Searching For Jenna novel Chapter 39

He finally made it to the door of the trailer. It was shut and locked just as he had left it. Continuing his vigilance, Elliot unlocked the door and entered the house. He searched every room, closet, nook, and cranny, but no one was in there. Someone had been in the trailer, though. Whoever it was had been a pro because they had been cautious about making it look like things had not been moved.

Elliot kept his guns locked in his truck, except his Beretta which he kept with him at all times. He also kept any evidence of his transgender status with him. His binding vests, prosthetic penis, testosterone vials, needles, and any other scrap of evidence that would reveal that he was not an ordinary man were kept locked in a box behind the driver's seat of his truck.

It was hard to say what the person had been looking for, based on what little Elliot could tell had been moved, but they had been in every room. He sent a text to Mark to let him know about this new development. Maybe tonight he would get a room at the lodge, just in case whoever was here decided to come back.

By the time he got to work, Elliot still hadn't decided whether or not he would go back to the trailer tonight. There was nothing in the trailer of any interest to anyone.

Tonight, Elliot set the alarm on his truck before he went in to work. He'd never felt the need to do that at the restaurant before, but he still felt violated from realizing someone had been in his home.

Sandy was waiting for Elliot when he came in the back door. "Can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Sure," Elliot said and followed her into her office.

Looking around to make sure no one was paying attention to them, Sandy shut her office door and motioned for Elliot to come to the other side of the desk with her. "There was a guy here earlier asking about you."

"What?" Elliot asked in alarm.

"Yeah, he said he knew you from Evansville," Sandy said. At the look of pure terror on Elliot's face, Sandy asked, "Is that where you were from originally?"

"Yes," Elliot said and sat down in Sandy's chair. "Someone went through my trailer too, a pro. If I didn't know what to look for, I would never have known someone had been there."

"Shit," Sandy hissed and started to pace.

"What did the guy look like?" Elliot asked.

Sandy shrugged. "Tall, salt and pepper hair, broad chest, blue eyes, and a hook nose. He had a cop feel about him."

Elliot thought about the description. It almost sounded like Terry Howard. "Mustache?"

"No, clean shaven," Sandy said.

Pulling out his iPhone, Elliot opened the browser and looked up Terry Howard, Evansville City Police. When a picture of Terry came up, Elliot showed it to Sandy. "Is this the guy?"

"Yeah, that's the guy," Sandy said and took the phone from Elliot. "You know him?"

"He was the one in charge of the investigation into Jenna's disappearance," Elliot said. "How on earth would he have figured out to come here?" Elliot rubbed his face with both hands. "Steven and his group of friends showed up at the club I went to last night, which, ironically, was the same club Cara and Megan were at."

"No shit?" Sandy said. "That's creepy."

Steven turned and went into the cooler.

Sandy watched him disappear and then said to Elliot, "Why don't you take a walk outside and clear your head."

At first, Elliot didn't understand what she was getting at, and then she patted her front right-hand pocket, which was the same pocket Elliot had his secure phone in. He realized that she meant for him to go outside and try to call Mark again.

Cara pulled in just as Elliot got to his truck.

"Shit," Elliot mumbled under his breath, smiled and waved at Cara, who parked next to his truck. "Hey," he called as Cara got out of her car.

"Hey," she said and walked up to him as he leaned against the back of his truck. She stepped close to him and reached out and touched his forearm. "Thank you again for last night." Cara looked over her shoulder at the restaurant. "I have to admit I'm a little creeped out about seeing Steven today."

Elliot smiled down at her. "It'll be okay. Just ignore him."

"Hard to do sometimes," Cara said.

"I know," Elliot admitted. "He's really obnoxious."

Steven stepped out of the back of the restaurant and regarded the two of them curiously. It was just enough to set Cara into motion. She turned, leaned her body fully into Elliot, and kissed him.