“When you came by earlier, you said you were looking for Will because you were worried about him. Was that all it was?”
“Yes, why? Have you seen him?”
Instead of answering, Hector said, “Two men just left my place. They were looking for Will, as well. They had a picture of him and everything.”
“Did they say who they were?”
“They showed me a badge, but it was too quick for me to see what agency they worked for. Called themselves Agent Frisk and Agent Abrams, and they knew who I was.”
“Give me a minute, Hector.”
Hector could hear clicking as if the sheriff was typing something. He glanced toward the top of the stairs as he waited for the sheriff to finish whatever he was doing. He hoped Will stayed asleep until he knew what was going on.
“There are no warrants or APBs out on Will at the moment. There’s not even a person of interest hold request. I can’t think of why agents would want to talk to Will, but I’m sure it’s nothing.”
That wasn’t the feeling Hector got from the men who questioned him.
“Is there any chance someone could be looking for Will and not put it out over the wires?” Hector asked.
“There’s always a chance, Hector, but it’s unlikely.”
Damn.
“What’s this all about, Hector? Do you know where Will is?”
Hector winced. “Maybe.”
Sheriff Riley’s heavy sigh came through the phone line loud and clear. “Where is he, Hector?”
“Tell me why you want him first.”
“Hector.”
“Look.” Hector could feel his ire at this entire situation growing in leaps and bounds. “This kid is terrified, Sheriff. He jumps at his own shadow. And in the span of a few hours, I’ve had a sheriff and some federal agents come looking for him. I don’t mind telling you I think it’s strange that you all showed up on my doorstep considering I had never met Will until this morning. Now, before I tell anyone where he is, I want to know why everyone is looking for him.”
“I can understand your frustration, Hector, but you still shouldn’t lie to law enforcement officials.”
“I never lied to you, Sheriff. I hadn’t met Will when you came to ask me about him. I met him after that.” It was the truth. Hector just left out the part where he suspected Will was in the basement.
“Why didn’t you call me?”
“To be honest, there hasn’t been time.”
That was sort of true.
The sheriff sighed again. “Okay, here’s the deal, at least on my end. I have no idea why anyone else would be looking for Will. I wanted to find him because he finished his community service and disappeared, just like I said. I don’t think Will is a bad guy. He just fell in with the wrong people, and I’m hoping that if—”
“You show him the right people, he might straighten up.”
Sheriff Riley chuckled. “Something like that.”
It actually wasn’t a bad plan. If Will spent more time around those in Cade Creek, he might discover what true friends were like, instead of hanging with people like Fred Wilson.
“What can I do to help him, Sheriff?”
“Well…” Sheriff Riley drew in a breath. “You can start by telling me why you want to help him.”
“I’m not sure it’s something that can be easily explained.” At least not something he really wanted to talk about. “I just think he needs a friend.” Hector wanted to be that friend. Why? He had no idea, but that didn’t make it any less true.
