Читать книгу Hiding In The Dark - Sava Mathou - Страница 8

Chapter Two

Ellie decided to rent an office down town close to Books by the Volume rather than work out of her home. She wanted a place to go to every day, and this would make her get up and get moving. Plus that big old house could be a bit lonely at times. This way, she was close to Chuck and Sue and could pop in for coffee runs and some downtime visits. Also, it put her downtown closer to the action of where she needed to be. She wouldn’t have to run all the way in from the North Hill area where her home was located. She would be close to the jail, courthouse, library, DMV, and any other placed that she needed to do research for a case.

The office she rented was a basement floor two room office with its own bathroom. The tiles in the ceiling were dull with age and had collected a few water spots over the years. The walls were painted a dull gray, and at first glance, it was dismal to look at. Ellie saw freshly painted walls and ceiling and a new desk near the basement office window where she could see right out onto Last Chance Gulch.

She loved the idea of being able to watch the world pass by from her hidden cubby hole. It already gave her a sense of excitement of the forbidden, looking into people lives as they passed by, the people not knowing that they were being watched from beyond their line of sight.

She saw bookshelves in the far corner for her reference library and files. In the center of the room, she would place a sofa and some comfortable chairs for research and meeting with new clients.

In the back room, she would fix up as a make-shift mini apartment. This way, if she was working late on a case, she could catch up on needed sleep and not have to drive all the way out into the valley to her home. Plus it would be a great place for cat naps on a slow day.

Over the next couple of weeks, Chuck and Sue helped clean the place up and got it ready for business. Janet even drove up from Missoula to do some furniture shopping with her. Ellie thought Janet’s motives were more to check up on her and see firsthand where she would be working.

Ellie and Sue got the walls painted. Fresh curtains hung. Office plants to green the place up a bit. Ellie thought she went a bit over the top, buying the big executive desk at a real estate auction. Looking at the desk, she thought it gave the room presence and added a masculine touch to all the feminine decor. She had seen the desk in the paper and thought it would be perfect to add a touch of authenticity to the place. Its dark paneled wood and gilded leather top anchored the room. The moving men had a heck of time, getting it down the stairs and through the door. Now she sat back in her overstuffed desk chair and was quite proud of the new surroundings.

The walls were freshly painted in an earth tone that Ellie felt would sooth and ground her clients. The ceiling painted a fresh crisp white gave the ceiling some height and made the basement office less claustrophobic.

The couch and chairs were a plush maroon-red leather that she got down and the local furniture store. They were a bit overstuffed but still had graceful lines. They complimented the desk and softened it a bit.

She brought down some of the old bookshelves out of John Sr.’s library that were no longer being used. It was nice, having a bit of John in the room. She could see John, looking down from heaven with his arms crossed and a big smile on his face. He would be proud, and the shelves added a touch of dignity and class to the room.

Ellie had filled the shelves with every kind of book from skip tracing to picking a lock. Sue and Chuck had to be happy at the number of books she had ordered for the office. It was probably a bit too much, but she wanted to be prepared. Every night, she took a different book home and skimmed through and read a little. When her first client walked through the door, she would be prepared.

Tomorrow, her sign would arrive. She had picked out an oval-shaped sign with a white background and green-and-gold lettering. She wanted to the sign to stand out. She had the sign company write out Moore Detective Agency with her new office number listed below. She kept it simple and did not want to overcrowd the sign.

Ellie also placed ads in the local newspaper, the Independent Record, and the local circular, the Mini Nickel. These ads made it feel all the more real for Ellie. She would have to wait a couple weeks for the new phone books and yellow pages to come out to see the ad she had placed in there.

After the sign went up, and the ads ran, she would be open for business.

The first week, the only time the phone rang it was from Sue or one of the kids. Her brain began to run over scenarios of what her first case may be like. It was starting to drive her a bit nuts, sitting in the office all day, waiting for the phone to ring. Ellie decided to run down to Books by the Volume for a coffee run. She needed a break from the office.

Sue looked up from the cash register as Ellie came through the door and said, “So how is the life of the private detective?”

“Let’s just say that if I stare at that phone any longer, it’s going to spontaneously combust right there on my desk!”

“That bad, huh?”

“No, not bad. I am just wondering if that phone is ever going to ring. I think I just have a case of the first-case jitters, not knowing what to expect and all.” A bit of blues, coming out in her voice.

Sue knew that voice. “I think a nice raspberry mocha decaf latte is in order. Nothing like a little sugar and a heap of chocolate to chase the doldrums away.”

“Sounds good. Could you throw a shot of whiskey in there too?” Ellie said half joking and half serious.

