Chapter 25
Three hours later, Lee clenched his jaw as he listened to Billy on the phone, "I'll send someone out to start looking for her. I don't like this either because it's not like her to be this late without a phone call, but I really need you to stay on with Francine and Edwards. I'm sure Amanda is completely fine. Maybe she just had car trouble or something."
Lee glanced down at his watch and shook his head, "I better call Dotty and let her know I'm… we're going to be late. I don't even know what to say to her."
"Tell you what, I'll call Dotty. I'll tell her you both got hung up on an interview or something out of town. We'll find her, Lee. We don't even know if she's truly missing or-" Billy stated. Lee cut him off quickly, "Don't go there! You know better than that!" Billy cleared his throat, "I do. But I also know Amanda."
"Yeah, Amanda, my wife who has a knack for getting herself into trouble at the drop of a hat!" Lee snapped.
Billy raised his voice on the other end of the phone, "Stop it right now, Scarecrow! We will find her! And when she's sitting in her car on the side of the road waiting for the Motor Club to fix a flat tire you're going to feel pretty stupid overreacting like this."
Lee clenched his jaw once more, his nostrils flaring angrily, "I hope that's the case, Billy. I really do. But something in my gut tells me otherwise." He looked down at the list of addresses he had left to cover. "I'm going to check in with Francine, see how they're doing. I have three more locations to check out from the list she gave me."
"I'll have Henderson and Waters start at that store she was at. What was the name of it?" Billy questioned.
"Maggie and Tuck's," Lee stated. "Let me know the second you find her," Lee instructed before he added, "IF you find her."
"We'll find her, Scarecrow," Billy insisted just before Lee pressed the END button on his car phone.
Lee punched the numbers for Francine's phone and waited for the connection to complete. "Desmond!" "Francine, it's me. How are you two doing with that list?" Lee asked.
"Any news on Amanda?" Francine replied.
"No, not yet, but Billy is sending Henderson and Waters out to start looking for her," Lee sighed.
"Good," she exhaled. In another breathe she added, "We're on our last location right now. Every spot we visited is either occupied by a renter or business. How are you doing?"
"Slow going. I have three more to go," Lee admitted. "But the first five were the same as yours, a business or a renter. I did meet a very nice old lady who offered me tea and cake for information on Dr. Schuster though."
Francine laughed loudly, "Did you take her up on that offer?"
Lee laughed lightly in return. "As a matter of fact, I did. If I've learned one thing from Amanda over the years, I've learned neighbors are a great source of information. Now, she's not exactly a neighbor but she's been renting from Dr. Schuster for the last two years and she stated she's noticed a change in him the last few months. Said it started right around the time the first victim was found. She said he was in her apartment, collecting her rent, the news report came on and his face went white. She said she thought it was just because it was a young, pregnant woman and he was upset by that," he rambled. "She then added she's only seen him twice since then to pick up her rent and he was very nervous each time, not his usual, charming self."
"That's not the only thing you seemed to have learned from Amanda. I'm still trying to figure out how you said that all in one breath," Francine teased.
"Very funny!" Lee snapped.
Francine laughed again before adding, "Tell you what, how about Edwards and I meet you for the last two and I'll spring for dinner tonight."
Lee exhaled, "I'll take the offer for the help but I'll pass on dinner. If they haven't found Amanda by then, I want to be out there, looking."
"I understand. Okay, where are you now?" Francine asked.
"I just got to Longbranch, so I still have June and Alabama left," Lee explained as he scanned the neighborhood. "It's pretty quiet here, so I don't expect to find much." He watched as a station wagon filled with kids slowly rolled by him. Unconsciously, he smiled and waved.
"We'll meet you at Alabama then," Francine stated before she disconnected the call.
Lee stretched his long legs, inhaled, and exhaled loudly as he approached a small, brick-faced, ranch style home. He rapped several times on the door and listened for the sound of anyone inside. Almost immediately a sharp bark replied, followed by a louder, deeper one. Lee glanced over at the picture window to see a brown chihuahua with big eyes and ears staring back at him. Behind the petite animal was a much larger Rottweiler, aggressively barking and lunging at the glass separating them. Lee exhaled nervously and took a step to his left, away from the window. He held his hand up to knock once more but lowered it as soon as he heard a thin voice snap, "Get down! It's just the door." The door slowly swung inward until it revealed it's occupant, a young woman in a wheelchair. Before Lee could say anything, the chihuahua jumped into her lap protectively as the other dog tried to push the door open wider.
"I'm so sorry to disturb you," Lee began with a soft smile.
"It's okay. Can I help you?" the woman asked.
Lee held up his badge and explained, "My name is Lee Stetson and I'm a federal agent. Can I ask you a few questions?"
"Of course. Would you like to come in?" she offered as she reached for the handle on the door.
Lee took a step back and shook his head. He stared at the menacing-looking dog beside her and stuttered, "No, no, that's ok. I won't take a lot of your time. Do you know Dr. Stanley Schuster?"
The woman reached out to pat the larger dog, "Duke, sit." The dog immediately followed her command, dropping his back half to the floor, his tongue lolling happily to the side as she scratched behind his ear. "Yes, Dr. Schuster is my landlord, along with Glennys Martin. Is Dr. Schuster in trouble?"
"You said Glennys Martin is also your landlord?" Lee questioned, surprised with a new name. "Who is that?"
"She is Dr. Schuster's partner, I guess. I'm not really sure what their relationship is but they own the house together. Each month, my rent checks alternate between the two of them," the woman explained.
Lee pulled out his small notepad and a pen, "I'm sorry… your name is?"
"My name is Chrissy Pritchard. This here is Duke and this little bugger is Buck Buck," Chrissy stated with a smile as she rubbed each dog after their introduction.
Lee relaxed a little and leaned closer to the door. "Duke's a pretty big boy, huh?" he teased. He smiled at Buck Buck but before he could comment, the small canine began yipping and barking again.
"You hush! He's not going to hurt me," Chrissy reprimanded the dog. She tucked him into the crook of her arm and laughed, "Buck doesn't let anyone near me. Including Dr. Schuster. He goes nuts every time he comes by."
Lee stepped back and asked, "When was the last time you saw Dr. Schuster?"
Chrissy rolled her eyes upward to think, "Three months ago, I think. Glennys picked up the last two checks, so, yeah… three months."
"And this Glennys… do you know where I might be able to locate her in case I have any more questions about Dr. Schuster?" Lee looked up from his notepad.
Chrissy smiled widely, "That I can tell you! She's the manager of Maggie and Tuck's. That maternity and baby store downtown."
Lee inhaled sharply, "Thank you very much for your time, Ms. Pritchard."
