Plant checked her watch. “Ralph Condon with the Canadian Mounted Police should be here any minute. I contacted the RCMP yesterday and was granted cross-country jurisdiction on this case. Working across country lines can be a hassle. But I’ve worked with Condon before; he’s a good man. Sharp investigator.”
Plant was much younger than she had sounded over the phone. Gale had expected someone in their late forties, but Sergeant Plant couldn’t be much older than Emily.
Plant said, “I’m really sorry about this whole predicament, but I want you to know we are making headway. Things work a little slower up here, that’s all.”
“You have a lead?” Gale asked.
“I don’t know if I’d call it a lead, maybe a step in the right direction.”
Pruitt handed Plant a manila folder and Plant opened it.
Pruitt said, “Cassandra Ann Gale crossed into Alaska on June twenty-second at 9:03 a.m. She was traveling with a canine and another individual, William Edward French.”
“She was traveling with William French?” Emily said in disbelief. “Did Cassie look like she was in trouble?”
“On the contrary,” Pruitt said, pointing to the manila folder in front of Plant. “We take pictures of each individual and vehicle that crosses. I was the agent on duty at the time. Both French and Cassandra Gale seemed at ease.”
Gale studied the black-and-white picture of Cassie and William French in her Tundra. They looked completely normal. Relaxed even.
Gale started in, “What has the ABI got on this French kid?”
“Oregon police sent over his file. Got a DUI ten years back while he was a teenager. That charge was expunged. Other than that, no criminal history. No history of violence. We got in contact with his stepfather. They’re estranged, haven’t spoken in almost a decade. Stepfather said French was always a bit of a loner.”
Gale could see Ross, Tobeluk, and Vance out of the window climbing up the stairs to the VPSO’s office as the crowd of volunteers headed back to their boats for the afternoon search. They shuffled inside and both Ross and Vance went straight for the Keurig coffeemaker on the counter. Tobeluk made his way to the back of the room, eyeing Plant nervously.
Agent Pruitt said, “Neither Cassandra Gale nor William French declared their firearms for Canadian transit.”
Plant waved away that detail, as she said, “That’s not important now—”
“What about the evidence you sent to Anchorage?” Gale asked.
“Forensics are going through the evidence as we speak. They should have their report by morning.” Plant cleared her throat, addressed the room. “Okay, everyone is here. Let’s begin. As of right now, this missing person case belongs to the Alaska Bureau of Investigation. Due to the nature of the case, I believe this is criminal in nature. So we will tackle it as such.”
She reached in her bag, took out a laptop and a stack of papers, and began: “From the receipts found in Cassandra Gale’s jacket two days ago, we can ascertain that she stayed the night of June twenty-first at the Northern Breeze Lodge and Smoke House Bar and then crossed the border with William French the morning of the twenty-second. I have contacted the Mountie, Ralph Condon in Dawson, to check on the Northern Breeze to see if William French also stayed there. Cassandra Gale then bought two sandwiches at 12:03 p.m. at the Eagle Trading Company next door. Our last known proof of life was a call made from her Globalstar satellite phone on June twenty-second at 6:32 p.m. I’ve contacted Globalstar and they’ve confirmed that the call came from Cassandra Gale’s campsite—I’ve listened to the call and will confirm with the family soon that it is her voice.
“We are looking at a sixty-two-hour window between the time Cassandra made that call until she was expected in Fairbanks on Monday morning for work. Somewhere in the sixty-two-hour window, Cassandra Gale and presumably William French both went missing.”
Gale liked the sergeant immediately. She was whip-smart. No nonsense.
“William French is a suspect?” Trask asked.
“Right now everything is on the table,” Plant said. “Now, I want to visit both campsites, but until then, let’s go over the evidence that is problematic. Cassandra Gale’s pistol was found three miles upriver in William French’s campsite. Four live bullets were found in the six-shot cylinder along with two empty shell casings. That means that the weapon was presumably fired twice. Bullet trajectory is unknown due to the nature of the environment and the surrounding woods. We need to understand why that gun was in French’s backpack.
