Helpless

Chapter 70

Tom cleared the dinner dishes from the table and put the pizza boxes in the trash. He returned to the kitchen, carrying with him two glasses of wine, a merlot from a California vineyard that he’d grown fond of. For Jill he brought a Diet Coke.

Tom raised his glass and looked up at the ceiling. “To Marvin,” he said, hoisting his glass skyward. “You fought for me. Now I’m going to fight for you.”

Tom and Rainy each took a sip of wine. Jill drank some Coke, then went back to texting.

“They didn’t find her,” Jill said, looking up from her phone with a longing in her eyes.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Rainy asked.

Jill shrugged. “Maybe you can convince my dad to let me go on the search.”

“I can’t do that,” she said. “I think your father is right to keep a close watch over you. Whatever happened to Lindsey could be connected to Mitchell Boyd. Until we know more, it’s better if you stay close by.”

“The whole team is planning two shifts, starting at six in the morning and another at four in the afternoon,” Jill said. “How much safer can I be? I’m like a prisoner. It’s not fair.”

“I agree, it’s not,” said Tom. “But it is safest. Once we know what’s going on, we can reassess. For now, it’s the way it’s got to be. What if something really bad happened to Lindsey? What if you’re the next target, Jill? I can’t let anything happen to you. I won’t.”

“If something happened to her, it would be because of me,” Jill said.

And to Marvin because of me, thought Tom.

“She’s going to be found,” Tom said, trying to reassure her.

“I know she is,” Jill said softly. She looked a bit sheepish, uncomfortable even. Tom could tell she wanted to say something else but wasn’t sure how to say it. “Are you guys dating, or something?” she blurted.

Tom hadn’t known what Jill was going to say, but he certainly didn’t expect that. He suppressed most of an embarrassed cough, while Rainy’s cheeks flushed.

“No,” Tom said. “Rainy’s going to help investigate what happened to Marvin.”

Jill turned to Rainy, seeming satisfied with that answer. “What about Mitchell Boyd? The pictures I saw on his computer? Are they connected to Lindsey’s disappearance?”

“We looked at his computers. His phone, too. Everything came back clean.”

“I knew it would,” Jill replied. Her voice was downtrodden and weighty.

“But I’m not done looking,” said Rainy. “I think there is something there. With Tanner Farnsworth. Mitchell Boyd. Something, but I don’t know what. Not yet, at least.”

“I understand,” Jill said. “I’m just glad you believe me.” Jill took another sip of Coke and stood up from the table. “I’ve got a lot of homework to do. I’m going to go to my room. Thanks for dinner, Dad. Good night, Rainy.”

“Good night, Jill.”

Tom watched Jill and Rainy shake hands good-bye. He caught a glimmer of sadness in his daughter’s eyes. He wondered if it was over Lindsey Wells, or something else. Did Rainy’s presence make her miss her mother? he wondered.

Rainy sat down across from Tom. Her face, naturally beautiful, looked angelic in the flickering glow of two low-burning candles. Tom waited for the expected music to blast out of Jill’s room before he spoke. He didn’t want his daughter to overhear the conversation to come.

“Tell me more about what you found at Boyd’s house,” Tom said. “You think he’s the link?”

Rainy kept her gaze fixed on Tom as she took in a deep breath. She could look at me like that for hours, he thought.

“I think we need to figure out who set you up.”

“Well, Mitchell Boyd had these images, too. Isn’t that what Jill found on his computer?”

“Allegedly, yes.”

“So, we go after him.”

“It’s not that easy. He says he had a virus. He rebuilt all his computers from scratch.”

“He’s a liar,” Tom said.

“Tom, why didn’t Roland Boyd go to the police after you broke into his house?”

“Maybe he was worried about the police finding out what was on Mitchell’s computers.”

“Could be,” Rainy said. “Murphy told me they questioned Tanner Farnsworth. According to phone records, Lindsey called him last.”

“And?”

“And he’s got an airtight alibi. Mitchell Boyd does as well.”

“Let me guess,” said Tom. “Both kids were with Roland Boyd.”

“You read the report.”

“In this town, I know where the questions stop. I get framed for something I didn’t do. Jill finds pictures of herself and Lindsey on Mitchell Boyd’s computer. Lindsey goes missing. Mitchell’s computers get a virus. Marvin is murdered. Connect the dots and it draws a picture of Roland and Mitchell Boyd.”

“You can’t prove that.”

“What does proof have to do with justice?” Tom said, too loudly. “Can you prove that I’m innocent?”

“No. I can’t prove it,” Rainy said. “But I can still believe it.”

Tom shook his head in disgust. “So you can’t prove I’m innocent. Only believe it. And you can’t prove the Boyds are guilty.”

“No, but I can work on getting search warrants and wiretaps to find out the truth. The courts and lawyers are the ones to prove it.”

“You’ve got a lot of faith in the system.”

“I have to. Otherwise, I couldn’t do my job.”

“Marvin had faith, too. Look where that got him.”

“You’ve got to be patient. It’s just not going to happen overnight.” Rainy took a sip of wine and glanced down at her watch. “It’s getting late,” she said. “I better go.”

“I’m glad you came.”

“Me too,” Rainy said.

“I’ll walk you out.”

The clouds had cleared, and the night sky was a canvas of stars. Rainy pulled her car keys out of her purse but didn’t immediately open the car door.

“You really are on my side, aren’t you?” he said.

Rainy smiled from the corner of her mouth, in a way that Tom had never seen before. It made her look even more attractive. He didn’t know what made him reach out and take hold of her hand. He was just glad that she let him.

“So what was this really?” Rainy asked, still holding Tom’s hand.

“Dinner,” Tom said.

“But was it… a date?”

“I wouldn’t lie to my daughter.”

Rainy laughed. “No, you wouldn’t.”

“But this could be a date.”

“What? Here? Outside your house, by my car?”

Tom nodded. “Not the best of locations, I agree. Not the best circumstances, by any stretch. But it’s all about intention.” Tom took hold of Rainy’s other hand and tingled as their fingers interlocked.

“Is our date over?” Rainy asked.

Tom nodded again. “Yeah, busy day tomorrow.”

“Well, I had a nice time.”

“Do you kiss on the first date?”

“I don’t know.”

“You don’t know?”

“I haven’t been on a date in so long, it’s hard to remember.”

“So you might be willing to kiss, is that what you’re implying?”

Rainy cocked her head in a coy, playful gesture. “Jury’s out on that one,” she said.

Tom let go of Rainy’s hands. He cupped her cheeks with his hands. Her eyes grew wide and seemed to draw him to her. There was a brief hesitation when their lips first touched. She leaned into him, and they kissed harder. They each pulled away at the same instant. Again, he held Rainy’s hands.

“The jury may be out,” Rainy said, “but the verdict is in.”

She gave Tom a last quick kiss, then climbed into her car. Tom stood at the edge of the driveway and watched her drive away. He waited until her car’s taillights faded from his view.

He had made it halfway back up the driveway when he heard a loud crash. He recognized the sound instantly. It was the noise glass made when it shattered. The next sound he recognized, too, but it was one he’d never heard before.

It was the sound of his daughter screaming.

When Tom got to Jill’s bedroom, his daughter was still screaming. He saw shattered glass and the rock someone had thrown through her bedroom window. He picked up the rock and saw a note attached with rubber bands. The note read:

Your father is a rapist and a kidnapper. He’s probably got Lindsey in your basement. You should kill yourself so you don’t have to live with him. If you don’t, somebody will do it for you.