Page 103 of All You Want
“I’ll call over there and ask, but right now, I’m treating this as a potential crime scene.” The news about Tami and her missing friends freezes the blood inside my heart, but I’m a professional lawman and I have to hold it together—get the job done and ensure civilian safety first.
I page Shane from my shoulder mic. “Donnelly, call over to the Sixty Miners and ask if anyone saw Tami King and her two friends, Rosalie and Suzette. Tami’s a blonde, Rosalie is also a blonde, athletic build, and Suzette is a brunette with corkscrew curly black hair.”
“Okay, will do, although Tami’s parents came back from there.”
“Call anyway, and then gather the deputies and meet me at the flagpole for a coordinated search.”
“Got it. We’ll be out there with flashlights and headlamps.”
Before leaving the hotel lobby, I address the guests. “I know you all have a lot of questions, but right now, I need all of you to stay inside the hotel so we can conduct the search.”
“How can you be sure something bad didn’t happen to them?” Tami’s mother asks.
“I’ll do everything I can to find them.” I move toward the exit.
“The kidnapper is still out there,” Larissa says. “He’s a real creep. He has a pickaxe, and he could be dangerous.”
Her announcement of the pickaxe elicits horrified murmurs throughout the crowd.
“This is unacceptable,” Mr. King roars. “I thought you had this place crawling with deputies. What kind of policing is this?”
I can’t be drawn into an argument with him—not when people are in danger and there’s a perp to catch, so I walk away from him.
“Neil, I’m putting you in charge of making sure everyone stays inside.” I tap the concierge on the shoulder, and he returns me a brisk nod, then starts corralling the guests into the dining room.
“I can help,” Evan says. “I know the layout of the scavenger hunt.”
“It’s better if you stay here with Neil.” I drill him with a pointed stare, and he backs off. “I’ll need to take a statement from you when I get back.”
He sneers, fixes the lapels on his trench coat, and retreats with Neil toward the dining area.
“Let me come with you.” Larissa surges toward me. “I know what the kidnapper sounds like.”
“Okay, let’s go.” I walk with her to the flagpole where we meet with Shane and the deputies.
I make a megaphone with my hands and announce, “Here’s what we’re going to do. We will line up along the edge of the creek starting from the bridge and work our way back toward the hillside. This should more than cover the area of the Trickvenger Hunt. I want you to walk parallel to each other to make sure we leave no area uncovered. The women could be injured, so we need to call out for them and ring their cell phones.”
“Text me, and I’ll text you back their phone numbers,” Larissa says, announcing her phone number.
“The person who kidnapped Larissa is considered to be armed and dangerous,” I shout above the hubbub. “If you find anything, shout out and shine your light on the target. Any questions?”
We spread out. There are six of us, including me and Larissa, but I can’t assume that any of the people helping with the search are innocent. It could be possible for the perp to stash the women somewhere and then come back to pretend they were only patrolling.
Evan is back in the hotel, and Diana is at the holding cell, although I can’t hold her forever for a suspected theft or making threats. If I don’t have additional evidence, like the murder weapon, I have to release her.
Larissa stays by my side. A sharp wind stings my face, whistling through the treetops. The temperature is dropping, and a blizzard is on the way.
We slog from the mucky area near the creek toward the forested area. After about ten minutes, I hear a shout.
“They’ve fallen into an abandoned mineshaft,” Chad’s voice booms from the base of the boulder field.
Everyone converges to where Chad is shining a light. It’s hard to see, but the cell phone ringtones can be heard.
Unfortunately, not Tami’s ringtone.
“Can you see them?” Larissa asks.
“It looks like they slid down quite a way,” Dillon says. “This is one of the entrances to the Hanging Glory Mine.”
