Page 6 of Final Ride

“Who was the truck registered to?” asked Travis.

“Darryl James, with a Lubbock Texas, address.”

“Was his home address checked?”

“I believe local officers were dispatched to the driver’s address and nothing came of it. It’s all in the reports I’m sending you.”

“Appreciate the call, Sheriff. I’m looking forward to reading those reports.”

Travis hollered for Billy and trudged down the hall to wait for the reports to show up on the office computer. Billy and the boys joined him in the office and while they waited, Travis explained what the sheriff in North Carolina had told him.

“North Carolina? How far away is that, Dad?” asked Virge.

“Helluva long way from here,” said Billy.

“They’re still searching for Tammy and for the driver of the truck,” said Travis.

“Did you tell them Tammy can drive one of them big mothers, Dad?” I asked.

“I did not, Harlan.”

“Huh.”

We were all thinking about Tammy and what the hell she’d been doing since she ran away from us at the ranch. Molly gave a shout out from the squad room and playtime was over. We had to work.

“What is it, Molly?” Billy hurried down the hall to the dispatch station to see what Molly had.

We agreed that all incoming cases would belong to Billy. Me and Virge and Travis would help him until the end of the month, and then he’d be on his own. Him and Ted. Billy would still have Ted.

Molly read the details from her notepad. “Vicki Temple says her mother is missing and she’s been gone for two days. The girl runs the laundromat across the street for her mother.”

“Vicki’s mother is missing?” asked Virge.

“Do you know Vicki, Virgil?” asked Billy.

“Took her out a couple of times.”

“Let’s walk across the road and talk to her in person,” said Billy.

“Y’all go ahead,” said Travis. “I want to read Tammy’s accident reports, then I have an appointment in Cut Bank.”

“Copy that,” said Virge. “Shouldn’t take us long to sort Vicki out.”

Duds & Suds. Coyote Creek.

Billy and me found Vicki in the office rolling the coins from the washing machines. They took five quarters for every load of dirty clothes and six for the dryers. Cost a lot to wear clean clothes in Coyote Creek.

“Hi, Vicki, I’m Sheriff Billy Johnson from the station across the road. Do you mind if I get a few more details about your missing mother?”

“I’d rather talk to Virge. He’s my boyfriend.”

Billy raised an eyebrow at that newsflash. “Okay, why don’t you talk to Virgil, and I’ll just stand here by the door and listen?”

“Yeah, thanks.”

I sat on the edge of the desk and asked, “When was the last time you saw your mom, Vicki?”

“Saturday night. Her boyfriend came to pick her up and that’s the last time I saw her.”

---