Last Words

“Damn, I forgot they’re repaving this section.” He looked around. “We’re stuck now. The last turn off was about a quarter mile back.”

“So what else did Hal say?”

Beck sca

“Sounds like Lisa needs a new phone.”

“I guess so. The important thing is that she’s okay.”

“Did you think she wasn’t?”

“I don’t know.” He thought it over for a few seconds, then said, “I guess knowing how this guy is-how clever and how slick-for a while there, I felt as if she’d disappeared, too. It was just a bad feeling I got when no one was able to contact her. She’s a really good cop, like I said.”

“And a good friend, I’d guess.”

“Yes. She’s a good friend.” He nodded. “She was the first woman officer Hal hired. She was here when I started.”

“Do you think she resented that you were brought in over her?”

“Lisa?” He seemed surprised by the question. “No. She didn’t want the job, made no bones about it. Her kids were still real young then, and she’s always made them her priority. The kids and Todd, that’s what she lives for. She loves the job, there’s no doubt in my mind, but it’s always been second for her.”

“Smart woman.”

“Very.” A song came on that he apparently didn’t like, because he started scrolling through the dial again. “I think the only person who resented me for a while was Duncan. I think he’s always wanted to be chief, but he’s never really reached that level of competency, you know what I mean? Administratively, that is. He’s a good cop but a piss poor record keeper and as Hal said, he just isn’t a leader. He’s come around since then, though. We get along just fine now.”

“You must have been a police officer somewhere before you came to St. De

“Even if my father was the retiring chief and head of the search committee?” He finished the sentence for her. “Yes, I’d been in law enforcement for years.”

He seemed reluctant to say more, but Mia was curious and persistent.

“Where?” she asked.

“I was with the Newtown police department here in Maryland for six years, and before that I was in the service.”

“Which branch?”

“What difference does it make?”

She smiled. “That means Special Forces.”

He turned up the radio and acted as if he hadn’t heard.

“So which was it?” she asked.

“You don’t give up, do you?”

“Only when I absolutely have to.” She slanted a glance at him, but he ignored her. “So what about these abandoned places you told Hal to look into?”

“St. De

“Sounds like the perfect place to keep a woman chained up.”

“We did check them out last week, but only from the outside, so I want to take a closer look. If I wanted to keep someone hidden for a few weeks and not attract any attention, I’d be thinking hard about one of those buildings.”

“And you think he’s keeping them in St. De

“Pretty certain. Daley and Meyers have said they’ve searched high and low in their respective towns, and nothing’s been found. Of course, neither Cameron nor Ballard has the number of vacant buildings that we have.”

“Why is that?”

“They’re newer towns. St. De

He took out his phone as the traffic started moving.

“Garland,” he said, “I need Duncan. Is he around? Find him for me, please. And call the mobile phone service. It looks like Lisa needs an upgrade.”

“Well, that should make Lisa happy. Getting a new phone, that is.”

“Hey, I live to please.” He played around with the radio dial for a minute, then said, “She’s almost like a sister to me, maybe even more like a sister than my sister. I’ve actually known Lisa longer than I’ve known Vanessa.”

“That must have been quite a surprise,” Mia said, “finding out you had a sister.”

“When it comes to Maggie, anything is possible. That woman is always full of surprises.”

“Like bringing you here una

“Yeah, that was a good one,” he said dryly. “Pissed me off more than you could imagine, her dragging me here, never saying a word about where we were going or what she intended on doing. Just telling Hal that I was his problem, turning heel and walking away, leaving me standing there…”

Even now, years later, the pain in his voice and in his eyes was unmistakable.

“Looks like it turned out okay, though. With Hal, I mean.”

“Only good thing she ever did for me.” He nodded. “Still, you have to have something seriously wrong with you to do that to your own kid.”

“But in the end…”

“In the end, it was the best thing that could have happened to me. She really couldn’t handle me. And I guess that last time I got into trouble was the last straw, as far as she was concerned. And Hal was a terrific dad. Just took to it straight away, never questioned for a second whether I was his or not. Here he was, a small town cop, living alone…”

“He never married?”

“Nope. Always said the only woman he ever loved was my mother.” Beck shook his head as if the thought was incomprehensible to him. “How crazy is that?”

“She must have had something going for her. Hal’s no fool.”

“Yeah, well, he is when it comes to Maggie. I swear, if she walked back into St. De

“She must have had a reason to do what she did, Beck.”

“Oh, she had a reason, all right. Her new husband didn’t like me.” His face hardened. “And I guess when you have to decide between your kid and your meal ticket, your stomach is going to win out every time. At least, for some it will.”

“This new husband, he was Vanessa’s father?”

“Right. One mean son of a bitch.”

“But Vanessa told me they split up before she was born.”

“Guess he didn’t like kids, his or anyone else’s.”

“Was he abusive?”

“Abusive?” Beck frowned. “What made you ask that?”

“I don’t know.” Mia shrugged. “I was just thinking, she brought you to Hal right after she married this guy. Then, before she even had Vanessa, she split with him. Maybe she was trying to protect you. Both of you.”

“And her reason for sending Vanessa out here?”

“Maybe she just thought it was time you got to know each other.”

“More likely she was trying to get Vanessa out of her hair.”