Misconceptions Read online

  His heart stopped. If Dominique was alive, she wouldn’t be for long. How would he tell his brother? He ended the phone call and turned to Joe. “Her car’s there, but she’s not on the premises. I’m heading back over there. I’ll call you when I have more information.”

  Joe met Houston’s glare. “I’m going too. Question is, do you want to go together?”

  Houston nodded. “Let’s go.”

  As Houston reached the door, Travis rounded the corner into the room and nearly plowed him over. Travis stepped to the side. “I’m glad I ran into you, Houston. I thought about calling you, but I wanted to deliver the news in person.”

  “What news?” Cindy rose from the couch.

  Travis eyed Houston and shook his head the tiniest bit. He must not have talked to Cindy yet.

  “Can you give us a few minutes alone? I really need to speak to Houston privately. I promise I’ll fill you in as soon as I can.”

  She crossed her arms over her chest, and her smile disappeared. “I think whatever you say to Houston, you can say to me.”

  Travis’s face turned beet red. He rubbed the back of his neck. “I’m asking you to please trust me on this.”

  She gathered her purse and stalked to the door. “I guess I’ll see you boys in a little bit.”

  Joe pulled out his keys. “I’ll leave you two alone. I’m heading over to Castalgia’s to see if I can find Dominique.”

  “Give me two minutes, Joe. I’m coming with you,” Houston said. He waited until Joe disappeared around the corner before speaking. “Okay, what do you have for me? I hope it’s good, cause I know my sister, and she was more than a little mad at you.”

  Travis pulled out the recorder pen and placed it on the table. “It’s turned up as high as it can go. You can hear it much better when it’s uploaded on a computer, but you’ll get the meat of the conversation.”

  Houston bent his head toward the device. As the conversation unfolded, the full impact of what the recording contained sank in, his emotions volleyed between fear for his family and the excitement of finally having solid evidence to put Vinnie Fernandez away for a long time. “You have to get Cindy out of town. He’ll kill her and take your baby.”

  “Those were my thoughts exactly. I’ve made arrangements for someone from church to stay with Audrey while we’re out of town. Would Becky mind watching Megan and the boys until you have Vinnie behind bars?”

  Houston nodded. “That’s not a problem. We love having them.” He pocketed the pen and the cable trailing from it. “I’ll get this to the station as soon as possible. Is this the only copy you have?”

  “No. There’s a copy on my desktop at the office and on my laptop. I also e-mailed you a copy.”

  “Do you have a plan? I need to be able to get in touch with you.”

  Travis rubbed the back of his neck. “I’ll take her to a hotel or something.”

  Houston held up his hand. “A hotel won’t work; he’ll find you. I have a friend who owns a private cabin down in Hocking Hills. We’ve used it in the past to house witnesses. It’s pretty secluded. You should be safe there.” Houston gave him the details. “I’ll meet you out in the garage. I have an emergency travel pack I can give you with a few essentials.”

  Houston tossed Travis some keys. “Take Becky’s car. It’s parked on the second floor in the garage. Don’t go back to your house or do anything else that would tip someone off that you’re leaving town. Buy whatever you need when you get there.” He pulled out his wallet, took out the bills, and handed them to Travis. “This is all I have on me. Don’t use any of your credit cards, or he’ll know where to start looking. Leave your cell phone here at the hospital. I’m sure Vinnie has a tracking device on it.”

  “Thanks, Houston. I’ll get in touch with you in a couple days.” As he headed towards the door, his cell phone rang. He checked the caller ID and paled. “It’s Vinnie. What should I do?” He held the phone as if it were a hot potato.

  “Answer it.”

  “This is Travis.” His eyes narrowed and a scowl formed on his lips. “I can’t talk right now. I’ll call you back in half an hour.” He jabbed at the button to end the phone call.

  “What did he want?”

  “He wanted to know if we have a deal. I’ve got to get Cindy out of here. How soon can you have him behind bars?” Panic filled his tone.

