The Promise (7 page)

              The forensic people had combed the sidewalk and lawn looking for hair samples, footprints, fibers, anything that would give them a remote hint of the vanishing. 

But, like a rock tossed in a lake causing circular ripples which soon smoothed over, Allison Taylor found the same fate and was gone.

The evidence revealing what might have happened had disappea
red with her. So many students had walked that same sidewalk and cut across that lawn that it was almost impossible to find any physical clues to suggest anything. 

In that sense, the potential abductor was smart.  He or she knew it was practically untraceable.

              If Allison Taylor had been abducted.

              At the morning briefing, Chief Parker addressed the team of officers on the case. "We have several reports this morning on the Taylor disappearance and we need to pay close attention to what evidence we have so that we can pick up something, anything; to get this case going in our favor.

I would also like to introduce all of you to Elie Larsen. She is a special agent out of Quantico as a profile specialist and is now working with Detective Gallagher, primarily in an undercover role.

Larsen, come on up and brief us on your new residence."

              Elie moved to the front of the room with her file folder. She spoke as a matter of fact, "We have received some information that Allison Taylor may have been involved in a secret cult in her prep school called, ‘The Promise.’

As a result, I was transferred here from Virginia to join all of you in this investigation. My role is to infiltrate this group to see if there is any credence to the possibility they may have something to do with her disappearance.

I have moved into a dorm room at the Colony school as a high school senior. I am now located there and classes begin the day after tomorrow.

Any questions?"

              One of the younger officers, Frank Murphy, spoke up, "Hey, if you meet any good looking classmates, send them my way." This statement brought laughter to the room.

              Larsen never hesitated, "Since all of them are under 18, I’ll send a judge with ‘em!" she laughed.

This made the officers roar with delight, for they knew that Murphy had a reputation for being a ladies’ man.

Score one for Larsen.

              Gallagher interrupted, "Okay, okay, we’re all having fun now. Let's get serious, we have a missing woman here.

Any other questions?

              Another officer raised his hand, "Is the possibility of this cult group being involved strong enough to warrant Detective Larsen's undercover assignment? Shouldn’t we wait and see if there is any fire burning with that smoke first?"

              Gallagher was quick to respond, "I wouldn’t label it a cult group at this point. But, because of the secretive and tight-lipped nature of this secret society, we believe we need an insider to infiltrate it, yes.

It may be nothing more than a harmless version of a high school sorority. But, if this Promise group is more than that and is capable of doing harm to others we think it could be integral to our investigation.

Any other questions?  No? Okay, take a seat, Larsen.

Frazier? What do you have on the insurance policy that Taylor took out on his daughter?"

              Officer Frazier stood and reported from his seat, "We have confirmed there was a five million dollar policy taken out in Allison Taylor's name with Washington National Insurance one week before she disappeared.

It lists one beneficiary, Archer Taylor, in the event of her death and it pays double-indemnity if she dies unnaturally.

They are willing to pay if she is found uh, harmed, assuming, of course, that Mr. Taylor is not involved in any way in that result." 

It was apparent even the officers on this case respected the young woman and were reluctant to refer to her in a sordid way. This was due partly because of her reputation and partly because many of them had children themselves. They were also sensitive to Detective Gallagher's tragic loss as well.

              "I have a question on that, sir!" Gallagher turned in the direction of the shouting officer, "Go ahead Simpson!" 

              "Who would be stupid enough to buy a five million dollar policy on his daughter and then take her out a week later?  That doesn’t make any sense to me, especially a smart guy like Arch Taylor!"

              Gallagher stepped up to the microphone, "A desperate man that's who.

But, my question i
s why a multi-millionaire would do that to his child for five million dollars. He could borrow that amount without any problem, or find investors. The amount doesn’t make sense to me.

Although it’s a significant amount of money, it’s not enough for a man of his financial stature to do in his child."

              Another officer stood up with his theory, "Maybe he just didn’t like his daughter and saw a way to make a cool ten million with the double indemnity clause." 

No one in the room said a word. 

