Missing in Mudbug (Ghost-in-Law #5)(14)

Colt’s light had vanished when she went in the window and she glanced around, trying to figure out where he’d gone. Maybe he’d surfaced for some reason. She pushed back a bit and directed her light at the front dashboard. Maybe some paperwork was in the glove compartment. She pulled the compartment open and plastic packet from inside. Everything was probably soaked, but there was always a chance she’d be able to get something off of it.

Deciding she’d gained everything she could in her current position, she surfaced. Her mask fogged over as soon as her head popped out of the water and she reached up with her free hand to lift it. Colt was exiting the water and looked back as he heard her breach the surface.

She held up the packet. “The license plate was gone, but I pulled this out of the glove compartment. We might be able to get something off of the papers inside if they’re not completely soaked.”

“License plate?” Burton stared at her as if she’d just reported finding an alien spaceship in the pond.

“It’s not a boat,” Colt explained. “It’s a car. Someone probably wedged a stick into the accelerator then popped it in drive.”

Burton’s eyes widened. “What the hell?”

“I can’t tell you how relieved I was to see the car was empty,” Jadyn said as she stepped on the bank beside Colt.

He frowned. “We’re not in the clear yet. I was just going back to my truck for a crowbar.”

Jadyn froze and she sucked in a breath. The trunk. How could she have forgotten the trunk?

Because bodies in trunks are not something a degree in environmental science covers.

She watched as Colt retrieved a crowbar from the toolbox in the back of his truck and made his way back into the water.

“What are you doing with that crowbar?” Burton stood at the edge of the pond, alternating staring at Colt and peering into the pond at the car.

“I need to pop the trunk. Make sure there’s nothing inside.”

Burton’s eyes widened. “You think someone’s in that trunk?”

“That’s not what I said.”

“You didn’t have to. What the hell is going on here? There’s something you ain’t telling me about all this.”

“Later,” Colt said and looked over Jadyn. “I’m going to need two hands for this. Can you light up the back?”

Jadyn nodded and tried to swallow, but the lump in her throat was so big it seemed to be choking her. She took a couple steps up the bank and placed the packet on the edge of a rock. As she made her way back down the bank, she pulled her mask on, popped her regulator in her mouth, then gave Colt a thumbs-up. He nodded and walked into the pond until he disappeared below the surface. Jadyn said a silent prayer and followed him into the murky depths.

As she approached the rear of the car, Colt’s spotlight created an eerie glow in the water surrounding her. Algae and who knew what else floated in tiny pieces around her, minnows darting away as she moved through the water. When she drew up next to Colt, she tapped his arm and he handed her his spotlight.

She directed the light at the center of the car’s rear and watched as Colt stuck the crowbar underneath the trunk. Her heartbeat pounded in her chest, then echoed through her ears with a whooshing sound. He shoved the crowbar down but the trunk didn’t budge. He turned a bit to the side for better leverage and shoved the crowbar down once more.

At first, Jadyn thought it was another failed attempt, then she realized the trunk lid had crept up an inch but was being held in place by the tide. As Colt reached for the lid, she tightened her grip on the spotlight until her hand ached. Every inch the trunk moved seemed to match a heartbeat until it was wide enough to peer inside. The very back appeared empty, so she moved closer to illuminate the far depths of the trunk.

When she saw nothing but water between her and the backseat of the car, she released the breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding. She sucked in air through the regulator, and the rush of oxygen made her dizzy for a couple of seconds. She felt Colt tap her shoulder and looked over to see him pointing up.

She nodded and pushed off the muddy bottom toward the surface, tearing the mask and regulator off as soon as she breached the surface.

“Anything?” Burton yelled from the bank.

“It’s empty,” Jadyn replied.

Burton’s relief was apparent. “Thank the Lord for that.”

Colt surfaced a second later. “Let’s see if we can get anything off those papers.”

“Crap,” Jadyn said as they walked up the bank. “I didn’t even think to look at the make of the car.”

“I did,” Colt said.

“And?”

“It’s a Cadillac DTS.”

She froze. “Like Raissa and Zach’s?”

Colt paused. “I don’t know Cadillacs very well, so I can’t be certain about the year, but yeah, it looks like theirs. There were also a couple bullet holes in the back windshield.”

Jadyn stared after him a couple of seconds before scrambling up the bank behind him. He stopped to talk with Burton, but she didn’t pay any attention to the conversation. She looked back at the pond, already unable to see the top of the car any longer.

Nothing made sense. Too many pieces were missing.

And the worst part was, she had to return to the hotel without a single answer.