Chapter 22
Chapter
Twenty-Two
Nora watched Austin’s expression change as Luke’s words came through the phone. His eyes sharpened, and the easy warmth that had briefly entered his face disappeared.
Austin met her gaze before tapping the speaker icon and holding the phone between them. “Nora is with me, by the way, and I’m on speaker.”
“Noted.”
“You said you found Mikey?” he asked.
“Yes, but he’s in bad shape,” Luke said through a faint hiss of static. “He has a serious head injury and hasn’t regained consciousness.”
Nora gripped the porch railing as relief and dread collided inside her. Mikey was alive, but that didn’t mean Preston was safe.
“Where did you find him?” Austin shifted the phone closer so Nora could hear.
“His truck was parked at an old pull-off along County Road Nine,” Luke said. “A search team found Mikey at the bottom of a cliff about half a mile away.”
Nora pictured the remote road and the dense forest surrounding it. No child should have been anywhere near that place. Had Preston been with him? Was the boy injured also?
Please, Lord . . . no.
Austin’s fingers tightened around the phone. “How far did he fall?”
“Thirty feet, maybe more. We won’t know exactly what happened until we finish processing the area, but right now, it looks like he went over the edge.”
“Accidentally?”
“That’s one possibility.”
“And Preston?” Austin asked.
Static filled the brief pause that followed. Then Luke said, “He wasn’t with him.”
Austin glanced at her as if taking a quick assessment. “Send me the location.”
“You planning to show up?” Luke’s skepticism came clearly through the speaker.
“Yes.” Austin said the word as if there had never been another possibility.
“Fine, but you stay out of my scene,” Luke warned. “You’re there as an observer.”
“I know how this works. I won’t interfere.” Austin ended the call and lowered the phone.
“Mikey didn’t run with him.” Nora’s voice sounded thin even to her.
“It doesn’t look that way.” Austin slipped the phone into his pocket.
The blood felt like it drained from her face as the implications settled over her.
Nora paused. Luke had told her Preston’s disappearance was probably domestic, and she had desperately wanted to believe him because a furious father was frightening—but understandable.
This wasn’t understandable.
Maybe Mikey had driven to the pull-off and fallen from the cliff. Maybe everything about his injuries was exactly what it appeared to be.
But that still didn’t explain where Preston was.
Nora gripped the porch railing with a trembling hand.
Every hour they had lost had given whoever took him more distance. Maybe the false trail had never been intended to hold forever. It had only needed to last long enough for the real kidnapper to move the boy beyond their reach.
By the time Austin and Nora reached County Road Nine, dusk had begun settling over the trees. The remaining light caught along the tops of the ridges while shadows gathered beneath them.
Luke had positioned a deputy at the entrance to a narrow gravel pull-off. Beyond him, an older dark-blue Ford F-150 sat crooked near the tree line with its driver’s door open.
Austin parked well back from the tape, but Nora was out before he could remind her to stay clear of the scene. He caught up with her just as the deputy lifted one hand to stop them.
Luke approached from the truck, his expression grim. “Mikey made it to the hospital. He’s still unconscious, but his vitals are stable.”
Nora looked past him toward the woods. “Have you found anything showing Preston was here?”
“Nothing conclusive.”
She pressed her lips together as her gaze traveled over the truck, the surrounding brush, and the darkening trees.
Austin studied the vehicle from where he stood. The front passenger tire had sunk into the soft ground near the drainage ditch. “Any idea how Mikey ended up at the bottom of that cliff?”
“There’s a trail leading from here to the overlook,” Luke said. “We found him at the base of a thirty-foot drop about half a mile in. At first glance, it could have been an accident. We won’t know more until we finish processing the area.”
“Was his phone on him?”
“We haven’t found his phone.” Luke glanced toward the woods. “Until Mikey wakes up, we won’t know why he came out here—or whether he was alone.”
A crime-scene technician leaned out of the passenger side and called Luke’s name. Luke held up one finger before excusing himself and crossing the gravel to speak with her.
Austin remained beside Nora at the tape barrier. She hadn’t taken her eyes off the woods. Her hands curled into fists at her sides as if she could hold herself steady through force alone.
Luke returned carrying a clear evidence bag. Inside it was a small red Matchbox car.
Nora sucked in a breath and stepped closer. “That’s Preston’s. He was playing with it yesterday when I visited Shelby.”
Luke’s attention sharpened. “You’re certain?”
“I watched him jump it over five crayons.” Nora stared at the toy through the plastic. “It was in Shelby’s living room when I left.”
Austin nodded toward the evidence bag. “Where did you find it?”
“On the passenger-side floorboard. We’ll have Shelby confirm it belongs to Preston.”
“A child’s toy in his father’s truck wouldn’t normally mean much,” Austin said. “But if Nora saw Preston with it yesterday, somebody had to bring it here after she left.”
“Mikey could have picked Preston up,” Luke said. “Or somebody could have put the car in his truck because they wanted us to believe he did.”
Nora’s gaze jerked to Luke’s. “You think it was planted?”
“I think we’re keeping all possibilities open.” Luke handed the evidence bag back to the technician.
Nora’s face paled. “Both Mikey and Preston disappeared after Mikey had been making threats about custody. Of course, everyone would assume Mikey took him.”
“And while we were searching for Mikey, we weren’t searching for another vehicle or another suspect,” Luke said. “Even if the setup eventually fell apart, it bought whoever has Preston several hours.”
The significance of the missing phone settled over Austin. Mikey had been unable to answer Shelby’s calls, defend himself, or tell anyone where he was. By the time deputies found him at the bottom of that cliff, the most valuable hours of the search were already wasted.
Austin looked at the abandoned truck. Whoever had done this hadn’t involved Mikey because he had Preston.
They had involved him because everyone would believe he did.