Chasing Clowns: A Novel (Girl Clown Hatchet Suspense Series Book 2) Page 22

  “Yes, sir! I mean, Ma’am!” Sammy was in a much better mood, though still a bit nervous.

  Martinez stuck out his hand. “If there’s nothing else I can service you with…” He raised an eyebrow.

  Sammy said, “Uncle Marty, if I didn’t know any better, I’d think you were hitting on—”

  AJ promptly stomped on Sammy’s foot.

  “Ow!”

  Chloe gripped Martinez’ hand tightly, then dropped it. “I don’t think so. Thank you, you’ve been a great help for Sammy.”

  Sammy and AJ turned and started talking about her Crown Victoria—how the tires looked low.

  Martinez licked his lips, first the top, then bottom…slowly. All the while holding Chloe’s eye, then a wolfish grin spread over Martinez’ face.

  Chloe couldn’t decide on the expression. A hungry wolf or a devil with a secret? Either way, she sensed the threat.

  Chloe raised her voice so AJ and Sammy could hear her. “Did I mention that the Great Horned Serpent nipped off his banana first?”

  “What?” Sammy and AJ whipped their heads back.

  Sammy burst out laughing. “Oh my gosh, you’re something else, Officer Jackson!”

  Martinez’ grin faded.

  Chloe waggled her eyebrows at Martinez. “See you around.”

  Martinez stormed off to his office without a word.

  AJ said, “Hey, Officer Jackson?

  Sammy whispered, “Be nice, AJ.”

  “Of course, I was just giving Poca—”

  “What?” Chloe untied her jacket and tapped the cuffs on her hip. “What’s that?”

  “I mean, Officer,” he said in a sarcastic voice. “I’d watch out for them clowns if I were you.”

  Chloe was sick of his games. “What is that supposed to mean?”

  AJ’s demeanor had taken even a darker turn after Martinez had beamed over Sammy. “I heard you did a stunt with a clown at the hospital. Tripped him up pretty good.”

  Chloe smiled, examining the bruises on his face. “Oh? Where did you hear that?”

  He shrugged.

  Chloe asked, “I have a personal question if you don’t mind?”

  “Ask away.”

  “Where’d you get those bruises?”

  “I suck at the unicycle.”

  She glanced at Sammy who turned and looked at the ground. “So, you are a clown, too?”

  AJ said, “Not really. I just fill in every once in a while. I used to work at Carnival Circus, but not anymore.” He whistled, “Those dudes play too rough for me.”

  Sammy said, “Yep, pretty rough.”

  Chloe said, “If they are so bad why are you working there, Sammy? Why would you put yourself in that position to go back to prison? What would happen to your sister and her baby?”

  Sammy frowned and shrugged. “I went to clown school in California. It’s all the education I have. A clown has got to work and eat, too. Even if it ain’t in the comfiest of places.”

  AJ smirked, “Yeah, cuz like you said, ‘The most powerful come from humble beginnings.’” He placed a hand over his heart and feigned a hostile smile.

  And it was then that Chloe realized AJ made her more feel more uncomfortable than Martinez had. Perhaps it was just the mention of clowns, but she didn’t think so. His aggression felt personal. She said, “The horned serpent didn’t choose to be what he was, nor did he choose to have power. The universe dictated it. And he merely obeyed its command.”

  “Therefore, becoming dictator of all.” Sammy spread his arms wide.

  AJ spit on the ground. “I get you, Officer.”

  “Good.”

  An awkward uncomfortableness filled the space between them as Chloe turned and walked back to her vehicle.

  20

  Burt

  Chloe swung into the parking lot of Spindler Park, and grabbed the sandwich she had made herself before Chev had bonked his head on the table. She walked down the gravel path in between the trees, breathing in the crisp air. She decided to sit on a park bench overlooking Spindler River.

  Overwhelmed, disorganized, fearful, confused: none of these words even touched the surface of the state she was in since she had woken up. Nor did she try to define it.

  It was what it was.

  Mama Nola.

  She pushed the vision of the dear elderly woman away.

  Joey.

  It wasn’t the vision of him that filled her mind, but the feel of him. The way she had felt when she had been with him all those years ago: connected, safe, free.

