Chapter 35
Thirty-Five
Black Rock Falls
Sunshine sparkled over the rooftops as Jenna rode in the Beast toward the office.
On Main, the apple pie with a cup of coffee sign on top of Aunt Betty’s Café glistened, welcoming people inside.
As usual there was a line of people outside the bakery and the smell of freshly baked bread wafted along the sidewalk, filling the inside of the cab with a delicious aroma.
Jenna inhaled. “The bread smells absolutely incredible. I wish I had the time to join that line and buy a loaf.”
“It’s not that busy all the time.” Kane slowed to allow a mother with three children to cross the road in front of him.
“The best time to go there is around eleven. That’s when the cakes and cookies come out of the oven.
They bake pies as well but they’re not as good as Aunt Betty’s.
Maybe we should pick up a pile of pies and take them out to the ranch.
I’m sure everyone would appreciate them.
” He sighed as if imagining eating one right now.
“I’ll give them a call when we get to the office and order them fresh out of the oven.
What time do you figure we’ll be heading out to the ranch? ”
Jenna smiled at him. “Let’s see if we can leave here by eleven and then we can take some fresh bread with us as well.” She turned away to wave at a bunch of schoolkids waiting at the bus stop. “Everyone in town looks so happy today. I wish we weren’t hunting down a killer.”
“You mentioned leaving Rio and Rowley in the office today to hunt down the two missing women and see if they’re alive.
So what do you have planned for the suspects that Rowley knows?
” Kane glanced at her and drove into the parking space outside the sheriff’s office.
“Are we going to check them out before we head out to the ranch?”
Nodding, Jenna gathered her things and climbed out of the truck. She waited for Kane to lift Duke down from the back seat and they headed up the steps into the sheriff’s office. Inside, she went to the desk to speak to the receptionist, Maggie. “Do you have anything for me today, Maggie?”
“Not today. Things are really quiet around here at the moment.” Maggie smiled brightly. “Fingers crossed it lasts.”
“That’s good to know.” Kane headed up the stairs to refill their forensics kit with Duke on his heels.
Jenna made her way to the office area downstairs to speak to her deputies.
Moments later Raven walked in the front door and hurried to catch up to her.
She turned, looked at him, and bent to scratch his dog, Ben, behind the ears.
“Is there any news on Zoe’s condition? I was waiting to see you before I called the hospital. ”
“Yeah, I went to see her and I’ve spoken to the doctors during their morning rounds.
” Raven removed his hat and placed it brim-up on the desk.
“She still doesn’t remember anything, and to be honest, we’re not expecting her to, but she has recovered considerably overnight.
The doctors will be constantly running tests on her throughout her stay.
I asked them to extend her time at the hospital for as long as possible.
I had two reasons for suggesting this. One, she’s in a very vulnerable position at the moment and we don’t know who kidnapped her.
Second, it’s possible for memories to come flooding back in a rush.
If this happens, she will be in the best place.
She feels safe there and can get medical attention should the need arise.
I’m also concerned about the head injury.
It’s not to be rushed. She needs to rest.”
Jenna nodded slowly. “I agree one hundred percent. I’ll ask Maggie to arrange for a care package to be taken to the hospital for her and follow that up with an open order from Aunt Betty’s Café.”
“Oh, I purchased a burner phone for her from the convenience store until she can organize something for herself.” Raven sat on the edge of the table and scratched his beard.
“I’ve added all our contacts in case she needs to get in touch with anyone.
Also, Emily asked me if you could give her a call with an estimate of Zoe’s size.
She wants to take her some nightclothes, a robe, and slippers.
Maybe she can chat with Maggie and they can work out what they need between them. ”
Surprised by his concern, Jenna smiled at him.
“That is very good of you both, but please, allow the foundation to pick up the tab. It’s what it’s for and we have millions from donations.
The generosity of Montanans never ceases to amaze me.
It gives us the ability to keep expanding.
In truth, we’ll never turn anyone away.” Jenna walked up to Rowley’s desk.
