Chapter 16
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
“You called the police?” Ian gave Courtney an incredulous stare.
“I told you I was going to!” she said defensively. “We couldn’t just ignore the fact that Dana’s been taken.”
“What did you tell them?” Ian’s hands closed into fists.
“Not much.” She thought back to what the kidnapper had said: If you want to see Dana alive... She was starting to regret getting the police involved, but of course they’d stopped at the station before hearing their terms. The ransom amount was relatively reasonable, and hanging a bag full of money from the statue was doable. If the kidnappers were watching, they’d now know that the police were at the house.
Her best friend in the entire world and she may have unwittingly signed her death warrant. To say she felt sick didn’t even begin to touch it.
Without Dana, Courtney would be lost. Yes, it was true that Dana had a tendency to be more of a taker than a giver, but it was different when it came to her. When it was just the two of them, the energy went in the opposite direction. She filled up Courtney’s well and made her a better person. When they’d met, she’d been a poor kid with no self-esteem, and now she had money, confidence, some writing ability, and a home. Everything she had as a thirty-six-year-old adult she’d gotten from Dana.
Notifying the police had not been a good idea, but it seemed necessary at the time.
Brayden said, “We stopped by the police station and asked if they’d send an officer out to talk about a matter that required complete discretion. The lady behind the desk tried to get us to tell what it was about, but Courtney wasn’t giving it up.” He gave her an admiring look. She was starting to like this kid more all the time.
Ian sighed dramatically. “Let’s get our story straight. This is how it’s going to go. There will be no talk of kidnapping. All of us will say that Dana was last seen outside the bookstore yesterday around lunchtime. When she disappeared we were concerned, even though she has a history of impulsively taking off. So you stopped at the police station, but just now we’ve heard from someone who’s with Dana, and she’s fine, enjoying a cinnamon dolce latte and taking a much-needed break from her grueling writing schedule.” He puffed out his chest and pointed around the room. “All of these things are true, by the way.”
Technically, it was the truth, except for the part about the grueling writing schedule. Courtney handled that part.
When no one spoke, Ian said, “Do you understand?”
Antonio said, “I don’t want to be involved with this.” He left abruptly, nearly colliding with Martha, who had just arrived in the doorway.
“Sir,” she said. “The police are in the entryway. They said they’re following up on a complaint?”
“Very good, Martha,” Ian said. “You may show them in.”
So formal. On occasion, it sounded to Courtney like Ian was channeling an eighteenth-century lord of the manor.
“Anyone who’s not in agreement needs to leave now.” Kristy tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. “Brayden? Courtney? Are you both on board?”
Courtney felt Brayden’s eyes on her, waiting for her cue. If she told the police everything, the place would soon be swarming with cops, jeopardizing Dana’s life. Maybe Ian had the right idea. She nodded. “I’ll go along with your story. For now.”
“I’m going to my room,” Brayden said, throwing up his hands. “This is bull crap.”
“Language!” his mother called after him.
Ian directed his next set of commands to Courtney. “Let me do the talking. Your job is to agree.”
When the two police officers entered, the older half of the pair took the lead, talking as she strode into the room. “I’m Officer Johnson. This is my partner, Officer Holloway.” She jabbed a thumb in the younger man’s direction. “We understand you have a matter of the utmost discretion?”
Ian let out a bark of a laugh. “I’m so sorry, Officers. It appears that there’s been a bit of a mix-up. My sister is Dana Broderick. You’ve probably heard of her—she’s a bestselling author?”
“Of course!” Officer Holloway took a step forward. “Everyone’s heard of Dana Broderick.”
Ian nodded. “It seems that Dana took off with some friends and didn’t tell anyone where she was going. Of course we were worried.” He shot a glance in Courtney’s direction. “But we’ve just heard from a friend of hers and she’s fine. Sorry to have wasted your time. I can show you to the door.” He took a step forward but froze when Officer Johnson raised a palm to stop him.
“Not so fast.” Officer Johnson had the no-nonsense tone of a fifth-grade teacher addressing unruly students. Her overall appearance was serious as well—her hair pulled back into a tight bun, her expression severe. This was a woman to be reckoned with. “We aren’t leaving until we document the complaint.”
“There’s really nothing to document,” Kristy said. “Dana does this kind of thing all the time. She just takes off.”
“Let’s start with names, shall we?” Officer Johnson gestured to her partner, who took out a small notebook and pen. He reminded Courtney of a server training at a chain restaurant. A shadow learning the ropes from someone with more experience.