  How long had it been in her adult life since she had felt that way with anyone? The answer was too painful, so Chloe practiced one of the coping skills that always grounded her. She focused on her senses.

  She studied the river, the current crashed over boulders, turning the clear teal water to white foam.

  The river gurgled and roared as thousands of gallons of water cascaded down the riverbed, an urgent ever-moving energy, living energy.

  Fallen leaves and pine filled Chloe’s nose. She tasted ice on her lips. A mild pain throbbed in her ribs from when she had attacked the clown and the cold wood of the bench bit through the fabric of her pants.

  Chloe breathed this in, and wiggled her toes inside their shoes, and realized they were almost frozen. She probably shouldn’t stay for too long, or she’d freeze to the park bench. The thought made her smile. She touched her mouth, the movement feeling foreign on her lips. She opened her eyes feeling back in the present. She glanced at her sandwich and reached for it when her cell rang.

  She didn’t recognize the number but answered it anyway.

  “Oh, uh, hi,” answered a soft voice, hesitant.

  Chloe instantly knew who he was. How could she have forgotten? Burt Lowgen, of course.

  “Can I help you?”

  “This is Burt. Burt Lowgen.”

  Chloe introduced herself and thanked him for calling before asking him if he could recount what had happened the morning the gas station had been robbed.

  Burt sneezed.

  Chloe said, “Bless you.”

  “Thanks.” He sniffed. “So, it was a while back. Things are kinda foggy now. But yeah, it was a slow evening, as I recall. It was dark outside, heavy rain clouds, you know. It was just about to downpour. This woman comes in. She has dark blonde hair, eyes like the ocean.

  “The ocean?” Chloe asked.

  “Blue, but green too.”

  “Yeah,” said Chloe, scribbling this on paper. “How old would you say she is?”

  “My age, early twenties. She was really pretty. Not snobby pretty like a high school girl, but real, you know? And she was holding a baby, crying.”

  “The woman was crying or her baby?”

  “The woman was crying. Her mascara was smeared down her face, and her nose was red like she’d been blowing it. Like she’d been crying for a while. Her baby fussed a little, but it seemed okay. I asked her what was wrong, and she pulled a pistol out of her back pocket and pointed it at me while rocking her baby on her hip. Just bizarre, felt like a scene out of a movie.”

  “Uh huh, I bet,” said Chloe.

  Burt continued, “So I asked her, ‘What do you want?’ She didn’t look like the criminal type. I thought maybe she needed diapers or formula. The gas station was also a mini store, and I had that sort of stuff. And she told me to give her all the money out of the register. So, I opened it up and took out the cash and gave it to her.” Burt was quiet for a moment, then said, “She had to set the gun down on the counter to take the cash out of my hands and put it in a bag.”

  Chloe squinted her eyes. “The detective’s notes mentioned a backpack?”

  “Yep, she had one on. That’s the one she put the cash into.”

  Chloe scribbled in her Moleskine.

  “Anyways, I looked at the gun on the counter. Thought about picking it up, but instead I say, ‘You weren’t going to shoot me, were you?’ She looks at me, distraught, then picks up the gun, points it at me an
d pulls the trigger. It all happened so fast, that I didn’t even get the chance to duck.”

  “Wait,” Chloe paused in her writing. “She pulled the trigger?”

  “Uh huh, and a little note popped out of the barrel that said BANG! It was a kiddie toy. She must have used permanent marker over the orange tip or something. I just about had a heart attack, you know? And that’s when I saw it.”

  “Saw what?”

  “Well, she had this little tattoo on the inside of her wrist.”

  Butterflies fluttered inside Chloe’s stomach.

  He said, “It was striking, and I never forgot it. The tat was of a dainty black serpent biting its tail.”

  “Serpent?” Chloe’s hand froze on the paper. It had nothing to do with the chilly afternoon.

  She’d seen that tattoo before, on Sammy’s sister’s wrist. Jill.

  Burt said, “Uh huh, really cool looking. Thinking of getting one on my shoulder.”

  “Hmm…that tattoo wasn’t in the detective’s report either.” Chloe scribbled Jill Johnson on the bottom of the notebook and underlined it twice.

