Dead Wrong (16 page)

“And that’s when she came to you?” Mitch asked.

“No. She figured if law enforcement got involved she’d have to testify against Norton.”

“And she was afraid he’d kill her,” Cole said.

“Exactly. So she hatched her own plan and that’s where Bodig came in. Walters knew Bodig only had access to the legit set of books. So Walters made sure records from the illegal activities were left where Bodig would pick them up on her weekly visit. Since Bodig was a churchgoer, Walters figured once Bodig got a look at this info, she’d report Norton to the authorities.”

“So what went wrong?” Mitch asked, not liking where this was heading.

“Walters didn’t know Norton had the office under video surveillance, and he saw Bodig take the books. When we heard Bodig had been murdered—”

“You figured Norton took her out,” Cole interrupted, his worried gaze going to Mitch’s.

“This Norton Construction company have a logo?” Mitch asked and held his breath waiting for the answer.

“Yeah. A black circle with the word Norton in red letters. Why?”

Mitch felt the blood drain from his face as Cole grabbed his phone off his belt holder and jumped up.

“Is there something you want to tell me?” Reed asked, first looking at Cole then back at Mitch.

“A van with the same logo was spotted near Bodig’s house the night she was murdered.”

Reed smiled. “So we do have a connection here.”

The last thing Mitch would do was let the FBI take over when he needed to find Kat and make sure she was okay.

“Possibly.” Mitch stood. “We’ll look into it and get back to you.”

“Now wait a minute, Elliot. We need to partner on this.”

“Agreed. If you’ll give me your card, I’ll speak to my supervisor in the morning and get back to you.”

Reed wasn’t pleased, but he gave Mitch his card anyway. “See that you do get back to me.” His tone was mildly threatening, but Mitch didn’t care. He only wanted to get rid of the guy so he could check on Kat.

“Now if you’ll excuse us.” Mitch gestured toward the door and waited for Reed to march off before joining Cole who was still on the phone. His head was bent and he massaged the back of his neck.

Mitch felt his anxiety heighten at what didn’t look like good news. “What’s happening?”

Cole looked up. “Kat isn’t answering her phone. I also sent her a 911 text. No reply.”

“Maybe her battery died,” Mitch offered.

“We’re getting a GPS signal, so she still has battery.”

“We?”

“Dani’s at the office tracking the GPS on her computer.” Cole’s attention turned to his phone, his gaze going to the ceiling. He listened then his eyes flew to Mitch. “Any idea why Kat would be in Newberg?”

Newberg?
“My sister’s in rehab in Newberg.”

“I’m putting you on speaker, Dani.” Cole thumbed his phone then held it out. “Dani, if Mitch gives you the rehab’s address, can you confirm if Kat’s GPS matches that location?”

“Of course.” Dani’s concerned voice came over the speaker.

Mitch scrolled through his contacts until he found the rehab facility then rattled off the address.

“Good,” Dani said, and then he heard clicking. “Kat’s not at the facility.”

“So they’re not together?” Mitch shared a worried look with Cole. “Unless Angie bailed. Let me call the clinic to see what’s going on.”

“While you do that I’ll check Kat’s recent call log to see who she talked to last,” Dani offered.

Mitch went to his contacts again. Man, he was thankful for the advent of smart phones. The variety of apps gave them plenty of opportunity to get a lead on Kat’s location. He dialed the rehab center and when someone answered, he explained his situation and was put on hold.

Cole started pacing, and Mitch settled for tapping his foot against the floor as fear continued to gnaw at his gut. If Kat were with him, she’d tell him not to worry, but to pray. Especially now that she was trying not to worry and trust God more. She was still struggling with it, but he’d seen her find some peace as she let it go. Maybe he could do the same thing.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Elliot,” the woman finally said. “But your sister has checked herself out.”

“When?”

“This afternoon.”

“Thank you.” He ended the call. “Angie’s AWOL.”

“She may be gone, but Kat talked to someone at the rehab place around three,” Dani said, still obviously concerned. “Does Angie have a cell or would she use the facility’s phone?”

“She doesn’t have a cell.” Mitch took a few deep breaths. “Okay, so maybe we’re overreacting here. Looks like Angie bailed, but before she did, she called Kat. She knew I wouldn’t come get her, so she probably asked Kat for a ride back to the city.”

One of their young clerks came into the room and held out a folder. “DNA for your case, Detective.”

