Be Mine Forever

by D. K. Hood

  Two

  Still damp after a late storm the previous night, the lowlands and mountain vistas surrounding Jenna’s ranch appeared to have received a new coat of paint. Dressed in an artist’s palette of fall colors, they sparkled under the late afternoon sun and gave off a fresh aroma. It had been good to see rain after a dry spell had muted the lush green landscape, although the storm had been loud. She had discovered apart from the fear of the vet and baths, Duke, Kane’s bloodhound, had added loud storms to his repertoire of fear. Her enjoyable Saturday evening with Kane watching movies had been disturbed by howls loud enough to wake the dead. The noise had sent her black cat, Pumpkin, climbing the drapes and hissing like a leaky furnace. When Kane, finding it amusing, had howled along with his dog, it had taken her forever to untangle Pumpkin and calm her down.

  Such were the changes in personality happening to Dave Kane of late. After his wife had died in a car bombing, he’d withdrawn into himself but as the years slipped by, he’d slowly come to terms with his loss. He was still the same, lean, mean fighting machine, ex-special forces sniper, who’d arrived in town some years ago but somehow now, he laughed more and seemed to be living his life to the full. It was as if a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders and seeing him happy made her smile. They’d taken the first tentative steps toward a relationship but the decision to keep it strictly private had been unanimous. Being sheriff had responsibilities and if things didn’t work out between them, they’d remain friends and no one would be the wiser.

  They headed into the town of Black Rock Falls, Jenna’s gaze moved over the crowd of people making repairs to the rain-soaked Fall Festival banners. As Kane slowed the Beast to negotiate the people spilling onto Main, Jenna waved back at the cheery greetings of the townsfolk, who’d voted for her to protect them for an extended five-year term. The festival ran from Tuesday through Saturday and was a much-anticipated tourist attraction. Apart from the popular white-water rapids, and hiking or riding in the forest, this year the town was hosting the chainsaw wood carving championships at the showgrounds, an art competition in the town hall, and a farmer’s market in the parklands. All this along with the normal street vendors and performers who swarmed to the festivals throughout the year, left Jenna hoping the violent crime side of her profession would slip into obscurity.

  She glanced at Kane. “I’ll call the media as soon as we’ve spoken to Dr. Turner. I’m going to need people to man the hotline phones.”

  “Yeah, Maggie and Walters might be able to do the first shift.” Kane looked over at her. “We could have the calls diverted to our phones for the night shift and sort out better arrangements for the morning?”

  Jenna considered asking their secretary, Magnolia Brewster, or Maggie, as everyone called her, and the semi-retired deputy Walters to do a Sunday shift and sighed. “Yeah, Rowley’s had a few beers, he’ll be okay for the morning. I’m glad Sandy can drive him home. Although, the way she’s expanding, she won’t be able to fit behind the wheel for much longer. She is what? Only five months or so by now?”

  “She might be having twins.” Kane shrugged. “Although, they went for an ultrasound last week and Rowley hasn’t mentioned anything.”

  Jenna smiled. “Yes, Sandy is playing her cards close to the vest. Most new moms can’t wait to show off the images.”

  “I guess they want to keep things private.” Kane winked at her. “Sometimes it’s for the best.”

  “Oh, absolutely.” Jenna scanned the GPS. “Ravens Way lies parallel to Stanton. I call this the creepy part of town. I wouldn’t go near those alleyways after dark. I wonder why there are no streetlights on this stretch of Stanton?”

  “I guess the town council hasn’t caught up with the growth of the town.” Kane turned right and then instructed by the GPS, took the first left. “There are streetlights here. It’s a newer area.” He pulled up outside a brick house with a white picket fence. “This must be the place.”

  Jenna led the way through the gate and along the driveway. She knocked on the door and it flew open straight away. She stared at the disheveled man, his eyes wild and with his comb over hair hanging over one ear. “Dr. Turner?”

  “Yes, that’s me.” Turner scowled at her, obviously agitated. “What took you so long?”

