Run For Your Life, page 18
“Or—” Prentice said.
Royce turned toward him. “Or what?”
“Or we only take into consideration where Marie turned up and go bang on every single door in a three-mile radius of that spot. She probably couldn’t have gotten any farther than that considering the terrain. It could be a faster option with immediate results.”
Prentice had a point. Even after sifting through thousands of documents, we might learn who was behind the kidnapping but not necessarily where they were holding Devon and Liza. That “ticktock, ticktock” played through my mind again. We didn’t have a lot of time.
“Boss, this is your and the other sergeants’ call. You, Sergeant Bleu, and Sergeant Riley are in charge of Homicide, and Sergeants Timmons and Petrie are in charge of SVU. This is my cross to bear since I’m the one the perp is after. I’m willing to play his game in exchange for Devon and Liza’s lives if it comes to that, but whether he calls me back or not is an unknown, and I have no way to contact him.”
Royce looked around the table. “Minus the houses we went to yesterday, how many more are in that area?”
I responded. “There were seventy-nine that had dwellings on the land. We went to twenty-two homes yesterday, but if we expand the search to a three-mile radius, there’s going to be a lot more than just fifty-seven doors to bang on.”
“Not necessarily,” Timmons said. “Marie said she didn’t see any lights.” He walked to the map and pointed out that the Wilmington River and Bradley Creek kept her in a tight area, along with several roads. “Anything beyond that is well-populated. She could have gone to anybody’s house and banged on their door for help. She was in a sparsely populated area. She said she didn’t cross any major rivers or come upon roads until daylight, when she stumbled upon Johnny Mercer Boulevard.”
“Yep, we have to stay within reasonable limits,” Royce said. “Let’s bang on doors again but only the ones whose backyards go right into lowland areas and don’t have a neighbor up their ass.”
“Excuse me, Boss, but that’s exactly where we were yesterday. Everywhere else has water or a road that she would have had to cross.”
“Then how about the other side of the boulevard?”
“That would work but not where the eyewitnesses said they saw her climb over the barricade. Their account also goes along with Marie saying the sun was on her right eyebrow.”
“She said she couldn’t remember much,” Prentice said. “Maybe she was mistaken.”
“True, but she recounted that under hypnosis. I think she was right on that one, but I can definitely ask the doctor if memories brought back under hypnosis are usually accurate.”
“Go ahead and do that, Mitch, and then we’ll locate every house, shed, or barn that may be a possibility and head out.”
I stepped into the hallway and called Grace Evans. I had one question and one question only—Could Marie’s recall while under hypnosis be wrong? Grace said she doubted it. A memory was just that. While under hypnosis, Marie didn’t have the free will to make something up, and Grace said she’d never encountered someone who gave a false memory. After hearing her expert opinion and thanking her for it, I asked her to email me a transcript of Marie’s session and hung up.
Back in the conference room, I took a seat and listened to what the team had come up with. We had seventeen possible dwellings to check out. Some were likely year-round houses, but others could be sheds or shanties.
We headed out, six detectives in total, to knock on seventeen or fewer doors. Everyone else stayed behind to go through those thirteen cases that I had been the lead detective on.
We divided up the three areas to search. Prentice and I took the other side of Johnny Mercer Boulevard, Jason Miller and Cole LeBlanc from SVU took the north side of Bradley Creek, and Mike Rich and Danny Denning took the small neighborhood off Bryan Woods Road. We would spend most of the day checking every house and outbuilding we came across. Rue had to be in one of those dwellings. We just needed luck on our side to find him.
Chapter 45
“Marlon!”
“What the hell is going on? You come blasting into the house like a maniac or what?”
“Zip it. I have something important to tell you.”
“Yeah, I’m all ears. What is it?”
“I just saw three cruisers head out from the Habersham precinct, so I followed them for a while. They jumped onto President Street in the direction of Whitemarsh Island.”
“Again? That sounds like they’re expanding their search. We better move Detective Rue.”
“What about the body?”
“We’ll toss her into the marsh. Come on. We better hurry.”
“Wait. How are we going to subdue the detective so we can move him?”
Marlon grinned then kissed his clenched fist. “With this. How else? We’ll have to roll that barrel into the back of the truck and then bring him here.” He peered out the grime-stained window. “You brought the red car?”
“Yeah, why not? I don’t have any other wheels to use, so I told Lee I needed it. He’s earned plenty from us, so it was impossible for him to say no. Nobody is looking for it anyway. The only car that’s been reported missing is the Honda, and that’s tucked away in your garage.”
“Okay, we better hurry. We won’t have much time.”
The two climbed into Marlon’s truck and took off. He would take State Road 80 and possibly beat the detectives to the area. Marlon floored the gas pedal and didn’t let up. Within minutes, he made the slight right onto Johnny Mercer Boulevard.
“Shit, Marlon, that’s them a quarter mile ahead of us. What are we going to do?”
“See where they turn. What else?”
