Missing: The Body of Evidence Read online

  ‘I assume that’s the progression of the fire taken with a thermal camera from a helicopter. It looks like a perfect circle.’

  ‘Yup. That’s what’s strange, considering the terrain. It seems odd events are following us around.’

  ‘You mean like, the spontaneous combustion at the professor’s apartment.’

  ‘Yeah, the fire at the CSI lab, and now this.’

  Nancy felt a shiver wash through her body at his remark.

  ‘What was strange about the CSI laboratory, I thought someone said it was a power surge after an outage.’

  ‘We still haven’t figured it out yet. There was no outage on the night, and in any case the laboratory has its own regulator system to even out any power surge.’

  Nancy tapped a finger on her lips.

  ‘Strange, and as I said, now this, a forest fire that burned in a perfect circle.’

  ‘There’s an explanation for everything, we just haven’t fathomed it yet. Fires can create their own weather systems in the immediate vicinity. Just be thankful you and Kyle have survived. We haven’t received any information from the weather people yet; maybe they can tell us if some sort of downdraught twister was likely. But that wouldn’t explain how the fire started, only how it may have spread.’

  ‘Who called in the fire? I thought at the time it was weird that they sent a search and rescue team out so quickly.’

  He shuffled his notes.

  ‘David Summers alerted them that there was someone staying at the cabin. It says here, the cabin rental company employs him as a repairperson. He lives in a cabin on the hillside facing your cabin. His description of what he saw from his position on his veranda, and I quote ‘I was looking out over the creek and it started as a central flame. The flames ran in a circle left and right as if a circus hoop was being set on fire.’ He couldn’t see behind the cabin on the hillside, but he said shortly after, there was a glow from behind the cabin. He saw car lights try to run through the fire wall and then saw the vehicle turn back to the cabin.’

  Summers statement jogged her memory of the encounter with his dog. Nancy relayed the details of when she had seen rustling in the dense undergrowth on the hillside.

  ‘Maybe it wasn’t the dog I saw in the bushes moving in an arc? Perhaps someone was laying down a chemical trail, and we were their targets?’

  ‘They would have had to be pretty damn clever to do it in a perfect circle considering the landscape and dense bushes. Besides that, they haven’t found any traces of accelerant near where Summers says he saw the fire start. Nor did they find any tracks. We can only assume a spark drifted in from somewhere. If someone did start it deliberately, they’ve covered their tracks and left us with the fire department’s equivalent of a crop circle to investigate.’

  Nancy scoffed and shrugged her shoulders. Stupid, girl. Who would want to kill Kyle and me anyway? It must’ve been a spark from a campfire... surely.

  Chapter 39

  Ten-twenty in the morning, and Nancy had still not seen the doctor. She had half a mind to skip the ward and to go to Kyle’s bedside. A familiar voice distracted her train of thought and the curtains parted. Bill’s beaming smile greeted her and she placed the fingers of both hands on her cheeks, before waving for him to enter.

  ‘Bill! I thought you were on vacation. How did you know I was here?’

  ‘News travels, not much gets past me, vacation or not, besides, we weren’t going anywhere. How are you?’

  ‘I’m fine, just a little sore. Have you been to see Kyle?’

  ‘No, I was lucky to get to see you at this time of day. I had to flash my badge. I bumped into Rob, he told me what happened.’

  Nancy was relieved she didn’t have to go through all the details again.

  ‘What you want to do; is to use this as an excuse to take a few weeks sick leave, and to forget all about work.’

  ‘Maybe. Perhaps Kyle will need a nurse,’ Nancy said, and winked at Bill.

  The curtains opened again and her dad walked through. He sent Bill a stare. Bill looked down at his feet.

  ‘What are you doing here?’ Dad asked Bill.

  ‘Just going,’ he replied. ‘Take care, Detective Roberts, I have all the details to relay back to Logan at the office.’

  Detective Roberts? Bill turned to leave and Dad’s disdainful glare followed him through the curtain. How rude.

  ‘Do you know him?’Nancy asked.

  He didn’t answer, but set down a luggage bag at the side of the bed. He looked agitated. Nancy assumed they must have had a run in some time. Whatever their connection, there was clearly bad blood between them.

