Hiding In The Dark. Sava Mathou

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СКАЧАТЬ coming easy to this man. Ellie had the same look after her husband had died, and she recognized the pain in his eyes right off. Instantly, she felt a connection to the man, leading him over to the sofa and offering him coffee.

      With pleasantries aside, she picked up her pad of paper and pen off the coffee table.

      “What can I do for you, Mr. Wallace?” She hoped her voice didn’t betray her the fear she was feeling and let him know that she was scared to death.

      “Bill. Please call me Bill.” His voice was giving way to a slight crack in his armor.

      “All right. Bill.” She smiled. “What can I do for you?”

      “As I said on the phone, my daughter went missing last month. Her car was found near our home, and we want to find our daughter.” Sadness and anger, filling his voice.

      “Tell me a little about your daughter,” she said.

      “Shelby would be nineteen this coming month. I mean, she will be nineteen this coming month.”

      Trying to recover from talking about her in the past tense, tears began to fill his eyes. Ellie handed him a tissue while letting him regain his composure. Ellie sat patiently, waiting for him to continue.

      “Shelby is 5'4", 120 pounds, brown hair, brown eyes, and is petite in her build. Here is a picture that I brought of her. It was her senior portrait that she took when she graduated, but she still looks quite the same.”

      “You have a beautiful daughter, Mr. Wallace. I mean Bill.” Looking at the picture, Ellie began to see the family resemblance. “Tell me about the events of that night and the last time you saw her.”

      “That evening, Shelby was getting ready for a night out with some friends of hers from school. She had asked me if I would lend her a few dollars for gas money. You know how kids are, always with the handout.” His attempt at humor lost. “I spoke with her in the living room of our home. I gave her a twenty for gas. Told her to be careful, and to call if she needed a ride. We didn’t want her drinking and driving and always told her call in she got herself in a spot.”

      “Did she happen to mention where she would be going and with who?”

      “She never said, but I assumed it was with her girlfriends. She always hung with Stacy Ketchum and Lynn Heart. They had all been childhood friends and have remained close.” Bill rattled off their phone numbers, and their addresses.

      “Do you have any idea where they might have gone that evening?”

      “My wife spoke with Stacy and Lynn. They told her that they went down to the ball field at the school in Wolf Creek. Had a few beers with their friends. Then Shelby dropped them off and said she was headed home. Her car was found about an hour after dropping them off at home. It was parked on Little Wolf Creek Road by the new bridge. The keys were still in the ignition, and her purse was lying on the front passenger seat. Nothing was taken from the car or her purse as far as we could tell.”

      “What did the police say about investigating the case?” She would have to get that report.

      “They said there were no signs of foul play. They brought in the bloodhounds and did a search of the area and came up with nothing. Her friend’s stories all confirmed what I told you already. The police think she may have run off with a man and told us that we will probably get a call from her any day now. If that’s the case, then why would she not take her purse and just leave the car in the middle of the road? None of this makes sense.”

      “Was she involved with any men that you know?” Bill looked up at Ellie, staring daggers at her for the question. “I am sorry, Bill. I did not mean this question to be rude.”

      “I know. I know. I am sorry too. This has nearly killed her mother.” His shoulders and head sank defeated by the stress of the situation

      “If we are going to find your daughter, then we have to ask the tough questions. We may not like some of the answers we find. But they must be asked,” she said quietly.

      “She was seeing a boy. But as far as we know, they broke up and are now just friends. His name is Steve Elliott. He works on one of the local ranches as a cowhand.” He gave her the rest of the information on the ranch and his contact information.

      “All right. Let me start gathering some information. I am going to need to get her birth date, social security number, credit cards numbers, etc. I will check to see if anything has been run through on her credit cards. I will talk to some friends at the sheriff’s office and start seeing what I can find out. I think I am going to want to talk to everyone that was at that party. Someone has to know something to give us some insight into what happened to Shelby. They might be more willing to talk to me, her father, or the sheriff. I will see what I can find out and be in touch.”

      Bill got up from the sofa, looking thoroughly defeated from the experience. Ellie felt a twinge in her heart for the man. She knew his loss. Shelby’s father seemed to have aged right before her eyes during their discussions. Seeing Bill to the door, she placed a hand on his shoulder and let him know that she would be doing everything in her power to help find his daughter. A slight forced smile came to his lips. He turned and walked away.

      Racing back to her computer and phone, Ellie began her search on her first case. This was going to be a tough one, she felt. She had a feeling that before this case was over that it was going to tap every emotion she had. Ellie knew she needed to put those emotions aside and get to work.

      Emotions were not going to help her find this man’s daughter.

      Picking up the phone, she dialed the sheriff’s office and asked to speak with Officer Barkley. She was going to have to pull a string or two to get some answers. This is where charm and fortitude were going to come in handy.

      “This is Officer Barkley.” Sounding just like an officer, she mused to herself.

      “Jim. It’s Ellie Moore. How are you?” Using all the sweetness in her voice.

      “Mrs. Moore? I am good. What can I do for you?” Surprise in his voice.

      “Now, Jim. It was Mrs. Moore when you and John Jr. were kids. Now it’s Ellie. I need your help on a case I am working on.” She went on to explain about Shelby Wallace and having her dad as a new client.

      “I had heard a rumor that you had become a private detective. Wasn’t sure what to make of it to be honest. I never expected you to jump in this line of work.”

      “Well, to be honest, after John died, I started looking for something to do, and this type of work always interested me. Do you think you can help me out?” Praying that he would take her seriously.

      “It’s not my case but let me do some checking. It might be late this afternoon. I have to be up in court here in a bit. Give me your fax number, and I will try to get the report over to you before dinner.” Now sounding a bit rushed.

      Ellie gave him her fax number and cell number and said to say hello to his folks.

      This was going to be a long afternoon. Ellie was ready to go to work. In the meantime, she would get a hold of Shelby’s credit card company and her bank to see what she could find. But first, a coffee run was in order. Plus she was eager to let Sue know that she got her first case. This would give her a chance, too, to absorb everything and start putting all the information СКАЧАТЬ