memphis hadn’t ended so well for Annalise though.
What if this time was the same?
She chuckled. She didn’t own a house to be burned down right now. And her marriage had ended on the tail end of the Jimmy Vern Buchanan case, so hadn’t things already gone poorly for her? What more did she have to lose?
Silence blanketed the hallway so thick only the sound of the air moving through the overhead ducts broke it. What was happening on the other side of those doors? How long
would they sit, and wait, and pray for justice?
“Cody Moss, you may enter the courtroom.” The same bailiff held the door for the teen.
Annalise patted his mother’s hand and smiled.
“I wish I could go in there with him. At least his dad is. That’s something anyway, right?”
“I’m sure Cody will be fine, Celine. He is one of the strongest boys I’ve ever met.”
Celine returned Annalise’s hand squeeze. “You’re right. He’s stronger than I am.”
“Me too.”
Celine sighed and stared into Annalise’s eyes until Annalise squirmed. “I am so sorry about your divorce. Are you okay?”
Ah, the small town grapevine remained intact. “Thank you. I’m fine.” Lying to the sweet woman burned. But Annalise couldn’t afford to go into details right now. Not when—
The court room door flew open, and Cody stormed out.
“What in the world?” Celine took off after him.
Escorted by two armed guards, Jimmy Vern shuffled through the door next. He paused, lifted his shackled hands in mock salute, and smiled at Annalise.
Her stomach turned. The nerve!
Jimmy Vern scooted down the hallway as if he were on a slightly-hampered-by-the-leg-chains stroll through the park.
What was happening? Annalise waited a few moments and then peeked into the empty courtroom. Where had the lawyers and the bailiff and the judge gone?
Was she asleep? She had to be. There was no other explanation.
“What’s going on?”
Annalise spun to find Captain Brooks lingering behind her with Paul. “Hey, guys.” She hugged them both. “I have no idea. Court started and then stopped, like that.” She snapped. “You don’t think they—”
Milt Brooks, her former captain from Norris Police Department, held up his hand. “I’ll find out. Don’t jump to conclusions just yet.” Captain Brooks disappeared into an office down the hall.
“How are you doing, Paul?”
The teen dipped his chin. “I’m good, Ms. Baker.” He blushed.
“Things going well in your new home?”