She Once Vanished, page 32
He helped himself to a drumstick. Hopefully, not Starr’s favorite piece. Though there was a second. Zachary hoped to force Starr to eat two-handedly, putting down the gun. If he was that hungry, he might do it without thinking.
Zachary looked around for Dain or any sign of what had happened to him. Had he been texting with Dain earlier in the day? Or with Starr? He supposed that the request for chicken meant that it had been Starr. Not the semi-vegetarian, healthy greens-eating Dain.
There was no obvious blood spatter anywhere. Maybe Starr had just commandeered the dwelling while Dain was out of the house or out of the state. Maybe Dain was perfectly fine and didn’t even know that his house had been taken over by a murderer.
Except that Starr had been texting him on Dain’s phone. Dain wouldn’t go anywhere without his phone. It was like Cameron had said. It was hard to imagine anyone going anywhere without a phone now. Dain wasn’t as much of a social media darling as Elysse, but he was still an influencer in his own right, with thousands of followers and the need to post several times a day to keep them satisfied.
Starr motioned Zachary back from the bucket of chicken and peered inside, grabbing the second drumstick for himself. He looked over Zachary and Kenzie while he ate the first few bites, chewing vigorously and gulping the food down greedily.
“I didn’t get any coleslaw or anything,” Zachary said, “I hope you don’t mind. You just said chicken.”
“Don’t want any frickin’ salads,” Starr agreed. “Don’t ask me why they even include that stuff on the menu. People don’t go there for salad.”
“Exactly,” Zachary agreed, nibbling at his chicken. He looked at Kenzie. “Did you want some, Kenz? You’ve had a long day. You must be hungry.”
She rolled her eyes at him. “I don’t want to eat standing up. And unlike the men, I do like a bit of something green. You mind if I see what’s in the fridge?” she asked Starr.
His lip curled in a sneer. “You think I don’t know what you’re up to? You’re not going into the other room by yourself.” He nodded toward the bucket. “Cell phones on the table.”
Neither of them moved. Starr pointed his gun at Kenzie. “You first. Cell phone. Now.”
Kenzie obeyed, pulling it from her purse and setting it on the table.
Starr turned his gun on Zachary. “Now you.”
Zachary took his from his pocket and set it beside Kenzie’s. He hadn’t expected either of them would be able to make a covert call to the police, but that was out of the question now.
“Now can I go into the kitchen?” Kenzie asked.
He studied her. Trying to figure out how much freedom to give her, Zachary assumed. Anything could happen once she was out of the room.
Except she had no phone and they were practically in the middle of nowhere, so it wasn’t exactly like she could call for help or make a run for it.
“If you do anything that bothers me, I’m going to shoot your boyfriend.”
Kenzie swallowed. When she spoke, her voice was steady, but Zachary could see the tightening of her jaw and how she was holding her body rigid.
“I just wanted something to eat. If you don’t want me to go into the kitchen…”
He considered for a few seconds, and Zachary thought he would tell her to go ahead, but he decided to err on the side of caution.
“No. You can eat in here. Have some chicken or don’t, I don’t care. But I’m still going to shoot him if you try anything stupid.”
72
What was Starr’s game plan? Why hadn’t he just shot them the instant they walked in the door? What was the point in keeping them alive? In standing there having chicken with them as if they were visiting neighbors who didn’t know anything about him.
Maybe that was it. Maybe Starr didn’t know if they knew anything. He needed to talk to them to find out what they knew and who they had talked to. If Starr were going to contain this, to keep Operation Elysse going, he needed to know how far the information had spread. He needed to plug up the leaks.
And if he found out the police already knew and were investigating him, he might decide to cut his losses.
“Where is Dain?” Zachary asked, looking around. “I don’t understand what is going on here. Exactly who are you, and why…” He made a helpless gesture. “What makes you think you need to hold us at gunpoint? We haven’t done anything. We just came here to have dinner with a friend.”
