“So why did you contact us now?” River was afraid this interview was going to be a dead end. He was losing valuable time when he could have been helping look for Elsie.
“Shortly before she quit, she showed me a picture of a guy she was with. Said his name was Joel. She was really falling hard for him. I think she was already pregnant by then, since she started bringing a healthy lunch to work instead of the fast food we serve here, which she could have had for free. I think Joel was the father.”
“Joel?” A first name wasn’t much to go on. The task force didn’t have a lot of information on the murdered teens due to their strained relationships with families. “Do you remember the photograph? What did he look like?”
She moved her hand closer to his and leaned in. Frankie licked her chops and scooted closer, her attention on Danielle. “I don’t have to remember the photograph because yesterday he came in here to pick up an online order. He was kind of jumpy. Maybe he was on drugs. Maybe he was nervous about being back in the place where his murdered girlfriend had worked.”
Joel didn’t sound like a very stable person. “Do you think he killed her?”
“He didn’t seem like the type, kind of timid. I do remember that Gayle said she was concerned about his drug use. Drugs do change people’s personalities, so maybe he could have found out about the baby after it was born and killed her when he was high.” She shrugged. “I don’t know. I liked Gayle. Maybe we could’ve been friends if she’d lived. I want to help.”
“Tell me what he looked like.”
“Short brown hair, acne. Kind of tall and skinny. Oh, and I have this.” She dug through the pockets of her apron and handed him what looked like a receipt. “He ordered from an online app where you have to give your full name.”
River stared at the receipt. Joel Henley. He had a first and last name. Danielle had saved the most important detail for last. “Thank you. This will help us.”
Danielle smiled and took another sip of her drink. “It would be good to get justice for Gayle and maybe find out what happened to her baby.”
Frankie released a whimper that sounded like a vote of agreement.
“We all want that for Gayle and the other young women who were taken too soon,” said River.
He thanked her, bringing the interview to a close, then headed out the door with Frankie heeling beside him. Once inside his patrol car, he phoned his task force boss with the information Danielle had given him.
Emmett Dane’s voice came across the line. “We’ll get Eva on this right away to see if she can track down an address for Joel Henley.” In addition to being the head of the task force, Emmett was an FBI agent based out of Denver. Eva Gomez was the task force’s tech specialist.
“Sounds good,” said River. “Even if Joel is trying not to be found, Eva will be able to track him down.”
“Once we have a solid address for him, I want you to partner with Maren. Her K-9 might be required if things get ugly.”
Maren Anderson, whom he’d only met recently when they’d both joined the task force, was a good cop. Her K-9 Haven, a Doberman pinscher, was trained in both narcotics and suspect apprehension. “I’d be glad to have them along.” He took in a breath. “Did you hear about the abduction case here in Ridge?”
“Yes, Lizzie called me.”
“I asked the Ridge police if I could take lead on this case.”
“A three-year-old girl is involved. I think it would be good for you to work this case.” Emmett knew what had happened with Noah. Maybe that was why he’d said yes.
“I know it will take time away from the task force case.”
“We’ll manage. We’ll try to provide as much support as we can to get it wrapped up quickly. If Eva has the time, she can help you track down information.”
“Thank you, Emmett.”
River disconnected and checked his texts. He had two of them. The first was from Second Chances.
Sloane made all his meetings and showed up for his check-ins.
That ruled out the husband. It would have to be someone who’d known about the field trip. Someone at the school? Another parent? The other possibility was that it was a crime of opportunity by a stranger who made a habit of taking children.
The thought gave him chills.
The second text was a single word from Lydia.
Anything?
River’s breath hitched as if a vise was being tightened around his chest. The photograph of Noah was burned into his memory as well. He covered his eyes with his hand.
