Hidden in the Shadows (3 page)

She turned the computer toward her, and when she saw the names and address of the victims, she felt her stomach drop. “Oh, dear God.” She couldn’t prevent her hand from coming up to cover her mouth, and a cold chill raced down her spine. “Not Lori and Leah, please.”

Wyatt glanced at her sharply. “You know Lori Sterling?”

She nodded. “I’ve been tutoring her in the literacy program at the library.”

Enabling the hands-free feature on his cell phone, he called dispatch. “I want to keep this call off the radio, Carrie. Patch me through to Ethan or Stacy.” While he waited, he looked at Maria, taking his eyes off the road briefly. “What can you tell me about their situation?”

Shaken, she rubbed her temple. “You know that her ex-husband, Chris, damn near killed her three years ago. That’s when she hit bottom and finally fought back. He ended up in prison, I thought for life, and Lori’s been rebuilding her life ever since. How would he have gotten out? Shouldn’t she have been notified if he was released early?”

“Yeah, she should have been, but the system doesn’t always work. Have they had any contact since he went in?”

Maria shook her head. “Not that I know of. Lori’s worked hard at creating a new life for herself and Leah. Looking back wasn’t something she seemed to need or want to do.”

Carrie’s voice broke in. “Sheriff, I have Ethan for you.”

“Thanks. Ethan, what’s your status?”

“I’m at Lori Sterling’s house with Lori and her mother. We’re waiting on Maria to pull these tapes, see if they can give us anything.”

“Maria’s with me. We’re a few minutes out, maybe six. What the hell happened?”

Over the speaker, Ethan expelled a breath. “From what the babysitter said, Chris Sterling broke in about four o’clock with a gun. He locked the sitter in a closet and took Leah.”

“Four o’clock? Why the hell am I just now being called about this?”

“Because it didn’t get called in until about thirty minutes ago,” Ethan explained. “Lori worked until after six this evening. She didn’t get home and find out about it until almost seven.”

“What about the sitter? Is she okay?”

“Traumatized, but unhurt. Her boyfriend came and picked her up just a couple minutes ago. I had a unit escort them over to the hospital so she could get checked out, just in case. She’s pregnant.”

Hearing the added tension in Ethan’s voice, Maria exchanged a glance with Wyatt. Pregnancy was a sore point for the detective.

Wyatt swore, and his hands clenched on the steering wheel. “Where’s Stacy?”

“She’s out at the Patch. We got a tip Sterling was there.” A sprawling sixties-era neighborhood that had been built with seemingly little rhyme or reason, ‘the Patch’ was short for ‘Rabbit Patch.’ The name had come about due to the area’s twists and turns, and the way the run-down houses were hidden in ravines and around curves. It had become notorious as a place where ex-cons and parolees went to ground. Despite its small size, only around fifty houses, it tended to give law enforcement fits.

The tension in the vehicle ratcheted up considerably. “Are we putting up roadblocks?”

“Yeah, but the tip was pretty strong, so we’re focusing our efforts on the Patch.”

“Okay. We’ll be at Lori’s house in about two minutes.” Wyatt disconnected the call and stayed silent until they reached their turnoff. “This won’t be pretty. I know you don’t generally deal with the public.” He turned the vehicle onto the long driveway that led to Lori’s small farmhouse.

“I’ll be fine. Remember, I know Lori. I won’t mess things up.”

He shot her a perturbed glance. “I didn’t think you would. I just don’t want you to get upset if things turn out badly.” Having reached the house, Wyatt parked next to Ethan’s unmarked car. Deputy Jason Hudson stood guard on the front porch, nearly hidden in the darkness. He stepped forward as they approached the house.

“Sheriff, Maria. Ethan’s inside with Lori and her mother.”

Maria glanced at Wyatt. “I’ll head on in, then.” As Jason held open the door for her, she took a deep breath and said a silent prayer for guidance, wisdom, and strength. She had the feeling she was going to need all three.

