He didn’t really know what they were and maybe with one dead woman and another missing, now wasn’t the time for him to worry about his social life.

  “Yeah, we’re good.”

  Chapter 10

  Patience had never been Ashley’s strong suit. Her mother had reminded her of this fault many times throughout her life. So, as she sat in her car in front of the convenience store, she did what any cop would do to kill time—Ash people-watched. There was the tired mom at the gas pumps with two kids arguing so loud in the minivan, Ash could hear them twenty feet away. There was the construction worker coming out of the store with a six-pack of Bud and a bag of chips. The dinner of champions and single men. Then there was the dude pacing the sidewalk in front of her car.

  She’d parked at the end of the lot facing the building. The big rigs pulled in around back to the specialty pumps and parking to her right. She hadn’t seen where the pacer had come from. He’d just appeared when she looked up. Maybe an employee on a break?

  Whatever. Not her concern. She glanced at her watch again. Nate was late. They’d agreed to meet almost fifteen minutes ago. He had two more minutes, then she was going in without him. To fill those minutes, she focused on the pacer, which was better than listening to the mom bang on the minivan window and watch her shake her finger at the kids. As if that ever worked.

  Ash couldn’t help but hear the guy’s conversation. It wasn’t technically eavesdropping when he was standing in public, using his outdoor voice. It was like he wanted everyone to know his personal business. He had his back to her, with a hoodie pulled up over his head.

  “Yeah, I know the type. Tell the client we’ve got it covered,” he said.

  He walked a few steps and stopped. His fist clenched at his side. Whatever the person on the other end was saying pissed this guy off. His whole body tensed up, which sent the cop in her on high alert.

  “I got it. He needs a half dozen. I already got the vanilla, and I’m about to get the frosted strawberry. You worry about the chocolate glazed.”

  Wow, all that drama for doughnuts? And people gave cops a bad time about their sweet tooths. A few seconds later, the guy shoved the phone into his pocket and went inside. Ashley glanced at her watch. Nate was officially fifteen minutes late. She was going in without him.

  The store was bigger than she’d expected, more the size of a small grocery store than a convenience store. To one side she spotted an entrance for a fast-food restaurant and the doughnut shop, where the guy from out front stood in line. Hopefully, they weren’t out of the frosted strawberry ones. She ambled around, checking out the security setup, as she waited for the checkout line to shorten. She spotted cameras aimed at the cash register and both front and back doors. As expected, next to the rear entrance were shower and changing facilities.

  Ashley grabbed a bottle of water, a bag of BBQ-flavored chips, and a chocolate bar and got in line. She’d put the young, pretty female clerk around twenty to twenty-two. As Rachel, according to the name tag, rang her up, Ash introduced herself.

  “You wouldn’t know who was working last Thursday around five thirty, would you?”

  “That’s easy. I turned over the register to Becca, our night manager, then,” she said.

  “Great.” She held up Hailey’s picture. “You didn’t happen to spot this woman before you clocked out, did you?” Was it too much to ask fate to smile down upon her and have this clerk say yes, and that she knew exactly where Hailey was? Probably, but a person could hope.

  “I haven’t seen Hailey in a couple of months.”

  “You know her?”

  “We went to school together. I graduated the year before, but we had a couple of classes together. Nice girl. I heard she’s missing. It’s kind of hard not to in a town the size of Camden Point.”

  “And yet no one saw anything,” Ash muttered, frustrated that all roads led to a dead end in this case.

  “That’s New England for you.” Rachel nodded a silent hello as her coworker stepped up and opened a second register. “Becca should be here soon, if you want to check with her. It sucks that something might have happened to Hailey. Like I said, nice person.” Ashley took down the woman’s full name, Rachel Calder, and her contact information, figuring Nate would want to follow up with his own questions.

  She walked over to the front window to check for Nate. Still no sight of him. To fill the time, she wandered around the store some more, picking up postcards and flipping through touristy T-shirts. Ashley turned back to ask Rachel another question, but she was gone. The new cashier told Ashley that Rachel had just left, but she could probably catch her out back. Just as Ashley turned toward the rear doors, she noticed the guy in the hoodie that had been pacing in front of her car slip out the back. Weird. Why go out the back when he entered from the front?

