Game of Fear (Montgomery Justice #3)(24)

           Dear Deb,

   Sorry. Things just got too hard for me at the Academy. I’m meeting Justin to look at other schools so we can be together.

   I really am sorry.

   Love,

   Ashley

“My sister did not write this note.”

The policeman sighed. “The kid said it was her writing. He could tell by the way she signed her name with the squiggly design she put under the y.”

“It looks like her writing, but it’s not,” Deb insisted. “Besides, Ashley has straight As. It wasn’t too hard for her. Did you even check that out with the school?”

“No.” The cop glared at her. “It looks pretty cut and dried that she wants to be with this Justin character. And if you don’t hold the attitude, I’ll take you in for questioning.”

Deb could barely quell the urge to show this guy exactly what kind of training she’d learned—not at boot camp, but at the hands of her two older brothers before she left for basic training.

As if reading her mind, Gabe gently clasped Deb’s elbow and squeezed before stepping between her and the cop. “I’ve run police investigations before up at Jeffco. Did you at least look at the bus terminal security tapes to make sure that Ashley was the driver who left the car in the lot?”

“They’re broken,” the rookie snapped.

“All of them?”

“No,” the second cop added. “Just the two on this side.”

“Seriously?” Deb glowered at him. “Doesn’t that seem a little convenient to you?”

The third police officer, who had remained silent until now, cleared his throat. “Lady, nothing about this case is convenient, except that note. It sounds like we’re dealing with young love. She’s sixteen.”

“That boy is missing, too.”

“We spoke to his parents and there is no proof these two kids aren’t together. Your sister made the choice to go with the boy. We’ll put out a bulletin on her, but not because she’s the victim of a possible kidnapping. She’s looking at grand theft auto charges for stealing the car.”

“That’s insane. She borrowed the car!” Deb planted herself inches from the cop. “Ashley is a good kid. She’s missing and in trouble. Can’t you see that?”

He ignored her and flipped through his notebook. “Yeah. She’s good at breaking into the NSA. Good at pulling a few pranks in high school and giving everyone straight As in her graduating class. Your sister is in a lot of trouble, lady, and the district attorney will be in touch if the owner decides to press charges.”

Deb whirled to the cadet. “You would do that? Even knowing this is completely out of character?”

“Hey,” he protested, “I don’t know her that well. It’s not like we were best buds or anything. All she did was tutor me a bit. I took pity on her when she begged to borrow my car. I didn’t psychoanalyze her first.” The kid glowered at Deb. “And when Ashley comes back from her little jaunt, tell her not to bother asking me for another favor. I don’t care how desperate she sounds. I don’t need this kind of trouble.”

The engine coughed to life and he screeched out of the parking lot. The policemen sauntered to their squad cars.

Deb rushed one of them, but Gabe held her back and snagged the note from her hands. He scanned it. “There’s nothing they can do, Deb.”

Her entire body shook with fury as the three cars pulled away. She jerked her arm from Gabe. “I thought you believed me.”

“I do, but a note like this changes things.”

“If Ashley was going to run away, she’d never leave me a vague note like this. She wouldn’t hide her plans from me, either.”

“Unless she knew you’d never go along with them,” he said gently. “Her note—”

“If she was being defiant, she’d address the note to Admiral Lansing, just to get in my face about it. And that curlicue at the end of the y . . . that’s not how she writes it. She’s a geek. She draws a perfect spiral. Some craziness about ratios and math.”

“I do believe you.” Gabe let out an exasperated sigh. “I was going to say, her note looks a lot like some of the letters in my father’s files.”

“Why didn’t you say anything in front of them?” Deb whirled around, her hands on her hips.

“Because I pick my battles. The police won’t believe me. Not now. They’ve made up their minds. Every single case my father looked into was shoved aside by the police. Teens running away because parents put too much pressure on them, didn’t care, needed to find themselves, whatever. A few of the parents haven’t given up hope, but none of the disappearances are active cases anymore. I have no proof of any wrongdoing.”

Deb could barely contain her frustration—and her disappointment. She wanted to punch something . . . or someone. “What about all the stuff we talked about after going to Detective Wexler? The POE plates, the video game, the possibility of a conspiracy?”

“Speculation, Deb. We can’t prove any of it yet. Neil may be our best bet after all, since he’s working Shannon’s case.”

“If they’re connected. So, I just ignore the fact that my sister is missing? I let Neil traipse around investigating an eight-year-old murder while my sister could be fighting for her life? Great. At least you get your investigation solved.”