The Hunted Girl Read online

  I ignored him.

  “What’s the insurance lady’s name?”

  “Ellie Capshaw. You’ll really enjoy meeting her.”

  He handed over her card.

  “Does she have her own theory?”

  “Yeah. Her theory is she’s going to get fired because she can’t prove what happened. It would work out for her if the kid killed her parents. But I don’t think even someone as mean as she is can go down that road.”

  I stared at Flanagan.

  It was a six year old girl’s word versus the combined expertise of the police force and the D.A.’s office.

  I needed a doughnut.

  CHAPTER THREE

  I don’t know much about banks. I don’t like them. They scare me when I go in because I don’t know what I’m doing.

  I called Ellie Capshaw. Her voice sounded as though she had rubbed sandpaper on her vocal chords. She must have been desperate because she said she’d meet me at the bank.

  Waterbend is a small town, and I knew exactly where the bank was, right there on the corner where the business district on Main Street ended. It was a surprisingly large bank.

  Flanagan had told me it was a private bank so there was going to be no FBI involvement even if Meadows had been shot in the bank itself.

  The place was crowded. There were a lot of older people, a few farmers. I didn’t see a lot of business owners in suits among the customers.

  “Hey, Danny.”

  It was Zachary Stauffer. He was the Mayor of Waterbend. His family had lived in Suffolk County for a couple of centuries. His father lived in a nice little mansion on the water in Southampton. Zachary’s grandfather had bought land all over Suffolk County during the Great Depression. The land, much of it beachfront property, was available almost for nothing. The catch was the new owner had to pay all the back taxes and keep paying taxes. No one thought that was a good idea, except for Zachary’s grandfather, who suddenly became a very important man.

  The grandfather had gone to the castle in the sky, but the son who had inherited a lot of money was active in civic affairs. He was very generous in his support of Congressman Lucey, which was how I met his son the Mayor.

  “You taking out a few million for lunch?” I asked him.

  He smiled graciously. He always smiled wider than my jokes were worth.

  “I like to come and visit my children,” he said.

  Zachary didn’t have children of his own and I guess all that money had taken on a sense of family.

  “How’s your dad, Danny?”

  Zachary was one of the few people who didn’t ignore me or dislike me because my father was a retired professional killer.

  “He’s not well. He told me he has to hire some help.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that. He still in Sag Harbor?”

  “He’ll never leave.” I paused. “Zachary, maybe you can help me. Do you know an insurance agent, a woman named Ellie Capshaw?”

  “Ellie? Sure.” He looked around and then pointed.

  “There she is talking to Otto.”

  I looked over. Capshaw was tall and thin. There was a scowl on her face.

  “She’s a bit intimidating, Danny. Personally I think she’s date-deprived. You might approach her as a male. What are you now, fifteen?”

  “Twenty-nine.”

  “I don’t know. You look fifteen. Anyway, I think she’s a year or two older than you are. That’s perfect. The actuarial tables say men die sooner so the woman should be older than her husband.”

  “I don’t think I’m going to be marrying her, Zachary.”

  “Too bad. I could perform the ceremony. Come on, Danny. I’ll introduce you to her.”

  “I don’t want to disturb her while she’s speaking with Otto.”

  Otto was Otto Chance. He was the Chief Operating Officer for the Bank of Waterbend.

  “Otto would pay you to get him away from her. Come on, we’ll do the old boy a favor.”

  We walked over, and Otto did in fact look relieved.

  Otto and I said hello, and Zachary introduced me to Ellie Capshaw.

  “I was hoping to speak with you for a few minutes, Miss Capshaw.”

  She looked completely unimpressed.

  “I was hoping to have lunch with Mayor Stauffer.”

  Okay, so he looked as though he belonged in Hollywood and not Suffolk County. She couldn’t stop staring at his blue eyes. I was ready to spend ten minutes explaining my virtues to her, but Zachary saved me.

  “It would be a pleasure, Miss Capshaw, but unfortunately my place in public life requires my presence. Being Mayor may be the dullest job in town, but I get a great deal of pleasure solving peoples’ problems. Perhaps another time.”

  “I’m going to take that as a promise, Mayor Stauffer.”

  I was feeling queasy.

  “As you should.”

  He half-bowed, winked at me, and walked away.

  Ellie Capshaw turned to me. “I’m hungry. Is there a place around here I can get a good corned beef sandwich?”

  I didn’t feel driven by a desperate need to be honest, so I said, “Carr’s Deli is just down the street. Everyone likes the food.” I didn’t add that I wasn’t among the crowd that liked it.

  “Come along then. You look very young, Mr. Ryle. And what is it you exactly do?”

  Otto had sneaked away, so I just stared at her.

  “I work for Congressman Lucey.” I didn’t mention my job as part of an organization with Ari and Betsy.

  “Oh, how dull. Create laws. Watch how the laws cause more damage than provide help. Repeal the laws. And then create new laws that don’t work.”

  “You should be teaching a civics class,” I said.

  “I do not approve of sarcasm, Mr. Ryle.”

