44. A Lead
FORTY-FOUR
A Lead
CJ
“Mrs. Collins, do you think you could take the girls back to the shelter?” The Social Services shelter was on the opposite side of town. It would take an hour to take the girls and return to the hotel.
She shushed CJ, a look of intense concentration scrawled across her face. “I’m almost done.”
“You’d be doing me a huge favor.”
Time! He’d lost too much time. He would have left already if it weren’t for Henrietta Jones. This sketch was the closest thing to a lead they had, and he couldn’t abandon the girls’ hopes of finding their mother.
But damn, he hated wasting time.
Anna, bless her talkative little mouth, would not shut up. Her inherent cuteness saved her hide, and he couldn’t help but smile when she peeked at the drawing. Her actions were slowing the ponderous Mrs. Collins down.
There was no choice but to wait. Angela stood beside him, displaying greater patience than him.
His pacing drew stares from Mrs. Collins.
Anything could be happening to Melissa. He hated this inaction. His pulse strummed with the need to do something.
But, he trusted Mac. Mac would coordinate the action at the hotel, gather witnesses, and scour surveillance tapes. Mac had probably assigned Jenny to the police detail, making sure they didn’t foul the crime scene. And the rest of Delta team was there too. Their help would be invaluable.
He trusted them, but he wanted to be there.
Mrs. Collins scratched at the drawing tablet. What was he to do with the girls? No way was he making the hour-long round-trip to the shelter. With a flourish, she drew her last line. “It’s done, Anna. Do you want to see?”
Not a moment later, Anna was on her feet, peering over the sketchpad. She waved her hand, beckoning him forward.
“Mr. CJ. Mr. CJ!” Her voice squeaked, demanding his immediate attention.
He forced a smile. “How does it look?”
Despite his worry over Melissa, he had this case to solve.
“She did it! She did what you said.” Anna turned to him, eyes wide. Her voice dropped to a whisper. A look of wonder filled her face. “She pulled him outta my head.” She jumped on the park bench, pointing at the sketch pad.
Angela twisted her mouth and stomped around to look. She tilted her head and squinted. With a clucking sound, she said. “Anna, you made him look too nice.”
CJ glanced at the drawing. An unremarkable man with a long face and narrow-set eyes stared out from the page. He looked vaguely familiar. Where had he seen that man before? Because he’d definitely seen him and recently, too.
He took another look at the two sketches, comparing them side by side. Angela’s portrayed a much harder man than Anna’s image. A skinny man jogging toward him. Where had that been, and why would a man be bringing him roses?
Not him.
CJ pinched his eyes, willing the memory to surface. The man had been running toward…Melissa! He jerked as the memory unfolded. Red roses were bouncing in the grip of a skinny ass guy. He had reacted, placing himself between Melissa and what he’d perceived was a threat. The look on the guy’s face had seemed possessive, predatory even. CJ had adjusted his stance, balancing on the balls of his feet, getting ready to fight. Melissa had stepped around him. She’d placed a hand on his arm and pushed him to the side. “It’s okay, CJ.”
What did this man have to do with Henrietta Jones?
He needed to get to his team.
Mrs. Collins packed up and turned to Angela. “Do you want to see what I drew from your description?”
Angela shook her head. “No.” She pointed at the pad of paper. “He looks like that, but weirder.” Every now and then, her eyes lifted to the sketchpad and fell back to the ground.
Time to leave.
His words cut sharper than intended. “Listen, something’s come up if you could take the girls…”
“I’d love to take them.”
“Girls,” he called out, “it’s time to go.”
“We’re leaving Mr. CJ?” Anna asked, skipping with her endless energy.
He put a hand on Anna’s head. “Yes, Mrs. Collins is going to take you back to the ladies at the shelter.”
Angela hugged herself. “Did the pictures help?”
He squatted down and drew Angela into a hug. “The pictures helped more than you know. Thank you for being so brave.”
She lunged at him, wrapping her tiny arms around his neck. “You mean we did it? You’re going to bring Mommy home?” Hope and despair warred with each other in Angela’s expression, and a tear pooled at the corner of her eye.
He wrapped her in a hug, pulling her close. “I hope so.” He prayed he wasn’t lying and would find Henrietta Jones alive.
“Mr. CJ,” Angela said with a whisper. “I didn’t like the man because he smelled funny. Does that help?”
It didn’t help at all, but he wanted her to think she was helping. “Yes, that helps. Men can be stinky sometimes.”
Angela shook her head. “Not stinky!” She wrinkled her nose, “He smelled like dirt and had lipstick smeared on his face. The bright red kind Mom doesn’t like. He made me feel funny too.” She pulled her shoulders inward. Her voice dropped so low he had to lean forward to hear her whisper. “He looked at my…my…” From the way she crossed her arms over her pre-pubescent chest, CJ had no difficulty finishing that thought.
“You did very well today, Angela.”
“Will the pictures help find my mom?”
He shouldn’t be nodding because there was no reason to give her false hope, but his head moved.
“Thank you,” she said in her soft whisper.
Anna launched herself at him, joining her sister in the hug. “Mr. CJ!” Her squeal aggravated his headache, but he pulled her close and gave them a combined hug.
“Come girls, we need to get moving.” He herded them to Mrs. Collin’s car, transferred the child seats, and ensured they were buckled in. With a nod, he gave his thanks to Mrs. Collins and waved goodbye to the girls. Then he headed to the hotel.
On the way, he phoned Mac.
Jenny answered. “Hey, CJ.”
“Status update.”
“Mac wanted to wait until you got here to go in, but I told him we needed to get started.”
CJ agreed. There was no reason to wait.
“I’ll be there in a few minutes. What have you found so far?”
“The room’s clean,” Jenny said. “Whoever did this planned well.”
“There has to be something. Surveillance? Cleaning and room service staff?”
“Brett and Jon are talking with the staff, and Charlie is with hotel security to see if anyone saw anything.”
Brett Parmley and Jon Knutt were top notch. Charlie Moudin was a relatively new addition to the team, recruited, not from the military, but from Forest Summers’ Facility. The Facility was something like a halfway house for people Forest rescued. They received counseling along with intense self-defense training. He liked what he’d seen so far in Charlie’s skills, enthusiasm, and a unique outlook.
“Police?” He was curious how involved they might be given how stretched thin they were.
“They’re sending a detective, and the Feds are coming online since Patterson is likely involved.”
The man with the roses was connected to Henrietta’s disappearance and tied to Melissa’s as well. He didn’t like what that might mean.
“I have a lead on the Henrietta Jones’ case.”