The first cruiser turned right onto Bradley Point Road, the second made a left on Bryan Woods Road, and the last cruiser turned right on Turners Rock Road.
“Whew, they turned right. That gives us an extra half hour, but we have to be in and out in twenty minutes or less.”
“Then let’s toss both barrels into the truck and worry about getting rid of the woman later. We don’t have time to stick around.”
“Good idea. Pull the dolly out of the back and put her barrel on it while I take care of the detective.”
Without time to waste, they got busy. Marlon rushed Devon before he had a chance to see his face and punched him senseless. He battered Devon’s head until he was unconscious, then he jostled the barrel to the door, helped load the first one, and went back for the second. They heaved the detective’s barrel into the truck, laid it on its side next to the other one, and slammed the tailgate.
“Let’s do a quick check inside to make sure we didn’t leave anything incriminating behind,” Marlon said.
Five minutes in the shanty was all they needed. They were in and out and back on the road in fifteen minutes.
“Now what?”
“Now Detective Rue will be our house guest until we decide how to take out Cannon. Meanwhile, another phone call can’t hurt.”
Chapter 46
Prentice frowned at me. “Why did you turn right? We checked every house back here yesterday, Mitch.”
“Not all of them. I looked on the aerial view map again and realized there’s a few dwellings at the Atlas Marine location. I thought their place was a commercial building, but I saw houses on the map. We’ll check there, look at both sides of the road down to the houses on the loop, circle back, and then head across the boulevard. I just want to make sure we didn’t miss anything on this side before we moved on.”
I made the call to Atlas Marine and said we needed to come through the gate. Within a few minutes, the same man from the previous day rode up in a golf cart, unlatched the gate, and allowed us through. I explained that we needed to look in their outbuildings and wouldn’t take up much of their time. Luckily, the man didn’t have a problem with it.
A half hour later and with everything looking legit, Prentice and I thanked him and continued on. We gave each side of Turners Rock Road a good look and turned around once we reached the loop. Every driveway and building beyond that had been checked yesterday.
After making a U-turn, we left that side and crossed Johnny Mercer Boulevard. The boat ramp to Turner Creek was located on the other side of the boulevard, and several homes and outbuildings were just before that on Tybee Road.
We began at the first home, asked the resident a few questions, and with their permission, took a look around the property. We did the same with the few other homes and noticed there were more decrepit outbuildings than there were houses on that patch of land. We continued on until the road stopped and nearly missed the overgrown driveway at the very end. It was nearest the marsh and away from the few houses by the boulevard.
“Check this out. It looks like an overgrown driveway, but the weeds are freshly trampled down.”
Prentice pointed his chin in that direction. “Pull in.”
I gave him a head tip, yet that was my intention anyway. Branches scraped the sides of the cruiser as we drove deeper down the path.
“There’s a house back there that sure as heck looks abandoned.” I pointed. “See it deep in those trees?”
“Yep. What do you suggest, Mitch? Wait for backup, or go for it?”
“We have to go for it. Either Devon is inside, or it isn’t the right place, but no matter what, we can’t wait to find out. We have guns and vests. In my book, that’s all we need, so let’s move in.”
I killed the engine, and with guns drawn, we walked cautiously toward the small derelict house. I could see why somebody would call it a shanty or a shack. There wasn’t much left, and what was there was about to be reclaimed by the flora creeping in and the elements taking over.
“There’s a padlock on the door.”
“Well, at least that means we won’t get blindsided as soon as we cross the threshold. There isn’t much holding that door on, although the padlock looks new. Doesn’t fit.” I gave Prentice a shrug then kicked in the door. The odor that hit us as we walked in was overwhelming. I held my forearm against my nose as I coughed my way into the darkened space.
“That’s one hundred percent death stench, Mitch.”
“Yep, it sure is. Let’s clear this place fast, and I hope to God we don’t find a dead detective.” I yelled out to Rue but got nothing in return.
There were only four rooms and a back porch, and none held any blue barrels like Marie had described. The place was empty, and nothing was there that warranted the death odor.
“Maybe it was an animal,” Prentice said.
“Last I heard, dead animals don’t walk away, but dead people don’t either. Let’s check the grounds.”
We walked out, gulped in fresh air, and rounded the building. Getting through the tangled overgrowth and low-hanging branches was a chore.
“Shit.” I pointed at three blue barrels sitting against the back wall of the shack, then I noticed a window showing signs that it had recently been pushed up. With my eyes, I followed the route someone would go if they headed straight out. It led right into the marshland. “We need Forensics and the rest of the guys out here right away. As far as I’m concerned, this shack could very well be a crime scene.”
Prentice made the calls, then we waited. The other detectives would arrive in minutes, but Forensics would take at least a half hour. While we waited outside, we searched the property all the way to the marsh.