  “Then it was probably a mistake to meet me.”

  “It is turning out to be so.”

  “I’d still like to speak with you.”

  “Why?”

  “The Congressman is interested in the case of the Meadows. They were his constituents.”

  “I’m looking for answers. I don’t have much to say.”

  “Then at least we can eat.”

  “That’s the first sensible thing you’ve said.”

  We walked to Carr’s Deli. It doesn’t say much about the culinary taste of Waterbend’s citizens that the place was packed. I knew Carr, so we got a table. I didn’t like taking advantage. The simple truth is Carr was afraid of my father who, in fact, was a frail and sickly old man and not, at least any more, a dangerous killer.

  We sat and ordered. She wanted her corned beef sandwich. I just ordered coffee.

  “Go ahead,” she said. “Ask your questions.”

  We went through the story. It turned out she had gotten all her information directly from the police.

  “Did you interview anyone in the bank?”

  Capshaw shrugged. “What for? They weren’t there. Meadows couldn’t have told them anything. “

  “And you can’t think of a reason not to pay?”

  “That’s very cynical for someone who looks so young.”

  “You live, you better become cynical. If you don’t you need someone to pray for you.”

  There was a big sigh. “My employers will not be entirely pleased with me.”

  The corned beef came. I think I saw some beef between the globs of fat.

  “Are you going to keep investigating? Maybe wait until the little girl comes in?”

  She took a bite, wiped her lips with a napkin, and shook her head.

  “It’s a waste of time. I have three other cases to look at. If the girl were only a teenager I could raise some doubts. You know, did she arrange the killings? That sort of stuff. But there’s nothing there. There’s literally nothing to investigate. Two sad people shoot each other. You know, Ryle, the first case I had, this man bought a big insurance policy and then killed his wife and himself. We got out of that. It got me a promotion. But it was all so sad. That’s wh
at this case reminds me of. At least there wasn’t some kid involved in that one.”

  “So the daughter gets the money?”

  “I’m not sure. She’s only seven.”

  “Almost seven.”

  “What are you, her lawyer? Okay. Almost seven. She won’t get the money until she’s eighteen. I have to check the regulations here to see who gets it between now and then. I wish the case were more complicated. Complications bring forth angles. I love angles. That’s what is frustrating about this one.”

  “You’ve read all the police reports?”

  “Of course. You have a hearing problem? I went over all this. Why don’t you go? I can walk myself back to the bank.”

  “If you wish,” I said and got up.

  I walked back to the bank, looked inside, and started walking down Main Street. I had nowhere to go. If everyone was right, I really was under an obligation to turn Jennifer into the police. Maybe a social worker could cure her of what must have been a fantasy that there was a killer.

  And yet it was the girl herself who gave me pause. This was a whip smart kid. She wasn’t some toddler who made up stories. But she was six.

  I was fighting with myself.

  I had gotten halfway down Main Street, right in front of the movie theater when I stopped. The person behind me almost walked right into my back.

  There was no justification to believe her. There wasn’t a single reason to think she was right. There were many reasons to think she was wrong. And even if she was right, how could I even begin to investigate? What would I do? Who would I turn to? The answer was absolutely nobody. Flanagan would laugh me out of his office. Betsy and Ari knew what I knew and couldn’t think of an approach. I could ask my father, but he was struggling with his health and not in any condition to help.

  And then it was simple. The air cleared. The cobwebs in my brain broke up.

  There it was.

  I was going to believe Jennifer, and I was going to figure out what to do.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  I decided that before I started figuring out why the Meadows had been killed, I had better check on my father. He had fallen and cracked his head open to the skull. It was only by luck that a neighbor stopped in to bring him some soup. She knocked and there was no answer. She looked in the windows and saw a lot of blood and my father lying face-down on the floor. My father keeps a key under the doormat, and she got it and let herself inside. She told me that even though she had seen the body through the window, when she went inside she still screamed.

  Scream or not, she remained calm enough to call for an ambulance. She told me they showed up quickly. My father’s head was sewn up in the emergency room. I bought him a walker for when he came home and visited him every day.

  He got a helper when he came back to his house. She wasn’t a health aide. He didn’t need one. But he dropped a lot of stuff, couldn’t get food, and had trouble walking.

  I had never met his helper, but she answered the door.

  She was tall and wide with a restrained smile and an air of being in charge. It was like I was only his son, but she knew what he wanted.

  “I’m Danny,” I said.

  “Pleased to meet you, sir. I am Alden.”

  “Thank you for taking care of my father, Miss Alden.”

  “It’s just Alden, sir. And Mr. Ryle is most cooperative. I’ve had a few clients that I’d rather not recall. But your father is as sweet as can be. Except for one matter, sir.”

  “What’s that, Alden?”

  “He absolutely refuses to throw away several hideous ties that continue to hide away in his closet. I do wish you would have a talk with him, sir.”

  “I certainly will. Is he awake?”

  “He’s watching some repugnant game show. But it cheers him up, so I’m glad for that.”

