“I’m not worried about the job. I’ll find another job. But Keating…I can’t get back in the building.”
Ty nodded. His plan didn’t involve returning to the building, but he couldn’t spring it on her out of the blue. He’d be asking a lot of her. She would have to trust others, let them handle things. She wouldn’t like it. He knew that. He had to make his argument carefully if he wanted to convince her it was the best way. “What if we could get Connor back without the Keating Security files?”
“How?”
He knew her willingness to listen hinged on how he worded this next bit. And before he made his pitch, he wanted to be sure he understood the situation. Easier to do when not trying to yell over an ear-splitting alarm. “First you need to explain some things. Start from the beginning. The kidnapper. He called you?”
She nodded.
“When?”
“Back at my apartment when I told you Doug called me? It was really him.”
He knew she’d been hiding something. But hearing for certain that she’d lied straight to his face and about so much…he gripped the wheel harder. “What did he say?”
“To get the police out of my apartment. He said if I didn’t, I wouldn’t see Connor again.”
“Did he tell you how to do that?”
“He suggested I convince you everything was okay. That Doug had Connor. Or someone else who was trustworthy.”
Trustworthy. Not a word he’d use to describe Doug Burke. But then, he wasn’t exactly unbiased…and he knew Doug’s history. “And Doug, he went along with the lie?”
“He didn’t want to at first. He was afraid he might get in trouble with police.”
“But you convinced him?”
“He’s worried about Connor, too.”
“So what happens when someone from the department checks in on Doug and learns he doesn’t have Connor? Because they can’t just drop this without confirming that your son is okay.”
She paused. Only the rhythm of windshield wipers and whir of the heater fan filled the car. “We were thinking that wouldn’t be necessary. Or if it was, I could get Connor back before then. I promised Doug I’d get him back.”
Obviously that part of the equation had changed, and now Megan was beating herself up for it. “Leo told me Doug was out of town.”
She nodded. “He’s saying they’re at a hotel in Milwaukee, that he’s planning to take Connor to the children’s museum there. We thought it was better than saying he took Connor to Chicago with him. We weren’t sure what would happen if he admitted to crossing state lines.”
So if Doug didn’t come back to Lake Hubbard, Leo would have to send someone to Milwaukee to check Doug’s story. “This storm will certainly delay the police’s follow-up.”
“How long?”
“Hard to say. Once the snow stops, the road crews work pretty quickly. As soon as someone can get over there, they will.”
She stared out the windshield again, and for a second, he let himself take a glance at her profile. Her high cheekbones. Her tiny nose that turned up ever so slightly at the tip. And those kind eyes, long lashes and waves of auburn hair. Megan was beautiful, sure, but she was much more than that. More than a man could ever want in any woman. And not for the first time in the many years he’d known Megan Garvey, he wished they would have first met when they were just a little older. When he was ready for a real relationship and not just a spin at a teenage crush.
“I wish we didn’t have to do all this guessing. We’d be so much further ahead if I could just come out and ask Leo what’s going on.” He again glanced her way, looking for a reaction.
She was watching him, a crease digging between her eyebrows. “What are you suggesting?”
“You need to let the department handle it.”
Out of the corner of his eye, he could see her shaking her head. “He’ll hurt Connor. That’s what he said. If I don’t do everything as he wants, I won’t see my son again.”
“Everything he wants is the security information for Keating’s clients?”
“Right. And the police not involved.”
“You don’t have the information, do you?”
Her gaze dropped to her lap. “No.”
“Then giving him everything he wants is no longer a possibility. Getting the police involved is our best choice.”
“It’s not our choice to make. It’s my choice.”
“You’re right. You’re right. It’s your choice.” He had to remember he was merely helping. He couldn’t take this problem off Megan’s hands, as much as he wished he could. He’d lost her son, but Meg was the only one who could get him back. He just wanted more than anything to find Connor. And the best way he knew to help was to bring all the resources of law enforcement to bear.
He focused on the road. The snow was coming down so heavy now, it was hard to see a half block in front of the bumper. But navigating the snowstorm was simple next to what Megan was going through.
She wrapped her arms tighter around herself. “What would they do?”
“We can bring in experts in abductions. We can request help from the FBI.”
“But they aren’t going to let me deliver the real security information. What would they do, have me deliver a blank flash drive?”
“I don’t know. But you’d have resources behind you. People who have dealt with this kind of thing before.”
“I just keep hearing what he said. I’m just afraid….”
“I think getting law enforcement on our side gives us the best chance.” If he was honest, he’d say the only chance, but he sensed Megan couldn’t deal with that right now.
She dropped her gaze to her lap and let out a heavy breath.
One block, a right turn and two more blocks and they’d be at the police station, the place he’d been heading from the first, as long as he could talk Megan into reason before they got there. “We can go to the station right now. You can get help with this. The kidnapper will never know. What do you say?”
The bleat of her cell phone cut through the tension in the car. She looked up at him, eyes glowingly green in the dashboard lights. “It’s him.”
