Stuart Woods_Stone Barrington 12

call me at your first opportunity.” He hung up, and his eyes came to rest on the coffee table. Holly’s cell phone was there. He picked it up and saw that it was switched off. She had no way to communicate.
    He put the phone down and called Ed Rawls.
    â€œRawls,” the big man drawled.
    â€œEd, it’s Stone. You’ve heard about the two missing women?”
    â€œThey’re not missing anymore,” Rawls said. “They found the first body this morning. I’ve just come back from working with one of the search parties. Somebody in a boat who was patrolling the beach found the second body in the water a hundred yards out early this evening.”
    â€œOh, Jesus,” Stone said.
    â€œWhy did you call?”
    â€œHolly is missing. She went out for a run hours ago and never came back. At least, I assume she went running; she didn’t take a car.”
    â€œOh, Jesus,” Rawls said.

41
    S TONE SAT IN THE darkening study, waiting for Sergeant Young to call him back. Lance. He should call Lance. He dialed his cell phone number and immediately got Lance’s voice mail.
    â€œI’m out of the office,” Lance’s voice said, “and it’s unlikely I’ll be able to return calls for a day or two. You can leave a message, if you like.”
    â€œLance, it’s Stone. Holly is missing, has been gone for several hours. This is very alarming because two women were murdered on the island yesterday. I’ve notified the state police, who are conducting a search of the whole island anyway. If you get a chance, call me and tell me if you have any ideas.” He hung up.
    Stone heated up some of the beef stew Mabel had prepared, but he couldn’t eat much. He wanted a drink or some wine with dinner, but he felt he had to keep a clear head. But for what? Young hadn’t called him back, he couldn’t reach Lance, and Holly might be out there somewhere, dying. He couldn’t imagine how someone could take her, armed and prepared as she was. He called Ed Rawls.
    â€œEd, Holly still isn’t back, but something occurred to me.”
    â€œTell me.”
    â€œSergeant Young believes that whoever took the two women yesterday was known to them. It occurs to me that, since Holly was armed, she may have know her kil…her abductor. She’s not the sort of person to be taken easily.”
    â€œMakes sense to me,” Rawls said. “Who’ve you got in mind?”
    â€œI don’t know; that’s the problem. She hardly knows anybody on the island.”
    â€œWho, exactly, does she know?”
    â€œShe knows Seth and Mabel Hotchkiss, but they’re not candidates for this. She knows Sergeant Young, and he’s not a candidate, either. And she knows…” Stone stopped.
    â€œWho, Stone?”
    â€œHal Rhinehart.”
    â€œWho?”
    â€œThe cabinetmaker north of the village.”
    â€œOh, yeah. I knew his old man. You think he’s a candidate?”
    â€œHe has a criminal background,” Stone said. “Dino and I busted him for a string of burglaries years ago, and he did four years or so.”
    â€œHave you told this to Young?”
    â€œNo, he hasn’t returned my call. I can’t get ahold of Lance, either.”
    â€œWhy don’t you and I pay Rhinehart a visit? I’ll pick you up in ten minutes.”
    â€œOkay, and bring your shotgun.” He hung up.
    Stone armed himself, put on a jacket and waited at the end of the driveway for Rawls, who turned up quickly in his Range Rover. He got into the car.
    â€œTell me about this guy,” Rawls said.
    â€œMaster burglar, very sharp mind.”
    â€œHow’d he meet Holly?”
    â€œI took her to his workshop; she wanted to meet him for herself. We both eliminated him as a suspect after that visit. The guy has a successful business, which he inherited from his father, and he has a wife and a baby. He seemed stable and happy with his circumstances.”
    â€œIs he strong enough to overpower Holly?”
    â€œYes, if he could neutralize her before she could get hold of her weapon.”
    â€œThat’s good enough for me,” Rawls said.
    They had passed through the village and were headed north. “There’s the sign up ahead,” Stone said. “Drive on past, and we’ll work our way back.”
    Rawls drove past the house without slowing and, when he saw a narrow road to the right, cut his