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“I might not be much in the kitchen, but I can dig around in there for food while you make an online order and set up the cribs,” she said. “Did you call Buster?”
“I did,” Darren acknowledged. “He’s wrapping something up and will be on his way shortly.”
Buster had always been like a big brother or uncle to her. “I’m glad he’s still here helping the ranch run smoothly.”
“I don’t know if I’d call it running smoothly with me at the helm, but I’m doing my best,” Darren said before making eyes that finally broke some of the tension.
“The place is still going,” she said. “Sounds like success to me.”
“The insurance money from the house will help. I’ve been running two places and it has been a drain. This is a small operation and can use a cash infusion.”
Reese had a little money saved. She would offer her savings if it would help, but doubted he would take her up on it. “The ranch is solvent, right?”
“That it is,” he answered.
“Like I said...success.”
He smiled and nodded as she left the room and headed toward the kitchen. She wasn’t kidding about her cooking skills. However, she’d managed to keep herself fed and she had a few tricks up her sleeve.
In the pantry, there were cans of pinto beans and boxes of boil-in-a-bag rice. This was right up her alley. In the fridge, she located a white onion and a nice spicy sausage. She pulled out a couple of pans and got busy. First, she chopped the onion and sliced the sausage. She threw those into a saucepan with a can of pinto beans. Next, she boiled water for the rice. Fixing a meal took less than twenty minutes. Pride filled her chest at what she’d accomplished because it actually smelled good. She located two serving bowls, using one for the rice and the other for the sausage and beans.
After grabbing a couple of glasses, she filled them with water and then put on a pot of coffee like she’d down countless times after school when they’d come here to do homework, because she didn’t want to risk running into Duncan. Disappearing was the best way to fly underneath his radar, and she’d been good at it.
Had she become too good at disappearing?
DARRENMADEAcouple of phone calls. Tandra’s family didn’t answer, so he left a message. If it wasn’t necessary, he wouldn’t bother them at all. But he might just be able to help find their missing daughter and connect a criminal to a couple other cases, so it was worth the intrusion.
Aiden Archer was more difficult to pin down. If he was around town at all, Buster would probably know something. He’d lived here for years and knew most of the families, if not personally than by association or reputation.
Phillip Rhodes, as it turned out, worked for a major distribution chain as a delivery driver, according to his mother. He went from house to house delivering packages and had moved three times in the past five years. There were five missing teens altogether, including the additional three cases that seemed connected to Camree Lynn and Tandra. He was on shift in Barrel City, which was a two-hour drive from the farmhouse, and he clocked out at midnight this evening. They could confront him and see what he had to say. His voice might be familiar to Reese, and could possibly jar a memory.
Or he could take one look at her, panic, and assume he was busted. He could run and that would tell them everything they needed to know about his innocence. But then what? Because it would also tip their hands. There would be no sheriff with them. Was it possible to get a current picture of Rhodes to show to Reese? Maybe on social media? Would that have the same effect? It was worth a try. He might have changed a lot over the years.
Darren performed a quick social media scan. He found several listings for Phillip Rhodes on the most popular platform. A few had actual faces attached. The others had pictures or memes. He scanned a couple to see if they gave away any details of where the person might work and didn’t find anything related to delivery drivers. Of course, it stood to reason a man guilty of stalking, luring, kidnapping, and possibly killing teenaged girls with trouble at home wouldn’t use his real photo.
And, a creep who preyed on teenage girls might be good at hiding. It dawned on Darren how easy it would be to find out intimate information about these targets online. So many shared too many details of their private lives, making it easier for someone to lurk. The bastard could become so familiar with the target, he believed they were in a relationship.
It also occurred to him someone like Rhodes could deliver gifts if the girls were home. Of course, it would be easy to trace if the interactions occurred on the computer. Law enforcement would certainly look there first.
The common thread of troubled teens bothered Darren. The parents fighting and talking about divorce could throw off the most grounded teen. Camree Lynn had withdrawn from everyone but Reese, and Reese’s guilt must have crushed her at times that she couldn’t save her friend. Young people had a habit of blaming themselves for everything that happened. He should know. He’d been just as bad.
Whatever was happening in the kitchen smelled good. Hunger pulled him out of the office, and he walked toward the scent. “I thought you said you couldn’t cook.”
“I said that I can survive in the kitchen,” Reese said with a laugh. “I wouldn’t call it cooking.”
Seeing her standing there in what had been her favorite warm-ups wasn’t helping him with the whole keep-her-at-arm’s-length plan. Fresh from the shower, her hair still wet, he could already smell her clean, citrusy scent as he walked toward the table. The eat-in round table was set for two. There were serving bowls and plates. She’d even located a candle. He shouldn’t be surprised. She’d spent plenty of time here when they were young, and nothing had changed. He hadn’t touched any of his mother’s stuff or rearranged any of the cabinets. When he ate here, it was usually off of a paper plate or fast-food carton. His mother would have had a fit. She despised fast food, but then she kept a garden of fresh vegetables and herbs. It was easy enough for her to walk outside and grab what she needed. Everything she’d touched grew. Having a green thumb was only part of the equation. There were people who made everyone and everything else thrive around them. She’d been one of those people. They used to joke she could touch a dying tree and it would come back to life. He imagined she had a huge garden and spent her days where she was happiest.
“I put on coffee but thought you should probably drink water with your meal,” Reese said.
He walked over to her before taking a seat. He’d almost lost her today to whoever had attacked her at the hospital, right under his nose. So, yeah, he knew about guilt. As it turned out, some things from childhood don’t change all that much.
“I should have stayed in the room with you,” he said to her.
“There was a deputy with you,” she said. “This guy is brazen.”
“Or desperate,” he responded.
“Point taken.” She bit her bottom lip. “Either way, he won’t catch us off guard again.”
