The Taking of Carly Bradford

FOUR

Thin bands of white moonlight brightened Dee’s room and fell in stripes across her face. She stirred and blinked, easing awake in the silent room, confused as to why the moon seemed to be in the wrong position. The bed, the night table, also wrong. She jerked up as a short burst of panic flared in her. Where am I? The jerk produced pain in her face, neck and shoulders, and it all flooded back again—the day, the attack, the fuzzy ride home from the hospital.

Oh. Right. The lodge house, not my cabin. Dee pressed her head against the pillow and closed her eyes, aware that the pain, dull and throbbing, must have awakened her. She touched her face gingerly, a bit surprised at how much even the lightest touch hurt. Twin tears slipped from the corner of each eye, moistening her temples and disappearing into her hair.

What was I thinking, why didn’t I just drop the sandals? Stupid! He could have killed me. Yet, even as she scolded herself, Dee knew why.

Carly. Whoever attacked her must have Carly. Dee now knew that fact as certainly as she knew her own name. No one else would know yet that she had found the shoes. No one else could know whether they were really Carly’s. No matter how crazy it sounded, it had to be true. They were Carly’s.

But would Tyler believe her? She’d seen the look in his eyes, and that doctor’s, when she’d told the story in the E.R. They thought she was crazy.

Still crazy. Tyler must think I’ve had a relapse. Maybe I have. Dee did know she couldn’t get Carly out of her head. She’d thought of almost nothing since she’d found the sandals. In and out of her grogginess at the hospital and, later, here, her mind had replayed every newspaper article she’d read, every television report she’d seen. Carly is eight, the same age Joshua was. We have to find her. We have to!

Dee knew that Carly now threatened to be lodged in her mind and spirit, almost in the same way Joshua had been. And Mickey. Even after they died. But Carly…Carly might still be alive. And that—person—knows. I know what I heard. I heard it. I didn’t make it up. He has to believe me.

“Tyler,” she whispered. Dee opened her eyes as she remembered the trip home, how he’d lifted her at the hospital, then again here. Lifted her as easily as if she were a child. He’d been so tender with her, as if she were fragile as well as injured. His chest and arms had been firm, radiating a comforting warmth, and he’d smelled like…. Dee closed her eyes again and inhaled, as if he were still next to her. He smelled like soap and freshly cut wood.

And there was something else…a whispered phrase. Even now she felt uncertain that she’d actually heard it.

Ride easy, Dixie Dee.

She smiled, which hurt, making her thoughts return to Carly. “You have to believe me.” Her words slipped away unheard as sleep took over again, and she drifted away with one last thought. I have to talk to the Bradfords.

“Where?” Tyler demanded as Fletcher put the car in gear.

“Downstream from where Dee found the shoes. That stream apparently runs behind a subdivision a few miles down—”

“Ryan’s Point. It’s one of the older neighborhoods in Mercer. Some of the houses date back to the nineteenth century.”

“A woman found it in her garbage bin. Said she’d noticed someone in her backyard earlier, but didn’t think anything about it at first. Then she went to take out the trash, opened the bin, and there it was. She knew it wasn’t hers and had seen enough of the news that she called the station. Wayne caught the call.”

“Is he at the scene now?”

Fletcher took another turn and speeded up. “On his way.” The older detective’s mouth twisted into a wry smile. “Said the woman told him she’d seen enough of those true crime TV shows that she knew not to touch anything. Maybe they are good for something.”

Tyler snorted. “Now if they’d stop convincing jurors that DNA is the answer to everything. Who’s the woman?”

Fletcher pulled a slip of paper from his shirt pocket and handed it to Tyler, who unfolded it. Directions to the house, scribbled in Fletcher’s bold, angular scrawl, cluttered most of the page. At the bottom, capital letters spelled out “Jenna Czock.” Tyler said the name.

“You know her?”

“I know everybody in Mercer.”

Fletcher’s mouth twisted. “Small-town cop. I need to get you into New York sometime. I meant more than by sight.”