Kenzie shifted. Zachary darted a glance at her, then looked back at Starr.
“I just don’t understand what this is about,” Zachary repeated. “Is this some kind of joke? I don’t think it is in very good taste.”
“I never did get Dain’s sense of humor,” Kenzie contributed. “You really had me scared at first.” She relaxed her shoulders and blew out her breath. “Whatever this is about, I don’t think it is very funny.”
Starr’s gaze shifted between Kenzie and Zachary. Zachary didn’t think he was fooled, but it was the best chance they had. Feign complete ignorance. Make him reconsider the assumptions he had made. Starr probably didn’t want to believe that his operation was blown. He would prefer to think he could keep it going for a few more months. Every month brought in millions. If Starr could avoid getting caught, he could enjoy whatever portion of the money and recognition was his.
“Is Dain joining us for supper?” Zachary prompted, watching Starr’s eyes.
There was a very quick glance toward the staircase. So Dain was probably upstairs. That was more reassuring than a look outside or to the garage. Dain was more likely to be okay if he were in the house.
Zachary put his chicken bone on top of the bucket lid to avoid getting grease on the table, and looked into the bucket for his next choice. “It’s been a long time since I had fried chicken. It’s pretty good. I like this coating. It’s nice and crunchy. Not soggy.”
Starr motioned with the gun. “We’re not here to exchange chicken recipes,” he growled. “Sit down. I don’t know who you think you’re fooling. I know you know.”
Zachary picked out a breast and sat down on the couch where Starr pointed. At least it was a leather or vinyl couch, any grease would wipe off.
And any blood.
He pushed the thought out of his mind. No one was going to get hurt. They would make Starr believe they didn’t know anything. They would make him believe he was safe and he didn’t have to kill them. Whatever he had done, he still had a chance to escape.
“You think I don’t know you know?” Starr demanded when they were all sitting down. Zachary felt like a child, sinking down into the butter-soft couch, looking way up at Jordan Starr with the gun.
How many times, in his years in foster care, had he been in positions where he had been at the mercy of an adult or an older child with power over him, whether because of their position or just age or size? He was good at reading people. He was good at bluffing and talking his way out of trouble. Kenzie was doing a good job projecting calm and unconcern, pretending she didn’t know what was happening either. That things might change any minute with Dain coming down the stairs and ending the prank.
“Is there a hidden camera?” Zachary asked, looking around. “I really think this has gone on long enough. Why don’t we put the gun away and just visit until Dain decides he’s ready to come down and join us?” He tore at the chicken. It was good, but he had trouble chewing it properly and getting it down, his throat constricted and heart pounding in his chest so it felt like there wasn’t any room for the food to squeeze by. “By the time he gets down here, the food might be all gone.”
“That would serve him right,” Kenzie asserted.
“What are you doing here?” Starr demanded. “Exactly what is your connection with Dain?”
Zachary didn’t need Kenzie’s warning look to know not to reveal that he was a private investigator and Dain had hired him to investigate Elysse’s disappearance. If Starr did not already know that, Zachary wasn’t going to give him any other information.
“We’re friends,” Zachary told Starr with a shrug. “Where did we meet Dain…?” He stared into space as if trying to remember. “Was it that fundraiser…?”
Kenzie nodded. “The kidney research fundraiser…?” she suggested. “He was doing some kind of crowdfunding campaign. I never did understand all the details. I’m okay with email and posting pictures on Facebook, but all the new stuff… I can’t keep up with all the other socials and how you make money. How exactly does an influencer make money by posting pictures?”
Zachary shook his head as if it were all beyond him, too. A couple of weeks ago, he’d hardly known anything about social influencers, sponsorships, and all the rest of it. He never would have guessed that a person could make millions just by wearing certain clothes or subtly showcasing a product in a video.
