Chapter 27
TWENTY-SEVEN
Jesslyn stomped a foot, her anger bubbling, but was grateful the room had cooled down significantly. He’d actually turned the air on for her. She was so confused. Was she in danger or not? She was going to go with yes but was still turning over their very weird conversation. He never directly answered a question but insisted he wasn’t a killer. And yet he’d threatened her all those years ago. He’d kidnapped her. He’d played mind and word games with her.
But she was still alive.
And standing there thinking wasn’t going to get her out of the situation. She went to the bathroom and pulled the ceramic lid from the back of the toilet. She then dismantled the piece of wire from the chain that hooked to the handle used to flush. Working quickly, she managed to get the cuffs off, then slipped them in her pocket and shrugged out of the fire coat.
She’d leave the boots and pants on. The heavy sweatshirt over the T-shirt would keep her warm enough. She hurried to the door and examined the lock. The deadbolt required a key, presumably from both sides. Lock picking was not her strong suit. Anyone could open cuffs with a paper clip—or toilet part—but picking a lock was another matter altogether.
So, she was in a room and the only window in the office was the skinny rectangular one. If she broke it, she could try to slip out, but it would be tight...
Slowly, a plan formed. She hurried back to the bathroom and grabbed the tank lid from the toilet and rushed back into the office. Using the lid, she rammed it into the window. The glass shattered and spilled out onto the concrete floor. She ran the ceramic piece around the edges, getting rid of as many of the broken shards as possible, then stopped to listen.
No one seemed to be reacting to all the noise.
Derek Morgan. Professor Derek Morgan. She shook her head, still confused, thinking about everything even as she tried to slip through the opening. A sound from above startled her and she shoved harder, trying to force her body through. It wasn’t working. More footsteps from beyond. She pulled back and studied the window. She just needed a couple more inches. So if she removed the molding, that would give her the extra space she needed. The question was, could she do it before Derek returned?
She felt quite confident in her ability to overpower the man as long as she could take him by surprise. If it came to that, she’d do it, but for now, she looked for something to pull the molding off. She’d get the answers eventually if she could just get out alive.
Because she needed to know who set the fires. And how did Brad’s death fit into the grand scheme of things? Heath had seemed as confused as everyone else and simply wanted his own answers.
Yes, answers please. And as soon as she had Derek locked in his own cuffs, she’d get those answers.
AFTER LEARNING THAT DEREK wasn’t at the school, officers went to his home with the SWAT team and, after no response, forced entry to do their search. In the meantime, Nathan and Andrew had made several attempts to reach Samantha Ashcroft by phone with no success. They arrived at her home and pulled to the curb. It was a lovely home painted a light baby blue, situated on about an acre in a middle-class neighborhood with well-manicured lawns.
Nathan hurried up the porch steps and knocked on the front door while Andrew walked the perimeter toward the back. No sounds came from within, and he highly doubted anyone was home, but he peered through a parted curtain into the den anyway, looking for signs of life.
Still nothing.
Andrew came around from the back. “No one’s here, I don’t think.”
“Yeah.” He looked around. “Let’s see if we can scrounge up a neighbor. Maybe one will have an idea where she is.” They lucked out on the second knock.
“Oh sure,” the seventy-something woman said. “Sam’s probably out looking for a job. She was a firefighter in the Army but said she wanted something different. She finally finished her degree in business a couple of months ago. Got those kids in full-time day care while she looks, so I reckon she’s going to need to find something pretty quick.”
“What day care, do you know?”
“Um, the fancy one on Long Shoals Drive.”
“Right. Thanks.”
“Of course. You know where to find me if you need anything else.”
“Yes, actually. One more question, please. What about her brother, Derek Morgan? What do you know about him?”
“Just that he’s a professor at Lake City University. Oh, and he works at a pool supply company. Guess teaching at the university doesn’t cover all the bills. I will say we have quite a few people in the neighborhood who use the company he works for and seem to be happy with the service. That’s really all I know. Samantha doesn’t talk about him much, and the most interaction I’ve had with him is to wave if I pass him coming or going.”
“Pool supply company, huh?” Nathan said. He glanced at Andrew. “Interesting.”
“Very,” Andrew said. “Can you tell us where that company is located?”
“I don’t have a clue. You can check with Carl Baxter on the corner. I think he uses him.”
“Do you know if Mr. Baxter’s home or does he work?”
“He works for the post office.”
“Right. We’ll track him down. Thanks again.”
They tried the Baxter home just on the off chance the man was home, but he wasn’t, so fifteen minutes later, they pulled into the parking lot of the Adventure Sanctuary Childcare. Interesting name, but he supposed it was intended to convey something ... expensive. He could only hope the care lived up to the ideal.
Once out of the car, he checked in with Lindsay. “Any luck tracking Derek Morgan down?”
“Not yet. He’s off the radar at the moment, but he was at Brad’s funeral. The person I spoke to said his chemistry class this afternoon was canceled.”
“Chemistry class? I thought he taught math.”
“Yeah, he does. Two math classes and two chemistry classes.”
“Okay, that’s interesting. Thanks. Let me know when you track him down.”
“You know I will.”
He hung up and looked at his partner. “You hear that? Morgan teaches chemistry.”
“Well, he’d certainly know how to mix together those two simple chemicals to ignite a few fires then, wouldn’t he?”
“So he didn’t need the sister.”
