Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

Mentally bracing himself, Gabe answered the phone. “Hello?”

“Where’s my son?” His mother’s voice was a loud shriek, and he had to pull the phone from his ear. “What did you do to him?”

“I didn’t do anything to Travis.” He tried not to sound defensive and hoped he was telling the truth. The crushed phone flashed in his mind. Had he hurt Travis? No, he couldn’t imagine doing such a thing.

“This is your fault! You have to find him!” His mother’s voice rose in panic. “He’s not answering his phone! He always has his phone. Always!”

“I have my entire tactical team working on finding Travis.” He spoke in a firm tone, hoping to cut through her hysteria. “You can help by answering some questions. Can you do that, Mom? I need to know the last time you saw or spoke to Travis.”

“You spoke to him last, not me!” she said in a voice that was slightly calmer. “You were the last one to see him alive.”

That rocked him back on his heels. Although based on finding his phone in the field where he’d woken up, it shouldn’t have. “I saw him face-to-face or spoke to him?”

“How should I know?” The shrill panic was back. “He said he had to call you back as he walked out the door. You need to tell me what happened!”

He sincerely wished he could. “Mom, please try to remain calm. I need to know the last time you spoke to him. Yesterday? The day before? When did you notice him missing?”

“What are you not telling me?” she demanded. “Is he dead? Is that it? You don’t want to tell me because he’s dead?”

“No!” He winced, knowing that shouting back at her wouldn’t help. “I have amnesia, Mom. I woke up outside with a huge lump on my head. I don’t remember what happened, that’s why I’m asking you these questions.”

“Amnesia?” Her voice was a sneer. “Seriously? You really expect me to believe that?”

He raised his gaze to the ceiling, far too aware of the sympathetic expression in Cassidy’s gaze. “You can believe what you want. I have no reason to lie to you. I am desperately trying to find Travis. If you refuse to help, then I’ll figure out another way to get the answers I need to start tracking him down.”

The silence stretched so long he’d wondered if she’d ended the call. Then the sound of sobs filled his ears. She was crying.

He told himself not to feel hurt at the way she cried for Travis, despite leaving him without a backward glance. “Mom, don’t cry. It’s going to work out.”

“We had a fight,” she said between sobs. “I didn’t know he was in contact with you, and it made me angry.”

“I’m sorry you argued with Travis,” he said. “When was that? Yesterday?”

“Yesterday right after school.” She sniffled loudly. “He took off in his new car, and I haven’t seen him since.”

“Tell me about his new car.” He latched onto the news with both hands. “I need the make, model, license plate number.”

“I gave all that to the other cop.” He heard the sound of rustling paper. “Okay, I found it. Travis has a five-year-old Corvette convertible, metallic blue with a black top, and the license plate is DWE 7754.”

He scribbled the information on the notepad. “Okay, that’s great, Mom. I’m sure we’ll be able to find that car. Just to be clear, the last time you saw Travis was at three thirty yesterday afternoon?”

“Yes.” Another sniff. “He didn’t answer my calls or text messages asking if he would be home for dinner.”

“Does he usually answer you?” Gabe asked.

“No.” The sobbing started up again. He had to wait for his mother to regain control. After a moment, she continued, “Travis can be stubborn, like any other typical teenager. He often ignores me. When I realized he didn’t come home last night, I blew up his phone again, begging him to answer me. But he didn’t! And he’s never done this, Gabe. He’s never stayed out all night without telling us.”

“Okay, I understand.” He did his best to soothe her fears, despite the sick feeling in his gut. He hadn’t realized he may have been the last one to speak to Travis before his disappearance. “Maybe he lost his phone. Did the officer you spoke to issue a BOLO for the Vette?”

“How should I know?” She was getting angry again. “You did this, Gabe. I just know you’re responsible for Travis disappearing. I need you to fix it!”

“I’ll do my best,” he said.

“That’s not good enough! I want you to promise you’ll bring Travis home. Promise me!”

“Mom, I will do everything humanly possible to find Travis. I won’t make promises I can’t keep. Thanks for calling me back.” With that, he pushed the end button and tossed the new phone on the table.

Thankfully, his mother didn’t call him back to continue ripping into him. He already felt more battered and bruised after that call than he had waking up in the snow last night.

“That was awful,” Cassidy said in a low tone. “I’m so sorry she treated you so terribly.”

“She’s distraught.” He raked his fingers through his hair. “I guess I can’t blame her for being worried about her son.”

“She has two sons, Gabe. Two!” Cassidy’s blue eyes sparked with anger. “And she has no right to treat you like garbage.”

He shrugged. “I can’t change her attitude. All I can do is focus my efforts on finding Travis. And it sounds like I was the last one to talk to him.”

