One Little Lie Read online

  Jane blinked and shot a glance Reid’s way. Reid saw the confusion in her hazel eyes. Gary had a four-year-old boy, but Reid hadn’t seen him since he was a newborn. This had to be Gary’s boy. Which meant something had happened to Fanny.

  “Your mommy is Fanny?”

  Harry nodded at Reid. “Something bad happened to Daddy. Mommy said he went far away, and I won’t see him anymore.” His eyes filled with tears. “I want my mommy.” He turned his head and buried his face in Will’s shirt. His shoulders shook with the ferocity of his sobs.

  Reid’s heart squeezed. Poor little guy. They had to find out what happened to Fanny.

  Jane rose from in front of Harry and was on her phone. He heard her putting out a BOLO for Fanny Dawson with a description. Why had Fanny rented a car? Had someone been following her?

  A worry line crouched between Jane’s forehead. “I left a message for Brian about Fanny being missing. I thought she planned to go to her mom’s. Do you know her name? I’ll call her and see if she’s heard from Fanny.”

  He hated to add to her worry, but there was no choice. “You probably have better access to her number than I do. Her mother is one of our US senators. Senator Fox.”

  She gaped at him. “Her mother is Senator Jessica Fox?”

  “One and the same.”

  Jane pulled out her phone again. “This is going to blow up in the media. I’d better call the senator right now. I can’t believe this is a coincidence—it has to be related to Gary’s death. What was he involved with that could reach out like this and envelop his entire family?”

  Good question, but Reid had no answers.

  Twenty

  Jane waited for what felt like an eternity to be connected to Senator Fox. She’d told the assistant she urgently needed to speak to the senator about her daughter, but she must have been hard to track down with the length of time Jane was forced to listen to Debussy playing.

  “One moment please. I have the senator.”

  There was a click, and the senator’s signature husky voice came over the line. “You have Fanny with you?”

  Jane swallowed. “No, Senator, but I have Harry.” She told Senator Fox the little that Harry had told her.

  The senator uttered a soft moan. “Fanny should have been here yesterday morning. She called to tell me about Gary’s murder and said she and Harry would join me when I returned from the fund-raiser in Washington, DC. I offered to cancel and come home immediately, but she wanted some alone time to process it all and talk to Harry.”

  “Do you know if she took her own car or rented a car?”

  “Her car was in the garage getting a new transmission, so I told her to rent one and I’d pay for it. I called the rental place and arranged for them to pick her up.”

  “What time was this?”

  “Wednesday evening, about seven I think.”

  Right after Jane left Fanny. So had Harry been on his own since yesterday morning? Jane’s heart squeezed at the thought. “Did you talk to your daughter after that?”

  “I spoke to her several times on Thursday. She seemed to be doing all right. When she didn’t arrive on Friday, I tried calling multiple times, but I never reached her.”

  “Did you report her missing?” Jane kept her tone non-accusing.

  “No. Fanny is a grown woman, and I thought maybe she’d decided to go to a friend’s. I’ve received no ransom calls or anything like that, so I didn’t know she was in danger. She and I have a . . . difficult relationship.”

  That statement was fraught with implications, and Jane had to tread carefully. “So it’s not uncommon for her to say she was coming and not show up?”

  “Uncommon? What’s more uncommon was for her to ask me for help of any kind. What happened to Gary?”

  “We don’t know yet.” Jane told the senator all she knew about Gary’s death and his gambling. “We now know the name of the bookie. It’s Joseph Davies. Does that ring a bell at all?”

  “No, I’ve never heard the name.”

  “Did you know Gary was hitting Fanny?”

  The senator’s gasp was loud in Jane’s ear. “He laid his hands on my daughter?”

  “She had a black eye, ma’am. She blamed herself.” Jane hated telling her about Fanny’s words and behavior. “She seemed devastated by his death.”

  “He was a gambler. That much I knew because he asked me for money about a month ago. I refused, of course. I don’t believe in enabling that kind of behavior.”

