Walleye Junction (32 page)

“If we assume Carla and Lloyd Spencer kidnapped Philip Long on Whitaker's behalf, there must be something that ties them to the doctor. They wouldn't have known each other socially,” said Lou.

“I'll look at Lloyd Spencer's medical files. He may have been Dr. Whitaker's patient at some point,” said Macy.

Lou lowered his voice. “We'll have to tread carefully. Peter Whitaker is a highly respected member of the community. Until proven otherwise, we have to give him the benefit of the doubt.”

 

14

Emma found a note from her mother on the kitchen counter. Francine wouldn't be home until after lunch. The newspaper was lying open on the table. Carla and Lloyd Spencer's involvement in her father's kidnapping was the lead story. Emma skimmed the article, wincing when saw that Kyle Miller's name was mentioned several times. He'd refused to return the reporter's calls, but that didn't stop them from publishing his picture and getting a statement from his employers. They'd interviewed his mother as well. She'd blamed Lloyd Spencer for her sister's downfall, rehashing every miserable moment of their marriage, including the physical abuse. There'd been an incident when Kyle was ten. He'd been left with Carla and Lloyd for the weekend. Lloyd had come home drunk and found Kyle in the kitchen drinking milk straight from the carton. Lloyd twisted Kyle's arm right out of its socket before knocking him unconscious.

I warned my sister Lloyd would come to no good, but she stuck with him anyway. I never understood what she saw in that man.

The article ended with a brief statement from Macy Greeley. She'd been quick to point out that the investigation was far from over. The authorities were certain there was a third party involved in Philip Long's kidnapping and murder. She'd appealed to the public. While Carla and Lloyd's son, Sean Spencer, was not considered a suspect, he was wanted for questioning. Anyone who knew his whereabouts was asked to contact the authorities immediately. They were also interested in tracking down an individual named Joel Edwards who'd attended rehab with Carla Spencer and had failed to check in with his parole officer two weeks running.

Emma set the paper aside. Now that Kyle's family's involvement had made the news, Kyle would be viewed with suspicion everywhere he went. Emma pictured Kyle standing over the man in the parking lot with blood dripping from his nose. In the near darkness Emma hadn't seen everything clearly, but it was obvious that Kyle had nearly beaten the man senseless. If Kyle was recognized from the photo in the newspaper, the man might file a complaint against Kyle for using excessive force. Emma looked up the phone number for the bar she'd gone to the previous evening. It rang several times before she was redirected to the manager's voice mail. She hesitated before speaking. It wasn't like her to get involved in other people's business.

“Hello,” she said, feeling increasingly awkward. “My name is Emma Long and I'm calling about the incident that occurred in the parking lot outside your restaurant yesterday evening. I'm afraid one of your guests had too much to drink and followed me outside. He tried to stop me getting in my car. I just want to say how grateful I am that you had a security guard patrolling the area. I also wanted to make it absolutely clear that the security guard acted responsibly. If he needs someone to vouch for him I'm quite happy to make a formal statement.”

Emma left her cell phone number and hung up. She was already having regrets about getting involved. Nathan had said that Kyle had just been doing his job. He'd accuse Emma of overthinking things like she'd always done. Emma checked her phone. She hadn't had any new text messages from Nathan, but it was still early. They'd once cared for each other deeply. The affection may have been gone, but the connection was still there. It made her sad to think that after all these years they'd only managed to retain the ability to do each other harm.

Emma put her father's coat on over her pajamas and wandered out into the backyard with a bag of peanuts for the crows and a cup of coffee for herself. The crows cawed and circled, some so bold they practically pecked at her bare feet. She dumped the remainder of the peanuts on the ground as she made her way to the back fence where she sipped her coffee and stared at the roofline of Caleb Winfrey's home. She still had the keys her mother gave her. Nothing was stopping her from going over to take a look. She'd been told that Caleb had burned everything Lucy owned, but Emma was hopeful there might still be something in the house that would help make sense of the night Lucy died. She just wasn't ready to go over and find out what it was yet. Emma tossed the dregs of her coffee on the ground and headed back inside her mother's home. She needed to clear her head. She hung up her father's coat and went upstairs to change into her running gear.