Mitch snatched the file from her hands, and she looked at him as if he’d lost his mind before she made an about-face. Mitch ran a finger down the page. “Granby’s DNA didn’t match the scrapings from Kat’s fingernails and there’s no other match in the system.”

“So Granby isn’t our guy and the man who attacked her is still out there.” Cole’s tone was dire. “We need to get out of here and find Kat now.”

“Agreed,” Mitch said, tossing the file on his desk. “We can use the GPS coordinates.”

“She’s on the move,” Dani said. “So you’ll need to stay in touch with me.”

Mitch didn’t waste a second but ran for the elevator with Cole’s heavy shoes thumping right behind.

“Construction vans sometimes have GPS locators on them,” Cole said while they waited for the elevator car. “Dani, we now know that the van we’ve been tracking belongs to Norton Construction. Do your thing to locate it and see if they have GPS installed.”

“What thing?” Mitch asked.

“Dani’s a computer expert. If that van has GPS, she’ll find it.”

The elevator dinged, and they boarded the car. As the doors slid closed, Mitch felt as if the walls were closing in on him. He’d felt this inept and ineffective only once before. When Lori lost her life in front of him.

He clenched his jaw, his teeth grinding over the irony of the situation. He’d transferred his fear from losing Lori to Kat. That was the reason he wasn’t with her right now and because of that a killer could be coming after not only the woman he loved, but his sister, as well.

SEVENTEEN

“I
’m gonna throw up,” Angie said and clutched her stomach.

Kat eased the car onto the shoulder and waited while Angie flung open the door and worked through a bout of dry heaves then lay back limp in the passenger seat.

“You’re sure you want to do this?” Kat smiled at Angie, who was now shivering.

“Yes.” Angie pulled her jacket tighter. “I don’t need rehab to get straight.”

Kat grabbed a blanket from her backseat. She settled it around Angie and brushed her hair back from her face. The face that looked so much like Mitch’s. Guilt took over for a moment and Kat considered calling him. After Angie phoned for a ride, Kat had silenced her cell. She was afraid the rehab staff would call him and Kat knew he’d be mad if he found out she was helping Angie. Kat hadn’t intended to help her leave, but to talk her into staying.

Angie looked up at her, her lips pressed into flat lines. “You’re a good person, Kat, and I’m sorry I got you involved in my mess.”

“I’m happy to help.”

“You really mean that, don’t you?”

“Why wouldn’t I?”

She shot out her arm with angry red needle marks dotting the inside. “When good people like you see this they usually run the other way.”

“You have a problem, Angie, but that doesn’t mean you’re not a good person, too.” Kat took Angie’s hand. “Do you mind if I pray for you?”

“Not that it’ll work, but okay.”

Kat closed her eyes and held tight to Angie’s trembling hand as she asked God to give her the strength and courage to give up drugs. To return to rehab if that was what she should do.

Kat opened her eyes. Angie was eyeing her. “Didn’t seem to help.”

“Prayer isn’t an instant fix. Especially if you don’t want to change.” Kat searched Angie’s troubled eyes. “Do you really want to change?”

She shrugged. “Let’s just get going, okay?”

She cared too much about Mitch just to let this conversation drop. “Mitch loves you and misses you, Angie.”

“That why he left me in jail the other night?”

“He explained that to you. Remember?”

“I remember what he said, but I know he’s just embarrassed to be my brother and wanted to make me do what he wants me to do.”

Kat shook her head. “That’s the withdrawal talking. Mitch does everything because he loves you. Pure and simple, he loves you and wants to help you.”

“How do you know?”

“Trust me. I know what a person who just wants to get his way is like and that’s not your brother.”

Angie simply stared at Kat. She wasn’t getting through to her. Kat needed to tell Angie about her birth father so she could see that Mitch acted out of love. “My dad was exactly the way you’re describing Mitch. Dad always thought he knew what was best for us and forced us to do what he wanted. My mom couldn’t do anything without his permission. If he even suspected she went against him, he’d beat her.”

Sorrow from the memories had Kat shaking her head and breathing deeply before going on. “But on my eleventh birthday, she decided to ignore his wishes and take me to the movies. She waited for him to go to work on the night shift and then she told me we were going. I was so excited. I’d never been anywhere fun and especially not somewhere with just my mom. But Dad forgot his supper on the counter and came back. He caught us walking to the bus stop, and he dragged her by her hair into the house. He ended up killing her, Angie. Right there in front of me.”