  “Give me forty-eight hours. Then call my cell and see if it’s safe to come home.”

  “I don’t know if it’ll ever be safe. Not after I’ve betrayed Vinnie. He’s made it more than clear what happens to people who betray him.” His hands trembled as he slid his phone in his pocket. “But I won’t let him have my child. That’s unthinkable!”

  The door to the waiting room squeaked, and Cindy walked in. “What’s unthinkable?”

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Houston drove up next to Dominique’s Taurus in the far corner of Castalgia's parking lot. Where was the patrol car he had requested earlier? Unless they sent an unmarked car, the officers must have already headed back to the station.

  Joe frowned as he hit redial on his cell phone. “She’s still not picking up.”

  Houston got out and peered in the windows of Dominique’s car. Everything appeared normal. He motioned to Joe to follow him. “Let’s go inside and check things out.”

  The smell of garlic and bread baking greeted them. No one stood at the hostess station, so Houston walked farther into the restaurant. The only customers were a family of four enjoying a late lunch.

  They approached the table and Houston flashed a picture of Dominique. “I’m sorry to disturb your meal, but have you seen this woman?” Anyone eating in Castalgia’s might be on Fernandez’s payroll, and their answers suspect, but at the least, his questioning would annoy Vinnie.

  The man took the picture and adjusted his dark-rimmed glasses. “No, I don’t think we have. She missing or something?”

  “We were supposed to meet her here. She never showed up, but her car’s in the parking lot. So we’re a little concerned.”

  The man returned the picture. “She may be in the back, but I haven’t seen her. Good luck.”

  “Thanks anyway,” Joe said, then headed for a table where two waitresses rolled silverware into perfectly pressed white napkins.

  Only a few feet from the table, an elderly woman slid between Joe and Houston and the table. “ I apologize. I left my station for just a minute. Let me get you a table. I’ll grab a couple of menus.”

  “That won’t be necessary,” Houston answered. “We were hoping someone could help us.” He held up Dominique’s picture. “We’re looking for this woman. Have you seen her?” He handed the picture to the hostess, and her eyes flashed. Adrenaline coursed through his body. She recognizes her!

  She looked at the floor. “I’m sorry. I can’t help you.”

  “You didn’t answer my question. Have you seen her?”

  The hostess walked toward the front of the restaurant. “I shouldn’t leave my station unattended.”

  Houston followed her. “We think she may be in some kind of trouble. Please help us.”

  “If you know something—anything—please tell us,” Joe added. “We’re desperate.”

  The woman peered over her shoulder, walked to the front door, and held it open. “I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”

  Houston nodded to Joe. A spark of anger flashed in his eyes before he stalked out of the restaurant.

  The hostess caught up with them in the parking lot. “Your friend was in here a few hours ago. She was speaking with Mr. Fernandez in his office.” She looked at the ground. “I haven’t seen her since. Now please leave, before you get me in trouble.”

  “Let’s go.” Joe rushed back into the restaurant. Houston followed only a few steps behind.

  “You’re not allowed back in there,” the hostess called after him.

  “We don’t have much time before she calls for help,” Houston said, “and I don’t think it�
��ll be the police.”

  Joe slammed the door open and they both rushed past the empty tables to the hallway in the back.

  Joe opened the first door, stuck his head in, and flicked on the light. “Some type of storage closet. Canned goods and paper products, but no place to hide a person.”

  The hostess appeared at the end of the hallway. “Please, I’m asking you to leave. I don’t want to have to call someone.”

  “Then don’t.” Houston tried the next door. “We’re not leaving until we’re certain she’s not here.” The next didn’t open. “Is this Vinnie’s office?”

  “Absolutely nobody goes in there without his permission.” The older woman’s face paled.

  “Do you have a key?” He stared her down as he held out his hand. “Look, you know as well as I do time is running out for her.

  Please help us.” Joe begged

  “She’s not in there.”

