In One Fell Swoop Page 5

  He sat there, catching his breath, in complete shock, while wondering about the vine. It was like it had been mocking him, deliberately teasing him. But that couldn't be right, could it?

  Chapter 15

  "I bet Greg Kennedy killed them all, then ran off."

  I was getting more coffee when I overheard someone say this to Irene. This time, the cups were for me and the girls. Sheriff Ivan had gotten his and returned to his work, mostly answering reporters and concerned citizen's many questions. I was beginning to wonder how long he would be able to keep this up before he broke down. The man needed sleep. But I also knew him well enough to know that he would never rest till he had some answers for us. Ivan was that kind of a guy.

  The woman saying the words was Tracy Peterson, known also as the owner and manager of Webster's only gas station, the one on Main Street, and the central place for any gossip going on in town.

  I sighed and sipped my coffee, while Irene poured one for each of my girls as well. Steve, Grace's husband, my wonderful son-in-law who also played in our band, had joined us and I asked for a coffee for him as well.

  "I mean, he has always been…you know, a little to a side, if you ask me," Tracy continued.

  "I don't know about that…" Irene said.

  "What do you say, Patty?"

  I looked at Tracy. "What's that again?"

  "You know him better than any of us," Tracy said. "Greg. I mean, he is, after all, the father of your grandchild."

  "So?"

  "So…do you think he would be capable of killing everyone?"

  I wrinkled my nose. I had known Greg for many years. He was many things, a scumbag was one of them, but a killer? I didn't really see it.

  "I don't know…" I said, trying to be let out of the conversation, but Tracy didn't want to leave it alone.

  "I have always been convinced that Greg killed his own mother. I just knew he did it."

  Irene seemed to gain a sudden interest. "How so?"

  "Oh, come on! She was sick for ages," I said.

  "Exactly. He poisoned her. I knew Beverly for years; she was never sick and then all of a sudden—bang—she gets so ill she can hardly stand up, or even get out of bed."

  "It's called cancer," I said and sipped my coffee, wondering why it couldn't have been someone like Tracy that had disappeared.

  Tracy looked at me. I didn't like the excited look in her eyes. "Exactly. And where do you think she got cancer from? I’m telling you, he poisoned her. He always was her biggest regret. That he wouldn't live up to his responsibilities and marry that poor girl when she got pregnant…"

  Tracy stopped herself when she realized it was my daughter she was talking about. "Well, you know the story."

  "I sure do," I said. "Still doesn’t make me think Greg is capable of killing anyone, let alone his own son."

  Irene gasped and cupped her mouth. "You don't think he ran off with the boy, do you?" she said.

  I exhaled. "Well, now I do," I said, thinking it would make perfect sense. Greg had been begging Julia to get more time with the boy, claiming he suddenly realized that he had missed out on everything, and even attacking her for not letting him see the boy while Sam was growing up. Why he would suddenly claim that I never understood, but there was so much I didn't get. I tried not to be the kind of mother who had to know everything, even though it was hard since we were so close.

  "Will you excuse me?" I said, as I left the table with all the plastic cups I could carry and headed towards my daughters.

  Julia was sitting on the ground and I knelt next to her and handed her the coffee. She sipped it, her hands shaking.

  "I hate to ask you this," I said, "But have you denied Greg access to Sam? Maybe when he was younger?"

  My daughter looked up at me, her gorgeous brown eyes sparkling because of the tears in them. "Yes."

  "When?"

  "I think Sam was three or so when he suddenly wanted back in. He wanted joint custody. I said no. He wanted to have him every other weekend and I said no."

  "Really? Why?"

  Julia sighed. "It's really none…I don't want to go into this."

  "I need to know," I said.

  "If you must know, he was a drunk. He got abusive when he drank. That was why I didn't want to marry him in the first place."

  I almost choked on my coffee. "So, you're telling me he wanted to marry you? Did he ask you to marry him?"

  "Yes."

