Chapter 46

FORTY-SIX

Rebecca stays with Jack in case the kidnappers make contact again. Ronnie and I follow Lucas in my car. I've been to Lynden once. My boyfriend had a booth set up for a downtown craft festival and was selling his wood carvings. Lynden is a pleasant city with quaint restaurants, antique stores, bookstores, micro-breweries, boutique hotels, art galleries, everything you'd find in a bigger city, but on a smaller scale. Lucas circled around some back streets and soon we passed in front of Word of the Lamb, which, in another life, was Abe's Auto Repair Garage according to the faded paint on one of the garage doors. A Lynden city police car pulls up behind us and a uniformed officer steps out and approaches. We get out to meet the officer but Lucas gets in front and extends a hand.

"Officer Nelson?" Lucas asks, and the officer nods. "I'm the detective you spoke to." He doesn't bother to introduce us.

Officer Nelson is closer to Ronnie's age than mine. Maybe twenty-three or twenty-four. It's hard to tell with his baby face. He's wearing the typical small-town cop getup: tight-fitting uniform, sharp creases down pant legs, bulges in shirt sleeves and chest, Smokey hat, mirrored sunglasses and a tan that looks like it was sprayed on. He's absolutely beautiful with a perfect set of pearly white teeth that he shows off with a smile. He's in love with himself.

"I'm Detective Carpenter and this is Detective Marsh," I say, and he gives us the full body exam with his eyes. I'm going to kick him in the balls if he makes one wrong remark.

Nelson says, "I think I found your VW unless there's a circus in town."

Well, Duh. How many '68 or '69 VW camper vans can there be with a wizard painted on both sides, orange paint, and a green grille?

His eyes are still examining Ronnie so I shake him until his head bobbles. Not really, but I want to. "Can you show us the camper, Officer Nelson?" I say it loud enough to break Ronnie's hold on him.

"Call me Trey," he says, and turns his teeth up to high beam for Ronnie.

"Okay, Trey," I say, "show us."

Lucas sees my discomfort and grins. Asshole.

"Follow me," Trey says, and leads us around the back of the repair garage/shelter to a rickety shed with no front doors. A VW camper, rust spots spray-painted bright orange with a wizard painted on the side I can see. The front has a green grille and bumper. The shed looks like a strong breeze will flatten it. The license plates are missing.

A woman with tightly permed gray hair, a deeply lined face, and glasses with lenses thick enough to burn ants approaches us. "Can I help you?"

Officer Nelson says, "It's okay, Annie. They're with me."

Annie smiles and the wrinkles on her face shift like tectonic plates. "If you want Vinnie, he left early this morning."

Nelson asks, "Do you expect him back soon?"

"I never expect anyone back. These poor children of God have no roots. They are lost like little lambs. I feed them and give them a bed for the night. I never ask where they come from, how long they're staying or where they're going."

Nelson says, "Annie's our own Mother Teresa. Our officers help out from time to time collecting food and clothing but she is full service."

"Vinnie was helping with the others," Annie says. "He's a good man. Always a kind word. Always there for anyone that needs him. I hope he finds what he's looking for."

I ask, "How long was Vinnie here?"

"Two or three days this time. He's been here before. Never stays more than a few days. This time he brought that." She indicates the VW. "He loaded us up with groceries and water and offered to buy a big-screen television. He donated some money, which we can definitely use, but I didn't know what we'd do with a television. These poor souls need something to occupy their hands, not rot their minds."

"You got that right, Annie," Nelson says.

Lucas hasn't said a word up until now but the mention of money catches his attention. "You say he made a donation?"

Annie gives Lucas a suspicious look out of the corner of her eye. "He would never steal from anyone." And that was all she had to say about that. "I did hear him say something about going to Bellingham. He has a sister he was going to visit. I didn't see him leave so I can't say for sure. You're welcome to talk to anyone here but most of them won't talk to you."

Lucas asks, "Can I search the van?"

"Don't you need a warrant?" She gives him a scathing look.

"Do I?" Lucas says, but it's not really a question. More of a threat.

"Go ahead. You won't find anything," she says, and shrugs.

Officer Nelson stays with Annie while Lucas goes to search the van. I agree with Annie that there will be nothing of note in the van. If there's anything of value, Vinnie would have taken it, given it away, or already sold it. Ronnie and I go into the shelter.

The shelter is divided into single bed bays by sheets draped over ropes. Several picnic tables take us to the aisle between the bays. Four men and two women of varying ages and ethnicity are sitting at two of the picnic tables. All of them are holding on to a backpack or wearing one, no doubt containing their worldly possessions. The rule for homeless that I've run across is to never let your guard down. Never trust anyone. All are silent except one of the women.

"I'm Hattie. You looking for Vinnie?" she asks.

She must have been eavesdropping at the door to see if she had to vacate the premises. Or if one of them was going to be busted. I can see the caution emanating from her like a heatwave on blacktop.

