The date isn’t lost on me. I know, from Ryley, it’s the day before we died.
“Does that date mean anything to you?”
I nod, reluctantly. “I died on the fifteenth of August.”
I sit there, trying to comprehend and make sense of the report Marley read to me. I take it from her, reading and re-reading the words over and over again. Penny filed a report with base and was brushed off, so she filed a report with the local police.
“Did they investigate?”
“Sgt. Doyle brought Lawson in for questioning, but didn’t have anything to hold him on so they had to release him.”
“Was Claire drugged?”
Marley nods and slides another sheet of paper over to me. “Her blood had traces of a sleep aid and cocaine.”
“Cocaine? Why would he give a baby coke?”
Marley seems uncomfortable as her eyes wander from my file to her computer and to me. “I asked the same thing, so I did some research and found out that in children so young it relaxes them beyond control. Pedophiles use it—”
I hold my hand up, silently asking her to stop talking. I don’t need to know that this piece of shit was going to rape my daughter.
“I’m trying to wrap my head around this. I … uh …”
“I know, me too. Unfortunately, Sgt. Doyle had a massive heart attack last night, only hours after he sent that report.”
My eyes snap up to hers as the color drains from her face. She’s smart. She must know what I’m thinking.
“I understand if you want to quit this case,” I tell her, even though if she does I’ll never find my family. However, I wouldn’t be able to live with myself knowing something has happened to her because of me.
“I’m not quitting. Why would you think that?”
“Because people are dying, people who know the truth. This woman, Frannie, she pretended to be our friend only to make our lives hell. She’s behind all of this and we don’t know where she is and why she’s doing this. Lawson is her brother and their father is Admiral Ingram. Lawson is in jail and hopefully not coming out anytime soon. Now you’re telling me the sergeant you were speaking with is dead?”
“Sgt. Doyle was over seventy and obese. I think his heart attack is a result of age and an unhealthy lifestyle.”
I let her words sink in and my only response is a joke. “Those donuts will get you every time.”
She smiles for the first time since our meeting started, and oddly enough that takes away a small bit of stress.
“The hospital report, which I was able to dig up, showed no signs of trauma to Claire. It’s my best guess that he didn’t get as far as he planned or it took the drugs longer than he expected to work.”
“I’m going to kill him.”
Marley glances up at me with shock and slowly shakes her head. “He’s locked up.”
“I’m a sniper and a SEAL. Do you really think a prison is going to keep me from putting a bullet in his head? He touched my daughter and threatened my wife. And after she reported it, we’re all dead. He’s the reason we were deployed.” My voice is rising, and it’s only after I realize I’ve given out classified information that I shut my mouth. I hang my head, in shame, discontent. I’ve said things I shouldn’t have and wish I could take them all back. All except for saying I’m going to kill Lawson because I am. He’s going to die and so is Frannie.
“My wife ran,” I state, and Marley nods. “She didn’t leave me, she ran. If the police didn’t listen and I’m dead a day later, she ran for her life and for Claire’s.”
“She’s protecting your daughter from these people.”
“And from me.”
When Ryley picks me up, I’m quiet. I’m afraid to tell her what I’ve learned, for fear of her reaction. I know she’s already upset that she can’t provide more information, and telling her this about Penny and Claire will likely make her feel worse and I can’t do that. Ryley doesn’t deserve any more heartache.
Back at their house, I stand outside and look for any signs that this place is booby-trapped. I see none except for the basic security camera. What the potential intruder doesn’t know is that it’s taking a full body scan when you cross the line and Evan will know if you’re armed when you come to his house. He’s not taking any precautions. I don’t blame him.
I step out on the deck and see that he’s out here teaching EJ how to scale the rock wall the house sits on. Knowing Evan, he’s teaching him in case they need to evacuate.