“Maybe not, but we might if we’re going to find him.”
He buzzed the door and the speaker on the wall crackled. “Yes?” the voice on the other side asked. “May I help you?”
“Special Agents Carlisle and Ross. Could we possibly come in and speak to you?” He and Andrew held their badges where she could see them.
“Um. Yes, all right. I just need to get the director. Can you wait just a moment, please?”
“Sure thing.” Hurry up, hurry up. God, please be with Jesslyn. Protect her. Keep her safe. Let her know help is coming. Please let it be coming.
A few moments later, a voice said, “Hello, gentlemen. I’m Cecelia Brown, the director. Badges again, please?”
They complied. The door buzzed, then opened. A woman in her late fifties who had a style that reminded Nathan of Jesslyn’s aunt Carol peered at them. Her short salt-and-pepper hair was styled in a classy bob, and she wore comfortable jeans and a long-sleeved denim shirt with the cuffs rolled at the wrists. Stylish and functional enough to get on the floor with children if necessary.
After handshakes, she motioned them to follow her into a conference room just off the side of the main entrance. “Sorry for all of the hoops, but I can’t be too careful with the children here.”
“We completely understand and are glad to see it,” Andrew said.
She motioned to the chairs. “Have a seat.”
“That’s not really necessary,” Nathan said. “We’re in a bit of a hurry.” Time kept slipping past. Time Jesslyn might not have. “Could you just confirm that Samantha Ashcroft’s children are in care here?”
She frowned. “I can.”
“And they’re here today?”
“They are. What’s this all about?”
“We’re having trouble getting in touch with Samantha or her husband. Could you give us the emergency contact information you have on file?”
She hesitated for a moment, then nodded. “Sure. Wait here.”
While they waited, Nathan paced from one end of the room to the other. He checked on Eli and got a thumbs-up from Carly, who’d taken over “babysitting” duty from Tate and Steph.
“All right, gentlemen.” Cecelia glided back into the room. “Here we are. I’ve written down everything I have under emergency contacts.”
Nathan took the piece of paper. “Thank you.”
“Anything else?”
“Actually, yes,” Andrew said. “Could you call her phone and see if she answers? And could you just put it on speaker? It could be that she’s just not picking up a call from an unfamiliar number.”
“Oh.” The woman blinked her heavily mascaraed lashes, but nodded. “All right.”
Nathan held out the paper so she could see the number, and she dialed it on the landline conference room phone.
She looked up. “It’s ringing.”
Another few seconds passed and then, “Hello?”
“Yes, hello, Mrs. Ashcroft,” Cecelia said, “I have some men here who’ve been trying to reach you—”
“Are the children all right?”
“Oh yes, they’re fine, but these agents have been trying to get in touch with you—”
“Agents?”
“With the FBI.”
“FBI! What in the world do they want?”
Andrew leaned toward the speaker. “Ma’am, this is Agent Andrew Ross. I’m here with Agent Nathan Carlisle. You’re on speakerphone. We’d like to speak to you about your brother, Derek. Do you have any idea where he might be?”
“Um, at the school?”
“We’ve checked there and he’s not.”
“Then I ... I don’t know. Why are you looking for him?”
“We just have some questions for him about a woman who’s disappeared. You may know her. She used to live in your neighborhood before her house burned down. Jesslyn McCormick?”
A gasp echoed through the line. “You say she’s disappeared and you think Derek had something to do with it?” She laughed. “Is this a joke?”
Andrew frowned. “I assure you it’s not.”
“No, you don’t understand. Derek doesn’t know how to separate colors from whites, and you think he has the ability to pull off a kidnapping?”
“That’s what it looks like from our perspective.”
“I say you need another perspective. Regardless, what do you want from me?”
“We were hoping you could tell us where we might find him,” Nathan said. “We understand he works for a pool supply business in addition to his job at the school?”
“Yes.”
“Does he have a physical address for this business?”
“Yes, of course, but I’m not sure ... hold on.” There was a pause, then, “I think it’s this one.” She gave them the address.
“All right, thanks,” Andrew said. “Does he have another phone number? Any other way to reach him?”
“No, just the one cell phone. And I mean, his office phone, but if he’s not there...” She huffed. “This is so stupid. I’ll try to get ahold of him. What’s your number if I find him? I’m going to wring his neck ... uh ... not literally. I just don’t have time for his drama.”
“Ma’am, do you know if he’s setting these fires?”
“The fires in the news?”
“Yes, the church, the gym, the general store, the bank.”
“I’m confused. Is he a kidnapper or an arsonist?”
This wasn’t going well. “Would you mind meeting us to continue this? I think it would be better if we did this face-to-face.”
“Um ... sure. When?”
“The sooner the better. We’re trying to find a missing woman.”
“Of course. Of course. I uh, can meet you in an hour? I’m sorry it can’t be faster. I have to go to this interview. I can’t miss it. I need this job. My kids are in full-time day care, my husband left me two months ago, my friends are tired of babysitting, and—”
“Mrs. Ashcroft, I’m sorry to hear of your marital troubles and understand the need for a job. I’m sure we could let the company you’re interviewing with know we had to talk to you right away. We need to do this now.”
“I’ve got to go.” She hung up.
Nathan blinked, then shook his head. “Seriously?”
Andrew grunted. “I’ll get Lindsay to ping her phone.”
The only prayer Nathan could think to offer was, “Please, God.”