"Hi, Hattie," Ronnie says, and introduces us as Megan and Ronnie. She already knows we're cops. "We are looking for him. He's not in any kind of trouble. I know you probably don't believe that since we're cops, but it's the truth. We have something important he needs to hear."

She eyeballs me to see if she can trust me. Of course she doesn't but makes up her mind to talk. Maybe tell us something useful, or just to defend a fellow traveler.

"He's not here. Been gone a long time."

She's going to protect him. It's okay with me. Loyalty is hard to come by and I admire anyone that shows it. I wait her out and Ronnie is silent also, although I can feel her impatience.

"You promise you ain't gonna arrest him?" she asks.

Ronnie says, "He's my uncle."

Suddenly Hattie smiles. Her teeth are missing but it's still a pretty smile. "Uncle Vinnie, huh? Ain't that a hoot. I didn't know he had a niece. You must be Vicki's kid."

"Two nieces," Ronnie says.

"Two? He never told me." Hattie examines Ronnie and seems satisfied that Ronnie's niece material I suppose. "I can tell you he's a looker. Must run in the family. I would have given him my number if I had a phone."

Ronnie chuckles but I know Hattie's serious.

I ask, "Does he talk about his sister, Vicki?"

She shakes her head. But she knew the name so she's still in protection mode.

Ronnie says, "Hattie, did he go to see Vicki when he left? It's important. We really need to find him."

"I told you he doesn't talk about her, but I know she's good to him."

Ronnie says, "Do you know where my uncle is or where he was going, Hattie?"

She shakes her head again. "I'm not under arrest, am I?"

"We're not arresting anyone," Ronnie assures her.

"Then I don't have to tell you nothing, do I?"

"That's right, Hattie," I say. "But Vinnie is her uncle and she's worried about him. She has some family information he needs to hear from her and she doesn't want him to hear it on the news. Family is important."

Her eyes fix on Ronnie and she says, "If family is important, how come he's living on the street? How come I never heard him mention you? How come you don't know where he is or even if he's got a phone?"

Ronnie's breath catches. The words hurt her. I'm getting pissed. "Hattie, you don't have to talk to us but you have no right saying those things to Ronnie." Hattie cringes like a dog that's being abused, and I regret my tone. "I'm sorry. Ronnie is my friend. Like Vinnie is your friend. I'm helping her find her uncle because we're friends. So if you won't help us, we need to look somewhere else. But if Vinnie is hurt, it's on you."

Hattie nods. "I just have to check, don't I? I don't have many friends. Well, he's not a friend really. But I don't have many that treat me kind. And he's that kind of man. Good to the core that one is. In another life I'd have…" Her words fade.

"Will you help us?" Ronnie asks.

"Okay. But you better not hurt him. He's had a rough time of it. Worse than me, I think."

I can't imagine anyone being in a worse condition than this poor woman and my heart goes out to her. In another life, she said. I can relate. My life sucked until Karen Albright fixed me and Sheriff Gray found me. It was fate or luck or both that I was able to change. Hattie's life will most likely never change for the better. She's one of the forgotten, the easy to forget, the fell-through-the-cracks, abandoned by our government and society because she's a reminder of what our own life could be. I wish I was a better person and could help her. I guess I'm being hypocritical. I'm not ready to take on anyone else's burden.

"Do you know anything about his sister?" I ask.

"Yeah. A little. Vin likes her." She looks Ronnie over. "We don't talk personal-like here usually, but he told me some things about his sister. She's married to a man that keeps her under his thumb and so Vinnie don't get to see her much. But past is past. Now is now. He's living with it. He don't complain but you need to spend some time with him. You'd like your uncle a lot. He's a great guy."

Ronnie says, "I'd love to do that. I wasn't aware I had an uncle until a few days ago."

Hattie says something that reminds me again that there are still kind people in the world and I feel my eyes moistening.

"You poor girl. If you were mine, I'd take better care of you. You need to know Vinnie. You look a little like him, come to think of it. Same eyes. And I can tell you're kind, like him."

"My mom is missing. I'm afraid for her and I need his help finding her."

"Vinnie loves his sister. Told me she's always been there for him. I asked him if that's who gave him the money and he hushed up quick-like."

"What money, Hattie?" Ronnie asks.

"He told me he didn't steal it." She pauses, ready to lie for him, or pounce on the first person who makes an accusation.

"I understand," I say. Understand it's stolen or from a drug deal.

"Well, it was a bunch of money. Hundred-dollar bills mostly. He said he hit the lottery. He was giving us all money. Bought us these clothes. Wouldn't say how much money but I seen a roll that would choke a mule."

"What about the van?" I ask. "Where did it come from? Did he buy that too." I ask to see if he's told her the same thing Tammy at the no-name-tavern told us.