  I was pretty shocked after she left. I called the cops, but they weren’t very nice, and the manager was angry at me. Maybe, I don’t know; maybe I forgot when I was telling them. But, I remember now. I feel bad for her family. She looked like she was a good kind of person. Not someone who would rob a gas station. She must have been desperate. Truly desperate, you know?”

  Chloe said, “It sounds like it. Do you know where she went after she left? Did she have a car?”

  “Nah, I’ll never forget the site of it. She walked out straight to the road, holding the baby in a blanket and wearing that backpack. The sun was setting. This brilliant orange had broken through the gray storm clouds, outlining them. It felt so ominous, like something terrible was going to happen to her. I never saw her again.”

  “Do you think she was heading toward the highway?”

  “Yeah, I-5, Northbound, I think.”

  Chloe realized she had been holding her breath, and she let it out. “You’ve been a tremendous help, Burt. Thank you so much for calling me back.”

  He said, “Did you find her? I often wonder what happened to her and her baby.”

  Chloe stood, sliding her notebook into her jacket pocket and snatching up her sandwich. She didn’t run back to the car, but she moved as quickly as she could with heels on a park path. “We haven’t found her yet, but I’m feeling hopeful the extra information you gave me today will help turn something up.”

  “I sure hope so.”

  Chloe said, “Be sure to call if you can think of anything else.”

  “Will do, Officer Jackson.”

  They both hung up.

  Chloe didn’t wait for the Vic to warm up before slamming the car into gear and jetting off.

  21

  Here They Come

  JILL OPENED THE DOOR BEFORE CHLOE had a chance to knock. She held Jacob on her hip. He happily nibbled on her bat necklace. Her black hair was spiked and had electric blue highlights this time instead of neon pink. The same color as Shayla’s hair.

  “Officer?”

  Chloe asked, “Can I come in for a second?”

  Jill moved aside to let Chloe in the door. “Oh sure. Is this about Sammy? I’m sure he is at work today, that’s what he told me before he left this morning.”

  Chloe nodded. “I talked with Sammy earlier at Martinez Tire and Oil.”

  Jill sighed with relief. “Good. I’m glad you found him.” They walked over to the futon and sat. Jacob giggled at Chloe and reached for her.

  Chloe offered him her finger and pretended to shake his hand when he grabbed it. “How is the mister?”

  He smiled sweetly at Chloe before going for a shark bite.

  Jill placed her hand in front of his mouth before he chomped on Chloe’s finger. “Jacob! No biting!”

  Both women laughed as Jill peeled his tight grip off Chloe. As she did, Chloe studied the serpent tattoo on the underside of Jill’s wrist. Butterflies fluttered once more in her stomach, hoping against hope that she was right.

  She breathed deeply before calmly saying, “I actually came to see you today.”

  “You did?” Mild concern flashed in Jill’s baby blues. Alicia had had sea green eyes. Chloe studied Jill’s irises as she looked nervously toward the kitchen. The light gleamed off the slim edge of contact lenses.

  “Uh, would you like a cup of coffee?” Jill stood.

  Chloe needed to ask what she had come for but decided the young woman’s state of mind was important to nurture. “Sure, I’d love a cup.” She was going to offer to hold Jacob (or was it Serene?), but Jill rushed off quickly to the kitchen holding the baby. She called from the kitchen. “Cream?”

  “Yes, please.”

  She came back in shortly with two cups of hot coffee, and Jacob balanced on her hip.

  Chloe said, “The woman has skills.”

  Jill genuinely laughed. “He may bite, but he knows to keep his fingers off mama’s hot coffee now.”

  “Smart kid.”

  Jill handed Chloe a mug, and sat back down on the couch, sipping her coffee.

  Chloe took a drink of hers, not taking her eyes off the young woman. Panic flooded back into Jill’s face.

  Chloe said, “I have a question.” She reached into her pocket and pulled out a photo. “Could you tell me who this is?”

  Jill reached to take the photo and froze. Her eyes grew large, and her lips began to tremble. “Where did you…”

  Jacob startled, dropped the bat necklace, and stared at her.

  Chloe said gently, “It’s the photograph your parents gave to the newspaper and police when they reported you missing. They are worried sick about you and—” Chloe glanced at the baby, “Serene, here.” The baby smiled at the name and reached for the edge of the photograph that Chloe held, ripping the corner off and stuffing it in her mouth before Chloe could pull it back.

