Chapter Three
The fear in Pearl’s voice when she’d called to report her daughter missing echoed in Sky’s mind. Good thing Kane was driving, or she might have broken a few speeding laws on the way back. With him at the wheel, his strong profile allowed her to focus on something nice instead of on the possible crime.
Every woman in Savory would have called Kane Cornell hot. Some would claim it was the way he filled out his military camouflage pants, others how his biceps bulged every time he turned the wheel. The problem with someone like him was, the moment he delivered his urgent message to the Senator he’d high-tail it out of there, and she’d be back to breaking up bar fights, finding lost dogs, or looking for disappearing aliens all by herself. He appeared to be the type to do things his way, and win-win probably wasn’t in his vocabulary, which meant she needed to keep her libido in check—seriously in check.
Until recently, Sky had a boyfriend. Right before Chris moved to New York, he’d suggested they see other people, but she wasn’t sure if he said that because he didn’t want to come right out and break up with her, or he didn’t think it was fair for her to wait for him. Furthermore, she wasn’t sure if his New York job was permanent or not, so Sky was kind of hanging in limbo, waiting on a definite answer from him on where things stood. God, her love life was a mess!
Cornell parked in front of the station, and before he cut the engine, she jumped out and raced up the steps in need of some space. Pearl Smith, who refused to acknowledge she even had birthdays anymore, was waiting on the front porch. The older woman’s shoulders were bone thin but her hips were wide and full. She pushed up from the bench and wobbled for a moment. After giving Pearl a hug, Sky introduced Kane. From the body scan Pearl gave Kane, the sixty-two-year-old woman’s eyesight was working a little too well.
“Hands off, Ms. Pearl.” Sky didn’t really mean it, but she thought making light of a terrible situation would alleviate some anxiety.
“Who me?” She dabbed her eyes, but Sky caught the twinkle. Her ploy worked.
Glad that Pearl had recovered some of her composure over Mary’s disappearance, Sky wrapped an arm around the woman’s shoulder. “Come on in and tell me what happened.” Inside the station, the warm air still held a hint of the morning’s chocolate chip cookies.
She thought Kane would excuse himself once they stepped inside, but instead, he dragged three chairs from the empty desks and placed them in a small circle. She shot him a look, but he didn’t seem to take notice, so she strode over to him and stood face to chest, and then raised her chin. “This is a matter for the sheriff’s department. I don’t think you should stay.” It looked as if he was working hard not to smile.
“I was an MP in the service and understand how the law works.” He looked around the office, empty except for Harriet. “Looks like you could use some muscle in case the kidnapper calls or makes a demand.”
Pearl never said Mary had been kidnapped, though it was a sound conclusion. Pearl did seem calmer being around him, and getting someone to relax under these sad circumstances was a plus. Sky wouldn’t lie. Having him near certainly made her a little less edgy after the shooting. This one time she’d allow her instincts to win over logic and permit him to stay.
“Okay, but I have the right to ask you to leave at any time.”
He nodded. “It’s your show.” He followed his comment with a smile.
Once Sky poured coffee for Ms. Pearl and Kane, she asked for details of Mary’s disappearance.
Pearl turned first to Kane. “Mary’s my only child. If anything happened to her…” Pearl broke down again.
Sky grabbed Pearl’s hands. “We’ll find her.”
She dabbed her eyes and sniffled then looked at Kane. “Mary works at the bank until four then likes to ride her bike for a few miles before coming home. Only yesterday, she never arrived home.”
Sky jotted notes on her iPad, a gift Chris had given her. It made taking notes much easier and more legible than writing them down. “Why didn’t you call us right away?” She tried not to use a reprimanding tone but failed.
Pearl blushed. “Well, you know Mary. She’s a little headstrong. I figured she met some fellow and hooked up with him. It was her birthday and all.”
Mary had gone missing three times this year already and returned after a few days. “That is one possibility, but would she have stayed out all night without calling?” They lived together in Pearl’s house.
“No, and that’s what worries me. She usually calls me when she isn’t coming home.” Pearl knit her fingers together. “Only yesterday, I forgot to charge my phone, so she might have called.” She looked down and seemed to examine every floorboard one by one. Pearl glanced up. “Actually, I was with Dan Joe, and I didn’t get back to my place until almost ten this morning. That’s when I realized Mary hadn’t come home last night. There weren’t any dishes in the sink or clothes tossed about or anything. I tried to get a hold of her on her cell but got no answer.”
