Fatal Encounter by Jannine Gallant

Author:Jannine Gallant [Gallant, Jannine]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-05-06T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Fourteen

Vanna sat on the only chair in the motel room while the man she’d hired to take care of her problems leaned against the desk with his arms crossed over his chest. He wasn’t overly large, yet his presence in such tight quarters raised the fine hairs on the back of her neck. The fact that she was a little afraid of him only served to increase her anger.

“You’re sure the dog walker’s not staying at her neighbor’s house? Maybe she was hiding in a closet while you questioned the kid.”

“I’ve been watching the place pretty closely. She’s definitely not there.”

“Then where the hell is she? After you let her get away at Sugarland, she had to go someplace she’d feel safe, especially if she has a bullet wound. I doubt she’s living in the woods.”

“If I knew where she was, I wouldn’t be talking to you right now.” Each word held a bite of annoyance. “She couldn’t have gotten far on foot, not at any speed since she’s injured. I still think someone must have picked her up. I thoroughly searched the campground, and she wasn’t hiding there.”

“Let me see the video feed. Maybe you missed something.”

His lips tightened, but he opened the laptop on the desk and clicked a few buttons. Vanna faced the screen as he fast-forwarded to an image of Jaimee Fleming sprinting out from behind a tour bus toward the road.

“Is that the only footage where you can see her?”

“Unfortunately, yes. She asked a waitress in the café where the bathroom was and must have left the building through the side door. The camera didn’t catch her running to hide behind that bus, and the second bus blocked any view of the campground entrance across the street.”

She pointed at the screen where the video was still playing. “Is that the neighbor’s truck?”

“Yes. I couldn’t see the plate, but when I enlarged the image, I recognized the Patriots decal stuck to the rear window from my reconnaissance missions in her neighborhood. The pickup definitely belongs to the Jeffries.”

She touched the screen. “There! That SUV pulling a trailer must have turned into the campground. Maybe—”

“I checked it out. An older couple with a Chihuahua. No sign of the woman we’re after.”

Vanna didn’t take her eyes off the feed. “Wait, can you go back? It looks like that blue car turned around and left.”

“A BMW. I couldn’t make out the plate or the occupant. The driver must have used the campground entrance to make a U-turn.”

“And it didn’t occur to you it might be someone picking up Fleming? Your incompetence—” She broke off and swallowed. Despite the heat in the room, the cold look in his eyes sent a shiver through her.

“When the neighbor didn’t pan out, of course I considered it. I had our pal in the FBI run a check for blue BMWs registered in this area. Nothing jumped out as suspicious, but I’m still running down those leads.”

“That jerk is no friend of mine.” An image of her ex-lover flashed through her mind.

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