Fit for the Job (31 page)

“This doesn’t make sense,” Jay said. “Eben told her at the cabin there was no way he was paying her off. Shit,
I
was convinced.”

“I guess this is her last stand.”

“But how? Where would she go? Does Sassy even have a bank account?”

“Eben thinks someone is helping her,” Bodie said. “He thought
you
were helping her when he couldn’t find you.”

“Me? Jesus!”

“I know. I told him it wasn’t possible. But his first thoughts were of the people he didn’t know that well. He called Libby too, scared the crap out of her. But she knew nothing. She wanted to come over and help, but Eben told her to stay put just in case Sassy showed up at her house for some reason.”

“Does Sassy even know where Libby lives?”

Bodie frowned at Jay. “Three hours ago, we didn’t think Sassy could leave the house. Now she’s sending emails about wiring money within five minutes like some damn spy novel. At this point, we don’t know what she knows and doesn’t know. We all underestimated her.”

“So what are we doing?” Jay said. “How can I help? Eben said he wanted me to help you.”

“I don’t know.” Bodie slid down in his seat, face anguished. “I’ve been calling everyone and everyplace she’s had contact with since we got to Providence. I even called Hemenway’s restaurant and the rock gym, but no one’s seen her. Eben’s been calling in favors everywhere he can, but nothing’s panned out so far.” He looked at Jay. “Eben wants us to figure out anyone she might have connected with in Providence, someone that might be helping her. But I’m out of ideas.” He gripped his nose between his brows. “I can’t...fucking think.”

“Take it easy,” Jay said. “We’ll figure it out.” Jay stared at the email on the screen, and the link below it. The email address was ‘sassafras_wins’. He looked at Bodie. “Is it bad? The video?”

Bodie chuckled. “Well, the content is disturbing, but Sassy’s one hell of a little filmmaker. She’s quite...talented.”

“Will it kill Eben if it gets out?”

“You want to see it?”

“Um...should I?”

Bodie shrugged. He glanced at the closed door. “Well, Eben did tell you to help me. And you’re under a confidentiality contract.” He handed Jay the headphones. “Prepare yourself. Part of it’s pretty shocking.”

Jay took a deep breath and put on the headphones. Bodie clicked the link.

Sassy’s image appeared on the screen, and Jay nearly didn’t recognize her. She was wearing makeup, something he’d never seen her do. Her cheeks were pink with blush, lips gleaming with red gloss. She wore hoop earrings, and dark green eye shadow with heavy mascara. From what could be seen of her outfit, it was an expensive looking silk top, pale green, with a stylish emerald pendant. He supposed this was how Sassy dressed before she went into her depression and home confinement.

“Greetings,” the Sassy on the screen said. “I’m Sassy Wright. You’ve probably heard of my parents.”

A screen flashed up with a smiling picture of Eben and Ingrid, side by side, a bright red heart graphic surrounding them. Beneath the image were the words ‘Perfect Couple—kind of a big deal.’

Sassy’s image reappeared. “So this video is called ‘What I did on my winter vacation.’” Sassy pressed a finger to her chin. “Well, what I
wanted
to do on my winter vacation—go to Vegas with my friends—didn’t happen. You see my father, Mr. Eben Wright, wouldn’t allow it. He felt it would be better for me to stay with him the whole week. Why?
Three
reasons. The first...ah, yes. He said in
Vegas
, I might be exposed to excessive drinking.”

The video cut to an outdoor shot of a vast back patio with a pool, clustered with people, drinking and laughing. The camera panned across the party guests, finally stopping at a thatched-roof tiki bar. Eben stood behind it chugging from a bottle, while the crowd cheered him on. He slammed the bottle down on the bar and it slipped out of his hand and onto the floor, shattering, sending squeals and more laughter through the group huddled around him. ‘
Ah, shit!
’ Eben said. ‘
We need more tequila!
’

The scene ended and Sassy’s image reappeared on the screen, eyebrows raised. “Thank God I wasn’t exposed to excessive drinking on my Vegas trip. That would be
bad
. Now, on to number two. The second reason my father gave me for keeping me home on winter break... He said that in
Vegas
, I might be exposed to
things of a sexual nature
.”

A new scene appeared, this time in the greenish hue of night vision. Whoever held the camera—presumably Sassy—crept down a hallway, stopping at a closed door. The door opened and the camera entered a large bedroom. As it edged toward the bed, figures were visible moving beneath the sheets. A man’s head and nude torso appeared from under the sheet as he sat up.

