“That’s sick.” Mick swallowed and looked away. “Where do we go from here then?”
“I need to think about it. Perhaps get in touch with Sydney and see if they’ve managed to come across anything lately. Seems to me that the city would be the place for selling kids, not out here in the bush, but it’s a perfect place to take them from.” Jake scratched his chin, his nail making a rasping noise over the short growth captivating her attention.
“I agree. I would think that they’d come to the country and other small towns to choose their victims and take those kids back to prospective parents in the city though. No point shitting in their own nest so to speak. I’m going to look at a radius of a few hundred miles and see how many kids have been taken in the last couple of years.” Ryder killed the page on her computer with a shudder racing over her shoulders. “If there’s nothing you want me to do, I might go and interview the parents of the two little ones who’re missing.”
“Sure. Take Mick with you. He knows the families.”
“Of course. Before I start this, perhaps you can tell me why I’m getting funny looks from the locals and why some won’t talk to me. Its not a stranger thing either. One guy got snarky when he mentioned my family. What’s going on I need to know about.”
Jake turned around and looked at her, his lips drawn tight together. Mick moved nervously beside him. “There were a few complaints about your grandfather when Paris went missing. Seemed he’d shown an inordinate interest in her when he was doing some maintenance work at the day care centre his niece runs. We couldn’t prove anything but some of the locals think he had something to do with her disappearance.”
The blood seemed to drain from Ryder’s face, her palms felt clammy. “My grandfather?”
“Don’t sweat it. You’ll be fine once they get to know you. He’s a strange old bird but pretty harmless I think.”
“Okay.” She rested her head in her hands, taking deep breaths to stop her racing out of the station to scoop Ebony up in her arms and take her away. “So no links at all, right?”
“Nope. Not a single shred of evidence. Seems someone had it in for him and blamed him for everything that went wrong in town, from missing poultry to a broken window that we finally put down to adventurous kids and a golf club. Nothing could be proven against him so don’t worry. Some people are just small minded with nothing better to do than stir up trouble.” He gave her a disarming smile “Look, your grandfather is a bit strange, likes to do his own thing in his own way. Bit of a recluse. Some people don’t deal with that really well, but it’s not a crime.”
“Okay. If you say so.” She breathed until her heart rate slowed again, kicking herself for being so paranoid about her daughter’s safety that she would panic without thinking it through clearly.
“He’s a harmless old man. You’ll see for yourself on Saturday. Amy tells me you’re going to the meet and greet barbecue.”
“Yes, apparently I am.”
“You’ll meet my folks too. Not family technically, but we always seem to get invited to these things.” Jake jammed his hands in his pockets and grinned at her sheepishly. “Listen. I was at my folks place the other night and Dad made me promise to ask you if you’d like a pup. Our dog Jessie has a litter and it’ll be her last. He’ll no doubt make the offer again on Saturday so I thought I’d warn you to give you time to make up an excuse. They won’t be ready for a few more weeks yet. You don’t have to say yes.”
“Um, to be honest I haven’t given more animals much thought. We got landed with chickens and a rooster from the last tenants.”
“Plus an old horse too I hear.” Mick grinned.
“Yes and a cat that Ebony thinks is going to be her new best friend if she can ever get it to come to her. I think she has kittens and is keeping her distance.” Ryder brushed her short hair out of her eyes. Almost time to get another haircut before it got out of hand again. Something normal to think about to bring her back down to slow and steady after that little bit of information had set her heart pounding.
“I’m sure she could charm the birds from the trees if she had a mind to.” Mick looked embarrassed when Ryder turned to him. “Sorry. I met her at day care the other day when I picked up my girlfriend. She’s one of Ebony’s teachers. Sian, Sian Compton.”
“Oh right. Of course. I’m sure you’re right, she is pretty persuasive when she puts her mind to it.”
“Let’s hope her mother is the same then.” Jake tipped his chin at the files on her desk. “I’d love to be able to stamp solved on those files and with your experience, we may be able to do that.”
“Not trying to pressure me or anything.” That small niggle of tension welled in her chest. Yes, she was a good cop, great at her job and Ryder knew it. Apparently so did Jake. Her references were fabulous, perhaps too perfect if all she wanted was the quiet life of living in a small country town raising her daughter away from the hustle and bustle of busy Washington D. C..
A total change of lifestyle meant she no longer wanted to be involved in the high profile cases anymore either.