"I guess he bought it. He ain't no thief. He said he didn't need it no more. His thumb would do him fine. He give it to Annie. That's the kind of guy he is. He brought us bags of food from McDonald's. He bought me a vanilla shake 'cause I'd told him I really missed them. I ain't had a vanilla shake from McDonald's for a while. I wanted to go with him when he left but he snuck away. I don't blame him none. I'm not nothing to look at and I'd just be wanting money."

Hattie smiles and her breath is putrid. She has gum disease, or something worse is going on with her health.

Ronnie asks, "Do you think he was really going to see his sister?"

Hattie scratches under her armpits and thinks. "He said she was the only one who done him right. He might be going to see her. Then again, he might not. He said he needed to get some more money. He owes some people and he always pays his debts."

"Who did he owe money to?" I ask. He was giving hundreds away and could have sold the van but he apparently gave it away. Maybe Duke was right about Vinnie being in Dutch to some gangsters and is on the run.

Her lips tremble and her eyes mist. "Don't know. He said he was taking me with him. He promised. I don't blame him but I sure would 'a liked to go with him. Your uncle is one good-looking sucker." The conversation is over.

Outside we thank Officer Nelson and give Annie our contact info. Lucas has searched the van and shakes his head at my questioning look. Annie promises to keep an eye out for Vinnie, but of course, she would say that.

"Give me your phone number," Ronnie says to Nelson. He does and a moment later his phone dings. "That's a picture of Vinnie. If you hear anything you can call me and Lucas."

He asks, "What about the van?"

I defer to Lucas. He makes the right call. "I should have it towed and let my crime scene people go through it. It doesn't have license plates and isn't registered to Annie."

Annie says, "I can't drive anyway. Lost my license moons ago. And I wouldn't let any of my people drive it without proper registration, license, and insurance." She says this to Nelson, and he laughs and says, "Annie, if you weren't already taken, I'd marry you."

Annie's face turns red and she whispers to Ronnie, "Watch out for that one. He's a womanizer."

"I wasn't finished," Lucas says. "I should have the van towed, but I'll leave it up to Officer Nelson."

Lucas, you old softy. You don't want to mess with the paperwork, do you?

Lucas says to me, "We're done here. I'm going to find Duke. I'll catch up with you later."

" We're going to find Duke," I correct him. "But we need to talk first."

We follow him back to Bellingham and to the store where Duke told us Vinnie had his upstairs apartment. We go inside what is a café of sorts with only two tables and several chairs. Lucas gets coffee and something to feed his cookie habit. Ronnie gets water and buys me a tall black coffee.

Lucas starts. "Before you say anything, I called Mr. Marsh on the way here. He told me you know about the ransom demand."

"When were you going to tell us about it?" Ronnie asks. She doesn't look pissed but I know that tone of voice.

"I had hoped I wouldn't need to." He sips his coffee. "Mr. Marsh said the demand is up to ten million now. He knew the note was from Vinnie and I've been after Vinnie since this thing started. I was getting close to finding him too when you two arrived and made a mess of things."

"Is that why you wanted us to go away?" I ask.

"I still want you to go away."

I say, "If you and Jack had been up front with us, we could have worked together." Probably not but I feel obligated to say that.

Ronnie says, "My dad is going to pay the ransom? Even though Mom might be filing for divorce?"

Lucas inhales a cookie and says, "He doesn't want the divorce. He said her intentions gave him a wake-up call. And now this. He's scared, Ronnie."

Lucas knew about the pending divorce. Something else he hadn't shared.

Ronnie asks, "Is my dad a suspect?"

"Of course," Lucas says. "Everyone is. You know that. But he's not a good one."

I think he's a good suspect. Jack stands to lose his ass and it might put a stain on his reputation if she divorces him. Half of a fortune is still a fortune. Besides the short call to Rebecca, Jack is the only person we're sure has talked to the kidnappers. Jack's willingness to pay the money is a nice touch. If Jack is behind this and something goes wrong and she dies, Jack keeps it all and everyone will feel sorry for him.

Vinnie's recent windfall complicates things. If Vinnie is the kidnapper, that would make him one vicious and immoral bastard.

Ronnie asks Lucas, "What about the call my sister got?"

"I agree with your dad. For all we know it's a prank made in bad taste. Someone he or she works with, or someone at the resort. Several people know she's missing. Not everyone likes your family, Ronnie. Could be jealousy. All it takes is an unintended slight for some crazy to want to frighten you or put you in your place." He stops and considers. "But if it's for real, it's for one reason: because you two screwed up."

"What have we screwed up?" I ask. I'm tired of being lied to, kept in the dark, and fed bullshit by this arrogant bastard.

"When you went to the jail and talked to the trusties, did you think that wouldn't get back to the kidnappers? A successful kidnapping is very hard to pull off unless you have some experience. Some of those experienced people have spent time in jail. I'm betting that's where this idea originated. Someone in the jail somehow knew where Mrs. Marsh would be most vulnerable. These criminals have criminal friends on the outside. It's the perfect cover."