Fear Thy Neighbor (56)

“I gotcha. You two got a thing goin’ on. You don’t waste time, do ya, girl?”

Kit stepped as close to Sanders as he could without touching him. “I asked you not to speak to her like that. Are you deaf?”

Ali watched the three deputies snicker at Kit’s comment to Sanders, who must be their superior, which was the biggest joke of all. Renée didn’t stand a chance if this idiot controlled the investigation.

“I see we got a smartass on our hands.” Sanders spoke to the three idiots, stepping away from Kit, who towered over him by nearly a foot.

“Listen, you’re not here to decide what I am or not. A child is missing, or have you forgotten why you’re here?” Kit’s words were laced with unreleased anger. Seeing him stand up to the deputy, Ali was proud he wasn’t frightened by a badge.

Inwardly, Ali laughed. Sanders would be no match for Kit, unless he used his weapon. He would be the kind to use a gun just to bully others.

“She’s probably run away with some boy. Girls her age oughta be locked up till they’re old enough to marry,” Sanders said to no one in particular.

Alison saw headlights reflecting on the windows. She hoped it was Valentina with good news.

“I see you have a high opinion of women. Men like you make me sick,” Kit said. “Do your damned job, or I’m going to make a phone call, and it won’t be to your uncle.”

“You threatenin’ me?”

“Call it whatever you like. Do your job and quit wasting time showing us what an ass you are,” Kit said, his fists clenched at his side.

Valentina came through the door, her blonde hair a tangled mess, eyes red from crying. She glanced at the deputies. “Is this how you search for a missing person? Get out. Now!” she said. “I refuse to allow you in her room. Go!” She pointed her finger toward the door.

“Hey, woman, you need to calm down. You’re the one that called us, remember?” Sanders said.

“I didn’t call you,” Valentina said, “your stupid-ass uncle sent you here. This is my house, and I’ll give you to the count of five to get out of here!”

Alison went to Valentina, placing an arm around her. “You heard what she said. Go. Now.”

“You better not call the department again, cause we ain’t gonna waste any more time on you, you got that?” Sanders smirked. “Go on—she can find her kid herself. Probably out screwin’ around anyway. Girls like her, well, if you ask me, they deserve whatever they get.”

Kit grabbed Sanders by the shoulders. “Get out before I toss your puny ass over the balcony for the fish to feast on. I’m not the least bit intimidated by you or the uniform that you’re a disgrace to. Go.” He turned Sanders toward the door.

“Let’s get out of here,” Sanders said to the three silent deputies. “Let ’em find the kid on their own.”

Finally getting the message, Sanders stomped out, his crew following behind like baby ducks. When they drove off, not only did they turn their red and blue lights on, but they also turned up the sirens, too. All for show, Ali thought.

“Have you heard anything?” Ali asked Valentina.

Valentina shook her head. “Yes, and it’s not what any mother wants to hear.”

Without offering an explanation, Valentina went to the kitchen and took a soda from the refrigerator. “Y’all help yourselves; then we’ll talk.” She sat on a barstool, no longer the confident woman Ali had gone shopping with just a few hours earlier.

“I’m good,” Ali said. “Kit?” She motioned toward the fridge.

“Nothing for me,” he said.

“Renée is fine. At least, I hope she is.” Valentina sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose with one hand, looking down. “I thought we had a close relationship. I thought she told me everything, at least things a mother needs to know. Apparently, I’ve been blindsided by her the past few months.”

Ali and Kit waited for her to continue explaining what had become of her daughter.

“This is so unreal, it’s hard for me to speak about it.”

“Then don’t,” Ali suggested. “If Renée isn’t in any danger, you don’t need to explain anything. Right?” She turned to Kit.

He took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. “Actually, I think she should.”

Valentina nodded. She took an unused napkin left on the bar, wiping the fresh tears from her face. “It’s embarrassing. Moms should know stuff about their kid, right?”

“Not always,” Kit told her. “Is she with someone you don’t like?”

She looked at him. “Yes. Someone I despise.”

“All girls date at least one guy their parents don’t like,” Ali said. Though she’d never personally experienced it, she’d spent a lot of time reading young-adult novels in her youth, and many shared this theme.

“It’s that son of a bitch who’s old enough to be her father!” Valentina blurted out, another round of tears streaming down her face.

“Who?” Ali asked with a sinking feeling in her stomach.

“John Wilson, the island idiot,” Valentina answered.

Neither Ali nor Kit spoke for a few seconds. Finally, Ali managed to say, “But she hates him. She told us that at lunch, remember? Maybe you’re mistaken?”