It wasn’t Eben, but he looked familiar to Jay, though it was hard to tell with the night vision. ‘
Eben
,’ the man said. ‘
I think someone’s in here
.’

‘
Where’d you go?
’ Eben’s voice slurred, then he sat up, face and naked chest in full view. Eben squinted, leaning forward. ‘
Who’s there?
Sassy?
’

Jay paused the video and removed the headphones. He stared at the screen. “Is that who I think it is?”

Bodie looked at him. “Eben or the other guy?”

“No, the other guy. I can see that it’s Eben.”

“Yeah, that’s who you think it is.”

The young man with Eben was a well-known, openly gay pop singer.

“I know,” Bodie said. “It’s shocking. I never knew Eben...well, you can see for yourself. But as shocking as this is, I don’t think it’s what ultimately set Sassy off and made her want to leave home.” He looked at Jay. “There’s a third segment.”

Jay took a deep breath and let it out, then he put the headphones back on and clicked play.

The camera jolted as Sassy ran out of the bedroom and down a hallway, then the feed cut out.

The screen flashed back to Sassy’s smiling image. “So,” she said. “That’s excessive drinking, and things of a sexual nature, that thank God I wasn’t exposed to in
Vegas
. But wait. There was one more thing my father warned me about, one more reason he wanted me to stay home this winter break. What was it? Oh yes. Being around people who might want to
hurt
me.”

A new scene appeared, the camera angled low around a doorway to a room with a large stone fireplace. Jay winced at the loud voices of Eben and Ingrid, who stood in the middle of the room, screaming at each other.

Eben’s back was to the camera, but Ingrid’s face was visible, tight with fury. ‘
How dare you!
’ she screamed. ‘
This is not my mess, Eben, you fucked up so you clean it up!
’

‘
You’re the parent too!
’ Eben shouted. ‘
When you’re around that is, which is never!
’

‘
I’m not the one who threw a party and screwed someone while my daughter was under the same roof!
’

‘
I was in my bedroom with the door closed! It’s not like I did him on the living room floor!
’

‘
Shut up, Eben, just shut the fuck up. You broke it. You fix it.
’

‘
Why do I have to shoulder all the responsibility?
I told you this would happen, Ingrid. I told you! You wanted to get pregnant; I said it was a bad idea, because something like this could happen one day. It was your idea to bring a kid into this. I never wanted to have a kid!
’

A sharp inhale of breath could be heard from Sassy behind the camera, then the scene ended, replaced by a smiling picture of Eben in the center of the screen.

Stars sparkled around Eben’s image. Beneath his face was a blue ribbon with the words ‘Father of the Year’.

Text flashed on the screen beneath Eben’s star spangled photo. ‘Produced by Sassy Wright. Please share. And share. And share.’

And that’s where it ended.

Jay removed the headphones. “Holy shit.”

The door to the computer room opened and Eben walked in, looking even more frazzled than he had before. “Okay guys,” he said. “One more time.”

He pulled a chair over and sat down in front of them. “Is there anyone else she had contact with while you were out gallivanting with her? Anyone at all?”

Bodie looked at Jay. “Your barbecue,” he said.

“What barbecue?” Eben asked.

Jay stiffened. “We took her to play volleyball at my brother’s house. She chatted with my fourteen-year-old nephew for a while, but she wouldn’t go there.”

“How long did she
chat
with your nephew?” Eben’s tone was rife with anger, but Jay figured he could get a pass, considering the situation.

“Not long,” Jay said. “If she’s trying to stay hidden, the last thing she’d do is go to my family. They’d call me right away.”

“Call them anyway,” Eben said. He held a hand up. “No, don’t call. I don’t want to warn her if she’s there. Drive over there with Bodie.”

“Eben I really don’t think—”

“I’m out of options, Jay!” Eben’s face broke and his eyes leaked with tears. He dropped his head in his hands. “I’m in a strange city, and I don’t know where my child is.” He looked up at Jay. “I don’t know where my child is!”

Bodie stood and walked over. Leaning down, he wrapped his arms around Eben. “We’ll go check it out, okay? We’ll find her, Eben. I promise.”

Eben wiped his eyes. “Call me right away if you find anything.”

“We will,” Bodie said. “And you do the same. Let’s go, Jay.”

Jay got up and started after Bodie. He paused and looked back at Eben, who sat hunched over in his chair. “Eben,” Jay said. “Does Sassy have a bank account?”

