Karl’s mouth dropped open. “Are you sure about this?”
“Absolutely. The real culprits are a pair of serial abductors. They’ve been following Sara around the state, and chose to strike last night. I was able to obtain a film of one of them from the Hard Rock Casino. The film is now in the hands of the FBI. They’re going to use it to try and catch them before they leave the area with your daughter.”
“Is Sara… alive?” he asked.
“I think so.”
“What proof do you have?”
“These two men stole your daughter because she fits a profile. Abductors who do that rarely kill their victims.”
“What kind of profile?”
“Tall, blond, and athletic.”
“What do they want with her?”
“I honestly don’t know.”
“You’ve dealt with men like this before?”
“Yes. Many times.”
Long suddenly stopped speaking. It was like he’d run into a wall, and the pain had just hit him. He covered his face with his hands and let out a muffled cry. I ripped a paper towel from the dispenser and handed it to him. Long dried his eyes and tossed the towel into the trash.
“That’s the best news you could have told me,” he said. “After I lit into you earlier, I would have thought you would have given up looking for Sara.”
“I never give up,” I said.
“I realize that now. I’m sorry about what I said. Really.”
“You had to let your anger out. I was the closest target.”
“You’re not angry at me?”
I shook my head. Long gave me a good-natured whack on the arm. Despair brings out the true character in just about everyone. Beneath the arrogance was a loving father, and I knew that I’d made an ally.
“What can I do to help?” he asked.
“The FBI will call me if they learn anything,” I said. “I may need to contact you, and ask you to pull some strings. Rescues are never easy.”
“Of course.”
Long gave me his business card. His private cell number was printed on it. As he handed the card to me, Long asked for one of mine.
“I must have lost the one you gave me,” he said.
I gave Long another card, and he tucked it into his billfold.
“Let’s go watch the rest of the game,” I said.
CHAPTER 19
He sat in the stands with the rest of the fathers and rooted for our daughters’ team. I don’t know if cheering yourself hoarse ever accomplished anything, but if felt good, and let me forget about my problems for a while.
With two minutes left in the game, the Lady Seminoles went on a scoring blitz, and I stomped my feet and yelled at the top of my lungs until the final buzzer went off. The team had won a game no one thought they would win, and they assembled in the center of the floor, hugging one another and shedding tears.
I filed out of the stands with everyone else. By the time I’d reached the lobby, I’d lost Long. I’d wanted to talk to him more, and remind him that the things I’d told him were in confidence, and not to be repeated. The last thing anyone needed was for a reporter like Chip Wells to hear that the FBI was conducting an investigation far different from the one the police were conducting.
I rescued Buster from my car, and took him for a walk. He needed some quality time, and I let him pee on anything that wasn’t moving.
Back in my car, I called Jessie. During the game she’d made eye contact with me from the floor, and I’d seen an expression of grief that told me how much she was hurting. Getting voice mail, I left a message. She called right back.
“Hey, Daddy,” she said.
“Great game,” I said.
“Thanks. It was a tough one.”
“Those are the ones that count the most.”
“Did you make any progress looking for Sara? I saw Karl Long sitting next to you in the stands. He almost looked happy.”
My daughter had inherited my instincts for reading people. She’d once told me that she was thinking of a career in law enforcement, and I’d tried to talk her out of it. Two cops in the family was one too many.
“We’ve got some promising leads,” I said.
“Tyrone didn’t abduct Sara, did he?”
Whatever I told Jessie was going to be passed among her teammates, and from there, the information could go just about anywhere. I wanted to tell Jessie what I’d learned, but in the end, it might only end up hurting Sara’s chances.
“That’s not what the police think,” I said.
“I guess you don’t want to talk about it, huh?”
“I’m sorry, but I can’t.”
“I understand. The bus is leaving for the motel. I need to go.”
“When do you head back to Tallahassee?”
“First thing in the morning.”
“Have a safe trip. Call me when you get there.”
“I will. By the way, did you call Mom? You said you would.”
“Not yet. But I will.”
“Daddy, you promised.”
I heard a click on the line that indicated I had an incoming call.
“I need to run. Love you,” I said.
“I love you, too, Daddy.”
Jessie hung up. I punched the call button on the phone.
“Carpenter here.”
“This is Karl Long. Where are you?”
Long’s voice had a mean edge, and did not sound like the man I’d just sat with at the game. He definitely had a Jekyll and Hyde personality.
“I’m still in the parking lot,” I said.
“So am I. Flash your brights so I can see you. We need to talk.”
Long made the words sound like an order. He was the general and I was the lowly foot soldier. But I wanted to hear what was on his mind, and I hit my brights until an expensive Italian sports car pulled up alongside me. In south Florida, you were judged by what you drove, and Karl’s wheels said that he was at the top of the food chain. I made Buster get in the backseat, and Long climbed in.
“What’s with the mutt?” Long asked. “I don’t like dogs.”
“Feel free to get out of the car.”
Long clenched his jaw and stared through the windshield.
“You don’t mince words, do you?” he asked.
“Why should I?” I replied.
The parking lot had emptied out, the halogen lights beginning to dim. Long let a long moment pass, then spoke without making eye contact with me.