They were asked to give their names, along with their relationship to Dana. When they got to Courtney, Officer Holloway said, “You’re the one who stopped by the station?”
“Yes.”
Officer Johnson said, “If Dana takes off like this on occasion, why were you worried this time? You’ve never felt the need to report it before, am I right?”
It seemed like this woman could see right into her soul. Courtney resisted the urge to look at Ian. “I was concerned. She’s never gone this long without calling or texting.”
“So she was gone overnight without responding to calls or texts?” Officer Johnson had a voice that required answers.
“That’s correct.” Courtney avoided meeting her eyes.
“We just heard from her within the last hour,” Ian interjected. “And what do you know, she’s enjoying a cinnamon dolce latte and taking a much-needed break from her grueling writing schedule.”
Officer Johnson frowned. “Tyler, if you’d escort Miss Hart into the other room? I’m going to be talking to Mr. and Mrs. Broderick. I’ll meet you in the entryway in a few minutes.” She gestured with a tilt of her head, and like an obedient child, Tyler beckoned for Courtney to follow him.
As they left the room, Kristy was heard saying, “Is this really necessary?”
Officer Johnson’s firm response: “Yes, this is necessary.”
Out in the foyer, Courtney told Officer Holloway, “I’m sorry you had to come all the way out here for nothing.”
“It wasn’t for nothing,” he said. “Anytime you have a concern, feel free to let us know. It’s our job.”
He didn’t look much older than Brayden. His teeth were the white of someone who hadn’t yet had a chance to drink mass quantities of coffee, and his dark hair was so thick it wasn’t able to go in one direction.
“That’s good to know. Thanks.”
“This house is pretty incredible.” He looked at the chandelier overhead. The hundreds of prisms glittered at night when it was on. Courtney had once heard Martha complain about cleaning it, but that hadn’t been a consideration when Dana selected it. He asked, “Do you live here?”
“No, I have an apartment above the garage.”
“So how many people live here in all?”
“Dana, and her brother, Ian, and his family. You met his wife, Kristy. They also have a teenage son, Brayden. There’s also Antonio, who is Dana’s boyfriend. And then Ronald and Martha, they’re the couple who take care of, well, everything. They live in the guesthouse by the pool.”
“How long has Antonio lived here?”
She squinted, trying to think. “Six months, maybe?”
He opened his notebook and jotted it down. “His last name?”
“I have no idea,” Courtney said apologetically. “They met when he was her personal trainer. He still sees clients at Let’s Get Fitness. They can probably tell you more about him.”
“Can I speak with Antonio?”
“I don’t honestly know where he is right now.” Truth adjacent. It was the best she could do.
“I’ll need his last name.”
“I’m sorry, I don’t know.”
He jotted something down. “Can you describe Antonio?”
She stopped to think. “Broad shoulders, muscular build. Not that tall. Maybe five ten? Shoulder-length dark hair. He keeps it pulled back most of the time. Brown eyes. Not very talkative. He has a slight accent.”
This got the officer’s attention. “Really? Where is he from originally?”
“Sorry. I don’t know. I never asked.” He gave her a look like that was strange, and yes, she had to admit it was unusual. Under regular circumstances, a person probably would ask someone their last name and their country of origin, but Antonio was weirdly private, and she didn’t like him. But even more than that, she knew that in a few months he’d be gone, so it really didn’t matter.
Tyler glanced down at his pad. “Tell me about Ronald and Martha.”
She thought for a moment. “They’ve worked for Dana for years. Their last name is Canfield.” At least she knew that one. “They have an adult son who lives in Philadelphia.” She went on to describe their duties and how much they excelled at their work. “Martha is an incredible cook, and Ronald is very handy. Everyone likes them.”
“Does that include their boss?”
“Yes. Dana is satisfied with their work.” Since Ronald and Martha had worked for the previous homeowner, there’d been an adjustment period, but she didn’t see the point in mentioning that. The end result was that the house and property were well run, and that was due in no small part to their expertise. Ronald had even taken the lead in overseeing the installation of the statuary garden, and she’d often seen Dana and Ronald going over plans together. One time she’d even heard Ronald laugh in response to something Dana had said. The early bumps in the relationship had been smoothed out.
“Your official job is working as Dana Broderick’s assistant?” he said. “That must be exciting.”
“It’s the perfect job for me,” she said. “Have you read the Rebecca Cavanaugh books?”
“No. My mom loves them, though. She’s read all of them.” He laughed. “She’s always quoting Rebecca. What’s that line she always says, the one that shuts people down?”
“Not good enough.”
He grinned. “That’s the one. My mom totally loves saying it.”
