“When did you last hear from them?” he said.
“We haven’t heard from our sister since Sunday. Skylar texted me after she left Thursday morning, but I haven’t heard from her since and their phones are just going to voice mail. We went to the motel.…” I couldn’t go on, kept seeing Crystal’s shirt lying on the bed like she’d planned on coming back at any minute.
“Crystal’s things are in her room,” Dallas said, “but the lady at the motel hasn’t seen her all week and she should’ve checked out today. Skylar stayed only one night there. We think she started sleeping in her car after that.” Usually it pissed me off when Dallas stepped in and spoke for me, but this time I felt a wave of gratitude that she was there, that I had her strength to lean on.
“Was Crystal’s purse in the room?” he said.
“No,” I said.
“Why were they in Cash Creek?”
“Eighteen years ago we passed through town.…” My skin was on fire, my face burning hot. For a minute I couldn’t find my breath, felt like a hand was clamping down over my mouth. I wondered if I was having a panic attack. “Our truck broke down.”
“Brian Luxton and his brother picked us up and took us back to their parents’ ranch so we could make some money,” Dallas said, speaking fast and angry. “They attacked us one night and took us to an empty warehouse. They raped us. They kept us there for five days.”
The sergeant sat up straight in his chair, his eyes watching us intently.
“Did you report it?” he said.
“We were too scared,” I said. “We just wanted to get away from this place. What the men did to us—” I broke off, caught my breath. “It’s still very hard for us to talk about.”
“We don’t want to press charges,” Dallas said. “We just want you to know that they’re dangerous. We believe Crystal came here to confront them, and Skylar followed. We think Brian and Gavin have done something to them.”
“We know Crystal was at the bar at the same time as Gavin Luxton, and we know Skylar was working at the ranch but she didn’t show up this morning,” I said. I told him everything we’d learned from Owen and Riley.
“You need to search their properties,” Dallas said.
“Before we can do anything, I need some more information from you,” the sergeant said. “What were the girls driving?”
“Skylar has a red Honda Civic, and Crystal drives a black Acura.”
“Do you know what they were last wearing?”
I shook my head. “No. But Skylar was probably wearing shorts and flip-flops. She has a leather pair with a daisy on them, between the toes.” I swallowed hard against the tears building in my throat. “She wears them all the time. Crystal often wears yoga shorts and tank tops.”
“We’ll find out if the motel has a surveillance camera. We’ll also ask local businesses in the area. I’ll need a recent photo and the girls’ descriptions, names of their friends, any associates or employers.”
I gave him Crystal and Skylar’s details, their dates of birth, names of their friends. “I have some photos on my phone,” I said.
“Can you e-mail me?” He gave me his address and I sent him the photos.
“Crystal’s hair is dyed brown now,” I said.
“Where’s Skylar’s father?”
“He’s not in her life.”
He looked up, met my eyes briefly. I wondered if he was going to ask for her father’s name or contact information, but he just made a note.
“How did Skylar seem the last time you spoke to her?”
“She was upset and worried about her aunt, but she told me she was going to stay with a friend at her lake cabin. She lied to me.”
“Has she run away before?” he said.
“Skylar’s never done anything like this,” I said.
“What about their lifestyle? Any medical conditions? Drug use?”
I thought about what to say. “Skylar’s a good kid. Crystal’s had a few problems, but she wouldn’t just disappear on us.”
“You said Skylar was worried about her?”
If I told him the truth, would he not take things as seriously? Would he just think Crystal was a flake or a screwup? I had to say something.
“Crystal had something upsetting happen to her that weekend, a fight with a guy she was dating. We think that opened up some of her feelings about what happened to us when we were teenagers, and that’s why she came back here.”
“Any indication she may be suicidal?”
I thought about Crystal locked in the bathroom, a gun in her hand.
“No.”
He made another note. “You said you went into her motel room. Did you see any signs of a struggle?”
“No, but it was messy,” I said.
“We’ll check it out—don’t enter the room again.”
“We’ll get another room at the motel.”
“I’m going to need their cell numbers—we’ll ping their phones.”