16. Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Sixteen
H e didn’t like this.
Belle never should have gone off on her own.
Parker stood with a small group of carolers. Belle had never been truly alone. He’d called in help from the neighboring towns. He didn’t have enough staff to cover the entire park.
He’d talked his mother into continuing the caroling on the other side of the street from the park. He wanted a distraction—something for the dognapper to focus on instead of him noticing Parker’s people moving into position around the park.
As they walked down the sidewalk across from the park, he had his phone out.
He was snapping photos of all the cars parked on the side of the street and those driving by.
He would send them to the sheriff’s office where they’d check the license plates for someone who didn’t belong there.
He was certain that whoever did this didn’t live in Kringle Falls.
Add in the fact that the estate auction where Belle bought the jewelry box was a couple of towns over only upped his suspicion that the suspect wasn’t local.
Parker already had a couple of deputies situated in the park, out of sight.
Everything within him wanted to run to Belle’s side.
He couldn’t believe she’d taken off on her own.
When he saw her again, he was going to hug her, and then he was going to have a big talk with her about safety. Then he was going to hug her again.
All she had to do was place the jewelry box on the bench and walk away. He could see her from where he stood across the road. At least she’d picked the bench under one of the lights. He wanted to be a lot closer, but he didn’t know how to do that without alerting the suspect.
So far, all of the cars he’d checked out were empty, and the plates checked out. These cars were all where they were supposed to be. It made him start to doubt his suspicions about the suspect. Was it possible it was a Kringle Falls resident?
And then movement out of the corner of his eye caught his attention. He turned his head to see a dark figure walking a dog through the park. The breath stilled in his lungs. This was it.
He lifted his phone to his ear. “Everyone be ready to move. The subject is approaching Belle.”
While the carolers kept walking, he stopped on the sidewalk. He stared at the scene unfolding in front of him. The dog seemed large, nothing like the photos of Odie that Belle had displayed around the house.
When the subject reached the bench Belle was sitting on, he didn’t so much as pause. He kept going. It was a false alarm. Parker struggled to keep the frustration from his voice as he spoke into his phone. “False alarm.”
Knowing he couldn’t continue to stand there on the sidewalk all by himself, staring at Belle, he turned and took long, fast steps to catch up with the carolers.
They were going to walk to the end of the next block and then retrace their steps.
He was so appreciative to his mother for making this happen.
He was going to have to figure out a special way to thank her.
He wanted to continue to stare at Belle, but if the subject was around, he couldn’t give himself away. He had to have faith in the people he had in the park who were watching over her. This whole event wasn’t going to be over soon enough for him.
When he rejoined the carolers, his mother leaned toward him. “Is everything all right?”
He nodded. Though everything inside him said that nothing was right—not with Belle being a sitting duck for this unpredictable suspect.
The longer she sat there, the colder she became.
At first glance, Belle had thought for certain the person walking their dog had been the suspect. But as they’d gotten closer, she realized the dog was too big to be Odie. Disappointment settled in her chest.
The breeze picked up, grabbing the top layer of snow and tossing it around. The icy flakes smacked her in the face as the frigid air hit her lungs. It was so cold out and yet, she wasn’t going anywhere.
She turned her head left and right but she didn’t see anyone. No one wanted to be out on such a cold evening—except for the carolers. She couldn’t remember them mentioning coming to this part of town. Still, the sound of their voices gave her hope that somehow this mess was going to work out.
Her thoughts turned back to Parker. She was so appreciative of him for staying away.
She knew he didn’t want to do it, but it was for the best. Secretly, as the time had dragged on, she started to think she was never going to be reunited with Odie.
But then the dognapper had called, and now they were so close to being together again.
Belle rubbed her bare hands together. She couldn’t believe she’d forgotten her gloves. She was apparently more nervous about this meeting than she’d let on to herself.
If one good thing had to come out of this event, it was that she was able to see Parker in a different light. He was a really good guy—even if he clung to the rules a little too tightly. But give her some time, and she’d have him seeing shades of gray instead of everything being black and white.
Wee-oow. Wee-oow.
Belle’s head turned in the direction of the sirens and lights. Two police cars pulled to a stop at the edge of the park. What were they doing?