She reached out to take his hand. “I heard most of the conversation but not all of it. Did she overhear you talking to Travis?”

He thought back through the painful conversation. “No, she said he was planning to return my call. They argued over us being in touch, then she saw him on the phone as he headed out to his car.” He frowned. “He may have called me. Or left a message.”

“If that was at three thirty, he would have had to leave a message because you were at the precinct until five,” Cassidy said.

“Okay, that helps.” The timeline of Travis’s last movements was starting to take shape. “Travis left home at three thirty in the afternoon. Maybe he went to a friend’s house because we hadn’t connected yet. At some point, we must have talked and met up on the deserted road near the Wildflower Motel.”

“Maybe he drove all the way to your house,” Cassidy suggested, “and that’s why your car was in the garage.”

“It’s possible, but I don’t understand why Travis would hit me on the head and leave me outside in the cold. And where is he now?”

“Let’s touch base with Rhy. Maybe he has more information regarding the BOLO for the Corvette.” She pulled out her new phone. “A sweet ride like that shouldn’t be too difficult to find.”

He nodded, still feeling as if he’d been trampled by a herd of wild horses. He struggled to remember if Travis had been at his house, but he couldn’t summon a single memory.

Hard to blame his mother for not believing him.

Dejected, he closed his eyes. Please, Lord Jesus, help me remember!

“Okay, thanks, Rhy,” Cassidy said. “I’ll let Gabe know.”

He opened his eyes, wondering what he’d missed.

Her expression softened, and she took his hand again. “Sorry, Gabe, but there’s been no sign of the Corvette. Based on finding Travis’s phone earlier today, they’ve now broadened the search to include all of metropolitan Milwaukee, Madison, and every city in between. As far as Travis’s phone records, Rhy is still waiting on them. Cameron is hoping to get them within the hour.”

“That’s good.” He tried but couldn’t summon a smile. “I really hope Travis is okay. That if he’s involved, he’s physically fine.”

“We’ll pray for him.” She tightened her grip on his hand and bowed her head. “Dear Lord Jesus, keep Travis safe in Your loving arms. Guide us as we search for the truth. Amen.”

“Amen.” He didn’t release Cass’s hand as he looked deep into her beautiful blue eyes. “Thank you. For everything.”

“We’re in this together,” she assured him. Then she surprised him by leaning forward to brush a light kiss on his cheek. “We’ll find him, Gabe.”

He shouldn’t have been so moved by her kiss, not when his half brother was missing. But he was. Oddly, between the prayer and her caress, he felt stronger. Letting her go wasn’t easy, but he straightened and turned back to the computer. “This code has to be important, but darned if I can figure out how.”

“I wish I could help, but the only code I know is the one to get into my condo.” She gestured to the screen. “You mentioned this was likely code to an operating system. I assume it’s clean? By that I mean not infected by a virus?”

He frowned, considering her question. The virus that had been unleashed on the precinct system could be related to this mystery code. “I don’t know. Maybe.”

He decided to start at the beginning, looking at it with fresh eyes. With an effort, he pushed the contentious conversation with his mother out of his mind.

Finding Travis was the only thing that mattered.

Watching as Gabe went back to work on the laptop, it took all Cassidy’s willpower not to kiss him again. She felt terrible for what he’d suffered at the hands of his mother. Not just today, but the way she’d walked away and traded up for a new life. One she clearly had no intention of sharing with Gabe.

God didn’t teach His children to hate, but for those moments she’d listened to Gabe’s mother shriek one accusation after another at him, she’d seethed with hate. And anger. And the acute desire to reach through the phone connection to punch the woman in the mouth.

Whoever said violence doesn’t solve anything never met Shelia McCord.

She blew out a soundless sigh and turned back to her own computer. Her search on Marcus Toller hadn’t revealed much, but now she couldn’t help but wonder if the guy was some sort of mentor to Travis.

With a mother like Shelia, she couldn’t blame the kid for searching for guidance elsewhere. And where was his father in all of this? What was his name? Paul?

Too busy defending criminals to be of any help?

On a whim, she typed the name Paul McCord into the search engine. The top hit featured his name and professional photograph as a partner in the law firm of Wendel, Baker, and McCord Law.

She clicked on the link to scroll through the website. McCord appeared to be the youngest of the group and likely the more recently added as a partner. They touted their amazing success without giving specific details as to which criminals they’d successfully represented to an acquittal. The headline “Wrongly Accused” caught her eye.

Without identifying anyone by name, there was a brief summary explaining how a man who’d been wrongly accused of murder had been set free thanks to the hard work and dedication of Wendel, Baker, and McCord. She tried to remember the story from the news but couldn’t. There was no date listed, so the trial could have been a few years ago.