Eben straightened up and looked back. “No. Not a personal one. Just her trust fund, and she doesn’t have access to that. Only Ingrid and I do. Why?”

“Then what’s this account number she’s talking about in the email?”

He shook his head. “I don’t fucking know, Jay. Just please. Go look for her.”

“Come on,” Bodie said.

They left the house and got in Bodie’s car. As they pulled through the gate, Bodie glanced at Jay. “Same house as the barbecue, right?”

“She’s not there,” Jay said.

“I know, I doubt she is too. But we have to check it out.”

“Something’s not right,” Jay said.

Bodie huffed as he drove down the street. “Ya think?”

“No, I mean something else. I don’t think Sassy sent that email.”

“What do you mean? Of course she did. It had the video link.”

“But it doesn’t make sense. It didn’t sound like her. ‘Dearest Father’ and ‘Your darling Sassy.’ It was too sarcastic.”

“Are you kidding me?” Bodie said. “Sassy’s always sarcastic.”

“I know, but she was upset last night at the cabin. She was upset on the car ride home. She looked beaten down, not angry. Then there’s the bank account.”

“What are you getting at? We already decided someone must be helping her.”

“I don’t know what I’m getting at. It just doesn’t feel right. How did she pull this off so fast? A week ago she was asking me to hock her jewelry for twelve thousand dollars. Now suddenly she’s out there all set up?”

“She might have been planning it for a while, Jay. We just don’t know.”

Jay looked at Bodie. “Sassy hates the name ‘Sassafras’, I heard her say so to Libby.”

Bodie got on the highway, then glanced at Jay. “And?”

“
And
, that email address, ‘sassafras_wins’. Why would she make that her email address if she hates the name? And where did she get a computer so fast?”

“Again, someone could be helping her. If not, she can get access to a computer at any Internet café.”

Jay turned to Bodie. “Do you know where Libby lives?”

“Why? Eben said he talked to Libby already.”

“I know, but Libby always called Sassy ‘Sassafras’. She knew it drove her crazy, but she did it anyway.”

“You think Libby is helping Sassy.”

“I don’t know. I’m just saying; it’s a more viable possibility than my damn nephew Billy. He’d never go behind my brother’s back. He’s a good kid.”

“He’s a teenager; they do things you don’t expect.”

“Bodie!” Jay said. “
Do
you know where Libby lives?”

“Yes! Why are you shouting?”

“I’m sorry, I just have a gut feeling, and I think we’re wasting time going to my brother, Paul’s house!”

Bodie sighed. “Okay, calm down. Think about this. Sassy doesn’t even like Libby. They fought all the time.”

“But she seemed to know a lot about her. Remember? ‘That’s Libby’s husband, he drops her off and picks her up.’ And Libby told me she’d been up in Sassy’s room when I saw her before I left today.”

“Yeah, cleaning,” Bodie said.

“Where does she live?” Jay asked.

Bodie’s jaw stiffened. He put his blinker on. “All right. We’ll stop by Libby’s. But then we have to do what Eben asked and go to your brother’s place.” Bodie took the next exit.

“Thank you. I’m sorry I shouted.”

Bodie laughed. “I’m used to shouting.”

“Not from me. I’m sorry, I’m just...freaking out. Why aren’t you freaking out?”

Bodie glanced at Jay. “I’m trained to remain calm in a disaster.”

Jay snickered.

“Is that funny?” Bodie asked.

“No. It’s kind of freaky, actually. I’ve just moved on to nervous laughter.”

Bodie smiled. “I guess I shouldn’t bother giving you the ‘I’m sorry, you shouldn’t have to deal with all this’ speech again.”

“No,” Jay said. “But by the way, I quit. Immediately.” The laughter started again, and Jay doubled over. “Take me home.”

“Too late,” Bodie said. “This is Libby’s place.”

Bodie pulled into the driveway of a condominium unit, parking next to the beat up Subaru Jay had seen Libby’s husband in that day. He turned to Jay. “You done laughing?”

Jay stared at the condo. “I’m done.”

“Okay, we go in, we talk to her, I’ll look around. But don’t upset her, and let me do most of the talking.”

Jay nodded. “Okay.”

They got out of the car and approached the door. Bodie rang the bell.

Jay spotted Libby peeking out a curtain in the front of the house. He waved, forcing a friendly smile. Libby disappeared, and moments later, opened the door. “What’s wrong?” she asked. “Did you find her? Please tell me you found her.”