  Ash stepped outside just as the guy grabbed Rachel. He had one arm wrapped around her middle and the other hand clamped over her mouth.

  “Hey,” Ashley yelled. “Let her go. I’m calling the police if you don’t.” This was one of those times Ashley missed having a badge.

  The guy jerked Rachel closer, while his eyes darted back and forth. “Mind your own business, lady. This is between me and my girl.”

  “Yeah, what’s with the mask? Bad breath?”

  “Something like that,” he snarled as he took a step back, dragging his girl with him.

  Rachel struggled to break free as her captor made his way toward a blue sedan that had seen better days. The girl went limp, letting her weight take her down and her assailant off balance.

  Smart move and just what Ashley needed. She rushed him. Hoodie Guy threw Rachel at the car. Her head collided with the side panel, and she collapsed on the ground. Ashley expected him to take off. She didn’t expect the right hook that connected with her jaw. It took a few steps for her to regain her balance. Enough time that Hoodie Guy must have thought he’d gotten the better of her as he reached for Rachel. As he bent toward the unconscious woman, Ashley executed the perfect roundhouse kick, sending him to the pavement.

  He jumped up, rushed her, and plowed his head into her abdomen, knocking the back of her head against the wall of the store. Ashley blinked to bring the world into focus as he grabbed her with both hands. She stomped, intending to hit his foot, but missed. And pissed him off. He slammed her head into the wall again. Little stars floated in front of her eyes. Oh, hell no. She wasn’t going down this easily. She feigned dizziness. The minute Hoodie Guy stepped back, releasing her, she slammed him with an uppercut to the chin. His head snapped back.

  Ashley brought up her knee, making quick contact with his groin. He bent over, spewing F-bombs and a few other choice words. She prepared for another strike when, out of the corner of her eye, a flash of color caught her attention.

  All it took was that fraction of a minute to give Hoodie Guy the upper hand.

  Ashley didn’t even see it coming. One moment she was checking to see if help had arrived, and the next pain exploded in her head.

  Somewhere in the distance, someone called her name. Ash fought to open her eyes. What the hell happened? She remembered the fight. The pain and then nothing. Thinking hurt. Moving shot intense pain through her skull. She closed her eyes, but there it was again. Her name. Maybe Rachel had gotten away. Ash opened her eyes to darkness. How long had she been out? And where was she?

  “Ashley. Wake up.” She heard it yet again. Her name laced with urgency and fear.

  “I’m here.” Sleep threatened to overtake her. She fought to keep her eyes open, to remember her training.

  Someone with icy hands shoved her. Ashley shivered as she fought the wave of nausea that hit her. She reached out for whoever and her hand hit cold metal.

  “What the…” She’d thought she was lying on the pavement outside the convenience store. She felt the space in front of her. Metal as far as she could feel. Had he thrown her behind the dumpster? She didn’t smell trash. Her stomach gave another wave, and she slammed her hands down to steady herself.

  Carpet?

  Oh, no.

  Ashley moved, using her feet and hands to explore her surroundings. Son of a bitch.

  He’d thrown her in a car trunk. She took a minute, one to deal with the sharp pain in the back of her head and two to calm her breathing. Her name came louder, clearer this time. Who was that? Nate? Didn’t sound like him? Not the guy she fought. He wouldn’t know her name and he sure as heck wouldn’t call out to her. Something was off about the voice. About the tone. The direction. She couldn’t put her finger on it.

  “I’m here.” She banged on the trunk, hoping to get someone’s attention. “Help.”

  The voice had stopped. Probably her ghostly stalker, not that he’d been any help when she’d really needed it. She felt around for her phone. It had been in her back pocket before the fight. The guy probably tossed it because it wasn’t there now. Somewhere nearby, a loud hiss followed the rumble of an engine.