  “How do you know?” Houston asked.

  “I saw them put her in the back of the van and leave with her. I don’t know where they went.”

  Houston’s heart slammed in his chest. “What does the van look like?”

  “A big white van.”

  Houston mumbled under his breath, “She could be dead by now.”

  “I know what happens to people who have loose lips. Now please leave.” Her lips pressed into a tight line and she looked Houston in the eyes.

  After a long moment, Houston gave a short nod and motioned Joe toward the back door. They could start the search with the information they had and get someone at the station to run a trace on vehicles registered to Vinnie for the rest. Before he followed Joe, he handed his business card to the hostess. “If you see her or hear any more information about her, please call me.”

  After calling the station to give them the information about the vehicle carrying Dominique, Houston walked up and down the alley. He scanned every inch of the pavement in case Dominique left some type of trail for them to follow.

  He bent down to pick up a tattered piece of paper laying against the building, glanced at it, then wadded it up and threw it against the wall. Just a worn receipt from several weeks ago. “Let’s get to the station. There’s nothing here.”

  Before leaving, Houston peered through the windows of Dominique’s Taurus again.

  “You would think they’d move her car,” Joe said. “Maybe that’s a good sign.”

  The desperation in his brother’s voice haunted Houston. He had to make sure he covered all the bases. He didn’t have time to wait for a search warrant.

  He rushed to his car and retrieved a crowbar from the trunk. He hefted it high and swung into the passenger’s side window.

  The glass shattered and pieces dropped on the pavement and passenger seat.

  Joe held his arms up in front of his face. “Are you allowed to do that?”

  Houston shook glass fragments from his hand. “I don’t have time to ask permission.” He reached inside and unlocked the door, wiped aside the fragments of the safety glass, then slid in. He reached underneath the driver’s seat and touched something soft and smooth.

  He pulled on the object and saw that it was Dominique’s purse.

  Joe leaned against the car. “Is that Dominique’s purse?”

  Houston started digging through the contents. It contained all of the usual items—wallet, checkbook, cell phone, a few pens, and a tin of mints. Stuffed beside the wallet was a cardboard box.

  He flipped it over and read the label.

  MYPLAR TRACKING DEVICE – INSTRUCTIONS FOR UPLOADING

  LIVE TRACKING INFORMATION

  A tracking device? “We need to get to the station, Joe.” He quickly repacked Dominique’s belongings and got in his car.

  Joe climbed into the passenger’s seat. “What did you find?”

  “The packaging for a tracking device. We can only hope Dominique attached it to the vehicle she’s traveling in.”

  If they were going to find her alive, they didn’t have a second to waste.

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Travis pressed the gas and maneuvered Becky’s car around the corner. They hadn’t passed another car in over a half an hour. Maybe they’d really made it without being noticed.

  “I think I’m going to be sick.” Cindy pushed the button to unroll the window. “I don’t mean to sound like one of the kids, but are we almost there yet?”

  He let out a nervous laugh. “It’s about another hour or so. Gravel crunched under the tires as he steered the car to the side of the road. “I picked up some saltines and ginger ale when we stopped at the grocery. Would that help?”

  “Sounds great.” She rubbed a hand on her expanded belly.

  He checked the rear view mirror to make sure no one was approaching before he popped the trunk and hurried to the back of the car. He unzipped the gym bag Houston had passed to him at the hospital. The sight of the .35 caliber pistol and emergency cell phone brought both a sense of security and a jolt of fear. Hopefully, he wouldn’t need either. He quickly gathered the saltines and some ginger ale, plus a diet coke for himself, and slid back into the driver’s seat.

  Cindy reached in her purse and retrieved a tissue. “I can’t believe you made me leave my phone at the hospital. What if one of the kids needs us? I assume there’s a phone where we’re headed?”

  Travis placed the sodas in the drink holder and set the crackers between them. Anything to keep from looking her in the eyes.

