32
Rowan stepped out of Sophia’s room and quietly closed the door behind her.
“You should know that Sophia is asking to see Zack,” Rowan said to the waiting detectives. “And she told me that the men beat her because they believed her dad had shared some information and possibly given her some evidence and wanted to know where it was. But she knew nothing. It sounds like they didn’t get what they wanted from Rod, so they went after Sophia.”
“And then grabbed Zack to convince Sophia to talk?” Noelle asked.
“That’s my guess,” said Rowan. “She didn’t want to talk in front of you because her dad was convinced someone in law enforcement didn’t want the information he’d found to get out. I’m not sure, but she could have been lying when she said she didn’t know any particulars about what he found. She’s pretty paranoid—although not as paranoid as Rod was, I think.” Rowan grimaced. “She doesn’t know that Tara was murdered. Tara had helped her get to a hotel the night her father was attacked, and then Tara brought her back to the house Friday evening to see if her father was still there. That’s when Sophia saw the blood, and that’s when she made the trail that Thor and I followed. She was told to bring the ten K as a ransom payment to a park Friday at midnight, where she was grabbed.”
“Okay.” Noelle frowned as she processed the information. “What about how she got away? What kind of place was she kept in? What does she know about her kidnappers?”
“We didn’t get to that,” said Rowan weakly, realizing she hadn’t asked some important questions. “But she did say she would be ready to talk to you after she rested.”
“We need to tell her about Zack.” Noelle closed her eyes for a long second. “I don’t think telling her about Tara’s death is necessary at the moment. One piece of shitty news at a time.” She set her shoulders, put on a calm, professional expression, and then faced the door. “Let’s go.”
Inside, Sophia opened her eyes as they entered and tried to push up into a sitting position.
“Hang on,” said Maxine. She found the remote and lifted the head of the bed until Sophia held up a hand for her to stop. The three women took their original positions, Noelle and Rowan perched on the sides of the bed and Maxine in the chair.
“Sophia, we need to know everything you can tell us about the place you were held and the people who were there,” started Noelle.
I thought she’d start with Zack.
She must want as much information as possible before upsetting her.
Sophia blew out a breath. “It was bad. I was locked in a small room with a concrete floor, a blanket, and a fucking bucket to pee in. The room smelled horrible when I got there.” She looked away. “I don’t think I was their first guest.” She paused for a moment. “I’ll guess my father had been held there too,” she said softly.
Noelle didn’t ask if she saw her father while there. According to the ME, Rod had been killed before Sophia was kidnapped Friday night.
Is Evan in that room now?
Rowan didn’t care if he was held in a room that stank. Anything was better than if he turned up in a car trunk.
“Was the room part of a house?” asked Noelle.
“No. Maybe it was part of a shop or outbuilding? It wasn’t heated, and I occasionally smelled motor oil or rubber. The walls were old. Covered in ancient fake wood paneling like they used decades ago. It was cracked and parts were missing. I’d say the room was maybe ten by ten.”
“Auto body shop?” Maxine murmured to Noelle.
“Don’t think so. That building was pretty new, and there weren’t any outbuildings on the property. Also too far away from where she was found. Unless they transported you somewhere before you escaped?” She looked back to Sophia.
“No. I was held the same room the whole time. I managed to escape by clawing off the fake paneling. Someone had installed it over a small old window in the room. I knew something was different behind the paneling because the wall was colder in one spot and sounded different when I rapped on it.”
“They didn’t notice the window from the outside?” asked Rowan.
“It was boarded up from the outside. Thin plywood had been nailed over all the siding on one outer wall of the building, but it was warped and rotten in places. I was able to kick through it once I broke through the window glass. The wood frame was too old and warped to open the window.”
Rowan shuddered as she recalled breaking a window to save Thor.
“The bucket was an old metal one. I put it over my hand to break the glass,” Sophia said quietly.
“Then what?” asked Maxine.
“I got out,” she said simply. “The plywood and glass scratched me up pretty good, but I didn’t give a shit. I wrapped up in the blanket and ran.”
“Barefoot,” stated Rowan. Under the hospital blanket, the lumps created by Sophia’s feet were twice the size they should be due to the heavy bandages. Rowan couldn’t imagine walking through woods without shoes.
Sophia gave a quick nod. “I used the dirt drive to the home to guide me away but tried to stay out of sight by moving through the trees along it. It was pitch black when I got out. Eventually I lost the dirt road and there were just trees. My feet grew numb, which actually helped—I couldn’t feel the pain anymore. I just kept moving.
“At some point I stopped to rest and heard voices. I tried to hide but couldn’t move. Turns out that was a good thing.” She gave a weak smile.
“Why would you hide?” asked Noelle.
Sophia blinked a few times. “Because it could have been them looking for me.”
“You said you followed the dirt road away from the house ... It was a house where you were held?” asked Maxine.
“Yes. My room was a dozen yards from a house. I didn’t realize that until I was outside.” Her eyebrows came together as she thought. “I didn’t tell my rescuers there was a house?”
“No,” said Noelle as she tapped on her phone. Rowan assumed she was texting an update to someone searching the area where Sophia had been found. “You weren’t making sense when they found you. What can you tell me about the house? One story? Two? Color?”
“One story. Not sure about color. Something dark. It only had one outdoor light, so it was hard to see.”
“Maybe a manufactured home?” asked Maxine.
“Maybe,” Sophia said hesitantly. She closed her eyes. “I recall seeing a front door and a small, covered porch before I dashed away. The building I’d broken out of was off to one side. My room”—she winced—“was attached to a larger outbuilding. There might have been other outbuildings ... I feel like I recall large shapes on the other side of the house.”
