Free Vanished by Margaret Daley

something.”
    The fierceness in his expression crumbled. He scrubbed his hands down his face. “I could have lost her, too, yesterday. She was in the house, the back door unlocked. If it is an ex-con, he could go after my whole family before this is over with.”
    â€œNot if he’s long gone. You, yourself, said it wouldn’t be smart for him to hang around here. You’re too familiar with the people in your county. It would be hard for him to hide for long.”
    â€œBut Rachel’s right. There are places a person could hide for a while. There’s a lot of rough terrain around part of the lake.”
    â€œLet Kim breathe, J.T. Let her be a part of finding Ashley. She needs that right now.” She didn’t normallysuggest a fourteen-year-old help with an investigation, but she’d seen the guilt and pain in his daughter’s eyes when they had talked earlier that day. “At least keep her informed of what’s going on. Maybe she could come down here and answer the phones. It’s important that she’s around you right now.”
    After dragging his hands down his face again, he rubbed his eyes. “I know. There needs to be two of me.”
    â€œThe parent and the sheriff?”
    â€œYep.” He stared out his window into the large outer room. “I feel so torn. What if I can’t do it all?”
    Surprised at the confession, Madison sat forward in her chair to close some of the space between them. His question, one he would never have uttered in the past, emphasized the exhaustion clinging to him. “I’ll be here to help you any way I can. If that means telling you to slow down and take care of yourself, then I’ll do that. Whatever it takes.”
    The corner of his mouth tilted up. “So I’d better not mess with you?”
    She gave him one curt nod. “Right.”
    â€œOkay, I’ll go see Kim and Neil, but I won’t be gone long. When we get back, I’d like to go over the list of criminals I’ve put away who are out of prison. Actually, the list should include everyone I sent to prison whether they are out or not.”
    â€œI’ll work with Rachel to make sure it’s a complete list. She still has a few she’s tracking down.” Madison rose. “You know you put away quite a lot of criminals in your days on the Chicago police force.”
    He came to his feet. “Yes, and I believe one’s decidedto even the score.” He opened the door and stepped to the side to allow her to go first.
    When Madison entered the outer room, she saw Ross and Jill Morgan coming into the station. The frowns on the couple’s faces alerted her that something was wrong. Although they headed toward Derek behind the counter, Madison made her way toward them while J.T. stopped to talk to Rachel at her computer.
    â€œI wasn’t gonna come down here and say anything with all that you’re dealing with, but then I got to thinking this might pertain to your case.” Ross leaned into the counter, his voice pitched low as though he hated to disturb J.T.
    Madison positioned herself next to Derek and faced the young couple who were in their early thirties. “What happened?”
    â€œWe found our dog dead this evening. The vet said the dog’s been dead probably since early this morning after we left the house.” Jill brought a perfectly manicured hand up to smooth her long blond hair behind her left ear. “I don’t think it means anything but Ross does.”
    The dog Kim had heard barking around the time Ashley went missing was dead. Was there a connection between the animal’s death and Ashley’s kidnapping or was it just a coincidence? “How did he die?” Madison spied J.T. winding his way toward them.
    Ross shot his wife a look. “Jill, it could mean something. The vet said he’d been poisoned. I found a half-eaten steak by the fence that I hadn’t given