  "And you let us all believe he was a scumbag who didn't want to have anything to do with the kid?"

  "Well, yeah…but he was…scum. He drank too much. I didn't want any part of it. Or for my son to have any part of it. He got nasty when drunk. Not physically, but with his words. I didn't want Sam to have to grow up listening to that."

  "Why didn't you tell me?" I asked.

  She shrugged. "Most of my friends told me it didn't matter, that their husbands were the same way. I didn't think you'd think it was bad enough to not marry him."

  "How? How could you think that with all I went through with Johnny?" I asked, quite startled. "You knew what I had gone through with him."

  "That was different, Mom. He hit you. Greg never did. He was just nasty and said all these bad things, telling me I was worthless and a failure and that no one would ever love me and so on."

  "Ain't no difference between physical abuse and mental abuse; it all hurts just the same," I said. "I would have understood. I would have backed you up. But why didn't Greg tell the true story, then?"

  She shrugged again. "Guess he was afraid people were gonna laugh at him because he was turned down. Better to be the bad guy who didn't want the girl in the first place, I reckon."

  "Makes sense." I sipped my coffee again while staring at Irene and Tracy, who were still engaged in their deep conversation, probably still sharing stories about Greg. If they continued, there would be a mob ready to lynch the guy within the hour. If he ever returned.

  "Why the questions all of a sudden?" Julia asked, and then answered herself. She gasped. "Oh, my God, you think Greg may have run off with Sam?"

  I shrugged. "I don't know what I think, but it makes a heck of a lot more sense than Greg murdering someone, that's for sure."

  "But what about all the other people, then?" Julia asked. "And what about the blood on the ground?"

  "That's the part I haven't really figured out yet," I said, as I finished my coffee, then decided the cup was way too small and went for a refill.

  Chapter 16

  "How do you know if the people are really gone?"

  Billy blew out smoke and glanced back at Emily walking a few steps behind them, looking into the yards and marveling over the big trees everywhere. He didn't want her to be a part of this.

  "We'll just ring the doorbell first; if no one answers, we make our move. Look at how empty it is here. Not a car in any of the driveways, no one sitting on the porches. I tell you, Billy, they're all out in 'em swamps, looking for all those campers that have gone missing."

  "I still say we should have just gone to Irene's Diner and had some breakfast," he argued, his stomach grumbling.

  "You can eat later," she said. She stopped in the driveway of a small house. "Here, let's start here. Emily, you go up there and ring the doorbell. Your dad and I will stay here and wait."

  "Hey, leave her out of this," Billy said.

  "Why? It's perfect. If someone opens the door, she asks them for directions or something. No one will suspect anything from a little girl."

  "I ain't that little," Emily complained.

  "You know what I mean," her mother replied with a smirk. "You're still all lovely and beautiful and all that. People love you. Now, go on."

  Emily sighed. "Okay."

  Billy wanted to protest again, but Darlene shushed him. They watched from a distance as Emily walked up the driveway. She turned once to make sure they hadn't changed their minds and then rang the doorbell with a deep sigh.

  Nothing happened. Darlene giggled. "See, I told ya'. They're all gone. Every one of them is out of town being a good Samaritan and helping with the search."

  "And how can you be so sure there is even anything to steal in that house?" Billy asked. "I mean, look at that house. At the whole neighborhood. It doesn’t really look like they’re millionaires."

  "Look around. Have you seen a bank in town?"

  "No."

  "Well, there you go. None of them trust banks enough to put their money in them. In places like this, they hide it in their mattresses or pillows and stuff like that. They don't want to have to go all the way to the next big town to get their money, now do they?"

  Billy wasn't so sure she was right. Maybe years ago. But things were different today. People had web-banks and used their computers to shop. He sighed worriedly as Emily rang the doorbell again, and when nothing happened still, her mother encouraged her to open the screen door and knock. The girl did what she was told, then looked at her parents with a shrug.

  Darlene threw her cigarette on the ground and killed it with her boot. "That's our cue. Our turn."

