Page 20 of Forgotten Girls

Styles explained what had happened in Louan over the last few days. “I would like you to extend the all-points bulletin out on both men, across the state. The doctor has a young girl with him we assume is around twelve. He has an adopted daughter on paper. We’re not sure if she’s ever been seen. Beth will follow that part of the investigation today. We believe, if the doctor is as entrenched in the pedophile ring as we assume, he could be changing the girls at will. We believe there’s a judge or judges involved and the paperwork to cover his predilection would be issued to his needs. It would be his cover story for having a young girl in the house.”

“So I’m guessing he’s telling everyone she’s homeschooled?” Cash’s mouth turned down at the corners in disgust. “No one actually gets to see her and she would never come in contact with anyone to ask for help.”

Nodding, Styles placed one booted foot on his knee and leaned back in the chair. “The other guy, Shoebridge, will be under an assumed name, but most of these people moving from place to place still retain the same employment. We have a good chance of tracking him down if he takes another job in the next couple of weeks. The other thing with Shoebridge is that, according to my sister, he had a different girl frequently.”

“So you want me to be on the lookout for any reports of missing children over the next couple of weeks?” Cash placed his cup on the table and let out a long sigh. “What’s your take on the attack in the motel room? Do you figure it’s all tied up with this pedophile ring?”

Images flashed across Styles’ mind in vibrant color and he nodded. “Oh, yeah, they intended to kill us quickly and silently. It showed a complete lack of knowledge of the FBI. I guess they figured that we didn’t have the chance to put in a report about Shoebridge and the doctor. They wanted to take us out before we had the chance to complete an investigation.” He rubbed the scar on his chin. “What actually surprised me more than anything was the way the suspects vanished without a trace. This tells me these people have done this a hundred times before. Both Shoebridge and the doctor are two of the main players or very valued players.”

“It would seem so.” Cash thought for a beat, drumming his fingers on the desk. “Do you figure this is tied into the Pied Piper case?”

Recalling the hideous waste of life taken by the man they’d dubbed the Pied Piper, Styles nodded. “Yeah, he would have been a supplier. This is why he took two girls, one for himself and one for the organization. It was how he financed his life. To him it was a business arrangement.” He finished his coffee. “We don’t know just how wide this spreads, but I’m inclined to believe it will include a case handled by Sheriff Alton out at Black Rock Falls. Those monsters kept what they referred to as breeders. Although Sheriff Alton claims to have closed down the main players. They were getting their girls from foster care. The girls were reported as runaways. Their babies went through an adoption agency, which I assumed was investigated.”

“That doesn’t mean another wouldn’t spring up, would it?” Cash turned his coffee cup around in his fingertips, moving the small residue around the cup. “If the organization is as big as you say and sent mercenaries to kill you, anything is possible.” He rocked back in his chair. “We are three people. We have a snowflake’s chance in hell of taking them down alone.”

Styles stood. “We can only try, and we have the FBI hunting down the names of the girls on the DVDs. They’ll isolate clues from the videos and locate them. They aren’t our problem right now. Finding and destroying the pedophile ring is our objective.”

The door opened and Amber walked in and stared at them, her expression etched in concern.

“What’s happened?” Cash stared at her.

“A girl went missing on her way home from school out at Bison Ridge sometime after three yesterday. There’s no sign of her and the townsfolk have been searching all over.”

“Okay thanks.” Cash took the report from her trembling fingers. He waited for her to leave and looked at Styles. “Do you figure Shoebridge is out at Bison Ridge?”

Styles shook his head. “Nope, he’d be long gone by now. I’d say he’s heading for his new hideaway. He could be anywhere.”

“Hmm, I’m not so sure. Like you said, Shoebridge wouldn’t wait long before he took another girl.” Cash gave him a long look. “I’ll make sure to notify all the local counties and ask them to keep on the lookout for him and the girl. It’s a big state, but if she’s not found in the next twenty-four hours, we can assume Shoebridge has taken her.”

Anger that another child had been taken slid over Styles like a bucket of ice water. “We’ll find him.”