Angie’s eyes had opened wide. “Mitch would never do something like that.”

“I know he wouldn’t.” Kat squeezed Angie’s hand. “He’s a good man, and he wants you to go to rehab because he loves you.”

She smiled for the first time. “Because he loves me.”

“So, do you still want to take off or go back to rehab?”

“Do you really think I can do this?”

“I know you can.” Kat gave another squeeze.

“Okay.” She nodded, a spark of resolve now in her eyes so like Mitch’s. “I’ll give it another try.”

“Good.” Kat settled behind the steering wheel and started the car. She eased onto the highway and the second she found a place to turn around, she did. She couldn’t wait to get Angie settled and tell Mitch about the breakthrough.

But there wouldn’t be any telling, would there?

Her joy faded to sadness. He’d made it clear that he didn’t want a future with her when he’d shut her out that night. And in two days, he hadn’t attempted to talk to her at all. He might never try to again. She was willing to open her heart and consider a future with him, but he was the one who had to let go of his fears for that to happen. And she just couldn’t see him doing that in the near future.

* * *

Mitch had the lights and siren running, and he still couldn’t move as fast as he wanted through traffic. Cole tried to arrange for a chopper, but in the end, it would take longer for a chopper to arrive and for them to get to a heliport than for them to just drive to Kat’s location.

Cole sat in the passenger seat holding his cell phone. Derrick had taken over the call so Dani—who had indeed done her thing and located the van information—could determine if the vehicle had GPS. Every now and then, they could hear her mumble something that sounded like she was striking out.

“I’ve got it.” Mitch heard Dani screaming in the background. “Tell them the van has GPS, and I’m almost there.”

“She has—” Derrick started.

“We heard her,” Cole said, interrupting his brother.

“Any change in Kat’s location?” Mitch asked.

“She’s headed in the same direction since she made that U-turn,” Derrick answered. “If you both keep up the same speed you should meet her in about ten minutes.”

“Oh, my gosh! No! Oh, no,” Dani shouted, and Mitch’s heart started thumping harder.

“What is it?” Cole asked.

“The van,” Dani cried. “I have the GPS. It has almost identical coordinates to Kat. He’s right behind her.”

* * *

As the miles flew by, a light in the rearview mirror caught Kat’s eye. They’d been alone on the road for the entire trip so it caught her by surprise. The vehicle seemed to be coming at a good clip, shooting a bolt of adrenaline into her heart.

Relax, Kat. Granby is behind bars. You’re just being paranoid.

She took a few deep breaths and glanced at Angie to be sure she wore her seat belt. She was softly snoring, the belt rising and falling with her breaths. Good. She was buckled. And it was good that she was sleeping; she needed the rest.

Kat checked the mirror again. The vehicle kept coming closer. Was probably planning to pass her. She reached for her phone.

“Just in case,” she whispered to herself.

She glanced in the mirror again, and her heart iced over. The type of vehicle was clear now. A full-size van. Still didn’t mean it was coming after them, though.

Kat kept her eyes on the road and unlocked her phone. The screen came to life and she noticed a bunch of missed calls. Mitch had likely figured out she and Angie were together.

The van was speeding up. Pressing forward. Moving closer. She saw the color. White. She rested her thumb over 9 and checked the mirror again. A black circle logo.

“Oh, no,” she said and pressed the 9, then the 1.

The van surged faster than she expected and rammed them hard. Her phone flew from her hand as the tires slipped off the pavement. She grabbed the steering wheel and jerked to the left. The car careened across the road, hitting the shoulder on the other side. She jerked the other way. The van hit them again, but didn’t back off. Crashing, shrieking, grinding metal split the quiet.

Angie woke up.

Please, God. Please don’t let anything happen to Angie. Mitch would never survive another loss.

The wheel wrenched out of Kat’s hand and she couldn’t keep them on the road. “Brace yourself, Angie,” she screamed as the front half of the car left the pavement.

They hit a rut and the car became airborne.

I’m sorry, Mitch
was all she could think as they catapulted end over and end. Her world turned upside down in a blur of tall grasses and tree branches that threatened to fade to black.

* * *

“Both vehicles stopped moving,” Dani announced.

“How far ahead?” Mitch asked, straining to see down the road.

“About two miles.”

“Let’s not give Norton advance notice of our arrival.” Mitch flipped off the siren and light bar.

As they climbed to the top of the last hill separating them from Kat, he turned off his headlights and slowed to a crawl.

