It was not enough to prove a crime.
But it was a beginning.
At the hospital, Avery sat on an examination bed with a blanket around her shoulders.
The doctors had confirmed that her leg was badly bruised, though fortunately there was no fracture. They were treating her dehydration and checking for other injuries.
Bear sat in a chair near the door.
Reese had gone to speak with the social worker, who was arranging appropriate protection and trying to locate a safe family contact.
Avery watched Bear's hands.
“Do you fix every motorcycle in your garage?” she asked suddenly.
He looked up.
“Most of them.”
“Even the ones nobody else can fix?”
“Especially those.”
She considered this.
“Can you fix people, too?”
The question struck him harder than anything she had said before.
“No, sweetheart,” he answered honestly. “I can't fix everything that hurts people.”
Her eyes lowered.
“But I can help you find people who know how to help. And I can stay while they do.”
Avery nodded slowly.
Then she reached into the pocket of her dress.
“I have something else.”
She pulled out a tiny brass key attached to a faded blue ribbon.
“Mommy gave it to me before I ran.”
Bear leaned forward but did not take it from her.
“What did she tell you?”
“She said to give it to the man who would believe me.”
Bear studied the key.
“Did she tell you what it opens?”
Avery shook her head.
“She said it would help show everyone what happened.”
He looked toward Reese as she returned to the room.
She noticed the key in Avery's palm and immediately understood that it might be important evidence.
“We should let the investigators handle it,” Reese said gently. “We'll make sure they know exactly where it came from.”
Avery closed her fingers around it.
“Will they believe me?”
Reese sat beside her.
“They should listen carefully and investigate what you tell them. And if anyone doesn't take you seriously, we'll keep asking for the right people to help.”
Bear nodded.
“That's a promise I can make.”
His phone rang again.
Daniel.
“Bear, I found something. Founders Hall has an old maintenance corridor connected to the basement. The official plans show a storage room, but the newer renovation records don't match.”
“Can you get someone there?”
“I'm arranging for county deputies from outside Fairview Falls. But listen, there's more. The sheriff has ordered everyone to stay away from the building until he approves access.”
“On whose authority?”
“He says the mayor reported a potential security threat.”
Bear's jaw tightened.
“Then make sure your people know there's a woman who may be in danger inside.”
“I've told them. I'm not dropping this.”
For the first time since Avery had entered Iron Haven, Bear felt a small measure of hope.
Not trust.
Not yet.
But hope.
At 8:14 p.m., two county deputies arrived at Founders Hall.
They were accompanied by a state investigator who had been contacted through a separate emergency channel. Daniel had insisted that the allegation involved possible unlawful confinement and that an independent response was necessary.
The sheriff met them at the entrance, visibly irritated.
“This is a private matter involving town property,” he said.
The state investigator, a woman named Elena Brooks, showed him her identification.
“An allegation that a person is being held against her will is not a private property dispute. We're going to check the premises.”
The sheriff glanced toward Gordon Pike.
Gordon shook his head almost imperceptibly.
Elena noticed.
“Who is that gentleman?”
“Development director,” the sheriff replied.
“Then he can explain the building's layout while we inspect it.”