Whatever. It probably wasn’t associated with Travis’s disappearance. She clicked out of the website and went back to Marcus Toller. She pulled up his DMV records to check his address. Of course, he lived in Madison, which was well over an hour away.

Call Roscoe to ask Cameron to do the interview? Or drive out there themselves? As much as she wanted to speak to the guy personally, it was a risk to head out with Gabe. Especially since they didn’t know anything about this guy.

She reached for her phone.

“Yeah?” Roscoe’s hesitant tone reminded her that she was calling from a strange number.

“Hey, it’s Cass. I’m with Gabe and Steele. We’re working the case of Travis McCord. Have you spoken to your cousin Cameron?”

“Hey, Cass, I heard about what happened to Gabe. Yes, I’ve spoken to Cam. Between you and me, Gabe’s mother is a piece of work.”

“You have no idea,” she said wryly. “The reason I’m calling is that we found a guy by the name of Marcus Toller on Travis’s social media. He looks too old to be a student, and I can’t find anything about him through normal channels. I’d like Cameron to track him down and ask him about Travis.”

“I’m on it,” Roscoe said without hesitation. “I’ll let you know what Cam has to say after chatting with him.”

“Thanks.” She ended the call and set the phone aside.

“Cass?” Steele stepped across the threshold of their connecting rooms, his expression grim. “Joe sent out an alert asking the team to respond to an active shooter at the Milwaukee Mall.”

“Go,” she said, knowing that a crime in progress had priority over their current situation. She tossed him the keys Flynn had left behind. “Take the rental.”

Steele didn’t hesitate. A moment later, he was gone.

“Is that something you’d normally respond to?” Gabe asked.

“Yes.” She shrugged. “But I’m sure the team can handle it without me.”

He frowned, holding her gaze. “I get the sense I’m both a part of the team yet separate from the team.”

“You’re the hub of our team,” she said. “In a situation like this, you would be at the helm, digging into any information regarding the incident. And once we had a name of the shooter, you’d feed us even more intel. We all depend on you, so don’t minimize your role. It’s important.”

He nodded. “That makes sense. And I can see why you wouldn’t want me to have a gun.”

Why was he was so focused on having a weapon? “Gabe, it’s nothing personal. If I knew for sure you could hit what you’re aiming at, I’d get one for you.”

“Wish I could remember that too. Among other things.” He turned back to the computer. “I haven’t found anything that resembles a virus. But there are a few anomalies that are bothering me.”

“In what way?” She had no idea what he meant. “Like maybe there was a virus, but someone removed it? Similar to the way you got our precinct system back up and running?”

“No.” He shook his head and sighed. “I’m not sure what it is. There are a few spots that appear to have been altered. Without knowing what this operating system runs, I can’t say how or why the changes were made. Just that they are not congruent with the original code.”

More gobbledygook. But it was sweet that he assumed she understood. “I wish I could help, but all I can say is to trust your instincts.”

He blinked and rubbed his eyes. “My headache is getting worse.”

“Too much screen time.” She frowned. “Take a break. Get some rest.”

“Not an option.” He glanced at the clock. “It’s quarter past two in the afternoon. Travis has been missing for nearly twenty-four hours. You know as well as I do that we need to strike before the trail goes cold.”

“We don’t know for sure when he went missing,” she said. “Could be that it wasn’t until later that he ran into trouble. Besides, we’re not letting the trail go cold. Every cop is on the lookout for Travis’s car, and Cameron is going to interview Marcus Toller. The investigation is ongoing.”

He didn’t look at all reassured, likely because he was still riding the guilt trip his mother threw in his face. Cass hoped she never had to meet the woman because she’d likely add fuel to the fire by setting her straight on her warped priorities. Like brutally reminding her that she has two sons that she should care about. Not one. Two! And Gabe deserved as much care and consideration as Travis.

But imagining a confrontation with the woman wasn’t helpful. Especially since God would want her to practice forgiveness. And she would.

Eventually.

She was searching Travis’s social media when her cell phone buzzed. She frowned because the only people who had that number were at the scene of the active shooter.

“Hello?”

“Is this Cassidy Sommer? Officer Sommer?” a male voice asked.

“Yes, may I ask who you are?”

The guy chuckled. “Sorry, this is Cam. I got your number from Roscoe. Apparently, he’s a bit tied up at the moment.”

“Yes, they’re out on a call.” She felt a little guilty about staying behind. “Did you find Marcus Toller?”

“I did. He’s a math teacher at the high school where Travis attends classes,” Cameron said. “Apparently, Travis is some kind of math whiz, and Toller has been helping him to get into a college that specializes in computer science, specifically gaming. From what I gather, Travis’s parents don’t approve. According to Toller, Travis was told to become a lawyer, or he could pay for his college on his own dime.”

