“Rebecca?”
“Yeah?”
“You like hiking?”
“What’s that?”
Laura came back in the room, smelling of smoke. Jack held on to his answer. “So?” Laura asked, meaning, are we finished?
“We’re ready,” Jack said.
Laura held open Rebecca’s coat so she could slide her arms in. Just then, Harrington entered the room, bursting at the seams when he spotted Rebecca.
Laura took note. “We’ll be in the car,” Laura said suspiciously, pulling Rebecca along with her out of the room.
“Was that the arteest?” Harrington said with a grin. Jack wanted to knock it right off his face.
“That’s right…” Jack replied curiously.
“Jack, I know you’re pressing because you feel you have some kind of moral obligation or something. But… we all know how this is going to end.”
“It’s not over till we find a body.”
“What are you gonna use next, a divining rod?”
A sudden realization hit Jack. He turned and spotted the cassette player, left out in the open. The asshole had listened to the tape! Now Jennifer’s slip of the tongue made sense.
“I’ll tell you what that is, Jack. Dumb luck. Like that prick who had us running in circles in the Mitchell case; all he needed was to touch her undergarments, remember?”
“Didn’t have me running in circles.”
“Whatever, even more to my point. Hard work, facts, intelligence solves cases, isn’t that what you said? Solid detective work, not superstition? Remember? Imagine what the press would say to this.”
“I don’t care what anyone thinks. All I care about is finding Angelina. Stopping him before he can kill again.”
“And you think this little girl’s story is gonna lead you to his front door? She has a bad dream, describes some very common landmarks, the dogs get lucky and voila, it’s supernatural! Come on, man. You’re a glass is half empty kind of guy. Lately you’ve been a glass is empty, broken on the floor kind of guy.”
“You don’t know the whole picture.”
“I think Hellerman has spent a little too much time with psychotic patients. You better be careful, it might be catching.”
“At this point, I’d rub two sticks together if I thought it would make fire.”
“You’re wasting your time — this nut’s had his way with Angelina, chopped her into little bits. All we can do is wait for him to do it again, pick up a fresh scent.”
In his gut, Jack knew Harrington was right. But the idea of doing nothing, just waiting around, had a reek of failure that was suffocating to him. Jack was a man of action. He needed to keep moving. He waved at Harrington’s words like he could no longer stand the sight or smell of him.
“I think it’s also time you sat Mr. Rosa down and fed him a truth sandwich, too. He needs to start accepting reality. Calls here 10 times a day. Got the press hounding the Captain, tossing around accusations of racism. They know which buttons to push.”
“If it was my daughter missing, I’d be doing everything in my power too. Whatever it took.” Jack went to step past Harrington, but Harrington simply broadened his muscular shoulders and took up the whole door. He wasn’t letting Jack leave until his point was made.
“We all want to see this case solved. But this is no time to fall down the rabbit hole. Her father needs to prepare for the worst; you’re just making it harder, sending the wrong message.” Jack’s mouth tightened, his clenched teeth bared like a snarling dog.
“What message? Hope? That’s his flesh and blood. He’s not gonna give up just because you quote him a God damn statistic. Giving people bad news doesn’t seem to affect you, does it? That’s because you’ve never been on the receiving end. Never experienced true loss. Personal loss.” Jack pushed his way into the hallway. Harrington called after him.
“That’s not true. I’ve experienced loss. I took the under on the Saints/Packers last Monday.”
Laura stood outside the station waiting for Jack, sucking on another cigarette and deftly wafting the smoke to keep it from blowing in Rebecca’s direction. Rebecca was climbing up the steps to the precinct and jumping off, over and over.
Laura was convinced nothing she tried was going to be the magic bullet that was going to solve Rebecca’s problem. The school counselor, Doctor Hellerman, Jack; none of them had any answers. Facing her fear, as Jack had said, turned out to be just Jack throwing darts at a board. She knew what he was trying to do — hoping he’d experience a moment with Rebecca like she’d had when they passed the church. But she was the one who had to take Rebecca home tonight and stay up waiting for the screams.
Jack exited the station, an apologetic look on his face.
“What took you so long?” Laura asked.
“Sorry. Let’s go.”
“Where to now?” Rebecca asked.
“Hiking.”
Laura raised her eyebrows, what?
CHAPTER 38
Jack led Laura and Rebecca along a dirt path through a thickly wooded area, just a few hundred yards from the main road.
The sun began to set, casting a crimson glow that back-lit the clouds. Its colored beauty forced Jack to slow his pace, hold his look a little longer. He wondered how many more scenes like this were reserved for him in his abbreviated future. How many more moments of tranquility and peaceful reflection did he have left to savor?
“How far?” Laura asked.
“Not too far; right over this hill,” Jack said, continuing forward. Laura followed, pulling Rebecca to keep pace, her shoes seemingly filled with lead.
Jack looked down and noticed Rebecca’s face had turned pale, she seemed anxious. Jack watched her scrape off a chunk of tree bark with her fingernail, nervously.
“You alright?” he asked.
“I’m sorry, I’m not much help.”
Jack patted her head. “That’s not true, police work is all about trial and error. You’ve helped me narrow my search. That’s what detectives do. You’d make a great one.”
That put a doubting grin on her face, which was quickly erased by the fear welling up inside her. Rebecca had somehow managed to smother her dread to accompany them into the wooded area. She had an overwhelming fear of traveling beyond the thin guardrail that separated the road from the dark woods, which stretched from the highway several miles — all the way to the small, one way street that led to her school. Kids would often cut through to the mart to stuff their jackets with pop and chips. She could have gotten home quicker using the shortcut too, instead of walking the long way round, up over the bridge. But she didn’t dare. And worse, she didn’t know why. The answer was buried deep in the recesses of her mind, only the lingering emotion of whatever it was lay near the surface.
It was that burning question that kept her from running. She needed to learn what secrets lie beyond, even if she dreaded the answer. And she may never have another chance to be flanked by protective adults, escorting her through the darkness, shielding her from what dangers lie in wait. But the suffocating rush of fear and anxiety was multiplying exponentially now. She felt lightheaded and dizzy, her tiny heart pounded in her chest.
She looked up at Jack, slowly leading the way. He made her feel safe, she liked having him around. She sensed her mother didn’t mind so much either.
They neared the crime scene, police tape still lined the trees in the distance where Carmen’s body had been unearthed. The rush of the river was louder here, its steep incline created an increase in velocity as it smashed against the rocks, enough to drown out the roar of the highway. The noise whooshed in Rebecca’s ears. She became aware of her heartbeat, the pressure made her neck throb. Laura felt the tension in Rebecca’s clammy hand.