Looking for Lainey Read online

  Mitch grunted. “You have an answer for everything, don’t you?”

  “Not everything. I’m trying to figure out why you’re still holding a gun to my face.”

  “Trespassing,” he replied, holding the wallet out to him.

  Dustin reached for it, but Mitch let go before he was able to grab it. The wallet dropped into the snow, some of its contents spilling out.

  “What’s that?” Mitch asked coldly as Dustin bent down to retrieve his stuff.

  “What does it look like?” mumbled Dustin, hastily grabbing the picture of Lainey that had also slipped out.

  “It looks like you have a picture of someone I know who’s missing,” Mitch replied, glaring at him.

  “Really? I have no idea of what you’re talking about.”

  Furious, Mitch shoved him backward. “Don’t bullshit me. I know that’s Beth’s kid, Lainey. Why in the hell are you here?”

  Dustin looked him in the eye. “To see if you know anything about the case.”

  “Why would I?” he replied angrily. “I hardly ever see her.”

  Suddenly, Dustin’s eyes widened as he stared past him, at the house.

  Mitch turned around and saw one of the children, peaking at them from behind the window blinds.

  Sammy.

  The boy quickly disappeared.

  Shit.

  Dustin’s face turned to stone. “Who’s that?”

  “You ask too many questions.”

  “Was it Lainey?” He took a step toward the window. “Do you have her in the house?”

  In answer, Mitch shot him in the chest.

  Chapter 47

  Carissa

  CARISSA SEARCHED ALL over until she found Anna Dubov’s card. She called and was about to leave a message, when the woman answered.

  “Hi. I’m sorry that I’m calling so late and… you might not remember me but my name is Carissa Jones and we spoke awhile back.”

  “I remember you,” Dubov said, sounding tired. “You helped in the Stephen Cutler case. You’re the psychic.”

  “Yes,” Carissa replied, relieved that she’d remembered. “Anyway, I don’t know if you heard, but I’ve been trying to help locate Lainey Brown-”

  “Yes. I heard. Have you come up with something?” she asked, sounding more awake.

  Carissa told her what she suspected and was pleasantly surprised to find that Dubov didn’t immediately brush her off.

  “Well, the video tape showed that Lainey knew her kidnapper,” Dubov said. “And so I definitely think it’s something to look into.”

  “He was also in town during Lainey’s kidnapping and that little boy’s disappearance. Sammy.”

  “I doubt that they’re related but you never know,” said Dubov. She let out a sigh. “So, you think that he might have Lainey with him now?”

  “Honestly, yes. I really do.”

  “I find it hard to believe that he would have her at his house, even if he is involved. The surveillance tapes showed that her kidnapper put her into an SUV and so there are others involved as well. She could be halfway across the world right now,” Dubov said. “Especially if she’s being trafficked, which we believe.”

  “I think he’s involved with the trafficking. I also believe that something might have went wrong,” Carissa replied.

  Dubov was silent for several seconds and then told her she’d do what she could.

  “Are you going over there tonight?” Carissa asked, hopeful.

  “Unfortunately, I’m not going to be able to get a search warrant, especially at this time. It’s very late.”

  Her heart sank. “Yes, but time is obviously of the essence,” she said, the line sounding funny coming from her lips. But, it was the truth. The clock was ticking.

  “I know. I know. Look, Ms. Jones, I’ll see what I can do. I can’t promise you anything tonight, but in the morning, I’ll drive over myself and talk to the man. My gut is telling me that you’re really onto something.”

  Carissa knew that it was all she could hope for. Especially since there wasn’t any evidence pointing directly toward Mitch. And, the fact that the woman wasn’t ruling out her accusations was a relief.

  “Thank you,” Carissa said.

  “Of course. Now, if something else comes up, feel free to call me.”

  “Definitely. Thank you for not brushing this off.”

  “No problem. I want to find Lainey and believe that you have a gift, Ms. Jones. I’m sure you get a lot of doubters, but I’m not one of them.”

  “Thank you. I appreciate that.”

  “Of course.”

  They spoke for a few seconds more and then hung up.