  Billy took in a deep breath, then followed Darlene up the driveway. Emily put her hands in her pockets.

  "No one’s home," she said.

  "Good girl," Darlene said and patted her on the head. She walked to the closest window and peeked inside. "Now all we have to do is find a way in."

  Darlene walked into the yard, grabbed the back door, and opened it. She gave a single chop of a laugh.

  "Ha! Don't even lock their doors around here. C'mon."

  Billy looked at Emily. "You stay out here and wait for us. If anyone comes close, you leave. Don't worry about us. You get out of here as fast as you can, you hear me?"

  "Loud and clear," she said.

  Billy leaned over and kissed her forehead. "That's my girl."

  Chapter 17

  Harry was shaking. Not because he was cold; on the contrary, he was soaked in his own sweat. No, he was shaking because he was so scared. He had been sitting in the top of the tree for hours, not knowing what to do, how to get down, if he even dared to get down. That was when he thought he heard voices.

  Familiar voices.

  Kerry? That sounds just like Kerry!

  The voices were calling his and Jeff's names.

  "Kerry," he said to himself when he heard it again. "KERRY!" he then yelled as loud as he could.

  "Harry?" the voice called back.

  Yup, it was definitely Kerry. "Kerry! My man! I’m up in the tree! Can you see me?"

  Harry didn't dare to wave, but for the first time since he had climbed up there, he dared to look down. He could see nothing but vines and leaves and branches beneath him. No ground or anyone walking on that ground.

  You have to get down there. They can't hear you or see you. You must find a way to get down.

  Harry gasped when he dared to look down again. He clung to the trunk of the tree even tighter. There was no way—no way—he could climb down without getting hurt. But he had to. He had to get down to them or they would continue past him and he would have to spend another night in this forsaken hellhole of a swamp.

  "KERRY!!!!"

  No answer. In the distance, he could hear them calling Jeff's name.

  The voices are moving away. They're leaving. You must do something! Anything, Harry, think.

  He looked at his feet. He had lost one of his boots when sinking into the muddy water and barely pulling himself out. But he still had the other one on his foot.

  You've got to make them know you are here. Grab their attention somehow, someway, any way.

  With a small scared gasp, Harry let go of the trunk with one hand and grabbed the end of the boot. He started to pull it but lost his grip, and suddenly he was sliding. Harry screamed and reached out to grab the trunk with both hands. He landed on a new branch and groaned in pain. He looked at the boot, it was still halfway on.

  Just a little bit more.

  He held his breath as he reached out one hand again, grabbed the end of the boot, and pulled it. A second later, it slid off, but he lost his grip on it and it fell out of his hand.

  "Crap!" Harry exclaimed while holding on to the trunk with both hands again. Meanwhile, the boot whistled through the air, went through the roof of leaves beneath, and landed on the ground with a thud. He couldn't see it anymore from where he was, but he assumed that was what had happened to it.

  "Crap," he said again. He had missed his chance to get their attention. He had hoped to make a loud noise or something spectacular when it landed. He could still hear them calling in the distance, but the voices seemed to be getting further and further away from him.

  "KERRY!!!" he yelled. "COME BACK!"

  But no one came. Harry knew he had to climb down, and fast. He swallowed hard, then started to descend slowly. He held onto the trunk tightly and made his body slide slowly to the branch beneath him, till he could sense he had found one steady enough to hold him. Thinking he had to be closer now, he looked down, but he didn't seem any closer than before.

  Harry sighed, then looked for another big branch beneath him and found one to the left of where he was. Again, he reached down with his foot first, his eyes closed, big beads of sweat springing from his forehead, the branches creaking and complaining at his weight. When he found one with his toes, he carefully made sure it could sustain his weight before letting go of the one above him, then finally when he did, the branch broke with a loud creak, Harry's hands lost their grip, and seconds later, he was falling through the air.

  This is it, he thought to himself while falling, headfirst, this is how I go.