“That’s good to know. Okay now, what have you got for me to do today?” Raven’s brown eyes scanned her face. “Rowley here mentioned something about carrying out interviews with people who worked at Rhett’s ranch over twenty years ago.”
“Yeah, and Hale still works with them today.” Rowley held up his tablet.
“Dr. Hale is the veterinarian and Rick Talbot is a contract truck driver used for livestock deliveries. Talbot worked for Lawson for three years and then disappeared after the murders, but I tracked him down and he still lives in town.” He scrolled through his notes.
“What made him interesting is, from Lawson’s diaries, he mentions Talbot specifically as owing him money.
And his logbooks didn’t match his delivery schedule.
Lawson assumed he might be smuggling livestock.
It would have been easy enough for Talbot to add a couple of extra steers to his load.
” He lifted his gaze to her. “The other thing is he disappeared forty-eight hours after the Lawsons’ murders.
This is one of the things that Kalo discovered in the payroll books.
He only lives in town and didn’t return to the ranch for his paycheck. ”
Pleased by Rowley’s attention to detail, she nodded. “That’s interesting and something we will look at today.”
Jenna had a few things she needed to do and splitting up the interviews in town would give her more time at the ranch.
She had no doubt the three FBI agents and Rhett would be organizing interviews with any people of interest on the ranch in her absence.
“Do you know the veterinarian? He’s not the same person we take Duke to for his shots. ”
“Yeah, I know him. He specializes in horses and cattle. Most of the ranches running livestock call him when they need help.” Rowley placed his tablet on his desk and looked at Jenna expectantly.
Jenna turned and looked at Rio, who stood and came toward her.
“Rio, can you put out a media release? Ask if anyone saw anything unusual in the forest on the night that Zoe was kidnapped or if they’ve seen anything unusual over the last few days.
People that seemed out of place, particularly men moving alone through the forest. Make a point of telling them not to approach anyone and report any unusual sightings to the hotline. ”
“Copy that.” Rio returned to his desk and started hammering on his keyboard.
Turning back to Rowley and Raven, Jenna looked from one to the other.
“We need information both past and present. When you speak to the veterinarian, get his take on what happened to the Lawsons. Ask him if he’s ever been called out to examine any dead cattle.
Does Lawson’s Ridge have any problem with the health of their livestock?
You can inform him he can divulge any information to you, as you have the permission of the owner, or if he’s concerned, he can call Rhett.
Follow up your questions to include the timeline around Marie Reyes’ death and Zoe Carpenter’s abduction.
Ask him obvious questions. For instance, is there anyone he would suspect might have been abusing women back then and now?
I’ll go with Dave to speak to Rick Talbot and then we’re heading to Rhett’s ranch. ”
“I’m ready to go.” Kane came up behind her.
She turned and smiled at him. “Okay.” She looked at her deputies.
“Upload your files to the server so we can all be kept in the loop. If you discover anything significant, call me.” She turned and headed toward the front door, waving at Maggie along the way.
“Raven is heading out with Rowley to interview the veterinarian, which leaves us Rick Talbot. He used to drive livestock delivery trucks for the Lawsons and then quit forty-eight hours after they died. His details should be on the server. I’ll access them the moment we’re inside the truck. ”
“If he’s a driver, he could be anywhere in the state at the moment.” Kane cranked up the AC inside the Beast. “How old is this guy?”
Jenna scrolled through her tablet. “He is fifty-six, so likely still working. He lives over on Elm. Maybe we’ll be lucky and find him at home.”
“Okay, Elm it is.” Kane swung the truck around and headed toward Elm.
All the houses on Elm were spread apart.
Many had horses grazing in corrals with barns or stables alongside.
They found Talbot’s house easily enough and drove up a sweeping driveway to the front porch.
The overgrown front yard spilled onto the driveway, and the large old house, constructed of red brick and obviously over one hundred years old, showed signs of disrepair.
Jenna turned to Kane as they pulled up outside the front door.
“I’m guessing there isn’t a Mrs. Talbot. ”
“Hmm, that depends.” Kane frowned. “Sometimes people just don’t have the money to keep a place in pristine condition. Although, it does seem a shame not to maintain a grand old house like this one.”