The Sea King's Lady

Chapter 1-3

Mike Hallbrook took in the tired, disheveled appearance of the woman standing across from him. A moment of regret flashed through him that he couldn’t give her the answer to the question she had been asking for two years—what happened to her friend. The fate of Carly Tate was still unknown—a cold case for their small town.

When the Yachats Police Department receptionist, Patty, had called out, as she left for the night, that the girl who was looking for the missing woman was back, Mike didn’t need the case number to know who Patty was talking about. There were not a lot of unsolved crimes in the area.

“No, the case won’t be closed until we know what happened to your friend. Unfortunately, there isn’t a lot to go on. I’m continuing to investigate leads. Do you have any new information?” he asked.

Jenny shook her head and wrapped her arms around her waist. “No. Did you ever get a chance to talk to Ross Galloway again? He was the last guy Carly dated. I’ve been meaning to ask but kept forgetting,” she asked.

Mike nodded. “Yes. He has a solid alibi for the day Carly disappeared,” he replied.

Mike took a step closer when tears welled up in Jenny’s eyes. It was times like this that he hated being a cop. He watched as she bowed her head and pulled a tissue from her pocket. He heard her draw in a shuddering breath before she looked up at him. A faint smile curved his lips when he saw the determination in her expression.

“I left my phone number with your receptionist the last time I was here. Can you please call me if you find out anything?” she asked.

“I’ll make sure it’s the same number I have marked in the file. If we find anything, I’ll be sure to contact you,” he promised.

“Thank you,” she said, turning toward the door.

“Any time. If you think of anything that might help locate your friend, please don’t hesitate to call,” Mike added.

“I won’t. I plan to be here for the rest of the week. Thank you again for not giving up on Carly,” Jenny said, glancing up at him when he reached around her to open the door.

“We’ll bring her home,” he responded in a quiet tone.

Jenny’s eyes glistened with unshed tears. She nodded and stepped through the opened door. Mike watched her hurry across the sidewalk to a dark red Subaru parked out front. He stood in the doorway, lost in thought.

The case puzzled him. From the few conversations he’d had with Carly’s parents, he’d gathered that they had already accepted that their daughter was dead and would probably never be found. The cold, disconnected resignation in their voices was completely opposite to Jenny Ackerly’s grief. During his investigation he had learned that Carly had been a warm, cheerful young woman who got along with everyone. Hell, even Ross Galloway shook his head and said he couldn’t see anyone harming Carly.

“She is dangerous enough to herself,” Ross had said in exasperation.

When Mike had pressed Ross about what he meant, he discovered Carly was known as a lovable, but klutzy woman. Ross’ description of her setting his boat on fire—a very minor fire, Ross had hastily clarified—helped Mike understand some of the other references made about Carly by other people.

“Knowing Carly, she probably got lost in the woods or fell off a cliff,” Ross had said with a shrug. “It wouldn’t be the first time.”

It was a possibility, but something told Mike it was more than a simple act of getting lost. The numerous search teams would have found something. If Carly had fallen from the cliff, the tides would have washed her up on the shore because of the way the cove was shaped. He had already checked the area.

Mike blinked when a resident drove by and honked the horn in greeting. He automatically lifted his hand to wave and realized he was still standing in the open doorway of the small police station. Shaking his head in resignation, he stepped back, closed the door, and locked it.

He was supposed to be off now. Instead, he turned back toward his office. Maybe he’d take another look at the file and see if there was something he’d missed. After all, it wasn’t like people just vanished off the face of the earth! There had to be a clue somewhere that would point him in the right direction of what had happened to Carly Tate.