  As Harry fell, expecting to hit the ground hard any second now, he felt something reach out for him, and as he looked he saw a plant of some sort, or maybe a big flower with lots of spikes. It was reaching out for him, then it looked like it was opening up, like a big giant green and red mouth, jaws shaped like taco shells, then as he landed inside of its soft shell, it closed around him, swiftly snapping shut, the spikes at the end imprisoning him, like bars in front of a window.

  At first, he was relieved that he had landed softly, but as he tried to grab the spikes and pull them apart, he realized they were too strong, he couldn't even bend them, and the more he fought the shell holding him, the tighter it got around him, till he suddenly couldn't move anymore. It got so tight it squeezed all air out of him and he could hardly breathe, or even scream.

  Underneath him, he heard agitated voices and recognized one of them as Kerry's. He was yelling.

  "Over here! Come see. I found something. It looks like a boot!"

  Chapter 18

  Sheriff Ivan scratched his head and looked at me. I had brought him a fresh cup of coffee, thinking he had to need it more than any of us. It was afternoon now on day two of their search. Ivan was starting to look very pale and slightly desperate.

  "I simply don't understand," he said and sipped the coffee I had handed him. "It's like they all just disappeared. Just like that." He snapped his fingers. "Removed from the face of the earth. No trace left behind, nothing. And now Jeff and Harry seemed to have gotten lost as well. No one has seen them since last night. I…I simply don't understand it. Every one of the men I have sent in there knows the swamps, and Jeff…? Well, he’s the most skilled hunter we have around here. They say he can hear a snake and tell you which type it is. Never met a man more skilled, and now he’s gone?"

  I shrugged and looked at the latest search crew that had come back empty-handed, now eating and drinking in silence, their exhausted eyes avoiding each other's and especially the missing people’s relatives.

  "Could he have gotten lost? He and Harry?" I asked.

  Sheriff Ivan sighed. It was a deep sigh. One of those that told me Ivan was at his wit's end.

  "That's the thing," he said. "Jeff doesn't get lost. If I was ever lost in there, he’s the guy I would have them send to find me."

  I nodded. Ivan was right. Jeff was our best man. I didn't know him very well, but this concerned me deeply. I worried about Harry too. Harry was a good guy. I liked Harry and rooted for him and Julia. So far, she still had no idea he liked her; well, maybe she knew a little, but she always refused to know or changed the subject if I ever started to talk about him. I got the feeling she liked him too, how couldn't she when she saw how wonderful he was with Sam? I believed she was just waiting for him to make a move. But so far, Harry hadn't, and now they had somehow stalled in this weird friendship area. They liked to hang out and talk, and he would often help her if she needed anything fixed at her place, but it never amounted to anything more than that. It was a shame. They would be so good for one another, and I, for one, would love to have him as my son-in-law.

  "We found something."

  It was Kerry, one of the guys who worked at the auto shop, Busted Knuckles. He approached Ivan. He looked agitated. He gave me a nod.

  "Hey, Patty."

  "Hi," I said and looked at what he showed Ivan. It was a boot.

  "I think it might be Jeff's," Kerry said.

  Ivan grabbed the boot and looked at it closely. "Sure looks like something Jeff would wear. But, then again, all the guys around here wear those type of boots. It could belong to anyone. Where did you find it?"

  "Deep in the swamps. We searched everywhere for Jeff and Harry and saw lots of footprints, but no sign of them. We searched the area around where the boot was, trying to follow their trail, but they weren't anywhere to be found."

  "I'll send the dogs in. You able to show them the way to where you found it?" Ivan asked.

  "Sure. No problem. But I’m telling you, they won't find them. We were everywhere."

  "Still worth a try," Ivan said and looked at me. "This is the first trace of any of them and needs to be followed." He lifted his hat. "Excuse me, Patty."

  I watched him approach the K9 unit that had come in from Bushnell to help us out since we only had one police dog in Webster ourselves. We held a fundraiser last year to raise the money for it.