He either felt confident that he’d immobilized her, or he’d forgotten that her feet weren’t bound. She tried to sit, but her torso was too weak to respond.
After rolling to her side, she used the piece of shale to saw furiously at the rope around her wrists.
As Cole drove Stella back to the station from Flynn’s place, a strong, westerly wind kicked up and buffeted the side of the K-9 unit. Dust and litter blew across the street in front of the headlights. Spring storm. He’d been too busy to watch a weather report for days, though catching a forecast rarely mattered. Spring weather in Colorado was hard to predict. One day could bring sunshine then snowfall the next. But the one thing Coloradans could count on this time of year—there would be wind.
After parking, Cole released Robo from his compartment and followed Stella into the lobby. He raised his hand to greet Mattie’s friend, Rainbow. The dispatcher was speaking into a headset as he passed by, but she waved in acknowledgement, her face noticeably pale, the rims of her eyes reddened.
Stella stopped at Rainbow’s desk to ask for an update on the volunteers’ search of the trailheads, and Cole’s hopes plummeted when the dispatcher said that no dark colored pickup nor truck and trailer rig had been found.
Bringing Robo with him, he entered the briefing room and sank into a chair. McCoy and Lawson were already there, each talking on their cell phones. A glance at the clock told him it was almost three AM. He settled Robo beside him and leaned forward to pet him, closing his eyes to rest them for a minute.
McCoy ended his phone call as Stella entered the room. The sheriff spoke, making Cole straighten in his seat to listen. “I have a report from Deputy Garcia. He found Gibson Galloway at his place along with his girlfriend. He’s bringing them both in for questioning, but the girlfriend says they’ve been at Galloway’s home since late yesterday afternoon, well before Mattie disappeared. Deputy Garcia thinks they were asleep when he arrived.”
Stella sat at the table and slumped against it. “If that’s true, we can eliminate him for Mattie.”
“That leaves us with Tucker York and Bret Flynn. We have license plate numbers for their vehicles, and I’ve got the state patrol on the lookout for both of them.” McCoy focused on his cell phone, swiping and tapping the screen as he stood and moved away from the table. “I’ll try to reach York again.”
Cole stared at what they knew about William’s case written on the white board, his tired eyes focusing on the words “Old Friend of the Family, unknown” and then “Desert Eagle, registered to Harold Cobb.”
McCoy dialed and redialed several times before giving up. Cole caught his eye as he came back to the table.
“What do we know about Harold Cobb?” Cole asked.
“Harold Cobb is deceased, killed in prison over twenty years ago,” McCoy said.
“And we know that for a fact?” Cole asked.
“Yes, I confirmed it myself. I was a deputy working here in Timber Creek at the time. I responded to the call the night Cobb was arrested, and I’d taken an interest in the kids, so I wanted to make sure he was actually gone.”
His words surprised Cole. He hadn’t known that the sheriff had rescued Mattie the night she called the cops on her dad. He glanced at Stella, wondering if she’d known. Her face was unreadable.
“How did he die?” Lawson asked.
“Shiv to the back, right kidney area.”
“Unusual except for in cases of organized crime or pedophiles.”
“There was evidence of the latter, but the prosecutor shelved the case when Harold Cobb was killed. There was no reason to go forward after his death and put the victim through further trauma by having to testify.”
Cole was shocked. Another quick look at Stella told him that her gaze had sharpened, homing in on the sheriff. But McCoy wore his cop face, and his voice had been smooth as butter. What did these two know about Mattie’s childhood? What kind of torment had her father put her through? He could only imagine.
The urge to save Mattie spurred him. “Harold Cobb, William Cobb’s death, the skeletons in the older graves—they’ve got to be connected to this old friend of the family who showed up in California.”
Lawson’s computer pinged, and he focused on the screen. “There’s report of a break-in and burglary two months ago at a big game hunting preserve located between Los Angeles and Sacramento. Vials of Thianil and other narcotics were stolen from the veterinary office.”
“How about the reversal agent, naltrexone?” Cole asked.
Lawton was reading the screen. “That, too. And some equipment used for administering the drug—a respirator mask complete with night vision goggles.”
“To protect the airway and hunt down animals at night.” Cole could visualize it. “Perfect for use on Mattie and Robo after dark.”
Stella appeared to have renewed energy. “All right. So now we know where the drugs and equipment probably came from, and that points back to California. York moved to Denver from Sacramento, and Flynn just moved here from L.A. We’ve got to find these two men. One of them has to be our guy.”
“One or both,” McCoy said. “I have to wonder if our guy has a partner. The fact that we have no witnesses who spotted a rig parked at the Redstone trailhead during the time period of William’s homicide makes me suspicious. A partner could have moved the rig after they unloaded the horses. That would decrease their visibility in the area and the risk of being discovered.”
“That makes sense,” Lawson said. “I’ve wondered about a partner myself. A pickup and horse trailer is a big target for a witness to spot. It makes sense that our unknown subject would have someone move it away while he did his work.”
“We’ve been assuming that we could spot a vehicle at a trailhead and that would tell us where to go,” Stella said. “But if he has a partner, we can’t make that assumption. Our bulletins for both York’s and Flynn’s trucks have given us nothing. Are they together now? Do they both have Mattie?”
That sat in silence, mulling it over.
A disturbing thought came to Cole. It was awful, but he decided he had to say it. “Flynn’s daughter, Riley, has taken an interest in Mattie, and vice versa. Her friendship might be completely innocent, but what if she’s involved some way?”
Stella frowned with concentration. “Working as a partner to help set up Mattie’s abduction?”
“Maybe.”
“Is Riley at your home right now?”
“She is.” It was hard to wrap his head around the full scope of it, and he immediately began to backpedal. “But she was genuinely distraught when she found Robo in Mattie’s yard, and she saved his life by calling me. That would point away from her involvement.”
“What was she doing in Mattie’s yard that late at night?” Stella mused. “I know they were texting and Mattie said she’d call and didn’t, but why would the girl ride her bike close to a mile to go there in the dark to check on her?”
“I agree that seems strange,” McCoy said.
“I need to talk to her.” Stella’s eyes narrowed. “At the very least, maybe she knows something.”
The satellite phone beeped for an incoming call, making Cole startle.
McCoy answered it. “Yes, Deputy Brody.” They sat in silence, listening to the sheriff’s side of the conversation. “You’re breaking up. Oh, it’s the wind.” Long pause. “All right. Take the phone with you and check back in.”