*   *   *

Emma didn't hit her stride until she was two miles south of Walleye Junction. The wide gravel road followed the slow curve of the Flathead River. The banks were dotted with boulders, cottonwoods, and clumps of crimson and yellow wildflowers. A row of fishermen, spaced at varying intervals, wore hip waders and stood in cold water casting their lines. Their cars were parked along the hard shoulder near a popular trailhead. She jogged in place as she looked over the notices posted on the sign. She and her parents had often hiked the trails together. They'd have picnics up above the tree line. As she set off running again a springer spaniel, soaked through with river water, raced up to greet her. In its excitement it nearly tripped her up. Its owner whistled and the dog turned tail and ran back down to the riverbank.

A half mile on Emma stopped to admire the view. From her raised position she could just see the outline of her hometown. Directly across the river from where she stood a new subdivision had sprung up in the middle of a hay field. Rows of colorful flags flew over model homes and empty streets. Tall fences flanked small patches of lawn, and slabs of slick concrete foundations mirrored the midday sun. Walleye Junction's only high school was closer to town. The large gymnasium's brilliant blue roof and the surrounding playing fields were visible, but the classroom blocks, library, and administration buildings were hidden behind a dense wall of pine trees. The nursery, elementary, and middle schools were on adjacent pieces of land and further up the hill a long tree-lined drive led to the municipal cemetery she'd visited the night before. In a matter of miles you could be safely transported from cradle to grave. Emma checked the time. If she was going to get there and back she needed to be on her way. She set out again, once more relaxing into her stride.

A car came along the road and fell in behind her. She took a quick glance over her shoulder. Blinding sunshine bounced off the windshield and front hood. She couldn't see the car or the driver properly. She waved the car around, but it stayed on her tail. The track was wide and well paved, but the drop down to the river was sheer. She couldn't move any closer to the side, but there was still plenty of space for a vehicle to pass. She increased her pace up an incline. The rumble of the vehicle's engine and the pounding of her heart were all she could hear. She was growing anxious. All sorts of possibilities circled in her head. None of them were good.

Emma spotted an opening in the trees and veered to the right. The vehicle sped by as she headed down the steep slope toward the river. The terrain was uneven and she had to hold on to low tree branches for support. Insects swarmed around her. There was a sharp bite as a horsefly stung her inner thigh. By the time she reached the river's edge she was hot, sticky, and in tears. She checked the road. The car was gone. Thinking there'd be safety in numbers, she headed upstream toward the men she'd seen fishing. She picked her way across boulders and traversed fallen trees. She found a narrow animal track and scrambled along it until it opened up onto the rocky shore she'd been looking for. The dog that had chased her was lazing in a patch of sunshine. As she stepped into the light, its ears pricked up. A man with his back to her was kneeling down as he dug something out of a tackle box. He turned as the dog ran over to greet Emma. He smiled and waved. Emma blinked into the sun's glare. She didn't recognize him. He pulled off his hat and smiled again.

“Kyle?” she said.

He rose to his full height. “Emma, what are you doing down here?”

She glanced up at the road. Other than a haze of dust there was no sign of the vehicle that had followed her. The dog was at their feet, circling like a satellite.

“I was running,” she said.

Kyle touched her arm. “You're shaking. Are you okay?”

Emma started crying again. She pointed to the road.

“Someone was following me in a car.”

Kyle watched the empty road for a few seconds.

“Are you sure?”

“As sure as I can be.”

Kyle looked as if he was about to say something but stopped.

“Kyle?” asked Emma. “Did you see something?”

He scratched his head. “Emma, I saw Nathan go by a few minutes ago. Could it have been him?”

She shook her head. “The sun was in my eyes. I can't say. Did you see anyone aside from Nathan?”

“No, I'm sorry. Did you guys have a falling out last night?”

“Yes, but that doesn't explain why he might have followed me.”

“Even by his standards it would be pretty low to scare you like that.” He closed the tackle box. “I'll give you a ride home.”

“You don't have to.”

“I want to.”

