He cheated.
He almost got Evie killed.
Later, as Lainie drove home, she struggled with indignation. How could Evie forgive Stan after all the hurt and pain he’d caused? Then it hit like a fiery arrow to the chest—I expect God to forgive me. How am I any better than Stan?
For a time, I turned my back on God and my family.
I violated department policy and almost lost my job.
I was inches away from a full-blown affair with a married man.
Tears fell as she drove, and Lainie knew she had more soul-searching to do. Her festering anger at Stan was not justified; her sister was right. As someone who was so forgiven, she had no room to withhold forgiveness from Stan.
CHAPTER 49
Two days later, Ben felt like it had been years since he’d had a good night’s sleep. He’d been following the progress of Evangeline Moffit tangentially and trying to find Dallas Vine directly. Moffit was recovering quickly, walking and talking. Vine was still MIA.
Ben had gone so far as to drive up to Big Bear Lake and check out Vine’s summer home. The place was locked up tight. It didn’t seem like anyone had been at the house in quite a while.
The only thing that wigged Ben out was that he’d picked up a tail. He’d first seen the black SUV on the 210 freeway and talked himself into believing he was being paranoid. But after he stopped in Running Springs for gas and a beverage, he saw the vehicle again. The third time was the charm, when the vehicle was also in Big Bear Lake.
Ben could see the SUV three cars back as he started back down the hill. The road leading in and out of Big Bear was a narrow two-lane road. When Ben saw the opportunity, he made a sharp U-turn, causing the vehicle behind him to break and honk.
As he passed the black vehicle, he stared at the driver, who ducked away. But the vehicle did not follow him.
He’d not been able to get a license plate, and it would have been nearly impossible with all the traffic to try and turn the tables on theguy, so he continued on his way. Was it Vine? Was he that desperate? All federal agencies were on the lookout for him. He’d be caught eventually, especially if he was stupid enough to try and tail a federal agent.
Now, Ben was back in the office going over his notes—again. While everyone was happy with Evangeline Moffit’s progress, she didn’t remember being kidnapped, and she had no idea where she had been for nearly a week.
Ben reviewed what he’d written on the day he’d talked to her before her abduction. She’d seen Efren the Friday he was supposed to check in. In the morning, he’d washed and detailed her car. That night Efren should have checked in with his progress, but all methods they had for contact were silent.
Frustrated, Ben paced. He was missing too many pieces, but how to find them? He kept returning to that Friday. There was no way to know what else happened that day or who else Efren interacted with. Ben wanted to talk to Stan, but he was not sure if that would fly. The guy had lawyered up. Ben had no choice but to review everything he’d reviewed several times already.
A stray thought hit his head like a bullet: What kind of car did Evangeline have? None of the files or paperwork mentioned her vehicle. No one knew exactly when or how she was taken. Was she taken from home or while she was out running errands?
Ben felt energized by this new avenue to explore. He’d hoped to find some kind of message in Efren’s car and came up empty. What if he just had the wrong car?
Ben tried to put himself in Efren’s shoes. If he had found something, like say a ledger, and he wanted to hide it, where would be the safest place? He couldn’t hide it in his car or on his person, nor could he hide it in the car wash.
Then in came Evangeline for a routine detail. The boss’s wife. Perhaps Efren thought that her car was the last place anyone would look. Since it was likely that she regularly got her car washed there,he could either plan to retrieve it another day, or if he was going to blow his cover and pull himself out of the car wash, get it later, with the full force of a warrant.
It made sense to Ben. Now he was on a mission to find that car.
“Your progress is astounding.” Dr. Hardin beamed as he watched Evie walk without the help of a walker.
Lainie leaned against the wall and smiled. Evie had always been a hard worker and very determined.
“I feel so much better than when I first opened my eyes,” Evie told the doctor. “Except for my memory, everything is working. The bruises are fading, and honestly, I’m tired of hospital food.”
“Fine. One more CAT scan and then I’ll sign your discharge papers. Right now, I don’t foresee any issues, so you’ll likely be on your way home later this afternoon.”
Evie was coming home.
“I’m happy for you, Evie. Mom and Dad will be glad to bring you home. Now I have to go back to Long Beach and get my apartment set up.” She gave Evie a hug and then left. Life was finally settling down.
Home for Lainie now was a rented apartment. The insurance company had sent an adjuster to evaluate the ruins of her house. They would settle soon, and hopefully one day she’d be able to rebuild. While she knew that her parents would always welcome her into their home, it was just a little too crowded now with the boys. Since Evie would also move in, Lainie decided to rent temporarily.
As far as the investigation went, Lainie had to step away. She’d been involved in a shooting. It was being handled as an on-duty shooting because of the circumstances. Her handgun had been examined and returned, but she was still required to talk to the department psychologist, who would eventually have to approve her return to work.
