In The Shadows (5 page)

 Chapter Eight

It was late that evening when the search captain decided to suspend the search for the day. Officer Combs invited those who were available on Sunday to meet up in the parking lot at 6:30 a.m. again. He thanked them for their tireless efforts and thanked the volunteers for running the beverage stand. Some of the church members had set up a stand providing water, Gatorade, and iced tea to the volunteers on-site.

There were no signs or clues of the missing girl. Brandon suddenly remembered Stella as he drove home in a fog. He was beat by the time he made it home and decided on a bath instead of a quick shower. Spending twelve hours in the heavily wooded Alabama fields made them all an easy target for ticks or chiggers, no matter how much Off lotion and bug repellant they used.

After eating leftovers, he walked to the washroom to toss his clothes in the washer to prepare them for the next day’s search. It wasn’t until he heard the washer start did he remember the note from Tonya that he’d placed in his pocket. Now swearing and running full speed ahead, he snatched the washer lid open to find his jeans completely submerged in the soapy water. He frantically searched his pockets and was relieved to find the saturated note still folded.

Brandon carefully unfolded the note to discover the ink had already begun to bleed, and the last two digits of her number were barely legible.

Brandon searched for a pen and paper as he reentered the house to record the number. He took a guess at the last two numbers and ended up with three different phone numbers. He cursed himself for being so forgetful. As he stretched out on the bed, he reminisced the conversation he’d had with Tonya that day, and he wasn’t sure if it was his imagination or not, but he thought it was possible she could be interested in him.

Living in the South and dating someone of another race not only took guts, but it took courage as well. Sometimes your own race turned on you once they realized who you really were, even when it was never meant to be a secret. Once you stepped outside your own race, you began to find out who your true friends were. They either showed you a side of them you’d never seen before or they would support you as your family should, and simply want you to be happy.

Brandon often thought of Bridgette and wondered where she was and if she’d gotten married after she left Selma. Maybe if he’d been courageous enough to stand up to those who made life difficult for him when he considered dating her, who knows how things may have turned out. His father’s reaction to his relationships was only the beginning of a long list of issues they would have over the years.

He cleared his throat as he listened to the phone ring, hoping he’d dialed the number Tonya had given him. When a man answered the phone, Brandon simply asked for Tonya in his most professional voice. When he was told he had the wrong number, he was relieved that he’d not hung up before the discovery. He wasn’t sure if Tonya lived with her parents, but he couldn’t risk pissing off whoever was on the other end by hanging up, thanks to caller ID.

“One down, two to go.” Dialing the second number, he wondered why he didn’t think to give her his number as he held his breath waiting for someone to pick up. Disappointed, Brandon hung up when no one answered, and he didn’t get an answering machine. It was getting late, and his parents had always told him to never call someone’s house late for fear of waking up the wrong person, and also out of respect.

It was almost 11:00 p.m. when he decided this was a good cause, and if it was the right number he would start the conversation with an apology. The third phone call went unanswered and straight to a voicemail with a generic greeting. Frustrated, he turned over to watch the last of
Saturday
Night
Live
and hoped he would see her tomorrow.

* * *

Tonya and the girls discussed their plan for the next day. The church service was going to be replaced by a prayer vigil before the search teams began looking for Danielle again on Sunday morning. Reverend Hall called for the service to begin sharply at 7:00 a.m. He had been Natalie’s family minister for fifteen years, and although he was getting up in age, he could bring the message like no other. Tonya had gotten used to his sermons and could tell when the Spirit hit him as he high stepped across the pulpit, with some of the members standing, egging him on, and delighted to see the Spirit move in him. Tonya felt at home at Natalie’s church and was considering becoming a member.

After saying good night, Tonya remembered she’d placed her cell phone on vibrate inside her backpack during the search. Once she flipped her phone open, she discovered she’d missed two phone calls and wondered if one of them was from Brandon.

The first message was from the body shop, informing her that she could pick up her car as late as 6:00 p.m. on Sunday. This brought a smile to her face, knowing she would soon regain some of her independence. As she listened to the next message, she was somewhat saddened when she discovered there was no message. Tonya decided to store the local number in her phone, just in case.