  Ignoring the smell of alcohol on his breath, Jenna lowered her voice and used a calming tone. “My ranch is out on the other side of town and I had visitors. I left the moment you called. May we come inside and talk to you?”

  “I guess.” Turner eyed Kane suspiciously.

  Jenna followed his gaze. She had to admit, dressed all in black, with his Stetson pulled down low over his eyes and wearing his weapon on one hip like a gunslinger, Kane at six-five and over two hundred and fifty pounds of muscle, didn’t resemble a law officer. “Ah, this is Deputy Kane.”

  “Okay, come in but you should be out looking for Laurie.” Turner walked down a short passageway and into a family room. “Someone might have kidnapped her.”

  “Why would someone want to kidnap her? Has anyone contacted you?” Kane pulled out a notebook and pen.

  “No, no one has called.” Turner’s eyes flashed with anger. “I’d tell you if they had.”

  “Is there any chance she just ran away? Have you had any arguments lately?” Kane was pushing the man hard.

  “Only the usual things.” Turner sat on a sofa and held his head in his hands, staring at the floral carpet. “She’s only had her driver’s license for a few months and she drives way too fast. I should never have given her the Ford for her birthday. She could be lying in a ditch somewhere.”

  The poor man was beside himself with worry and Jenna exchanged a look and a shake of the head with Kane to make him back off a little. “Do you have a photograph of Laurie we could use?”

  “Yeah.” Turner stood and took a framed picture of a girl standing beside an old red Ford pickup from the mantle. He looked at it for a beat and then handed it to Jenna. “I took this on her birthday.”

  Jenna took out her phone and used her camera to capture the image. “Is this her vehicle? Was she driving last night?”

  “Yeah.” Turner sighed. “It’s not a long drive to the school from here.” He attempted to correct his hair, running his fingers through the oily strands. “As there was no game on this week, the cheerleaders decided to practice. They use the school gym and usually finish around eight-thirty or nine at the latest.”

  “How come you didn’t notice she hadn’t come home?” Kane lifted his head from his notes. “She should have been here by at least ten.”

  “I fell asleep in front of the TV.” Turner couldn’t sit still and rocked back and forth. “I’ve fallen asleep before and she usually leaves me here. I’m bad-tempered when woken sudden.”

  “I see.” Kane dropped his gaze back to the notebook. “Do you like a few drinks before bedtime?”

  “Yeah, I’ve taken to drinking more than I should since my wife left me.” Turner avoided meeting Jenna’s eyes. “But I’m stone cold sober now.”

  “Okay.” Jenna leaned forward. “So, what time did you notice she was missing?” She frowned. “It was a little after three when you called me.”

  “I figured she’d gone out before I came down for breakfast.” Turner looked at her, his eyes red-rimmed. “I called her to bring home milk and she didn’t pick up. I’ve been calling all day. Then I called her friends.”

  “What time was this?” Kane sat, pen raised, looking at him.

  “Around eleven.” Turner picked up a cushion and held it to his chest, squeezing it. “When I called her friends, no one had seen her since she left the school. One of the girls mentioned she sometimes hangs out at Aunt Betty’s Café so I went there and asked the manager if she’d seen her. The nice woman took me to the back room to show me the CCTV footage and there was no sign of Laurie. It’s as if she’s vanished.”

  “It would be hard to hide a 1950 red Ford pickup.” Kane raised both eyebrows. “Maybe she went to vi
sit her mom?”

  “We don’t know where she is living.” Turner clasped his hands in front of him. “I came home from work and Jeanette was gone, no note. She cleaned out our bank account and vanished. That was six years ago. I obtained full custody of Laurie and since then, we haven’t heard a word from her.”

  “You didn’t report her as a missing person?” Kane’s gaze hardened. “Aren’t you worried about her safety?”

  “No! She’s not missing.” Turner became agitated. “She told me if I didn’t quit drinking, she’d leave me and never contact me again. She took her clothes, her car, and our money.” He glared at Kane. “I’d say she’s just fine.”

  “Did you hit her?” Kane’s face showed no sign of emotion. “Or your daughter?”