“Nah, there are too many strangers in New York. Jenna runs the florist shop on Fourth, which she started after her divorce about twenty, twenty-five years ago, so my mother tells me. Jenna’s maybe mid-fifties, dark hair. I don’t know her well, but she sometimes eats lunch at Laurie’s the same time Dee and I do.”

Fletcher glanced sideways at his friend. “You and Dee eat lunch together?”

Tyler felt his cheeks burn. “I mean, we eat there at the same time. It’s not like—” He broke off, stumbling over the explanation and deciding to change the subject. He didn’t want to explain that he’d started timing his lunches so he’d be there when Dee arrived. “You need to turn here.” He pointed.

“Directions said—”

“This is faster.”

Fletcher followed Tyler’s instructions, letting a few seconds of silence pass. “You know, I can be distracted, but I don’t forget.”

“Take the next left. We need to focus on the case.”

In the silence that followed, Patty stuck her head between the front seats and Tyler scratched her chin. “OK. Go ahead and say it.”

Fletcher remained silent.

Tyler filled in the empty air. “This makes Dee’s claim a lot more credible.” He pointed at another street.

Fletcher turned the corner, still quiet.

“Do you have any idea when I’ll stop screwing up this case? I should have jumped on those shoes and got them to the lab last night.”

Fletcher glanced sideways again, then back to the road. “Don’t give yourself so much credit. You’re not screwing up anymore than the rest of us. This case is a jumbled mess and has been since Day One. You were right not to send the shoes last night. You know as well as I do how many false reports we’ve had about the shoes. It would be worse to jump the gun on these, especially given how fragile Nancy Bradford is right now. We need to find out if they are Carly’s before we stir anything else up.” Fletcher took a deep breath. “What I want to know is why pieces of Carly Bradford’s last known set of clothes are suddenly being scattered up and down the same stream of water.”

Tyler’s gut twisted. “She’s dead, and her killer is getting rid of evidence.”

“But if Dee is right, then the shoes were a mistake. They weren’t meant to be dropped. Her attacker was trying to get them back.”

A sliver of hope rose again in Tyler. “But…once they were found and turned over to us, we’d know Carly might still be in the area. We’d renew our search for her. This time maybe even more intensively.”

Fletcher turned the car into a subdivision and slowed, searching for the right street. “So the best way to keep us busy is to leave a trail leading in the wrong direction. A distraction.”

Tyler stared at his friend. “She’s going to be moved.”

Fletcher nodded. “Most likely. And if we’re not careful, it’ll happen while we’re peering into trash cans and following accident victims to the hospital.”

Tyler let out a long sigh as Fletcher parked the car behind Wayne’s cruiser. “Then we need to move on the shoes quickly. I’ll call Rick when we’re through here.”

“We’re definitely going to need his resources as well as any manpower he can spare.”

Tyler nodded and got out of the car. Rick Davis was the FBI special agent who had worked with them on the initial investigation. The FBI didn’t usually investigate local cases of missing children unless there was absolute proof of foul play or immediate danger to the child. There had been no Amber alert on Carly for the same reason. Children who disappear into the woods don’t usually have help doing so. They get lost; they have accidents. Tyler, however, put in a request for the FBI to help with the case as soon as he was convinced Carly hadn’t just wandered off. His officers, the FBI and the local press turned the town into a fortress. The square-foot-by-square-foot search of the town lasted ten days. As the time passed, hope drained from the town and the officers. Rick and his team had finally left when they found themselves sitting around the police station one day doing nothing but reviewing old files and going through the interview transcripts yet one more time. There wasn’t even enough evidence for a profile of a suspect. The case had simply come to an absolute dead end.

As if Carly had just vanished from the face of the earth. Until now.

Jenna Czock waited for them on the front stoop of her two-story Federal-style house. The boxlike home sat close to the road, but had a backyard comprising almost an acre of land. To the right of the house, a separate, more modern garage had a dark blue, mid-size sedan in front of it.