“Were you outdoors for only one night?” asked Noelle.
“I’m not sure. Things are a little fuzzy. What is today?”
“Sunday,” said Rowan. “The ransom drop-off was the Friday night before last.”
Sophia stared at her as the amount of time sank in. “Oh my God.”
“What about the people who held you?” asked Noelle. “How many were there?”
“I only encountered two, and like I said, their faces were always covered.”
“Were they about the same age?” asked Maxine.
“No.” Sophia shook her head. “One was definitely older. He was heavier, his voice rougher, and seemed to be in charge. He would stand in the doorway and tell the younger one what to do—especially when it came to emptying my bucket.” Her lips lifted on one side. Not a smile, but an acknowledgment of the pecking order. “But it was the older one who always asked the questions and hit me.” She forced out the last two words.
“Were they Caucasian?” asked Noelle, making notes. “Heights?”
“I could see their hands. They were white men. Both were taller than me by maybe six inches ... probably more than that. I’m five-three,” she added. “No accents. I’d say they were blue collar. Clothes were jeans, work boots, heavy jackets. All the clothing was well worn.” The detectives stayed quiet as Sophia thought for a long moment. “They didn’t have refined speech, but it wasn’t sloppy either. The older seemed intelligent to me. The younger was quiet. His job was to do what the other said.”
“This is all excellent information.” Noelle paused. “Sophia, is there any chance you heard Charlie Graham’s voice?”
Sophia’s jaw dropped open. “Charlie is involved in this?”
“We don’t know that,” Noelle said rapidly. “I’m asking you if that’s possible. As you know, he’s out of prison.”
Sophia had shaken her head the whole time Noelle spoke. “Not Charlie. It can’t be him. He wouldn’t do this to me ... or that to my father.”
“You have old cigarette burns from him,” stated Rowan, unable to stay quiet.
Sophia glared at her. “I’m well aware of my scars, thank you.”
“Your father’s body had them,” said Noelle. “We questioned Charlie about your disappearance, and he denied any involvement. But we also found out that your father had been following him occasionally since he was released from prison.”
“Jesus.” Sophia’s shoulders slumped. “That sounds like Dad. He never liked Charlie—for good reason. But I didn’t see or hear anything that indicated Charlie was involved. These men were focused on something to do with my dad.”
“Tell me more about what they wanted from you. What would they say?”
Sophia exhaled heavily, her gaze turning inward. “They wanted to know where I hid it. Where was the evidence my father gave me,” she recited in a flat voice. “I kept telling them that I didn’t know what they were talking about. I did describe my father’s behaviors, saying he’d been worried and supercautious but that I didn’t know why. They didn’t care.”
Rowan ached for the woman. Tears were rolling down her face, and her words were stilted.
“They mentioned evidence ... but then they said a device.”
“Device?” Maxine asked sharply.
“Like a thumb drive or some sort of other storage device. He asked about evidence but then would suggest it was on a device.” Sophia raised one shoulder. “I got the impression they weren’t sure what they were looking for.”
“A computer tower was missing from your father’s home,” said Noelle. “And we think some physical files were taken too.”
Sophia nodded slowly. “They mentioned a tower. It sounded like they couldn’t get into it. I don’t know if they took files.”
“Sophia,” said Noelle. “Did you get a sense of why these men wanted to know where the information was? I know you’re worried about law enforcement being involved in what your father was investigating. Did these men confirm that fear?”
The woman frowned. “The older man seemed worried about something being found out. Both said ‘If the cops find out’ in a negative way. They definitely weren’t in law enforcement. I grew up in that world; they weren’t part of it. I guess they didn’t actually say that cops had done something dirty.”
“Your father was concerned about who in law enforcement could have been involved in covering something up,” said Rowan. “But you heard these men say, ‘If the cops find out.’”
Sophia nodded. “That feels accurate. Confusing but accurate.”
Noelle looked up from her notepad. “I don’t get it. Your father thought cops were already involved ... but your abductors were worried that law enforcement would get involved. Which is it?”
None of the four women had an answer.
“My father did say at one point that Evan was his insurance policy,” Sophia said slowly.
Rowan straightened. “What? What does that mean?”
“My dad knew he was digging into something dangerous,” she said. “Why else would he be so paranoid? I didn’t understand why he would involve Evan if he was trying to avoid other law enforcement.” She shot a nervous glance at Maxine and Noelle.
“But you said your dad said not to go to Evan,” Rowan choked out. Talking about him was painful. She ached to tell Sophia that he was missing but wouldn’t until Noelle agreed.
“I know. I don’t understand either.” Confusion filled Sophia’s gaze. “I think my dad wanted to confide in him ... but maybe worried about the people around Evan? He must have had faith in Evan if he called him his insurance policy ... but I didn’t ask what he meant. Maybe ask Evan?” Shame filled her face. “I told them what my dad said about Evan being an insurance policy. The men who had me were convinced I knew something about the evidence they were looking for. When you’re having your face beat in, you’ll say anything,” she finished quietly, picking at the thin hospital blanket.
Rowan’s throat closed up. Sophia had given the men a reason to question Evan. She looked to Noelle and saw she was also struggling with what to say.
Rod was killed ... so the insurance policy is in effect? Is that why Evan is still missing?
Sophia looked up. “When will Zack get here?” The first real smile filled her face.
Maxine and Noelle exchanged a look that made Rowan tense up.
Here it comes.
Noelle set down her notepad, took one of Sophia’s hands, and in a soft voice said, “I need to talk to you about Zack.”
The next few minutes turned into hell.