  Carissa went back to bed and even though the conversation she’d had with Dubov was promising, the feeling of impending doom became worse as the minutes on the clock ticked by. By three a.m. she was too distraught to sleep and knew, with absolute certainty, that something was about to go terribly wrong and it involved Dustin.

  Picking up her phone, she sent him a text.

  Is everything okay?

  She waited. When he didn’t respond, she sent another one. And then a third.

  Still, there was no reply.

  Maybe he’d left his phone in the car?

  She hoped it was the case but couldn’t see Dustin doing that. He’d forget his wallet over his cell phone.

  Worried sick, she thought about calling Dubov back but decided against it. For all Carissa knew, she was over-reacting and of course, Dustin didn’t need to be cited for trespassing.

  Deciding to take matters into her own hands, Carissa quickly dressed and grabbed her keys. As angry as Dustin might get with her showing up, she just couldn’t ignore the gnawing in her gut.

  A short time later, as she was getting into her SUV, Carissa thought about her Ruger. Although she’d never used it in defense, something told her that it would be idiotic not to bring protection. Especially if Mitch really was the criminal she thought him to be.

  She ran back into the house and grabbed the gun from the safe. Trembling at the thought of having to actually use it, she shoved it into her purse and hurried back to her truck.

  TWENTY-FIVE MINUTES later, and still no word from Dustin, Carissa drove slowly down the side-streets near Mitch’s home. As she came up to the path leading to his private driveway, she decided not to take it, and drove up another couple of block. There, she parked her SUV and tried texting him once again. After waiting around for several minutes, she got out of her vehicle and began walking toward Mitch’s property.

  Chapter 48

  Lainey

  “IT’S YOUR FAULT I shot that man,” Mitch snapped at Sammy. “He’s dead because of you.”

  Lainey and Sammy were huddled in the corner of the wine cellar together, crying. They’d heard the commotion outside, which was why Sammy had peeked through the blinds.

  “I’m sorry!” sobbed Sammy, his face wet with tears.

  Lainey thought that Mitch, who was pacing back and forth in the wine cellar, looked almost like a wild man. He was certainly acting different than earlier. Now his hair was sticking straight up from pulling at it and his eyes were bloodshot.

  “You’re sorry,” Mitch sneered and then giggled. “Honestly, he deserved it though.”

  Lainey glanced over at Sammy, who was just as dumbfounded as she was. One moment Mitch was angry. The next, he appeared almost happy. It made no sense.

  Talking to himself, Mitch continued pacing the room in his wet boots. “I need to get rid of his body. I don’t know where his truck is, though. Where in the hell did he leave it?” Stopping abruptly, he ran a hand over his face and looked at the kids. “Stay here and if you so much as move from that spot, I will shoot you both in your knees. You’ll never walk, let alone run, again. You got that?”

  Sammy and Lainey both nodded quickly.

  “I’ll be back soon,” he said, leaving them alone again.

  They listened as he hurried up the staircase and went outside.
<
br />   “What do you think he’s doing?” whispered Lainey after a few minutes.

  Sammy ran the back of his hand across his face, to dry his tears. “I don’t know,” he mumbled, wrapping his arms around his knees. “I wish he would leave and never come back.”

  “Me, too.”

  “And I wish I would have never looked out the window,” he whispered.

  “You didn’t know.”

  Sammy’s lip trembled. “I should have known though. He’s nuts.”

  Nodding, Lainey sighed. “Do you think he’s going to bring us home still?”

  Sammy snorted. “Heck no. I think he’s lying.”

  Lainey nodded. “I think so, too.”

  Exhausted and frightened, the two waited for Mitch to return and it took some time. When he finally walked back into the wine cellar, they’d both dozed off again on the air mattress.

  Mitch clapped his hands. “Up… up! Let’s go!”

  “Where are we going?” Lainey squeaked, sitting up.

  His eyes bore into Sammy’s. “Since this one here screwed everything for us, we need to get rid of the body. So, let’s go,” he said, waving his hand impatiently.

  Lainey and Sammy stood up.

  Mitch looked down at their feet. “That’s right. Well, I’ve got some slippers upstairs.”

