She lifted her head, smoothing some of the coppery gold strands from her forehead. “You’d have probably gotten around to it, but with your heartache it would be almost impossible to think as clearly as you do with other cases.” Claire went right back to her search. It reminded him of all the times she’d worked on her studies after Jeremy had gone to bed.
He’d see her in the family room, sitting on the couch with her laptop. Her hard work and dedication had resulted in Claire’s earning her master’s degree with honors, yet she ran the household and took wonderful care of Jeremy at the same time. Not only was Vic proud of her, he’d learned to admire her. Jeremy adored her. Jeremy...
A sudden sharp pain stabbed him right between the ribs, and Vic picked up another yearbook. As he was looking up names in the index at the back, he heard a small cry escape Claire’s lips.
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“What did you find?”
“Look at this!” She handed him the yearbook. “Fidel Flores has one listing. It’s his junior class picture.”
Vic grabbed the yearbook for the next year and tried to find Flores as a senior, but he wasn’t included. His gaze fused with Claire’s. “This could be the tie to Buda that brought Leroy here! Maybe Jeremy is here, somewhere... I’ve decided you’re my lucky charm, Claire. Let’s find out if Fidel’s parents or family still live here.”
“How can you do that without using your sources at the Bureau?”
“Let’s go out to the car and start making phone calls to every Flores who lives here. If we don’t turn up any info, I’ll phone Clint. My cousin might be able to help us with a more thorough search because of his police connections.”
After Vic took a picture of Flores with his camera, they reshelved the yearbooks and hurried out to the car. Claire pulled out her phone. “I’ll do a statewide search on the various search engines.”
He nodded. “While you do that, I’ll call information for Buda.” To his frustration, there was no Flores listed. After he hung up, he looked at Claire. “Anything from your end?”
“There are 100 listings for Flores in the state of Texas on Instant Checkmate. It’s a daunting task if we decide to go through them one by one.”
“Why don’t we check out any auto mechanic shops while we’re here and show them Fidel’s picture? Maybe he’s been seen around. You never know. First, I’ll drive us back to the Buda Graphic Design shop. Even if they didn’t recognize Leroy, they may know Flores.”
Claire nodded and started looking up addresses. “There are eight listings for mechanics on this site. We can investigate one at a time.”
“After we’re finished, let’s head to that steak house we passed a minute ago and eat dinner before we head on over to the bar.”
“That sounds good.”
Within an hour they’d canvased the area, but no one they spoke with knew or recognized Fidel Flores or Leroy Bennett. Frustrated, Vic drove them to the restaurant. They both ordered steak and salad. After the waitress walked away, Claire said, “I think that when we visit the bar where Leroy was arrested, we should go in separately.”
Vic shook his head. “There’s no way I’d let you go in there alone.”
“But you’ll be there keeping an eye on me. If we’re both alone, our chances of picking up information will increase.”
“A woman like you walking in there alone is asking for trouble.”
“But if I sit at the bar, then—”
“Then nothing! We’ll go in as Jim and Elaine, insurance investigators trying to find a missing person.”
“Was Leroy arrested inside or outside the bar?”
“Outside, according to what Kit told me before they impounded the truck.”
She shook her head. “To think they’d gone there to drink when he’d just kidnapped Jeremy... It’s incomprehensible. To be honest, I don’t know how you’re holding up, Vic.”
“I wouldn’t be functioning if it weren’t for you.” Every time he gave her credit, she came closer to breaking down. “Come on. Let’s go.”
He put some bills on the table and they walked out to his car. After finding the address for Shorty’s Bar on the GPS, they drove there in silence. “It’s a crummy-looking establishment,” she murmured. “There aren’t very many cars parked out here.”
“It’s only five to eight. The hard-core night crowd won’t show up for a few hours. This is the perfect time for us to go in and ask some questions. Follow my lead. Maybe we’ll get lucky and the bartender will be in a good mood.”
She nodded before they got out of the car and walked into the darkened room. The small place reeked of smoke and old age. Canned country music poured out of the speakers. A middle-aged guy sat at the bar. There were other men sitting in the booths lining the walls. Claire stood out in the sleazy atmosphere, not only because she was the only woman there, but because she was too attractive for her own good.
After they found two stools at the end of the bar, Vic nodded to the barrel-chested bartender who’d been pouring a drink for the man sitting by himself. He walked toward them. “What can I get you?”