Chapter 4
FOUR
Lydia awoke to the sound of her phone ringing. She reached for it on her nightstand. Her first thought was that Elsie had been found.
She sat up in bed. Frankie sat at attention watching her. The dog must have wandered in through the open door.
She looked at the number. Her mother-in-law, Sheryl.
“Hello.”
“Oh, my heart, Lydia. We just saw on the news.”
In the chaos that followed Elsie’s disappearance, she had not thought to call the grandparents.
“I’m sorry. I should have phoned you,” said Lydia. Despite there being tension over Lydia divorcing their son, Norm and Sheryl were good grandparents and the only family support that Lydia had.
“No, I’m sure you had enough on your mind. Dear sweet Elsie. Both Norm and I are just beside ourselves. How could this happen?” Sheryl’s voice cracked.
How indeed. Sheryl Caldwell’s agitation did not have a calming effect on Lydia. The older woman was prone to over-the-top reactions anyway. “I don’t know.” Lydia felt the all too familiar tightening in her chest.
“You poor thing. Is anyone there with you, a friend perhaps?”
“There’s a police officer here with me, but I’m sure he needs to get back to work.”
“So, you’ll be alone. That’s what I thought. We’ve already left Grand Junction and are on our way over to be with you.”
“Oh, Sheryl. I appreciate that so much, but I’m sure Debbie could use the help as well.” Sloane’s sister had had a preemie baby recently who required lots of extra care. Lydia knew the couple had been staying with her.
“Nonsense. We’re on our way. We can go back to see Debbie another time.”
The gesture touched Lydia greatly. Most of her interaction with Norm and Sheryl was because of Elsie. Now they seemed concerned about her. Maybe they were letting go of their anger over her divorcing their son. “Thank you, Sheryl. I appreciate that.”
“You need family around at a time like this.” Sheryl let out a wavering breath, and her voice trembled as she added, “Who would do such a thing to that precious little girl?”
Sheryl’s heightened emotional response was stirring Lydia up. She closed her eyes and gripped the phone, barely able to get the words out. “I wish I knew.”
“We’ll get there as fast as we can. You take care of yourself.”
“Thank you, Sheryl. I appreciate you and Norm so much. I’ll call you if there’s any news on Elsie. I’m so sorry I didn’t keep you in the loop in the first place.”
They said their goodbyes and Lydia hit the disconnect button. Lydia looked down at Frankie, who had been watching her intently. “Did you come in to check on me?” She knelt and stroked Frankie’s ears. “What a good girl.”
Lydia walked into her bathroom to wash her face.
The scent of bacon and coffee filled the air when she stepped into the kitchen, where River stood at the stove. “Hope you don’t mind. I thought you could use some breakfast.”
“Not at all. It’s nice to have someone cook a meal for me.
” Even on the days that he’d gotten up in time for work, Sloane had usually been so hung over that she ate breakfast alone.
There had never been a time when he’d cooked for her.
She’d never felt so lonely as when she’d been married to Sloane.
River turned to the coffeepot after grabbing a mug from a cupboard. “What do you take in your liquid energy?”
She studied him for a moment. The firm jaw and look of concentration indicated a highly focused man who was good at his job.
But the tousled blond hair, which looked like he’d combed it with his fingers, suggested a relaxed side to his personality.
There was something endearing about a man who didn’t fuss about his appearance. The total effect made him attractive.
She felt a check in her spirit. River’s kindness drew her in, but after what she’d been through with Sloane, she’d vowed not to give her heart to a man ever again. She’d had enough pain for a lifetime.
She combed her fingers through her red hair involuntarily. Okay. So, she was conscious of how she looked when she was around the handsome officer but that didn’t mean she had to do anything about it.
“Black is fine.” She intended to drink her coffee slowly, hoping it would help her get beyond the anxiety over her daughter still missing.
She had no intention of going to work today.
Angel had said she’d take care of everything at the school.
All the same, she probably should at least check in with Angel at some point.
Right now, her job was the last thing on her mind.
River handed her the cup of coffee. “Take a seat. I have things under control. Your kitchen is organized very logically, just like you would expect of someone who works with preschoolers.”
His compliment brought a smile to her face. She sat down. A second later, River placed a plate in front of her that had bacon, toast and eggs on it. He sat down across from her with his own plate.
