Dark Moon Magic (17 page)

“Can I help you?” she asked, embarrassed that her voice cracked.

“I was out walking my dog this morning and found this.” He handed her a wallet. “Imagine my surprise when I opened it to find your driver’s license inside. Can I ask what you were doing out at my place?”

Regina swallowed hard. She must have dropped it when she’d reached for her phone.

What was she going to say? If she lied, he’d know, since she was so bad at it.

“I wanted to find out if Sharon was there. She’s missing, and well …”

“For the last time, I didn’t do anything to Sharon.”

Regina studied his face, surprised she actually believed he was telling the truth. So, if Rayland had nothing to do with Sharon’s disappearance, then who did?

“I want you to stay off my property, or I’ll force that lover of yours to arrest you for trespassing.”

As quickly as the man had come, he was gone.

Regina glanced at Tiah, who frowned.

“What do you think? Do you believe him?”

“Strangely, I do.”

“I have to agree. So now what? If he didn’t take her, who could have?”

Tiah walked over to her. “That’s just what I was wondering.”

Who knew what was going on? Carol and Trace were the only others who had knowledge of what happened, and no way would the woman’s own mother have had anything to do with her disappearance. Trace couldn’t, either. Now they were back to square one, except they had another missing person. Two best friends. Gone missing fifteen years apart. Could this whole thing be some kind of a coincidence? It’d be pretty farfetched if it were.

No
. Regina sticking her nose into Kelly’s disappearance triggered Sharon’s. But why? What did Sharon have in common with Kelly besides being friends? This was what she needed to find out. But Carol would refuse to talk to them again. She was too angry and upset. So where did she go from here?
Kelly’s parents
. Did they still live here in Groves, or had they moved away to put the whole thing behind them?

“What’s going on in that head of yours, Reggie?” Tiah’s question pulled her from her reverie.

“I’m thinking we need to find Mr. and Mrs. Marley. Maybe they can tell us something. I have this strange feeling there’s more to this than two friends vanishing. We have to find out what.”

“How do we do that?”

“Not here. I don’t want to ask anyone from Groves. What do you think about a little road trip? Maybe the police department a town or two over helped out when Kelly went missing and could tell us where we can find her parents. First, though, I need to mail these packages. I’ve been putting it off, since the post office is clear on the edge of town.”

Tiah helped Regina load the parcels into two canvas bags, then Regina locked up the store and put the CLOSED sign in the window.

She placed the totes in the trunk and started toward the driver’s door when she heard tires squealing from behind her.

A black truck barreled her way. Regina had only seconds to sprint for the front bumper and dive for dirt. She hit the ground with a jolt, pain slicing through her as she scraped her elbow on the gravel. The 4x4 sideswiped her sedan before taking off at a breakneck speed, too fast for Regina to catch a license plate number.

Tiah ran to her side. “Are you okay?”

Regina blew out a breath and nodded. “I think so.”

“Let me help you up.” Tiah clasped her forearm and pulled her off the ground.

“We need to call the sheriff. Whoever was driving that truck was trying to hit you.”

Regina shook her head. “It was just another warning. I think we’re getting close to something, and they’re hoping to scare us off. Too bad I’m more determined now to find out what happened to Kelly Marley.”

“I don’t know, Regina. I seriously think that driver’s intent was to hit you.”

“I thought you were the one calling me chicken. Someone puts a little scratch on the car, and all of a sudden you want to go home and hide.”

Regina knew her goading would work, just like Tiah’s had on her.

“All right.” Tiah started toward the passenger-side door. “Do you still want to go to the post office?”

Regina sighed, then headed for the driver’s side. “Of course. I still have a business to run. That hasn’t changed.”

* * *

Trace pulled in front of station and cut the engine. First thing he intended to do was call his ex-partner in Chicago and find out who the sheriff of Groves had been before Trace. Hopefully he’d be able to tell him something about the man—maybe even where he could find him. This Kelly Marley thing had him wondering if it could somehow be connected to Keith’s murder. The theory was implausible, but stranger things had happened.