“You should leave it to the local boys. It’s way too dangerous for just the two of you. You know these organizations have the resources to hire killers to take you out. They’re not going to risk exposure by attacking a complete sheriff’s department. It will be subtle, like a mugging or a gas explosion—even a car wreck. That’s not the type of confrontation you’re used to handling.” Cash frowned. “You know if you keep digging, you’ll be painting targets on your backs.”

After facing worse in his lifetime nothing fazed Styles, and Beth had just proved she could hold her own. He turned toward the door and glanced at him over one shoulder. “That’s what I’m counting on.”

TWENTY-ONE

Inches from her head, cold water dripped through slats of wooden boards darkened with age and covered in lichen and moss. Shiloh moved her head in an attempt to avoid the freezing droplets. She pulled the quilt tighter around her, but a chill seeped through the floral material, raising goosebumps on her flesh. Determined not to give in to the horrible man who had taken her, she stared at the cobweb in the corner of the small enclosure. The breeze coming through the holes in the top of the box made the water droplets sparkle to resemble a fine diamond necklace. Her mother had always said she had a stubborn streak and that it would get her into trouble one day. It certainly had this time, as trouble had come in the shape of being thrown inside a wooden cage attached to the eaves of an old shed.

The cop had told her his name was Evan, and as no one had come forward to claim her, she belonged to him now. Her mother had died and no one else in the family wanted her. He’d forced her to sit with him and watch movies. Horrified, she’d tried to shut her eyes, but he’d threatened her and then held her firmly on his lap, so tight she could barely breathe. She had no recollection of her first night in the cabin or of the videos he had taken of her. She had sobbed and tried to run out of the door. There was no escape. Evan was so strong he could just pick her up in one arm and restrain her without a problem. When he sat her down and told her the rules he expected her to obey, she had shaken her head and refused. He had locked her in a closet for hours. When he had taken her out, he’d asked her again if she would obey the rules. She’d screamed and run for the door throwing it open and running out into the wilderness. Behind her, he’d followed slowly, laughing.

After running around for what seemed like hours, he’d caught her, dragged her back to the cabin by her hair, and then thrown her into the small cage. The quilt had been his only concession, to avoid her freezing to death. The time alone in the tiny space had given her the opportunity to think straight. She had very few options. He’d explained she would never leave the cabin until someone else had made an offer for her. She would need to work for her food and do everything he said willingly or she would spend most of her life inside the cage.

Footsteps and the sound of men’s voices came from outside the shed. She had no room to turn around to look at the door, but as the rusty hinges creaked, a blast of freezing air smelling of snow hit her cheeks.

“Get her down, so I can get a better look at her.” Another man, carrying a small bag, walked around her cage peering at her.

“She’ll fight, scratch, and bite.” Evan grinned at her. “She’s a little wildcat. Aren’t you, Shiloh?”

“There are some who’d like that in a girl.” The man smiled. “I might have taken her myself, but my place isn’t set up for company just now. I’m staying above the practice, but I do have a nice secluded cabin not far from here. It will be ready in a day or so. I have the men working on it for me as we speak.”

“You found a practice already?” Surprise crossed Evan’s face. “How did you manage that?”

“These mining towns always need another doctor.” The doctor smiled. “I emailed them my credentials and Dr. Clint Brewer got the position. They provided the office in town and a receptionist—an old biddy, been in the town for centuries.” He lifted his chin. “They’re looking for security guards and I can vouch for you. Our stories are that we came all the way from Dawson, met up in town just yesterday. I’ve brought all the documents you need to get the job with me. They’re in my truck.”

“That’s great! This place is perfect.” Evan rubbed his hands together. “Easy access by chopper or road most times. People on the move back and forth with the mines. No chance of any suspicion.”

Trembling, Shiloh tried to pull away as Evan dragged her from the cage. Her numb legs crumpled under her and she fell at his feet. She looked up at the two men. The second man, Brewer, was nodding at her. She looked up at him. “Can you help me?”

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