Sue arched her eyebrows and gave her friend a rueful smile. Much surprised because Ellie rarely, if ever, drank anything harder than her occasional glass of wine. Instead of liquor, she added extra raspberry and extra chocolate. At least she would get a nice sugar buzz.

*****

Getting back to her office, Ellie’s heart began to beat faster as she saw the red light, flashing on her phone on the desk. Someone had a left a message while she was out! It was probably just her daughter or son, but you never know. She sat down in her desk chair and took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, releasing some of the built up tension in her shoulders. Slowly, she extended her arm until her finger was just over the play button. Trembling, her finger pressed play.

A man’s voice sounded on the machine.

“This is Bill Wallace over in Wolf Creek. I saw your ad in the Independent Record. I would like to sit down and talk with you about the disappearance of my daughter, Shelby, last month. Please give me a call at 406-555-1298 to set up an appointment.”

“A real call. A real live person just asked me to help him find his daughter!” Her mind was racing. If she had been twenty years younger, Ellie would have jumped up and done some cartwheels across a lawn!

Ellie seemed to remember seeing something on the news about a local girl gone missing, but she couldn’t bring up the circumstances of what had happened.

Quickly, she booted up her new computer and brought the Independent Records web page and started looking for an article on the Shelby Wallace. Typing the girl’s name into the search bar brought up the article quickly.

It read:

Local Girl Gone Missing, Foul Play Suspected

Wolf Creek. The local police reported that Shelby Wallace had not returned home Friday night after going to a party with some of her friends. Her abandoned vehicle was found parked along Little Wolf Creek Road just outside Wolf Creek. The keys were still in the ignition, and her purse was lying on the passenger seat.

A search was done of the local area. Tracking dogs were brought in and searched the area with no luck.

Her parents, Jane and Bill Wallace, were unavailable for comment at press time.

Anyone with any news or tips is asked to contact the Lewis and Clark County Sheriff’s office, or can leave a message on the Crime Stoppers hotline.

This didn’t give much for Jane to go on. She picked up the phone and dialed the number that Mr. Wallace had left on the answering machine. On the third ring, a voice answered the phone.

“Bill Wallace here.”

“Mr. Wallace, this is Ellie Moor, calling from the Moore Detective Agency. You called earlier to talk about your daughter that is missing.” Ellie was hoping her voice wouldn’t crack, or sound nervous over the phone.

“Yes. I am in Helena. Do you have time to meet today?” An urgency was in his voice.

“Let me just check my book.” Empty pages, staring at her. She didn’t want to seem too eager. “How about one o’clock?”

Mr. Wallace agreed quickly, and Ellie gave him directions to the office. It was 12:30 p.m. now, and he would be here in a half hour. Ellie quickly threw out the old coffee and brewed a fresh batch. She set out a tray of mugs and some cookies on the coffee table next to the sofa. Walking quickly to the bathroom, she splashed some cold water on her face and fixed her mussed hair. Straightening her blouse, she thought, This is it.

A real case.

Mr. Wallace arrived early at ten to one. Ellie got up from behind her desk and welcomed the man and shook his hand. She looked at the man’s face that was ashen in color and filled with worry. Dark circles were forming under his eyes, and she knew that sleep had not been coming easy to this man. Ellie had the same look after her husband had died, and she recognized the pain in his eyes right off. Instantly, she felt a connection to the man, leading him over to the sofa and offering him coffee.

With pleasantries aside, she picked up her pad of paper and pen off the coffee table.

“What can I do for you, Mr. Wallace?” She hoped her voice didn’t betray her the fear she was feeling and let him know that she was scared to death.

“Bill. Please call me Bill.” His voice was giving way to a slight crack in his armor.

“All right. Bill.” She smiled. “What can I do for you?”

“As I said on the phone, my daughter went missing last month. Her car was found near our home, and we want to find our daughter.” Sadness and anger, filling his voice.

“Tell me a little about your daughter,” she said.

“Shelby would be nineteen this coming month. I mean, she will be nineteen this coming month.”

Trying to recover from talking about her in the past tense, tears began to fill his eyes. Ellie handed him a tissue while letting him regain his composure. Ellie sat patiently, waiting for him to continue.

“Shelby is 5'4", 120 pounds, brown hair, brown eyes, and is petite in her build. Here is a picture that I brought of her. It was her senior portrait that she took when she graduated, but she still looks quite the same.”

“You have a beautiful daughter, Mr. Wallace. I mean Bill.” Looking at the picture, Ellie began to see the family resemblance. “Tell me about the events of that night and the last time you saw her.”

