by Tim Kizer
“Here you go.” Norman gave Alice a CD, printed on which was MELISSA’S ADOPTION, and copies of Melissa’s birth certificates and the adoption order.
“Thank you,” Alice said.
Michelle came back two minutes later and handed Alice a flash drive. “There are two videos and over two hundred pictures here.”
“Thank you.” Alice got up and pocketed the flash drive. “It was nice meeting you. Thank you for your time. And thanks for the pictures.”
Hagan stood up. “Thanks for meeting us.” He shook Norman’s hand.
“Do you have any leads or suspects?” Norman asked.
“No, not yet,” Hagan said.
4
As they descended the porch steps, Alice said to Hagan, “Can you show me where Melissa’s body was found?”
“Yes. Do you mind if I drive?”
Alice took out her car keys and handed them to Hagan. In the car, she put the adoption video CD and the copies of Melissa’s birth certificates and the adoption order in her bag and then googled Cradle Of Life’s address that Norman Keener had given her. She discovered that Cradle Of Life’s address hadn’t changed. The adoption agency’s website said that it was open Monday through Friday from nine a.m. to five p.m.
Lake Miramar, which was a man-made reservoir, was larger than Alice had imagined. At 7:14, ten minutes after they left the Keener’s house, Hagan pulled over and killed the engine.
“Let’s go,” he said, and they got out of the car.
Alice estimated that they were about two miles from the Keeners’ place.
The road ran along the shore of the lake and had one lane in each direction. There was a small hill overgrown with thick bushes on the right side of the road. Sunlight danced on the surface of the water, the air was cool and smelled of seaweed. All was quiet except for the monotonous buzz of insects.
They walked about fifty feet down the blacktop before Hagan stopped and said, “Melissa’s body was found here.” He pointed to a bush on the left side of the road.
Alice scanned the bush and the ground around it for blood but didn’t see any. It must have rained after Melissa’s murder.
“Did the killer hide the body behind the bush?” she asked.
“No. He left it on the roadside.”
Alice pictured her daughter’s body lying on the ground, blood oozing from her wounds, and her heart twisted with pain.
“What time was Melissa’s body found?”
“Around seven p.m.”
“Who found it?”
“A jogger.”
“Did you check his alibi?”
“Yes. He was at work when Melissa was killed.”
“What time was Melissa murdered?”
“Between three and five p.m.”
“Were there any witnesses?”
“No.”
A seagull screeched overhead.
“How long does it take to get here from the Keeners’ house on foot?” Alice asked.
“About twenty-five minutes if you take a shortcut and about fifty minutes if you don’t.”
“When did Melissa go missing?”
“June twenty-seventh.”
“And when did the Keeners report her missing?”
“July seventh.”
The Keeners had waited ten days to report Melissa missing. They clearly didn’t care about her.
Maybe one of them was the girl’s killer.
“You should ask them why they waited so long to report Melissa missing,” Alice said.
“I did. They said they thought she was at her friend’s place. Someone sent them messages from Melissa’s phone saying she was at her friend’s place. I believe it was the killer or his accomplice.”
“When did they receive the last message?”
“July fifth.”
A tall young man in a tank top and shorts, with earbuds in his ears jogged past them. Alice wondered if he was the guy who’d found Melissa’s body.
“Stephen, I want to talk about the Keeners,” Alice said.
“Okay.”
“They lied to you. They said I gave them my daughter, but it’s not true. I didn’t give my baby up for adoption.”
“Half an hour ago you said that you did.”
“Melissa was stolen from me the night she was born. I didn’t know she was abducted because an hour after her birth I was told that Melissa was dead. How could I have given her up for adoption if I thought she was dead?”
“What about the video?”
“It’s not me in the video.”
“You said it was you. That woman looks like you.”
“She may look like me, but she’s not me.”
“Then why did you say that woman was you?”
“I thought you’d think I was crazy if I said she wasn’t me.”
“Why did you tell me you gave up Melissa for adoption when we met two weeks ago?”
“I wanted you to tell me who her adoptive parents were.”
Hagan stared at the lake for a long moment and then said, “What do you think happened? How did your daughter end up with the Keeners?”
“Someone switched my daughter with a dead baby right after she was born and then sold her to the Keeners.”
“If your daughter was switched with a dead baby, there would be no birth certificate.”
“The birth certificate is fake. Both the original and amended birth certificates are fake. And the adoption order is fake, too. You should check them. Can you check them?”
“Okay, I’ll check the birth certificates and the adoption order.”
The original birth certificate might be authentic: someone might have posed as Alice Cannon and been discharged from the hospital with Melissa. It might have been that woman in the video.