Some just glared at the guy and some just shook their heads with amazement at his conclusion. He sheepishly responded, "Hey, I’m just trying to help here. I mean it was just an idea!"

He quickly sat down.      

              Another hand went up, "Maybe he figured what we are figuring, that he would never do that for five million in the event she is never found.  She’s gone and he collects and we think, ‘no way.’

And, he still walks away with the cash."

              Gallagher again, "The more I think about it, the more I eliminate Arch Taylor for the insurance reason. There has to be more.

He loved his daughter too much for that amount of money, for any amount of money. You have to understand, a father's love is,"

He couldn’t finish his sentence.

The words choked in his throat. It was obvious he was no longer talking about Archer Taylor. No one in the room spoke until he regained his composure.

"Excuse me, let's move on with forensics. Dr. Lowe?" As the police pathologist walked to the front, Gallagher stepped quickly out of the room to compose himself.

              Criminal investigator Paul Lowe explained, "The reports at the potential crime scene are negative in every aspect.

From a forensic standpoint, there is no evidence that Allison Taylor even walked past the library that day or that she was even on this planet that afternoon..

We have spent over one hundred man hours combing the grounds and, as far as any evidence proves, she does not exist." 

              "Dr. Lowe in a situation as this would you expect any clues due to the number of people that day?"

              The pathologist thought for a moment, "Not really. It’s a needle in a haystack and the possibility exists there’s not even a needle.

She may have been abducted miles away for all we know here. No one saw her when she disappeared around the corner, but that doesn’t mean the potential crime occurred there. 

She could have been taken several blocks, or even miles away."

He stood there looking helpless like a five year old who had just lost his milk money. His job was forensic science but he had nothing scientific to work on. 

              Gallagher stepped back into the room, a little pale but still in command of the scene, "Should we continue to assume that she probably did disappear close to the library based on the number of people who were on the other side of the building who do not remember seeing her?"

              Dr. Lowe was careful to reply, "I think she vanished that day and that is all I can say with certainty. Where or at what time, I cannot tell you. I have nothing to work with and I am not good at guessing, Detective Gallagher. I’m sorry."

              Several cynical remarks were heard throughout the room, "This case is clueless," “The blind leading the blind” and "We have zip here!"

Gallagher stepped up, "Officers, I agree that we seemingly have little to go on and that we have more questions than answers."

              "That’s an understatement." roared one of the men, and the sound of chuckling rippled through the room. 

It was not amusing to the lead detective.

"Look, I know we are up against it on this one. It may take years, even if we solve it.

In my lifetime, I have never run up against a more baffling scenario, a beautiful young woman disappearing in broad daylight amidst thousands of students without a trace.

No motive suggests a runaway. No motive for her father to harm her. She was well-liked and had no apparent enemies.

Hell, even her dad was respected and well-liked, too. We are dealing with a ghost crime. Damn thing is invisible."

              Gallagher turned to Dr. Lowe, "Thank you, doctor, let us know when you find anything!"

              The pathologist started to step down and turned to Gallagher, "Well, there is one thing here, it may be unimportant and I cannot justify it scientifically but,"

              His statement sent a glimmer of hope through Gallagher, "Yes, doctor?" He replied quickly.

              "We found something near the curb next to the library but, it had no scientific match with any of the Allison girl's physical properties so we assume it was dropped by another student."

              Gallagher suddenly wanted to strangle his forensic scientist.

Dr. Lowe was so careful that he never went beyond his microscope.  At this point anything would have been an oasis in a desert of investigative desperation.

              "You found something that day? Why didn't you tell me sooner, doctor?"  Gallagher said evenly, trying to control his temper.

              "Because we wanted to run tests on it first, to be accurate. I wanted to ascertain any forensic connection with the Taylor girl."

              Gallagher was now turning red in the face, "Dr. Lowe, tell us what you found!" His voice was now a bit more strident which took the good pathologist a bit by surprise.

              "Well, sir, we found a locket with some kind of a bird on it. But, the fibers did not match up with the potential victim and it appeared it had been outside a lot longer than the day she disappeared

We assumed one of the students had accidentally dropped it."

