Jonah pulled out of the school parking lot and turned right, the opposite direction from where he needed to go. His next stop was to meet with Mr. and Mrs. Pyne, but he had to get his head back on straight before he faced off with them. Right now, his thoughts were spiraling out of control, all of them circling around the stubborn woman he’d just left. That hug had been a huge mistake. As he’d told her, it had been unprofessional. But beyond that, it could compromise their working relationship.
Even before the shooting, Jonah had known better than to get attached to the civilians he dealt with in the course of his job. Emotions only confused things, and all too often lives depended on clear thinking. But somehow, the rules didn’t seem to apply when it came to Aubrey Sims. Maybe it was the aura of solitude that surrounded her. He wasn’t sure he’d ever known anyone who seemed more alone than she did.
It wasn’t that she didn’t have any friends. That much was clear from the way her coworkers responded to her back at the school. She must also have friends at church. Still, he wondered how well any of those people actually knew her. How much of her past had she shared with them? After all, the abduction had taken place twelve years ago while she was away at college. Old friends and relatives would know for sure, but somehow he couldn’t picture her bringing up what had happened to her in the course of casual conversation. She probably worried it would change how people saw her—as a victim rather than a survivor.
It would make sense that her pastor perhaps knew at least the bare bones of her kidnapping. With luck, he’d actually been around when it all went down. If so, Jonah hoped the man had really been there for Aubrey. It helped a person to deal with the lingering effects of trauma to have someone you felt safe enough with to express your grief, your pain and, most of all, your anger. That last one was the biggie.
Jonah had been blessed to have two people who’d stepped up to help him. One was the psychologist the police department had recommended. It hadn’t taken Jonah long to realize that Dr. Borrelli had plenty of experience helping officers cope with all the ugliness their jobs threw at them on a daily basis. It hadn’t taken him long to convince Jonah that whatever he was feeling was okay.
The other person Jonah had turned to was Reverend Kim Waring, the assistant pastor at his church. She’d listened to everything he’d said without judgment and with endless patience when he couldn’t find the words. Kim had also prayed with and for Jonah, and even understood why his friend’s death had shaken his faith. Her calm demeanor had helped soothe his anger, and her advice about moving forward had gone a long way toward helping him pick up the pieces of his life.
He was pretty sure that Aubrey hadn’t been that lucky. Yes, her parents had tried their best to shield her from the aftermath of the kidnapping. However, their forget-it-and-move-on philosophy, even if well-intentioned, hadn’t been the right choice for Aubrey. All it did was force her to hide her true feelings from them. Knowing she’d never told her parents that she’d hired private investigators to look into her case was proof of that.
As he waited for a stoplight to turn green, he slammed his fist on the steering wheel, frustrated on so many levels. All of this was getting him nowhere. Aubrey’s relationship with her parents was none of his business as long as it didn’t impede his investigation. He’d do them both more good by reestablishing some professional distance between them for both their sakes. That meant getting on with his agenda for the day. He’d start by talking to the Pynes. Afterward, he was supposed to meet with his captain to give him an update on Aubrey’s situation as well as a couple of other cases.
He’d also planned to call George Swahn and ask if he could meet Jonah for breakfast near the precinct in the morning. He wanted to pick George’s brain to see if the man had anything in his private notes that might help Jonah get a better handle on Aubrey’s case. He hoped so, because right now Jonah was chasing shadows.
His itinerary for the day set, he turned back toward the part of town where the Pynes lived.
Considering the length of time it took someone to answer when Jonah rang the doorbell, he had to wonder if the Pynes had decided to ignore him or, more likely, left home in order to avoid him altogether. He was about to ring the bell a second time when he finally heard the scuffle of footsteps inside the house. He stepped back and waited impatiently for the door to open.
The man who peeked out at him appeared to be far older than Aubrey’s father. It was hard to tell if that was actually true or if it was the loss of his daughter that had left Riley Pyne stooped and fragile-looking. He squinted at Jonah as if he wasn’t accustomed to bright sunshine. “What do you want?”
Jonah flashed his ID. “I’m Detective Kelly, Mr. Pyne. We spoke on the phone.”
“And I told you we didn’t want to talk to you.”