  “Can you think of any other misgivings you had about Gary? Fanny’s abduction has to be related to his death.”

  “Just the gambling. I didn’t know he was hitting Fanny. The gall of that man. If I’d known, he’d have been in jail.”

  “Did Fanny know he asked you for money?”

  “I doubt it. We never spoke of it. How is Harry?”

  Jane winced, knowing how much it would likely upset the senator to hear Harry had been on his own. “He was scared, hungry, and dirty when I found him. He’s slept and been fed, but I still need to get him cleaned up.”

  “Hungry? Just how long was he on his own, Chief Hardy?”

  “We think since yesterday morning. Over twenty-four hours.”

  “Good heavens. That poor child. I’m going to come get him. You’re in Pelican Harbor?”

  “Yes.”

  “I’ll be there within two hours.” The senator hesitated. “I’d like to speak to Harry.”

  “Of course.” Jane stepped nearer to Will and Harry and held out the phone. “Harry, your grandma wants to talk to you.”

  Harry’s brown eyes widened. “Grammy Jessica?”

  “Yes, she’s coming to get you.”

  Tears flooded his eyes, and he reached for the phone. It barely touched his ear before he broke into sobs. “Grammy, a bad man took Mommy. You have to find her.”

  Would Harry be able to tell her what the man looked like? She hadn’t had a chance to ask him yet. He was only four—probably too young to give a description, but she had to try. She touched the boy’s soft brown hair as his sobs subsided. He kept nodding into the phone as his grandmother obviously tried to soothe him.

  He finally handed the phone back to Jane. “Grammy wants to talk to you.”

  Jane took the phone. “I’m here, Senator Fox.”

  “I want the tightest security possible on Harry. Are you at the station?”

  “No, I’m at a friend’s home.” She explained how Harry had taken a liking to Will. “I wasn’t sure who he was and what had happened, but I sensed he might be in danger and got him out of sight before anyone saw him.”

  “Can you assign an officer to watch him?”

  “I’ll watch him myself, Senator Fox. I won’t let him out of my sight.”

  “Thank you. You’re armed?”

  Jane touched the butt of her gun. “Yes.”

  “I’ll be there as soon as I can. Text me the address.”

  She gave Jane her personal phone number, and Jane put it in her contacts. “I’ll do that now, Senator.”

  The senator ended the call, and Jane texted her Reid’s address. “She’s coming here.”

  Reid’s expression was grave as Jane told him about Fanny’s call and her failure to show up. He glanced at Harry, then knelt in front of him. “Harry, do you remember what the man looked like who took your mom?”

  Harry’s brow wrinkled. “He wore a Texas Rangers cap. I have one just like it. My grammy went to school in Texas, and she bought me a cap.” He chewed on his thumbnail. “His eyes were scary.” He demonstrated a mean, squinty-eyed glare.

  So he wouldn’t have seen his hair. The Texas Rangers cap wasn’t much of a clue since half the men in town were Rangers fans. “Did your mommy say his name?” Jane asked.

  Harry shook his head. “He parked behind our car and asked to use Mommy’s phone.”

  That was a new detail. “What color was his car?”

  “Blue, I think? Dark blue.”

  “What was he wea
ring?” Jane asked. “Did you notice anything except his hat?”

  “Jeans?” Harry’s voice was uncertain. “And a red shirt.”

  She was pushing him too much. Jane touched his hair. “You’re so smart, Harry. How about Will gives you a bath?”

  “I’ll go buy him some clothes,” Reid said. “You’ll be okay here by yourself?”

  Jane scowled at him. “Of course.” Where’d he get off thinking she was not competent to protect a little boy?

  He raised his hand. “Sorry. I’ll be right back.”

  * * *

  Reid listened to the distant sound of the boys playing Uno on Will’s bed. Parker was with them. The tags had been cut out of Harry’s new clothing, but Reid had guessed right on the size. Harry had been thrilled with the Ninja Turtles pajamas. Reid had gotten jeans and a T-shirt as well, but the boy had quickly climbed into the pj’s.

