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“Her parents?” Cassie asked.
He nodded as a list popped up of various places on the internet where Scott and Amy were mentioned.
One of the places was a call to action, which the couple had posted over a year ago, asking anyone with information about their daughter Beth’s disappearance to call them. Plus, their phone number had been listed below the request.
Cassie punched the numbers into the phone, held her breath and waited for it to ring. Her gaze met Drake’s as the line rang and someone finally picked up.
“You have reached a special phone line set up by William and Amy Anderson. If you’re calling with information about the disappearance of our daughter Beth Anderson, please leave your name, telephone number and a brief message. We’ll get back to you as soon as possible.”
“This is Deputy Cassie Douglas from Eagle Rock, Montana. I’d like to get more information about the disappearance of Beth Anderson. Please give me a call at…” Cassie left the number to the phone on the desk and ended the call. Her hand remained on the phone for a few seconds after placing it on the desk.
Drake covered her hand. “It’s getting late. Whoever screens those calls probably won’t get to it until tomorrow.”
Cassie nodded. “You’re right. I’m tired. Tomorrow’s Friday, and I have the day off. I can pick up where we left off in the morning.” She pushed to her feet and looked around the office. “You’d think I live here.”
With Drake’s help, she picked up the food containers and straightened the desk.
When they were finished, she switched off the light in the office and headed for the front door.
“I really need to do a better job of managing my expectations,” she said.
“How so?” Drake asked as he opened the door.
“After banging my head against the wall all week, searching through thousands of cases, I thought what the M.E. would give us would be the magic bullet that could lead us straight to our victim’s identity.” She laughed. “The thing that kills me is that I know better.”
“I wouldn’t be so hard on myself,” Drake said. “It’s late. If you’d received that information earlier in the day, it might’ve been that magic bullet. Wait and see. Tomorrow might make all the difference.”
She smiled up at him. “You’re right. It’s all about timing.” Cassie leaned up to brush her lips across his. “And it’s time to go back to your place. I feel the need to get physical.”
Drake’s eyes flared. His hand snaked around her waist and dragged her against him. “I can help with that.”
“In the best possible way,” she said.
As she crossed the threshold, the sound of a telephone ringing made her pause.
She glanced over her shoulder. “You think it could be…”
Drake stepped back. “You won’t know unless you answer that call.”
Cassie hurried back to the office, hit the light switch and snatched the phone off the desk. “Eagle Rock Sheriff’s Department, this is Deputy Douglas. How can I help you?”
“Deputy Douglas, this is Amy Anderson. Did you just leave a message on the dedicated helpline we had set up to gather information concerning the disappearance of our daughter Beth?”
“Yes, ma’am.” Cassie’s gaze met Drake’s as he entered the office. She put the phone on speaker so that he could hear the conversation as well. “Ma’am, I’d like to ask some questions about your daughter’s disappearance. Do you have a moment?”
For a long moment, Amy didn’t respond.
“Mrs. Anderson?”
“I’m still here,” she said, though her voice sounded choked. “If you want to ask questions, you’ll have to come to our house in Idaho Falls when my husband is here.”
“Ma’am, I’m in Eagle Rock, Montana. That’s a four or five-hour drive.”
“If you want to talk with us, it has to be in person. Too many pranksters have led us on wild goose chases. It’s too hard.”
“When will your husband be back?”
“He’s in West Yellowstone, running his brother’s campground while his brother and his wife are on vacation. He’ll be back Monday night. I’m going up tomorrow to keep him company.”
