VIOLENT DEPARTURES
by
Marilyn Meredith
Summary
College student,
Veronica Randall, disappears from her car in her own driveway, everyone in the
Rocky Bluff P.D. is looking for her. Detective Milligan and family move into a
house that may be haunted. Officer Butler is assigned to train a new hire and
faces several major challenges.
Excerpt
The
silver Toyota Prius stood empty and idling in the short driveway. The driver’s door gaped open. A plump, and
obviously distraught, middle-aged woman ran barefoot down the cement steps of
the small older home toward Officer Vaughn Aragon.
He’d
responded to a call from the dispatcher about a missing person. Ordinarily, the
caller would have been asked to come to the station to file a report, but the
circumstances in this case seemed urgent.
“Thank
God you’re here. My granddaughter, Veronica, she’s gone.” Gray strands mixed
with the woman’s long black hair she’d pulled back and tied with a scarf.
“Please find her.” Tears threatened in her dark eyes.
Without
touching anything, Aragon poked his head inside the running vehicle. A large
purse lay open on the passenger seat, belongings scattered, among them, a cell
phone. On the floor lay a multi-colored backpack.
Though
blond, Aragon, having grown up in East L.A., spoke fluent Spanish. Because the
woman had dark skin and hair, he assumed she was Latina. He introduced himself
in English and Spanish, and asked for her name.
She
frowned as though his Spanish confused her. “I’m Mrs. Randall.” She added, “And
I’m not Mexican. Please, help me find my granddaughter.”
Though
flustered by his mistake, Aragon said, “When was the last time you saw her?”
“A
few minutes before I called the police. We finished breakfast and she went out
the door, on her way to school. She is a student at UCSB. I started to do
dishes and then I noticed her car still parked in the driveway. I came out to
see what was wrong and found the car like this.” Her voice rose. “She
disappeared.”
“Maybe
she went to a neighbor’s.” Though Aragon thought it unlikely she’d leave her
car running.
“I’ve
been to both houses. No one is home on the right, and I woke up old Mrs. Hill.
She hasn’t seen her.” Tears filled Mrs. Randall’s eyes. “That’s when I called
the police. Please, you must do something.”
“Ma’am,
I’m going to call for assistance. Do you have a recent photograph of your
granddaughter I can use?”
“Yes,
of course. Right away.” Mrs. Randall turned and hurried toward her house.
Using
his portable radio, Aragon called the station, asking to speak with one of the
detectives.
Detective
Doug Milligan came on. “What’ve you got, Aragon?”
“A missing
young woman.”
“How
long has she been gone?”
“Not
long, but the thing is, Detective, her car is in her driveway and it’s running.
Her belongings are still in the car. It looks like someone may have kidnapped
her.”
Milligan
asked for the address. When he heard it, he said, “Not far from my place. Find
out any information you can about this woman, description, etc.”
The
detective promised that he and his partner, Felix Zachary would be there in a
few minutes.
Bio:
Marilyn Meredith is the author of over thirty-five published
novels, including the award winning Deputy Tempe Crabtree mystery series. Marilyn is a member of three
chapters of Sisters in Crime, Mystery Writers of America, and on the board of
the Public Safety Writers of America. She lives in the foothills of the Sierra.
Thank you so much for hosting me and Violent Departures today.
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