“Can we say grace?”
“Sure. That would be great,” he said.
She’d suspected that he was a man of faith. Now she knew for sure. Lydia bowed her head.
“Lord, we thank You for this food. Please be with the police and the people looking for Elsie.” A lump formed in her throat. “Bring my little girl home.”
River placed his hand over hers. The warmth of his touch calmed her.
He took a few bites of food and offered Frankie a tiny nibble of bacon. “I need to deal with some task force business today. I got a call from our tech. She’s tracked down the address for Gayle Gorman’s boyfriend.”
She took a sip of her coffee enjoying the robust flavor. “So sad about Gayle.” Of course, he had to get back to work. Having River and Frankie close had been such a comfort to her. She’d been able to sleep deeply knowing he was watching out for her.
“My in-laws are going to try to get over here soon. I might call a friend to be with me today as well.”
“I already called the Ridge police department. They’ll be able to spare an officer to sit outside in a patrol car.” He checked his watch. “She should be here shortly.”
“Thank you for setting that up.”
“As soon as I deal with this task force interview, all my attention will be on following the different leads we came up with last night. As a favor to me, Eva, the tech analyst on the COK9 task force, is doing a background and alibi check on Prentiss Grafton.”
River seemed to be putting a great deal of energy into finding Elsie, almost above and beyond what was expected of him professionally. As if the case were deeply personal to him. “It must be rewarding when you find a lost child.”
“Yes, sure. When that happens, it’s a cause for joy.” He glanced off to the side and bent his head.
Her question seemed to cause a mood shift. “But that’s not always the case, right?” Even asking the question opened the door to the possibility that Elsie might not be found.
His voice dropped half an octave. “No, sometimes there are not happy endings.” He glanced at Frankie, who moved closer to him and licked his hand. A confirmation of some shared experience between partners who understood each other in a deep way.
“Oh?” She took a few bites of food, hoping he would say more. Silence fell between them for several minutes.
They finished their meal, exchanging small talk. She gathered up the dishes.
River waited for the Ridge officer to be in place. He stood with the door slightly ajar. “Lock this after I leave.”
“Sure.” She took several steps toward him.
“I’ll be back in touch as soon as I can.”
He stepped outside. After locking the door, she stood watching as River and Frankie walked up the street to where his patrol car was parked.
Clearly, he was a man with depth and perhaps a few secrets. Her gaze came to rest on the other patrol car parked on the street. She could see the female officer inside.
Hopefully, the police presence would be enough to deter another attempt on her life.
* * *
After putting Frankie in her kennel and entering Joel Henley’s address in his GPS, River drove across town. Officer Maren Anderson with her narcotics K-9 had agreed to meet him at the address. As he got closer, the houses started to look a little more run-down, the lawns less pristine.
Maren was waiting in her patrol car when he pulled into the lot of the apartment building.
When she spotted River, she got out of her car and deployed Haven, the reddish Doberman.
Maren offered River a bright smile as she walked toward him.
Her sweet demeanor and features often made people underestimate her as a police officer.
With her long, honey-brown hair and blue eyes, she looked more like she should be teaching a class with Lydia rather than serving as the top-notch officer that she was.
Her dimples only added to the effect. But River knew there was more to her than how she appeared.
Recently, Maren’s twin sister, a known addict, was assumed to have died.
She was believed to have drowned in a river, which was the last place she’d been seen.
River glanced around the lot and spotted the model car that Eva had tracked down as belonging to Joel. “Looks like he’s here.” He glanced at Maren. “How are you doing?” It couldn’t be easy dealing with a case that might involve drugs two months after Opal’s death.
Maren blinked and bit her lower lip. “I have a job to do. I know me and my sister weren’t on the best terms, but I miss her.”
He patted her arm. “I’m here if you need to talk. You know that.”
The task force was barely a month old, but the twelve officers were already close even though they were spread across the state.
“Thank you, I appreciate that.” Maren’s attention went back to the three-story building. “Let’s approach with caution. He’s on the third floor, so I doubt he’ll try to jump.”
River nodded. “I’ll hang back in the hallway in case he gets past you.”
Highly unlikely considering that Haven was cross-trained in suspect apprehension.
They entered the building and took the stairs at a brisk pace with Maren in the lead.