“He’s gone active again.” This too was something they’d gone over. “That’s why I don’t want you seeing Massey alone.”
“I’ll make sure Joleen’s there. But I’ll stop by your office, and we’ll talk before I go out there. Right now I’m going home.” She pulled out her wad of gum and stuck it inside its leftover wrapper. It had helped slightly, but she was still feeling uncomfortable in the midsection.
*
It turned out that Kat missed a half day of work the next day, and a full day the next. She blamed it on the flu, but in truth, she was pretty sure it was her pregnancy keeping her in bed. On the third day, she dragged herself to work and was at her desk, catching up, when Shiloh breezed in and plopped down in the chair opposite her.
“I want to help,” she said determinedly, her blond hair a braided rope down her back, her face sun-kissed, her blue eyes hard. “Stop freezing me out.”
“I’m not freezing you out. I haven’t been at work.”
“Did you see today’s paper?” She tossed a copy of the Prairie Winds onto Kat’s desk, and it sailed into her lap.
“What is it?” Kat asked, picking it up and scanning the front page. Jimmy Woodcock’s headline writing was as sensational as ever: THERAPIST VICTIM OF RAPE HERSELF. “Oh no.”
“Apparently word leaked from your department here, and Woodcock ran with it, although there’s not much there, just that it happened a long time ago and she was finally coming forward.”
Kat quickly read the article. It was more innuendo than fact, but it did mention Ruth’s name. “Woodcock put in that Ruth thinks there’s a link between her rape and the missing girls from past and present.”
“Kinda throws it all out there,” Shiloh said.
“This is what we all wanted, but it’s still hard to see it in the paper. Good thing Ruth already told her parents.” And my brother.
Shiloh grimaced. “Hope she handles it okay.”
“Yeah,” Kat said soberly.
“Woodcock also says Courtney Pearson’s death was a suicide and the investigation is ongoing. Beau and I talked it over, and we want to be a part of it.”
“Thanks, but we’re good.”
“This is what I mean. You’re freezing me out.”
“I can’t talk about the investigation. You know that, and I already got my hand slapped once.”
“Why? What do you mean?”
“Nothing.” Kat shut that down right away. She didn’t need Ricki, or anyone else on the force, overhearing her talking to Shiloh about the case. She’d already had enough trouble with her father. “There’s nothing for you to involve yourself with.”
“Don’t say you can’t use more help,” Shiloh said. “Those K-9 teams I see all over the Croft property are coming up empty. Helicopters haven’t found anything on forest land?” When Kat didn’t respond, she said, “And no clues from where we found Courtney’s body and where Addie disappeared.” She leaned in and added in a low voice, “You know we know Ruthie’s rapist.”
Kat frowned. “What do you mean?”
“He seemed familiar to us. He sure did to me, and he did to you too.”
“We never saw his face.”
“All I’m saying is, he’s not a complete stranger. And I want to check out some of the guys around here, see if they ring any bells.”
“We’re already doing that. Don’t get in the way,” Kat warned.
“This is what I’ve been saying! You’re freezing me out.” Shiloh got to her feet. “I’m going to do some checking on my own.”
“Shiloh, no.”
“I’ve got Beau with me. I won’t get in the way of your investigation.” She started down the hall.
Kat ground her teeth together and said in a stage whisper to Shiloh’s back, “I just don’t want anyone to get hurt. Leave it to the authorities.”
Shiloh lifted a hand in acknowledgment but didn’t turn around. Kat stared after her, irked, then got up to follow after her friend. Shiloh was just too bull-headed for her own good sometimes.
Brrrinnngg. Her desk phone rang before she had taken two steps. She hesitated briefly, then turned back and snatched up the receiver. “Yes?” she answered tightly.
Naomi said, “Phone call for you. Mr. Blair Kincaid.”
Blair.
“I can’t take it right now, Naomi. I’m in the middle of something.”
“He’s pretty insistent. Says it’s something about a kid named Noel Brinkman getting into trouble on Kincaid property?”
Kat made a strangled sound. The Byrds’ grandson again? “Okay, put him through.”
A few seconds later Blair’s familiar drawl raised goose bumps on her arms with, “Hey, Kat. How’re you doing? This kid here says you’re the one to talk to.”
“Noel Brinkman’s on your property?”
“That’s the one.”
“What’s he done?” She just stopped herself from adding now.
“Well, we’re not far from Hal Crutchens’s place, and apparently Noel and some of his friends opened up the gate and let Crutchens’s old nag out. The beast ended up on our property, and, well . . .”
Kat silently swore inside her head. “What? Is the horse okay?”
“Right as rain. ’Cept for the ‘F-word’ and ‘you’ spray-painted on his haunch.”
Dammit. “And Noel’s with you now?”
“Mike, my foreman, caught him and a couple other of the little delinquents before they ran away. I was about to start taking names, when Noel offers up his own name and says to call you, like you’re his lawyer.”
“Have you contacted his parents?”
“John and Rinda. I was about to—” There was a commotion on the other end of the line, and then Blair said, sounding faintly amused, “Your client wants to talk to you, counselor.”
“Detective Starr?” a young, thin voice warbled, sounding near tears. “Don’t call my parents. Please, please, please don’t call my parents. It was Reed and Ben’s idea. It’s water-based paint. It won’t hurt him none.”
“Noel, it’s not up to me. You’re a minor. Your parents are your guardians.”
“I said you’d help us! I said we wouldn’t go to jail!” He dropped the phone, and Kat heard a scuffle and then someone barked out, “Stop right there!” then silence.
“Noel?” Kat asked, alarmed. “Noel?”
The phone was picked up again, and Blair said, “It’s all right. Flight from custody averted. Mike stopped them from running. They are all now shaking in their boots on the back porch, waiting for the long arm of the law to come crashing down on them.”
“I’ll be there in twenty minutes . . .”
“I’ll call their parents,” Blair said. “See you soon.”
*
The Kincaid ranch sprawled over hundreds of acres of farmland and was close to the size of the Dillinger ranch, maybe even as big or bigger. Kat hadn’t been back to it since that night with Blair, and she approached with a feeling of extreme weariness. She wanted to find Addie Donovan. She wanted to find Ruth’s rapist and Courtney Pearson’s kidnapper. She wanted to know what had happened to Rachel Byrd and Erin Higgins. She wanted to scream and rip out her hair and lie down on the ground and sob.