              Gallagher was now marching strongly towards the podium, his manner definitely intense. As he got to the pathologist he stopped inches from his face and announced, "What in God's name were you thinking? 

Did it ever occur to you that it might belong to the potential abductor? For crying out loud, man. We don't need a science book to use our basic, brain matter!"

The room
suddenly fell silent.

              Larsen quickly went to the front and positioned herself between Gallagher and Dr. Lowe.

It reminded her of the combative lacrosse games she relished playing in. "What Mike is trying to say, Dr. Lowe in his, uh, passion to solve this case is could you give us this locket and let us work on it, sir?"

              Gallagher was so close to climbing over Elie to get to the doctor he looked like her backpack.

She stiffened her body and continued, "Do you have the article you found so we may place it in our evidence file?  Now would be a good time to give it to us." 

Her eyes firmly stared at Dr. Lowe and he caught their message.

He reached quickly into his bag and pulled out a plastic bag with the raven locket inside. He handed it to Larsen as she used her elbow to remind her partner to back off.

              Elie summarized, "Thank you Dr. Lowe.  Detective Gallagher and I appreciate it. Why don't we all take a break and get some fresh air. Mike would you please accompany me to the conference room. I think that would be a good idea at this time." 

She walked swiftly away from Gallagher who paused long enough to give a final cold stare at his forensic partner and then, like a reluctant Irish setter who had just been told to unhook his teeth from a helpless rabbit, he strode into the conference room and slammed the door.

              "That guy has two brains, one’s lost and the other is out looking for it!" he growled.

"We’re busting our butts here and he says, 'Oh, by the way, I found this locket near the crime scene.’ What a moron!"

              Elie Larsen smiled, "Yeah, but we need him so let's just calm down and see what this little piece of jewelry says to us. 

No prints, some fibers but no person to excuse the pun, hang it on." She took it out of the bag and looked at it.  "It’s a bird all right, it looks like a crow!"

              The necklace was made of stainless steel, a heavier metal than gold or silver. The crow was sharply detailed with definitive features.

It had a distinct beak, beady eyes, sharply honed talons and a menacing face.  It was not a romantic piece of endearment but more of a statement of evil.

It was a menacing, silver crow.

              Gallagher asked, "Is there any writing on it or initials of any kind?"

              Elie examined it carefully turning it over several times.  "Not that I can see. It’s just a fierce looking crow with a chain.

It resembles a bird of prey all right.  Whoever wore this as a locket has some serious issues!"

              Gallagher was now more curious than angry, "Sheryl Crow?" He laughed out loud at his own joke. He needed to release his emotions from the previous hour.

"This girl’s poor boyfriend probably had the psyche of a field mouse!" 

Laughing again he took the locket from Larsen and studied it. "Ugly sucker. I wouldn’t want to have this little varmint mad at me. Whatever happened to Hekyll and Jekyll? They were the good guys!"

              Elie smiled, "Yeah, but they’re boring in today's world. Everyone’s fascinated with evil, Goth crows are in."

              Gallagher agreed, "But is this swift and unseen predator related to the lovely Miss Allison Taylor?"

              A chill went through Larsen, "If it is, I doubt she’s alive."

              With that sobering thought they returned to Parker’s office.

Chapter Se
ven-A bird in Hand

             
Chief Parker looked at the crow carefully. He used his index finger to trace the outline several times as if to see if touching it would bring some kind of revelation into the case. 

"It’s a fascinating piece of jewelry all right," he summarized, "But, it could mean absolutely nothing, too. The odds are that some student just dropped it."

              Gallagher spoke up, "But, the chain could have been ripped off the abductor at the point of attack!" 

              "The chain has not been damaged in any way!"

              "But, sir, the clasp was undone and,”

                   "Undone but not broken, and that’s why the chain was on the ground and not around the person's neck suggesting it may have been planted there. Larsen have you ever seen a locket like this?"

              "No, sir, I have not. This says more about someone’s philosophy or belief system than it does about jewelry."

