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“Where does Anna fit in?” Preston asked. “Dave is dead. He won’t be needing the money. Why take her?”
“Men like Paul Franklin will want what was owed to his brother.”
“Are you thinking Hammer might be keeping her hostage somewhere to force Mr. Ackerman to pay?” Ariel asked.
“It’s as good a guess as any.”
“How do we find out?” Alex asked.
“We need to brainstorm that.”
Malia shook her head. “I can’t imagine Camille being with someone who would kidnap a person. That would be like going from the frying pan to the fire.”
“I read about a woman in another jurisdiction who had been accused of murdering her abusive husband,” Benson said. “She was acquitted on that charge. Two years later, she returned to court. This new husband had also abused her, so she killed him. There was a lot of evidence that he beat her up, but this time, she was sent to prison.”
“What are you implying?” his sister asked. “That women don’t learn from their mistakes?”
He didn’t want to get into that argument right now. It wouldn’t serve anyone’s purpose. “I’m saying that Hammer might have some similar traits to Dave. He might not be abusive to Camille, but it doesn’t mean he wouldn’t break the law.”
Malia held up a hand. “I see your point. I would ask Camille about Hammer, but I don’t want to tip her off in case she had anything to do with Dave’s death.”
“I imagine Paul Franklin will find out the truth at some point.”
“What can we do tomorrow to help find this woman?” Liam said. “Anna must be counting the minutes, praying someone finds her.”
“My uncle has feelers out. I’ll write up what we discussed tonight and send it to him. I imagine he’ll have Hammer watched.”
“What if Hammer has her in Midvale?” Preston asked. “That’s not your uncle’s jurisdiction.”
“I’m sure Sheriff Hanson would welcome all the help he can get.”
Benson turned to Ariel. “Are you spending the day tomorrow at the clinic, or do you need to leave work at any time?”
“I’ll be at work. I won’t leave the clinic. I promise.”
They discussed Benson’s plan of either Preston or himself driving Ariel to work and being nearby while the other one trained with Alex and Liam.
“I can drive Ariel to work tomorrow,” Preston said. “You need the training more than I do.”
That was true, but to be called out in front of Ariel didn’t sit well with him. “Then that’s the plan. I’ll tell Uncle Adam we’ll be ready to help save Anna if he needs us.”
“I’m game,” Alex said, and the rest agreed.
Malia stood. “I hate to leave this fun party, but I need to be up early tomorrow. The dinner was great. Thank you. Mom would be proud.”
He hugged her goodbye, and then Liam and Alex said they’d meet Benson at nine the next morning at the barn. “Eat a good breakfast. You’ll need the energy,” Alex said.
That was a given. After everyone left, Benson poured himself another glass of wine and headed into his office. “I need to write this all up and call Will about that videotape. If you’ll excuse me.”
“Sure,” Preston said. “I’ll keep Ariel company, if you don’t mind.”
“Go ahead. I’ll be in shortly.”
* * *
As soon as they reached the bedroom, Ariel faced Preston. “Is Benson okay?”
“Yes. He wants to make sure that his uncle is aware of our theories. If history is any indication, the sheriff will figure out a way to find Anna, assuming Hammer took her.” Preston moved closer. “You know, it could take Benson an hour to draft the facts and hypotheses of the case. In the meantime, what would you like to do?”
