Read Online Return to the Shadows by Angie West - Free Book Online Page A

your class?”
    “Yes, and he tried to talk to me, but I
didn’t talk to him because you told me not to. He got mad. Well, he
smiled, but it wasn’t a nice smile. And he leaned forward, and
that’s how I saw his guns.”
    “What did he want to talk about?” My fingers
twisted around the edge of her bed sheet.
    “I don’t know, but he said he would see you
soon, and he smiled his mean smile again. Then my teacher came back
and he left. But he is coming back to school tomorrow. Do I have to
go to school tomorrow?”
    “Ah. No.” I pressed a hand to my
forehead.
    “Yay!” She was practically bouncing with
excitement.
    “Are you sure it was the same man who tried
to talk to you by the playground?”
    “Yes.”
    “And you’re sure that he said his name was
Earl?”
    “Yes. Can we go watch SpongeBob now? I can
stay up late since I don’t have school tomorrow, right?”
    “No and no. SpongeBob is not on right now,
and it’s already the middle of the night. We will put something
nice and boring on the TV. But first I want you to do something for
me.”
    “What?” She sat up straight.
    “I want you,” I rummaged around in her
nightstand, “to draw me a picture of Earl.” I produced a box of
colored pencils and a writing tablet. “Can you do that?”
    “Sure. Then can I watch TV?”
    “Then you can watch TV,” I confirmed.
    “Okay.”
    She made quick work of the rough sketch and
glanced up at my sharp intake of breath. “Mama?”
    “I…” I didn’t know what to say. I couldn’t
think, couldn’t focus. For a moment, it was impossible to process
what I was trying my best not to see…what I desperately wished I
was not seeing. Lance. Officer Jones. Ashley had not drawn Earl at
all. She had sketched Lance Jones.
    The room spun, and then abruptly cleared. I
had to stay focused and remain calm if I was going to be of any use
to Ashley, or anyone else for that matter. Besides, the last thing
I needed was for Ashley to catch on to the fact that I was
borderline terrified and begin to panic. Quite frankly, I was
panicked enough for the both of us, and I seriously doubted my
ability to calm a panicked child at the moment. If for no other
reason than that, I had to keep it together. I knew this. Still, it
took no small measure of grace to hold onto my composure and clear
my head in order to think clearly and rationally.
    “Ashley, are you sure this is who you
saw?”
    “Yes,” she responded slowly, confused.
    “And you’re sure he told you that his name is
Earl?”
    “Yes. Why?”
    “No reason, sweetie,” I replied brightly,
hoping for a nonchalant tone of voice, my mind racing.
    “Listen, I need to make some calls in the
kitchen. Why don’t you wait here for a minute?”
    “But—” she began to protest.
    “You can leave the light on. Here, I’ll put
on your TV too, okay? I’ll be back in one sec.”
    “I guess.” She still didn’t look convinced,
but apparently decided not to question it further. I walked calmly
into the hallway before my nerves got the best of me and I bolted
into the kitchen. Who to call first? I stared at the phone,
contemplating the deceptively mundane decision. It wasn’t a mundane
no-brainer at all. Who I called first would set the tone for how I
handled the situation and ultimately, for how it played out. I had
to choose wisely, because something about the situation didn’t add
up.
    The police, I decided, reaching for the wall
phone before stopping to reconsider that move. Was calling the
police on a cop, on a decorated lieutenant, a wise move? No, I
decided. I could not take the chance of calling the Seattle police
department. I could call another police department or the state
police.
    I could even try calling the FBI, although
admittedly, I hadn’t the first clue of how to actually contact the
FBI. I was pretty sure they weren’t listed in the yellow pages.
Either way, I had a feeling that calling the Seattle police
department would only put us in more