MEGAN’S HEARTBEAT STUTTERED. She zipped open her bag and dug inside. Her fingers shook as they closed around her cell phone. She pulled it out, jabbed the answer button with a finger, and brought the phone to her ear. “Hello?”
“I hear there was a mishap at Keating Security tonight. The police were called. You wouldn’t know anything about that, would you?”
That voice. The same one. She’d known it was him, but the gruff tone still gave her a jolt. “It was a mistake.”
“And you expect me to believe that?”
“It’s the truth.”
“The truth? I told you, no police.”
“I didn’t mean for that to happen. You’ve got to believe me.”
“I don’t got to do anything. But you do…if you want to keep your son alive. And the first thing I told you to do was stay away from the police.”
A tremor seized her. She sucked in a deep breath, then let it out slowly. She had to stay calm. He couldn’t know Ty had been talking about going to the police just a moment ago. He couldn’t have seen them driving together. She had to think. “I am staying away from police. I didn’t tell them anything.”
“Why should I believe you?” the voice rasped in her ear. “You could be with the cops right now.”
She focused on Ty. Her chest tightened until she had to struggle for each breath. Could the kidnapper see her? Did he know she was with Ty? Or was he just reacting to the police being called to Keating Security? How much did he know?
Ty swung the car to the curb and stopped. He twisted in his seat and met her gaze.
She held on to it. He was a cop. She couldn’t risk being near him. And yet as much as she hated relying on other people, she didn’t know how she’d handle this alone. She’d done a pretty poor job so far. “I’m in my car.”
Ty’s lips formed
an unspoken word.
At first she didn’t recognize what he was trying to tell her. But the second time his mouth formed the shapes, she caught on. Connor. Ask about Connor.
She nodded and he brought his head close to hers. Angling the phone slightly away from her ear so Ty could hear, she pushed the demand from her lips. “I need to know Connor is okay. I want to speak to him.”
“Now why would I let you do that? You haven’t done one thing I’ve told you. Not one thing. You get me those files, then you can talk to the boy.”
“I can’t—”
Ty’s eyes widened, and he shook his head.
Her throat tightened. “I can’t do anything until I know Connor is okay. I want to talk to him.” Ty nodded.
She waited for the answer. Her pulse beat loud in her ears. The phone felt slick in her hand.
“Mommy?” The voice was strong and soft and unbearably sweet.
She pressed the phone tight to her ear. “Connor. Baby. Everything’s okay, sweetie.” Her voice trembled and broke, disintegrating into a choked sob.
“Mommy!” Connor’s voice rose.
He hadn’t sounded frightened at first, but now he did. The sound of it scraped up her spine and drove into her chest. “It’s okay, baby. I’ll make things okay.”
“Yes, you will.” The voice was back, and with it a chill wrapped around Megan, a cold she could never shake. “But the only way you can make things okay is if you do everything I say. And I mean everything.”
She willed her voice to function, to sound strong. “I’ve run into a glitch in the security system. It’s going to take longer.”
“I don’t have the time to mess with excuses. If you can’t deliver, I’ll have to cut my losses and find someone else who can.”
What did that mean, cut his losses? “No, please. I’ll get it to you. But it might take a little time. The system is—”
“The system is your problem. How do I know you aren’t stalling for time while you have the police looking for me?”
“I’m not. I swear.” Her chest ached, her heart pumping so hard, she thought it might explode. Hadn’t she been ready to do just that?
Tears blurred her vision, transforming the car’s interior into a watery mash of shadow. She blinked, trying to see clearly. “I’ll get the information to you as soon as I can. I promise.”
Ty brought his hand to her chin and gently turned her face toward him. He mouthed something else. Where?
“Where do you want me to send it?”
“I’ll call tomorrow night to let you know.”
One day. She only had twenty-four hours.
“And just in case you’re planning to turn this number over to the police, this phone is not traceable, so don’t waste your time. You don’t have much of it left.”
The signal went dead.
For a moment, Megan sat still, holding the phone to her ear, trying to compose herself, to let what had just happened sink in. Her baby. She’d heard her baby’s voice. Her chest, her arms, every cell in her body ached to hold his little body.
“How much time did he give you?”
“He’s going to call tomorrow night.”
“Then we’d better get going.” He shifted the car into Drive and pulled out into the snow-covered street. He took the next right, still heading in the direction of the police station.
“Stop.”
He glanced at Megan, his brows arching in silent question.
“I said, stop. I’m not going to the police station.”
“Megan, we talked about this. You have to let us help. It’s the best way.”
“I can’t take the risk. I won’t.”
“You mean you won’t take help. Don’t do this, Megan. You can’t handle this alone.”
“Maybe you’re right. Maybe I can’t. But I’m going to have to try.”
“You don’t have to do this his way.”
“Every time I come near a police officer, he seems to know.”
“He can’t—”
“He does.”
“The thing at Keating Security. That was called out by a dispatcher. Anyone with a police band radio could have picked that up. And he could have been watching your apartment after he took Connor. Neither one of those things means he has some kind of super surveillance power.”