              Chief Parker continued to examine the piece, "It’s unusual enough that someone might have made it themselves in their basement. 

The detail on it is flawless but my senses tell me this is a personally produced art piece, not a mass produced one."

              Gallagher said, "If that’s the case, they may be back looking for it. I need some undercover officers watching the site."

              Larsen was curious, "Does anyone here know what a crow symbolizes?"

              The chief fancied himself as an expert on history and mythology. It was one of his greatest pleasures to give impromptu lessons on related subjects to his officers. This was one of those special opportunities he relished. 

He came out from behind his desk and lit his pipe ignoring the “no smoking” rule. He leaned back into the front edge of the bureau and spoke slowly savoring every word,

              "The legend of the crow goes back to Norse Mythology.  The god Odin had two of them, and they perched on each of his shoulders. 

They flew out daily and came back and reporting to him. Their names were Hugin and Munin.

Hugin stood for Thought and Munin represented Memory. They were a perfect team for this great god, as legend goes, anyway!"

              The crow is referred to as the 'Einstein of the bird family,' It is by far the most intelligent of the predators and is very clever and social.

Crows are family-oriented and they stick together. They are cunning and can be vicious even to larger animals. They are a special breed. The person wearing this locket probably knows this as well."

              Chief Parker proudly relished his avian history lesson. His two underlings sat there waiting for some vague connection to the Taylor case. 

But, they were to be disappointed.

"I think this locket is probably not connected to Ms. Taylor’s disappearance, but, we’ll hold on to it for now.

Gallagher, you owe Dr. Lowe an apology for your behavior towards him in public. I expect you to follow through on that immediately.

Miss Larsen, good luck to you in your high school endeavors! I will expect you to do all your homework including your algebra!"

              Elie grimaced, she hated math.

              The detective had one more question. “By the way, Chief, what’s a group of crows called, a flock?”

              Chief Parker soberly responded, “No. They’re called a murder, a murder of crows.”

              Gallagher just stared at him.

Chapter Eight-did She?

              “Gallagher, there’s a young lady here to see you. She says she is a friend of Allison Taylor’s and she has some information for you.”

              The detective looked up. “Send her in.” As he stood up, he is greeted by a blonde girl similar in age, height and looks to Allison Taylor.

The two of them could have been sisters. “Mr. Gallagher, my name is Sara Wodehouse. I’m one of Allison’s best friends. I wanted to talk to somebody about her disappearance.”

              “It’s nice to meet you, Sara. What can I do for you?”

              “Well, uh, I don’t know how to say this, but I don’t think she was kidnapped.”

              “Why do you believe that, Sara?”

              “Because she was really mad at her dad and her boyfriend.”

              Gallagher played dumb, “Who is her boyfriend?”

              “His name is Justin Shaw.”

              “Why was she angry at her father?”

              “Because right before she disappeared, her dad and Justin sat down with her and told her to grow up. They were really tired of some of the immature things she had been doing. They cared about her, they wanted to help her.”

              “What kind of immature things, Sara?”

              “Well, uh, stupid things. Like one night she got drunk, took her clothes off and jumped into a neighbor’s swimming pool. Then she took Justin’s American Express card and called the company and cancelled it so that when they were out to dinner that night he was really embarrassed when he went to pay the bill.”

              “Okay. But, concluding from these behaviors is a stretch to say that she ran away.”

              Sara gulped, “Yes, sir, I guess so.”

              “Why do you think she ran away? Do you have any proof other than her being mad and acting out like that?”
 

             
“Uh, she borrowed some money from me the day before she disappeared…”

              “How much money?”

              “Five thousand dollars.”

              Gallagher almost fell off his chair. “Five thousand dollars? How did you have access to that kind of money and why would you give it to her?”

              “I had a trust in my name. I drew it out. She’s my best friend. She said it was an emergency and that she couldn’t go to her dad about it. So, I gave it to her.”

              “Sara, you’re a good friend, maybe a little too good. Let me think about this, okay? Leave your address and phone number and I will get back to you. Thank you for coming in. I am sure Allison will show up and you will see your friend again.”