It was well past noon. “I can fix us some lunch.”
“I don’t have much in the way of food, but you worked your magic once before.”
While River set up his laptop for the video call, she scoured the cupboards, coming up with a can of chili that she heated on the stove. The crackers she found looked a little stale. Maybe she should have taken up Sheryl’s offer for Norm to drop off the gift card.
Then again, she doubted that River would think delivery people coming to his house and seeing her would be a good idea. Between the sparse contents in the cupboards and fridge, she couldn’t come up with any more meal possibilities. The freezer held only one frozen pizza. They were going to have to go to the grocery store soon.
River sat his laptop on the kitchen table.
“Should I be listening to this meeting?” she asked.
“It’s all right. Maybe you can give us a fresh perspective.”
Lydia dished up the chili. When she brought the bowl over to River, only one woman’s face was on the screen. She had dark hair and a bright smile.
Lydia returned to get her own bowl and wash her hands.
“Hey, Eva,” said River.
“I’m glad you’re early to the meeting. Saves me having to call you. It’s about D. J. Ketterling.”
“Yes. You have news?”
Wiping her hands on a towel, Lydia stepped closer to the computer.
“He was found dead down by a warehouse that was known to be a drug hangout.”
“An overdose?” River’s shoulders slumped.
Eva nodded. “The coroner estimated that he’d been dead for at least a day. That means he was dead at the time of Elsie’s kidnapping.”
Lydia felt like the walls were closing in on her. She slumped down in a chair beside River.
“I’m so sorry,” said Eva.
Another dead end.
“I’m still working on verifying Prentiss Grafton’s alibi,” said Eva. “If he’s not telling the truth, he’s your prime suspect.”
* * *
Before River could even process Eva’s news, two more faces appeared on the screen. Emmett, his boss, and Maren, who had helped him track down the father of Gayle’s baby. He reached over and gripped Lydia’s hand where it rested on the table. The news about D. J. Ketterling had hit her hard.
Three more faces popped up on the screen. Autumn, Eli and Lizzie. Autumn Riley, who was a handler for Bear, a bloodhound trained in tracking and cadaver detection, was engaged to the half brother of Jenny Clarke, the first victim of the adoption ring. She’d been found murdered in Canyon Creek. Eli Blackwood had red hair and a beard. His Belgian Malinois, Wrangler, was trained in suspect apprehension. Some years ago, Eli’s wife and infant daughter had been killed.
A final face came on the screen. Melody Rust. A redheaded officer with hazel eyes who lived in Boulder, she specialized in bomb detection with her male chocolate Lab, Dusty.
Emmett spoke up. “First of all, team, I want to thank you all for your diligence. Some of you have been going above and beyond in terms of the amount of time and mileage you’ve put into this investigation.” The dark-haired task force leader seemed to take them all in with his blue-eyed gaze in one sweep.
River felt a pang of guilt. His ability to help move the case forward had been hindered by the time he’d put into finding Elsie. Mia needed saving, too. His heart twinged thinking of the missing pregnant teen. Her family—in particular, her grandfather Dodger, who’d helped form the task force to investigate her abduction—wanted the young woman found.
Emmett continued. “We’re combing the state for every possible lead, including visiting homes for unwed mothers. River uncovered that Gayle may have gone to a free clinic in Denver. We have task force members down there, showing her photo as well as the ones of the other two girls, Jenny and Nina. There has to be a connection somewhere, a method and a means as to how these girls were found and taken hostage until their babies were born.”
Autumn piped up. “I had a chance to visit two of the homes for unwed mothers. None of them remembered Gayle. Honestly, both places seemed aboveboard. I still have a couple more clinics to visit.” River had spent time with Autumn last month checking out the homes and hospitals near Canyon Creek where Jenny Clarke had disappeared.
“One of the aspects of this case that we need to consider is not only how and where the girls are being targeted but how the adoptions unfold. We don’t think this is happening through a legitimate agency. Eva has an update on what she’s uncovered so far.”
Eva brushed a strand of dark hair behind her ear. “Thanks, Emmett. As Emmett said, we don’t think these adoptions are happening in any aboveboard agency. I got to thinking it has to be something online on the dark web. Maybe parents who are desperate for a child and willing to pay big bucks. They may or may not be aware that they are engaging in illegal activity.”