  Jill—now Alicia—mindlessly slipped her finger inside Jacob’s… now Serene’s… mouth and tugged the soggy bit of picture out.

  Serene fussed in protest.

  Alicia asked, “How did you know?” She reached to put the slobbery gum of paper on the coffee table, and Chloe tapped the serpent on the inside of Alicia’s wrist. “Oh.”

  Chloe asked, “Is Sammy a new boyfriend?”

  “No. No. God, no.” Alicia’s trembling lower lip had calmed, but her eyes flicked back and forth as if she were a caged animal. “I had joined a traveling carnival. The kind that goes to small country towns, sets up for a weekend, and then leaves? But when we got to Washington, Jacob got sick.”

  Chloe raised her eyebrow.

  Alicia corrected, “Serene. Serene got sick. Pneumonia. I couldn’t go on with the carnival. Sammy found me crying in an alley one night shortly after I got here. I spent all my money on antibiotics and couldn’t even afford a cheap hotel room, much less diapers. Sammy was so kind. He said I could stay with him and he got me a job at Carnival Circus’ snack shack. He knew I didn’t want anyone to know who I was, so he said I was his long-lost sister. I cut and colored my hair, put in contacts, bought a few boy clothes at the Goodwill for Serene, and changed our names.”

  Chloe said, “Why did you do it?”

  Alicia said, “I had a boyfriend. He was a part of this biker gang—The Night Devils. Have you heard of them?”

  Chloe nodded.

  Alicia stilled. Her gaze locked on the far wall, just over Chloe’s shoulder. When she spoke again, her tone fell from conversational to a whisper and the words fell flat.

  “I was raped,” Alicia said, her body moving only to take even breaths. Serene squirmed in her lap, and Chloe reflexively reached across the small space between the women. Alicia startled and adjusted the baby, pulling her close. “It was the first time I had been to the bar since Serene was born. My boyfriend encouraged me to come and have dinner since I was too tired to go food shopping. I instantly regretted going. It
was loud and too rowdy for a baby. Before the owner left for the night, he was kind enough to let me into his office to nurse Serene. I had forgotten to tell my boyfriend. He was drinking and arm wrestling with the other guys. I thought I’d be right out, but… I fell asleep on the couch and my boyfriend had assumed I’d found a ride home.

  “I woke up when Serene was ripped out of my arms.”

  Chloe put a hand on her wrist. “Did they hurt her?”

  Alicia answered in a monotone voice. “No, they set her aside, thank God. They ripped off my clothes like wolves, the only thing I can remember after that is hearing Serene cry the whole time. I didn’t feel a thing. The only thing I knew was that she was screaming and I couldn’t get to my baby. At first, I thought it was some terrible nightmare, but afterwards… I knew it wasn’t.”

  “I’m so sorry, Alicia.”

  Tears formed in Alicia’s eyes. She wiped them and shook her head. When she raised her face, she met Chloe’s eyes. Her voice lifted from the monotone whisper to anxious pitch. “I had to get out of there. Leave town. I just had to. I left without even telling my boyfriend where I went.”

  “Why didn’t you tell him?”

  “I was afraid I guess. I was afraid that the men who raped me would force him to tell them where I was, and they’d come for me—and Serene. I couldn’t let them hurt Serene.” Alicia hugged the baby to her chest. This time she didn’t bother to wipe the tears trailing down her cheeks.

  “Why did you leave your parents? Didn’t you feel safe there?”

  Alicia said, “Otis, the guy who led the rest of them. He had always been obsessed with me—like freaky obsessed. That night he said if I ran away or told anyone that he’d hunt me down and… He said he’d do horrible things to Serene and force me to watch. In the beginning, I felt safe at home. I even had a job offer. I was pushing Serene in the stroller one afternoon and saw a small gang ride into town. There weren’t enough men for it to be the whole gang, but I swore I saw Otis and the other guys. I knew he’d found me. I had to leave.”

  Alicia was clearly frightened out of her mind. Chloe didn’t doubt her words. Alicia’s actions felt consistent with a desperate woman on the run.