“That’s what Carly was trying to do tonight.”
Noah backed up a step from Jarius, letting his rage out through his teeth. “Though God knows I asked her to stay out of this. She went to see a man named J.W. Cody tonight. Something happened that made her call me twice.”
He pulled his phone and played the phone messages for the benefit of Durvan and Jarius.
Jarius was dialing Carly before the second message began. He shook his head after a moment.
Noah looked at Durvan. “She’s not answering her phone. Even you must find that strange.”
Durvan stroked his mustache. “Who is this Cody guy?”
Mark answered to give Noah more breathing room. “Volunteer firefighter with Edgecliff Village.”
Durvan nodded slowly. “Yeah. I heard of him. Mouthy. Won a couple of citations? Recently missed making the firefighters’ final list of candidates.”
Mark nodded. “That’s him.”
Durvan took a moment to process. In the end he turned his stare on Noah. “Why him?”
“I don’t know. Yet. But I will figure it out.”
Durvan watched his colleague and protégé for several long seconds. “I still don’t know why you came to me.”
“That would be my call.” Mark looked from Noah to Durvan. “Noah wants to go by Cody’s place. I thought we should talk with you about that first.”
“Damn straight.” He turned his attention to Noah again, fury rising in his eyes. “No way you go anywhere near a potential person of interest’s place.”
Noah folded his arms, relaxing now that he had Durvan’s attention. “I don’t need your permission. Cody and I go back a ways. A man’s allowed to drop by an acquaintance’s home. If Carly’s there, I’m taking her out.”
“And if she isn’t there?”
“He’s the last person to see her. I have some questions for him.”
Durvan frowned. “If you assault the man, you could ruin your case before it’s made.”
“Then maybe you better come along as chaperone.”
“If you’re wrong about this—”
“Yeah. But if I’m right?”
“Two minutes to change. Don’t anyone move a damn foot out of this room until I return.”
*
J.W. Cody lived on the outskirts of Edgecliff Village, on Hobart, a street of small one-story houses not much bigger than a double-wide with a carport. The neighborhood was tree-lined and the yards, even in the dark, appeared well kept.
The house with Cody’s address turned out to be easy to find. It was overgrown with shrubs and trees, the grass losing the battle with taller sturdier spring weeds determined to stand their ground. There was a truck up on cinderblocks in the drive with a faded For Sale sign on the dashboard. No sign of Cody’s company van, or the truck Noah remembered him driving.
Durvan rode with Mark and Noah. Jarius, reluctantly, had had to abandon them for an emergency call on his police radio. He’d left with the words, “You find her or you don’t, you call me.”
Durvan had agreed that Noah would approach the door on his own. He was the only one with anything close to a plausible reason to come knocking.
Noah checked the time. 9:15. He blew out a breath as he approached the door. He needed to be loose. He needed to be just dropping by, looking for a mutual friend who said she’d been with Cody earlier. And now couldn’t be found. How Cody responded to that would tell him what he needed to know.
The second knock on the door caught the attention of a man walking his Weimaraner on a leash. “He’s not home. Haven’t seen his truck in two days.”
“This is Cody’s place, right?”
The man nodded.
Noah stepped back off the porch toward him. “Why are you keeping tabs on him?”
“He owes me twenty dollars.” Neighbors, bless them. “You?”
“Yeah. He’s got something of mine, too.”
The man nodded. “Good luck.” He moved on.
Noah walked back to Mark’s truck and hopped in. “Drive around the corner. I’m going to double back and check the rear, make sure Cody’s not hiding in there.”
As they drove around the corner, Noah spotted a gravel city utility easement threading between the backyards of houses facing Hobart and the next street.
“Stop here.” He got out with Harley on the leash. His excuse if he was seen—walking Harley.
Durvan pushed his head through the window, looking like a bulldog with a mustache. “Don’t do something stupid, Glover.”
“Right.”