“The third major piece of evidence that raises questions is the state of both tents found in each campsite.” She next mentioned the pictures Ross had taken two days prior of both Cassie’s red tent and French’s green one. “There is evidence of heavy animal activity in both campsites.” She tapped the photographs. “But, and it isn’t just me voicing my opinion here, those rips in both tents don’t look like the work of an animal. The lab will get back to us with their conclusion. So, if an animal didn’t do this, then who did, and why? And lastly, the dog.”
She took out a couple of pictures, turned them to show an up-close snapshot of the gash on Maverick’s face and leg. Ross had taken the picture at the vet after Maverick had been sedated and stitched. “X-rays say the dog also sustained two cracked ribs, indicating some sort of blunt force trauma.”
“What about Cassie’s food box?” Emily asked.
Plant arched an eyebrow and Emily explained to her that Cassie would never leave food at ground level in bear country. Plant took note of that.
“And her wallet and passport,” Gale added. “All her belongings were left in the campsite but her wallet and passport.”
“What does her wallet look like?”
“It’s tanned cowhide. Pretty worn, has an etching of a cowboy on the front.”
Plant scribbled down those details. When she was done, she took out a photograph of the metal canister from Cassie’s campsite. “Then there is this”—she slid the photo to the front of the desk so everyone could see. “The lab will be doing swabs to determine what the hell this thing is. Hopefully, it will lead to something substantial, but I want to make something clear to the family right off the bat. Cassandra could have gone missing up to a week ago. French, too. A week in the Alaskan wilderness is pushing the survival window up to its edge. Now, if we are looking at an abduction, a kidnapping—we’re roughly a week behind the captors. That is an incredibly long time. I need to make clear to you how few resources we have up here. My superiors gave me three days in Eagle before I have to go back to Fairbanks—”
“Three days?!” Gale said.
“And I had to fight for those three days, Mr. Gale.”
“Why isn’t the FBI involved?” Trask asked.
When Ross snorted, Gale turned and saw Ross shaking his head and stirring his coffee. “FBI don’t care what happens all the way out here. People go missing in Alaska all the time. They are too wrapped up in dealings in the cities. Big cases.”
“He’s right, Mr. Gale.”
“If this was the Lower 48, there would be full search and rescue teams, at least a dozen cops out looking for my daughter.”
“This ain’t the Lower 48, Mr. Gale,” Ross said, taking a sip of his coffee. “This is Alaska, I’ve told you that.”
Gale gazed out of the window behind Plant. The parking lot of volunteers was now empty, the boats upriver, searching. He felt hopeless as he watched a Canadian Mounted Police vehicle enter the parking lot followed by a big red F-350. The vehicles parked side by side.
“Frankly, Mr. Gale,” Plant said, “that search and rescue operation you got going on outside is one of the biggest I’ve seen in Alaska.”
There was a strange coughing noise behind Gale. Everyone turned to see Tobeluk turn beet red; he was staring out of the window at the new arrivals.
“Good, Condon is here,” Plant said.
Ralph Condon of the Canadian Mounted Police entered the office first followed by four other people.
A man and a woman roughly Gale’s age came in first, followed by a squat redheaded man and a tall burly guy in his early thirties.
Gale noted that the burly guy kept his head low and sported a white splint on his right pinkie finger.
As the group shuffled in, Gale noticed that Tobeluk’s hands were shaking. Gale wondered how long the kid had gone without a drink.
“Sergeant Plant,” Condon said, “this is Ned and Darlene Voigt. They’re the owners of the Northern Breeze just outside of Dawson. And this is Curtis and Jake, two of their workers.”
Curtis, the squat redhead, gave a small nod. Jake, the big guy, kept his gaze planted on the floor.
Condon continued, “Ned and Darlene insisted on coming up to Eagle once they heard the news.”
Darlene cast sympathetic eyes over the Gale family. “Soon as we heard, we wanted to make sure to offer our help and clear up the air. We’re so guilt ridden, honestly—”
“Clear up the air?” Plant said.