  That was good. It meant she was most likely still at the convenience store. She just needed to find the emergency release. She ran her hand along what she thought might be the trunk opening, only to come up empty-handed. It meant she was probably in an older car, or the douche in the hoodie had removed the pull cord. Her stomach revolted again.

  It’ll be fine. Just need some fresh air, water, and a couple of ibuprofen. Ash turned her focus to the other side. A slight indent in the back seat gave her hope that the car was new enough for fold-down seats. She traced the edges, digging her fingers between the fabric-covered foam until they ached, searching for the release. Everything faded but the sound of her heart beating and her labored breath.

  She didn’t need a white knight coming to her rescue. She’d do it herself.

  She shimmied around, rolled to her side, and brought her knees up. With what little strength she had, she slammed her feet into the seat.

  Nate was late. He hated being late, but crime didn’t run on a schedule. If you could call what had delayed him a crime. He shook his head as he searched the truck stop parking lot, surprised to see Ashley’s car still there. He figured she would have gone long before now, leaving him on his own. Of course, if Wyman, the bastard, hadn’t conveniently excused himself for the restroom the minute he’d spotted Mrs. Crandall come in, Nate would have been on time. It had taken Nate over a half hour to convince Mrs. Crandall that he could not arrest Mrs. Monroe’s teacup poodle for pooping in her yard. The best he could do was issue a citation.

  Not that he was going to issue the local judge’s mother a ticket.

  Such was life in a small town.

  He put the feuding seniors out of his mind and jogged over to Ashley’s car, only to find it empty. She was probably inside the truck stop. But when he entered to look for her, Ashley was nowhere to be found. Nate made his way to the checkout and pulled up Hailey’s picture on his phone. He asked the young guy and the woman working if either remembered seeing her in the store.

  “Yeah, she stops in,” the guy responded.

  “Do you remember the last time you saw her?” Nate asked.

  “A couple of weeks, maybe last month.” He shrugged. “I don’t really pay attention, just ring ‘em up and get my work done.”

  “What about you?” Nate asked the woman, Becca.

  “She was in last week, I think. She’s a regular. Picks up study snacks on her way home from work.”

  “Do you remember if she said anything the last day she was in, or if she was with anyone?” Nate kept his focus on the clerk, all the while searching for Ashley. Where was she?

  Becca thought about it for a moment. “I think she mentioned going to the beach. It was gorgeous out and I remember thinking I’d rather be at the beach, too. From what I saw, she was alone. I don’t remember what she bought, but I’m pretty sure it was for one person.”

  “Great. Thank you, that’s helpful.” He flipped his phone to another picture, this one of him with a bunch of people at The High Tide, including Ashley. “Have either of you seen this woman with the dark hair today?”

  Becca shook her head, but the guy nodded. “Yeah. She was here. About an hour ago when we did the shift change. She left out the back looking for Rachel.” At Nate’s questioning look, he explained Rachel was a coworker.

  Nate thanked them both and headed for the back of the store and the rear exit. He walked out into an empty parking lot save one blue older model sedan. Further out was the lot for the truckers to park or gas up. He walked to the edge of the building to see if Ashley and the clerk were around. Nothing. As he turned back toward the entrance, a loud noise from the sedan caught his attention. He stopped dead in his tracks as the car rocked.

  It was still daylight, people. At least, pick someplace that’s not so public. It wouldn’t be the first time he’d broken up a pair of lovers in a back seat. But that wasn’t what he was there for.

  He had more important matters to attend, but the law was the law. His gut churned with acid as his gaze swept the expansive lot one more time. Where was Ashley?

  As he debated his next step, a movement in the car caught his eye. What the—

  A head popped up, then a hand smacked the back passenger window. Nate waited a few moments, not wanting to know what he was about to interrupt. This was one of those rare times he wished he could turn the other cheek. What if a kid walked out here?

  He strode over to the car, ready to knock on the window, when a familiar face turned toward him. She had a bruise on one cheek, blood across her forehead and wild, dazed eyes.

  Ashley!

  Nate yanked the door handle as he yelled her name. He kept pulling, but the door didn’t budge. Finally, Ashley looked down as if registering what he was doing and why it didn’t work. She pulled up on the lock and Nate flung the door open.

