“That always baffled me,” Mr. Coatins said. “There must be some connection, but it never showed up. I always hated leaving that case unsolved. Maybe if we had known what happened to Harcourt, it would have been better, but we didn’t have a body, or any evidence of foul play.”
“I think that is what David is hoping for. He just needs to know.” Susan felt a bead of sweat trickle down her spine. She desperately wanted to leave. She wanted to talk to David Watkins and share her new insights. The thread she had tracked down was thin, but it was all they had. Did Mr. Coatins know more than he was telling? Was he involved in Old Mr. Watkins’ disappearance?
“I hope you’ll call me if you learn anything new,” the old man said stepping aside. “Let me know if I can help.”
“Thanks,” Susan replied quickly, dodging through the space the man had made. “We’ll call you if we learn anything.”
Susan’s heart was still pounding as she slipped into her Jeep, moments before the heavens opened and rain began to pound on the vinyl roof. Hands still shaking she pulled the careful notes out of her bag, running a finger down the list. Mr. Coatins name loomed large among several others who would have known Harcourt Watkins. Whatever had happened to David’s grandfather, it was evident that the men on this list had known he would be in those hills.
“They had to know what he was doing up there.” Susan squeezed her lower lip between her teeth. “If a bad cop had been caught by Mr. Watkins with his hand in the moonshine cookie jar, would it be enough to lead to murder?”
Susan dragged a ragged breath into her lungs, trying to still her jangled nerves. If someone had silenced the old man, would they be willing to do it again? With a sudden wave of fear spreading from head to toe, Susan revved the engine, slamming the Jeep into gear and racing back the way she had come.
David could be in danger. When he had first had the accident, Susan was sure that it was just a coincidence that his journal had gone missing. Now she was positive that there was something in that book that would pinpoint the person who had silenced his grandfather forever.
“Please let him be alright,” Susan pleaded, as she screeched into a parking space and dashed into the rain headed for David’s apartment. “David! David!” she shouted racing down the hall. “David!”
David stepped into the hall, a dish rag in his hand as Susan came barreling toward him throwing herself into his arms. “What’s wrong? What happened?” He pulled her close, shocked by her panic.
“You’re okay.” Susan pulled back looking up to meet his warm brown eyes. “I was worried.”
“I’m fine,” David wrapped an arm around her pulling her into the apartment as other doors began to pop open. “Come inside before we get another visit from my nosey neighbor.”
Susan wrapped and arm around David’s waist feeling the warmth and strength of him. “Mr. Coatins was at the archives,” Susan sighed as David sat her in a chair at the table, turning to put the kettle on.
“Tell me what happened.”
Chapter 9
"Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Doesn't she light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it?
Luke 15:8
Susan watched David as he made coffee for the two of them, clamping her hands on her lap to keep from reaching for him again. She was being ridiculous letting fear get the best of her.
“I’m sorry,” she finally managed as David sat a steaming mug in front of her. “I don’t know why I was so frightened. I must have let my imagination get the best of me.”
“It’s better to be safe than sorry,” David spoke as he took a seat. “Something must have happened to ruffle you so badly. Besides, sometimes those feelings are God trying to warn you about something.”
Susan gaped for several seconds before she felt her soul melt. She had been thinking the same thing, but trying to second-guess everything was turning her inside out.
“Susan, I’m fine.” David reached across the table wrapping his hand around hers. “Now tell me what you found in the archives.”
Susan felt the tension ebb from her shoulders as David’s hand rested on hers, and her heart slowed its frantic beating. “I feel silly,” she said, feeling her face heat. “I’ll show you what I found.”
David withdrew his hand as Susan turned to get her bag. “It must be good.”
“It’s a little frightening.” Susan turned back placing her notes on the table then pulling her phone out and opening the gallery. “I was going through the police records and roles matching up names that appeared over and over in the investigation of your grandfather’s disappearance. Mr. Coatins’ name seemed to be everywhere.”
“He was the investigating officer, of course his name is on everything.”
“But what if it was him? Look,” Susan pushed her note book closer. “Officer Coatins was part of the task force that was trying to bring the moonshiners to heel. He had loads of arrests. See?” She pointed at the list of names. “This is the chief, he’s the man in the picture with your grandfather, but their names were never linked in any of the articles.”
David stood walking around the table to lean over Susan’s shoulder as she lifted her phone flipping through the pictures she had taken.
“Here are the four men who worked the hills trying to clear out the moonshiners. Coatins arrested your grandfather in ’65. He must have been trying to get your grandfather to split his profits with him. Maybe Harcourt threatened to tell the chief.” She flipped back to the picture of David’s grandfather and the man who had been in charge of the task force.
“But Grandpa wasn’t a moonshiner.” David’s stubborn statement made Susan shake