They pulled up behind it and got out, leaving the windows down for Patty. At Tyler’s strict “Stay!” the dog stretched out on the backseat. Jenna came down the steps to greet them, looking like someone who’d just gotten home from work, with her red oxford cloth shirt, charcoal-gray slacks, and the thick makeup some older women seemed to prefer. A fleeting smile creased a worried face, and she motioned for them to follow her around the side of the house. She used a flashlight to augment the flood lights that shone from beneath the eaves of the house.

“I hated to bother you, and I’m hoping this isn’t what I think…that it’s just trash. I usually check the can just to see if there’s room for another bag, and this was on top, just lying there. I’ve been following the case and listening to what the folks are saying around town. Everyone’s still talking about that precious little girl.”

They reached the back of the house, and Jenna pointed at a latticework cage set back from the house about forty feet. “The cans stay back there. I had that built for the garbage and the firewood. Cuts down on the raccoons in the garbage and the snow on the firewood.”

Raccoons, indeed, thought Tyler. This backyard must be a haven for them. Towering old trees dotted the richly green and well-tended lawn, many of them surrounded by flowerbeds ripe with new spring flowers. The cage, with its slanted roof, had vines of clematis and morning glories running up its sides, allowing it to blend into the landscape. The yard had a gentle but steady slope from the house to the stream at the back of the property. Yellow dots of fireflies danced among the bushes at the edge of the water.

“People walk their dogs along the stream almost every day.” Jenna pointed to a well-worn path that edged the water. “Even after dark like this. And there are two hiking trails on the other side that run close.” She shrugged and hugged herself as she followed them toward the cage, where Wayne had set up a bright spotlight on a tall mount. “It’s just not unusual to see people in my backyard, but I should have realized this one was up closer than most. I just didn’t dream someone would get into my garbage.”

“Man or woman?”

Jenna shrugged. “Not sure. It was already pretty dark. It looked as if they were wearing a cap, maybe sweats. Somewhere between my height and yours, I guess.”

“So about five-nine, five-ten.”

Jenna nodded. “I’m five-eight, so yes.”

They rounded the edge of the lattice, to find Wayne bent over next to the cage’s opening, peering at the ground illuminated by the white light of the quartz spot he had set up. He spoke without greeting. “Only one set of prints, but it’s been pretty dry the last couple of days. Doesn’t match either of the sets in the woods.”

Tyler cleared his throat, and Wayne looked up at Tyler, puzzled, then his gaze darted to Jenna and back to his boss.

Jenna perked up. “In the woods?” She grabbed Tyler’s elbow. “Does this have anything to do with Dee being attacked this morning?”

Fletcher let out a long sigh and squatted next to Wayne. “Small town.”

Before Tyler could respond, Jenna bolted on. “Phil, down at the convenience store, had the scanner on this morning, heard it and called his sister, she works at the hospital, saw Dee in the E.R. Is she OK?”

Tyler patted her hand. “She’ll be fine. Just a few scratches.”

“Is she back at the retreat?”

Tyler nodded. “But—”

“I should send her some flowers. Roses, do you think?”

“Maybe—”

“Or tulips. I think she said one time in the café that she likes tulips. You know, she talked about how she used to grow tulips and—”

Fletcher straightened and cut off Jenna’s rapid words. “Ms. Czock, would you mind if I got a glass of water?”

Jenna paused in her flower review and smiled. “Certainly. Follow me, and I’ll show you where the glasses are.” She took his arm, and they turned for the house.

Once they were out of earshot, Wayne also rose. “Sorry,” he muttered.

Tyler waved away the apology. “I shouldn’t have let her follow us down here. The whole town will know about the connection today.” He reached to adjust his hat, then realized he didn’t have it on. “What do you have?”

Wayne pointed a gloved hand at the open Dumpster-type receptacle. “The dress is spread out as if it’s on display.”

Tyler looked. The blue gingham dress lay draped across two plastic garbage bags, one of which had been ripped open, so that paper, eggshells and days-old milk had leaked out into the can and over the dress. Tyler winced at the odor. “So the kidnapper intended for it to be found.”

“I think so. If he had wanted to hide it or just dispose of it, it would have been simpler just to shove it down in the can beneath the bags.”