“Yeah, you’re right. I think it was the kidney fundraiser. It’s funny that we just clicked. Different lives, different worlds, but…”
“Sometimes you just get along with someone right away,” Kenzie agreed. “Sense of humor. A love of backwoods Vermont…” She motioned toward the big window, which showcased the snow gathered in the branches of the trees.
“Photography,” Zachary said, “but I’m more old school.” He reached inside his jacket with his free hand to fish out his camera.
Starr’s hand jerked and for a split second, Zachary thought he was a dead man. But Starr managed to stop himself before pulling the trigger. He stared at Zachary, his face white, puffing for breath.
Zachary raised his brows, looking at Starr as if he didn’t know what his problem was. He twisted his camera in the air. “It’s a camera, dude. Not a Glock.”
“You’re an idiot!” Starr exploded. “You want to get your head blown off, pulling out hardware like that? Don’t you understand what is going on here?” He sputtered, nearly losing it. “This is not a joke, an act. This is not a prop. I am going to blow your flipping head off!”
Zachary restrained a snort at Starr’s strong language. He displayed the camera to Starr again, hoping that in the bright light of the room, the red LED indicator would not be obvious. “It’s a camera,” he repeated slowly and calmly. “I’m not armed. I don’t know what you think this is all about, but we were talking about photography. Dain had all his fancy phone stuff and social networks, and here I am with an analog camera, going old school. But art is art, you know? It doesn’t matter if the mediums are different.”
Of course it was a lie. It was not an analog camera, which Starr was bound to know if he took a good look at it. But Zachary kept it in motion, kept talking so that Jordan Starr wouldn’t focus on the lie. If Zachary could keep him distracted and make him think that they only knew Dain socially and didn’t know anything about what Starr had done, maybe they had a chance to talk their way out of the situation. Or to keep him occupied until they could get help.
“I just use my phone,” Kenzie said, looking back at the table where she had put down her phone. “I never did understand all that stuff about F-stops and whatnot. The phone camera is good enough for me. And it has all the filters built in. You don’t have to develop it to get special effects. It’s instant.”
Zachary rolled his eyes. “It’s just not the same,” he said. “It’s like comparing digital music to vinyl.” He appealed to Starr. “You know there’s nothing like vinyl, don’t you? It’s a whole different experience. It has depth. It has… all the background stuff. The scratches and pops can’t be replicated through digital effects. Whatever you do, I would still be able to tell whether it was the real thing.”
“Just shut up,” Starr ordered, leveling his gun at Zachary. “Anybody ever tell you that you talk too much? Just shut up and let me think.”
Zachary held the camera casually, hoping it was properly focused on the gun in Starr’s hand. Starr shook his head irritably and paced, trying to sort everything out in his head. When he turned away, Zachary hit a few buttons on the camera.
Zachary darted a glance at Kenzie. She took a deep breath in and let it out again. She wasn’t sure what he was doing, but it was clear she knew he was up to something.
73
Starr turned abruptly back to them. “I know you know,” he snapped at Zachary. “I don’t know what game you’re trying to play, but you’re not fooling me one bit. I know who and what you are. Both of you.”
Zachary shrugged, inviting Starr to elaborate.
“You are a private investigator. You think I don’t know that? I know that you’re following me. Investigating everything I do.”
“Following you? I’m not following you. I don’t know what it is you think I know…”
“And you’re the medical examiner.” Starr pointed at Kenzie.
She nodded. “Yes, I am. Did Dain tell you that?”
“The two of you working together,” Starr muttered. “There must be laws against that. You can’t be sharing autopsy information with a private investigator! PIs don’t even work with the police. They’re not allowed to.”
“No,” Zachary assured him. “If I show up on a crime scene, they run me out on a rail. They don’t want me to have anything to do with police investigations. And Kenzie…” He chuckled. “Do you know how many times she’s told me that she won’t share information on an autopsy? Almost makes me wonder why I stay in the relationship.”
“Must be my cooking,” Kenzie said dryly.
