Chapter 49

FORTY-NINE

WEDNESDAY

I'm up before the sun. Ronnie and Rebecca have beat me to the kitchen and I can smell coffee brewing. I'm not fit to be around anyone until I have a caffeine fix. Or two. I pour a mug and wear an expression I hope warns them not to talk to me. There's no need. Rebecca's holding a mug in her hands and staring down between her feet with a blank expression. I sip the very hot and strong brew and wait for her to realize I'm in the room with her.

"Sis, tell Megan what you dreamed about."

Rebecca's blank stare doesn't change and I wonder if she's heard Ronnie, but her lips begin to tremble.

"Go on. We need to discuss this," Ronnie says.

Rebecca says, "There's nothing to discuss. It was a dream. I shouldn't have told you."

Ronnie is not to be deterred. "She dreamed Mom and Dad were fighting. She was accusing him of having an affair. He slapped her and told her to get out." She stops and looks at Rebecca before she continues. "Mom told him she was leaving. She'd found someone else and was going to take everything from him. He told her he'd kill her before he let her break up the family."

Rebecca adds, "It seemed so real." Her eyes brim with tears, and Ronnie looks at me, beseeching me to tell Rebecca it was just a dream. But dreams have a way of letting our minds explore things our waking self won't consider. Not that dreams are always true. But the feelings behind them are, just the same.

"Dreams can do that," I say. "But you can't make decisions based on a dream, Rebecca." Like hell we can't.

Ronnie says, "I called the jail and Duke is still missing. A judge is issuing a warrant for his arrest. I looked into Thundercloud this morning. He's living in Bellingham. Guess where?"

Here we go. "Ronnie, I've only had half a cup of coffee."

"Sorry. I checked with the post office and the address he's using is the same as Missy's. They are living in her mother's house. If we can't find Duke or Uncle Vinnie, we can go to Bellingham and see what those two have to say."

I suck down the rest of the mug and pour another. I hold up a finger to shush Ronnie. Rebecca grins and says, "Ronnie said you were a bear in the morning. You remind me of Dad. He's unapproachable until he's loaded with caffeine. Then he's just hard to approach."

Ronnie nods. "He gets in his own world for sure. He's usually up before us. I'll see if he wants to join us."

Jack comes into the kitchen and says, "Not necessary. I smelled the coffee."

Rebecca pours another mug and hands it to him.

"And don't believe everything these two tell you. I'm not unapproachable. They are."

Rebecca asks, "Do you want me to make some breakfast?"

I'm hungry but Jack says, "Let's not take the chance."

"I can make eggs and toast," Rebecca says defensively.

"You can't even find them," Ronnie teases.

Rebecca makes a face at her. What they're going through has a way of dividing a family or bringing them closer together. It's good to see them at least reacting to each other in a positive way. Even if it's making fun.

Jack asks, "What is this Thundercloud I heard you talking about?"

"Not what," Rebecca says. "Who. He worked at the resort."

"I seem to recall a guy named Thundercloud from a long time back," Jack says. "Now I remember. He helped blackmail someone who works at the resort. That was a mess. What's he done? Is he involved with this?"

I tell him what we know about Roger and the connection between Missy and Duke and Thundercloud.

"It wasn't Lucas's place to tell you about Roger," Jack says.

Too late.

"So Vinnie is involved with these people?" Jack asks.

I say, "We can't prove anything."

"Have you discussed this with Sergeant Lucas?" Jack asks.

"Lucas is the one that told us," I say. "Duke, the trusty from the jail, is missing. Lucas is trying to track him down."

Jack looks frustrated. "I can't believe they would let a felon just walk around outside. He should stay behind bars."

My take exactly, but I say, "They said it's not unusual for a trusty to be missing for a while but they have a warrant out for his arrest. I'm sure Lucas will find him." I'm not sure at all.

Jack surprises me by saying, "You and Ronnie should find Duke. If Lucas finds him, he may not tell you. I'm glad Rebecca called you."

Ronnie beams a short-lived smile when Jack adds, "Don't let it go to your head, honey."

Just when I was starting to like this asshole.

I say, "I want to run an idea by you, Jack." Actually I'm going to do it whether he agrees or not. "If we find Vinnie, I want to bring him here."

Jack's coffee mug stops halfway to his lips and he puts the cup down so fast it spills. "Absolutely not! He will not be in my house. I don't want him around my girls. That's a ridiculous idea."

I say, "He doesn't need to stay here. We could get a couple of rooms at a nearby hotel or motel. Ronnie and I can share a room next to him. We need to talk to him. Get him to trust us. I'm not sure Vinnie is behind any of this."

Jack seems to calm down. At least I don't see the vein throbbing on his neck now. "What good will that do?"

"Think about it. If Vinnie left the note on your wife's door, it probably means he didn't get to talk to her. Or…"

"Or what?" Jack asks.

I haven't even discussed this theory with Ronnie or Rebecca yet, but it just feels right so I have to consider it. "The kidnappers might be setting Vinnie up."

