A Shred of Evidence (36 page)

W
ill Seevers left his office at 9:59 and walked down the hall to the staff meeting room, where Special Agents Newt Clifford and Bryce Moore and Investigator Al Backus were already waiting for him. Will went inside and shut the door, then took a seat in the front row of folding chairs.

“Thanks for being prompt,” Newt said. “This won’t take long. I did the usual testing with Ross Hamilton, nothing more and nothing less. His profile was a real eye opener.”

“Okay, let’s hear it,” Bryce said.

Newt put on his glasses and looked down at the paper in his hand. “Ross Hamilton is a man who has lost his way, who views himself as some hopeless, cosmic misfit who can’t do anything right and who’s destined to disappoint those closest to him. He’s ridden with guilt over a traumatic event in his childhood and thinks every subsequent tragedy is part of his deserved punishment. But the punishment actually brings double jeopardy, since it also inflicts sorrow on those he cares about, which perpetuates the very guilt he’s trying to salve. In short, Ross Hamilton is stuck in a never-ending cycle of hopelessness—virtually, a living hell.”

“Is he violent?” Bryce said. “Would he act out his sense of helplessness by victimizing?”

Newt shook his head. “He’d be more likely to hurt himself.”

“So you think his suicide attempt was legit,” Will said, “not faked?”

“Yes, I do.”

Backus leaned forward on his elbows. “So how do all the deaths and disappearances in his past figure into this?”

“I think they were just freak occurrences that produced and fostered a very wounded little boy who has to be reckoned with. From all indications, Ross seemed to function well in his role as a dad, almost as if it served to protect the child inside himself as well. But with both of his children having fallen prey to tragedy, he can no longer rely on that sense of safety he felt as a father. He’s back to being the scared little boy.”

Backus shook his head. “Way too deep for me.”

Will put his hand on the back of his neck and rubbed the tightness. “So he didn’t abuse his daughter?”

“No way.”

“Then I suppose he didn’t hand her over to RISK either?” Bryce said.

Newt took off his glasses and sat back in his chair. “He’s not capable of such a thing. I stake my career on it.”

“So the guy’s not violent,” Backus said. “Is he sane?”

“Quite. With some good counseling and time to deal with the compounded losses, there’s no reason why he can’t lead a normal life. I know you’re anxious to solve this case, but Ross Hamilton isn’t your man.”

Ellen put the last flyer she had under the windshield wiper of a van in the last row of the Hobby Lobby parking lot. She walked to her car, nursing a blister on her big toe, and waited for Julie and Ross.

Suddenly, she was riddled with doubts. What if she hadn’t been following the Lord’s leading, but her own? What if her decision to make and distribute flyers had been nothing more than a guilt offering to make up for having judged Ross so harshly?

Ellen could imagine the gut-wrenching disappointment if Julie and Ross were told that Sarah Beth’s remains had been found. How could she ever justify her impulsiveness? Was this search for Sarah Beth actually cruel and selfish? Had Ellen been thinking only of herself and her desire to feel better?

She closed her eyes, her hands gripping the steering wheel.
Lord, don’t let the enemy turn this into a farce. I stepped out in faith. If I mistook my own thoughts for Yours, please don’t punish Julie and Ross
.

She heard the back doors open and in the rearview mirror saw Ross and Julie sliding into the middle of the backseat.

“That’s the end of the flyers,” Julie said. “I’m anxious to get back to the church and find out where everyone else put them. Imagine: ten thousand flyers! If my baby’s out there, somebody’s bound to recognize her.”

“Ellen, we can’t thank you enough,” Ross said. “We’re finally
doing
something to find Sarah Beth. If it hadn’t been for you, we’d still be sitting at home with no hope at all.”

Gordy Jameson sat on the back deck with his lunch buddies, trying not to show his irritation at Eddie for continuing to fill Billy Lewis’s head with stuff about Ross Hamilton.

Gordy noticed Eddie picking at his lunch. “Somethin’ wrong with the food, Drummond?”

Eddie glanced up and then at his plate. “Nah, it’s fine.”

“You’re poutin’ about something,” Captain Jack said. “Can’t blame it on Ross Hamilton anymore.”

Eddie looked at each of the faces looking at him. “Can’t a guy eat his lunch without havin’ to talk?”

“You gonna tell us or not?” Captain said.

“Okay, me and Melody had a little spat. No big deal. I really don’t wanna talk about it, all right?”

Gordy shot Eddie a knowing glance.

“Anybody know who’s distributing the flyers with the Hamilton girl’s picture on it?” Captain said.

Gordy nodded. “The pastor’s wife from some local church. Said she’s tryin’ to help the Hamiltons find their little girl. But I got the same flyer in my grocery sack at Publix.”

Eddie stabbed a fried clam with his fork and popped it into his mouth. “If they find that little girl, the cops’ll never send her back to her parents.”

“Why not?” Captain said. “Nobody’s proven anything.”

Eddie lifted his eyebrows. “They will.”

Weezie Taylor came out on the deck. “Gordy, you’ve got a call I think you’ll want to take.”

Gordy wiped his mouth and stood. “Good havin’ lunch with you all. If I don’t get back before you leave, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

He walked in the back door and down to his office, picked up the receiver, and pushed the button that was blinking.

