Aubrey was already regretting her decision to leave the safety of her house to drive down to the police station. It had seemed like a good plan right up until she found herself waiting alone in a room with a door without a lock. Worse yet, it had a large window right beside the door, which meant anyone out in the hallway could see her. Granted, the vast majority of the people passing by probably worked there, but she still felt exposed, her nerves raw. The tension had her pacing the length of the room rather than sitting down at the table.
She supposed she could simply leave if it all became too much to handle. After all, the desk sergeant had offered to personally deliver the envelope to the new cold case detective. It was tempting to take the man at his word and scurry back to the security of her own home. Unfortunately, the new detective was bound to have a lot of questions about the envelope and its contents, ones that only she could answer. The bottom line was that she could either do that here at the station or wait until after he inevitably showed up at her house.
Preferring to get back home before dark, she decided to wait no more than another five minutes. After that, maybe she would leave and try again tomorrow. The decision was made for her when footsteps came to a stop right outside the room followed by the muffled sound of two men talking. A few seconds later, the door opened just a crack, but no one entered immediately. However, there was an older uniformed officer watching her through the window. When he realized he’d been spotted, he offered her a smile she thought was meant to be reassuring before disappearing from sight.
It seemed a bit odd, but she was more concerned about the man who finally stepped inside the room. After shutting the door, he stopped to close the blinds on the window. Maybe she wasn’t the only one who preferred some privacy.
“Ms. Sims?”
“Yes.”
His smile was a little less practiced than the other officer’s, but it seemed more sincere as a result. “I’m Detective Jonah Kelly. I took over your case from Detective Swahn when he retired. I asked Sergeant Decker to get us some bottled water. I don’t know about you, but I always find talking to be thirsty work.”
As he spoke, he stepped closer and offered his hand. After she shook it, he retreated to the other side of the table. “He should be back soon, and then we can get started.”
She sat across from him and folded her hands in her lap while he set down the file folder he’d brought with him and then took out a small notebook and a pen. The door opened a second later, and the sergeant stepped inside to set two bottles of water on the table. “Is there anything else you need?”
He directed the question at the detective, but he kept his gaze on Aubrey as he spoke. She shook her head at the same time Detective Kelly answered, “Not right now.”
“You’ve got my number if that changes.”
Then he left, quietly closing the door on his way out. As soon as the sergeant was gone, Detective Kelly opened his water and took a quick drink. Aubrey did the same while she struggled to get her chaotic thoughts to settle into some semblance of order.
“So, Ms. Sims, I understand that you wanted to show me something.”
Swallowing hard, she pulled the envelope out of the canvas bag and set it on her side of the table. Pointing at his bare hands, she said, “You should wear gloves before you touch it. I wish I had thought to do that myself. Unfortunately by the time I realized what was inside, it was already too late.”
At least he didn’t question her suggestion. Instead, he pulled a pair of gloves out of his suitcoat pocket and slipped them on. Before surrendering the envelope, she asked, “How familiar are you with my case?”
He looked a bit chagrined as he shot a guilty look at the file on the table. “To be honest, I only recently took over the cold case files from Detective Swahn, so I’m still going through everything. I thought about reviewing your file before coming downstairs, but I didn’t want to keep you waiting any longer than necessary.”
She hated having to start over from scratch, but maybe it wasn’t a bad thing. At least he would be looking at everything with fresh eyes. “Actually, there’s not much to tell. Twelve years ago, my friend and I were kidnapped at gunpoint in a parking lot after we got out of a late class. He drugged both of us, so I don’t remember anything from then until we woke up chained together in a cabin somewhere in the woods. After he decided to only keep one of us, I was found on the side of the road a day later. My friend hasn’t been seen since.”
By the end of her quick spiel, Detective Kelly definitely had his cop face on. “I’m sorry.”
Her answering smile had nothing to do with happiness. “Me, too.”
She finally shoved the envelope across the table. If he noticed how badly her hands were shaking, he was kind enough not to comment. “I have my mail delivered to a post office box and usually only pick it up once a week. I have no idea when that envelope actually arrived.”