  Jane glanced at her watch. “The senator should be here any time. It’s been two hours, and I thought she’d be here by now.”

  Her phone buzzed, and she answered it. “Brian, we’ve got trouble.” She pulled it away from her ear and put it on speakerphone before she launched into all she’d learned about Fanny’s disappearance and finding Harry. “Did you talk to Joseph Davies yet? Maybe he took Fanny to try to squeeze the senator for the money Gary owed him.”

  “I talked to him, and he has a good alibi. He’s been in jail in Pensacola for the past two weeks. I don’t think he’s our guy, unless he hired the hit. Which he could have done. He’s one mean dude.”

  Jane scowled. “I think Gary’s killer took Fanny, and it’s not likely to have been Davies. He has no motive. So if he’s not our killer, what could have gotten Gary killed and Fanny abducted? Did you find any other evidence in the car or at the scene that might indicate Fanny escaped from him?”

  “No, but we found where the little guy ran into the brush. He left a red sweatshirt behind in some thick briars. Looks like he slept there. We found some Little Debbie wrappers and an apple core.”

  At least he’d had a little bit to eat while he was hiding. Reid had been worried about that. He’d been poking as much food down the boy as he could.

  “Okay, keep me posted.”

  As she put her phone away, someone tapped at the back door. Why would the senator be knocking on the back of the house? Maybe it wasn’t Fox at all.

  She exchanged glances with Reid and pulled her gun before creeping toward the back of the house. He followed her, though everything in him wanted to take the lead. Dusk cast long shadows into the yard, and it was hard to see. In a crouch she sidled to a back window and glanced out into the yard. He peeked over her shoulder. The driveway held a small blue car. It couldn’t be the senator.

  The door rattled with another knock, and a woman’s voice echoed through the door. “Reid, I know you’re in there. I want to talk to you.”

  His gut clenched. Lauren. Jane would be sure to recognize her as the woman they’d seen in town.

  He put his hand on Jane’s shoulder. “I’ll get rid of her.” He moved past her, opened the door, and stepped onto the back deck before she could push past him into the house. “What do you want?”

  Her pink lips twisted in a derisive smirk. “You know what I want, Reid. I’m not going away without it. Either give me the money right now or I’m going inside to speak to Will.”

  “Go ahead.” He didn’t know whether he’d managed to convey enough boredom with his shrug until her smirk faded and uncertainty took its place.

  She fidgeted with the bow on her pink blouse. “You told him already that I’m back?”

  “Did you expect me not to tell him? I already told you he knows. He doesn’t want to see you.”

  She bit a trembling lower lip. “I really need that money, Reid. I have to have it.”

  “You’ll have to look elsewhere, Lauren. We’ve been over this way too many times already. I’m not giving you one penny.”

  Tears glimmered in her eyes. “You’re a hard man.”

  “You created this mess, not me.”

  “My lawyer will make you change your tune.”

  He skewered her with a hard gaze. “I’ll let my attorney know to expect his call.”

  She spun on her heel and stalked back to her vehicle. The door slammed and tires spit oyster-shell gravel as she pulled away.

  He needed to go back inside, but he didn’t want to face Jane’s questions. Inhaling the pine-scented air a few times, he waited until his knees quit shaking. The door squeaked behind him, and he knew it was Jane before she touched his arm.

  There was no way she hadn’t overheard the conversation. He turned to face her. “I’m sure you have a lot of questions after hearing all that.”

  The salt-laden breeze spun her curls around her head, and her hazel eyes were soft. “I think she might be more than an old girlfriend. She’s your missing wife, isn’t she? I heard you call her Lauren.”

  “She is.” He dropped into a deck chair and rubbed his shaved head. “She deserted me and Will when he was seven. I hired detectives several times over the years to try to find her, but she had just vanished. I never found where she’d gone or what had happened to her. I had her declared dead finally and tried to move on with my life. I never expected her to show back up demanding money.”

  “You don’t want Will to know she’s turned up?”