  ‘There’re some of my pyjamas in there, a dressing gown, and an old cell phone. Best I could do. Are you ready to go, I can give you a lift home.’

  ‘I haven’t seen the doctor yet and I need to see my boyfriend who was with me in the accident. If you can give me some money, I can take a taxi.’

  ‘Suits me.’ He took out his wallet, fished out some bills and tossed them on the bedcover. ‘Anything else you’ll be needing?’

  ‘Yeah, I need to thank you for saving both our lives.’

  ‘How come.’

  ‘Well, besides the clothes and the money, my boyfriend’s car careened into a lake. I remembered all you taught me about breathing to stop panic and how I’d need to equalize the pressure to get out of a sinking car.’

  He shrugged his shoulders. ‘At least you listened to something I said.’

  There was something on his mind, but he seemed to be talked-out, which didn’t surprise her. But she thought he would have at least asked what happened and how she was.

  ‘By the way, I think I’ll live.’

  ‘I can see that.’

  The next minute hung in uncomfortable silence. The doctor rescued both of them when he swept the curtains aside and picked up the clipboard from the bottom of the bed.

  ‘I’d better be going.’

  ‘See you, Dad.’ In the blink of an eye, he was gone.

  Nancy was trembling inside and she hoped it didn’t show on the outside, or maybe the doctor would see it as a sign that she was other than fit for discharge. The nurse walked in and joined the doctor. It peeved her the way they whispered about her. The doctor turned to her.

  ‘Can you stand and walk for me?’

  ‘Sure.’

  The nurse pulled back the bed covers and Nancy threw her legs over the side of the bed. Her feet touched the floor and she eased herself to stand at the side of the bed. Nancy said an inward prayer, and walked to the bottom of the bed.

  ‘How was that, any pain?’ the doctor asked.

  ‘Fine, no pain,’ she lied.

  ‘Good, I think we can send you home.’

  The nurse opened the curtain for the doctor to leave, followed him and drew the curtains. Yes! A sense of glee overcame the anxiousness that had twisted her insides. Nancy hauled the bag of clothing onto the bed, unzipped it and tipped out the contents. Damn, nothing for my feet. She removed her hospital gown and put on the pyjamas. She rolled up the sleeves and then the pants legs. Nancy slipped on the dressing gown over her pyjamas. She turned over the sleeves and looked down at the hem, which was almost touching the floor. Oh, Dad, what were you thinking? Undeterred, Nancy threw back the curtain and headed for the floor where Kyle was.

  The receptionist looked up Kyle’s details and gave her directions to his room. The corridor on Kyle’s floor seemed to go on forever as she checked the private room door numbers. Finally, she arrived at his door, which was ajar, and she could hear him and his mom talking. Nancy ran her hands down the sides of her dressing gown and waved her head from side to side. Nancy heard Kyle’s mom speaking.

  ‘Why won’t you let me phone Chloe?’

  ‘You know I love her, but it’s best she doesn’t see me like this.’

  A cold shudder passed through Nancy’s body and her legs weakened. Chloe... Love? Nancy thought she was about to faint, and walked unsteadily over to a se
at and collapsed onto a chair. None of what she had heard made sense. Was the ring for Chloe? The bastard, he is a player. Then logic kicked in; it didn’t make sense in her mind that he would ask her to live together if he loved someone else. Maybe, she thought, it could be an aunt. It is an aunt; it has to be an aunt. She kept repeating the notion in her mind and hitting her thigh with a clenched fist. Nancy took a deep breath, stood, and marched over to the door and entered.

  ‘Nancy, good to see you’re okay,’ said his mom. ‘I’ll leave you two alone and go and find a coffee.’

  Nancy wasn’t sure it would be a good idea to be left alone with him. Right at that moment, she wanted to strangle him. Kyle sat up in bed with pillows stacked behind him and a smirk that she wished she could swipe from his face.

  ‘I hear from Bill I owe you my life? Thank God, you’re okay.’