“A message. But why here? Why not leave it on a bench in town or some other place like that?”

“My guess is that it would be too risky. Someone might see it, or the dress could be picked up. Here it’s protected, yet it’s doused in a forensic soup. No way we’re going to get an uncontaminated clue out of this. Since Jenna’s the florist, her hours and routine are easy to determine. And he knew that Jenna would be following the case and would spot it right away.”

Both men stood silent for a moment, then Wayne cleared his throat. “I’ve finished processing everything I could. I’m ready to bag it.”

Tyler nodded and stepped back, watching as Wayne eased the dress out of the garbage with a pair of tongs and slipped it into a brown paper bag. “Any blood?”

Wayne shook his head. “Not that I could see. You know it’ll take weeks to process this at the lab.”

“I’d rather they be thorough than quick. We’ve made enough mistakes already in this case.”

Wayne paused and looked his boss over carefully. “Not anymore than another team might have. Why are you being so hard on yourself with this?”

Tyler’s eyes narrowed. “Because Jack and Nancy Bradford are still missing their eight-year-old daughter.”

Wayne opened his mouth to respond, but a door slammed, and they turned to see Fletcher and Jenna returning. Jenna smiled at them as they entered the light cast by the spot, but the stoic Fletcher showed no emotion at all. Tyler focused on Jenna, slipping his fingers around her arm and pulling her to his side. He lowered his voice as he pointed to the trash can. “Jenna, we’re done here, but you know we’d appreciate it if you would keep this to yourself for a bit. We don’t want any wild speculations getting back to Jack and Nancy before we have a chance to talk with them. You know how it is.”

Jenna glowed at his confidence in her, as he had hoped. “Of course, Tyler. I’ll keep it quiet until you say otherwise.” She held up two fingers. “Scout’s honor.”

“Thank you.” Tyler released her and motioned Wayne and Fletcher to follow him. They remained silent as they returned to the cars. Wayne left with the evidence he’d gathered as Tyler and Fletcher settled into the sedan. Tyler scratched the patient Patty behind her ears, barely glancing at his friend as they fastened their seat belts and left the house.

Tyler finally cleared his throat. “Everything okay?”

Fletcher gave a quick nod. “That woman talks more than anyone I’ve met in a long time. And clingy. She never left my side. Kept trying to pump me for info.” He rolled his shoulders, as if to push away the encounter.

Tyler fought a smile. This wasn’t the first time Fletcher’s striking Eurasian looks had gotten him unwanted attention. Women around Mercer found Fletcher to be both handsome and exotic, and some never resisted the temptation to flirt shamelessly. Such attention, however, never failed to annoy the happily married detective. “I appreciate you getting her away from the scene. See anything else suspicious in the house?”

Fletcher glanced at him, then finally grinned. He straightened his shoulders, as if to shake off the last of Jenna’s advances. “No. The kitchen and living room were clean, just the usual clutter of a house that’s actually used. Not a lot of light. She said she’d been cleaning, and the dishwasher was running. She went on about how expensive the heating oil had been this winter, and that she was having trouble with air in her pipes making them rattle. She talked about her daughter, told me she’d been following Carly’s story.”

Tyler looked out the window at the passing suburban houses. They all looked so…normal…“Yeah. Elaine. Wayne and I discussed that might be why the kidnapper left the dress with her.”

“She said any mother worth her salt would be watching around every corner.”

“Like Dee.”

“You think it was her mother’s instinct that made Dee fight for the sandals?”

Tyler nodded. “She’s still a bit of a wounded bird, as you well know. Stronger, but the idea of losing a child resonates deeply with her.”

Fletcher swung the car through a turn and headed for downtown Mercer. “You want me to drop you at the house or the station?”

“The station. I’ll make sure Wayne doesn’t need anything else from me right now, then walk home. Patty’s been patient, so I’m sure she’d love a chance to stretch her legs.”

