“I don’t give a shit about some court case,” I said. “I want my daughter now.”
“Stay away from the Luxtons,” he said. “If you’re caught on the property, they could press charges. I don’t want to have to warn you again.”
*
Back in the room, I looked out the window and saw Riley across the street helping a customer.
“We need to talk to Riley again,” I said.
“The police aren’t going to like that,” Dallas said.
“I don’t care. He knows something.”
I’d wondered if Noah was going to be a problem, but as we walked over I could see him through the glass windows of the office, talking on his cell phone, turned away from us. We headed quickly to the shop. Riley was putting away some tools in the garage.
“We need to talk to you,” I said.
He spun around, his hand on a wrench.
I held my hands up. “Whoa.”
“Sorry.” He set the wrench back down, picked up a rag, and started wiping his hands. “What are you doing here?”
“We want to ask you some questions. It’s really important, Riley.”
“I already told the cops everything.” He looked uncomfortable but not hostile. I stepped closer.
“I don’t think you hurt Skylar, but I do think you know something that could help us find her.”
He was shaking his head. “I wish I knew where she was.”
“Years ago, your dad and uncle hurt me and my sisters—and now they’re going to hurt my daughter.” I was going out on a limb saying this stuff but I needed to see his reaction to know if he was part of it.
He jerked back, his eyes wide like I’d hit him. “That’s a lie!”
“There are two cars under tarps in your uncle’s garage—and cutting tools on the bench. Their cars. I’m sure of it. Just look and you’ll see.”
“You have to leave.” He looked angry now, his face red. I saw the resemblance even more between him and Brian and had a flash of fear.
“You know it’s true. Your dad’s violent with your mom, isn’t he? Maybe your sister?”
“Fuck you.”
“What if your sister went missing?” I’d been thinking about the young dark-haired girl but now I realized I’d spoken true words. Skylar was his sister. “What if she disappeared and the one person who could tell you something wouldn’t?”
He picked up the phone.
“If you know what happened and you’re covering for your dad, the cops are going to throw your ass in jail too,” Dallas said. “Your life is screwed.”
“I’m calling the police.” He was dialing now.
“Let’s get out of here.” Dallas grabbed my arm.
“Just look in the garage!” I yelled as she pulled me away.
Riley slid the shop door down hard until it crashed to the ground, almost catching our feet. We walked quickly across the road.
*
We’d only been back in the room for ten minutes when my cell rang. It was the sergeant. My breath lifted into my throat, hope and fear tangling up in my head. Please let it be good news.
“I told you to stay away from the Luxtons,” he said as soon as I answered. “Riley says you were harassing him at the garage.”
“He knows something,” I said.
“This is an active investigation. As soon as we have—”
“This is my family. I’m going to do everything I can to find them.”
“I know you’re concerned, but we can’t have you getting involved in the investigation. When you go around talking to people and sneaking onto their property, it makes our job harder. You need to understand—”
“No, you need to understand. They’re going to kill my daughter and sister. So you need to hurry the hell up and find them!”
“Listen,” he said, sounding furious now. “If I see you anywhere near that ranch, or you come within two feet of any of them, I’m arresting you on the spot.”
He hung up. I tossed my phone onto the bed, punched my fist into the mattress a couple of times. “Shit, shit, shit!”
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
SKYLAR
I paused from kicking the door. “Did you hear someone yelling?”
“I don’t know,” Crystal said. “It’s hard to tell over the music.” She was too weak to kick the door for long, her muscles cramping from dehydration. I’d been kicking at it for a while, still hoping to break through even after I knew it was a lost cause. It was solid wood.
“Maybe we should get back into position,” I said now.
“We’re going to have to go with our first plan,” Crystal said.
I nodded and pulled up my gag, stuck my wrists back together, and loosely coiled my rope around the bedpost.
Just in time—Gavin came in a couple minutes later. He was out of breath, his sweaty skin a grayish green. He had to bend over and rest his hands on his knees, catching his breath. He straightened up, gave me a dirty look.
“Your mother’s becoming a problem.”