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“Mr. Hawker?” asked Whiskey.
“That’s me.”
“Mr. Hawker, my name is Whiskey, and this is Nine. We’re with Gray Wolf Security. We’re looking into the three missing kids, including your daughter, Danielle.”
“You’re cops?” he asked.
“No, sir. We’re private.”
“Look, whatever your fee is, there’s no way we can afford it,” he said, shaking his head. “I’d give you everything if I thought it would be enough, but I know it’s not.”
“We’re doing this as a favor for some friends,” smiled Nine.
“Honey? Who is it?” came a croaky voice.
“Come in,” he said, opening the door. “It’s a security company, babe. They say they’re trying to find the kids.”
“Oh, God! Come in, come in,” said the woman. The description of her by the Russells was fairly accurate. She was definitely voluptuous, her dyed blonde hair in a messy ponytail. She had no makeup on, although it looked smeared beneath her eyes. Perhaps remnants of the previous night.
“The house is a mess. I’m sorry,” she said, shaking her head. It was Mr. Hawker who looked embarrassed.
“I should be helping, but I can’t,” he said. “I had back surgery about two years ago. That’s when we moved into this house. It was a work accident on the oil rigs. I haven’t been the same since. Always in pain, always going in for physical therapy or injections, and it’s still not getting better. I have a license for medical marijuana, grow it myself, but I know my neighbors don’t seem to care about any of that.”
“I don’t think they knew about your back, Mr. Hawker,” said Whiskey.
“See, honey,” said his wife, “I told you we should have let them know. Look, I don’t care what people think of us, but they’ve judged Danielle on my job and my husband’s inability to find work because of his back. Hell, I don’t think they understand that I probably make ten times what they do by bartending at that strip club. I don’t strip. I bartend.”
“We know,” nodded Nine. “But there is no judgment here either way. I do think it might be helpful if your neighbors knew about your surgery. They might be more willing to help you with the yard work.” Both nodded, not sure what to say.
“We’re not here about your yard,” said Whiskey. “We want to know more about Danielle and what she, Spencer, and Christina might have had in common.”
“I’m not sure. Christina was a sweetheart. She always included Danielle in everything, so did her friends, especially Melanie. I knew she wanted a tattoo, but I was trying to get her to wait. I’ve had a few,” smirked Mrs. Hawker, “and a few I’ve regretted. I didn’t want that to happen to her.”
“Was your daughter in AP classes like Christina and Spencer?” asked Nine.
“She was,” her father said proudly. “She’s really amazing. Smarter than her old man, for sure. She ran cross-country as well.”
“I’m sure she’s a wonderful young woman,” said Whiskey. “Was she in any online chatrooms, maybe dating sites, anything like that?”
“Not that we know of,” said Mrs. Hawker. “We didn’t monitor it extensively. It’s a family laptop, so she knew that we had access to it. Besides, other than the tattoo, she’s never lied to us about anything. I didn’t have reason to follow up on that because it was always at my fingertips.”
“Was she dating anyone, or was anyone trying to date her that she rejected?”
“No,” they said, shaking their heads.
“We were more than happy to let her date, but she was very level-headed. Focused on attending college next year, which we’re very proud of her for,” said Mrs. Hawker. “She was friends with a lot of kids but never dated.”
“What about homecoming or prom? No dates?”
“She always went with a big group of girls,” said her father.
“Would it be alright if I looked at her room?” asked Whiskey. Her mother nodded, pointing down the hallway. He left them in the living room with Nine.
“You said you hurt your back on the rigs. Did you file a worker’s comp complaint?” asked Nine.
“I did, for all the good it would do me. They’re trying to settle for half the amount of my medical bills alone. My lawyer isn’t worth shit, but he’s all we can afford.”
“I might be able to help you with that,” said Nine. He made a phone call, smiling at the couple the whole time he spoke. Katrina asked him some questions, which he asked the couple sitting across from him. A few minutes later, she asked to be on speaker.