“And the fact that you were just heading toward the police station when he called?”
“He didn’t mention anything about the police station, did he? Don’t you think he would have if he’d known? Don’t you think he’d mention me, if he somehow was watching us?”
She tried to calm her breathing. Ty had a point. She was probably letting her fear and imagination get the best of her. But when it came down to choosing to risk her son that way, no amount of logical explanation mattered. “You didn’t hear Connor. You don’t know. I’m not going to the police station.”
He blew a breath through tight lips.
The police station loomed ahead, a beige concrete box of a building built in the sixties. A single squad car sat in the small parking lot in front, the others probably out patrolling the street or in a garage where they wouldn’t have to be shoveled out of the snow. Ty drove steady, neither too fast for the conditions nor too slow.
He continued past the station.
They drove two more blocks in silence before Ty spoke. “You might not be willing to go to the police, Megan. That’s your choice. I understand it. But if you think you’re going to do this all on your own, you’re wrong. Connor was kidnapped under my nose, and I’m going to see that he gets back to you safe. And about that, you have no choice.”
Chapter Seven
Ty hadn’t had a woman over to his house for a month or more, and the bachelor pigsty showed it. He picked the dirty uniform off the couch and swept his hand over the cushions to clear them of corn chip crumbs or stray popcorn. He took Megan’s damp coat and his as well, and hung them on the backs of his two kitchen chairs to dry. He wasn’t very diligent about cleaning his bathroom even on a good day, so he didn’t want to think about that. Instead, he washed two water glasses and sloshed some whiskey into them. He carried them to the living room and offered one to Megan.
She held up a hand, palm out. “No, thanks.”
“It’s not much. It will take the edge off. Go ahead. You need it.” He didn’t have great hopes of either of them sleeping tonight, but a shot of whiskey might at least help them relax a little.
She took the glass and cradled it in both hands but resisted bringing it to her lips.
He sat on the couch beside Megan and sipped his booze, savoring its slow burn. It had been a long and horrible day, and it wasn’t over yet. Before either of them pretended to sleep, they had to work out what they were going to do next.
Megan set her untouched drink on the side table. “I appreciate your help, Ty. Really, I do. But this isn’t going to work.”
He didn’t ask why, merely raised his brows.
“He said no police,” Megan answered. “I doubt someone who would kidnap a child would make an exception.”
“He doesn’t have to know I’m involved. Besides, I’m not a cop right now.”
“What do you mean?”
He hadn’t been going to tell her about his conversation with Leo. He hadn’t wanted to worry her. But if it would convince her to let him help, it was worth spilling. “I’ve been suspended pending an investigation.”
“An investigation? Of you? Oh my God, Ty.”
He shook his head. Leave it to Megan to be concerned about him, even in the midst of what she faced. The woman was slow to accept anything from anyone, especially him, but she wasn’t afraid to give. “I don’t want you to think about it. It’s just procedure. A way to keep the media satisfied and off the department and the city’s back.”
“That doesn’t seem very fair.”
Of course the actual abduction wasn’t what the department was concerned about. Not that he planned to explain to Megan what the suspension wa
s actually for. “They just don’t want to give the media anything to feed on.”
“The media can’t blame you, either.”
He shrugged a shoulder. TV news, radio talk shows, even the newspaper, they were interested in whatever made a story. And this? Christmas, fear of strangers and a police officer at fault…it was like Santa himself had plopped a big juicy story smack in the media’s stocking. “Don’t worry about me. Seriously. As long as we can get Connor back, I don’t really care about the rest. And neither should you.”
She nodded, but she didn’t look totally convinced. “So you’re okay with me not going to police? Trying to steal those security files tonight? You won’t report any of it?”
“I’m never going to be okay with it. But won’t report it, no.”
“Even if I have to do other things before this is over?”
What could he say? “Even then.”
She let out a long breath and picked up her whiskey glass from the table, her relief palpable.
Too bad he didn’t feel the same way. How could he when he was pretty sure it was the worst decision he’d ever made? No, he’d made another bad one five years ago, and this time he wasn’t going to abandon Megan when she needed him. Even if she pushed him away. “Maybe we can make sure other things aren’t necessary.”
“How?”
“Did you get anything before the system shut down?”
“Just a list of Keating’s clients. I don’t see how that’s going to tell us anything.”
“It might be able to tell us quite a bit. If we’re lucky.”
She pressed her lips into a flat line and stared at the still untasted whiskey in her hand.
He took another slug from his own glass, trying to organize his thoughts, figure out if he actually had a strategy or was just grasping at straws. “We come at this from a different angle. If we can find out why the kidnapper wants this information, what business or businesses he’s targeting, then maybe we can figure out who he is.”
“Keating has a number of clients. Seems like kind of a long shot.”
“Maybe, maybe not. Let’s see the list.” He strode into his extra bedroom and grabbed his laptop. Once back in the living room, he fired it up and handed it to Megan. She pulled the flash drive from her pocket and plugged it in.
A Cop in Her Stocking Page 6