30. CODY
The world was caving in around me, and every single emotion was running rampant in my mind.
Alex was forming a team with the Grand Junction Police Department to track down Landon while another team scoured the area for video surveillance, hoping to spot the direction his car headed.
Alex had managed to capture a semi-clear screenshot of Landon's face from the convenience store footage and distributed copies to the team.
Once everyone assembled in the conference room, Alex gestured for me to join them.
"Why me? Is this even allowed? I'm not a cop," I hesitated.
"You were the last person to see Danielle. You’re a witness," he said.
Dragging my feet, I followed Alex from the room into a narrow hallway leading to the conference room.
What use was I at this point? I had no weapon, no gear, and was emotionally shattered.
I knew I couldn't detach myself from my emotions, and given the opportunity, I'd have no hesitation in killing Landon.
I wanted to stop Alex and tell him, but before I could, he entered the conference room.
The chatter in the room came to a screeching halt as we stepped in. Faces of somber expressions turned toward us. Alex wasn't part of their department, and these officers didn't know me, yet they were ready to do whatever it took.
“Alright, listen up, everyone,” Alex began, distributing the photos of Landon and his car to the eight officers assembled.
“This is a picture of our suspect, Landon Fletcher, also known as Landon Rider—yes, that Landon Rider. Assume he’s armed and extremely dangerous.
He was last seen leaving a convenience store in a burgundy Hyundai Sonata.
The license plate is logged in the recognition database, but remember, thus far, he’s been able to switch cars and plates faster than we can track them.
He has one hostage, last seen alive in the car. ”
Alex paused, taut with nervous energy. “Danielle Traser... my sister. Red hair, about 5’7”. If we can’t find her in time, we’re looking at a devastating outcome.”
The room buzzed at the revelation that Alex’s sister was the hostage. A new degree of seriousness had set in for everyone in the room.
Clearing his throat, Alex pressed on. “This is Cody Morgan, ex-Special Forces. He was hired to keep Danielle here and was the last person to see Danielle. When we locate Fletcher, no one engages without full SWAT gear. We’re venturing into unknown territory with him.
After a brief meeting with the captain, we’ll organize into teams.”
The weight of the mission sank in as each officer understood not only the professional stakes but the personal ones as well.
I lingered in the main room while Alex talked with the captain.
The space was cluttered with boxes and files piled on desks, scattered across the floor, and even on top of filing cabinets.
The team of eight officers was awaiting directives.
They were huddled around a whiteboard filled with Landon's and Danielle’s photos and the information we'd gathered.
Indistinct conversation floated among them, and I chose not to listen in.
Alex emerged from the chief's office, prepared to move forward.
"What’s the plan?" I asked.
"Captain’s given me the green light to lead the investigation. He’s issued an APB on Landon, so now every department throughout Colorado is on alert for Landon's face and his vehicle."
“And me?”
Alex looked around and leaned in, lowering his voice. “You know I can’t have you going with me. I mean, I’m going to, but they don’t know that.”
The captain stepped out of his office, commanding immediate attention. He was an older, bald, African American man whose authoritative expression had the room silent in seconds. I could tell he was respected, and if he was respected, that meant he was damn good at his job.
“Attention, everyone,” his deep voice resonated like thunder.
“Office Traser will spearhead this investigation, remaining on-site until we apprehend the suspect. Davis and Foreman, your task is to scour social media platforms, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, whatever the hell you use these days, and see if you can uncover any leads related to Landon and Danielle’s whereabouts. ”
“Understood, sir.”
“Johnston, Gaillard, you’re both returning to the convenience store. I want you to examine Danielle’s vehicle, review the surveillance footage again for anything we overlooked, and speak with the employees once more.”
“Yes, Captain.”
“Petersen, Calhoun. Research any abandoned warehouses and remote properties within a 50-mile radius. And Scott and Morse, I need you to saturate the area with her image. Let’s see if we can rattle him a little. Hopefully he’ll panic and screw something up.”
“Yes, sir.”
Alex grabbed my arm, lurching me forward, “Let’s go.” He gestured toward the door with a subtle nod.
“Where are we headed?” I asked, keeping pace with him.
“Quiet ‘til we get to the car. I don’t need them thinking you’re going with me. As far as they know, I’m taking you home.”
Once back at the car, Alex shut the door and looked around as if someone would overhear us from inside the car.
“We’ll start canvassing hotels in the vicinity. If he took her that fast, he must've been here waiting. He was watching from a hotel back home; I’m hoping he did that here, too.”
We started our search, targeting every hotel nearby. One by one, we were met with denial. No one had seen Landon. It was starting to look like we wouldn’t get as lucky as Alex had hoped.
“You know, Alex, he might have just stayed in his car.”
“Possible, but unlikely. He’d been surveilling the hospital from a hotel, has the means, and prefers staying hidden from the public.”
As we rounded a corner, the convenience store where Danielle was abducted came into view.
It really did have such charm to it. Danielle and I came here often.
We’d come to just sit down with a coffee or a pastry and enjoy each other's company. Sometimes we’d come for a middle-of-the-night snack run.
Now it was tainted by tragedy. I paused in the middle of the sidewalk, assessing the area. We halted at the crosswalk, waiting for the light to change. That’s when I noticed the motel rooms overlooking the store.
“Alex, if all Landon had to go on was that she swiped her card here, he’d want to keep a close eye on this store in particular, right?”
“Yeah, why?”
I pointed to the motel. “You think he’d ditch his usual cushy hotel for a seedy motel?”
We crossed the street toward the store, then made our way across again to the motel's parking lot, heading straight into the lobby.
The interior was as dismal as I expected, and far from anything Landon would choose voluntarily.
The lobby looked like it hadn’t changed since the 80s, and neither had the uniforms, as the lady at the front desk had on the predicted pant suit with vest and bowtie that screams ‘we’re trying to be a classy establishment.
’ She looked to be about mid-30s with cheap, box-dyed blonde hair and pink lipstick that was four shades too bright.
She looked like she didn’t want to be there.
“Excuse me, ma’am. Grand Junction PD,” Alex said, flashing his badge along with a surveillance photo of Landon. “Have you seen this man check in or out in the last 72 hours?”
She scrutinized the picture, her face pinched with thought. “Oh, yes, I remember him well. Came in alone, asked for a room with a view of the shopping center. Acted real weird.”
Alex shot me a knowing look. “Weird, how?”
“He was only here a few hours, then left. Came back about an hour later, said he was checking out, and told me to keep the cash."
“Did he tell you where he was going?” Alex asked.
“Look, detective, when someone tells you to keep that much cash, you don’t ask questions.”
“Did you happen to at least see which way he went when he left?”
“Yeah, he turned right.” She held her finger up, as if to stop us from going anywhere, and thought for another second. “I saw a girl in his passenger seat that wasn’t with him when he checked in.”
“Ok, thank you, miss.”
We left and started walking back to the car.
“When we get back to the station, we need to check in with the team, creating a list of abandoned properties. If he turned right, he’d be heading away from Grand Junction.
Let’s fucking hope he didn’t head to the airport,” Alex tossed a half- smoked cigarette into the street as he jumped into the car, and we sped toward the station.
Back at the department, the atmosphere had gotten heavy as everyone got lost in their own heavy concentration.
I sank into one of the office chairs, glaring at my watch, realizing I had been awake for 34 hours.
I was fighting to stay awake when Alex walked back over to me and put his hand on my shoulder.
“Cody, you need some rest. Get some sleep, and I'll wake you if we need you.”