She would have needed government-issued photo ID to get Melissa’s birth certificate.
That wasn’t a big problem. It was fairly easy to obtain a fake driver’s license.
“You need to check my signature on the adoption paperwork,” Alice said. “It was falsified. Can you write down the adoption agency’s address?”
“All right. Give me the address.”
Alice told Hagan the address of Cradle Of Life and he wrote it down in his notebook.
“Do you remember the agency’s name?” she asked.
“Yeah. Cradle Of Life.”
“Can you check the birth certificates and the adoption order tomorrow?”
“Yes. I’ll do it tomorrow morning. Did you obtain a death certificate for Melissa?”
“No, I didn’t.”
“You think the Keeners knew that Melissa was abducted when they adopted her?”
“If they really adopted Melissa through an agency, then it’s possible that they didn’t know she was abducted.”
Hagan looked at his watch. “Let’s go back to headquarters.”
They crossed the road and started toward the car.
“The adoption agency knows who abducted my daughter,” Alice said. “Can you talk to them this week?”
“Yes.”
“Will you help me find the people who abducted Melissa?”
“Yes.”
“I’m telling you the truth, Stephen. Melissa was abducted. The woman in the video isn’t me.”
They got in the car.
“Do you have any pictures of you from thirteen years ago?” Hagan asked.
“Yes.”
“Can you send them to me?”
“I can show them to you now.” Alice grabbed her laptop case from the backseat and unzipped it. “I have them on my laptop.” She pulled out her laptop, switched it on, then opened the folder named Oldpictures2 and sorted the files by date. She clicked on a picture of her taken two months before she gave birth to Melissa, and was disappointed to see that the woman in the video looked exactly like her from thirteen years ago.
“Do you want to see more pictures?” she asked.
Looking at the photo, Hagan said, “Please play the video.”
<
br /> Alice took the adoption video CD out of her bag, put it into her laptop, and opened the media player.
“I know she looks like me, but she’s not me.” She clicked the Play button.
Hagan watched the first twenty seconds of the video and then switched to Alice’s picture. “She looks exactly like you.”
“But she’s not me.” Alice closed the laptop. “I believe the adoption agency hired this woman to pretend to be me.”
Hagan probably thought that what she said about Cradle Of Life was ludicrous, but she didn’t care. She had to do everything she could to make sure the people involved in Melissa’s abduction were caught and punished.
“Can you call me when you’ve checked the birth certificates and the adoption order?” she said.
“Sure.” Hagan started the engine.
Alice put the laptop in its case and pulled out the copies of the birth certificates and the adoption order.
Chapter 7
1
As Alice drove back to Pasadena, she decided not to tell David about the video.
She explored Cradle Of Life’s website and learned that it had been founded nineteen years ago and had only one office. The director’s name was John LaCross. The agency completed ninety adoptions on average per year.
They might have sold a lot of abducted children through Cradle Of Life. The head of the agency might even be the mastermind behind the whole operation.
The people who had stolen Melissa might still be Cradle Of Life’s suppliers.
Would Detective Hagan interrogate LaCross and his employees?
Police would have to investigate Cradle Of Life, because the birth certificates and the adoption order were fake.
There were pictures from every year of Melissa’s life on the flash drive Michelle Keener had given her, and as she looked through them, Alice began to cry. She had not watched her beautiful daughter grow up, she had never spoken to her or heard her laugh or taken her for a walk in a stroller or gone shopping with her or helped her with homework. Her amazing daughter had been robbed of true motherly love, and she would never experience it because she was dead.
If Melissa hadn’t been abducted thirteen years ago, she would still be alive.
On Tuesday, Alice drove to Irvine to talk to John LaCross. The office of Cradle Of Life was located on the second floor of a nondescript two-story office building about two miles from John Wayne Airport. The walls of the reception area were hung with large framed photographs of smiling couples with babies, the sigh of which gave Alice a pang: they reminded her that at thirty-three she was still childless.
Don’t panic, Alice. You’re young, you have plenty of time to have a baby.
The receptionist, a young woman in her twenties, asked Alice how she could help her, and Alice said that she needed to talk to John LaCross.
“What’s your name?”
“Alice Cannon.”
The receptionist picked up the phone, pushed three buttons, and then said, “John, Alice Cannon is here to see you.” A few moments later she hung up and said to Alice, “John will see you now.”
The receptionist came out from behind her desk and took Alice to LaCross’ office.
John LaCross was in his fifties, with graying hair and small blue eyes. He wore a dark suit, a blue-and-black striped tie, and black rectangular eyeglasses.
“What can I do for you, Alice?” LaCross asked in a soft, soothing voice when Alice sat down.
“I have a few questions about the adoption of Melissa Cannon.”