~ * * * ~

As Wyatt stood on the porch with Jason and watched Maria disappear into the house, he thought about what she’d said, about how she knew Lori Sterling. Finding out Maria was involved in a volunteer program had surprised him, but he couldn’t say why, exactly. Maybe because she was so young – Wyatt pictured women who volunteered as bored socialites or retirees. Before he could follow her inside, his phone rang. The screen showed it to be his second detective, Stacy Kirchner.

“Stacy. Talk to me. What’s going on?”

“I’m at the Patch, Sheriff. We’ve got Sterling cornered at his brother’s trailer, and SWAT is on the way.”

“The little girl?”

“We think she’s inside with him.”

His heart sank. “Okay. I’m just now getting to Lori’s. I’ll head that way in a couple minutes, after I talk to her. Where exactly are you setting up?”

She didn’t answer. The reason why quickly became apparent. Over the phone, he heard the sound of an engine revving, then gunshots accompanied by shouting and panicked yells for someone to stop. The staccato pops of gunfire seemed to go on forever, only stopping after a loud crash of metal grating on metal. Next came a droning car horn, and the radio Jason wore on his uniform erupted into chaos.

Wyatt dashed to his vehicle. “Update Ethan. I’m heading over there. Stay here, no matter what!”

He pointed the SUV back down the driveway, flipped on the light bar and siren, and pushed the pedal to the floor as soon as he reached the paved highway. Heart pounding, he kept trying to get through the radio chaos that had erupted along with the gunfire. Shots fired during a hostage situation were never a good sign, and knowing how badly it could all turn out, Wyatt said a prayer.

Chapter Three

Inside the living room, Maria heard an engine start. She watched Ethan’s face go neutral, and he excused himself and went outside.

Lori’s mother, Janie, sat on the corner of the sofa, sobbing and moaning in turns. Every so often, she would mutter something under her breath about how she had predicted “something like this” would happen. Her behavior was a sharp contrast to her daughter’s deathly pale face and rigid posture. Tuning out the overset woman, Maria focused on pulling the video up on the screen.

Lori moved to stand beside her. “Did you find it?”

“I did. I just have to cue it up to the appropriate timestamp.” When Janie moaned again, Maria saw Lori’s fists clench. Lori was obviously nearing her breaking point, stress causing the thick ridges of scar tissue that covered one side of her face and neck to stand out in sharp contrast to the undamaged side of her face. Cautiously, Maria reached out and touched one of Lori’s fists with her fingertips. When Lori looked down at her, Maria removed her fingers and gently shook her head.

“Try to let it go. We have more important things to do here than feed her ego.” Though the words seemed harsh once out of her mouth, Maria knew that her friend would understand. They’d commiserated about their mothers on more than one occasion. Before Maria could pull up the footage, the front door opened, admitting Ethan and Jason.

Ethan went straight to Lori, stopping a few feet away from her. “We have Leah. She’s fine. A few scratches, and she’s upset, but she’s okay, Lori. She’s okay.” As his words sank in, Lori crumpled. Moving fast, Ethan caught her and eased her down into a chair. “Take some deep breaths. You don’t want to pass out on us.”

Tears streaming down her face, Lori managed to regulate her breathing. “She’s alive?”

A wide smile split Ethan’s face. “She’s very much alive. She’s on her way to the hospital with one of our deputies. They want to check her over, just to make sure.”

Maria was surprised when Lori threw her arms around Ethan’s neck in a fierce hug. Ever since the attack that had left her scarred and nearly dead, she had suffered a deep-seated aversion to being touched even in the most casual way. The only person she ever welcomed physical contact from was Leah. From the stunned look on his face, Ethan understood the significance of the move. The hug didn’t last long, but he had to clear his throat and look away after she pulled back.

“Detective Moore, what about Chris?”

He met her gaze straight on, his tone solemn. “I’m afraid Chris didn’t make it.”

Janie let out another wail at the words, but Lori kept her eyes on Ethan. After a minute, she squared her shoulders and sat up in the chair.

“Good riddance, then. When can I see my daughter?”