“About the little incident that happened last week when Cassie and Billy were staying with us,” Darlene said.
This got the whole room’s attention.
Gale looked from Darlene, to Jake and Curtis, then to Ned whose crystal blue eyes bore a hole into Tobeluk across the room.
“What happened last week?” Plant asked.
Ned looked away from Tobeluk and said, “There was a bit of an altercation at my establishment between some of my workers and Cassie and Billy.” Ned flicked his head to Jake and Curtis. “These two knuckleheads work at my timber site in Clinton Creek. They got in a bar fight with Cassie and Billy. I was in the kitchen and came out when I heard the commotion. By then, Cassie had already ended the fight.” He pointed to Jake. “Had Jake here pinned over the bar top by his finger—girl half his size kicked his ass.”
Jake kept his eyes down.
“Billy French got a nice shiner on his eye—we offered to comp their stay but both Cassie and Billy refused, so we paid for their meals.”
No one said anything for a long moment. Gale’s brain began to churn and he got up from his chair, fists clenched. “You two attacked my little girl?”
“We didn’t attack her—Jake was just trying to buy her a drink,” Curtis stammered.
Jake looked up for the first time, his gaze meeting Gale’s. At first, Jake’s face was expressionless, then a small, almost imperceptible smile cracked the edges of his lips.
Gale’s body moved for him.
“Dad, no!” Emily screamed.
Gale launched forward, his hands gripping the scruff of Jake’s shirt, pulling him to the ground. Ned, Ross, and Vance all sprang forward as Gale took Jake to the floor. Gale raised his fist, but it was immediately grabbed by strong arms. Gale felt himself being pulled back.
“What the fuck did you do?!” Gale roared. “What the fuck did you do to my daughter?!”
Chapter 17
“ENOUGH!” PLANT SHOUTED.
Ned, Vance, and Ross had Gale by the shoulders, pinned against the kitchenette. At Plant’s instructions they let him go. Trask stood in between his father-in-law and the crew from the Northern Breeze.
“He fucking smiled at me! Did you see it!”
“Dad, stop!”
“I didn’t do shit!” Jake sputtered, getting to his feet.
“Everyone calm down!” Ned said.
“ENOUGH!” Plant shouted again, and the room went silent. Plant raised a shaking finger at Condon. “Why the hell wasn’t I notified of this altercation at the Northern Breeze?”
Condon, who had taken a backstage role to Gale’s outburst, said, “I learned about it three hours ago, Meredith. They offered to come here to tell you personally so I didn’t see the harm in waiting until we got here.”
“I can vouch for these boys, Sergeant,” Ned said. “I already told Condon that after the fight in my bar, I put them on triple shifts at Clinton Creek. They haven’t left the timber site until today.”
“Can that be proven?” Plant asked.
“I gotta group of men that can attest to that, including myself and Darlene.”
Plant didn’t seem convinced.
“Security cameras at the Clinton Creek site will show they haven’t left until today. Those cameras catch everything coming and going down that road, and there’s only one road out of there.” Ned explained that Clinton Creek was nine miles north of the Northern Breeze and used to be an old gold mining town. Now abandoned, Ned owned the timber rights to the surrounding area.
As Ned finished explaining, Gale caught his eyes floating to the picture of the metal canister on the desk. Ned’s eyes hung on it longer than usual.
“Trooper Ross, Trooper Vance. Escort our friends from the Northern Breeze outside. Keep them separated until I can get their statements.”
Ross and Vance escorted the four outside.
“Sergeant, can I go as well—I should be aiding in the search,” Tobeluk said. He looked nervous.
“Oh, no, Max. You will stay right here until I’m done with you.”
Tobeluk shrank back into the corner.
“Agent Pruitt,” Plant said, “get all those boys’ full names. Run their information through your servers at border patrol, I want to know about every border crossing they’ve ever made. See if INS can run a full background check as well.”
Pruitt said she’d get on it and walked out of the office.
