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His answer sounded warm. “Ellie. How are you today?”
Sharp tossed a glance toward the baritone voice as the man settled at the counter several places to his left. Tall, fit. He was the funeral director who’d overseen Roger’s graveside service.
Ellie set a cup in front of him and filled it with coffee. “Norm, this is Agent Sharp. He’s working that dead boy’s case, like you.”
Sharp extended his hand. “DeLuca, right?”
His grasp was firm, his gaze direct. “That’s right.”
Ellie tapped her fingers on the counter. “Norm, let me get your to-go order.”
As she vanished into the kitchen, Sharp faced the man. “You will be handling Terrance’s funeral service?”
“I am. I spoke to his grandmother this morning. Sad, sad thing to happen. They are a good family, and the kid had so much promise.”
“You know the family well.”
“Know them well enough to say hi. Henry has the maintenance contract with the cemetery, and I see him often. The guy works hard, and I know he was proud of his cousin’s football career.”
“What about Jimmy Dillon? Do you know much about him?”
“He’s been in prison for at least nine or ten years. I think his last conviction was related to drugs. He was in prison when his wife, Terrance’s mother, died.”
“Did Terrance have any contact with his father?”
“I did see Jimmy at Terrance’s football game a couple of weeks ago. He was off to the side, I think, trying to go unnoticed.”
“Why do you say that?”
Intelligence burned in DeLuca’s stare. “He stayed close to the bleachers and close to the exit. Thirteen years of running funerals and you get a knack for reading people.”
“Why were you there?”
“DeLuca’s was a sponsor. We were being recognized that night by the boosters.”
Ellie reappeared with a large brown bag stapled closed with a ticket on it.
“Thanks, honey.”
The waitress grinned as she ripped off the ticket and rang up the order. “You’re not working too hard, are you, Norm?”
He smiled, his face warming. “No.”
She winked at him. “See you tonight.”
“Count on it.” He paid her a twenty, collected his change, and winked back at her before she moved around the counter to wait on another patron.
Sharp tapped his finger on the side of his cup. “Was there any talk in town about the boy using or dealing drugs?”
“No. Never.”
“What about the people he was hanging out with?”
“One of his teammates was arrested last year for dealing, but I couldn’t say how close Terrance was to the boy.”
Sharp pulled out a notebook from his pocket. “Does that kid have a name?”
“Jake Wheeler.”
He scribbled down the name. “Thanks.”
DeLuca checked his watch and pulled a card from his pocket. “I’ve got a family coming by in a half hour. But if you need anything, call me. I’ll do whatever I can to help.”
“Appreciate that.”
DeLuca picked up his order. “Good luck to you.”
“I’ll take all I can get.”
After Sharp ate his meal, he made a call and discovered Jake Wheeler was still incarcerated. His next call was to the maintenance company that had hired Terrance last summer. “This is Agent Dakota Sharp with the Virginia State Police. I’m looking for the owner of Dobbins Maintenance.”
“You found him. I’m Ralph Dobbins,” the man said. “You’ve called me a couple of times. Sorry I haven’t been able to get back to you. It’s been crazy.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Terry’s death was a terrible loss. Just saw the kid last week at his football game.”
“How long had he worked for you?”
“On and off all summer whenever we had work for him. He was a good worker and had a great attitude. Wish I could have found more kids like him.”
“His grandmother said he was offered a job last Sunday. Was that you?”
“No, it wasn’t me. I haven’t had Terrance on a job since August.”
“What businesses do you clean?”
“Well, we clean banks, a couple of insurance agencies, two salons—and we also do move-out cleanups.”
“Did his father apply for a job with you?”
“Jimmy Dillon. Yeah, he did. He worked a couple of jobs, but he wasn’t a great worker.”
“What jobs did Jimmy’s crew clean?”
“Medical offices. We got a cluster of them near Mechanicsville.”
Doctors’ offices meant drugs in stock. And Jimmy Dillon had done time for drugs.
“Can you get me a list of the places where Jimmy Dillon cleaned?”
“Sure. But what’s that have to do with Terrance?”
“Maybe nothing. I’m re-creating his last couple of weeks as well as his father’s. I’m just trying to figure out who might have killed him.
”
“I’m on a job now, but I can send you the list.”
“I’ll text you my contact information.”
“As soon as I get back to my office, I’ll get it to you as quick as I can.”
“Thanks.”
“You got any ideas who would have done this to that boy?” Dobbins asked.
“I don’t know much yet. But I’m working on it.”
“Damn shame.”
“Did he make any friends on the crew? Was there anyone he hung out with?”
“Not really. Most of the guys on the crews are older. Forties or fifties. He was always talking about his buddies from high school.”
“He mention anyone in particular?”
“Talked about Ronnie and Garcia, but I never met them.”
Sharp had spoken to them both. “He ever give you a reason to think twice about him?”
“No. He never said a word that gave me pause about him. Loved his grandmother and said he wanted to give her a new dryer for Christmas.”
“Okay, thanks.”
Sharp hung up. His priority now was to find Terrance’s father. He suspected his old man was at the center of the shit storm that got Terrance killed.
The abduction was the hardest part of the Dollmaker’s job. It was the moment when the entire operation could go sideways. Discovery and arrest were always imminent.
So to control the variables, he spent time watching and taking notes weeks in advance. He detailed the doll’s schedule. When she slept, got up in the morning, ate, went to work, the gym. He noted her friends and family. Who paid attention and had the greatest reason to sound an alarm bell when she went missing. Favorite dress shops, restaurants, hobbies. The profile was designed with one objective: to find out when she was most vulnerable.
He checked his watch. He was minutes away from reaching this doll’s most vulnerable moment.
Nervous energy buzzed, making his muscles tense and tight. He felt fear, but also excitement and anticipation. Soon they would be alone together.
Her red car pulled into the parking lot two spaces from her regular spot. He’d placed orange cones in her usual spots so they appeared unavailable, forcing her to park in the shadows and out of the surveillance camera’s view.