“There,” Cole announced. “At the bottom of the hill. The van.”

Mitch came to a stop when he caught sight of the vehicle. The driver’s door was flung open. The front end was seriously damaged and there was no sign of Kat’s car. GPS said her cell phone was here and that could only mean in the ravine. His heart took a dip and felt as if it might not come back.

“He’s run her off the road, and he’s checking to make sure he’s killed her. Only one door open, so looks like there’s only one guy,” Mitch finally said and looked at Cole for a long moment.

“Then we have good odds.” Cole’s eyes reflected the seriousness of the night. “We need to get down there, but he can’t know we’re here.”

“We can coast a little closer then we’ll have to hoof it.” Mitch cut the engine and put the car in Neutral. They rolled down the hill, picking up speed until he steered onto the shoulder, still out of view from the van.

“Let’s go,” Mitch said, and they slipped from the car. He grabbed his vest from the trunk and tossed it at Cole.

“No, you take it,” Cole said, but Mitch took off before he could give it back.

Mitch heard the vest’s tabs rip open behind him, certain he’d done the right thing. He could never bear to look at Kat again if her brother had been killed. As he drew his weapon, he only hoped he had the chance to look into those amazing brown eyes again.

They closed in on the van, and he spotted an area where the scrub had been flattened by tires. Just the thought of what Norton might’ve done to Kat sent Mitch’s anger burning bright, and he couldn’t wait to get his hands on Norton.

At the front of the van, he and Cole split up, one taking the front the other the back to clear the vehicle. Once they confirmed it was empty, he hurried into the ditch and heard Cole doing the same thing near the rear of the van. Mitch climbed over fallen pines and through waist-high grass, following the path where the tall brush had been flattened.

No sign of Norton, but Mitch did find Kat’s car resting on the roof at the bottom of the incline.

God, no. Not like Lori. Not again. Please, not again.

He wanted to run, but he had to move slowly and watch for Norton. He crouched low and, keeping his weapon extended, eased closer. The vehicle had rolled several times and the top was seriously dented. Holding his breath, he approached the driver’s side.

“Kat,” he whispered and looked in, fear over finding her sending his heart into a fast rhythm.

She wasn’t there, but Angie was strapped upside down in the passenger’s side. He circled the back of the vehicle.

“Angie,” he whispered.

“Mitchy,” she answered, and his heart soared. “I’m sorry, Mitchy.” She started crying. “I’m sorry. It’s my fault Kat came out here, and I don’t know what happened to her.”

“Shh,” he said, and leaned inside the vehicle to assess the situation. “The man who ran you off the road is out here somewhere. You have to talk quieter, okay?”

She nodded and sobbed quietly.

Amazingly, there was no major bleeding. “I can’t risk moving you in case you have serious injuries that I can’t see.”

“I’m okay here. Go find Kat.”

“Any idea where she is?”

“I don’t know. I think I passed out. When I woke up, she was gone. Maybe she went for help.”

“She wouldn’t leave you alone. Not my Kat.” His words rang out and he chastised himself for forgetting to keep his voice down.

“Then find her, Mitchy. This guy is after her, not me. I’ll be fine.”

He didn’t want to leave his sister, but if Kat wasn’t by Angie’s side, she had to be in trouble. He couldn’t protect them both. Angie was in the least amount of danger right now, as far as he could tell. If she passed out, she could have a concussion or worse. But he had to go. Had to find Kat. He needed help.

God, if You’re there, I need Your help. Please. I can’t save them both. I have to trust Angie to You. Don’t take her from me, Lord. Protect her. Keep her safe. And let me find Kat.

He waited for that amazing peace he’d once felt when he used to trust God, but he only felt a sense of certainty in what he had to do. Find Kat.

“I love you, bug,” he whispered.

“Me, too.”

“Kat’s brother Cole is here, too. You can trust him.” Heart aching, he kissed her cheek and backed out of the vehicle.

If Kat had been in the car when Norton got down here, she’d be dead and so would Angie. So she must have climbed out to help Angie, and Norton had grabbed her then. The thought of that man putting his hands on her sent him into a blind rage, but he fought it off before he did something dumb and cost Kat her life.

He navigated the brush circling the car. The grass had been trampled as if Kat had come around the front of the vehicle. Then it flattened out in a large pattern. Maybe from a struggle. Just what he feared. Norton had her, and it was up to him to track them down and save her life.