Plant turned her attention to Condon. “Ralph, you should have notified me about this immediately.”
“Would it have made a difference?”
“These guys got in a fight with our missing persons—”
“They seemed remorseful, Meredith. They were the ones who wanted to come here. They want to help in the search…”
“All of them will need to be interviewed and cross-examined,” Plant said, turning to look at Gale, who was still breathing heavily. “Condon, go to Clinton Creek. Take Ross with you. Talk to the workers there. Get the surveillance footage. I want to know for certain that those two never left that camp.”
Plant sat back in her chair as Condon left.
“Mr. Gale, I can’t begin to understand what you are going through, but I also can’t have you acting like this or I’m going to have to remove you from the search. Your rashness with the grizzly bear was one thing, but I can’t have you assaulting people.”
“That kid knows something, you saw him smile.”
“No, Mr. Gale, I didn’t see him smile.”
“I’m a very good judge of character, Sergeant. I spent a whole career that was dependent on that judgment. That kid is a bad apple.”
“And I will talk to each and every one of them. I will get to the bottom of what happened.” She paused. “When was the last time any of you slept?”
“Days,” Trask said.
“I’d advise everyone to get a couple hours of sleep. I am going to start interviewing those four. When I’m done, I will have Vance come get you so we can go over Cassie’s Globalstar call log.”
Gale, Trask, and Emily stood up to leave. Tobeluk tried to sneak out, too.
“Not you, Max,” Plant said. “You stay right here.”
* * *
Gale had booked two rooms at the Eagle Trading Company two days before—right after the encounter with the grizzly—two small rooms that sat on top of the small grocer and offered a view of the Yukon.
Gale’s cell chimed and he sat up from his lumpy mattress and officially gave up on sleep. It was a text from Alvin Petit, updating Gale that they were an hour and a half out from Eagle.
Gale decided on a cold shower, then headed outside to pace in the parking lot to think. He was pissed he’d lost his temper earlier. Controlling his emotions when it came to his daughters had always been difficult.
But now with the stress of Cassie’s disappearance, it was proving impossible.
His mind flashed back three decades before to the events that were the catalyst of these emotions. To a time of violence and r
etribution. He always promised himself that he would protect his girls from the truth of those times.
The contents in his back pocket were a reminder of that.
Jake’s little smile flooded his mind. That fucking smile.
He pictured what it would feel like to wrap his hands around that bastard’s neck and squeeze the life out of him.
Cool down, Jim. Cool down.
To the south, Gale caught movement in the back parking lot where Tobeluk’s white VPSO vehicle sat. He spied Tobeluk hurrying to the vehicle. The VPSO was in civilian clothing; he carried a backpack over his shoulder, got in the vehicle, and sped away.
Gale was wondering if Sergeant Plant had fired the man when a voice sounded behind him.
“Mr. Gale?”
It was Vance.
The spindly trooper pointed to the VPSO’s office. “Plant wants to see you. Where are your daughter and son-in-law?”
“Sleeping. Let them sleep, they can talk to Plant later.”
Vance shrugged and led Gale to the office.
They found Sergeant Plant inside. She was sitting behind the desk.
“Come sit down, Mr. Gale. Thank you, Elliot.”
Vance ducked out and shut the door.
“What did they say?”
Plant exhaled loudly. “All four of the stories added up. No inconsistencies.”
“Someone is lying.”
“We will see what Condon and Ross dig up at the timber site. I heard you have some of your own men from Montana driving up today?”
“Men and horses.”
“Good, we need the help.” Plant eased herself slowly into her seat, keeping one hand over the small of her back and one hand on her stomach.
“How far along are you?”
“Six months if you can believe it. My stomach’s so big my husband swears I’m having twins.”
“Cassie was a big baby,” Gale said. “Over nine pounds.”
“That’s a big kid; how did her mother feel about it?”
“C-section. Like you, the doctors thought Irina was having twins, too.”
“It won’t be long before I’m on bed rest.” Plant paused for a moment. “Where is their mother if you don’t mind me asking?”
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