“That evening, Shelby was getting ready for a night out with some friends of hers from school. She had asked me if I would lend her a few dollars for gas money. You know how kids are, always with the handout.” His attempt at humor lost. “I spoke with her in the living room of our home. I gave her a twenty for gas. Told her to be careful, and to call if she needed a ride. We didn’t want her drinking and driving and always told her call in she got herself in a spot.”

“Did she happen to mention where she would be going and with who?”

“She never said, but I assumed it was with her girlfriends. She always hung with Stacy Ketchum and Lynn Heart. They had all been childhood friends and have remained close.” Bill rattled off their phone numbers, and their addresses.

“Do you have any idea where they might have gone that evening?”

“My wife spoke with Stacy and Lynn. They told her that they went down to the ball field at the school in Wolf Creek. Had a few beers with their friends. Then Shelby dropped them off and said she was headed home. Her car was found about an hour after dropping them off at home. It was parked on Little Wolf Creek Road by the new bridge. The keys were still in the ignition, and her purse was lying on the front passenger seat. Nothing was taken from the car or her purse as far as we could tell.”

“What did the police say about investigating the case?” She would have to get that report.

“They said there were no signs of foul play. They brought in the bloodhounds and did a search of the area and came up with nothing. Her friend’s stories all confirmed what I told you already. The police think she may have run off with a man and told us that we will probably get a call from her any day now. If that’s the case, then why would she not take her purse and just leave the car in the middle of the road? None of this makes sense.”

“Was she involved with any men that you know?” Bill looked up at Ellie, staring daggers at her for the question. “I am sorry, Bill. I did not mean this question to be rude.”

“I know. I know. I am sorry too. This has nearly killed her mother.” His shoulders and head sank defeated by the stress of the situation

“If we are going to find your daughter, then we have to ask the tough questions. We may not like some of the answers we find. But they must be asked,” she said quietly.

“She was seeing a boy. But as far as we know, they broke up and are now just friends. His name is Steve Elliott. He works on one of the local ranches as a cowhand.” He gave her the rest of the information on the ranch and his contact information.

“All right. Let me start gathering some information. I am going to need to get her birth date, social security number, credit cards numbers, etc. I will check to see if anything has been run through on her credit cards. I will talk to some friends at the sheriff’s office and start seeing what I can find out. I think I am going to want to talk to everyone that was at that party. Someone has to know something to give us some insight into what happened to Shelby. They might be more willing to talk to me, her father, or the sheriff. I will see what I can find out and be in touch.”

Bill got up from the sofa, looking thoroughly defeated from the experience. Ellie felt a twinge in her heart for the man. She knew his loss. Shelby’s father seemed to have aged right before her eyes during their discussions. Seeing Bill to the door, she placed a hand on his shoulder and let him know that she would be doing everything in her power to help find his daughter. A slight forced smile came to his lips. He turned and walked away.

Racing back to her computer and phone, Ellie began her search on her first case. This was going to be a tough one, she felt. She had a feeling that before this case was over that it was going to tap every emotion she had. Ellie knew she needed to put those emotions aside and get to work.

Emotions were not going to help her find this man’s daughter.

Picking up the phone, she dialed the sheriff’s office and asked to speak with Officer Barkley. She was going to have to pull a string or two to get some answers. This is where charm and fortitude were going to come in handy.

“This is Officer Barkley.” Sounding just like an officer, she mused to herself.

“Jim. It’s Ellie Moore. How are you?” Using all the sweetness in her voice.

“Mrs. Moore? I am good. What can I do for you?” Surprise in his voice.

“Now, Jim. It was Mrs. Moore when you and John Jr. were kids. Now it’s Ellie. I need your help on a case I am working on.” She went on to explain about Shelby Wallace and having her dad as a new client.

“I had heard a rumor that you had become a private detective. Wasn’t sure what to make of it to be honest. I never expected you to jump in this line of work.”

“Well, to be honest, after John died, I started looking for something to do, and this type of work always interested me. Do you think you can help me out?” Praying that he would take her seriously.

“It’s not my case but let me do some checking. It might be late this afternoon. I have to be up in court here in a bit. Give me your fax number, and I will try to get the report over to you before dinner.” Now sounding a bit rushed.

Ellie gave him her fax number and cell number and said to say hello to his folks.

This was going to be a long afternoon. Ellie was ready to go to work. In the meantime, she would get a hold of Shelby’s credit card company and her bank to see what she could find. But first, a coffee run was in order. Plus she was eager to let Sue know that she got her first case. This would give her a chance, too, to absorb everything and start putting all the information she received from Bill in order. She wanted to go about everything logically and not miss any steps or processes.

This case would be much more than she bargained for and would test her to every limit Ellie had in her. She didn’t know it now, but trouble lie ahead.