Chapter Sixteen
Raven saw the sharp look that Cane sent her way and was thankful he didn’t follow up with more platitudes. She’d have had a hard time convincing him of her ability to sense when she needed to look into something.
Back working cases in the city, there’d been more times than she could remember when she’d insisted they check further into a certain dead-end lead, only to find a pedophile, his stash of porn – and more than a few times – a list of indecisive, despondent teens.
Ones he’d been working on to trust him and believe he had their best interests at heart.
Before eventually discovering that he’d marked them to feed his sick appetite.
Lately, she’d come close to asking for a transfer from her job with the child exploitation program.
Times when her disgust and sadness would revolt against her having to deal with the sickos another day.
But then she’d admit that by working with her FBI affiliates, and her dedicated co-workers, over the past few years, they’d made a huge difference, saved many youngsters from ruining their lives, and so she’d stuck it out.
Still… after seeing the corpse in the car, she had to admit to a certain excitement with being involved in a homicide.
If she could only ignore the sick feeling in the pit of her stomach when thinking of her Nana’s old friend Steve.
The instinctive worry that she couldn’t shake off.
Especially since her gut’s intuition did not give off a good vibe.
Just the opposite. And it flared every time she thought of the man and his family. Steering carefully, she stared at the disgusting, murky water, knowing she’d feel a whole lot better if they made sure all was well.
Meanwhile, as Cane remained online gathering information from his Houston office, she steered closer to Aggie’s sister’s home, only to be shocked to see the place looking deserted.
Hmm. Now this is strange. Hadn’t Steve said he’d taken Aggie to see her sister and found the abandoned car on his way there?
Cane moved close, his phone back in his pocket.
“Nothing so far but they’re still searching.
I gave them the license plate number, and they confirmed that Val Forest was the owner.
Had no file on the person to check out.” He looked at the surrounding water, filthy with mud and loaded with all kinds of debris.
“So where are we heading now? Don’t tell me.
You’re checking out Steve’s sister’s place, right? ”
“Mm-hmm.” Raven didn’t take her eyes off the river ahead, knowing they needed to be careful of the floating wreckage from the storm.
“Correct me if I’m wrong but didn’t Steve say they were headed to Aggie’s sister’s when they came across the car.
And that he’d dropped her there before he came to town? ”
“It’s exactly what he said. Why?”
She pointed at the house in the distance. “Because that’s where Aggie’s sister – Helen and her husband Mac – live.”
“Place looks deserted. Don’t they have a generator to keep the lights on?”
“Far as I know. But it’s a small one, probably being used for their fridge and freezer. But that’s not what’s bothering me.”
“What then? The boat’s still there? Didn’t Steve say they were letting their sons use it?”
“He did but it’s not that either.”
“What then?”
“There’s broken windows in the front bedrooms.”
“Sure. Probably damaged by the storm.”
“Granted. Except both Helen and Mac are notorious neat freaks. No way they’d leave them open to the elements that way.
Not unless they aren’t home or because they can’t fix them.
If so, Steve would have helped… both him and Aggie are still functional when it comes to doing repairs like that.
Hell, they’d have put up slabs of plywood or heavy plastic to keep out the rain.
” She shook her head. “Uh huh… I don’t like this. Something isn’t right.”
Cane seemed to change upon hearing her warning. He took over the boat, steering it away from where they’d been heading.
“What are you doing?”
“Taking you seriously, Raven. When you say there’s a problem, and we have a killer on the loose, then I’m going to pay attention. I think we should take the boat around the bend and head back on foot.”
“Good idea. There aren’t a lot of places around here to moor this thing. For sure we’ll get soaked,” she warned. “But your idea makes more sense.”
She watched as Cane perfectly guided the boat about a half mile downstream to an area that poked out from the bank, a place where the water appeared deep enough for them to be safe from grinding the bottom of the boat and yet where they could get off by leaping onto the bank.
Once they had secured Palmer’s baby, they headed back the way they’d come. Keeping to the gravel road behind the house, they eventually reached Helen and Mac’s place. As isolated as it was, they’d done a wonderful job making it a paradise for a retired couple.
Raven pointed all that out to Cane. “See their greenhouses and gardens?”
He glanced to where she pointed and commented. “Pretty spectacular and immaculately taken care of. I see what you mean about their work habits.”
“Trust me, their gardens are unmatched because of their huge selection of fruit trees, vegetable plots, and thriving flowering sections. Everyone in town is impressed by this place.”
“I can see why.”
Raven shared in a whisper, “Every Saturday morning at the weekly farmer’s market both Helen and Mac oversee a large booth that features all kinds of produce that many of the townspeople look forward to. Trust me, they make a good living all summer long.”
While whispering, Raven bypassed those areas and led the way to the rear of the house where she knew they had a mud room and a summer kitchen that Helen used for canning.
Careful not to make too much noise, they lingered a few moments before approaching.
Cane’s authoritative tone caught her attention. “You stay here and let me take a look.”
“How about I take this side, you go the other way, and we’ll meet at the front?”
He hesitated until she opened her jacket to show him the badge she’d attached to the front pocket of her jeans. “Right. But in case you see something, don’t engage. We’ll discuss what to do next together.”
“Fine.” She bent low and headed to the left side of the property, staying under the window ledges until she was ready to take a peek inside.
All four of her glimpses showed nothing out of the ordinary.
No sign of life of any kind. But it could be because she’d chosen the laundry room, an office, and a bedroom where no activity could be expected at this time of the day.
When she reached the front of the house, she saw Cane signaling for her to retreat. His humorless expression told her he meant for her to pay attention. Taking it as a signal that he had something to share, she reversed her steps to where they’d stopped behind the place before and waited.
And waited.
Son of a bitch, he hadn’t followed. Where the hell was he?