  “Are you okay?” Nate helped her out of the car, fighting the instinct to wrap her in his arms as his heart raced. Instead, he led her to the curb, where she dropped her head between her knees while what appeared to be a wave of dizziness passed. “What the hell happened? I thought you were going to wait for me?”

  “Didn’t have time,” Ashley muttered as she gingerly touched the side of her head. “Ouch.”

  “Are you okay?” Nate squatted in front of her. “You were supposed to wait for me,” he repeated. “You could have died.”

  “Been there, done that.” She flashed him a lopsided grin. “Don’t plan to do it again anytime soon.”

  Her glib remark did nothing to ease his stress. Ashley Medearis was reckless, and impatient, with no respect for the rules. She was everything he didn’t want in his life. Didn’t need in his life. But damn if his body or head or whatever had gotten the memo. At that moment, he wanted nothing more than to sink his fingers into her hair and devour her mouth. He needed to feel her warm, silky skin slide across his to prove she was alive and fine. Since he wasn’t into public displays and her eyes still had that faraway look, he didn’t give in to his wants. Instead, he cupped her face in one hand while his thumb caressed her unbruised cheek. There was a good chance he’d go prematurely gray with this woman in his life, and he didn’t care.

  “Where’s Rachel?” Ashley glanced around.

  “Who?”

  “Rachel Calder.” She pushed herself to her feet. “She’s a clerk. Twenty-two. Five three or four. Reddish-blonde hair. There was a guy in a hoodie. He grabbed her when she got off work.”

  “Description?”

  “Tall, taller than you—maybe six four. Skinny. Caucasian. I didn’t get a good look at his face—he had a mask on that covered the bottom half, but he came across as young. Mid-twenties.”

  “How did you end up in that car?” Nate called the station as he asked, back to business.

  “Actually, I was in the trunk and I’m not really sure how that happened or even whose car this is. I tried to stop him. I got a few good hits in before he got the better of me.”

  “Did you see what the assailant was driving?” Nate gave the dispatcher the assailant’s and Rachel’s descriptions, with orders to share it with Connecticut and Rhode Island state troopers. The truck stop sat a hundred feet from the state line.

  “No.” She leaned against the building, sliding down to sit, probably before she fell. “He entered through the front doors. The only car back here was that blue sedan. Maybe he parked on the side of the building out of sight.”

  Nate hung up, but not before he requested an ambulance for Ashley, then pulled a pair of latex gloves out of his pocket. Better to focus on work than on his growing feelings or concern for Ash.

  “I don’t need an ambulance. Just a few minutes to get my bearings.”

  Nate ignored her protest. She could barely sit upright. He walked over to the car and popped opened the glove box. Inside was a stack of papers, including the registration. “The car belongs to Rachel.”

  He dropped to a crouch in front of Ashley as he held up three fingers. “How many fingers?”

  Ashley shoved his hand out of her face. “There’s no way Rachel went willingly. He had his arm around her middle and his hand over her mouth. Last I saw, she was crumpled on the ground. Probably from when her head hit the car. Pretty sure that dent is from Rachel.”

  “I’ve got assistance on the way.” He held up his hand again. “You want to stay and help? Tell me how many fingers.”

  Ashley closed her eyes, but he didn’t think it was out of exhaustion or frustration. After a moment, she opened them into a squint, her brows drawn down. “Three. I just need some water and aspirin.”

  She’d gotten the number right, but it had taken her too long to answer. “Let’s see what the medics say.” Nate knew he needed to get inside and talk to the employees, pull video, do actual police work. But leaving Ashley alone wasn’t an option, no matter how much she protested or claimed to be okay.

  If only she’d waited for him. If only he hadn’t been an hour late. That was the drawback of a small town—having a small police force. If fucking Wyman hadn’t ducked out, Nate would have been there for Ashley. He could have backed her up. They might even have the answer to where to find Hailey Sweeney. His blood boiled. One stupid action had cost them immensely. Part of Nate wanted to get a hold of Wyman and tear him a new one.

 

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