Chapter 10
10
A s they returned to the SUV where Rocky waited patiently in the back, Wynona’s thoughts whirled. She could only handle so much, and fear and panic over her missing son sat front and center in her mind.
Yet deep down, she knew Chase expected to, at the very least, share custody of their son. Would he go as far as to sue for sole custody? A shiver that had nothing to do with the cold ran down her spine. She didn’t think so. And even if he tried, the courts would likely take Eli’s diagnosis into consideration. Her son didn’t know Chase. And yes, that was her fault. But it didn’t change the facts.
She did her best to stay focused on their next steps. They had the name of a suspect, George Twofeathers. And while she hoped the tribal police would find him, that didn’t mean she would sit back and wait for that to happen.
Chase pulled away from the house where they now knew Eli had been recently held. She wanted to believe that the plan wasn’t to harm her son. But since she wasn’t even sure why he’d been taken, she couldn’t find much comfort in that thought.
“What do you think?” Chase glanced at her. “The apartments?”
“Actually, let’s try the college first. That may be easier. Then we’ll check the Silver Spur.” Other than the two beer bottles that had been on the table in the trailer home, they didn’t have any reason to believe George or his accomplice frequented the place.
“Sounds good to me,” Chase agreed. He turned the SUV and trailer at the next intersection to head west toward the apartments that were located across the street from the community college.
“There’s a small common area with food and vending machines.” She frowned, trying to remember the last time she’d been on the small campus. It seemed like eons ago rather than a few years. “Lots of students hang out there. I think it would be a good place to start.”
“Sounds good to me. I’d like to bring Rocky.” At her surprised look, he quickly added, “It’s not that I think he’ll alert on Eli’s scent, but he can be a conversation starter. You’d be surprised at how he attracts attention.”
“I can imagine.” She tried to smile. “I’ll take anything we can get.”
He nodded, then reached for her hand. They were wearing gloves, but she clung to his fingers anyway. “We’re going to find Eli today. I can feel it.”
She wanted to share his conviction but couldn’t seem to push the heavy cloak of depression aside. “I hope so.”
He squeezed her hand, then released it. They drove in silence for several minutes. Rocky shifted a bit in the back, and she imagined the dog was tired of being confined to his crate. When they reached the college, Chase headed to the farthest corner of the parking lot for a space that would accommodate the SUV and the snow machine trailer.
He released the hatch. Rocky didn’t hesitate to jump down. She slid out and waited for Chase to give Rocky some water. The K9 still wore his vest, which meant Chase still had him in work mode. When they were ready, they walked across the parking lot to the building.
The common area wasn’t that busy, only about six tables were occupied. Maybe it was a little too early for many students to be hanging around. A table of four girls looked at Rocky in awe.
“What kind of dog is he?” one of them asked.
Chase smiled. “This is Rocky. He’s a Norwegian Elkhound. They were originally bred in Norway as hunting dogs.” He glanced down at his K9 partner. “They are great trackers but can also be a bit stubborn.”
“Like his master.” She managed a smile as she stepped forward to join the conversation.
Chase’s smile widened. “Can’t deny it.”
“So he tracks things? Like animals?” another girl asked.
“His ancestors did that, but Rocky tracks people now for the most part.” He eyed the four girls. “Do any of you know George Twofeathers?”
“No, why? Is he missing?” The third girl’s eyes widened with interest.
“Not really, we’re just looking for him,” she hastened to clarify. “We heard he lived around here. Maybe in the apartments across the street?”
The girls looked at each other, then shrugged. “I don’t know him, sorry.”
“Me either,” the others chimed in.
“Thanks for your time.” Chase moved on to the next table. The young couple holding hands claimed they’d never heard of George either.
By the time they’d finished in the commons, Wyn was feeling more depressed than ever. “This was a waste of time.”
“You never know.” Chase shrugged as he held the door for her. “Word travels fast. Maybe someone at the apartments will have heard we’re looking for George and approach us when we get there.”