Everyone loved that line, and in all honesty, they didn’t have to go far to find it. It was a favorite expression of Dana’s. “Tell your mom we’re glad she enjoys the books.”
“So,” he said, opening his notebook. “You last saw Ms. Broderick at what time?”
“Around eleven thirty yesterday.”
“And where was this?”
“At the Parsonage Bookshop. Dana had just finished signing copies of her new book, the one that’s coming out soon.”
“What happened next?” His pen was poised over the paper.
His tone was friendly, so why were all her muscles tensing? “I went to get the car, and she went out the back door to wait for me.”
“Is this something you do often?”
“Go to the bookstore?”
“No, leave separately.”
“Sometimes. She’d just signed all those books, you see, so she didn’t want to deal with talking to fans. I mean, she loves her readers, but she was tired and not in the mood.”
“So she was too tired to talk to fans, but not too tired to take off with a friend. You’d think she’d want to go home and unwind.” He leaned his head to one side, considering.
He did have a point. “Dana isn’t like anyone else,” she said. “She can be impulsive. Plus, socializing energizes her.”
“I see.” He paused and then said, “So you went to get the car. What happened then?”
“I drove around to the back of the store and she wasn’t there. I peeked into a few other stores, then went back to the bookstore and waited awhile. Finally, I came back here.”
“Did you think she’d come home without you?”
“I thought it was possible, but I had her car, so I really wasn’t sure what happened. She knows a lot of people, and I thought she might have run into a friend.”
“That was yesterday.” He tapped the pad with his pen. “And you didn’t worry until today?”
Courtney felt her cheeks flush pink. “I was concerned, of course, but all of us thought it was a little early to file a missing person report. Given that she’s taken off like this before, I mean. We didn’t want to waste your time.”
“As I said before, it’s not a waste of time.” He was smiling, but it wasn’t a friendly expression. She had the sinking feeling she’d underestimated the youthful Officer Holloway. “Tell me about the friend who called to say she was safe.”
“There’s not much to say,” she answered. “He said she was fine and that she was drinking a cinnamon dolce latte. That’s her favorite drink. He told me about some errands she wanted me to take care of—a run to the jeweler and to pick up some dry cleaning. That’s about it.” Courtney silently congratulated herself for giving the facts and not having to resort to lying.
“You talked to her?”
“No, uh...” Courtney studied her shoes, not wanting to look him in the eye. “She must have been occupied, maybe in the bathroom or something. Her friend gave me the message.”
“This friend have a name?”
She shook her head. “He didn’t mention it.”
“It’s not someone you know?”
“No. But then again, she knows so many people.”
“Did he say when she’ll be returning?”
“No.”
“Let me see if I have this straight.” Officer Holloway referred to his notes. “Your boss disappears overnight. Then some guy, someone you don’t know, calls and says she’s fine and tells you to pick up the dry cleaning, and from that you surmise that she’s just off on a little getaway?” He lifted his head and locked eyes with her.
Of course, put that way it sounded stupid. She sucked in a deep breath. “I know it sounds crazy, but if you knew Dana...”
“I know, she’s not like other people.”
There was a long, awkward period where neither of them spoke, and then to her relief Officer Johnson showed up, hurriedly striding toward them. She walked with her hips leading, like her upper body couldn’t quite keep up. “You all set, Holloway?” she asked.
He closed his notepad. “Yes, ma’am.” Now in the presence of a senior officer, he’d reverted back to being an acolyte.
She turned her attention to Courtney. “Thank you for taking the time to clarify the situation.” Handing over a business card, she added, “If you have any concerns, anything at all, call me.”
Courtney held the card in the palm of her hand. “I will. Thank you.”
“And would you do me a favor?”
“Yes, Officer?”
“Would you give me a call when Ms. Broderick returns home?” She gave her a pointed look. “It would ease my mind.”
“I’d be happy to.” Courtney opened the door to let them out and watched as they got into their cruiser. As they drove off, her jaw relaxed. The interview hadn’t been seamless, but overall she’d done a good job skirting the truth.
If only she hadn’t been intimidated by Ian. He’d been persuasive, and she’d had to make a snap decision. Now she questioned how it had been handled. Brayden had just graduated from high school, and he’d made the decision to leave the room. Probably a better idea.
But of course the guy on the phone had said not to talk to the police. If only he’d called before she and Brayden had stopped at the police station.
Well, if they didn’t hear back from the man holding Dana, she could always call the number on the card and tell the cops she was sorry for not coming clean, that she had to be evasive because Dana’s life depended on it.
Courtney hoped they would understand.