“But you don’t make anything like this,” Zachary pointed out, waving his piece of half-consumed chicken. “This is really good.”
“Are you telling me you would prefer this over garlic bread?”
“Oh…” Zachary considered. “Well…” He looked over at Starr. “I’m sort of addicted to garlic bread. What about you? What’s your favorite?”
“Didn’t I tell you to shut up?” Starr snapped.
“Well…”
“Good luck with that,” Kenzie said.
After an endless period of Starr pacing back and forth, watching out the windows and trying to get everything straightened out in his mind, he decided on the next step in his plan. Luckily, that did not involve shooting them both and leaving their bodies there, which gave Zachary some hope that Dain might still be alive.
But Starr’s plan did involve tying their wrists and ankles with zip ties and leaving them on the floor while he went outside. Zachary panted, his ribs burning with the position of his arms.
“Is that it?” Kenzie asked after a minute or two of waiting for Starr to return. “Is he done? Taking off and going home?”
“I doubt it,” Zachary said. “I didn’t get the feeling that he’s done yet.” He squirmed around to get into a sitting position, allowing him to see out the very bottom of the front window, looking out to the yard and Zachary’s car. He tried to keep his head low enough that Starr would not immediately see him if he looked back at the house.
“What’s he doing?” Kenzie asked. She squirmed around to get into a more comfortable position, but she did not sit up so that she could see out too. She probably didn’t think it would be a good idea for them to both be sitting up when Starr came back into the house.
“Something with the car… I don’t know what for sure.”
He watched Starr walk around the car, crouch down to look and feel underneath it. He tried the door handles and the alarm started whooping. Zachary grimaced. His heart raced. He was already in a dangerous situation and knew it, but his body thought it was more hazardous because of the sound of his alarm going off.
“It’s okay,” Kenzie told him.
“Hate people messing with my car.”
“I know.”
Zachary was immobilized, in dire circumstances, a killer with a deadly weapon close at hand, but it was someone touching his car that bothered him. He could see the ridiculousness of it, but could not change the direction of his thoughts. “Just imagine how you would feel if it was your baby,” he told Kenzie, referring to her red convertible, currently consigned to the garage until the weather warmed up.
Kenzie laughed, her tone bordering on uncontrolled. “He’d be in deep trouble if he touched my baby,” she admitted.
Zachary gave himself a moment to envision Kenzie furiously breaking out of her restraints like a she-hulk if someone touched her car. He strained at the zip ties. He had watched a number of videos on getting out of handcuffs or zip ties, but he had not been able to master the techniques himself. He twisted and pressed, tried snapping them with a jerking movement, but was unsuccessful.
He turned his attention back outside, but he could not see Starr. “Where did he go?”
“You can’t see him anymore? Is he coming back?”
Zachary looked around, but Starr was out of sight and Zachary wasn’t sure what direction he had gone.
“Maybe he’s leaving?” Kenzie suggested. “How long do you think we’ll have to wait until help arrives?”
“Not too much longer,” Zachary assured her, hoping it was true. He was relying too much on chance, knowing that technology didn’t always work the way it was supposed to and people didn’t always respond the way he expected them to.
“Do you want me to see if I can get over to the table and get one of the phones?” Kenzie suggested.
It wasn’t impossible. Kenzie only had to scoot herself over there, stand up, turn around, and grab it with her hands behind her back. But then she needed to be able to operate the phone behind her back, and Zachary wasn’t sure she would be able to. Could she send out an emergency alert? And would it be received? While, as far as he knew, all areas of the state now had 9-1-1 services, isolated areas often did not have cell coverage. If they managed to get through, would the police be able to get a GPS lock on the phone? Would it be accurate enough to find them?
74
There was movement outside and Zachary strained to see what was happening. Starr was walking back toward Zachary’s car. With a toolkit and a wheeled creeper for him to slide under the car. Zachary growled angrily at the sight.
