Page 83 of Legacy of Lies
Chapter 20
“Hank.” He’d recognize that grinding voice anywhere.
“How are things on the ranch? Extra crispy?”
“You taking credit, dickhead? Want to make an official statement?”
“Concerned for my neighbor, that’s all.” He breathed heavily.
“My ass, you’re concerned. What the hell do you want?”
His laugh oozed like slime through the phone. “Besides your ranch? Oh, I don’t know. How about you figure it out?”
“I don’t have time for games, Hank.”
“How about you think about our offer on the ranch?”
“Or what?”
“Or I won’t be extra nice to a person you love.”
Holy shit. Zach.
“What have you done?”
“I have a little friend over for a visit. And how nicely I treat him depends on how well you keep your big mouth shut.”
The phone went dead.
Being kicked in the balls wouldn’t hurt this much.
Before Garrison could get into the truck, his cell phone rang again. Sara’s number. Shit, this was not the time. Hank had his kid. Garrison had to deal with that issue first.
Should he backtrack to the school and see if anyone could give him a lead, or should he go back to the ranch house?
His father couldn’t take more stress right now. Shelby would try to help, but she couldn’t form a sentence without wheezing. And Kerr and Eric were exhausted.
He vaulted into the truck and threw it into drive, wheels spinning as he exited the ranch road, and floored it down the highway to town. Maybe Sara knew something.
Stupid. He should have answered when she called. He grabbed his phone, which now blinked a message. Ignoring the message, he called Sara’s number, and it went straight to voice mail.
Please let this be Hank’s stupid joke. Let Zach be okay.
• • •
Zach had been gone fifteen, twenty minutes, max. Sara glanced at her watch. How far could he go? Maybe he was in the bathroom, ill. If so, someone would have found him and alerted her, right? Maybe he was hurt. Or in the principal’s office. Or ran away. Who knew?
She couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t think. Where was he?
Grabbing her phone, she dashed down the hall, checking all of the bathrooms and even ducking into the gym and cafeteria. Nothing. Only a few remaining kids waiting out front to be picked up.
God, she’d have to tell her boss that one of her students had gone missing.
Well, there went the last nail in the coffin of her teaching career. Butch had it in for her, and losing a kid was beyond unacceptable. To be fair, she didn’t deserve to be a teacher if she couldn’t keep her students safe.
Might as well pack her things now.
First, though, she had to find Zach and make sure he was okay.