  “I don’t remember much when I drink.” Turner started to rock again. “But she was always complaining I did this or that.”

  “I see.” Kane gave him a long, considering stare. “Is there anything you need to tell us about, Dr. Turner? You’re a psychologist and still practicing, so I assume your wife never had you charged with abuse?”

  “She wouldn’t dare.” Dr. Turner gave a smug smile. “The court ruled her as an unfit mother and if anything happened to me, Laurie would be placed in foster care. She wouldn’t want that, now would she?”

  “I guess we’ll have to find her and ask her.” Kane turned his attention to Jenna. “Laurie could have broken down along the highway. Maybe we should head out to the high school and retrace her steps?”

  “Yeah.” Jenna nodded. “Would you mind if we take a look at her room? Does she have a laptop?”

  “Okay but her bed hasn’t been slept in.” Turner stood. “She changed the linen yesterday and it’s in the wash. Her room is as neat as a pin.”

  How convenient. Jenna frowned. “So, the laptop then, it gives us a better idea of who she’s in contact with on social media.” She forced her lips into a small, calming smile. “You sit down and direct me to her room.”

  “Up the stairs, first on the left.” Turner dropped onto the chair. “Take whatever you want.”

  Jenna stood. “Thank you. I’ll need permission from you in writing to check her phone records as well. Deputy Kane will give you some paperwork to sign. I’ll need you to complete a missing person’s report and sign a brief statement about your circumstances. Including the fact you don’t have contact with your wife or know her whereabouts.”

  “Is all this necessary, Sheriff?”

  Jenna wanted to roll her eyes at his lack of cooperation. “What information you give us now, means we can concentrate on finding Laurie rather than chasing down people who are no longer involved in her life.”

  “Oh, very well.” Dr. Turner’s nostrils flared with a snort of anger. “Give me the paperwork.”

  She headed up the stairs and found the room. It was spotless. She checked through the bedside drawers and found photographs of cheerleaders, with Laurie front and center, but no journal. She slid the laptop into an evidence bag and was heading back down the stairs when she noticed the bolt on the inside of the door. Taking out her phone, she took a few images of the door and room before hurrying downstairs.

  As she walked into the family room, she tucked the laptop under one arm and turned to Dr. Turner. “Before we go, I’ll need the contact details of her ex-boyfriend and does she have a best friend? If so, I’ll need her details as well.” She looked at the distraught man and handed him her card. “If you hear from her call me. I’ll be contacting the media and putting out a BOLO on the pickup. As soon as we have any news, I’ll call you. Just sit tight, Dr. Turner. We’ll do our very best to locate your daughter.”

  They climbed into the Beast, and Jenna looked at Kane. “This is going to go two ways, if we can’t find the truck, I figure she’s run away or heard from her mom and went to see her. If the truck shows up then something has happened to her because from the look in her eyes in that picture, the truck means one hell of a lot to her. She wouldn’t leave it behind.”

  “My gut tells me something’s not right.” Kane stared at the house.

  Jenna held out her phone toward him to show him the image of the bedroom. “She has a heavy-duty bolt on her bedroom door.”

  “If he was violent, I’m not surprised.” Kane snorted. “I can’t tolerate men who hit women.”

  Jenna clicked in her seatbelt. “What’s your take on him? His mood changed from distraught to angry like flipping a switch and it’s always a red flag when a person won’t look you in the eyes, right?”

  “Yeah and I’m seeing a ton of reasons why a kid would want to get out of a situation like that. Her father drinks and beats on his wife and maybe her as well.” Kane rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Giving a decked-out hotrod to a sixteen-year-old, when he just admitted his wife cleaned him out, seems a little overindulgent.” He sighed. “Most parents start out with a safe but less expensive choice. It seems like a pay-off to me. Nothing he said is sitting well with me right now.”

  Concerned, Jenna turned in her seat toward him. “I figure he might be involved but if so, why call us and report her missing?”