She finally got her shower and found herself watching the local news for any updates in the case. Tonya was excited she was able to be a part of the search for Danielle. She knew she would not leave a stone unturned, and she was hopeful Danielle would be found soon.

Tonya thought back to when she was on her dinner break. Her aunt let her borrow her car to go to the local library. While on her way there, she smiled thinking of the mystifying man she’d run into. Tonya grew up in a family that didn’t see color when it came to friendships and relationships. Tonya never crossed the line nor did she feel she’d be considered an outcast by her family if she decided to. She smiled as she thought of her parents and how supportive they’d been in everything she’d ever attempted to do.

Her best friend, Beverly, had dated boys of all races and never seemed to have a problem with anyone giving her a hard time. Many people thought that since Beverly was a light-skinned female with long, pretty hair, she was probably conceited, and didn’t give her the benefit of the doubt. Those same people disliked her, maybe for the same reasons, so when she decided to date someone outside her race, it was no surprise to them.

Tonya was proud to be Beverly’s friend, and hated it when people automatically judged her because of her appearance. If those same people would only try to get to know her or watch them play basketball together or hang out on the weekends, they would know that she was just as black and as normal as they were.

People were funny when it came to light-skinned people in the South; it was like they were another race altogether and were given certain breaks automatically because their skin was closer to that of a Caucasian person. It almost seemed as though the darker you were, the less people expected of you and respected you. Tonya didn’t feel that way, but she did feel that if she, with her pretty caramel skin, attempted to date outside her race, more eyebrows would be raised than if she were light skinned.

Pushing those thoughts aside, Tonya remembered the brief conversation she’d had with Brandon earlier. Who would’ve thought she would run into him there, at the church of all places. Now that she thought about it, she never got around to finding out why he was there. Maybe, when she spoke to him again, she would remember to ask him that, perhaps after she found out his last name and what he did for a living.

Brandon was a very handsome man as Tonya remembered the dimple in his chin and his pretty eyes at their first meeting. He had to be at least six feet tall, just under two hundred pounds, and seemed to have a pleasant personality. Tonya smiled when she saw the curly locks of blonde hair peeking from under his baseball cap. She wasn’t sure if there could be anything between them, but she was not shy when it came to meeting people and figured lunch would be totally appropriate.

During her visit to the library, Tonya searched for any newspaper articles covering the disappearance of the other teenager earlier that year. She made copies of everything she could find and even checked out a few books written by homicide detectives on profiling. Although Tonya had plenty of schoolwork to catch up on, she couldn’t pull herself away from that day’s events just yet.

Jotting down notes and questions in her notebook and getting carried away, she found herself still up at thirty minutes past midnight and knew she needed to get some rest to be effective tomorrow. She placed the clippings and her notes in a folder and said a prayer for Danielle as she closed her eyes.

 Chapter Nine

Danielle knew something wasn’t right when she struggled to open her eyes and discovered it was still dark. She was groggy and had a tough time collecting her thoughts as she closed her eyes and listened for any movement nearby. Danielle felt like she’d been asleep for days but knew that wasn’t possible; she’d just left home not long ago, headed to the corner store.

She had been lying on her back for a while, she thought while she tried to stretch her cramped body. When she tried to look through the darkness, she was suddenly frightened; her initial thought was that she had been blinded. Danielle began to panic as she tried to sit up quickly, bumping her head on something hard. After several minutes of tossing and turning, Danielle was finally able to get on her knees, with her hands and feet bound.

Danielle quietly listened to her surroundings, hoping she could hear something familiar. When she didn’t hear any outside noises, she tried to remember what had happened to her that led her to her current location. Danielle knew she was hungry as she listened to the rumble in her stomach. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d eaten or had anything to drink as she forced herself to swallow.

As embarrassing as it was, Danielle wasn’t even sure when she’d last used the bathroom. Then paying attention to the scents her surroundings held, she was shocked to discover the smell of stale urine. She wasn’t sure how or when, but she knew for sure it was her own bodily fluids she smelled and then felt on her legs.

