Page 3 of Cold Vengeance

After taking a picture of the note with her phone, she carefully put the envelope and the note into the bag. “So, tell us about April.”

Tony pulled his chair over to River’s desk and sat down next to Nathan, who took a deep breath. This was incredibly important to him. Everything she saw told her that he was absolutely sincere and very worried about his friend.

“First of all, explain why you brought this note to us instead of the police,” Tony said.

“I did talk to the police,” Nathan said. “They took my report, but I’m not family. If her family doesn’t think she’s actually missing, there’s not much they can do. I came to you because I need someone who will listen to me. Take me seriously. Besides, even if her father thought something was wrong, with the amount of crime happening in St. Louis now, I doubt April would be a priority with the police.”

Actually, Nathan had a point. Fifty years ago, ninety percentof murders were solved, but today, a third went unresolved, the murderers walking around, unimpeded. Most of it was because of increased crime, less law enforcement personnel, and gang activity that was out of control. The situation seemed almost unbelievable because law enforcement now had better tools to fight crime. DNA testing and databases like the Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System, or IAFIS, and the Violent Criminal Apprehension Program, or ViCAP, should make criminal arrests more successful, but unfortunately, these tools weren’t being utilized the way they could be. When it came to most crimes, law enforcement had no choice but to prioritize cases based on solvability. This was determined by witness cooperation, DNA, behavioral profiles, known suspects, and physical evidence. In many cases, all investigators needed was for one witness to come forward, but many times, no one did. This was especially true in neighborhoods with violent gang activity. Residents were afraid of retaliation.

“We understand your frustration,” River said, “but why isn’t her family worried about her?”

“Her father thinks she ran away.”

“But you’re convinced she didn’t?” Tony asked.

“I’m certain of it. The police officer I talked to asked if I had any evidence that a crime had been committed, and I don’t.” He met River’s eyes. “But I’m telling you that I know April. She wouldn’t just disappear. She ... we ... we got engaged just a couple of weeks before she went missing. She was really happy, and so was I. And she left her cat behind. She loves that cat. She would never do that on purpose. I ... I’m taking care of him now. I know she’d want me to.”

Tony cleared his throat. “Did you two have a fight before she left?”

Nathan’s face reddened. “No, not really, but ... well, her father wasn’t thrilled about our engagement. He held some trust fundover her head, but she told him she didn’t want the money. I tried to talk to her about it, but she got upset. Told me not to worry about it. I just wanted her to think carefully about walking away from all that money.” His smile was sad. “She insisted that all she wanted was me. That the trust fund didn’t matter. Neither did her father’s opinion.”

“Has it occurred to you that maybe April left because she decided she wanted the money after all?” River said. “Maybe she wasn’t being honest with you.”

Nathan leaned forward in his chair and looked directly at her, his gaze unflinching. His actions meant that he was getting ready to tell the truth. “There’s no doubt in my mind that it had nothing to do with the money. We loved ... I mean, we love each other. I make a decent salary, and she did okay too. It’s not like we’d be destitute. Besides, like I said, she wouldn’t leave Mr. Whiskers behind—or her purse and her clothes.”

“She left her purse behind?” Tony asked.

That was significant. Most women wouldn’t take off without their purse. “Did she have a cell phone?” River asked.

Nathan nodded. “I found it in her apartment, along with her laptop. She would never abandon that either. She used it for all of her cases.”

“Cases?” River asked. “What are you talking about?”

Nathan sighed deeply. “I’m sorry. I should have explained that. I’m so worried I’m not thinking straight. April has a podcast.Hot Coffee and Cold Cases.She investigates cases that the police have given up on.”

River looked at Tony, who was obviously surprised.

“That fact is rather important,” Tony said, a hint of annoyance in his voice.

“I know. Again, I’m sorry,” Nathan said. “To be honest, I’d almost given up on ever seeing her again. But then the note came. The idea that she’s still alive...” His eyes filled with tears.

“It’s okay,” River said, attempting to comfort the distraught young man. She was trying to digest this new information. Was April missing because of one of her cold cases? Did she get too close to the truth? Had someone kidnapped her ... or worse ... decided to shut her up?

Suddenly, this missing-person case had turned interesting—and potentially very dangerous.

CHAPTER

THREE

“Where is April’s laptop now?” River asked, hoping Nathan still had access to it.

“I have it. I didn’t want her father to take it. April didn’t want him to know about her podcast. But he has her purse and her clothes. I went through her purse before he had time to take it, just in case there was something important in it.”

“And was there?” Tony asked.

“I don’t think so. It’s just a purse.”

Nathan took a deep breath. He was under a lot of stress. River felt badly for him.

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