girlfriend, Carol Sue Tinsley.”
“Hmm, wonder if they’re one and the same.”
“That’s possible.”
“How about the other names?”
“One more popped. Seth Handleman. He was charged with fraud, but the charges were dropped. Says here his wife, Maude, lives in Laredo.”
“Give me that address,” Dugan said. “Maybe she’s still there.”
She also might be the same woman who’d bailed out Bremmer and Martin.
* * *
SAGE RUBBED HER FINGER over the locket she wore as she parked at the coffee shop where Ashlynn Fontaine had agreed to meet her. After Benji had disappeared, she’d placed his picture inside the necklace and sworn she wouldn’t take it off until she found her son.
It was a constant reminder that he was close to her heart even if she had no idea if he was alive or...gone forever.
Clinging to hope, she hurried inside, ordered a latte and found a small corner table to wait. Five minutes later, Ashlynn entered, finding Sage and offering her a small smile. Ashlynn ordered coffee, then joined her, shook off her jacket and dropped a pad and pen on the table.
“Hi, Ms. Freeport. I’m glad you called.”
“Call me Sage.”
“All right, Sage. You said there’s been a new development in the case.”
Sage nodded. “I take it you haven’t heard about Ron Lewis’s body being found.”
The reporter’s eyes flickered with surprise. “No, but that is news. Who found him?”
“Dugan Graystone, a local tracker, was searching for some missing hikers and discovered his body at Cobra Creek.”
“I see. And the sheriff was called?”
Sage nodded. “Sheriff Gandt said he would investigate, but he didn’t do much the first go-around.”
“How did Lewis die?” Ashlynn asked.
“He was shot.”
“Murdered?” Another flicker of surprise. “So he didn’t die from an accident?”
“No.” Sage ran a hand through her hair. “He died of a gunshot wound. At this point it’s unclear if he was shot before the accident, causing him to crash, or after it, when he tried to escape the burning vehicle.”
“Interesting.”
“The important thing is that they found Lewis’s body but not my son’s. So Benji might be alive.”
Ashlynn gave her a sympathetic look. “Did they find any evidence that he survived?”
“No,” Sage admitted. “But they also didn’t find any proof that he didn’t.”
“Fair enough.”
“Think about it,” Sage said. “The shooter may have wanted to kill Ron. But maybe he didn’t realize Ron had Benji with him. When he killed Ron and discovered Benji, he may have taken my son.”
A tense heartbeat passed between them, fraught with questions.
“That’s possible,” Ashlynn said. “But it’s also possible that he didn’t.”
Sage’s stomach revolted. “You mean that he got rid of Benji.”
“I’m sorry,” Ashlynn said. “I don’t want to believe that, but if he murdered Lewis, he might not have wanted any witnesses left behind.”
Sage desperately clung to hope that Ron’s killer hadn’t been that inhumane. Killing a grown man for revenge, if that was the case, was a far cry from killing an innocent child.
Ashlynn traced a finger along the rim of her coffee cup. “I hate to suggest this, but did the police search the area for a grave, in case the killer buried your son?”
Sage’s throat closed. She clutched her purse, ready to leave. “I didn’t call you so you’d convince me that Benji is dead. I hoped you’d run another story, this time focus on the fact that Lewis’s body was found but that Benji might still be out there.”
She pulled a picture of her son from her shoulder bag. “Please print his picture and remind people that he’s still missing. That I’m still looking for him.” Desperation tinged her voice. “Maybe someone’s seen him and will call in.”
Ashlynn reached over and squeezed her hand. “Of course I can do that, Sage. I’ll do whatever I can to help you get closure.”
Sage heard the doubt in the reporter’s voice. She didn’t think Benji would be found.
But Sage didn’t care what she thought. “I know you have your doubts about him being alive, but I’m his mother.” Sage stroked the locket where it lay against her heart. “I can’t give up until I know for sure.”
Ashlynn nodded and took the picture. “Did Benji have any defining characteristics? A birthmark, scar or mole? Anything that might stand out?”
“As a matter of fact, he does,” Sage said. “He was born with an extra piece of cartilage in his right ear. It’s not very noticeable, but if you look closely, it almost looks like he has two eardrums.”
“Do you have a photo where it’s visible?”
Sage had actually avoided photographing it. But it was obvious in his first baby picture. She removed it from her wallet and showed it to Ashlynn.
“This might help,” the reporter told her. “I’ll enhance it for the news story. And I’ll run the story today.” Ashlynn finished her coffee. “As a matter of fact, I have a friend who works for the local TV station. I’ll give her a heads-up and have her add it to their broadcast. The more people looking for Benji, the better.”
Sage thanked her, although Ashlynn’s comment about searching for a grave troubled her.
As much as she didn’t want to face that possibility, she’d have to ask Dugan about it.
* * *
DUGAN ENTERED THE ADDRESS for Maude Handleman into the note section on his phone, then drove toward Lloyd Riley’s farm, a few miles outside town.
He’d heard about the tough times some of the landowners had fallen upon in the past few years. Weather affected farming and crops, the organic craze had caused some to rethink their methods and make costly changes, and the beef industry had suffered.
Farmers and ranchers had to be progressive and competitive. He noted the broken fencing along Riley’s property, the parched pastures and the lack of crops in the fields.
He drove down the mile drive to the farmhouse, which was run-down, the porch rotting, the paint peeling. A tractor was abandoned in the field, the stables were empty and