“Did you call the bank to see if she showed up for work this morning?”
“I did, but they said she hadn’t. That’s when I decided to head out to the park to see if I could find her. Mary sometimes skips work, you know. I found her bike in the bushes, and all I could think of was that poor woman last year, who was raped and killed there.”
“Terrible tragedy.” Sharon Filmers’ death had sent the town into a tizzy for months. Sky leaned over and grabbed Pearl’s hands again. “I’ll do everything I can to find her. Don’t you worry.”
“I know she’ll show up soon.”
“When she does, be sure to let me know.”
“I promise.” Pearl stood and glanced over at Kane. “Sorry to take up your time with Sky. You looking for a runaway too?”
“Something like that.”
After Pearl left, Sky wanted to work on her headless man’s case since this was her first shot at a homicide. Too bad, all she could think about was finding out more about the enigmatic man sitting next to her, as he’d stimulated her curiosity something fierce. Kane was on the right side of the law, and while he’d tossed her a few smiles, he didn’t appear interested, which fit into her plan just fine. She had a job to do.
However, if Chris had been serious about seeing other people, maybe she should too.
On the drive back to the station, Kane had asked about exploring the caves, but she’d told him she’d never found anything in any of them. Now that she thought about it, they might have fun dipping into the darkness and squeezing through small holes. The only problem was that while getting lost with Kane might be fun, it wouldn’t help her find a murderer.
Kane rose to his feet and pulled his shoulders back so much that she half-expected him to salute. “Thanks for your time and help.”
“No problem.” No man deserved to be that fit and so in control.
The moment the door closed behind him, Harriet swiveled around. “Woohee. That is one amazing man. You going to try to land him?”
“What?”
“You heard me. I know you’ve been in a long dry spell.”
“Harriet, please. Our one-day relationship was strictly professional. And mind your own business.” Sky added a smile to soften the response. Sarcasm wasn’t an attractive trait.
“His eyes say he likes you. In case you didn’t know, our boss left right after you took off with Mr. Kane.”
“That’s because he has a regional meeting in Flagstaff to attend.”
“Which means he won’t be back until Monday. Maybe when you come to work tomorrow, you should wear that revealing red top you wore last Christmas in case Mr. Sexy returns.”
She glanced to the ceiling and exhaled. “There’s nothing between us. Kane is solely focused on finding the Senator.” At least one of them had their priorities straight.
Harriet rolled her eyes. “Then admit that Chris never got your motor running like this man does.”
He used to. “I’m not discussing it. My shift is over. Tomorrow morning, I’m going to Page to see the Medical Examiner about the body Earl discovered on his back forty.”
Harriet held up the plate of cookies. “Have another one before you go.”
Sky’s pants were tight enough. “A girl’s gotta watch her figure.”
“I don’t think that Mr. Cornell thought your figure needed improving. I saw the way he watched you strut your stuff this morning.”
“If you’re implying I was attempting to be sexy, you’re wrong.” Get me out of here before I say something I’ll regret. “Bye.”
* * *
Given how tired she was, Sky thought she’d sleep well, but she was wrong. Visions of Kane Cornell kept floating in her head, and while she tried to ignore those fluttery feelings, they wouldn’t go away. Even thinking about Chris didn’t dampen the growing lust. She really needed to have her head examined. If she ever wanted to make detective, she had to focus on her job.
With a lot of effort on her part, she managed to fall asleep, and Kane had the starring role in every one of her dreams.
Once she rose and had her coffee, she called Dr. Williams, Page’s medical examiner, to let him know she was on her way to learn about his findings regarding the decapitated man.
Williams’ receptionist told her the doc was tied up with an important autopsy and wouldn’t be able to see her until eleven. It was only nine now, but she wasn’t in the mood to go into the office and be subjected to Harriet’s teasing. She’d experienced enough guilt dreaming about Mr. Military Man and didn’t need Harriet to pull the truth out of her.
With a bit of time to kill, she headed to Willows Park to search for potential evidence of foul play regarding Mary’s disappearance. For Pearl and Mary’s sake, she hoped there was a big misunderstanding, and Mary would show up soon with a smile on her face.
