by Kahlen Aymes
“Just thirty-six weeks. I’m early,” I heard Teagan’s voice answer weakly.
“I’m sure you’ll be fine, ma’am,” one of the men said.
“Jesus,” I moaned; leaning tiredly up against the wall.
Missy wiped away an errant tear. “What about Dylan and Remi,” she asked, her face crumpling.
“Chase will be with Teagan, and I’ll be with you. We’ll find the kids. I won’t rest until I find them, Missy.”
She nodded and leaned into me, placing her head in the curve of my neck. “I hope so.”
“Do you trust me? I know I failed you today,” I admitted. “I’ll make it up to you, I promise.”
“I told you, it’s not your fault. Derrick would have kept at me, and Dylan until he got his way. I’m so sorry about Remi—"
I put up a hand to stop her. “If Ellington wants money, we’ll give it to him even if I have to put a second mortgage on my house. Chase will be all in on the cash, too. I know it’s hard, but we can’t waste energy panicking. We have to use all of our resources to find Dylan and Remi, and losing control of emotions, won’t help. We have to keep our wits about us.” I tried to keep my voice calm and glanced at my watch. It was five-thirty, and my friends’ plane would have landed by now. “We need to let the FBI agents know to take Chase to the right hospital.”
I nodded toward the stairs, and Missy understood. She didn’t let go of my hand as we walked downstairs and I spoke to the agents, but they’d already made the call when the paramedics arrived.
At that very moment, my phone rang. Chase’s name flashed on the screen, and I answered as quickly as I could.
“I can’t reach Teagan, and Remi and Dylan have been abducted by Missy’s ex-husband?” he sounded frantic. “Does my wife know what happened today?”
I took a deep breath. “She does. You can’t reach her because they’re taking her to the hospital. You’re having a baby, brother.”
“Holy hell, it’s too early! Christ! This is too much. Which hospital?” I felt sorry for him.
“I assume Emory. The agents will inform your driver, but from experience and what the paramedic just told Teagan, if it’s past thirty-six weeks, the baby will be fine, Chase.”
“Can you meet me there?” Chase asked, his voice sounded frenzied. He had to be freaking out. “I want to be with Teagan, but what about Remi and Dylan? Right now, I want to kill that bastard! She’ll probably want me to go after the kids.”
“I’m there with you. I’ve never wanted to rip someone limb from limb before, but I do today. We think he wants cash. It’s the only logical explanation. He hasn’t tried to see his son in all this time, but we haven’t heard from him yet. We don’t know for sure.”
The paramedics were wheeling Teagan down the stairs on the gurney. She had on a blood pressure cuff, and an IV line was inserted into her arm. “Is that Chase?” she asked tearfully, reaching out her hand for my phone, but one of the men carting Teagan out on the gurney shook his head.
“No time,” he said.
I nodded and took her hand. “He’ll meet you there. Are you taking her to Emory?” I asked the first paramedic. He nodded, maneuvering the gurney past us, through the house and out the door.
“Emory, Chase. ER entrance.”
“Okay. Thanks for being there for Teagan.” His voice thickened, and he cleared his throat. “Again.”
The unspoken hung over my conversation with Chase. Sure, I was here with Teagan, but Remi was taken while in my care. “Chase, we’ll get Remi and Dylan back.”
The ambulance in the driveway turned on its flashing lights and sirens as it left the property.
“Let’s talk at the hospital. If he wants money, I’ll drain my bank account to get my daughter back. And Dylan,” he added. I knew my friend, and he rarely cried, but I could tell he was right now. “How could someone do this to two little kids? I mean… what the fuck? I can’t imagine how scared they must be.”
I nodded solemnly, even though my friend couldn’t see. “He’s desperate. You said so, yourself. The FBI has Perlington’s data already. They’re working it.”
“Okay. Good, but if anything happens to—”
“It won’t, Chase. Okay? I won’t let it. You know how much I love Remi… and I love Dylan, too.”
Missy’s phone pinged. She had it in her pocket and quickly pulled it out. “It’s not a number I know,” she said, her eyes locking with mine.