Her heart sank. The dognapper was never going to show with law enforcement there. More law enforcement vehicles rolled up on the scene. Whatever was going on was a big deal.
And then she realized she’d forgotten her phone in the car too. What if the guy had called her to change plans? A feeling of dread settled in her stomach.
She got up from the bench, grabbed the jewelry box, and headed back to her car. She was just steps from her car when Parker approached her.
She frowned at him. “What are you doing here? I told you to let me handle this.”
He straightened his shoulders. “We arrested him.”
“What?” Had she heard him correctly?
“We arrested the suspect.” He gestured toward all of the flashing lights. “You don’t have to worry anymore.”
“But how do you know it’s him?”
“When we ran the plates, there’s a BOLO (be-on-the-lookout) for the car and there’s a bench warrant out for him. Long story short, he was left out of his family’s will. Instead of settling it in court, he’s decided to take what he thinks he deserves.”
Her gaze searched his. “It’s really over?”
He smiled and nodded. “It is. And you’re safe.”
“And Odie? Is he in the car?” Her gaze searched his.
“I don’t know. I’m just about to go get briefed on everything.”
“Let’s go.” She turned to walk toward the commotion.
Parker reached out, catching her upper arm. “Not so fast.”
“I have to get to Odie.”
“First, we have to turn over the jewelry box for evidence.”
“Oh. Yes.” Her thoughts were utterly scattered.
Once the jewelry box was handed over to the deputy, they walked toward the scene.
While Parker talked to his people, Belle wasn’t able to get close to the suspect’s car.
It didn’t stop her from squinting to see if there was a dog inside.
It didn’t appear that Odie was in the car.
She glanced around to see if someone had gotten him out.
She didn’t see any sign of Odie. But he had to be somewhere.
She approached a uniformed officer. “Excuse me. Was there a dog in the car?”
The older guy looked at her with sympathy in his eyes and shook his head. “I didn’t see one.”
She wasn’t willing to accept that answer, because if it were true—if Odie wasn’t there—then… She refused to continue that line of thought.
She moved to the next person and inquired about Odie. They hadn’t seen him either. She didn’t stop. She kept asking anyone and everyone. Someone had to have seen him, right?
Parker approached her. The solemn look on his face made her blood chill. Before he could get a word out, she said, “What? Where is he?”
He reached out to her, but she backed up out of his reach. “He said he doesn’t have Odie.”
“Then he’s the wrong guy. You arrested the wrong guy.” Her mind raced as she figured out what this meant. “What if the dognapper is here…watching us?”
“Belle, this is the right guy. He had pictures of your house and of you at work. They were in his car.”
“But… But where is Odie?”
“I don’t know yet.”
“Well, ask him. Where is he? I’ll ask him.” She turned around, looking for the police vehicle with the dognapper in the back.
“Belle, he’s not here. They already left with him.”
She swung around and glared at Parker. “How could you let him leave without telling us where Odie is?”
“Trust me, it’s going to be my first question. We will get an answer. But right now, I need you to go home.”
She shook her head. “I’m not going home. I’m going with you.”
“You can’t. This is official business.”
“But…”
“No, Belle. I’m sorry. But you can’t be there. I called Michael and Candi.” He pointed to them approaching. “They were in town and said they’d be happy to wait with you.”
Before she could vocalize her protest, her friends were within earshot, and she wasn’t going to say anything to hurt their feelings. She felt so helpless and scared that she might never see Odie again.
How had this all gone so wrong? And then she realized if the police hadn’t intervened, the dognapper would have taken the jewelry box, and she still wouldn’t have Odie. Unless…
Her gaze strayed to the car. Dread filled her but she had to ask. “Did… Did you check the trunk?”
Sympathy shone in Parker’s eyes. “Yes. He wasn’t there.”
“Then where is he?”
“We’ll find him. I promise. Just go home. I’ll call as soon as we have something.”
Candi rushed over to her and put her arm around her shoulders. “Hey, how are you doing?”
Belle didn’t have an answer to that question. So, she shrugged.
In the end, she drove her Jeep home with Candi next to her while Michael trailed behind them. She just couldn’t help thinking that if Parker had done as she’d asked, that the dognapper would have told her where to find Odie. Why didn’t Parker trust her?