CHAPTER 15

Though Parker was trying to maintain a calm exterior, he was beginning to feel desperate at how long he’d been separated from Madison. Too much time had gone by since Detective Crumb had told him his truck had been positively identified. He remembered the passing car that night. Why hadn’t he parked on a different street?

Even if the detective came in here this minute and told him she changed her mind and he was free to leave, it would take him two hours to get back to Manti—more if he had to worry about losing a tail. How had his life deteriorated so quickly? It was like being back in a relationship with Dakota.

Meanwhile, he couldn’t help worrying that Carla might have left Madison alone at the rental house. Maybe she had something important awaiting her attention and rationalized that he would only be gone a short time. They didn’t really have a long-standing relationship, and he couldn’t guess at her thought process or the culture in which she had been raised. If she leaves Madison, I’ll fire her, he vowed. The idea was ludicrous since he’d planned to let her go anyway.

One option was to tell Detective Crumb the truth. Maybe she really was looking into Dakota’s drug use, and they could work together to make sure Madison was safe. Or maybe Dakota would be more careful now that the authorities were aware of what was going on.

Or were they? They didn’t seem to be good at getting to the truth. What if nothing changed and Madison remained at risk? For all he knew, the cops didn’t take his accusations seriously, and telling the truth now might only mean that he wouldn’t have another chance to save his daughter. Dakota obviously wasn’t changing any time soon. That was something he should have counted on, since he knew from experience how enticing her lifestyle was and how hard it was to break free. His daughter shouldn’t have to deal with that, not at four or at any age.

At least he’d had the presence of mind to stash his burner phone under the window blinds in the lobby earlier when they’d arrived, pretending to stumble into the wall. In the unmarked squad car, he’d seen Detective Crumb looking at it with interest and had realized the numbers in the memory or on the phone records would lead directly to the rental house. But those numbers were safe now, and with any luck, he and Madison would be in Las Vegas before the phone was discovered.

If they let him make a phone call, maybe he could call Carla to make sure all was well. He would offer her triple the normal wage to stay until he was free. Yet what if he and his mother were arrested and held for days? And could he trust that his call wouldn’t be traced? What would Carla do with Madison if she didn’t hear from him?

The agony of worry ate at him, crumbling his confidence. All he wanted was to protect his daughter, but speaking up or staying quiet both seemed to have serious consequences. Except, of course, that Dakota and drugs were assured danger, while Carla was an unknown.

Better to go with the unknown. He’d have to trust Carla for a little longer, regardless of how it ripped him apart. He’d never, ever forgive himself if any harm came to Madison. But maybe his mother would get to her quickly. She knew how important it was.

With this thought, a new worry pushed to the forefront of his mind. If they allowed his mother to go free tonight, they would likely follow her to the rental house in a way she couldn’t detect. After all, they were trained at what they did and would be expecting her to try to get around them now. The last thing he wanted was to see his mother in jail. He had to prevent that along with everything else. He had to get them to let him see her.

Weight pushed down on his shoulders, threatening to crush out all hope. He was so exhausted that his brain no longer seemed to be functioning. But the clock was ever ticking. His only hope was to somehow get free so he could take Madison away from Utah and the threat Dakota represented. He wished he’d done that from the beginning, instead of coming up with the crazy idea of hiding her.

Parker laid his head down on the table, trying to clear it of a sudden dizziness. If they were keeping him overnight, as it appeared they would, where would he stay? In here? Or did they have a jail cell with a bed? Or at least a bench he could stretch out on.

Sometime later the door opened, and he tried to blink away the exhaustion. How long had she left him here? At least an hour, though he could be wrong. “Where’s my lawyer?” he demanded. “And are you going to give me a bed, or is this part of the torture routine?”

The detective didn’t smile. “We traced your phone records, and we found the man you rented a house from in Manti. Care to tell me why you rented a house there?”

Parker swallowed, his throat dry as though he’d been drinking sand. “A lot of people move,” he said carefully.

Crumb folded her long arms across her chest. “The game is up, Parker. We found the house and your daughter’s clothes. She’s been there very recently.”

“But she’s not there now.” He wondered if his statement betrayed the shock he felt.

“No,” Crumb said. “She’s not. The house is empty.”