  She wasn’t sure how to respond, but was mindful of how Kyle had jumped to conclusions in the viewing room when she had drenched Logan. She decided to hold her counsel, but there was no point in not asking the question.

  ‘Who’s Chloe?’

  ‘Oops, I think I’d better go for that coffee.’

  His mom left the room.

  ‘Don’t look so serious. I guess you listened at the door?’

  ‘Not intentionally.’

  ‘I was going to tell you before the fire interrupted me, remember?’

  Her question had had the desired effect and had wiped the grin from his lips, replaced with a look of panic in his eyes.

  ‘Honestly, I was going to tell you. None of the guys at the station knows anything about her, but I wasn’t going to keep it a secret from you. I was just scared to tell you earlier, in fact I still am scared.’

  Nancy, emotionally drained, could feel anger well up inside because he was drawing out the conversation.

  ‘For God’s sake stop being a wimp and spit it out.’

  There was a few seconds silence.

  ‘Chloe is my daughter.’

  ‘Daughter?’

  The speed at which she covered the four paces to the side of his bed would have won Nancy a gold medal.

  ‘Arghh, my ribs,’ He screamed out, as she threw her arms around him and planted a kiss on his lips.

  ‘Sorry.’ She drew back. ‘You dark horse. When do I meet her? How old is she?’

  ‘Slow down. Chloe is eleven. You can see her all in good time. She lives over in East LA with her mom. You really don’t mind? All my other girlfriends have run a mile when they found out I had a daughter.’

  ‘Don’t mind? If she had four legs and two heads, I couldn’t be any happier. I’m just ecstatic you’re alive.’

  ‘Thank God. Where did you get that outfit?’

  ‘Oh, this?’ She realized she must look strange. ‘Dad. Incidentally, thinking about Dad, did Bill mention where he knew him from, they seemed to know each other?’

  ‘No idea.’

  Her shoulders dropped. She knew her dad would not say anything and with Bill on vacation, she doubted there would be an opportunity to ask the question. She resigned herself to the notion that their secret would remain a mystery.

  ‘What has the doctor said?’

  ‘Bruised rib, stitches on the gash on my head and a sprained knee. He reckons I’ll be out on Tuesday. And you?’

  ‘Only small cuts on my arm, otherwise he says I’m fine.’

  The time slipped by, then his mom poked her head around the door.

  ‘Is it safe?’

  They both laughed and Kyle beckoned his mom to enter the room. His mom tapped her watch.

  ‘Time for your physiotherapy.’

  ‘I need to get a taxi to my car,’ Nancy said. ‘I can go home, get changed and come back for a visit tonight.’

  ‘I’ll give you ride to your car,’ said his mom and passed her the keys to her car and apartment.

  ‘No, leave it tonight,’ said Kyle. ‘I really am tired and besides, you need to rest. Your hospital test, remember. Why don’t you visit tomorrow after your hospital appointment and we can make plans for when I’m discharged?’

  ‘Ah, yes, the plans. Congratulations.’ His mom winked at Nancy. ‘Come, dear, let’s go and I’ll fill you in on any gaps about Chloe that he’s probably missed.’

  All excitement waned on the way to the car. Her mind wandered. Nancy, features expressionless, looked as if she had donned a pale mask. Three unexplained incidents relating to the fire defied coincidence in her mind. Inwardly, she vowed to find the answers to events that tracked back to the professor’s death. Nothing, in her mind, was going to stand in the way of her future with Kyle.

  Chapter 40

  Monday morning; a glance at the clock showed it was seven-thirty-five. Nancy had showered, dressed, and after eating a fried breakfast, was eager to get to work. On leaving Kyle on Sunday the day had dragged. Today, she hoped to immerse herself in work and to pass time quickly. Thoughts of the MRI scan, though scary, were regarded as a milestone, one that, in her mind, brought her nearer to the time she could visit Kyle.

  After the scan, she would need to call her bank branch to arrange new bankcards. Customer services had been most unhelpful when she had phoned them, telling her there was a computer glitch and she would need to call into her branch to have them replaced. The evening before, she had spent the night trying to make a space in her closet for Kyle’s clothes, but in the end, she gave up trying and decided to allocate him the spare-bedroom closet. The phone rang and she answered the call. Logan?

