Page 130 of D for Dead

‘And now you believe in God?’

‘Umm, well yeah, I guess.’

‘So he took advantage of your situation and used it to push religion down your throat?’

She was tying him up in knots; not exactly the way Vic had seen this panning out.

‘Well no, I… he didn’t force me or anything.’

‘But he conveniently led you to that conclusion?’

‘He helped me, okay?’ Vic’s hands tightened on the wheel as frustration bubbled into anger. He didn’t like Amy being difficult like this. It reminded him of having to deal with Angell and her smart mouth, which always pissed him off. ‘He helped me, like I’m trying to help you. There’s no hidden agenda. I thought it would help to have someone to talk to who wouldn’t judge you or try to analyse you.’ He stopped, realising Amy was staring at him, looking surprised. He had never gotten angry around her before.

‘You’re really passionate about this, aren’t you?’

‘Well, yeah.’ Vic wasn’t sure using religion to try and get into a girl’s pants was passionate, but if it was going to work then he’d go with it. ‘As I say, Pastor Ralph helped me, and I honestly believe he can help you too. Plus his wife, Mrs Michaels, is a great cook. The pastor normally has a tin of cookies or muffins with him.’

Amy shook her head. ‘I’m not sure I want to talk, and I have big reservations about talking to a pastor, but if it will shut you up I’ll think about it, okay? No promises, but I will think about it. Deal?’

It was as good as he was going to get for now.

‘Okay, deal.’

He didn’t have her persuaded yet, but it was a start, so he would drop the subject for now and attempt to work on her again later.

* * *

Jake and Rivers arrived in Melford mid-afternoon, and headed to the Sheriff’s office. They were met by Deputy Wayne Rawlins, a lanky man in his late forties, who greeted them enthusiastically before taking them back to meet Sheriff Buck Wagner and Deputy Emily Benson, a self-assured young brunette who couldn’t have been more than mid-twenties.

Wagner pumped Jake’s hand, offered them both a seat, before proceeding to update them on the case.

‘We’ve got an APB out on Tucker Johnson. Man seems to have disappeared without a trace. We’re thinking he knew we were onto him and has either skipped town or is hiding out in the woods. If he is, we will find him. I have people combing through his house as we speak.’

‘Does he have any relatives in town?’ Rivers was already busy scribbling. He had sulked most of the journey after forgetting to bring his dumb notebooks with him and when Jake had refused to turn the car around so he could go back for them, he had insisted they stop off along the way so he could pick up a new one. Jake was beginning to wonder what the hell the kid wrote in them.

‘No one in Melford, not since his wife and kid died. We’ve located his mother. She’s in a nursing home in Boise. She hasn’t seen or heard from him in years. Aside from that he has no other living relatives, which is probably why he has been able to get away killing for so long undetected.’

‘There’s a well on the property,’ Benson piped up. ‘We suspect it may be where he hid the victims. We’ve got a couple of guys down there now looking for bodies.’

‘If the blood spatter in the basement is anything to go by, we’re looking for at least fifteen victims, including Danielle Colton,’ Wagner added. ‘We’ve been going over missing persons reports from the last twenty years, got a handful of hitch-hikers, another girl it was assumed had skipped town. Those are just the ones we know about.’

Jake nodded, mind working overtime. Tucker Johnson was a killer, but it was a stretch for a man with a history of abducting hitch-hikers to change his routine. Whoever was killing from Amy’s books was smart, inventive and wanted the world to see. That was a different type of psychopath. Yet there was no denying the connection between Amy Gallaty and Tucker Johnson. She had nearly been one of his victims.

‘Have you managed to locate Leslie or Crystal Rooney yet?’ he asked, hoping the twins might provide a missing clue.

‘Not yet.’ Wagner’s expression was grim. ‘We still haven’t been able to get hold of Crystal Rooney. It’s been nearly a week and her mother, Deanna, says it’s out of character. She let us in the house, but there’s no sign of her. Leslie returned home from a school trip yesterday, but has also pulled a disappearing act. We don’t know if they think they’re in trouble and have skipped town or…’ He trailed off, not needing to spell out the alternative.

‘Can you show us Leslie Rooney’s place?’

Wagner nodded at Jake. ‘Sure. I can have a word with Deanna. She’ll let us in.’

‘She lives in town, right?’ Rivers asked.

‘Yeah, just down the road from her parents, in the old Cunningham house.’

The what?

The name registered in Jake’s brain as Benson glanced at Wagner before continuing. ‘Want me to go give Deanna a ring, boss?’