Detective Kelly had started taking notes, so she waited for him to catch up before continuing. “I waited until I got home to open the envelope. That’s when I noticed there was no return address. Maybe that should have set off alarms, but it didn’t. I’m sorry if I’ve contaminated the evidence.”
“Have you ever gotten anything like this before?”
When she shook her head, he said, “Then there’s nothing to apologize for. How were you supposed to know something was wrong?”
She appreciated his effort to reassure her even if it didn’t really help. “Regardless, something about it made me uncomfortable.”
“Besides the lack of a return address?”
“Yes. At first, I thought maybe my mom or a friend might have ordered a surprise present to be sent directly to me, but it’s not my birthday or anything. Besides, a commercial shipment would normally have a printed label.”
By that point, she couldn’t bear to look at the envelope. Instead, she kept her gaze focused on the man across from her. “There’s a small box with a buffalo head nickel inside along with a note addressed to me.”
“Does that specific coin hold a special significance?”
She managed a small nod. “It looks like the one they found hidden in my shoe when I was rescued. I figure he put it there because I didn’t have any pockets. The note also echoes something my abductor said twelve years ago. Back then, he said he didn’t have time to enjoy both of us. He flipped that coin to choose between us. After that, they found me tied to a tree on the side of a road. We’ve never found out what happened to Marta.”
She swallowed hard, her fear a huge wave that threatened to overwhelm her. “Basically, this note says he finally has time for me.”
Detective Kelly’s hand slammed down hard on the table, his anger clear. He immediately apologized. “Sorry for losing my temper, Ms. Sims. You’ve been through enough for one day and don’t need any more drama. My temper wasn’t directed at you but at whoever mailed that envelope.”
“It’s all right, Detective. I’m pretty upset about this situation myself. So what do we do next? And how long will it take? I’d like to get back home before dark.”
He frowned. “Do you have friends or family you can stay with?”
That was the last thing she wanted to do. “I’d rather go home.”
“Okay, then.” He studied the envelope for several seconds before finally meeting her gaze again. “Right now, I’m trying to decide whether I should open the envelope myself or have the forensics team take over now.”
A second later, he nodded. “Yeah, the forensics people should have first crack at it. I’ll ask them to give it priority, but I can’t make any promises. I’ll come to your house when I know what they find.”
He checked the time. “I’m guessing that won’t be until tomorrow sometime. Is that all right with you?”
She knew that last part was his attempt to let her think she had some control over the situation. While she appreciated his consideration, they both knew he would show up whether she wanted him to or not. Besides, she needed his help.
“I’m a school teacher. I normally get home around four thirty. Any time after that should be fine.”
All too ready to be done and out of there, Aubrey picked up her purse and her canvas bag, leaving the envelope on the table. With keys in hand, she rose to her feet. “I’ll be going. Thank you for meeting with me on such short notice, Detective Kelly. I appreciate it.”
“Any time, but give me a minute before you leave. I’d feel better if Sergeant Decker makes sure you get back home safely.”
He pulled out his cell phone and made a quick call. “Sarge, I need you to escort Ms. Sims back to her house. She might appreciate it if you make sure everything is secure when you get there.”
When Detective Kelly ended the call, she offered him a small smile. “I’d like to say that’s not necessary, but the truth is I’ll sleep better if he really has time, that is.”
“He’s on his way. I’d walk you out to your car myself, but I have to stay with the evidence.” Then he held out a business card. “That’s my number. Call any time, day or night. Otherwise, I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“I’ll be waiting.”
Sergeant Decker walked in a minute later. “You ready to go, Ms. Sims? I hope it’s okay, but I’m going to ride with you while one of our patrol officers follows behind. I’ll do a perimeter check as well as check the inside of the house while she stays outside with you. Afterward, she’ll bring me back to the station.”
Detective Kelly looked happier. “Good thinking, Sergeant. I’ll also ask the officers who patrol that area to drive by the house more often until we figure out what’s going on.”