Fletcher pulled into a parking spot in front of the storefront office, and Tyler got out, snapping his fingers for Patty, who bounded out of the car and halfway up the block and back before Tyler could reach the door. The Mercer police station, a converted storefront, had been both a dime store and a bank in years gone by. Now it held Mercer’s tiny force of five officers, a dispatcher, and Wayne, who did double duty as detective and crime scene specialist. One of their three dispatchers always sat behind the front desk to greet visitors and direct them to the proper officer for a complaint. A cheaply paneled wall separated the front from the bull pen area where the officers and Wayne had desks. The wall extended the width of the building, creating a front hall and waiting area.

Two doors in the wall allowed access to the back. One led to the bull pen. The other opened onto a narrow hallway leading to the police chief’s office and two interrogation rooms.

A bell clanged over Tyler’s head as he pulled the door open, and the third shift dispatcher, Sally, looked up. She acknowledged her boss with a nod of the head toward the bull pen door. “Wayne beat you back by about five minutes. Anything I can do?”

“Thanks. Think we’re covered.” He entered the bull pen, Patty trotting behind him. Normally silent at this hour, the room echoed with Wayne’s shuffling evidence bags and paperwork. Tyler sat down next to his desk. “You going to stay long?”

Wayne shook his head. “I’m going to lock everything in my desk, then e-mail the lab to let them know I’m sending the dress and shoes tomorrow.”

“Take them.”

Wayne paused in his work. “What?”

“I want you to deliver them. I’ll call Rick before I leave and see if his folks can put a little pressure on the process.”

“You sure?”

“Yes. Tomorrow will mostly be spent with the Bradfords. I want to show them the shoes and dress first thing. Then you can take them.”

Wayne hesitated. “Show them before—”

“They’ll know whether they’re Carly’s.”

“Tyler, I don’t—”

“Tyler.” The sharp voice interrupted them, cutting through the deliberation. They turned toward the door, where Sally stood, distress on her face. She continued without pausing. “The security alarm at the retreat is going off.”

FIVE

The alarm siren sliced through Dee’s brain, blurring her vision and making her teeth ache. Dizzy from the pain of the attack as well as the alarm, she pressed her hands over her ears as she braced herself in the doorway leading from the hall into the lodge’s great room. Moonlight laced through the windows, creating stark bands of silver light throughout the room, while the lights that ringed the house flashed like yellow, disco-era strobe lights.

Near the door, Maggie frantically entered the alarm code into a keypad with one hand, while the other clutched a baseball bat. Both hands trembled furiously, but she succeeded. The alarm went silent and the outside lights stopped flashing. She turned on the inside lights, and the women looked at each other. Maggie swallowed hard and renewed a two-handed grip on the bat. “Are you okay?”

Dee nodded once, then whispered, “Where’s Fletcher?”

“Still with Tyle—”

Maggie’s words broke off as the front door burst open. They both screamed, whirling toward it. Fletcher stood there, gun drawn. His gaze swept the room, then focused on his wife. “You all right?” His voice, low and guttural, sounded like a drum in Dee’s ears, and her knees felt weak. Stumbling forward, she fumbled for one of the soft chairs near the fireplace on the front wall and sank down into it.

Instead of answering Fletcher, Maggie nodded toward the back door, which stood open. Following her lead, Fletcher exited cautiously onto the back deck, scanning all around him. Maggie watched him go, then a horrified look crossed her face as a raw wail echoed through the house. “David!” She fled down the hall on the other side of the great room, toward her baby son.

Dee drew her knees up to her chest and pushed deeper into the chair, confusion clouding her mind and adrenaline making her shiver. She realized that her thoughts remained locked in a swirl because of the painkillers she’d taken, but she couldn’t blame the drugs for the maelstrom of emotions within her. A black fear blended with a stark sense of loss yanked her back to the dark days following Mickey and Joshua’s deaths, when daily she felt as if she were being pulled into a bottomless pit.

“I can’t do this again.” Her choked voice sounded flat and unfamiliar, as if it were not her own, and the fear spiked again. This time Dee realized the fear came not from the alarm or the attack but from deep within. A fear that this would push her back to the chasm of grief that she had dwelled in for so long.