“Yeah, it’s not adding up. We really do need to track him down and talk to him.”

“Maybe we should tell Joe.”

She snorted. “You remember what he said. He’s not gonna listen to a thing we have to say until tomorrow. And then he’ll try to find someone to investigate her disappearance. And it’s not like Billy Jack is gonna volunteer any information to the sheriff’s department. We need to find him ourselves.”

Unfortunately, I suspected she was right.

“I’ve felt uneasy about this whole situation from the start. But I always thought I’d find her shacked up with someone. I haven’t given much thought to findin’ her in . . . in a bad state.”

“I don’t think she’s dead, Neely Kate, if that’s what you’re thinking. I bet she’s hiding with Nikko for some reason. Mud obviously thinks the same thing. Otherwise why would he have sent men to Nikko’s house?”

Tears filled Neely Kate’s eyes. “Maybe they were looking for something they thought Nikko had. He told his sister he was getting out of trouble, but what if he just said that to get her off his back? Maybe he stole something from them.”

I took her hands in mine. “Maybe. We definitely need to check out his trailer.”

“Don’t you think Mud’s guys would have found what they were looking for if it was in there?”

“Maybe not.” I shrugged. “Maybe Nikko hid it good enough that they couldn’t find it.” I gave her a hopeful smile. “His sister might know where it is. Or maybe she can help us figure out where Nikko and Dolly are hiding.”

“Thank you for helping me.”

“Of course.” I gave her a hug. “We’re best friends. If you need my help, I’m there for you. No questions asked.”

We drove back to the salon, where Nancy was finishing up Alaina’s hair.

“You actually came back,” Alaina said, her tone not quite as friendly as before.

“We said we would,” Neely Kate said.

“How do I know you really have a cousin who’s missing? How do I know you’re not working for Mud?”

Neely Kate pointed to me. “Does she look like the kind of girl who’d work at Gems?”

Alaina scrutinized me for several seconds. “No, I guess not.”

Part of me wanted to protest, but then I reminded myself that that was a good thing.

“We’re trying to find my cousin. I swear it. If we can just look at Nikko’s house to look for any clues, it might help. Both of us.”

When Alaina didn’t look entirely convinced, Neely Kate dug out her phone and started scrolling on her screen. “Look.” She moved closer to her and showed her the screen. “This is Dolly Parton. She’s my cousin, and I’m scared to death something awful has happened to her.” Neely Kate’s voice broke. “So I’m beggin’ you, please help us.”

Alaina looked up at Neely Kate and nodded. “Okay, but if I find out you’re lyin’, I’m gonna snatch you bald.”

What was it with women wanting to rip out Neely Kate’s hair? But she took it in stride and lifted her chin. “Well, just in case you screw up my intentions, it’s a good thing I have a lot of hair. Now let’s go.”

Chapter Eighteen

Nikko owned a tiny mobile home on the side of a county road. There was an astounding assortment of them, spanning from nice trailers with potted plants to absolutely trashy ones.

Alaina pulled off the road in front of a faded white and loam-green trailer, and I pulled in next to her. As she unlocked the front door, Alaina looked over her shoulder at us. “Nikko gave me a key, but I haven’t been in here since last week.”

“Okay,” I said. That meant we had no idea what we’d find.

Alaina pushed the door open, and we followed her into the dark living room. All the curtains were drawn, so it took a few seconds for my eyes to adjust, but the stench of something rotten hit me first.

“Oh, my stars and garters!” Neely Kate gushed, looking at the mess. “They’ve totally ransacked the place!”

There were clothes strewn everywhere—on the floor and covering the sofa and recliner. Along with the laundry were empty beer and pop cans, discarded chip bags and cracker boxes.

“This?” Alaina asked in surprise. “This is how Nikko lives. That boy never did learn to pick up after himself.” She leaned over and picked up a T-shirt, took a whiff and cringed, then tossed it in a chair.

Neely Kate put a hand to her chest. “Oh.”

“What exactly are you lookin’ for?” Alaina asked, stepping over a pair of jeans.

Neely Kate glanced over at me, her eyes wide. We had no idea what we were looking for, and the fact that the place was totally trashed didn’t help.

“We were hoping to figure out what Mud’s guys were looking for,” I sighed as I walked past her into the kitchen. The trash was overflowing, and the smell was worse near the container.

“Honestly, we’re grasping at straws,” Neely Kate added. “Can you look around with us and tell us if anything looks out of place?”

“Sure,” Alaina said.

I was curious how she was gonna figure that out, but we followed her as she made her way down the hall, and I noticed the back door was cracked. I pushed it open and saw the doorframe was bent and splintered.

“Has it always looked like this?” I asked. After seeing the state of the living room and kitchen, I wouldn’t put it past Nikko to have broken the back door in if he’d misplaced his key.