Chapter 116
ONE HUNDRED SIXTEEN
Critter Crossing
Ellie and Derrick debated the decision to take Hazel with them to retrieve the little girls, but Iris knew her and if the child was frightened, which most likely she was, they needed her.
Hazel could connect with Iris and offer her comfort.
They decided to wait to inform Dana Jo and her mother until they verified that the lead was not a fake or a trap.
They couldn’t chance too many civilians being on the scene in case things turned south or take a traumatized Dana Jo to see her daughter if she wasn’t safe.
“Thank you for letting me come with you,” Hazel said from the back seat, where she’d been fidgeting ever since they’d gotten in the car.
“Just remember that you have to stay in the vehicle until we make certain this call is legit,” Ellie said.
“But why would someone call and say they had the girls if they didn’t?” Hazel asked.
Ellie had to bite her tongue. “You’d be surprised at what people would do.” Although if this caller wanted money, she hadn’t asked for it.
“Just let us check out the situation,” Derrick said. “If Iris is in there, we’ll come and get you.”
“The medics are meeting us there, too,” Ellie said. “If the kids are with this person, we need to have them physically checked out.”
Hazel folded her hands. “Lord, please let them children be safe and unharmed.”
Ellie admired the power of faith the people in this area had, especially in light of the deaths at Midnight Ridge.
Thankfully the storm had ceased, although she had to maneuver black ice on the deserted road that led from Mystic to Critter Crossing, an area set so remote that she wondered how the woman who lived out here survived. Where she got her food and necessities. Or had health checkups.
The hairs on her neck prickled. Was this a set-up?
She wound down a narrow, graveled road deep in the woods, noting a sign that said Deer Crossing. The trees and isolated area created the sense they were going off grid.
The Jeep bounced over the gravel and ruts in the road, and her tires ground mud and sleet as she maneuvered the melting slush. Two miles in, she spotted a small rustic cabin nestled in the woods, a low light burning inside.
“I’m not sure I like the looks of this,” Derrick said. “From here, we proceed with caution.”
“Agreed.” Ellie threw a look over her shoulder. “Remember what we said about staying put. If something happens, lock the doors and call 9-1-1.”
Hazel’s eyes flashed with fear, but she nodded, then pulled her phone from her purse and gripped it.
Ellie cut the engine, and she and Derrick checked their weapons as they eased from the Jeep and started up the driveway. Night sounds echoed from the woods, the wind whistling off the mountain, the trees shivering and sending icy water pellets raining down.
Ellie and Derrick approached slowly, scanning the yard and surrounding area until they reached the front porch. A porch swing swayed in the wind gusts, windchimes tinkling.
Ellie inhaled a deep breath, climbed the steps and knocked. Derrick stood to the side, his hand on his weapon at the ready.
Seconds later, the door opened a crack and a middle-aged woman appeared, peering out.
Ellie frowned. Deputy Landrum had said the caller sounded older. Ellie flashed her badge and Derrick did the same. “We had a call that two missing children are here. Iris Benton and Lou Lou Glasser.”
The woman literally leaned against the door and released a heavy sigh. “Thank God. And yes, they are. I’m Mona Cash and I’m here with my mother. She’s been terrified Wally would come back and kill her and hurt the girls.”
Ellie held her breath “So they’re okay?”
“Yes. I mean they’re confused but they’re safe. Mama and I both love children.”
Ellie raised a brow. “How is your mother involved?”
Tears streamed down the woman’s pale cheeks. “She took care of Wally when he was a kid for a little while but eventually he was too much for her.”
“But he brought the girls to her.”
“Yes. Wally dropped off Iris first and said her mother was one of his clients and couldn’t take care of her anymore, and Wally agreed to find her a home.”
“Your mother didn’t realize he’d killed Iris’s mother?”
“No, not at the time. But when he brought Lou Lou, she got suspicious. He threatened to kill her and the girls if she called the police.”
“But she called you?”
“No, I stop in once a week to bring Mama groceries and… Mama was almost hysterical. I saw the girls and insisted she tell me what happened.” Mona finally breathed out. “By then I’d seen the news, and we didn’t know what to do.”
They would do a deeper dive into the woman’s story, but for now Ellie wanted to verify the children were here and safe. “We need to see the girls.”
“Of course.”
Mona led the way into the small bungalow, which, in spite of the rustic exterior, was surprisingly cozy and clean.
A wood fire glowed in the stone fireplace, the coffee table held children’s books, and a few toys.
A sippy cup sat on the table, a juice box beside it, along with two snack cups of cheese crackers.
A white-haired woman wearing a housedress, obviously Mona’s mother, sat on the sofa with both girls huddled close to her while she was reading them a children’s story.
She looked up at them with wide frightened eyes as she hugged the little girls close, blankets piled around them.
Ellie and Derrick exchanged a look. “I’ll get Hazel,” Derrick said.
Ellie gave a thank-you to the heavens that the children looked safe and unharmed.
“Thank you for coming,” the older woman said. “I can’t believe Wally did this.”
Ellie gritted her teeth. “At least he brought them to you where he knew they’d be safe and cared for.”
The woman smiled through tears, then dropped a kiss on Iris’s head then one on Lou Lou’s. “I’d never let anything bad happen to a little child.”
The sound of Derrick’s boots on the wood floor indicated he was back with Hazel, then Hazel rushed into the room and threw her hands up in the air. “Oh, thank you sweet Jesus!” she cried as she waddled toward Iris.
“Ha ha,” Iris squealed. The toddler tried to get down, but Hazel reached her and scooped her up, cradling her into a hug.
Ellie wiped tears from her own cheeks. She couldn’t wait to call Dana Jo and her mother and put Lou Lou back in their arms.