She sighed. “I know you’re trying to be optimistic, but we could be giving George too much credit. I don’t think anyone with a criminal background would be with college students. Maybe we should change our approach and head over to the Silver Spur. At least we know George likes to drink beer.”
“Let’s check the apartments first.” Chase shrugged. “I mean, why not? We’re here and you had a point about George and his mother, Regina, not being homeowners. If they live in this area, the apartments are a likely spot to find them.”
“Okay.” She forced a nod. “I guess I was hoping someone would have recognized his name here at the school.”
He put his arm around her shoulder for a quick side hug. “I’m sure we’ll find someone who knows him. There aren’t that many people living in the area.”
She did her best to shake off the keen sense of despair. Chase was right. They could do this. Riverton wasn’t that large. Someone would know George. Or his mother, Regina.
As they headed across the street to the apartment building, her gaze narrowed on the squad parked on the street. “The tribal police are here!”
“I see that.” Chase quickened his pace. “Maybe they found Regina.”
She lifted her gaze to the sky in a silent prayer for the Lord to protect their son. Then she followed Chase up to the front door of the building. The door wasn’t locked, so they walked right inside.
They stood for a moment listening. Then she heard the murmur of voices coming from above. “Upstairs.” She turned toward the staircase.
Chase snagged her arm, holding her back. “Let me go first with Rocky.”
She realized there was a slim chance Eli was upstairs. “Okay, but hurry.”
“Are you ready?” Chase bent to ruffle Rocky’s fur. “Search! Search for Eli!”
The dog lifted his nose and sniffed. She was a little surprised Chase took the stairs to the second floor; she knew he normally wouldn’t lead Rocky in a specific direction. Then again, they were here to test Regina Twofeathers, if that’s who the police were questioning.
And they must be doing just that. As they took the stairs, the voices in the hallway grew loud enough to be heard clearly.
“I haven’t seen him,” a woman’s voice said flatly. “I kicked him out months ago.”
“Are you sure about that? This is the address he gave his parole officer,” one of the tribal cops said. “He’s supposed to be living here with you.”
“Not my fault.” The woman almost sounded bored with the conversation. “He was drinking too much, so I told him to leave.”
“If that’s true, we can arrest him for violating the rules of his parole agreement,” the cop said.
“Go ahead. I don’t care.”
The officers turned as Chase and Rocky approached. Rocky was still sniffing but didn’t seem to have caught Eli’s scent. The taller of the two cops scowled. “What are you doing here?”
“I’d like to make sure Eli isn’t being held here on the premises.” Chase turned toward the woman she knew must be Regina. “Ma’am, would you mind if Rocky takes a look around your apartment?”
“I have nothing to hide.” Regina’s broad face remained stoic. “But as I told these officers, I don’t know where my son is.”
“I understand.” Chase gestured to his dog. “Search! Search for Eli!”
The tribal police officers watched skeptically as Rocky lowered his nose to the floor and sniffed along the hallway to the opening of Regina’s apartment. The woman stepped back to give the dog room to work.
But it was soon apparent Eli had never been there. Rocky sniffed with interest, then turned and trotted back out into the hallway, moving farther down the row of apartment doors as if determined to win his game.
“Thank you for your cooperation,” Chase said as he took a few steps away from the door to follow his K9. “It’s helpful for us to know Eli hasn’t been here.”
“I told you that.” Regina leveled a hard stare as she reached for the door.
“Excuse me. I’m Eli’s mother.” Wyn quickly stepped forward. “Do you have any idea where George might be? Who his friends are? Does he have a particular hang out?”
The shorter officer scowled. “We’re asking the questions here.”
She whirled to face him. “My son has been missing for eighteen hours. I’m angry and upset and willing to do whatever it takes to find him.”
There was a long moment of silence before Regina spoke. “George once came here with his friend Tyler. I don’t know his last name because I didn’t ask.”
Chase gave her a slight nod of encouragement as he followed Rocky.
She ignored the tribal police, focusing on Regina. “Thank you. Do you know where they might be now?”
“As I said earlier, I do not.” Regina began to close the door, hesitated, then said, “I hope you find your son.”
