Page 57 of Only One More Lie
Juniper gasped, and her hand flew over her mouth. “No . . .”
Andi squeezed her arm, trying to offer a measure of comfort. “I know that’s hard to hear, but we don’t have any time to waste right now. We need to figure out if this was one of the camp’s UTVs or if we’re dealing with an outsider.”
Her eyes widened as the reality of what they were asking seemed to hit. “Of course. Uncle Tim is probably the best one to talk to—other than Caleb.” Her voice cracked.
“Can you radio him and have him meet us at the garage?” Duke asked.
“I’ll do that now.”
“And call the cops,” Duke muttered. “I know you don’t want to, but you need to. Caleb’s life could be on the line.”
Her skin pale, Juniper grabbed her phone and nodded.
“They’re going to tell you not to let anyone leave,” Duke continued. “Do your best to stop people. Everyone here should officially be questioned to see if they know anything.”
“Got it.” But Juniper’s voice wavered as she said the words.
Tim was waiting at the garage when they arrived. He was already counting the UTVs and comparing the license numbers with those on a clipboard. The camp didn’t have a large fleet—probably only eight, so checking didn’t take long.
“All the vehicles are accounted for.” He pulled his gaze away from the list and looked at them. “None are missing.”
Did that mean someone who didn’t live at the camp had shown up and abducted Caleb? Andi nibbled on her bottom lip.Was that what had also happened the day Calvin and Mary were killed?
Tim turned toward them, a frown forming deep creases at the corners of his mouth. “What now?”
“We wait for the police to get here,” Duke said. “They have resources we don’t. In the meantime, do you have any idea where the trail behind Caleb’s cabin leads?”
Tim stared into the distance as if thinking through the question. “Well, they could pretty much go anywhere from there. They could follow the pipeline to the White Mountains. From there, there are numerous trails. It would be nearly impossible to track someone or to catch them at that point.”
“That’s too bad.” Duke rubbed his chin as if he didn’t like that answer.
Tim continued to stare at them. “You really think someone took Caleb?”
“Either that, or Caleb disappeared and took someone with him,” Duke said. “But considering the fact a UTV from off campus was used, I’m thinking someone took Caleb.”
“Why would anyone do that?” Tim fisted his hands at his sides, his expression hardening. “What exactly has that guy gotten himself caught up in?”
“That’s what we’re trying to figure out also,” Andi said.
Tim’s gaze sharpened. “I thought you were here to try to figure out who killed Calvin and Mary.”
“We are,” Andi said. “Now Pepper is dead also. Right now, we don’t know how or if everything is connected.”
“What if Caleb had something to do with their deaths?” Tim practically spit out the words as if they disgusted him. “What if we let him stay here all this time, welcoming him into our homes when all along he’s been a killer?”
Andi didn’t know what to say, so she let his words hang in the air.
Relief filled Duke when he saw Gibson pull up to the camp.
Their friend looked serious as he climbed from his SUV and strode toward them as they all waited in the lobby of the lodge.
He paused when he reached them and glanced back and forth between Duke and Andi. “Someone is missing?”
Duke explained the situation to him.
Gibson clucked his tongue with each new detail. “I don’t like hearing that.”
“Believe me,” Duke muttered. “We don’t like sharing it.”