Twelve minutes later, Sky pulled into the near empty parking lot. Pearl had given her the exact location of Mary’s abandoned bike, and while finding the Acacia tree took some work, once she found it, she took photos and made notes of the scene. The ground underneath the limbs was slightly disturbed, but there were no broken branches, no torn clothes, or anything else to imply Mary had been abducted or kidnapped, which was a huge relief.
To make sure she did a thorough job, Sky walked around the hard-packed dirt jogging path, hoping to find someone who’d noticed Mary. Unfortunately, on a Friday morning, there weren’t as many people exercising as she would have liked to see. The few folks she did manage to stop either didn’t know Mary or didn’t remember the last time they’d seen her. In all, Sky wasn’t any closer to finding her than she was to identifying the slain man.
Climbing back into her bright orange VW, she stopped at the only fast food place in Savory for some very bad-for-your-figure food, before heading up north to Page. Once on the desolate highway, she turned on her radio to her favorite news station. “This just in. Arizona’s Senator Paul Overton has disappeared.” Sky’s pulse sped up, and she turned up the volume. “The spokesperson for the Senator won’t release any details but asks anyone with information to call the FBI at 602-555-7672.”
Since when had the Senator officially become missing? Kane implied Overton was only out of phone reach. Given Kane’s intensity level, false clues would have him running all over the place, probably resulting in him asking for her help. If this had been the result of a leak, Kane would be royally pissed that this information was made public.
Something about Kane Cornell kept her off balance, and she didn’t like it one bit. If he’d asked, though, she would have taken him around, despite having a murder to solve and a missing woman to find.
As she entered downtown Page, she forced her thoughts away from him. While the neighboring town might have only eight thousand residents, they enjoyed the benefit of more than three million visitors a year because of the Glen Canyon Dam and the local caves.
A horn beeped behind her, bringing her attention back to the road. A few minutes later, she turned down the side street where the ME’s building was located. Sky parked and entered, flashing her badge at Darleen, the receptionist, before introducing herself.
“Why, Sky Nash. I know who you are. It’s only been what, three years?”
It seemed longer. “I guess.”
Darleen smiled. “Follow me. The doctor’s in autopsy, but he’s expecting you.”
As soon as Sky stepped inside, she covered her nose. Even the bleach and disinfectant couldn’t mask the stench of death.
She knocked and the medical examiner pulled open the key-coded door. “Hiya, Doc.”
He smiled through his face shield. “Sky, you’re looking good.”
“Thanks.” He’d aged. The addition of a toupee made him look older, or perhaps it was the extra twenty pounds.
Dr. Williams pulled off his mask and ripped off his latex gloves.
She stepped closer to the smelly corpse. “Is there anything you can tell me about John Doe here?”
“Whoever took the head was medically skilled, as there are very few nicks on the bones. Cutting off a head isn’t easy.”
“I’ve never had the privilege.” She tried not to inhale deeply. At least the doc had drained the blood so the body didn’t look too bad. “Can you tell the type of knife used?”
“A big one with a very sharp blade.”
“Funny. Anything that will help me identify the man?”
He sobered. “A tattoo on his shoulder. I took a photo for you and enlarged it.” He nodded to the manila folder on the counter.
She slid out the picture. An eagle grabbing a banner with the words US Air Force blazoned with three gold stars covered his bicep. “A military man.”
“That would be my guess.” He opened a drawer and pulled out the prints. “This is a copy of his fingerprints for you. I’ve sent the originals to the lab to be processed. They’ll email you the results. If he’s in the service, he’ll be in the database.”
Worked for her. “Did you do a tox screen?” The white powder she’d spotted on the man’s fingertips looked like it might be cocaine.
“Sure did. As soon as I get the results, I’ll let you know.”
“Great.”
He nodded. “Good luck finding the murderer.”
She thanked him again and left. Well that was a bust, although speaking with the medical examiner in person was always best, in case she had more questions. The day had been clear and sunny, and the break helped her sort through a few things.
Close to Savory, her cell rang, but she didn’t recognize the number. “Hello?”
“It’s Kane. I’m glad I got a hold of you. Harriet and Harvey have been trying to reach you for an hour.”
Her stomach tumbled. “I turned off my cell when I was inside the morgue. What happened?”
“Someone ransacked your house, and from what I can tell, you might be in danger too.”