  “Me too. I take it he’s in the family room.”

  “He is. I’ve prepared a small snack for him. Please encourage him to eat it. We must keep his strength up. The doctor told me this and so I pass it on.”

  “Together we can do it, Alden.”

  “Very good, sir.”

  I was going to tell her that it wasn’t necessary to call me “sir” but I liked it.

  I was startled when I first saw my father after his fall. It was as though his body had shriveled. His hair was wild on his head and he hadn’t shaved. He didn’t look much better now. He signaled me to wait for a commercial.

  When it came, I said, “Can I get anything for you, Dad?”

  He waved his hand in disgust. “When I meet whoever designed the human body, I’m going to do a lot of screaming, I can tell you that. No. I don’t need anything. I’m going to pay Alden more than we agreed. She’s excellent.”

  “I’m glad to hear that.”

  “How are you, Danny? What nonsense was that on your block?”

  “It wasn’t nonsense. A husband and wife are dead. A six year old girl is orphaned.”

  “And she has disappeared.”

  “I’m sure she’s fine somewhere.”

  My father stared at me. “Maybe I look sick to you. But the blood didn’t get to my brain. What do you know about the girl?”

  “I know that she’s fine.”

  My father considered that. “Maybe it’s better that you don’t tell me.”

  “It’s definitely better.”

  “Tell me what happened.”

  “Which version do you want, the official police story or what I think really happened?”

  “Both. But start with what the police think. They’re not stupid, you know, Danny.”

  “I know that. Just the opposite. That’s what bothers me. They’re very smart.”

  I told my father what had happened and then what I thought happened.

  He sat there thinking for a minute. For a professional killer, he was very shrewd.

  “You need to take two steps.”

  “Is one of them to run to Canada?”

  “Not a bad idea, but no. The first step is to talk to Gertrude Lucey.”

  Mrs. Lucey, the Congressman’s mother, ran the organization that employed Betsy, Ari, and me. Our task was to help those who found themselves in trouble and couldn’t help themselves. But in this case helping Jennifer meant going against the legal authorities. This was not a smart move for the Congressman’s career.

  “I’m afraid of what her answer will be,” I said.

  “And I don’t blame you, Danny. But if she approves she’ll be able to provide help. And by help I mean money. You’re going to need it. I won’t waste the time of either of us by offering it myself.”

  I never, on principle, took money from my father.

  “And if she doesn’t approve, I’ve got to decide between continuing or turning the girl into the police and staying employed.”

  “You want easy choices, become an earthworm.”

  “What’s your take on Mrs. Lucey, Dad? What do you think she would say?”

  “I know what I’d say if I were her, but that might mislead you. My advice is simply that you tell her because if you don’t and your little adventures come out, she will have no choice but to dissolve the organization.”

  “You know it would be nice if you were wrong every once in a while.”

  “You’re only saying that because I’m sick.”

  “Maybe, but I don’t think so.”

  “You want to know the second step?”

  “What is it? Turn myself in and get ready for life behind bars?”

  “I would never advise that. But you need to talk to the girl some more.”

  “I know. I don’t want to. I think I need some child specialist to make sure I don’t add to her trauma. I need information about damaging her.”

  “Life’s not perfect, Danny. You need the information to save her life. You’ll take care of any trauma later.”

  That was my father, practical always, child or not, his son or not.

  “What did this Meadows do?”

&nbs
p; “He had some important job at the bank in Waterbend.”

  “Is Otto Chance still there?” he asked.

  “He’s the Chief Operating Officer.”

  “The man’s come up in the world. I always check my pockets after I talk to him.”

  I was trying to cheer my father up. “Hey, Dad, you know who else I saw in the bank? Mayor Stauffer.”

  “I watched Zachary growing up. I knew his father quite well.” My father paused and looked down.

  “What is it, Dad?”

  “Why was Zachary in the bank?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “I imagine he needed some money. Maybe a loan.”

  I laughed, thinking my father was making a joke.

  But he wasn’t smiling.

  “Zachary Senior has uncountable millions, Dad. The Mayor, I’m sure, doesn’t need a loan.”

  My father held up a finger. “A lot of wealthy men could learn a great deal from Zachary the father. He doesn’t believe in giving money to his son. I know you won’t take money from me because of where you think it came from. So I have the opposite problem. I want to give the money to you and your brother and sister and nobody will take it. But I’ll figure out a way to get it to you.”

  “You’re going to arrange for us to win a lottery?”

  “Who knows? Anyway, talk to the little girl. Push her, Danny. See if there really was a man there. If there wasn’t you have to turn her in to the authorities.”

  “And if there was? What do I do then?”

  “Then you have to take apart the Meadows family. I’d say the husband is the most likely place to start. He had money and connection to money. I don’t know the wife.”

  “Neither do I. I have to check. She was a gardener.”

  “Ah. So a very good woman. Did she like dogs?”

  My father was teasing me. I was the only one in the Ryle family who didn’t like dogs. They scared me when I was a child, and my father never let me forget it.

  “She liked people and was good with them.”