Page 50 of All the Missing Pieces

I nodded but didn’t say a thing as I headed for the door. Because I couldn’t get my vocal cords to make the sound of agreement. Not when there was someone walking around who was capable of hurting the innocent and possibly so much worse.

20

RIDLEY

My eyes burnedas the wind hit them, but it wasn’t the wind’s fault. It was Colt’s. After he’d left, I’d run things through with Sully, who was pushing for me to get Baker involved. I understood why. As much as Baker could be an ass, he was protective of his talent. He’d sic lawyers on Colt so fast his head would spin.

But I didn’t want Baker meddling. And I didn’t want any additional pressure to leave this case behind. It was too important.

And that importance was also why I’d struggled to find sleep last night. My mind spun round and round, trying to put the pieces together, to see how everything was connected.

I knew one thing: someone didn’t want me getting access to those case files. Or they at least wanted to see what the sheriff’s department had. To me that said whoever had abducted Emerson was still here. I was close. And I wasn’t giving up.

I slowed my bike as I approached the sign for Cowboy Coffee. It was time to brave the café again, to test Ezra’s waters about talking. Hopping off my bike, I locked it up and headed inside.

The sounds of a coffee machine and the scent of freshly roasted beans greeted me. The shop wasn’t overly crowded thismorning, but it was still early, just past six. That was before the normal work crowd likely hit and certainly before teens on summer vacation were out and about.

I headed in the direction of the counter just as Ezra looked up from his phone. His eyes widened for the briefest second, and then he schooled his features. Shoving his cell into his back pocket, he gave me a tentative smile. “Iced hazelnut latte?”

“That and the cowboy hash, please,” I said, fishing my tiny wallet out of my bag as relief swept through me.

Ezra tapped a few buttons on the tablet register. “That’ll be sixteen-fifty.”

I tapped my card to the reader, then selected a twenty-five-percent tip. I wasn’t above bribery. As I slid my card back into my wallet, I looked up at him. “Not barring me from service?”

Ezra sighed. “I thought about it.”

“What changed your mind?”

“A friend reminded me that it should be Emerson’s choice if she wants you here or not.”

That buzz was back. “And what did she say?”

Ezra tapped his fingers along the counter in a slow beat. “That she’s glad you’re looking into things.” His eyes moved to mine. “She’s not sure if she’s going to talk to you, but she doesn’t want you to stop.”

My heart squeezed. God, she was brave. Selfless.

“Does that mean you’d be willing to talk to me?” I asked Ezra.

He was quiet for a long moment and then finally nodded. “I’ll talk to you. I don’t know what help I’ll be though.”

“Just giving me an idea of Emerson’s life at that time would help. Who she was friends with, what she loved doing.”

“Tennis,” Ezra muttered with a soft smile. “That girl lived and breathed tennis. There were times I’d catch her daydreaming, and she’d apologize and say she was playing a match in her head.”

“That’s exactly the sort of thing I’d love to hear about. Listeners need to connect with the victim. It’s what makes them care. What makes them want to help. Someone out there saw something that will help. They had to.”

Ezra shook his head. “Don’t you think they would’ve come forward by now?”

I slid my wallet back into my bag and hoisted it over my shoulder. “People don’t always know that what they saw had meaning. That’s why it’s important for me to talk to as many people as possible.”

“I guess,” he muttered. “I’ll get your coffee and breakfast out to you as soon as possible.”

I knew a brush-off when I heard one, and I didn’t blame Ezra. People didn’t want to think that it was possible they lived beside a kidnapper, someone who could terrorize a young girl and not give a damn. And when I came out with all of it, they’d know it was worse. That this person had raped and killed.

Nausea swept through me as Avery’s face flashed in my mind. I didn’t want it to be true, not for her or Emerson or any of the others. But just because I wanted it one way didn’t mean I got it. And I couldn’t be afraid to face the truth.

I wound my way through the tables to grab the empty one I’d sat at before. The one that had the perfect view of both the sidewalk and the restaurant. As I passed the two older men playing chess, one looked up. “You’re that reporter, aren’t you?”

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