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“Yes. So is Detective Tucker.” He motioned toward Jack. “How can we help you?”
The teen tipped his head toward the garden shop. “My boss said you were asking questions about the woman who owns that car.” He motioned toward the Camry.
“Yes. We’re trying to locate her. What can you tell us?”
“I saw her when she got out of her car. I was loading a sack of birdseed into a customer’s trunk, and I, uh, noticed her blond hair, so I, uh, kind of watched her.” The teen shoved his hands in his pockets. “I wasn’t going to bother her or anything, though.”
“No worries. Watching someone in a public place isn’t against the law.” Marc forced up the corners of his lips. The more he could defuse the teen’s nervousness, the more likely he’d offer a useful tidbit. “And she does have amazing hair.” The scowl Jack sent him registered in his peripheral vision. He ignored it. “What else did you see?”
“I snuck a few peeks at her while she was at the market, in between working. After the explosion went off, I saw an old guy come up behind her. Real close. Then they both walked to a black Cruze parked a few cars down from here. She looked worried. And it was weird how they both got in on the passenger side and she scooted over behind the wheel. I mean, why wouldn’t she get in on the driver’s side?”
Marc glanced at Jack. From the grim set of her brother’s mouth, they were tracking the same direction.
She’d been forced to walk to the car under duress, and whoever the old guy was, he’d wanted to keep her within arm’s reach once they got there.
“You have excellent observation skills.” Marc pulled out anotebook. “Can you describe this man in more detail and tell me which direction they went when they left?”
He jotted as the teen spoke.
“I also checked the license plate as they drove away. Would you like that too?”
Jack jumped into the conversation. “You wrote it down?”
“No. I memorize fast, especially if it seems important—or sort of weird, like this.”
“We’ll take the number.” Marc wrote that down too.
So did Jack. “I’m going to run this while you wrap up here.” Without waiting for a response, he jogged back to his car.
Marc got the teen’s name and contact information, but despite a few additional questions, he had nothing more to offer.
Not a problem.
The license plate was huge.
After finishing with the teen, Marc strode toward Jack’s vehicle as the other man slid out of his car.
“It’s a rental. I played the exigent circumstances card and got the info on who rented it. Credit card belongs to a Marcia Blake. I’m waiting on a call back for more details on the contract and any additional drivers.” Jack read off the notes he’d written. “Marcia’s record is clean. She lives about fifteen minutes from here. I already put out a BOLO alert on the vehicle.”
“We need to pay Ms. Blake a visit.”
“Agreed. Let’s take my car.”
Marc suppressed a surge of frustration. With his tricked-out duty vehicle back at the office, thanks to a short day due to Nan’s emergency, he had no grounds to object. Otherwise, he’d have lobbied for the driver’s role, which would have given him control of the accelerator.
If Jack didn’t have a lead foot, he was going to hear about it.
Thankfully, Bri’s brother shared his sense of urgency, and Marc remained silent during the white-knuckle drive.Distracting a man on a high-speed mission would be foolhardy. Besides, he was busy tracking down Marcia Blake’s cell number, in case she wasn’t home.
The instant Jack stopped in front of her house, Marc unhooked his seat belt. “How do you want to play this?”
“According to her driver’s license, she’s thirty-seven. So it’s doubtful the old guy is a spouse or brother. Could be a father. She may have no idea the car was used for nefarious purposes. I say we tell her we’re investigating a disappearance, give her the guy’s description, and see what she says.”
“That works. Let’s go.”
Marc was halfway up the walk before Jack caught up with him, and he took the porch steps two at a time. Leaned forward and pressed the bell.
Thirty seconds passed.