“We think he’s calling in, now, Chase.”
“Okay, go!” he said and disconnected the call.
Agent Daniels rushed over to take down the number from Missy’s screen and then left the room, while the other stayed beside us. “Turn up the volume, then answer it and keep him on the line as long as possible.”
Missy nodded and did as requested. “Hello?”
“You just had to defy me, didn’t you?” Derrick seethed. “Now see what you’ve done?”
“Derrick! Where are Dylan and Remi?” she screamed into her phone.
“Safe enough.” His words were clear as day in the dead silence of the big house. “For now,” he threatened.
“What do you want? I don’t believe you want Dylan, Derrick. If so, you wouldn’t steal him!” She kept her voice relatively calm. “You wouldn’t have waited so long.”
Missy didn’t point out the obvious that now he’d be a convicted felon and seeing his son was off the table.
“You kept him from me! You should have let me see him, Melissa!” Ellington sneered.
“You need help, Derrick. You really do. You hurt me. You hurt Dylan. You’re sick! Just bring the kids back, and we’ll get you the help you ne—.”
“Don’t patronize me; you stupid little bitch!” he snapped. “You took my son, and now you think you can put me in some nut house for doing the same? He’s mine, too!”
The FBI agent made a rolling motion with one hand, silently telling her to keep the call going. “You took Remi, too!”
“That was an accident! The little brat didn’t leave Dylan’s side all day! I didn’t have a choice! Now that I have her, I want something from her famous dad. Forrester has loads of money, he won’t miss a few million.”
Here it was, I thought. As if that wasn’t his motive all along.
“We have to talk to Chase and see about the money, Derrick. You kidnapping their daughter put his wife into early labor. We need time to get the money together. The banks aren’t open on the weekend, but we will. Please… may I speak to Dylan?”
“If you’re lying as a stall tactic, I swear, Melissa, I’ll know! Don’t push me!” Ellington’s voice sounded crazed.
“Nuh-no!” Missy struggled, obviously terrified. “It’s true, Derrick. In a few minutes, you can call Emory hospital and ask if Teagan Forrester is a patient! I promise! She’s having her baby, tonight.”
It was all I could do not to rip the phone from her hand and threaten the cocksucker within an inch of his sorry life.
“Fine. I’ll call back in a few hours.”
“Can I speak to Dylan? Please!”
“No,” he said. “No, Melissa, you can’t. How does it feel?”
Then the call went dead, and we both looked expectantly at the FBI agents, hoping they got a bead on the cell phone.
“Did you get his location?” I asked.
The older one nodded. “A south Atlanta Walmart. The evidence from the surveillance cameras inside the store will help the case, but we don’t know what he’s driving so even if we send squad cars to the location, we may not find him. He probably stashed the kids somewhere else. In a hotel nearby, maybe. Let’s hope local police get there fast enough.”
“Can’t you get a lead on the phone? I know it’s not his, but the towers have to pick it up…”
He shook his head sadly. “I’ve seen this a hundred times. Criminals buy those prepaid phones and then dump it in the trash somewhere, and that’s what shows up on our tracking. He’ll probably use a different one the next time he conta
cts you.”
“Motherfucker,” I exploded, making Missy startle at my outburst. “Isn’t there anything you can do?”
Missy sank down on the chair she’d occupied earlier as I paced around the room.
The agent nodded. “We have to set a trap for him—a swap. The problem is, he’s only willing to give up the girl. We need them both.”
A low wail came from Missy as she buried her head in her folded arms on the dining table. “I hate him! I absolutely hate him more than I’ve ever hated anyone!” she cried.
“Do you think he’ll hurt them, ma’am?”
“Hell, yes, he will. He’s like a ticking time bomb. Any little thing sets him off.”
I pulled out the chair next to her and rubbed her back to try and ease some of her tension. “Maybe if we offer more money or say we won’t press charges?” I suggested.