  “It’s not unusual for someone involved in a crime to try to insert himself into an investigation, it’s all part of the thrill. They usually believe they have an iron-clad alibi. He’s already pulled the blackout card as an excuse for his behavior.” Kane started the engine. “Say he fell asleep in front of the TV at ten, he’d be sober in the morning and it would be unlikely she wouldn’t wake him on her way out. That pickup would be loud when it started.” He turned onto Stanton and headed toward the high school. “If he did do something to her last night, he’s had all night to hide her body and make the necessary calls. Contacting us could just be part of his plan.”

  Three

  In normal circumstances, Jenna would have search and rescue out as soon as a missing person’s report was filed, especially in the case of a sixteen-year-old, but something wasn’t sitting right with her. Before they organized a search party, she had to confirm the girl was missing. Establishing a timeline and identifying the last person to see Laurie, was following procedure. They would need to know where to concentrate the search. Of course, once the media release hit the news, townsfolk would come forward and with the help of the forest wardens, and search and rescue, they’d be scouring the forest and surrounds in well-organized teams.

  Jenna contacted Maggie and Walters to take the hotline calls. With everything set, she could focus on the investigation. She leaned back in her seat and looked at Kane. “I’ll hold off with a search until we check with the boyfriend and best friend. If things weren’t so good at home, Laurie’s friends might be covering for her. We should split the questioning; the girlfriend is more likely to confide in me and the boyfriend in you.”

  “Maybe.” Kane drove into the high school parking lot. “Well, look what we have here.”

  Jenna couldn’t miss the fire-engine-red hotrod pickup sparkling as if it had just emerged from the carwash. “Oh, it’s going to be a shame to dust that for prints.”

  She peered inside as Kane pulled up beside it, then slid out and took a better look. “Empty. How do you get into this thing, there’s no lock on this side?”

  “They open on the passenger side. Why is it here?” Kane climbed out his truck and walked to her side, snapping on surgical gloves. “The doors are locked, and she must have the keys, so what happened to prevent her driving it home?” He went to the hood and pushed his fingers inside the grill. “Ah, got it.” The hood popped and he lifted it and peered inside. “Sabotaged.” He pointed into the engine. “Someone pulled off the battery cable.”

  Jenna walked around the pickup. “So, she’d slide out the passenger side and then lock the door?”

  “Yeah.” Kane smiled at her. “Way back then, having to unlock your door with the traffic flying past was a safety issue, so they slid across the bench seat and out the passenger side. The roads were narrower those days as well.”

  Som
ething crunched under Jenna’s boots and she bent down. “There are pieces of a phone down here and the battery is by the back tire. I’d say she dropped her phone and it smashed.” She straightened and walked back and forth. “Nothing else, she must have taken the case with her.”

  “Not something she’d do if she was in trouble.” Kane stood, hands on hips, staring at the pickup. “So, we can assume she got a ride with a friend or walked. It’s only a mile or so from here to her home.” He headed back to the Beast and collected a forensics kit. “I’ll dust for prints.”

  Jenna watched, not really surprised when the vehicle came up clean. “Hmm, that’s not good. The car was disabled and wiped clean.” She frowned. “So, she was set up; we need to know who delayed her so she couldn’t get help from one of the other cheerleaders.”

  “This isn’t looking good, Jenna.” Kane removed his gloves. “There could be any number of girls and boys in a cheerleading squad and then you can add parents, friends, family members. This is getting out of hand already.” He looked out over the parking lot. “She’s been missing for hours. If she’d smashed her phone, it would be normal for her to go home or failing that to a friend’s house to stay overnight. As none of her friends have seen her and we don’t know if she’s in contact with her mom, we have to assume she’s in trouble.”

  Jenna thought for a few seconds. “Okay, we go see the girlfriend and find out what she knows. She’ll be able to tell us the name of the captain of the cheerleading squad. Next we go see her and ask her to contact everyone who she can remember was at practice and ask them to return to the gym at six.” She pulled out her phone. “I’ll contact the principal and ask him to open up the hall.” She made the call as she walked back to the Beast.

  “That sounds like a plan.” Kane climbed behind the wheel and added the coordinates into the GPS. “The girlfriend lives five minutes from here.”