“So she might’ve gone willingly, indicating her abductor was someone she trusted. But since she wasn’t tied up later, it seems more likely she was drugged,” Caity said.
“Drugged,” Hatcher confirmed.
Spense supposed it stood to reason that with her kidnapper still at large, and Laura the only one left alive who might identify him, her parents would take measures to secure her safety.
Hatcher went on, “Laura’s parents hired Cayman to protect her, and he lived and traveled with the family for over a decade, until about three months ago, when Laura officially declared her independence. She pronounced herself an adult and insisted she didn’t have to abide by her parents’ rules anymore. At twenty-one, she came into a large sum from her grandparents’ trust fund, and she was no longer financially dependent on her mother and father. She quit therapy, ditched her meds, and revealed she’d been accepted to Holly Hill College.”
“How long has she been back in the Denver area?”
“That’s one more heartbreak. She’s been back in Denver just two short months. Now she’s missing. The Chaucers blame themselves for ‘allowing’ her to claim her inheritance. They say Webber advised them to contest the trust on grounds of Laura’s mental instability. But instead they followed the advice of Laura’s DC therapist—a Dr. Duncan—to encourage her to become more self-sufficient. Now the Chaucers are second-guessing themselves. Without the money, Laura couldn’t have left home—she’s never held a job of any kind.”
Spense guessed that was because she’d never been permitted to seek employment.
“Even though they had Cayman watching her, he couldn’t guard her effectively without her consent,” Hatcher went on.
“Didn’t he make use of surveillance equipment?” Spense asked.
Caity’s eyebrows shot up, and Spense knew she was troubled by the way the Chaucers had overridden their daughter’s wishes. Caity would be in the DC therapist’s camp. No doubt about that.
“No cameras or listening devices.” Hatcher ran a hand through his hair. “Naturally we have to look hard at those closest to Laura, but every action the Chaucers have taken tells me they love their daughter. A wealthy, prominent family, one who’s paid a ransom already, makes a prime target for kidnappers and other predators. And then, there’s the matter of Angelina’s killer still being at large.”
“Could be dead or in prison by now,” Spense thought aloud.
“We believe he’s still in play. Marked bills used in the ransom drop still show up now and then, but there’s no consistent pattern to when and where. I don’t blame the parents for keeping their daughter locked down tight.”
“But they didn’t use surveillance,” Spense said. Inconsistent.
“They told me Tracy couldn’t stand the thought of someone watching Laura in her private moments—it seemed like yet another violation. Cayman stayed in their home in a room adjoining Laura’s, but the family never allowed cameras, not even when she was a child.”
Spense was developing more empathy for the entire family. It sounded like the parents struggled to balance protecting their daughter’s safety with respecting her privacy and growing need for independence. And he could understand why the senator kept Cayman on Laura without her consent. He might’ve done the same thing in Chaucer’s shoes.
“Sounds like Laura’s been locked in a prison of fear most of her life—hard to blame her for wanting to break out.” Caity, on the other hand, clearly didn’t approve of the parental subterfuge.
Not a surprise. Caity didn’t take violations of individual freedoms lightly. Because of her father’s execution, which had been based in part on a coerced confession, she was a strong proponent of civil liberties—in every form.
“But Laura is still a loose end. The danger to her is real,” Spense said. It was unnecessary to add that if Laura had been abducted again, Angelina’s killer would be the prime suspect.
“The bastard is still in the wind, but it’s even worse than that.” Hatcher lowered his gaze. “We have very few clues to his identity. That’s one reason I’m glad you’re here. I’m counting on the two of you to develop an accurate profile of our mystery man. He could be anyone. He could be anywhere. He could be right under our noses, and we wouldn’t even smell his stink.”
Chapter 8
Afternoon
Somewhere in the Rocky Mountains
Find your strengths and stretch them farther than you ever dreamed possible.
Laura recalled her counselor’s beaming, naïve face as she’d led the evening lesson at wilderness survival camp, and how, at the time, she’d found the idealism shining from that young woman’s eyes nauseating. What did the counselor know about survival compared to Laura?