“This is a felony. You don’t have that option to drop charges; it’s up to the district attorney’s office if they want to prosecute. Unless this dick is planning on disappearing, he knows he’s in a lot of trouble,” the agent answered. “He’s probably planning to skip the country with the kid and the cash. We have to get him in custody at the drop, or our job gets a whole lot harder. It’s the best chance we have. We’ll surveil the airport and the interstates, but again, we don’t know what he’s driving.”
“Babe, we need to get to the hospital so I can talk to Chase,” I said gently, sliding my arm around her hips and pulling her close as best I could from where I was sitting on the chair near hers. “The sooner we go, the sooner we can catch this bastard.”
She nodded and put a hand on my arm. “Thank you.”
I swallowed at the rapidly forming lump in my throat. “No need to thank me. I love you. And… I love those kids.”
JENSEN
When we got to the ER, a nurse said that Teagan had been admitted and was in full-blown labor. A nurse directed us to the waiting area on the maternity floor.
I texted Chase a couple of times, but he only responded once asking for an update. I relayed that Ellington was willing to trade Remi for a payout. The only thing we could do was wait for that sicko to contact us again, so we decided Chase should stay with Teagan and help her have their baby. He deserved to be there this time, but how could he fully enjoy it knowing how scared Remi had to be?
Remi and Dylan.
They were all I could think about as Missy and I waited in the maternity waiting room. Agent Daniels and Agent Webster were with us just in case Missy’s mad-man ex called back. The PI teams were dismissed.
As my mind reeled, Missy was curled up on my lap on one of the couches. Her earlier tears left her exhausted and finally caused her to fall asleep.
The hours ticked by with agonizing slowness as my I worked through all the ways I wanted to kill Dylan’s father, how scared the little ones had to be, and how I could get them both back safe and sound.
What kind of man traumatized little kids? The kind that could kill an attorney and his family to get rid of a fucking restraining order, I realized. Fucking bastard.
My thoughts were killing me. I couldn’t stand the thought of what he’d done to Missy or Dylan, or what he might be doing to those two little ones now. I swore under my breath as my rage grew. Ellington had to pay for every piece of the pain he caused.
“I want Jensey!” I could still hear Dylan’s sobbing cries ringing inside my head and feel them fill my heart. I was worried about my little Remi, too. The poor little thing. She’d already been through so much in her short life, and she didn’t deserve this. I wanted him, too. I wanted to marry Missy and adopt that little boy. A burn started deep inside my heart, as determination and resolve overwhelmed me.
Holding Missy in my arms, I was grateful that she still loved me and didn’t blame me for the kidnapping. It didn’t matter, though; I blamed myself enough for both of us. I was outwardly calm but railing on the inside.
I wanted a life with Missy and Dylan more than anything. Missy, Dylan, Remi… Chase and Teagan and the new baby… and hopefully, more kids for me with Missy. This was the beautiful future I imagined; all four of us raising our kids together, relying on and helping each other as the kids grew up. Then this asshole shows up to ruin everything. I was sick to my very soul.
I leaned back and shifted in the small, uncomfortable sofa. The room was full of grandparents and friends of other families, and I wondered if I should have called Chase’s parents to let them know that Teagan was having the baby. I would have had to tell them Remi was missing, too. The thought left me bereft. Had they heard the Amber Alert? Had Jean heard about it? What a fucking nightmare.
I shot off a short text to my friend.
Hey, did you tell your folks? Should I call them?
Five minutes later he responded.
I called them when I first arrived at the hospital. They knew about Remi, but not the baby. I asked them to stay put until we knew more.
It made sense, I thought, as I put my phone back in the pocket of my pants. I knew I should call my family, too. They were further away and weren’t big television watchers, at least not the news stations, so they probably didn’t know yet. It wouldn’t be long until some of their friends asked about it, and then I’d have them to deal with, too. It was all so overwhelming.
The waiting room doors burst open and Missy’s brother, Ben, rushed in; glancing around until he found us. His eyes landed on his sleeping sister. He looked unkempt and rumpled, and he had no luggage. Obviously, he’d gone to the airport straight from his fire station in Jackson Hole.