They walked to the road together. He'd removed his hip waders and slung them over his shoulder. His pickup truck was parked in the shade near the trailhead. He threw his gear in the back.

“Drink this,” he ordered, handing her a bottle of juice he'd fished out of a cooler. “You look faint.”

Emma thanked him. He opened the door for her and she climbed inside. It smelled brand new.

“Nice car.”

He blushed. “I just bought it.”

“Security must pay well.”

“It's been a good year so far, so I got a nice performance bonus.”

“What did you mean when you said that Nathan's standards were pretty low?”

“It was nothing.”

“Tell me.”

“There are things you don't know about Nathan. Stuff that came out after you left town.”

“What kind of things?”

“It was just rumors, but given what happened to Lucy maybe there was something to them. People were saying he was dealing drugs … that maybe he and Lucy were working together.”

“That's nonsense. I would have known.”

“Did you know what Lucy was getting up to?”

Emma hesitated. “I knew she was doing drugs. I didn't know she was dealing.”

“The amount of drugs available around here didn't drop after Lucy died. If anything there were even more going around.”

“I'll talk to Nathan,” said Emma. “I need to ask if he was following me this morning anyway.”

“I don't want any trouble,” said Kyle. “Don't tell him I'm the one you spoke to.”

“Don't worry,” she said. “I'll keep your name out of it.”

Emma waited until they were on their way before mentioning the newspaper article.

He winced. “I'd been warned so I knew it was coming.”

“If it's any consolation, your mother was pretty convincing. Lloyd Spencer comes off looking like a bully.”

“I had my doubts about letting her talk to the reporter, but I think she managed it well. It should help ease people's minds about the rest of the family.”

“Did you take today off work?”

“I thought I might hide by the river with my fishing pole until it blows over.”

“You might be by the river for a while.”

“Then I'll catch lots of fish.”

“It's nice that you still have a sense of humor.”

“The company helps,” said Kyle. “How are you doing otherwise? Last night was pretty intense.”

“It was the last thing I needed. It's probably why I freaked out about that car. There's only so much more I can take. Anyway, I'm glad I ran into you. I wanted to thank you again for looking after me yesterday. I was worried that you'd gotten into trouble. You roughed up that guy pretty badly.”

“It wasn't a problem. I went in and explained what happened. He admitted what he'd done and they kicked him out.” Kyle shrugged. “No big deal.”

Emma was cold. Goose bumps had formed along her arms.

Kyle kept his eyes on the road. “What did you and Nathan get up to after you left?”

“We talked. It wasn't pleasant.”

“So, you're not getting back together?”

“I find it hard to believe he ever thought it was a possibility.”

Kyle pulled up in front of her mother's home. Emma's red hatchback was the only car in the driveway. She checked the time. It would be a few hours before her mother returned.

“Come in for a coffee,” she said. “You've gone out of your way. It's the least I can do.”

“I don't think your mother would be too happy to find me sitting in her kitchen.”

“She won't be back for a few hours.” Emma laid her hand on his arm. “You've done nothing wrong. You shouldn't have to hide.”

He switched off the engine and removed his sunglasses. His eyes were tinged black and blue and his nose was slightly swollen.

“Oh,” said Emma, touching him lightly on the cheek. “That looks bad.”

“It's a little sore, that's all.”

He took hold of her hand, and they sat quietly for a few seconds.

“Are you sure your mother won't be back for a couple of hours?”

“I'm sure,” she said, slipping from his grasp. She looked back at him before opening the door. “Come in for a coffee. I don't feel like being alone.”

 

15

Macy snatched a bag of potato chips off Gina's desk and paced the office, trailing crumbs in her wake. It was coming up on one o'clock and the police station was nearly empty. Lou was still at Dr. Whitaker's clinic and Gina had gone with some officers down to the homeless camp to interview anyone who may have come across Joel Edwards. On her third lap around the office Macy stopped at her desk. She needed to speak to Francine Long again. There was a high volume of painkillers coming out of Dr. Whitaker's practice so there was a possibility that he'd been acting more like a dealer than a doctor. Francine had worked for him for thirty-four years. She couldn't have been completely oblivious to what was going on. It was also possible that she confided in her husband.