“Hello.”

“Gordy, it’s Chet Lewis returning your call.”

“Yeah, thanks for callin’ back. I wasn’t sure if I should even say anything, but Billy’s been actin’ kinda strange and comin’ in late. I think maybe he and Lisa are havin’ marital problems. I told him he should talk to you, but he got all red-faced and flustered. I don’t think he’s gonna do it.”

“I haven’t seen him in a couple weeks, but he and Lisa seemed great last time they were here. When did he start acting this way?”

“Last week. I called Hank Ordman and asked if Billy was actin’ funny over there. He said Billy’s been late almost every day and even stood him up once. Hank’s about to fire him. Now, Chet, you know how fond I am of Billy. And he’s a great worker when he’s here. But I can’t have him doin’ whatever he wants. That’s not fair to either of us. I really think there’s somethin’ wrong at home that he needs help with.”

“Okay, Gordy, I’ll talk to him. I really appreciate your taking an interest in Billy. He’s a great kid. I’m puzzled, though. He and Lisa seem so happy.”

“Maybe it’s somethin’ else,” Gordy said. “But in all the years I’ve known Billy, I don’t remember him bein’ late for anything.”

Will Seevers sat in the meeting room watching Bryce Moore and Al Backus pacing in opposite directions.

“Okay,” Will said, “what do we do now that we know Ross Hamilton isn’t responsible for Sarah Beth’s disappearance?”

“We don’t know that for sure,” Backus said. “A psyche test doesn’t
prove
his innocence.”

Bryce stopped and stared at Backus. “Wake up and smell the coffee, Al. Hamilton didn’t do it. We need to find another perp. Or prove RISK did it. I still think they’re the best fit.”

“I’m not willing to let Hamilton off that easily,” Backus said. “I watched him squirm during the interrogation. He knows something.”

“Al, you’re dreaming.” Bryce resumed his pacing. “Unless you’ve got rock solid proof, you and every one of us involved in this case need to switch gears. I think I’ll go over to the jail and put a little pressure on Moira McDaniel.”

Will took a sip of coffee. “I thought you said her lawyer won’t let her answer questions?”

“Let’s just say he’s
selective
. I have a feeling he’s sympathetic to the cause, but he’s no dummy. McDaniel is facing some serious jail time if she doesn’t cough up the Hamilton girl or give us something to shake down this group. She might be more willing to admit what she knows about Sarah Beth when we tell her we no longer suspect Hamilton of molesting his daughter.”

Ellen sat at a long table in the church hall, enjoying a sub sandwich and watching Julie and Ross Hamilton interact with the thirteen people who had distributed the flyers. Ellen caught a yawn with her hand and decided she would go to bed early tonight.

“May I join you?” Pastor Crawford said.

“Yes, please do.”

“Quite a morning,” he said. “I’m so glad you called and allowed us to be a part of this.”

“I appreciate your help. You can imagine how hard it would’ve been with just Julie, Ross, and me.”

“Guy’s still in Tallahassee?”

“He’ll be home late this afternoon. I talked to him at one this morning. He’s such a good sounding board.”

“Ellen …” Pastor Crawford stared at the sandwich on his paper plate. “I’m sorry about this woman who keeps making false allegations. I hope you’re able to discover who it is and set her straight.”

“Me, too. But that’s the least of my worries at the moment. I so want the Hamiltons to find Sarah Beth. I’m afraid I’ve become obsessed with the idea.”

“Of course, you are. We all are.”

“But what if she isn’t found alive?” Ellen said. “How do we explain that to a couple who already feels as though God has played cruel jokes on Ross most of his life?”

“We’ll deal with that if and when we have to. For now, I just want to support them in the search for Sarah Beth. How well do you know them?”

Ellen wrapped her hands around a warm cup of coffee. “Not well. But Julie’s been transparent about Ross’s disturbing past and how that article in the
Biloxi Telegraph
twisted the truth and turned their lives upside down. I’m finally convinced that a terrible injustice has been done.”

“I’ve wondered about that,” Pastor Crawford said. “The police chief made it clear that they’ve uncovered no evidence against Ross, and anything to the contrary is speculation and gossip.”

“For some reason, people just can’t seem to resist a juicy bit of gossip.” Ellen took a sip of coffee. “You may remember I was a newspaper editor for a decade before we moved here. During that time I came to understand the power of words and the enormous responsibility we have to choose them wisely—and the devastating consequences when we don’t.”

“Indeed,” the pastor said. “I’ve seen marriages destroyed, careers toppled, relationships severed—all casualties of careless words.”

Ellen raised her eyebrows. “I wonder if the lady who’s passing false information about me has thought of that?”

“Dorothy and I will be praying that you’ll have the opportunity to confront her with the truth.”

Ellen mused. “Maybe you need to pray I won’t do something I might regret when I do.”

J
ulie Hamilton sat in the living room and listened to Special Agent Newt Clifford explain the results of Ross’s psychological evaluation, grateful that Ross had insisted she be present. She wondered how a complete stranger could understand and articulate things about Ross she knew intuitively but could have never put together.