“Me too.” She stood for a minute staring at the closed door. Then she turned to look at the tribal police. “I apologize if I’ve intruded on your case.”
The taller of the two shrugged. “I don’t blame you for wanting to find your son. But you should leave searching for George Twofeathers to us.”
Yeah, there was no way that was going to happen. But she didn’t tell them that. She stepped aside to wait for Chase and Rocky. It may have been her imagination, but it seemed as if Rocky was frustrated at not finding his quarry. He stopped and sniffed at just about every door but never alerted on Eli’s scent.
She knew that if Eli had been in Regina’s apartment, the dog would have told them. Too bad there wasn’t a way to take Rocky to every single house in the entire city to find him.
It was disheartening to know they were no closer to finding Eli than they were earlier that morning.
* * *
“You want something to eat or not?” Smelly Man stared at Eli in the rearview mirror, and he could almost hear his mommy telling him to use his words.
He squeezed his black stuffed horse tightly, and whispered, “Yes.”
“Three breakfast sandwiches,” Smelly Man said through his open window. A voice told them to drive around, so the smelly man did.
Cold air blew in through the smelly man’s open window. His nose runned again, so he swiped it on his sleeve. Smelly Man scowled and tossed something into the back seat. “Use a napkin, kid.”
Eli blew his nose. The napkin wasn’t hard like the building block. He wanted his building block.
The woman at the window frowned at him. Had he done something wrong? He swiped at his nose again with the napkin, then held it up toward the window. The wind snatched it from his fingers, and he quickly ducked his head, hoping he wouldn’t get in trouble.
As the smelly man paid for their food, he squeezed his horsey.
Soft. Soft. Soft.
“Here, take this.” Smelly Man held out a sandwich. Eli took it, but it was hot to his fingers. He dropped it in his lap and put his hands on the window beside him.
Hot and cold. Hot and cold.
He stared out the window, thinking about his mommy. She hadn’t found him yet, but he knew she would.
Hot and cold.
* * *
“Come on, Rock.” Chase waited for the officers to leave before leading his dog down the stairs to the main floor of the apartment building. He’d briefly considered having Rocky check the entire place, then decided that would be a fruitless endeavor. The two places Rocky had alerted on Eli’s scent had been houses, not apartments.
Too many people may have noticed these guys hiding a small child here. Plus, he rather doubted George Twofeathers would have picked a place so close to his mother.
A mother who had come across as if she had washed her hands of the young man.
He couldn’t imagine doing that with his own son, but he could remember the trouble he’d gotten into during his teenage years. Nothing as criminal as armed robbery, but sneaking out of the ranch to attend drinking parties and stealing some of his mom’s petty cash.
Which considering how much money his parents had left behind in their trust after their deaths, he figured she’d never missed the money he’d stolen. Not that it was an excuse to do something like that.
The tribal police officers were waiting outside their squad. The taller of the two, Officer Wells, pushed away from the car to approach. “I take it your dog did not alert anywhere in the building?”
“Correct. He did not.” Chase wondered if this guy had been involved six months ago after Alecia had gone missing. “Have you located Carl Longfoot yet?”
“No.” Officer Wells’s eyes bored into his. “I hope you don’t plan to interfere with the investigation.”
Chase wanted to point out that other than interviewing Regina Twofeathers, the police hadn’t come up with much of anything helpful over the past eighteen hours. But he managed to keep his tone neutral. “Don’t blame us for wanting to find Eli.”
“You seem to be taking this case personally.” The shorter of the two cops joined them. His name tag identified him as Donner. Chase noticed the men had steered clear of Wynona after her mama bear response outside of Regina’s door.
“I think everyone on this reservation should be taking this case personally.” Chase scowled. “A child is missing, and we need to find him before—” He stopped, unwilling to think about his son ending up dead like Alecia.
“Ah, yes, you were here searching for Alecia.” Officer Wells nodded sagely. “I remember now.”
“Yes, I was.” He couldn’t very well deny it. “So you can understand why we are anxious to find Eli.”