  “Travis? Did you hear me? There is a phone where we’re going isn’t there? If something happens with Audrey, the hospital has to have to have a way to contact us.”

  He stared out the windshield and put the car in gear. “Houston knows how to contact us if there’s an emergency. We’ll probably only be there for a few days, a week at the most.”

  “A week?” Her voice elevated. “I never would have agreed to come if you’d told me that.

  “We can’t come back until it’s safe.”

  Her eyebrows formed a peak. “What does that mean, Travis. Safe from what?

  “Not what. Who.” Better to wait until they were safe at the cabin to tell her everything.

  “What is going on?” She grabbed Travis’s arm.

  “Please be patient with me for a little longer. Once we’re at the cabin, I promise I’ll tell you everything.” He prayed she would forgive him.

  Silence filled the car again as Cindy closed her window.

  ***

  Houston dumped the contents of his mug into the break room sink. The police station coffee was thicker than usual—any thicker and he’d have to chew it. He checked his watch again.

  Thirty minutes! What was taking Kenny so long to see him? He told him it was urgent.

  He clenched his fits. Dominique was out there somewhere, and every minute counted.

  All he needed to do was present the taped evidence to Kenny and accompany him to the courthouse to obtain a bench warrant for Vinnie’s arrest … if Kenny would see him.

  He dialed Joe. “Any update from the computer expert?”

  “Not yet, but Dan says were getting close.”

  “Keep me posted.” He plopped down on the worn leather chair and pulled the recorder pen from his pocket. This time you’re going down, Vinnie.

  The dispatcher popped her head in the room. “He’ll see you now, Houston.”

  Despite laws prohibiting smoking in public buildings, the aroma of cigarette smoke permeated Kenny’s office. His boss tossed a file on his desk and took a seat. “What can I do for you, Houston? Isn’t this your day off?”

  “Yes, sir, but something came up. I knew you’d want to know about it right away.”

  “You working a case on the side?”

  “Same one I’m always working.”

  Kenny frowned. “We agreed you were to leave Fernandez alone. The city can’t afford a harassment lawsuit.”

  “There’s not going to be a lawsuit. Not this time.” Houston held the prized evidence up. I�
�ve got him. There’s no way the man will escape this.”

  “What is that?” Kenny reached for it. His voice held a slight edge to it.

  “It’s a recorder pen.”

  “Probably not admissible in court. You have anything else?”

  What was his problem? He’d dismissed the evidence before he even listened to it. Suspicions he hadn’t wanted to contemplate returned. The nagging question sounded warning bells. How much should he reveal? If Kenny was on Vinnie’s payroll, disclosing Travis’s name could put him in even more danger.

  Beyond the windows of Kenny’s office, Travis’s accountant Angelica strutted through the main doors and into the station.

  “What’s she doing here?” Houston pointed.

  Kenny stood and put his suit coat on. “I didn’t realize you two knew each other.”

  “Yeah, she works for Vinnie.”

  Before Kenny could explain further, Angelica stepped into the office and closed the door behind her like she owned the place. She looked Houston in the eye. “Do you have the file?”

  “What file?” Not that he was about to hand any information over to her. “We haven’t been formally introduced, but I know she’s Travis’s accountant. And she works for Vinnie Fernandez.”

  Kenny scratched the top of his head. “Angelica is a special agent with the FBI.”

  Houston’s eyebrows shot up.

  Angelica crossed her arms. “I’ve been working on this case for a little over two years. I’ve finally collected enough evidence to put our friend away for quite a while. Problem is, when I went to retrieve my information, the door had been forced open and one of the files was missing. You wouldn’t happen to know where it is, would you?”

  He and Angelica were on the same side of the law? He rubbed the stubble on his chin and sank into the chair across from Kenny. He held fast to the recording device. Could he trust her enough to share the evidence?

  Kenny pounded his fist on the desk. “Do you have the file or not, Houston? Before Angelica arrived, you were all fired up about some new evidence you had against Vinnie. Let’s hear it!”