Ethan backed up and gave her some room. “Deputy Hudson is going to give you a lift to the hospital, if that’s okay.”

She nodded and stood. “Thank you. I’ll get my coat.” Turning to her mother, she spoke firmly. “I’ll call Frannie and have her come get you, Mother. She’ll take you home.”

“But I need to see my granddaughter. Surely you won’t stop me from doing that?” The woman was clearly affronted by the notion that she should stay behind.

“You can see her tomorrow. Leah is upset, you heard the detective. She doesn’t need your wailing and gnashing of teeth tonight.” From the stunned look on her mother’s face, Maria wondered if that was the first time Lori had ever stood up to her.

The decision made, Lori excused herself to get her coat. Returning less than a minute later, she and Jason left. A short time after that, her mother’s neighbor showed up to take the older lady home. Maria gave a sigh of relief as the door closed behind her.

“God forgive me, but I was ready to lock her in my car.” Ethan sank onto the couch with a weary sigh. “It makes me appreciate my own mother even more.”

Maria agreed. “Your mother is extraordinary. Everyone should be lucky enough to have a Stella in their lives.” Ethan’s mother, Stella Moore, worked at the library in Leroy, and Maria had dealt with her many times through the literacy program.

“She’s great, but she’s been a little… distant lately.”

Maria frowned. “That’s odd. Is she okay?”

“I think so. Beth’s going to try to talk to her next time we see my folks, see if she can find out what’s going on.” Beth was his wife, a reporter for the local paper, the
Olman County Journal,
and sister to Jason Hudson.

“So what happened with Chris Sterling?” she asked. “Are all our people okay?”

“Yeah, but it was a close call. From what Wyatt said, which wasn’t much, Sterling let Leah go, sent her down the road to another house. While everyone was distracted, he made a run for it with his car. Shots were fired, he crashed into the barricade and a couple cruisers, and you can imagine the rest.” He scrubbed his hands over his face, and when he looked at her, Maria saw that he had dark circles under his eyes.

“You look tired. Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I just haven’t had a lot of sleep the last few days. Beth’s had that stomach bug that’s been going around, and I’ve been up with her.”

Maria winced. “Ouch. I’ve heard it’s a nasty one. Is she doing better?”

He nodded. “Finally. She hasn’t worked since Monday, if that tells you anything.”

She couldn’t hide her surprise. “Wow. Yeah, that does tell me something.”

Just then, Ethan’s phone rang. From the tone of the conversation, Maria guessed the caller was Wyatt.

“Okay. Will do,” he told the caller. Hanging up, he put the phone back in its holster. “Wyatt wants you to bring that computer in and put it in Evidence.”

“Don’t we need Lori’s permission or a warrant for that?”

“She gave it. Wyatt’s at the hospital. Apparently, when Sterling hit the barricade, he t-boned Robbie Bailey’s cruiser.”

Maria’s eyes widened with dismay. “Oh, no. Is Robbie okay?”

“Yeah, just shaken up pretty good, with some bumps and bruises. He wasn’t in the cruiser, but nearby. He had to jump out of the way. Anyhow, Wyatt asked Lori about the computer, and she okayed it.”

“All right. I’ll get it ready to go, then.” It didn’t take long to unplug the various peripheral components from the tower, and once that was accomplished, Ethan used crime scene tape from his evidence kit to seal the computer’s drive bays and removable sides. “Since Sterling’s dead, we won’t need this for trial. There’ll be an inquest, though, and they’ll want to see it.”

They made the drive back into Leroy in near-silence. Maria’s mind kept going back to the date she’d walked out on, and she groaned when she thought about the repercussions she would likely face from Savannah. She had turned off her cell phone when she’d gotten in Wyatt’s vehicle, and she was almost afraid to turn it back on. Just the idea of dealing with her family made her tired.

Ethan slowed the vehicle as they approached downtown. “Something bothering you?”

She shrugged. “I guess you could say that. Although, compared to what Lori’s been through tonight, I feel petty even thinking about complaining.”