Fear Has a Name: A Novel by Creston Mapes Read Free Book Online

gritted his teeth, gave Jack a viselike grip, craned his little neck sideways, and stared up at Jack for a response.
    “What do you say to Mr. Crittendon?” Wendy prompted.
    “Nice to meet you.” Silas shrugged.
    “Next is Zachary.” Wendy squeezed her middle son’s shoulder. “He’s eleven.”
    “How do you do?” Zachary’s handshake was equally … painful.
    “And last but not least,” Wendy said, “this is Nathaniel, our fourteen-year-old.”
    “Good to meet you.” His voice was surprisingly deep, and he shook Jack’s hand with not quite so much thought about breaking every bone in it. “You can call me Nate.”
    “It’s good to meet you guys. Wow.” Jack looked at Wendy. “They have powerful grips!”
    Silas hooted and slapped his leg on his way out of the room, and the other two laughed as they followed him back to the kitchen.
    “What great manners,” Jack commented.
    Wendy nodded and rested her hands on her waist. “They’re good boys. Their dad has had a lot to do with that.”
    Jack’s phone vibrated, but he ignored it. He’d be out of there in a second.
    He whispered to Wendy, “We’re going to do all we can to help you find Evan.”
    Wendy crossed her arms and rubbed her biceps, as if she was chilly. “Thank you so much.”
    His phone vibrated again. Without looking at it, he hit the power button twice, sending the caller to voice mail.
    “If anything else develops, or you need publicity,” Jack said, “please don’t hesitate to call me. I’ll do everything I can. You have my number, right?”
    “Thank you.” She nodded. “Yes, I do. And I will be calling.”
    “Excellent.” Jack made for the door.
    “Will you be able to clear it up,” Wendy said softly from behind. “About the suicide?”
    Jack got to the door and turned to face her. She was indeed tiny. “What I plan to do is interview some people at the church and get with the police; then I’ll write a detailed piece—”
    “Is there any way I could see it before it gets printed?”
    He frowned and shook his head. “No. Sorry. I can’t do that. But it’s going to have all the facts, including your side of the story. You know, much of what you’ve told me here today.”
    Wendy nodded like a scared child trusting her father when he says everything will be okay.
    “You know what?” Jack said. “I should have a copy of that letter. Would that be okay with you?”
    “You’re not going to run it in the paper.”
    “Oh no. I just mean for me to have, you know, as the investigation continues.”
    “I don’t have a copy machine.”
    “I could take a quick photo.” Jack reached for his phone. “Can we do that?”
    While Wendy smoothed out the “suicide letter” on the kitchen table, Jack glanced at a text message that awaited him.
    Call me now!
    Sent from Pam’s cell phone.
    He snapped a quick photo of Evan’s letter and headed for the door. Surely Pam would call him if it were an emergency.
    “Mr. Crittendon … there’s one more thing I need to tell you.”
    He opened the door.
    “I should have told you earlier, but it just looks so bad.”
    “What is it?” Jack tried not to sound too hurried.
    “We own a handgun, for protection.”
    “Uh-huh.”
    Ironic that would come up.
    “Well … it’s gone.”
    Jack squinted. “Just since Evan’s disappearance?” He needed to make this short.
    “I think so. But I’m not positive.”
    “Was the gun loaded?”
    She shook her head. “No, but he kept two of those metal bullet holder things in a separate place, and they’re gone.”
    “The magazines? Okay.” He let it sink in, then shook his head, trying to keep everything clear. “I assume you told the police.”
    She shook her head quickly. “I couldn’t. It looked so—incriminating.”
    Jack’s cell phone vibrated again; it was ringing now.
    He put a hand on it. “That’s a call I’ve got to take. It’s my wife. We had a break-in at our house, and she’s still shaken up.”
    “Oh my