"Preposterous!" Jack says, and I see the shocked look on the sisters' faces.

"Just hear me out. Vinnie spent time in Whatcom County Jail. He was a trusty so he made contacts and is known to the jail staff and inmates. Like Duke. And Thundercloud. The kidnappers have known our every move. Rebecca said Thundercloud was the guy that was following her and her mom around a store in Birch Bay and smiling at them. Thundercloud worked at the resort for a while. His girlfriend is Missy who works at the resort. Thundercloud has connections to Roger, the resort manager who seemed stymied as to how the surveillance video was missing during the time we think your wife was kidnapped."

"That's fairly convincing," Jack says, "but what about Duke, and how does this make you believe Vinnie is being framed for the kidnapping?"

Ronnie picks up the thread. "Thundercloud knew Vinnie. Duke knows Vinnie. Mom had left money for Vinnie at the jail. She bonded Vinnie out of the jail. And it seems there's not much that goes on that doesn't get around in the jail. The note was scribbled like a child's handwriting. We only think it's from Vinnie because you remember him calling Mom Dinky. What if Vinnie used that nickname to talk about her in the jail?"

Jack is thinking. He connects the dots and says, "So you want to find Vinnie and question him about the note and if he talked to Duke or Thundercloud or anyone else at the jail and told them about the nickname. In that case you should put him somewhere safe. If the kidnappers are setting him up, they will find out he's with you and try to silence him."

I say, "I know I'm not part of this family, but I would never do anything to harm any of you. We need to find Vinnie. We need to find Duke to spread the word. Even if we don't find Vinnie, I want to spread the word Vinnie is with us and looking for his sister."

Rebecca asks, "But if you don't find Vinnie or Duke, what's the plan?"

"I'll make sure word gets around the resort." I even plan to let this leak to the jail. "We know how to find Missy and Thundercloud, Duke may show up, or the kidnappers will come and we'll be waiting."

"So, you're using Vinnie and my daughter for bait," Jack says.

"I wouldn't call it that." It's exactly that. "I'll be there too. Ronnie is tougher than you give her credit for." And I'm twice as tough.

"I don't think you're asking my permission at all. What part do I have in all of this?"

"I want you to get us a couple of rooms at a dive motel near the jail," I say. I would do it but I want Jack to feel that he has a part in finding his wife. If he's helping us, he may not stab us in the back.

Rebecca says, "Dad, we should let Uncle Vinnie stay here with us. We have surveillance cameras and alarms. I don't like the idea of Ronnie and Megan making themselves targets."

"I don't want him to stay here in our home." His eyes soften and he looks at Ronnie. "As a last resort. Okay? But I trust you not to do something reckless. If they're armed, I want you to get out of there or call the police."

Because I'm a better liar, I say, "I promise we'll do that, Jack. We'll be cautious."

Part of my idea is that Vinnie might get word that he's at the motel and know what's going on. He seems pretty shrewd and I think he wants to find his sister. The idea he's behind this is less realistic in my mind. I could be wrong; in which case I might have to hurt him. Either way we'll find out.

"What about me?" Rebecca asks.

"You can find us a motel and Jack can rent the rooms."

"Why not stay at the resort?" she asks, but the answer is obvious.

I say, "Preferably downtown Bellingham where there's high foot traffic. Maybe close to the jail, or the Mom & Pop store. You'll stay here with your dad in case you're contacted. Rent one room in the name of Vincent Lombardi. Then rent the entire motel under an assumed name."

Rebecca asks, "Do you think a motel will let me do that?"

"Money will buy you anything, sis," Ronnie says.

"Will it be dangerous?" Rebecca asks.

"For us? Nah. Not any more than driving a car, or getting out of the shower without slipping." I try to make light of this but Jack's right. This kind of money breeds unconscionable greed. "Ronnie and I have trained for this type of situation."

Jack says, "I should have the ransom money together this evening. If you catch the kidnappers tell them, I'll pay them. Money's not important. My wife's best chance is for them to give her up. Right?"

Says the guy with plenty of money. "That's a good idea, Jack." But they won't do that. "We'd better get going. Call and tell us what motel. And, Jack?" He looks at me. "If you hear from the kidnappers, what are you going to do?"

"If I hear from them, I'll call you. Not Lucas," Jack says.

"You can tell them we have the money. They may already have a place picked for the exchange. If so, tell us and we'll go. If you go, they might just kill you both. No witnesses that way."

"I didn't think of that. But I want to see Vic."

"Got it," I say.

I hope I'm not misplacing my trust in Jack. If this goes south, I'll be damned for life. Ronnie is more than a partner. I didn't think I'd ever feel this way but I'd take a bullet for her. And I know she would do the same for me. The only person I've ever felt more for is Hayden. If I've learned anything by being here, where secrets are abundant, it's that secrets are deadly. Secrets can kill. I just hope Jack's secrets don't get his wife killed. He should have come clean. Too late now.