He stepped inside the door and was met by Carol, who looked about ready to drop. “Did you find her?”

“No, not yet, Carol. But I will. I think you need to go home and get some rest.”

“I can’t sleep. My daughter could be in danger right now. You have to do something.”

“I’m doing everything I can, Carol. I have to make some calls. So I need you to go home and wait.”

Tears filled the woman’s eyes. “You have to find her.”

“I know, and I will.”

Garrett walked in the door and looked at Trace.

“Perfect timing. Garrett, I need you to take Carol home.”

“Of course. Is everything all right?”

“Just take her home, then come on back. I’ll need you here.”

“Sure thing, boss.”

When the two were gone, Trace went directly to his office and called Scott, his ex-partner.

“Kennedy speaking.”

“Hey, pal. How’s it going in the windy city?”

“Langston. What the hell? What did I finally do to deserve a call from you?”

Trace plopped down in his chair. “I need some information.”

“About what?”

“Who I replaced as sheriff.”

“Why? What’s going on there in the boonies?”

“I need to find out what the man knew about a missing girl from town fifteen years ago.”

“Okay, well, Brighton was his name. Carl Brighton. So why you looking into a fifteen-year-old missing girl case?”

“I’m not sure, Scott, but I have a missing woman and a murder here, and I have a gut feeling this could all be connected in some way to that girl.”

His ex-partner whistled on the other end of the phone. “I thought you left Chicago to get away from all that? Here you’re smack dab in the middle of it.”

“Hey, I had eight years of quiet. What can I say?”

“If you need me to help, just give me the word. I’ll be on the next flight.”

“I appreciate that, Scott. Hey, you wouldn’t happen to know where this Brighton retired to, would you? I really need to talk to him.”

“I think in the area somewhere. Gatsby, maybe.”

Trace rubbed at the stubble at his chin. That was the second time in as many days he’d heard mention of the town. “Thanks, buddy. I’ll talk to you soon.”

“Yeah, right. It took you eight years to call me this time. I won’t hold my breath.”

Trace ended the call, then rose and went into the outer office. “Katie, I’m headed over to Gatsby. Tell Garrett that I want him to watch Regina if I don’t get back by,” Trace glanced at his watch, “seven thirty. All right?”

“I surely will and drive safe.”

“Always do. See you later.”

Trace left the precinct and jumped into his cruiser. He hoped he’d have some luck in finding Brighton, so he could learn what the man knew about the Marley case. Maybe opening up this can of worms would reveal what happened to the girl fifteen years ago and possibly uncover who took Sharon and why.

Trace sped out of town. He’d never visited Gatsby, but he was curious as to why it seemed to be a popular place of late. Why would a retiring sheriff choose it over, say, Florida, where everyone seemed to retire?

He took highway sixty and was happy to see the town was only nineteen miles from Groves.

As he drove, his mind drifted to his night with Regina. The two had a boundless passion, but was there more than that? He felt protective of her. He spent time wondering what she was doing. Was that love, though?

One thing was for sure; her best friend Tiah didn’t much care for him. That could be a problem if he planned to have a future with Regina. Then again, the woman lived in Little Rock. He’d only had to see her when she visited Groves, which couldn’t be often since he was sure the woman had to have a job—a job she wasn’t at now. How had she been able to take so much time away?

Trace shook his head. Maybe he would have to deal with her more than he thought, and if that were the case, he was going to have to work on making things at least civil between them.

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

In Gatsby, Regina parked in front of the police station and cut the engine. She turned to Tiah and sighed. “Let’s hope we can get some answers.”

The two exited the car, walked to the door, and entered. The lighting gave Regina a pause.

“Can I help you?” a heavyset man sitting behind the counter asked.

“Yeah. I’m wondering if you could give me some information about a missing girl from Groves.”

The man frowned. “Just recently?”

“No. This happened fifteen years ago.”

“I wasn’t here then. I’ll see if Sheriff Shelton could tell you something.” The man rose and walked down the hall, disappearing from sight. He returned a few minutes later with an older officer in tow.

“So, I hear you want to find out about Kelly Marley. Is that correct?”