Seriously? Were they still going to play this game? He’d promised his captain that he’d tread softly with these folks, but his patience would only last so long. “Yes, sir, I know you did. However, I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t important. If you’ll give me a little time to explain the situation and answer a few questions, I will do my best to not bother you again. I can’t promise that the current situation won’t require me to reach out again, but please understand that I won’t unless I have no other options.”
“Let him in, Riley.”
Jonah wasn’t the only one who hadn’t noticed Dina Pyne had joined her husband. She was still talking. “Let’s get this over with.”
Turning her attention to Jonah, she studied him with angry eyes. “Nothing you have to say today will bring our daughter home after all this time. I want to hear why you want to torment us like this.”
Her husband huffed a disgusted sigh, but then he stepped aside and opened the door wide enough to allow Jonah to come inside. As soon as he crossed the threshold, he wanted to go into full retreat. The inside of the house was dank and dark. It provided an interesting contrast to Ross Easton’s house. He kept his polished and shiny, partly in memorial for the woman he’d loved, and maybe because on some level he hung on to some small bit of hope that life was still worth living without her in it.
Marta’s parents’ home reeked of their despair. After years of waiting and wondering, they’d given up on ever finding out what had become of her. The two of them existed, going through the motions only because they didn’t know what else to do. Jonah prayed that somehow he could find a way to give them closure and maybe a little peace.
Before that could happen, he had to solve this threat to Aubrey.
The older couple shuffled their way down the narrow hallway to the family room. They settled into matching recliners, which left the couch for him.
After he was seated, he started in. “Let me give you a brief overview of what has been happening, which will explain why I felt it was necessary that we speak.”
He stuck to the highlights to keep thing moving along at a quick pace. He ended with the delivery of the flowers, but didn’t mention that Aubrey was taking a leave of absence. “And that’s pretty much all of it in a nutshell. As I explained on the phone, I only recently took over the case after the previous detective retired. I’m speaking with everyone I can who was connected to the case twelve years ago.”
Mr. Pyne looked slightly less angry than when Jonah first arrived. “So you think it’s the same guy who took our daughter and Aubrey back then.”
“Yeah, but we don’t know that for sure.” He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “Having said that, it seems to be highly likely. The note definitely hinted at insider knowledge.”
“How is Aubrey dealing with all of this?”
Jonah was a little surprised by the concern in Mrs. Pyne’s voice. “As well as can be expected. She’s understandably scared.”
“Poor girl. None of this has been easy for her.” Mrs. Pyne’s eyes glittered with a sheen of tears. “To my everlasting shame, my actions only made it worse for her. Even back then, my head knew none of it was Aubrey’s fault, but my heart was broken. All that anger had to go somewhere, and I aimed it right at her.”
Platitudes wouldn’t change a thing, but asking for their help might. “Can you think back to right before the kidnapping took place and tell me everything you remember about that time in your daughter’s life?”
Unfortunately, there wasn’t much new in what they shared. Well, except one thing. Ross had indicated Marta was still working at the school library when she was kidnapped. According to her parents, Marta had already quit. She’d never actually told them much about what had happened, but they thought maybe she’d had a problem with another student. She’d assured them it was no big deal, and she would’ve had to quit soon anyway.
At least it was something to talk to Aubrey about. Detective Swahn, too, for that matter. Jonah stuck his pen and notebook back into his pocket and stood up. He set one of his business cards on the coffee table. “Here’s my number if you think of anything else. Thank you again for talking to me today. I know this wasn’t easy for you.”
With some effort, Mr. Pyne pushed himself up out of his chair. “I can’t say I’m happy about having all of this brought up again, Detective, but we understand why you had to do it.”
He started back down the hall to open the door. As Jonah walked out, Mr. Pyne whispered, “It was nice to talk about our daughter with someone. Most folks are afraid to mention her name for fear of upsetting us, but it hurts worse when they act like she never existed at all.”
There wasn’t much Jonah could say to that. “I should be going.”
Mr. Pyne followed him out onto the porch. “At this late date, it won’t change a thing, but I sure hope you can bring the man who stole my Marta to justice.”
“Me, too, Mr. Pyne. Me, too.”