“Hey,” he said, folding his tall body into the chair across from me. “Why the hell are you at the hospital? Has Dylan been hurt? Is Missy okay?” he asked urgently, his eyes scanning her from top to bottom. “I’m freaking the hell out! My flight was the longest in history.”
“We’re all going a little crazy. Missy was just exhausted from crying. This bullshit made my best friend’s wife go into premature labor. Dylan and Remi are still with that deranged prick.” I couldn’t think of words awful enough to describe Derrick Ellington. “We don’t know where they are.”
“That cocksucker needs to die,” Ben said under his breath. “No question.” The fingers of his right hand folded into a fist, and his left closed around it. “Do you think he’ll hurt the kids?”
“Define hurt,” I said bleakly. “He’s basically demanding a ransom for Remi, but he believes he will be able to keep Dylan with him.”
“Like hell. I’ll kill him first. He’s got a history of beating that little boy, so we need to find that bastard,” Ben said, seething. “And fast.”
“Agreed. It’s all I can do to sit here and wait for the damn phone to ring.” I nodded to the agents sitting across the room. “We think he’ll wait until morning, so Chase has an opportunity to get his hands on some heavy cash.”
Ben looked disgusted. “You’re not actually thinking of paying that greedy fucker off, are you? Let’s just go beat the shit out of him.”
I agreed with Ben. “My thoughts exactly, but we need to know where Dylan and Remi are first. He may bring Remi to the drop, but probably not Dylan,” I said stoically. “I’ve been running every scenario I can think of over and over in my head, trying to figure out how to get them both back, unharmed, so I don’t think we should wait.”
“It doesn’t sound like it,” Ben agreed. “So, what do we do?”
“I don’t know, but I don’t want to only find them; I want Ellington out of both of their lives for good. I know that’s what Missy wants, too.”
“She has since her divorce, but he wouldn’t leave her alone. That’s why she moved in with me. He knew I’d beat the hell out of him if he came anywhere near either of them.”
Missy had said Ben was well networked with the law enforcement agencies in Wyoming, and he might get away with assault there… but he wouldn’t here.
“Did you call your mom? With everything going on, I don’t know if Missy did?”
&nb
sp; Ben shook his head. “Not yet. I was hoping they’d be found before I even got here, but all of you are high profile, so I’m sure it’s all over the national news.”
As if on cue, Ben’s phone rang, and he answered. “Hey, Mom. Yeah. Calm down. I know. Missy is okay. She’s asleep. Yes, I’m in Georgia, with her.” He got up and walked to the other side of the room for some privacy from onlookers.
Agent Daniels was talking on his phone a few feet away, and when he finished, both agents moved toward us. The others in the waiting room all looked on with blatant curiosity. If the story of the kids’ abduction hit national news, it had to be all over the local stations, too, but I hadn’t been paying attention to what was on the TVs around the waiting room. Both of the agents had removed their jackets with FBI emblazoned across the backs to stop the whispering and speculation of the other patient’s families, but it hadn’t stopped it all.
“Can you wake her up?” Agent Webster asked, nodding at Missy.
“Sure. Hey, sweetheart,” I shook Missy a little, causing her to stir. My leg on the side where I’d been holding her weight had fallen asleep and came to life when I moved. My flesh shot through with pins and needles. I wiggled my foot to try to fend off the terrible sensation.
“Hmmm?” she said nodding awake. Her eyes fluttered open.
“The FBI wants to speak to us.”
“Oh,” she glanced around the room and saw her brother for the first time, and her eyes widened as she instantly jumped off my lap. He stood to take her in his arms.
“Ben,” she breathed. “Oh, Ben. I’m so glad you’re here.”
“Where else would I be? I gotta help find my little man.” He held her close. “It will be okay. Let’s listen to the agents now, okay Sis?”
Missy nodded and took a seat next to me when Ben released her. I reached for her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze, hoping to offer a little comfort.
“So, I just spoke with my field office, and the special agent in charge has asked that when the perpetrator calls again, you try to arrange a ransom drop. We’ll set up a perimeter and close in, and hopefully take him into custody.”