  They followed him out of the cellar and up the stairs. He opened up a closet and pulled out a pair of brown, suede slippers. He handed them to Sammy. “Put those on. As for you,” he looked at Lainey. “I guess I don’t have anything. Just, try not to step in any puddles in the garage.”

  Sammy slipped the slippers on. They were much too big, but Mitch told him to keep them on.

  “It’s better than nothing. Now, let’s go,” he said.

  Mitch guided them through the kitchen and into the garage, where an older, black truck was parked. Both kids stopped and gaped at the vehicle.

  “Where did that come from?” Sammy asked.

  “It’s the dead guy’s. He thought he was tricky and parked it up the street. But, I found it,” Mitch said, looking proud of himself. He opened up the passenger door. “Get in.”

  There was a long bench seat in the front and the two climbed onto it.

  Mitch shut the door and went around. He got in and started the engine. As he was pulling out of the garage, he stomped on the brake and swore. “I forgot something.” He looked at Sammy. “I don’t trust you. You’re coming back inside with me. And you,” he glanced down at Lainey, who was seated in the middle. “If you try leaving by yourself, I’ll kill your friend here. Understand?”

  Swallowing, Lainey nodded.

  “Let’s go,” ordered Mitch, opening his door.

  Sammy got out and followed him back into the house while Lainey watched. As she waited for them to return, she saw movement out of the corner of her eye. Turning her head, Lainey gasped when a red-haired woman appeared at the side of the truck.

  Chapter 49

  CARISSA

  STUNNED AT WHO was sitting inside of Dustin’s vehicle, Carissa opened up the door. “Lainey?”

  The little girl nodded.

  She heaved a sigh of relief. “Oh, thank God. Where is Dustin, I mean the the man who owns this truck?”

  “I don’t know,” Lainey said.

  Carissa’s heart stopped. She’d seen Mitch leave the truck and go inside.

  Where in the hell was Dustin?

  “Did you see him?”

  “Mitch?”

  It was clear that the little girl had no idea what Carissa was talking about. Knowing that time was running out, she held out her hand. “Come on, let’s go.”

  Lainey’s eyes widened. “I can’t go. Mitch said he’ll kill Sammy if I leave.”

  ”He’s not going to kill him,” Carissa said, noticing that Lainey was dressed oddly and not wearing shoes.

  “Yes he is. He said so.”

  “He just told you that so you’d behave. Come on,” she said, reaching inside and pulling her into her arms. As she was about to carry Lainey away from the truck, Carissa heard sounds coming from underneath the truck’s bed-liner.

  “Carissa!?”

  “Oh my God, Dustin?” she gasped, rushing to the back of the truck. Setting Lainey down, she opened up the tailgate and found him lying inside. From the pained look on his face, she could tell that he was hurt. “Are you okay?”

  Before he could answer, Mitch’s voice rang out of the garage. Fortunately, he was talking to Sammy and hadn’t yet noticed what was happening.

  “Get her out of here,” Dustin whispered, nodding toward Lainey.

  Frightened, Carissa picked the little girl up and began running away from the truck.

  “Hey!” hollered Mitch.

  She looked back over her shoulder and saw him rushing toward her. Knowing that she couldn’t outrun Mitch, Carissa got behind a tree, set Lainey down, and reached for her Ruger.

  Mitch rounded the corner and his eyes widened in surprise. “Drop it!” he snapped, aiming his revolver at her.

  “The… The police are on their way, Mitch,” she said in a shaky voice. “They know you kidnapped Lainey.”

  “Bullshit,” he sneered. “Let me guess, you’re the nosy psychic?”

  “Put your gun down,” she said, trying not to let him see how shaky her hand was.

  “You don’t have the guts to shoot,” he said, smiling.

  “To save her, I do,” Carissa said.

  Mitch studied her face for a few seconds and then looked at Lainey. “Come to me. Now. If you want to see Sammy alive again.”

  The sudden snap of a twig behind Mitch caused everyone to look.

  “Drop your weapon!” Detective Dubov ordered, staring hard at Mitch.