“Yes.” Regina smiled at the man.

“Can I ask why you want to know about the girl?”

“We have another missing woman, and I think the cases could be related.”

“Really. I haven’t heard anything about it. Who’s the sheriff down there?”

“Langston. Sheriff Langston.”

“Right. Right. He was some big city cop from Chicago.”

“That’s right,” Regina said, hoping he wouldn’t refuse to talk to her because she wasn’t any type of law enforcement.”

“As I recall, Sheriff Brighton was in charge of the Marley investigation. It was strange, since he refused any help. He lives somewhere out of town around Gatsby now, but I never see him.”

“Did you think it odd that he didn’t ask for help?”

The man shrugged. “Some officers like to take care of their town’s own issues. But in this case, he should have asked for help, especially after they didn’t find the girl.”

“What about her parents?”

“I never did hear anything there.”

Regina was disappointed. This whole thing was a wild goose chase. “Thanks for your time, Sheriff. I appreciate it.”

“If Sheriff Langston needs help finding this missing woman, have him call me.”

“I will.” Okay. That was a lie. If Trace knew they were talking to the sheriff of Gatsby about the Marley case, he’d never forgive her, and that was the last thing she wanted. She loved Trace. Their relationship meant the world to her, and she didn’t want to screw it up. She just hoped he felt the same way.

Regina clasped Tiah’s arm and headed out the station door. “That was a waste of time,” she said when they were on the way to the car.

“No, wait.” Tiah stopped her in her tracks. “Didn’t the sheriff say Groves’ former police chief lived just outside of Gatsby? We need to talk to him. Find out what happened and why he refused help from the neighboring offices.”

“How do we find him? The sheriff didn’t even know where he lived.”

“We ask around. Surely someone in town knows him. Let’s start with the local grocer. The man’s got to eat, right?”

Regina agreed. The former sheriff would surely know what had happened all those years ago.

She reached the car. “When we go in and ask, let’s just say we’re family and are visiting him for the first time.”

“Sounds like a plan. Excuse me, but we’re looking for information on our Uncle Brighton. Can you help us?” Tiah asked as she opened the car door.

“Exactly.” Regina slid behind the wheel and started the engine. She seriously hoped they could find someone who knew the former chief, otherwise, they’d have to head home knowing nothing more than they already did.

* * *

Once inside the Gatsby police station, Trace removed his sunglasses and glanced around. A man sat behind the counter and turned down one end of the newspaper he held to look at him.

“Can I help you?”

“I hope so. I’m Sheriff Langston from Groves. I’m looking for some information.”

“Does it have to do with that missing girl?”

Trace was taken aback. How could the man know why he was there? “How did you know?”

“We had a couple of ladies in earlier asking the sheriff about the case.”

Trace’s blood pressure spiked. “Was one a redhead?”

“Yep. Very striking woman and a cute, little blonde.”

Regina and Tiah
. He was going to lock those two up when he found them. To save them from themselves.

“Is the sheriff around?”

“He stepped out for a few minutes.”

Trace heaved a sigh. “I was told that the former sheriff of Groves moved to this area. You wouldn’t happen to know where I could find him?”

The heavier man shook his head. “Nope. You could ask some of the people at the Kroger store down the street. Someone might have some idea.”

“Okay, thanks.”

Trace left, tamping down his anger. He’d deal with Regina and Tiah when he got back to Groves. Right now he planned to find out where Brighton lived, so he could talk to him. The man had to have some information Trace didn’t on the Marley case—a possible theory as to what happened to the girl. Something that could possibly link her to Sharon’s disappearance.

He pulled away from the station and drove down Main Street Gatsby, taking in the scenery. The town looked like any other. Nothing special that he could see. So why had Brighton moved here, and what drew Rayland to the place?

He spotted the local grocery and pulled into the parking area, noting a car that looked like Regina’s. But it couldn’t be hers. It had a large dent and scrape down the driver’s side.

Trace drove the cruiser into a slot and headed inside the store. He was going to question whoever he could to find out where Groves’ former sheriff lived.