  “He knows that much.” How much should he tell her? Everything in him wanted to spill all of it, but he wasn’t ready. She wasn’t ready, and neither was Will. Too many people could be hurt by the truth, and he wasn’t about to risk his son. “It was hard enough for Will when she disappeared. Deep down, he’s always thought something happened to her and that’s why she never came back to see him. For him to know she just walked away without a second thought was very painful.”

  Sometimes Reid thought he’d chosen his profession so he didn’t have to sit in any one place for long and think about the people who should have stuck around and didn’t.

  She held his gaze. “The truth is easier to handle than most people think. A lie is a betrayal that hits you where you really live. I’m glad he took it well. He’s a remarkable boy.”

  The truth hovered on his lips, but he bit them back. “Could you find out where she’s been all these years?”

  “Do you really want to know? What good will it do?”

  “It might be ammunition to keep her away from Will.”

  “Maybe Will would want to have a relationship with his mother. I’d give anything—” She broke the contact of their locked gazes and glanced down at her hands.

  “You’d give anything if what?”

  “If I could talk to my mother one last time.”

  His stomach plunged. “She’s dead?” He’d lost track of Kim many years ago, but she’d been the survivor sort. The last time he saw her, she’d been in charge of the women.

  She raised her eyes to meet his again. “I don’t know, and that’s the worst part of it all. Does she miss me like I miss her or has she completely forgotten me? I could handle it if she doesn’t think about me, but it’s the not knowing that destroys me.”

  Jane only thought she could handle it. He kept seeing the wounded expression in his boy’s eyes after Lauren left. It had lasted for months and resurrected every now and then. Death was better than rejection. He knew all too well the cost of betrayal and the way lies could destroy a life.

  He would do anything to keep Will happy and safe. So much of this was Reid’s fault, and he wanted to fix it for his son, but maybe the whole sins of the father thing was real.

  During his documentary on the cult, he’d located the last known location of Liberty’s Children, but he hadn’t gone there to interview anyone. “You know I did that documentary. I know where some of the cults in the country are located.”

  “My father said the remnants of Mount Sinai joined up with Liberty’s Children. Do you know where to find their compound?”

  He nodded. “It’s about two
hours away, outside Coffeeville.”

  She clasped her hands together. “So close? She’s been so close all this time? W-Would you take me there?”

  He knew it cost her to ask. “Just tell me when.”

  “Let me think about it. Soon, though.”

  He could see the trepidation whirling in her hazel eyes, but he hoped the reality wasn’t the disappointment he predicted.

  Twenty-One

  The rumble of vehicles brought Jane to the window and out of her churning thoughts about her mother’s location. A line of black vehicles pulled into Reid’s driveway. Two state police cars flanked the senator’s black SUV. The senator stepped from the backseat of the middle one and hurried toward the front door.

  In her fifties, Senator Fox seemed to always be dressed in navy suits and sensible pumps. Gray streaked her short dark hair after seven years in the senate, but she was still as energetic and driven as the first time Jane had met her, the year she went to work for the Pelican Harbor police department.

  The senator paused and spoke to the officers climbing out of their cars, and they all got back in their vehicles.

  Jane opened the door before the senator reached the porch. “Senator Fox, I’m Police Chief Jane Hardy. We met a few years ago.”

  The senator barely touched her fingers to the hand Jane extended. “Where’s my grandson?”

  “Inside playing a game with Will and Reid. Come in.” Jane stepped out of the way, and Senator Fox brushed past her.

  In spite of the woman’s brusque manner, Jane warmed to her obvious concern for her grandson. She’d often heard others talk about their grandparents, and for the umpteenth time she wondered about her own. Were they still alive? Did they even know about her? She’d tried to probe her father about remaining relatives, but he always changed the subject. Over the years she’d thought about trying to track them down on her own—after all, she had all kinds of resources at her fingertips—but what if they didn’t want to see her?

  After her mother’s rejection, she wasn’t sure she could face more. Maybe she’d muster the courage soon.