“Rumor has it the child is yours,” Officer Donner said.
Chase tried to hide his shock. “Who told you that?”
Donner shrugged, his expression nonchalant. “Whispers across the rez, that’s all.”
Inwardly reeling, he turned from the officers. He’d assumed that since Wynona hadn’t told him he was Eli’s father, that nobody else knew the truth too.
Apparently, that was not the case.
Wynona looked impatient as she stood near the side of the road. He and Rocky crossed over to join her. She gestured toward the cops. “Let me guess, they want us to stay away?”
“Something like that.” He took her arm as they walked the width of the parking lot to reach his SUV. “Who knows that I’m Eli’s biological father?”
“What?” Her dark eyes widened in shock. Then she glanced over her shoulder at the cops. “I haven’t told anyone about you being Eli’s father. Why? What did they say?”
“There are rumors circulating through the rez that I’m Eli’s father.” He stopped near the back of the SUV and turned to face her. “Be honest with me for once. People are talking, and I want to know who knows about us.”
Her cheeks flushed at his attack on her integrity. She set her jaw. “Obviously, my father knows, and I am sure Shana has figured it out too. But I can assure you my father wouldn’t be spreading rumors about us. He was not at all happy with me when he discovered I was pregnant with your child.”
The man who’d refused his request to marry Wynona. “He would if he thought it would get me in trouble.”
She rolled her eyes. “That’s ridiculous. Besides, I haven’t even told my father Eli is missing, so why would he try to make you look bad? Can we please head over to the Silver Spur? Standing in the freezing cold and arguing over rumors won’t help us find our son.”
He managed a curt nod and opened the back hatch for Rocky. After making sure the dog was settled in, he stepped back and closed it again. Wyn had already climbed into the passenger seat. He paused before opening the driver’s side door, wondering why the tribal officer’s comment had thrown him for a loop.
Probably because it seemed as if he were the last to know. Well, except for the rest of his siblings. He slid in behind the wheel, turned the engine on, then looked at Wyn. “My family doesn’t know anything about me being Eli’s father.”
“I understand your concern.” She stared down at her hands for a moment, then met his gaze. “I don’t think the rumors will extend to your ranch. And for now, I would really like to check the Silver Spur.”
He fastened his seat belt and put the car into gear, doing his best to mask the flash of bitterness. “Yeah, okay.” He pulled out of the parking spot and headed back toward the downtown area of the city. “But I’m going to call them soon. My family deserves to hear the truth from me, not someone who happens to be driving from the reservation up through Cody.”
Wyn looked like she might argue, but then shrugged. “Whatever you think is best.”
He fought back the urge to lash out at her. They wouldn’t be in this predicament if she hadn’t kept Eli a secret for the past four and a half years. Yet even as that thought reverberated through his mind, he knew it was useless to dwell on the past.
The trip to the Silver Spur was made in complete silence. The bar was open for business, and there were several cars in the lot despite the early hour. He had to go around the block to find a place where he could park the SUV and the trailer. There was no sign of the white truck they’d noticed late last night, and he was angry with himself for not asking the tribal police if they were still searching for it.
Not that it mattered. As far as he could tell, the tribal police were doing their best with their limited resources. He was glad the FBI was involved.
“Are you going to ask Rocky to search for Eli’s scent?” Wyn asked, breaking the silence.
He shook his head. “No, but I’ll bring him inside. The SUV is designed to keep him warm, but I’m hoping that when the people inside realize we’re looking for a lost little boy, they’ll be more apt to cooperate.”
“Okay.” She pushed her door open and hopped out.
Chase decided to leave Rocky’s vest on. It was just another way to convince the locals to talk. He held the door open for Wynona. She entered the bar without hesitation, quickly scanning the interior.
The inside appeared to be in better shape than the worn exterior. The bar was only half full, but there were many people sitting at the various tables. The crowd was mostly Native Americans. Several of the patrons turned to look at them as they made their way across the room. Maybe it was his imagination, but Chase sensed they were more interested in him than his dog. Because he was white and didn’t belong?
