Unfound

22

Four days had gone by since the anonymous tip the police received, and they couldn't find anything. They couldn't track the car, didn't even know who was in it or if the partial was correct. No one knew of a little red Ford Fusion taking off for any direction in any of the neighborhoods nearby and no one else called in claiming to know him. We were stuck again. Pretty much back at where we started. We knew who we were looking for, but not how to find him.

I hadn't left my dorm room for a few days, surviving off of microwave Mac and cheese. I was trying to stay open and ready for anything if the police called. I was getting bounds of concerned emails from my professors about my attendance and grades, but I didn't know how to reply. They knew what was going on. At this point everyone knew about Kara's disappearance, but I couldn't use her as an excuse. I wouldn't. Whatever I did was on me, not her.

Growing restless, I called the detective. I wanted to know specifically what the anonymous tipster said. She picked up after only the first ring. "Liam?"

"I need to hear that message."

"The what?" She sounded tired, as if she hadn't truly slept in days. I knew where she was coming from, of course, but I think I was onto something.

"The anonymous message. That told you about the red car? I want to hear it for myself, see what I can pick up." I tapped nervously on the back of my desk chair. I thought that I might be able to pick up something from the tone of voice that the police may have missed. It would be a fresh perspective if nothing else.

She sighed, obviously distressed about giving evidence to someone outside of the police station. "Fine, but I play it to you on the phone and you better wear headphones or something so no one else can hear it, understand?"

"Yes," My foot tapped in beat with my heart and my hands as I waited anxiously for the message to start.

"Give me a second." I heard the rustling of paper and then mild cursing from O'era. Finally she got the tape to start working.

"I would like to make a report on the man I saw on the news last night." My heart stopped.

"Stop." I let out a breath. I was drowning.

"What?" it was the detective.

"Turn it off!" I yelled. My nerves no longer existent. I couldn't feel my hands tapping along the back of the chair or my feet against the floor or even my heart in my chest.

O'era paused the recording, "What is it, Liam? What's wrong?"

I shook my head, knowing she couldn't see me as I sank to the floor and hugged my legs to my chest. "That's her." I whispered, "That's Kara."

I heard yelling from O'era's end, "Look, Liam, I know this is hard, but I'm going to need to play the whole thing for you. You might be able to point out something that can help. Can you do that for me?" She sounded more awake with the news that we had identified the anonymous tipster. It was likely he was using her to try and get an even further head start on the police.

"I don't... it's her. Why would she call it in?" I knew why, but I couldn't believe that he actually got her to do it. What had he done to her? "Just play it."

She started it again before I could change my mind. Kara's voice echoing through my head.

The police woman started: "This is the police department, how may I help you?"

Kara: "I would like to make a report on the man I saw on the news last night."

The police woman: "What's your name ma'am?"

Kara: "I would like to remain anonymous. The man, he's my neighbor, Seth Jones. He lives a few houses down and looks exactly like the man in the picture. He used to drive a black jeep, but this morning he drove away in a small red Ford Fusion." Her voice caught in her throat, making a slight squeak when she said 'Fusion'. That never happened. She was scared. She was doing this against her will. My hands tightened to fists, my knuckles white with the pressure of bone pressing against skin.

The police woman: "Do you have a plate number?" I heard a pen scratch as if she were writing on a piece of paper.

Kara: "Yes," a pause, and a near silent sob, "I only got a partial plate, 6FC3. Again, it was a small red Ford Fusion and it looked like someone was in the passenger seat with him." I heard her swallow hard. Kara. What was he doing to you?

The police woman: "Thank you ma'am. Is there any other way we can contact you? hello? Ma'am?" The line went quiet. It was over. Kara's end had hung up first.

I tried to speak, but I had no voice. He was there with her. He was threatening her, possibly hurting her. Seth. She had said it like she was familiar with the name, not scripted.

"Seth," I managed to force out, "The name was familiar to her. That must be how he introduced himself to her." Only silence on O'era's end. I swallowed a block that had formed in my throat, "She was scared, O'era. Her voice caught and she was shaky. He's hurt her or at least was threatening her with something. She wouldn't have done it unless he had a knife to her throat or a gun to her head. She's hurt, O'era."

"Anything else?" she was all business, no emotion came through her voice.

I replayed the message in my head, closing my eyes to make it clearer. "Replay where Kara is giving her the plate number."

O'era replayed it. "partial plate, 6FC3. Again, it was a small red Ford Fusion and it looked like someone was in the passenger..."

"Stop" she shut it off, "right there, did you hear it?"

"Hear what, Liam? All I hear is Kara."

I shook my head, "There's more. Listen closely to anything besides her voice. Play it again."

She did, "partial plate, 6FC3. Again, it was a small red Ford Fusion and it looked like someone was in the pass..." O'era stopped it that time.

We sat there in silence for a second until the Detective spoke, "I think I heard it. Was that a bell?"

I smiled sadly. A bell, a school bell. Like the middle schools and high schools use. "Are there any other schools in this town that are somewhat close to campus?"

"Give me a second." I heard tapping on her computer as she did a web search. "There's a middle school six blocks from the college campus. There's about a block radius where neighbors could report hearing the bell during the day." I didn't even want to know how she possibly knew that information.

I opened my laptop and opened google maps. Roaming the streets near the middle school, going through the neighborhoods until... "I know where she is."

"Where?"

"Google maps shows a house on the other side of the block from the middle school with a black jeep and no license plate in the driveway of a house. Willow Street, 4980. That's where she is."

At that moment, my phone pinged. I looked down to see a message from Kara's father. I opened it to find the real name of the kidnapper. Kara's father texted me that they couldn't be sure, but he looked very similar to a child who had supposedly died in a car crash. He had lived in their old neighborhood, Willow Street. His name was Braden Zimmer. He had lived at 4980 Willow Street. His father was Kara's original captor.

"Thank you, Liam. I'll let you know when we..."

"There's more." I cut her off, "His real name is Braden Zimmer. He lived in that house as a child. That's the neighborhood where Kara grew up. He knows her personally, or at least thinks he does. He took Kara for a reason. One that I don't know of yet. He won't kill her, at least not yet."

She was silent. "Don't do anything stupid. I'm sending the force over there now."

I didn't hear her. I was already up and out the door with my printed map of Willow Street.