Page 34 of High Country Escape

She fell asleep and woke later, to Billy shaking her shoulder. He held the doll, its hair undone, a tangled mess about its shoulders. Alice stood just behind him, nibbling at one thumbnail. “Look at the mess you made,” he said. It was one of his favorite admonitions. She and Alice were always making messes, whether it was failing to perfectly smooth their sheets when they made their beds or missing a spot when they washed dishes.

Roxanne sat up, rocketed from sleep to wary wakefulness. “I didn’t do anything,” she said.

“How did her hair get like this?” Billy demanded.

“Alice did it.”

She realized her mistake immediately. Over Billy’s shoulder, she could see Alice shaking her head.

Billy looked at Alice. “Did you mess up the doll’s hair?”

“No.” Alice shook her head. “Mary did it. She said she didn’t like the doll.”

Billy thrust the doll at Roxanne. “You’re going to spend the rest of the evening picking out these tangles and rebraiding her hair,” he said. “No supper for you until you do.”

Roxanne knew pleading or crying were useless. She laid the doll on the bed. “All right.”

“You must do what I tell you,” Billy said, something he preached often. “The doll is yours to look after. Just like I look after you.”

Roxanne said nothing. She would never treat even a doll the way Billy treated her. And one day, she would get out of here. She would escape.

All day Wednesday, Dalton thought about Roxanne. He had resisted calling her or asking his mom about her. That was a sure way to focus his mom’s attention on their fledgling friendship. After he was done with work, he planned to drop by the house and see for himself how Roxanne was doing.

After his last tour of the day, he washed the Jeep as usual, then drove the short distance to a gas station to fill the tank. He was standing at the pump, watching the numbers click over when a beeping horn caught his attention. He turned to see Aaron in his sheriff’s department SUV gliding by. Aaron raised a single finger in salute as he rolled past the gas station.

Dalton finished filling the Jeep’s tank, then headed in the direction Aaron had been traveling. He spotted his brother parked near the soccer fields and pulled in across the street.

Aaron looked up from his laptop and rolled down the window as Dalton approached. “Let me in,” Dalton said.

The door unlocked and Dalton moved aside a satchel full of paperwork and books and sat. The radio crackled softly with murmured conversation. “What do you know about the break-in at Roxanne’s place yesterday evening?” Dalton asked.

“The creepy doll? Nothing really.”

“Do you think William Ledger broke in and put that doll there?” Dalton asked.

“Maybe. Or someone who knew him and the kidnapping story.” Aaron gave him a hard look. “What has Roxanne said about it?”

“Not much. I haven’t talked to her since I dropped her off at Mom and Dad’s last night. But I know she thinks it was Ledger. No one else really knew about the doll.”

Aaron said nothing. The chatter on the radio had ceased and the two brothers sat in silence, though Aaron kept his gaze on Dalton, who couldn’t stop himself from fidgeting. Was this another interrogation technique Aaron had learned in cop college?

“You okay with Roxanne staying with Mom and Dad?” Aaron finally asked.

“It was my idea.”

“It’s probably as safe a place for her as any,” Aaron said. “We’re making regular patrols by the house. If there’s any trouble, we’ll move her to a safe house—as much to protect Mom and Dad as to safeguard her.”

Dalton’s stomach hurt. “You don’t really think they’re in danger, do you?”

Aaron’s scowl made him look almost menacing. “I’ve read Ledger’s file. He’s not a nice guy.”

Dalton nodded. Even the little he had read online made that clear. But the whole situation felt so unreal. The doll was unsettling, but its appearance hadn’t felt life-threatening. “Has the department had any luck tracking down Alice?” he asked.

“The other girl who was held captive with Roxanne?” Aaron asked.

“Yeah. She knew about the doll.”

“I don’t think we’ve looked for her. Why would she threaten Roxanne?”