Free Find Me by Debra Webb Page B

one time had wanted to… there was no going back to the past. He couldn't go back to being a student now. He was thirty damned years old. He should be married and raising a family.
    That was another thing he'd forgone the past few years. Relationships. At first he hadn't had time. Then… he didn't know… maybe he'd lost interest, other than the occasional date that usually included meaningless sex.
    What had happened to him?
    And why was he only just now paying attention?
    Her
. It had to be her.
    When the mayor had asked him to take on this "public relations" role, Kale had taken the responsibility seriously, as he did all obligations. He'd done his research. Sarah Newton was a free spirit who never let anything hold her back or slow her down.
    As interesting as her background was, it was the woman, in the flesh, who made him feel inadequate about his own life. She'd charged in and gone straight for what she was after. No second-guessing, no hesitation. No apologies.
    When had he lost his enthusiasm for what came next?
    He dropped his head on the back of the sofa. Maybe about the same time he'd realized that the only thing that came next in his life was a repeat of the same old thing.
    He closed his eyes and cursed himself for being so selfish. His father was paralyzed. Kale's family was solely dependent upon him. He had no right to resent his obligations.
    Valerie Gerard was dead. Alicia Appleton was missing.
    He damned sure had no right to feel this way when others were suffering real tragedy.
    Kale opened his eyes and pushed away the self-pity. He had no one to blame but himself for his lack of a real personal life. He could have a wife, a steady girlfriend at the very least. The rut he lived in, on a social level, was of his own choosing.
    He could have changed that situation long ago.
    But he'd been waiting…
    Funny thing was, he couldn't label what it was he'd been waiting for.
    The telephone rang. He didn't have to check the caller ID to know it would be his father.
    There was no reason for anyone else to call him.
    Just another indication that there was absolutely nothing he should be waiting for.
    This
was it.
    Angie sauntered into the living room, her nails clicking on the hardwood.
    "You wanna go for a walk, girl?"
    Her tail wagged.
    "Let's do it." Kale stood and headed for the door, Angie on his heels.
    Fifteen minutes of fresh air and then he would call his father back and talk about whatever he wanted to discuss.
    Like he did every night.

CHAPTER 10

    Youngstown Public Safety Office
, 9:00 P.M.

    "You still at it, Chief?"
    Ben Willard glanced up from the mound of reports on his desk. He didn't bother manufacturing a smile for his old friend. They knew each other well enough and had been friends long enough that social protocols weren't necessary. "Looks like I will be for a while yet." He leaned back and his chair squeaked. "Have a seat, Fritz." He motioned for the mayor to come on in.
    Fritz Patterson settled into the only clutter-free spot in the office, an extra chair that one of Ben's deputies had rolled in for working with him on these damned reports. Between the evidence and interview reports, the faxes and photographs, not to mention old case files, that danged chair was the only space save for scattered sections of the floor that wasn't used as a holding place.
    "Anything new from other agencies?" Fritz asked.
    Ben had expected that question. He'd answered that same one ten or twelve times today. He shook his head. "We're still comparing MOs with homicides all over the country. So far we've got nothing." The process had been a waste of time. His gut clenched. As prepared as he'd thought he was… he hadn't been anywhere near ready for
this
.
    This was far worse than he'd expected.
    Fritz nodded thoughtfully. "Nothing new on the search for Alicia Appleton?"
    Ben shook his head. "We've interviewed all her friends a second, some a third, time. Her family. The FBI has her name and face plastered all