  ‘Don’t come into the office, the press is camped out and wanting a story on your incident with the wildfire.’

  ‘I thought you had something lined up for me?’

  ‘I do, if you’d let me finish. Meet me in reception at 100 West Main Street 10:00 a.m., sharp. We have an appointment with personnel. You are fit to work, I take it?’

  ‘Well, yeah, but I have an appointment this afternoon at the hospital for some tests.’

  Personnel division?

  ‘Good, it won’t take that long.’

  The call ended with the handset still pressed to her ear. Her mind rolled over why he wanted her to meet him at personnel. To her, as much as she wanted time to pass, events regarding her future career were moving too quickly. It was obvious Logan knew that she and Kyle had spent the weekend away together, despite his protestations, but she didn’t think Logan had been serious about shipping one of them out of the division so soon. A laugh escaped her lips, and she placed the handset back on its cradle.

  ‘To hell with him, I was the one who was going to ask for a transfer, anyway.’

  The only thing that bugged Nancy was that it would be obvious whom Logan favoured to stay in the department. Otherwise, she was pleased to be getting the subject behind her and she suppressed her competitive streak.

  With the door to the apartment locked, Nancy skipped down the stairway and headed for her car. Only one more morning after this and she knew they would discharge Kyle from the hospital. Kyle moving into her apartment had given her a new meaning for existing. She opened the car door and slipped onto her seat.

  The traffic was jammed, but Flying Without Wings blaring out over the speakers lifted her spirits. Finally, picking up the one way on South West Street, her heart skipped a beat. Parked before the cross section with West Street, were two news channel vans, one from channel 2, and a Brazilian news channel, Univision 34 Noticias. Nancy hoped their target was some other poor soul as she turned left at the lights and moved slowly along West Street.

  Nancy parked her car and made her way to reception. She was twenty minutes early and took a seat in the foyer. The girl in reception kept smiling over at her, but Nancy was too busy thinking to strike up a conversation. A thought had struck her that she had the situation wrong, and with their escape from the wildfire being newsworthy, that maybe she was going to be portrayed as a heroin for saving Kyle’s life.

  Commendation started to whirl through her mind. Perhaps, she thought, this was what
the meeting was all about and to prepare her for the television interviews so the police department could extract maximum PR. Thoughts that the publicity may prevent Logan from carrying out his threat made her smile inside.

  Lost in her daydream, she hadn’t noticed Logan arrive.

  ‘You ready?’ he asked

  ‘Sure am.’

  Her answer was an understatement; Nancy had never felt so good.

  Neither of them spoke a word as they made their way in the elevator to personnel. She hoped that if her latest scenario were correct, he would have to choke on his acceptance of the situation with her and Kyle.

  ‘Wait here.’

  Logan entered the office and returned with a woman carrying a file. If she was about to bestow Nancy with congratulations, it didn’t show. If anything, the woman’s facial expression looked as though she had a bad smell under her nose. They walked down the corridor and stopped at a door signed ‘Conference room.’

  ‘Take a seat,’ said the woman, followed with a false smile.

  A glimpse of three men sitting around a conference table came into view as the door opened and closed, leaving Nancy alone.

  The palms of Nancy’s hands felt clammy, and her breakfast started to rumble in her stomach.

  The door opened and the woman from personnel beckoned her inside.

  ‘Detective Roberts. This way.’

  Nancy stood and ran her hands from her waist to her hips, waved her head from side to side. With her back straight and her head held high, she strode into the room with a confident sense of purpose.

  There wasn’t a smile to be seen anywhere in the room. The woman pulled out a chair at the table and Nancy sat next to a beast of a man weighing over 240 pounds. He was sweating profusely. The man unfastened the collar of his shirt and loosened his tie. He leaned over to her and whispered.

  ‘I’m your union rep. You’re here to answer some questions and I’m here to ensure fair play.’

  Nancy’s jaw lightened and her arms fell to her sides. She looked at Logan at the head of the table for a clue, but he averted her gaze. The two men opposite looked to have overly starched shirts for detectives and both sent a stare straight at her.