Aubrey was exhausted. She’d managed to meet with her principal during her lunch break. He hadn’t exactly been angry that she had to leave for the rest of the year, but he wasn’t happy about it either. She’d given him a list of substitutes she liked and agreed to work one more day to give him a chance to make the necessary arrangements.
A school was a small world, and it didn’t take long for the news to spread about it being Aubrey’s last day tomorrow. Understandably, it had generated a lot of questions. She’d fielded them as best she could while trying to avoid giving too many specifics about the nature of the emergency. She regretted that she and Jonah hadn’t come up with a plausible explanation before he’d left that morning. Desperate to offer up something believable, she’d said that it was a personal family matter and left it at that.
Keeping secrets from her friends didn’t sit well with her, but it was better than having to explain what was really going on. She could only imagine how they would all freak out if she were to confess a threat from her past had resurfaced, a true life-and-death situation. There was never an easy way to admit she’d been the victim of a kidnapping. The few times the subject had come up in conversation, the response from the other person had been difficult to predict. Sympathy and horror were the most common reactions, but occasionally the other person wanted to know all of the dark and twisted details of Aubrey’s experience. Those were the worst times.
Eventually, she was going to have to tell her friends the truth, but that was a problem for another day. Right now, she needed to make sure she had everything she needed to take home with her. She’d already texted Jonah that she was ready to leave. He’d answered that he was on his way. After taking one last glance around the room, she picked up her stuff and left, stopping only to lock the classroom door behind her.
The hall outside was deserted. No surprise there since it was after six o’clock. Normally the only people likely to be in the building at that hour were the evening janitor and maybe the principal. Lyle often worked late, especially if there was a meeting at the district office or some event going on at the school during the evening.
She started down the hall, hating the way her footsteps rang out in the otherwise silent building. Jonah had asked if she wanted to wait for him to come to her classroom, but she’d told him that wouldn’t work since the building would be locked by that point. Now she wished she’d told him to circle around the building to the door that opened to the playground. Too late now.
As she neared the school office, she spotted the janitor stepping out of a classroom a few doors down. Ruben waved at her and called, “Do you need help carrying stuff out to your car?”
“No, I’ve got it all.”
He set down the bag of trash he was carrying and started toward her. “What’s this I hear about tomorrow being your last day? You’ll be back next year, won’t you?”
“For sure. It’s just a personal problem I have to take care of.”
His smile was sympathetic. “I’m sorry to hear that, and I hope it’s nothing serious.”
There wasn’t much she could say to that, so she changed the subject. “I should warn you that I cleaned out a bunch of stuff today, so the trash cans in my room are overflowing. I wanted to make sure everything is in good order when my substitute starts.”
He waved off her concern. “Don’t worry. I’ll take care of it.”
“Thanks, Ruben.”
It was time to get going. It wouldn’t be fair to keep Jonah waiting out in the parking lot any longer than necessary. Ruben had started down the hall but circled back in her direction. “I just realized how late it is. If you don’t feel comfortable heading out to an empty parking lot alone, I’ll walk you out to your car.”
Rubin was known to offer to escort any of the women who stayed later than usual at the school. Normally she would’ve told him that wasn’t necessary, especially when it was still light outside. Under the circumstances, though, maybe it wouldn’t be a bad idea. “There’s no need for you to walk me all the way out, but you can keep an eye on me from the door if you want.”
He hesitated. “If you’re sure.”
“It will be fine. I have a friend coming to meet me. He’s on his way and should be here any minute.”
Ruben was near retirement age and had grandkids. She knew that because he took such delight in sharing pictures of his family members every chance he got. He also tended to treat all of the school staff, regardless of age or gender, as if they were extensions of his family. “I hope your young man is treating you right.”
She went with the safest answer she could think of. “So far, so good.”
Then she ducked out of the door to avoid any further discussion on the subject. There was still no sign of Jonah, but surely he’d be there any second. As she got closer to her car, she noticed there was something odd about the way it looked, as if it was listing to one side. Her steps slowed as she tried to make sense of what she was seeing, which didn’t take long. Suddenly, she was flashing back to twelve years as she and Marta had walked out to her car in the college parking lot to find her tires had been slashed. This time, someone had driven a spike into her rear tire.
Her blood ran cold—her stalker had struck again.