Now gasping in surprise, Danielle realized she didn’t have any clothes on. “What could’ve happened to my clothes and my shoes?” she said, frantically searching the floor for her belongings. As she crawled in each direction as far as she could go, she realized she was in some boxlike structure. Realizing there must be a ceiling or lid, she slowly tried to stand until she bumped her head on something hard.

Reaching up, she began to push up against the lid, hoping it would give. The door felt like it weighed a ton as Danielle pushed with all her strength until she was exhausted. She decided either the door was locked or there was something on top of it to keep it from being opened. Now she had to think of a way out. She knew her mom and brother were sick with worry, not to mention her friends.

* * *

It was Sunday afternoon before Tonya saw Brandon again. Natalie and Janelle had just gone out with the search party for the last time that day. They both were scheduled to return to school the next day. Tonya had been in awhile and decided she would probably be more helpful by researching the first disappearance.

Brandon was just coming in with his search team when he appeared at the church doors in search of Tonya. He was surprised to see her sitting at one of the tables set up inside for the search teams. She was working diligently on her laptop when Brandon approached her.

“Good afternoon, Tonya,” Brandon said, walking up to her table.

“Hey, handsome,” Tonya said before she realized she may have been a little too forward. Playing it off, she continued, “So what brings you here today?”

“Perhaps the same reason you’re here. Are you assisting with the search?” Brandon asked, standing in front of her with his hand in his pocket.

“As a matter of fact, I am. Here, let’s speak outside,” she said, standing from the table and joining Brandon as they walked out of the church. “Well, Danielle, the missing girl, just happens to be a friend of my cousin’s, and I’ve become pretty fond of her too. She attends this church now, and I didn’t want to say too much in front of the people inside. We’ve been out here the entire weekend looking for clues and trying to make sense of this whole thing.”

“Yeah, I know what you mean. I was shocked to hear about the disappearance and thought I’d be able to help with the search.”

“So you don’t know the family or any of the church members?”

“No, unfortunately, I don’t. Why? Does that matter?”

“No, it’s just hard to believe someone such as yourself,” she said, smiling, “would take time out of his weekend to help a family he didn’t know in such a big way.”

“Well, I could almost say the same about you, but that’s not important. What’s important is that we find her alive.”

Shocked to hear this stranger’s determination, Tonya extended her hand, and said, “Well, on behalf of Danielle Stocks and her family, I would like to personally thank you for being here. We need more people like you in the world.” Glancing down at her watch, she said, “So are you done here for the day?”

“Yeah, my team finished for the day. Is your offer still good?” he said, smiling.

She was frowning as if she were trying to remember just what offer she’d made. As her eyebrows rose, she laughed, “It sure is. When would you like to go?”

“How about now?” he said smiling, not sure if she’d go for it.

“Now would be perfect except I need to pick up my car from the body shop before 6:00 p.m.”

“Okay, we can grab a bite to eat and pick up your car once we leave. How does that sound?”

She was examining her attire, as Brandon read her thoughts. “Tonya, believe me, you look perfect. I’m ready when you are.”

“Okay, I need to go grab my laptop and my bags from my aunt’s car.”

“I’ll be waiting in the Silver Chevy pickup,” he said, turning and pointing to his truck.

Tonya was practically walking on air as she found herself excited about going somewhere with Brandon. She thought maybe she’d misread him last night when she didn’t receive a call from him. Before telling her aunt good-bye, Tonya asked to be kept informed if there were any developments.

* * *

Tonya and Brandon had a great time at dinner. They decided to stop at Wendy’s and order burgers since it was fast and convenient and only minutes from the body shop. Tonya found out that Brandon lived in Northport and had moved recently from Alabama. Tonya explained her reason for being in Tuscaloosa and how her level of being homesick had somewhat diminished since she’d been spending time with her family and friends in Tuscaloosa.

They ended the evening by exchanging numbers and sharing laughter after Brandon admitted his carelessness in destroying the note she’d written her number on. Once Tonya was back in her car, Brandon waited for her to drive away before he left the shop.