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* * *
“Well,this place has seen better days,” Alexamurmured.
Ethan had to agree. The motel’s vacancy sign was missing two of its neon letters, and one of the panes in the window of the door to the office was missing and patched with cardboard. The property had four sections. The front horizontal strip held the office, with three rooms on each side of it. Two vertical sections sat to the right and left behind this one, with another between them that ran parallel to thefront.
From the image the phone company had sent, Ethan could tell exactly where the UNSUB’s room was located. There were parking places in front of it. None held a vehicle that matched the description of Tillman’s van or rental. He took a slow swing through the rest of the parking lot while Nyle parked near the room at the far edge of Tillman’s section. The three officers got out, walked around the back of the units anddisappeared.
Scanning the rest of the lot, Alexa said disappointedly, “He’s nothere.”
There wasn’t a van or Camry in sight. A ball of disappointment lodged in his chest, but Ethan said, “His phone was here a half hour ago. He might have hidden the vehicles somewhere and taken a cab. Or left the car in a lot nearby andwalked.”
“There were no lots nearby,” she reminded him, frustration tinging herwords.
True enough. The motel was at least a mile from the last establishment they’d passed, a tavern that hadn’t had more than three cars in the parkinglot.
His cell signaled an incoming text. He swung the vehicle back toward the office and stopped to read the message from Nyle. Sent aresponse.
“The men will take up position near Tillman’s room, remaining out of sight,” he explained to Alexa. “We’ll see if we can get any details from themanager.”
They got out and walked up the two sagging steps toward theoffice.
Ethan pushed the weathered door open and walked inside. The floor sloped beneath his feet. He’d hate to see what lay beneath the ratty greencarpet.
The man behind the desk looked as rundown at the structure. Deep grooves were etched into his face and the long hair clubbed back in a ponytail was white. He started to smile, showing yellowed teeth until he got a better look at Ethan. Made him as law enforcement. “Don’t want notrouble.”
“Not looking to give you any,” Ethan said evenly as he showed his credentials. “Just need to know if you’ve seen this man.” He showed him a copy of Tillman’s driver license photo. The clerk barely looked at it beforeshrugging.
“Don’t believe Ihave.”
“Look again.” A note of command entered his voice. “Because we just pinpointed the man’s phone to this motel. I have a pretty good idea where the room issituated.”
“You need a warrant to get a look at it,” the clerk said flatly. He picked up a pen and returned to the crossword puzzle he’d beenworking.
“And I can get one. But that’s not necessary. I already know he’s here.” At least he’d been when they’d left RCMP headquarters. The cell phone provider had pinged the phone twice more on the way over, to no avail. It was shut off again. “But if I wanted to save time, I could just get a couple of patrol cars over here. Have them start running the plates of the cars in thelot.”
The man’s expressionflickered.
Ethan looked at Alexa. “If we start pounding on all the doors, we’re probably going to observe some illicit activity going on. I’d be obliged to act on thatinformation.”
“Maybe you should get three or four patrol cars,” Alexa suggested. She smiled brightly at the clerk. “Although that could put a scare into your guests. They might not like the police presence. I suppose some of them might be anxious to leave and find a place with moreprivacy.”
“Why you have to be like that?” the older man complained. He snatched the photo from Ethan and brought it closer. Then set it on the counter. “Yeah, he was here. Checked out fifteen minutes ago. Room sixty-one. You just missedhim.”
* * *
“There’s a drive out back,”Nyle said as the clerk opened the door to the room. The older man had decided that having Ethan and the officers camped out in the parking lot while waiting for a warrant to come through was a far bigger disadvantage than just letting them take a look at the now-vacant room. “In disrepair, but he could have parked there, keeping the vehicle out ofsight.”
It was a moot point now. Ethan resisted the urge to send his fist into the crumbling plaster wall. They were destined to creep closer and closer to the man, while each time he wiggled out of reach at the last possiblemoment.
The five of them filled the small space. There was one sagging unmade double bed. A nightstand with a leg broken on it. An old TV bolted to the wall above a small scarred chest ofdrawers.
“How long was he here?” Jonah askeddisgustedly.
“Told that one.” The clerk jerked a thumb at Ethan. “Records say he’s been here ninedays.”
“You don’t watch TV? There were sketches of this guy on thenews.”
“I like to watch sports.” The older man jutted out his chinmulishly.