The more she heard about the McCords as parents the less she liked them. “I guess that explains the social media posts. Does Toller have any idea what happened to Travis? Did the teenager confide in him?”

“No. He claims the last time he saw Travis was when he left school at the end of the day yesterday. He wasn’t aware of anything specific that Travis was concerned about. Other than not being supported by his parents.”

Gabe glanced over, clearly listening. She gave him a nod, indicating the news was good. Or at least not bad. “I’m glad Marcus Toller has been supportive of Travis.”

“According to him,” Cameron said. “But my gut says he’s telling the truth.”

She heard a beeping on the other end of the line but ignored it. “We should still check out his whereabouts for yesterday afternoon and evening,” she said. “Just to cover all bases.”

“I did that already. His alibi checks out. He stayed late at school to tutor kids who are not so good in math. From there, he went home to his wife to have dinner. If he’s involved with Travis’s disappearance, he’s doing an admirable job of hiding it.”

“Okay, thanks, Cam.” The beeping had stopped, and she wished she had a smart phone to know who had called. Probably Rhy with an update on the mall shooting. “I’ll fill Gabe in on the latest. He’ll be glad to know that Toller was helping his half brother get into college.”

“Later,” Cameron said, and ended the call.

Before Gabe could ask her to repeat the parts of the conversation he’d missed, the phone in the adjoining room began to ring. At first, she was confused as to who could possibly be calling.

Then she knew. Gary!

She bolted through the connecting door, suddenly desperate to get to the phone. She grabbed the receiver just as gunfire rang out.

“Cassidy! There’s a shooter across from room eleven!” Gary shouted.

“Call 911!” She dropped the phone and pulled her weapon. In a low crouch, she ran back toward Gabe’s room.

He was on the floor beneath the table, cradling the laptop computer to his chest. It was smart to use it as a shield.

She ducked as more gunfire rang out. “The bathroom,” she said, gesturing to it. “Get into the tub and keep your head down.”

“What about you?” Gabe asked, his brown eyes full of concern.

No question they were in a tough spot. Steele had taken the rental, leaving them without a quick way to escape. “I’ll hold them off until the cops arrive.”

“Then I’m staying with you,” Gabe said.

She wanted to yell at him, but that would be a waste of time. “Follow me, then. We’re heading to the other room.”

She duck-walked through the connecting doorway with Gabe following. So far, the shots had peppered the room Gabe had been sitting in. Their only advantage was that the shooter probably didn’t know about the connecting rooms.

It wasn’t much, but she edged toward the window, staying to the side as she scanned the wooded area across the parking lot. She knew that area well, as several other shooters had positioned themselves there to pepper the motel with bullets.

They really needed to stop using Gary’s motel as a safe house.

She caught a glimpse of movement. She held her breath, waiting to see more. There! A dark shadow near a tree. She lifted her service weapon and pressed the tip up against the glass window. It wasn’t optimal to fire through glass, but she would if necessary.

There was a lull in the shooting, giving her the impression the gunman was trying to figure out if he’d eliminated his target.

“Come out where I can see you,” she whispered. “Come on, show your face.”

Another flash of movement followed by another volley of gunfire. This time, she was forced to duck to the side as their window was struck.

Apparently, this guy was hedging his bets. What if he decided to take out more windows? She couldn’t sit there while innocent people were hurt.

Or worse.

She popped her head up and fired toward the shadow. Then she dropped back down to where Gabe was huddling beside her.

Where was the Brookland PD?

Cold air streamed in through the broken windows. Then she heard sirens.

She took another quick peek over the windowsill, but this time she didn’t see any movement near the trees. The silence stretched from ten seconds to twenty, then thirty seconds.

The shooter was getting away!

She jumped up and reached for the door, just as Gabe snagged her hand. “Wait, where are you going?”

“We need to find him!” She shook off his grip, then paused. All Gabe had for protection was the laptop. She couldn’t leave him alone and vulnerable. She abruptly dropped back down to her haunches. “Never mind. The Brookland PD is already on their way. They’ll fan out to search for this guy.”

Gabe looked torn between telling her to go and asking her to stay. She couldn’t blame him; it was a toss-up for her too.

“We’ll find him,” she said reassuringly. “Hopefully, Gary caught his image on the cameras.”

Three Brookland PD squads squealed into the parking lot, and several cops dressed in tactical gear jumped out and hunkered down behind the squads.

“He took off!” Gary shouted. “I was watching the camera when he took off!”

Instantly, the cops jumped up and spread out to search. But Cass instinctively knew it was too late.

The shooter was long gone.