  “Who the hell are you?” he growled, aiming his gun at her now.

  “Police. Throw down your weapon.” Dubov said. “Don’t be a fool.”

  Carissa knew he was going to pull the trigger. She grabbed Lainey and shoved her down toward the ground as gunfire erupted around them.

  Chapter 50

  Dustin

  DUSTIN CRAWLED OUT of the back of the truck. Wincing in pain, he dropped to his feet and was about to go after Mitch, when he saw a boy crouched behind the air conditioning unit.

  “Hey,” he said, moving toward him slowly. “Are you Sammy?”

  “Yes,” replied the kid in a frightened voice.

  “Don’t be afraid. I’m here to help you.”

  Sammy stood up.

  Dustin thought about the boathouse, which had been open earlier. “You need to find a better hiding spot. Tell you what, there’s a boathouse in back. Run back there and wait for me. When it’s safe, I’ll come and get you.”

  Sammy looked unsure.

  “Hurry up. Before Mitch comes back.”

  Eyes widening, Sammy disappeared behind the house.

  Letting out a ragged breath, Dustin headed toward the trees, relieved that he’d worn a bulletproof vest under his clothing. He was bruised badly and his ribcage felt like it was on fire, but he was alive. He could only hope that Carissa and Lainey were okay.

  When Dustin reached the woods, he heard the sounds of guns going off and Lainey crying out.

  Crouching down, Dustin snuck through the trees and let out a sigh of relief when he found Mitch lying in the snow, bloody and unmoving. Standing above him was Detective Anna Dubov, her gun still smoking. A few yards away from them was Carissa and Lainey.

  It was over.

  Seeing Mitch approach, tears filled Carissa’s eyes. She rushed to his side and threw her arms around his neck. “Dustin.”

  “Careful,” he replied, wincing.

  “Are you okay?”

  “I’ve been shot,” Dustin said through clenched teeth.

  Carissa released him. “You’re shot? Where?”

  Dustin showed her the hole in his jacket. “He got me right here.” He grinned. “Luckily, I took your warning seriously and used a bulletproof vest.”

  She
smiled in relief. “Thank goodness.”

  “Let’s just hope this the premonition you’ve been worried about,” he replied.

  “I don’t know if it is, so don’t you dare take any unnecessary chances in the future,” Carissa said sternly.

  “I won’t. So, is he really dead?” Dustin asked the detective. There was a lot of blood coming from the bullet wound in his stomach, but that didn’t always mean anything.

  “It looks that way. I got him a couple of times,” Dubov replied, kicking away Mitch’s gun. She bent down and felt for a pulse. “Yep. Looks like he’s gone.”

  Dustin looked over at Lainey. It was obvious from the look on her face that the child was in shock. “We’d better get her out of here,” he said, moving toward the child.

  “Where’s Sammy?” Carissa asked, looking past him toward the house.

  “I told him to hide until it was safe,” he replied and looked down at Lainey. “I bet you want to go and see your mommy and daddy,” he said softly.

  Lainey looked up at him and nodded.

  “I know they’re going to be thrilled when they find out you’re okay.” He looked down at her feet and his eyes widened. “Jesus, we need to get her some shoes. Your feet must be freezing.”

  She looked down at her socks. “I can barely feel them.”

  “I’ll take care of it,” Detective Dubov said. She walked over to Lainey and smiled warmly. “I have some warm blankets in my car. Let’s get you out of the cold and home to your parents, okay?”

  Lainey’s eyes lit up. “Okay.”

  Smiling, Dubov picked her up. “Could you find Sammy, too? I want to get them home to their parents as soon as I can. They must be traumatized after everything that’s happened.”

  “Of course,” said Dustin.

  Dubov reached for her phone. “I’ll call this in and let Samuels know.”

  “Thanks for doing that.”

  She nodded. “Hey, it’s my job. Besides, I’m sure they’re going to want statements from all of us,” replied Dubov.

  Chapter 51

  Carissa

  ONCE BOTH CHILDREN were settled into Anna Dubov’s vehicle, the detective thanked Carissa for her help in finding the children.