Page 24 of Stolen Angels
“I understand,” she murmured worriedly. “I’ll call her right now and get back to you.”
After thanking her and hanging up, he decided to check around the outside of the house. Senses alert, he surveyed the side of the property then walked around to the backyard. The Grueler’s yard was separated from the neighbor’s by a fence. The yard held no patio furniture, although there was a flower bed that suggested Nolan’s mother liked to garden. A magnolia tree and a few pines were scattered about but there was no outbuilding. Then he spotted a wooden crate wedged between a cluster of red tips, nearly hidden by the foliage. It looked big enough to hold a small animal, maybe a pet like a turtle or rabbit.
Curious, he crossed to it, knelt and used his flashlight to look inside. His pulse pounded when he spotted a small brown teddy bear, a rag doll and a stuffed panda inside.
Just the kind of toys a predator might use to lure a child.
Or had Nolan collected them from children he’d been watching?
His phone buzzed. The parole officer.
“It’s Genesis,” the woman said. “I spoke with the therapist. Although HIPAA prevents her from confiding personal medical information, she did say that Nolan was still taking his meds, but that he was struggling. He admitted fighting urges and that he hated himself for it.”
He sucked in a breath. “Did he specifically mention Ava Truman?”
“No,” Genesis replied. “But she said that sometimes he talked about going away and living off the grid. Said it would be easier not to be tempted daily.” She sighed. “But he couldn’t do that and keep his appointments with me and his therapist.”
Frustration turned Derrick’s stomach inside out as he considered the area. From this street, you could see the mountains in the distance, the jagged peaks rising to the heavens. The Appalachian Trail had become a hotbed of crime, with predators taking advantage of the wilderness, caves, old mine tunnels, and isolated areas as hiding places. Tangled vines, overgrown weeds, and thick tall trees created isolated areas and a sanctuary for those wanting to escape society.
Those hundreds of miles of forest might be refuge for another kidnapper now.
Miles and miles where Grueler could take Ava and dump her body, just as the man who’d abducted Derrick’s own little sister had.
Twenty-Five
“Ms.Grueler,” Ellie said. “Did your son have a job?”
“No, with his record no one would hire him. He tried to do yardwork for neighbors, but this is a family neighborhood and no one wanted him near their children or in their homes.”
“Just living so close to Ava was a violation of his parole,” she pointed out.
“I know, but it was only temporary until he could find a place of his own. Though that was hard without an income. He needed something to do. Any job using computers was out. He couldn’t even work at a grocery store.”
Ellie gave her a sympathetic look. “That must have been difficult for you.”
The woman looked down at her hands and picked at her fingers. “The whole mess ruined our lives. People gossip and whisper and say hateful things to me. I’ve already moved four times in the last two years.”
“Did Nolan have a computer?” Ellie asked.
“No, it was part of his treatment plan. He wasn’t allowed on the internet.”
That made sense and again would have been a violation. Although he could have kept one hidden.
“How about a gun?” Ellie asked.
“That would also have violated parole, and I wouldn’t have allowed it.” She rubbed her hands together. “Besides, Nolan is not a violent man. He doesn’t even like guns.”
Ellie considered that comment. If he wasn’t violent, then they might find Ava alive.
She searched the desk again, beneath his bed and then his closet. No laptop, tablet or weapon. But in his dresser drawer beneath his socks, she found a shoebox filled with hairbows. She examined them and realized the red and white polka-dotted one looked familiar. She’d seen a box of similar ones at Lara’s that she’d handmade. Ava was also wearing this very one in a holiday photograph on Lara’s mantel.
“Mrs.Grueler,” she said. “Are you sure that there isn’t any place your son might go if he was upset or scared?”
“Oh, my word, the cabins. I’d forgotten about that place,” the woman said in a shaky voice.
“Where are they?” Ellie asked.
A tense second passed. “Blood Mountain. His daddy carried him up there to punish him once. He said he was going to get rid of the devil in his boy.”