Page 23 of Two Hearts' Accidental Heroes

It was Anya’s boyfriend’s older brother. Shanna couldn’t remember his name but seeing him brought back a flood of memories, so she froze.

When he stepped into a truck, revving up the engine and pulling away from the house, she was finally able to leave her hiding place to return the phone.

Another twenty minutes later, she was paddling the canoe and heading back to the cabin. For once, she’d had a little bit of luck with her timing.

Chapter Ten

Rick frowned, sitting in Jake’s office a few days after arriving in Crystal Rock, staring at the image Jake had brought up on his computer screen.

“I’ll admit, I can’t really see the resemblance, so how were you able to get any kind of facial recognition on a fuzzy image like that?”

“We did an age progression, of course, after Sam’s wife suggested that we check out the footage from the mall. She thought she was seeing things. It’s a shame that the security feed runs on a loop so we couldn’t go back further.”

“Sam’s wife?” Rick asked, puzzled.

“That would be Chief Danielson’s wife, Penny, the owner of Sanders’ Floral, in the mall.”

“Oh, yes. I remember the Chief and his wife,” Rick replied.

“As you probably recall, Shanna’s sister Anya worked at Sanders’ Floral when she was a teenager. Penny always thought that except for their coloring and height, Anya and Shanna looked exactly alike.”

Rick nodded his agreement. “I remember thinking that too, the last time I talked with Shanna.” He sighed. “So, I guess you’ve come up with an idea since the last time we talked, a couple of days ago?”

“Maybe,” Jake answered. “I’ve got some background information on Montgomery for you to go over, although it’s kind of strange that I couldn’t find much.”

“Why’s that, I wonder?” Rick asked.

“He does a good business,” Jake admitted. “My guess is that he’s probably using cash for any of his purchases. That could even include property or anything else he’s invested in if he’s actually part of the trafficking ring. It means that anyone like me who’s been looking into his background won’t find a thing. If he’s really part of this, it could indicate that he had a mentor—someone who taught him how to hide his assets in plain sight.”

“So where do I come in?” Rick asked.

“While I’m digging deep into his background, and even going as far as to research his family tree, there are a few things I’ve uncovered just by having a conversation with one of my contacts who lives in Rice Lake.”

Rick pursed his lips. “What did you discover?”

“Occasionally, they get a run of drifters travelling through town during midsummer because some of the fair and carnival managers hire them from other cities to go along with them to do odd jobs. There were some reports that a couple of men had gone missing, but since there wasn’t enough information that could be provided about their identities, the authorities had to let it go. My contact wouldn’t have been surprised if it had happened other times in the past as well.”

“How does that relate to Wes Montgomery?” Rick asked.

“One thing that they all had in common was that they were supposedly working part time at the marina and were being paid cash to do it. Enough cash to maybe get them back on the road so they wouldn’t be arrested for loitering.”

“Who’s to say that these guys really disappeared, huh? Maybe they just left town, is what the cops would end up thinking,” Rick muttered.

“Exactly. But while I was checking Wes Montgomery out online, I noticed something we might be able to take advantage of,” Jake admitted, handing over a printed version of the local paper.

He’d circled one of the ads.

“Help wanted, Montgomery Marina,” Rick read aloud. “That’s my way in.”

“Right,” Jake said. “Except we’re not going to let you apply for a job without giving you a past.”

“I need to earn his trust. And then make sure that I’m not disposable,” Rick said.

Jake agreed with a nod of his head. “After I find out more about the guy, we’ll talk about how you’re going to be able to do that.”

“That sounds like the beginning of a plan,” Rick admitted.

“It does, doesn’t it?” Jake observed.

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