Aubrey followed Sergeant Decker out to her car. While they waited for the other officer to join them, she couldn’t decide if their efforts to provide safe escort back to her house were reassuring or only scared her more knowing they thought it was necessary.
Despite his decision to have the forensics people take charge of the evidence, Jonah was seriously tempted to rip the envelope open right then and there. He knew better: procedures were meant to be followed for good reason. It was important to protect the evidence to ensure the case would hold up if and when it ever came to trial. The last thing anyone wanted to happen was to have the case thrown out of court because someone got careless.
With that in mind, he pulled out his phone and made a quick call. “I need someone from Forensics in the conference room off the lobby ASAP.”
While he waited, he skimmed through the case file to familiarize himself with the basic facts. Even the little he read was the stuff of nightmares. No wonder the coin and the note had left Aubrey Sims pale and shaking. He’d only gotten through the initial report when the forensics tech arrived. After she did her thing, Jonah followed her down to the lab.
For the next hour, he hovered as close as he could to the two technicians who were processing the envelope and its contents. He snapped pictures at each step of the way even though the forensics team handled the official documentation of the evidence. At least this way he would have his own photos to use until they finished processing everything.
They finally opened the envelope and gently slid its contents onto the counter. Just as Aubrey had told him, there was a small box about two inches square and a pink envelope, which held a single piece of white paper folded in thirds. The technician carefully removed the lid from the box to reveal a coin nestled on top of a thin layer of cotton. After photographing that much, she unfolded the note and laid it flat next to the box.
Then she stood back to allow Jonah a closer look. The coin didn’t tell him much, but his breath caught in his chest as soon as he read the words scrawled across the paper. No wonder Aubrey had been so badly shaken by the contents of the envelope.
The tech gave him a curious look. “From your reaction, I’m guessing there’s good reason to be concerned about the young woman who brought this in.”
“Yeah, there is.” Although Jonah wished he was wrong about that. Sadly, the threat was all too clear, especially after what he’d read in Aubrey’s case file.
Leaving the techs to finish their work, Jonah hustled out of the lab as fast as his aching leg would let him. He didn’t even try to hide his need to limp as he headed back to his office.
When he sat down at his desk, he did his best to ignore the jagged shards of pain shooting up his leg. His knee clearly wasn’t very happy about all the walking and standing Jonah had done over the past couple of hours.
Too bad. Right now he had more important things to worry about, like doing a much deeper dive into the case file to learn everything he could. He started with the investigating officer’s report along with all the notes Detective Swahn had added over the years. On his second pass through the jumble of information, Jonah started taking notes, adding his own observations of the potential new evidence.
The details on the case sent chills up Jonah’s spine. One thing Aubrey hadn’t mentioned was that their captor had used a device to distort his voice. He’d also dressed from head to toe in black, including a mask that hid his face and hair. Those things accounted for why Aubrey couldn’t give any useful description of the man who had abducted the two women.
The few things she did remember clearly were the stuff of nightmares. Like how the kidnapper had sounded almost gleeful when he informed the two women that he wouldn’t have time to enjoy both of them. No doubt he got off on their terror. Worse yet, they had to watch as he flipped a coin to determine which one would stay and who would get a reprieve. Marta had never been heard from again, but the next day Aubrey had been found beside a rural highway near the Cascades. She’d been groggy but otherwise unharmed, at least physically. The only real evidence they’d found was the coin—a buffalo head nickel.
Jonah studied the picture of the coin in the file and compared it to his photo of the one down in the forensics lab. They were identical in style; the only significant difference was the year they’d been minted. According to the file, the description of the coin had never been released to the public. Unless Aubrey or possibly someone close to her had let it slip, only the kidnapper would’ve known what kind of coin he’d used.
Finally, Jonah reviewed Aubrey’s original description of what her captor had said in the cabin and compared it to the note that had accompanied the coin. There was no doubt that he’d be coming for Aubrey, and soon.
Jonah picked up his phone and dialed his boss’s number. “Captain, we’ve got a problem.”