“Amos, first I want to say that I’m sorry.”
“For what?”
“For what happened to you. The arrest, and the bail hearing, where I heard from Beth that Natty and Childress made it crystal clear that they’re unmitigated assholes.”
“I already knew that. And none of this was your fault.”
“No, it was, because I let Childress get the upper hand. He outmaneuvered me. But I played another hand last night. I went straight to the commissioner. And then he went to his boss. The result is that right now you are allowed to observe on the case.”
“What does that mean exactly?”
“Pretty much like it sounds. Natty and Childress can’t stop you from being there. You can look at clues, you can even talk to witnesses, and run down potential leads. You can’t bring suspects in for questioning, though, but you will be privy to forensic testing and other results of the investigation.”
“And Natty will still be working it?”
“Unfortunately, yes. I wish to God that Mary hadn’t had to recuse herself.”
“You’re not alone on that. But I appreciate all that you did, Captain Miller. And at least I can be part of the case again.” He glanced at Mars. “I do have a new assistant working with me. I assume he can tag along.”
“You can try, Amos. Natty will probably blow a gasket, but I’ll leave it to you to figure out a way. Now, there’s one more thing.”
“What’s that?”
“They found Susan Richards’s car.”
“Where?”
Miller gave him the details.
“But no trace of her?” said Decker.
“None. I’m sure Natty is already up there checking it out. Tread carefully. I wish I could offer more, but the bureaucracy keeps getting in the way.”
Again, the line went dead.
Decker quickly explained to Mars what had just happened.
“So they found her ride, but not her? What does that tell you?”
“Not much,” replied Decker.
“So we head there now?”
“Yes, we do.”
June was walking past and Decker grabbed a couple biscuits off the platter without the tiny woman even noticing. He flipped one to Mars before taking a bite out of his. “Don’t say I never gave you anything.”
Mars looked down at his biscuit before biting into it as well. “Yeah, like a heart attack.”
***
Decker pulled his rental to a stop right on the other side of the police tape flapping in a stiff breeze. Cop cars were everywhere, along with state trooper vehicles.
The car was about two hours outside of Burlington. It had been discovered behind an abandoned motel that had closed its doors about forty years before. It was on a local road that had been shunned by travelers once a nearby interstate opened.
Decker and Mars climbed out of the car and looked around. An officer immediately came up to them. Decker pulled out his creds and held them up.
“FBI?” said the officer. “What are you doing here?”