Page 109 of Little Girl Vanished

I’d like that. 1:00? Is that too late?

Nope. Perfect. Meet me at Roots.

I couldn’t help smiling. He knew I’d loved that restaurant growing up. Andi and I both had loved it. Now I had a couple of hours to talk the neighbors and possibly work on something else before lunch.

But to be safe, I sent my mother a text next.

There’s some dangerous stuff going on right now. Maybe keep your alarm on all the time, even during the day to be safe.

I knew the fear aspect would get to her, and I bet she’d already set her alarm.

I could see she’d read my text, but she didn’t respond. I wasn’t surprised.

The next forty-five minutes were a case study of frustration. Most of the neighbors spoke to me this time, although grudgingly. No one had seen the driver of the van, and they all claimed not to have noticed my car, let alone who might have broken into it. Of course, they could be lying, but I had no way of knowing or proving that.

I was heading up Lisa Murphy’s front walk when my phone vibrated with a call. Stopping to pull it out, I saw Louise’s name on the screen and answered.

“You know that van you were asking about?” she said without preamble. “We found it about a half-hour ago.”

Hope sprang up. “Really? Where?”

“Behind Scooter’s Tavern. And that’s not all.” Her voice had an ominous tone.

I knew that was too good to be true. “What?”

“Eddie Johnson’s body is inside, and you’re never gonna believe this.”

“What?”

“He’s missing a thumb.”

My stomach fell. “Are you looking at Malcolm as a suspect?”

“They kind of have to, don’t they? But I can’t believe Malcolm would be that stupid. I mean…really.”

“Do you think Chief Larson would care about that?”

“No,” she said, “And he’s already fighting with the sheriff over jurisdiction.”

Shit. I had to warn Malcolm. “I need to go. I’m about to have lunch with my dad.”

“Oh, that’s nice,” she said. “Are you discussing the job interview?”

“Among other things.”

We hung up and I called Malcolm’s number. Of course, he was too cool to answer, or maybe too busy dealing with the fallout of a dead body popping up behind his business. I called Hale next and told his receptionist who I was and that it was important.

“I don’t have anything scheduled yet,” Hale said when he answered. “I’m still working on it. I’m good but not that good.”

“That’s why I’m calling. They found Eddie Johnson behind Scooter’s Tavern.”

“Yeah,” he said with an exaggerated sigh. “I know. Malcolm’s lying low, but it adds more pressure to our timeline.”

“Where is he?”

“Not at the tavern, if that’s what you’re asking. He’ll be staying away from there for the unforeseeable future.”

“Whoever kidnapped Eddie is framing Malcolm,” I said. “Makes me re-question Ricky Morris’s involvement.”