Page 71 of Unforgotten

Why did he recognize that name? And why was someone else calling from Wayne’s phone? “Who?”

“Jay Byler. We met when you came to Burke’s about the break-in and the fire.”

“Oh, right.” He sat up, now fully awake. Something had to be wrong. “What’s going on?”

“I’m sorry for waking you up, but it’s urgent.”

His body tensed. “What’s going on, Jay?”

“Well, um, Wayne handed his phone to me. You see, we were all together for a birthday party tonight. It’s John Hostetler’s fiftieth, you see.”

No, he absolutely did not see. “Why are you calling?” His voice was harder now, but he didn’t care. He wanted some answers.

“Well, um, it’s like this. We were going to call the police station, but figured you might be interested—”

“Jay, what is going on?” he practically yelled.

“Candace and her cousin Bethanne are missing.”

Ryan’s whole body turned cold. “Tell me what happened.” After climbing out of bed, he pulled on the pair of jeans that lay on the floor.

“We had a birthday party for Bethanne’s father here at the Hostetlers’ place. I was getting ready to leave and started looking for Bethanne but couldn’t find her. So I started asking folks if they’d seen her, and eventually we figured out that she was with Candace. When Candace’s dad went looking for her car—it was parked out on the road—he found Candace’s purse and Bethanne’s kapp on the ground.” Jay inhaled, clearly trying to keep his composure. Other upset voices spoke in the background.

Ryan felt like someone had knocked the wind out of him. He honestly couldn’t breathe. But he had to. He had to keep it together.

Grabbing his keys and his wallet, he slipped his feet into the tennis shoes that he’d kicked off the moment he’d entered his house. “You did the right thing by calling me. Give me the address. I’m going to call the station while I head your way.”

“Okay, but every minute is wasting time.”

“I hear you, but stay put,” he added as he opened the locked cabinet he’d installed in the kitchen that containedhis weapon. Finally, he grabbed his badge and attached it to his belt. “Everyone there needs to stay put, okay? I’m getting in my vehicle now. Tell me the address.”

A new voice came on the line. “Ryan, this is John, Bethanne’s daed. Here’s our address.”

After grabbing a pen out of the bin on the side of his car door, he found a scrap piece of paper and wrote the address down. “Thank you, sir. I’m going to get off the phone and call the station,” he added as he started typing the address in his GPS. “I should be there in ten minutes.”

“Ten?”

It was obvious that John needed him there an hour ago. “I promise, ten minutes is doable,” he said as firmly as he possibly could. “Understand me? Keep everyone as calm as possible. I am on my way.”

Once he’d entered the address into his phone, he called the station while heading for the Hostetlers’. The overnight supervisor answered, and Ryan relayed everything he knew as he sped toward his destination. When he ended that call, he took a deep breath and started praying.

And when he finished, he started praying again.

Two hours later, Ryan was still praying. After speaking with the families and going out to the area where the kapp and purse had been found, more law enforcement professionals had been called in.

He’d put on gloves and inspected the items and bagged them, finding nothing significant on Candace’s phone. His stomach dropped a bit as he checked her texts. Most were between Candace and her friends, but there were also many he’d exchanged with her. Though he’d been professional in his correspondence, he hoped that Chief Foster wouldn’thave concerns about their communication, especially after the conversation he’d had with him the other day. However, when the chief arrived and also checked her phone, the only thing he’d done was squeeze Ryan’s shoulder sympathetically. Clearly, he realized that Ryan’s relationship with Candace had become close.

Still, his concerns couldn’t be compared to what the families were experiencing. They looked completely beside themselves with worry. Even the presence of Audrey, a good friend of the chief’s who was a counselor at the hospital, didn’t seem to help much.

Now they were waiting for Bowling Green’s K-9 team of two beagles. Chief Foster had suggested Ryan take a few moments, eat some of the offered leftover food from the birthday party, and pull himself together. Ryan wanted to go back out into the woods but had to follow his boss’s directions. No good would come of making a mess of any paths the girls and the person who’d abducted them had taken.

It was hard, though. He was sure Candace’s stalker was involved, but he had nothing on the guy other than a vague description.

When Jay Byler joined him, he mentally tensed, preparing for the man to let him have it. Ryan wouldn’t blame Jay for giving him a hard time either. He had been supposed to take care of Candace. Watch her. Be a decent cop and do his job.

Instead, the worst had happened, and he wasn’t even good enough to lead the search for the women.

Pushing aside his own feelings, he stood up. “The trackers should be here within the hour.”

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