Chapter Nine #2
“Same at all of them.” Unless a guest asked for specific snacks, they all received the same ones.
Some folks had allergies, which necessitated different products.
So far, no one had complained either way.
She did try to change things up every so often.
One of her favorite pastimes was to cruise the net for ideas on how to keep things fresh and memorable around here.
She followed Billie to the door. Having him as a helper made the work seem a lot less like work and more like… Not going there.
Keep your head on straight, Charly. This isn’t the time.
Last Chance Shop
Highway 79, 4:00 p.m.
CHARLY SAT IN the passenger seat of Billie’s rented SUV.
They had been watching the convenience store for about ten minutes.
The two employees on duty, one being the owner, had been fairly busy when they first arrived.
But now the crowd had dissipated. Her pulse raced with anticipation.
She sure hoped they would learn something that helped find Briana and Martin alive and well.
Every hour that passed made that end less likely.
“Let’s go in,” Billie announced.
As they rounded the hood and headed for the entrance, he added, “The same owner has run the place since it opened forty years ago.”
“Ned Bates,” she said. Charly knew the man.
He lived in one of the mansions on the water.
He’d built this place to capitalize on the fact that it would be the only gas station between Guntersville and Scottsboro—the last chance to stop for whatever needed.
Or maybe the last chance before entering the busier area of Guntersville.
At any rate, that was no longer true now.
“He’s the older man behind the counter?” Billie asked.
“That’s him. Even though he lives in a multimillion-dollar house he still works his forty hours.
” At least that was what folks said about him.
Charly hadn’t stopped here in ages, but she had seen him in town from time to time.
He was one of many who had offered any help needed to her and Jen when their parents were murdered.
“Sounds like a lot of house for a convenience store owner,” Billie suggested.
Charly had never thought about it really, but he was right. “I suppose he may have other investments.” Surely, a convenience store didn’t provide that level of income. Then again, every time she filled up her gas tank she felt confident someone was getting rich.
“None that I could find,” Billie said as he reached for the door.
She couldn’t imagine Ned Bates in a trafficking ring but then, she supposed everyone was a suspect until cleared. From Billie’s perspective anyway.
As they pushed through the door, a chime announcing someone had entered the store echoed above the soft music.
Unlike many convenience stores that blasted rock or some other genre of music, Mr. Bates had the softer, more classic style playing in the background.
The second employee on duty had started checking stock on shelves while the owner remained behind the counter, currently looking at his cell phone.
The store was cleaner than the average shop of its kind and sold everything from baby wipes to beer and most things in between.
When they reached the counter, Mr. Bates looked up as if he hadn’t heard the signal that someone had entered.
“Charly.” He smiled broadly. “I haven’t seen you in ages. I guess you stay too busy to get out and about often.”
“Busy is good,” she said. “How’s Mrs. Bates and the family?”
The man had a grown daughter who was a nurse in Huntsville.
He had a son, too. Charly couldn’t remember either of their names, but she did recall that the son was always running off to California in hopes of finding his big break in the acting business—even at forty something.
Inevitably, he always ended up back home, was the rumor. Charly really had no idea.
“They are just fantastic. Susan just had our third grandbaby.” He beamed. “We couldn’t be happier for her.”
“That’s great.”
“Phil is back home after a round of audition calls out in Hollywood.” Mr. Bates smiled broadly but it wasn’t quite as bright as the one for his daughter.
“One of these days,” Charly said just to be kind, “we’re going to see him on the big screen.” She gestured to the man at her side. “This is my friend Billie Jagger. His sister, Briana, and her husband are the two who went missing earlier this week.”
The older man’s expression turned somber. “I heard about that. Just awful.” He shook his head. “Sometimes I wonder what this world is coming to.”
Yeah, so did a lot of people. Charly decided it was best not to go down that path.
“In my research,” Billie spoke up, “I’ve found eight very similar cases over the past sixteen years that have occurred in the Guntersville area. Five of the women who were abducted visited your store before disappearing. I believe you cooperated with the police and shared the video footage.”
Ned nodded, his face grave now. “I surely did. I have a daughter of my own. The idea of something like that is more than I can bear. I’m always happy to help in any way possible when bad things happen.”
“I’m sure that footage is no longer available,” Billie said, “but I—”
“Oh, I still have it,” Ned insisted. “I provided a copy of the first one to Sheriff Bradly—your daddy,” he said to Charly.
“The other four I provided to Sheriff Malone. But I kept a copy of what I gave them. No way was I destroying what could be evidence. You know I watch a lot of those cold-case shows and sometimes evidence can matter even decades later when it didn’t matter at the time of the crime. ”
Smart man. Charly barely resisted the urged to rush around the counter and hug him. “That’s great. If we could have a look at it that would be fantastic.”
He nodded, slowly at first then more vigorously.
“Sure. I always call Sheriff Malone and remind him anytime anyone goes missing, but he never bothers to look again. Giving him grace, I suppose it’s irrelevant, but I feel it’s important to remind him.
” He turned to Billie then. “The couple who’s missing now was here, too.
I called Malone and sent that to him as soon as I heard what happened.
He didn’t think the time on the recording was relevant, but I did my duty. ”
“I really appreciate your diligence,” Billie said. “It could make all the difference.”
“No problem at all. Tina!”
The woman stocking started for the counter. “Yeah?”
“I’ll be in the office for a minute if you’d take care of things out here.”
“Sure thing.”
Ned led the way to his office. There was a short corridor behind the counter that went past an employee bathroom, a lounge and finally to his office. His desk was large and cluttered. A smaller desk to one side held a computer with a large monitor. This was where he paused.
He settled into the chair. “I’ll just pull up the file for you and leave you to it.”
Charly didn’t know Mr. Bates that well but she really appreciated his being so cooperative. She should have expected as much considering how kind he’d been after her parents’ deaths.