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them had to be on the road. What’d you do? Pick up a hitchhiker?”
    “Special delivery, Murph. Found her on my porch last night. Why?”
    “Well, I’ll tell you why, son. There’s a missing person report all right, but there’s an Amber Alert in the tri-state area for her two boys, too. I’m sending pictures to your phone now.”
    “Already know that. Tell me what’s not on the Amber Alert.”
    “She got the boys with her?”
    “No.”
    “She say where they are?” Murphy’s grandfatherly interrogation sparked Alex’s anger.
    “For hell’s sake, look at the picture I sent. She can’t remember her own name.”
    “Now hold on, son—”
    “No. You hold on. I asked for information, not an inquisition.”
    “You’re right. I’m just thinking of those little fellows.” Murphy calmed.
    “And I’ve got a woman who can’t stand on her own two feet. I spent he whole night doctoring her. Now what else do you have?” Alex kicked the ground as he walked. He didn’t mean to come across harsh, but this vacation just kept getting better and better.
    “Okay,” Murphy continued. “She’s got a sister, Louise Timpson, who lives in Pendleton, Oregon. She’s the one who filed the missing person reports on Kelsey and her boys.”
    “What about her husband?” Alex already suspected the answer.
    “Name’s Nick Durrant. I’m sending his photo now. You would have thought he would be the one to file the missing person report on his wife and kids now, wouldn’t you? Mother pulled a TV newscast from two days ago. Guess Durrant held a press conference and asked for help in locating his missing wife and kids. He said she wasn’t stable, that he was afraid for his boys’ safety. According to him, she suffers psychotic breaks and has threatened to kill them in the past.” Murphy’s voice filled with disgust. “You should’ve seen it. This guy’s lying through his teeth.”
    Alex opened the picture of Nick Durrant. A weaselly looking man with greasy blond hair, a wispy excuse for a goatee, and thin lips stared back at him. “What else?”
    “Well, okay, so Mother contacted Louise Timpson. According to her, Durrant is the dangerous one. She thinks he’s been beating Kelsey since they got married. Timpson said her sister hasn’t been the same since.”
    “Why don’t women leave jerks like him? What else?”
    “Mother located Durrant’s employment, financial, and police records. The man’s a two-bit thief. Hasn’t worked a steady job in his life. The one thing he does have is a healthy rap sheet, mostly car prowls, shoplifting, petty thievery, and stuff like that. Plus, I’ve got two reports of animal cruelty. Thought you’d want to know that. A couple neighbors claim he shot their dogs. Plus there’s a whole list of emergency room visits on her. She’s had a broken nose, broken fingers, broken left arm, as well as repeated spiral fractures.”
    “Let me guess. She fell down the stairs?”
    “You know what you’re looking at, don’t you?” Murphy was clearly concerned.
    “Yeah. A bastard who beats his wife. She’s all of a hundred pounds soaking wet.”
    “Never could figure out guys like that,” Murphy said quietly.
    “Me either.” Frustration curled Alex’s fist as he walked. He couldn’t decide who he was angrier with, Kelsey or her deadbeat husband.
    “This guy’s dangerous. Best thing for you to do is—”
    “What else?” Alex didn’t want free advice.
    “Okay, well, so she married this Durrant guy four years ago. She taught school before that. There’s only been one police complaint against him, and she didn’t file it. Guess one of her neighbors heard screaming one night. When the police investigated, Durrant opened the door with a crying baby in his arms. Said the little guy had an earache.”
    “Was she there?”
    “The police report didn’t indicate one way or the other.”
    Alex trudged through the trees, absorbing the information. He had never experienced abuse