Wynona walked up to the group of men seated at the bar. “Excuse me, my name is Wynona Blackhorse, and I’m looking for a man by the name of George Twofeathers. Have you seen him recently?”
“George?” One of the men lifted his glass. “Here’s to George.” He took a long swallow of his beer.
Wyn managed to keep her smile in place. “Do you know George? Has he been in recently?”
“Nah, I haven’t seen George in a few days.” The more sober of the men turned to look at her. “You might want to try Albert’s place.”
“Albert who?” Wyn pounced on the information.
“Here’s to Albert,” the first man said, taking another long drink of his beer. Chase could tell Wyn was getting annoyed and stepped closer to help her out.
“Can you give us Albert’s last name?” he asked. “It’s really important we find George Twofeathers, so any information you can provide would be helpful.”
“Pretty sure it’s Son’ja, Albert Son’ja.”
“Where can we find Albert?” Wyn asked. “Is he a regular? Will he be in anytime soon?”
“Here’s to Albert,” the first guy repeated.
The guy next to him elbowed him sharply. “Knock it off. You already did Albert.”
“What’s your name?” The guy still held his glass up. “I gotta drink to someone.”
“Please tell me where we might find Albert Son’ja,” Wyn repeated. “My son is missing, and George may know something important.”
“Albert lives in a trailer on Lemon Road,” the seemingly sober guy said. “It’s a white trailer with black shutters.”
“Thank you.” Wyn looked relieved to have another lead.
Chase had noticed that the bartender had stayed far away as she’d asked her questions. Almost as if he knew George and Albert too. He nodded at the guy, then moved to an open seat at the bar.
For a long moment, the bartender pretended to be busy. Chase waited him out. Finally, the bartender looked up. “What are you drinking?”
“I’m not. I think you know that we’re looking for George Twofeathers,” he said. “I’d like to know why you’re not willing to tell us where we can find him.”
The bartender’s gaze slid away. “I don’t know much about George. He comes in sometimes, but that’s all. I can’t help you.”
“Can’t or won’t?” Chase leaned forward. “A kid is missing, and withholding information is against the law.”
The bartender shrugged. “I told you I don’t know where he is.”
Chase wanted to reach across the bar to grab the guy by the shirt and to shake the truth out of him. Before he could move, Wynona stepped forward.
“My father is Ogima Blackhorse. He is an important man on the tribal council. I believe he and the other tribal leaders decide which bars are approved for selling liquor.” She leaned toward the bartender as if she was about to share some secret. “I am sure you would want my father to know how helpful you’ve been in our search for George Twofeathers and his friend Albert.”
After a long second, the bartender finally looked up. “I don’t know where George is. Or Albert for that matter. But I know he was here three nights ago, bragging about how he got some special job that was going to pay him a lot of money.”
“Did he say who hired him?” Chase asked. “Or anything specific about what this job entailed?”
The bartender shook his head. “Nah. But I know he must have gotten some of that cash up front because he bought a round for the bar for the first time ever.”
“Do you think he’s working this special job with Albert Son’ja?” Wyn asked.
“I don’t know. He never mentioned a name, just that he was excited to have a decent-paying job.” The bartender shrugged and looked at Wyn. “Albert wasn’t here that night that he was celebrating.”
“Do you remember anything else about that night?” Chase asked.
“No.” The bartender looked at Wyn as if Chase wasn’t worth his time. “I’ve told you everything I know.”
“Thank you. I appreciate that. And I’ll make sure my father knows too.” She turned away and tipped her head toward the front door. He understood she was ready to leave.
“Thank you,” Chase repeated before following her out. Rocky looked a little disappointed that he hadn’t been asked to play the search game.
“Soon, buddy,” Chase murmured to the dog as he opened the hatch of the SUV for his K9 to hop in. “You’re going to be back at work very soon.”
“I feel like we should tell the tribal police about Albert,” Wyn said as they were once again back on the road.
“We will, as soon as we verify the guy is home.” A surge of adrenaline hit hard. Their search for Eli may soon be over.