“Maybe someone convinced her not to. Like Jane Cox. She’s good at controlling people.”
“But how does Willa tie into this?”
They went to the wall where Willa’s picture was. It was unnerving to see the missing little girl smiling at them in this room with its tale of misery spelled out so sharply in chalk and index cards.
As they followed this line of Quarry’s investigative work, Michelle said, “How long ago did that incident with Cox happen, Sean?”
He calculated in his head. “About thirteen years ago.”
She said, “Willa just turned twelve. Plus nine months for the pregnancy. Sean, Willa’s the president’s daughter. You happened on them after they’d had sex, not before. And the lady got pregnant.”
“I guess this time around they decided adoption by Jane’s brother beat a back-alley abortion and another coma.”
“But you’re sure
he didn’t force himself on Diane Wright?”
“It appeared to be consensual.”
“If Dan Cox sexually assaulted Tippi Quarry and then she fell into a coma after a botched abortion, Sam Quarry is exacting his revenge.”
Sean looked puzzled. “By kidnapping Willa? And killing her mother? How does that make sense?”
“By giving him leverage.”
“Leverage with what?”
“I don’t know,” she admitted. “But it may have something to do with where the president and his wife are heading right now.” Michelle stared at the walls. “How do you think he figured it all out? This would’ve taken years.”
“He must’ve really loved his daughter. He never gave up.”
“But he’s also a killer. And he has Willa. And we’ve got to get her back.”
“Do you still have your camera in the SUV?”
Michelle rushed outside and was back in a couple of minutes with her Nikon. She took shots of all the walls, zooming in on all the writing and photos. Meanwhile, Sean searched through the cabinets and took out armfuls of files that he intended to take with him. Then he saw the letter that Quarry had left on the table along with his last will. He picked them up and read through them before putting the papers away in his pocket.
He and Michelle were breaking just about every crime scene preservation rule there was. But this wasn’t your average crime scene and he had decided to adopt some new rules. He wasn’t sure how this was all going to play out, but he felt fairly certain how he wanted it to conclude.
“All done,” said Michelle as she finished snapping the last shots.
Sean handed her some of the files to carry out. “Michelle, why would he bring Tippi home from the nursing home and then take her somewhere else?”
“I don’t know. It doesn’t make sense.”
Sean went farther into the room while Michelle was talking. He turned a corner, peered around an old partition, and cried out, “What the hell is that?”
She joined him as he rushed over to some metal cylinders stacked in the back of the room. He set down the files he was carrying and turned several cylinders over. Some contained oxygen, some didn’t.
“What is it?” Michelle asked.
Instead of answering, Sean ran back to the door and threw it open. He brought Gabriel and Ruth Ann in and over to the cylinders.
They both looked blankly at them and shook their heads when he asked if he knew why Quarry had these. Then Sean eyed the other equipment lying around on a workbench next to the cylinders. The remains of a gutted video camera, some old remotes, cable wire, and rolls of metal sheathing.
“What is all that for?” he asked.
Gabriel shook his head. “Don’t know, but I do know that Mr. Sam can build anything he wants. Fix anything mechanical. Electronics. Real good carpenter.”