“I need to make note that you’re both leaving against doctor’s orders,” she said.
“We’re fine,” Matt told her.
“Get Zack on the phone,” Kara said. “I have some ideas about how he can narrow the search.”
“You’re amazing, Kara,” Zack said when he came onto the video chat screen.
“Yep, I know. What did you find?” She was too tired for Zack’s long-winded explanations right now.
They were back at Sapphire Shoals in the conference room where Ryder and the team had been working.
It was after three in the morning and all Kara wanted was four hours of uninterrupted sleep. Or longer. Maybe a day. Maybe being forced to take time off wouldn’t be a bad thing.
They were all there, except Jim who was still in Georgia andSloane who was with the Graves family at the hospital. Detective Bianca Fuentes had also joined them, though she looked like she hadn’t slept much, either.
“Kara said to focus on properties within a half-day drive of the cannery on the coast, not only those owned by the LLC or Clara Dolan or any of her aliases, but property owned by her parents or grandparents.”
“I hadn’t thought to look at her family,” Catherine said. “Her mother essentially disowned her.”
“She would probably get great satisfaction using one of her mother’s homes,” Kara said. “A big fat middle finger from afar.”
“Why the coast?” Michael asked.
“Because of the victims. They were dumped in the ocean, which tells me she has access to a boat. Probably owns one. And if she has access to a boat, she would have a place where she could dock.”
“There are two properties,” Zack said. “Both owned by the Wilmington Family Trust. Wilmington is Piper Dolan’s maiden name. They’re originally from Georgia, but I haven’t been able to track down any relatives still in the area.”
“You said two properties,” Matt said, refocusing Zack, who often went off on many tangents before getting to the point.
“Yes. One in Savannah, which isn’t on the coast, but the property abuts a river with access to the ocean. Moreover, there’s a dock attached to the property and no current residents. It was used as a second residence for Gerald Dolan when he taught an annual seminar at a college in Savannah.”
“So Clara would have been familiar with the property,” Catherine surmised.
“It’s been in the family for more than fifty years. The second property is a two-acre spread on Kiawah Island, purchased by the family trust as a vacation home sixteen years ago. There’s a dock, and aerial photos show a boathouse.”
“Do you have visuals?” Kara asked.
Zack typed on his keyboard. The first property that popped up on screen was in Savannah. The satellite image showed a boat at the dock and easy access to the river from the house. Moreover, it was three hours from Clinch County, and accessible to Flagler Beach by waterways.
He clicked again and highlighted the Kiawah Island property. It had privacy, and Kara would bet her pension that’s where Clara was.
“There,” she said.
“Savannah is closer,” Catherine pointed out.
“There are neighbors close to the Savannah house, and if her dad lived there on and off, they might know her. She won’t risk it. She may have used the place at some point, but if she’s regrouping before she disappears, she’s going to Kiawah Island.”
Matt said, “Bianca, can you contact Savannah police and have them check out that property? We’ll fly to the closest airport to Kiawah Island, contact local law enforcement on our way, but I don’t want anyone tipping her off. She can leave by land or sea, and if it’s by sea she’s going to be that much more difficult to catch.”
“Not if we call in the Coast Guard,” Michael said.
“Do it,” Matt said. “I should have thought of it.”
“You’re on leave,” Catherine pointed out.
“Not today,” Matt said with a glance at Kara.
“When that bitch is in custody, I’ll take all the time you force on me,” Kara said. “Until then, I’m all in.”