I thought about what Marie had described while under hypnosis. Everything fit except the sound of the gate and the direction she was facing when the sun came up. Looking out, I understood how easy it would be to get turned around in the dark, and that was possibly what had happened. She might have headed in the wrong direction, trudged deeper into the lowland, then come out at the boulevard, heading northeast when the sun peeked over the horizon. The sound she’d heard could have been anything—a tree scraping against any of the galvanized metal roofs that covered most of the outbuildings or a sound coming from the boat launch area. She wasn’t wrong. I had just made her account fit my narrative. A day later, we were at the location where I was sure Devon and Liza had been held, they were gone, and we had no idea where to look next.
I heard what sounded like cars approaching and returned to the shanty. Because of the overgrowth, there wasn’t room to park beyond the driveway. Forensics needed to get in, and our car was already taking up valuable space. Waving my arms, I got the attention of Jason Miller, the detective driving the first car.
“Hey, buddy, you guys need to back out and park on the road. Forensics is en route, and there’s just no room back here. They’ll need to get as close as possible to this shanty.”
“Good enough. I’ll let Rich know.”
Minutes later, the four detectives reached us on foot.
“Is this the place? Is Rue here?”
“Yes, I think it is, and no, he isn’t here.”
Rich headed to the door.
“Don’t go in there,” Prentice warned. “There’s the smell of death inside, plus it’s likely a crime scene. We need Forensics to go over everything with a fine-toothed comb, and hopefully, they’ll find something the perp left behind.”
Miller jerked his head toward the woods. “Look back there yet?”
“We just started when you guys showed up. We did find three telltale blue barrels, though.”
“No shit?”
“Yep, and that says a lot. Let’s spread out farther and scour more of the woods. I saw other outbuildings farther back, but they may belong to the homeowner from the neighboring property on this side of the road.”
“Sure thing. You’ve already spoken with the residents closer to the boulevard?” Miller asked.
I gave him a nod, and we combed the area again. We neared the two outbuildings that looked like they could fall over with a slight breeze, and barbed wire separated them from where we stood. Those buildings didn’t belong with the shanty, but Miller said he would walk over and ask the resident if we could take a look. Meanwhile, we needed to know who owned the shanty and the land we were standing on. Cole LeBlanc from SVU offered to call the precinct and find out. Without a mailbox to indicate the actual address, they would have to look in a plat book or call the county clerk.
I yelled out as LeBlanc walked away. “Make sure you tell them it’s the last property on the northeast side of Tybee Road.”
“Will do.”
Ten minutes later, Miller caught up to us back at the shanty. We’d already returned for the second time and were waiting for Forensics to show up. A phone call from Billy Tremont confirmed they were only five minutes away.
“Anything in those sheds?”
Miller shook his head. “Nah, just rusty machinery and junk that has probably been sitting there for thirty years.”
“Okay.” I stared through the thick overgrowth that surrounded the driveway then pushed off the tree I had been leaning against. “Looks like the boys have arrived.”
The forensics van pulled in as close as possible and parked. Billy Tremont and Martin James stepped out and approached us.
“Whatcha got here, Detectives?”
“The odor of death and three blue barrels around back. It’s too dark inside to get a better look, but we didn’t want to disturb possible evidence anyway.”
“Understood. Human odor?”
“It smells that way.” Prentice grimaced. “Thick and pungent.”
“What’s the plan? The building looks small, but it’ll take longer to see everything with portable lights. You guys sticking around, or will you expect a call?”
I held up my finger. “Give me a second to see what Royce and Timmons wants us to do.”
I called Royce, explained that Forensics would be on site for a while, and asked if he wanted us to head back in. His response was a firm “Hell yeah,” since we needed to find out who owned that property and take it from there. I relayed the message to the rest of the group, told Billy to be extremely thorough since Rue’s life was on the line, and we left. With any luck, the property owner and possible suspect would be in custody that day.
Chapter 47
By the time we returned to the station, the detectives who’d remained at the precinct had already located the owner of the land. What they told us was enough to squelch any hope I had of finding Devon and Liza.
Royce gave us the grim news. “The owner of the shanty, Ralph Sorenson, lives in Vermont. That property, just over two acres, has been in his family for seventy-five years, and nobody gives it a second thought. That land isn’t anything anyone visits or intends to in the near future. He pays a minimal amount of property tax on it, and maybe at some point, he’ll sell it, he said. For now, it just sits there forgotten.”
I paced the room. My hopelessness was building. “What about an acquaintance who would use the shack? The perp has to know that the owner isn’t anyone local.”
Royce shrugged. “Mr. Sorenson was at a loss. He’s never lived in Georgia and only has the property because he inherited it.”
“Damn it. The kidnapper knew we were coming, but how?”
“That’s the sixty-four-thousand-dollar question, Mitch.”
There were only two ways the perp could have known, either by having a police scanner or by watching the precinct, and we hadn’t announced our intentions across the scanner. That left the latter. Somebody had been watching our movements.
I continued. “The perp is watching us.”
Timmons looked alarmed. “What?”