“I’m listening.” LaCross smiled.
“I’m her biological mother. I’d like to know how much her adoptive parents paid me.”
“You don’t remember how much they paid you?”
There was a large conch shell on the desk between the tape dispenser and the clock; Alice thought she could use it to defend herself if LaCross attacked her.
“It was thirteen years ago.”
“Why do you need this information?”
“For tax purposes.”
LaCross pushed his glasses up his nose. “Can I see your ID?”
“Sure.” Alice took her driver’s license from her wallet and showed it to LaCross. “Are you the owner of this agency?”
“Yes.”
“Were you the owner thirteen years ago?”
LaCross nodded. “Yes, I was.”
“I’d appreciate it very much if you could help me, Mister LaCross.”
“Your daughter’s name’s Melissa Cannon?”
“Yes.”
LaCross turned to the computer monitor and typed in Melissa’s name.
“What are the adoptive parents’ names?” he asked, looking at the screen.
“Norman and Michelle Keener.”
“There’s no mention of any payment in our records. The Keeners probably didn’t tell us that they provided you with financial assistance. If I were you, I’d ask the Keeners.”
“They don’t remember, either.”
“Do you have any other questions?”
“Was it you who handled Melissa’s adoption?”
“No.”
“Who was it?”
LaCross looked at the screen. “Joanna Styles.”
“Does she still work here?”
“No. I doubt she knows how much the Keeners paid you.”
“When did she leave?”
“A few years ago.”
“Did she tell you that Melissa was abducted?”
“What do you mean?”
“The woman who gave Melissa to the Keeners wasn’t her biological mother. She stole Melissa from me.”
LaCross frowned. “I don’t understand. A minute ago, you said that the Keeners gave you money.”
“How much did the Keeners pay you for Melissa?”
“I can’t tell you that.”
“You knew that Melissa was abducted, didn’t you?”
“Let me investigate this. Give me your number, and I’ll call you when I figure out what happened.” LaCross’ voice was calm, but he looked shocked.
“I know what happened. You sold my daughter to the Keeners.”
“I did not do that.”
“I bet she’s not the only abducted child you sold.”
“I’m afraid I’ll have to ask you to leave, Alice.”
“What’s Joanna Styles’ phone number?”
“I can’t give you her number.”
“What’s her address?”
“I can’t give you her address. Alice, please leave now or I’ll call the police.” LaCross picked up the receiver.
“I’m going to the police. I’ll tell them that you sell abducted children. I’ll tell them that you arrange for these children to be abducted.”
“Please leave now.”
“I know about the video, and I told everyone that woman was an actress. The video isn’t going to help you.”
“Alice, please leave.”
“You’re not going to get away with this.” Alice stood up, walked out of the room, and slammed the door behind her.
As Alice passed by her desk, the receptionist said, “Have a nice day.”
Alice did not reply; she was in no mood to be polite.
2
It appeared that LaCross hadn’t expected her visit. If the Keeners knew that Melissa had been abducted, they would have warned LaCross that her biological mother might show up at his office, wouldn’t they?
LaCross knew now that he was about to be investigated. He would call his lawyer and his lawyer would advise him to cooperate with the police. When the cops came to search the office of Cradle Of Life, LaCross would be ready to rat out his accomplices.
A few minutes after Alice came home, she called Michelle Keener, whose number she had gotten from Hagan on Monday.
“Have you looked at the pictures?” Michelle asked.
“Yes, I have. Thanks a lot. Do you have five minutes?”
“Yes.”
“I have a question. How much did
you pay me thirteen years ago?”
“We didn’t pay you anything.”
“Are you sure? I think you paid me between ten and twenty thousand dollars. I need the exact amount for tax purposes.”
“No, Alice, we didn’t pay you anything. You didn’t ask for any money.”
“Can I talk to Norman?”
“Just a moment.”
About ten seconds later Norman said, “Hi, Alice. How are you doing?”
“I’m fine. How are you?”
“I’m great.”
“I have a question. I forgot how much you paid me thirteen years ago. Can you tell me the exact amount? I need it for tax purposes.”
“We didn’t pay you anything.”
“How much did you pay the adoption agency?”
“Twenty thousand dollars.”
“Are you sure?”
“Absolutely.”
Why were the Keeners lying?
“The agency gave me about fifteen thousand dollars,” Alice said. “You must have paid them at least thirty thousand.”
“Well, we paid them twenty thousand. Perhaps you’re misremembering.”
“Is the owner of the agency your friend?”
“No.”
Alice heard the beep on an incoming call. She looked at the screen and saw that it was Hagan.
“Maybe I am misremembering. Thanks for your time, Norman. Bye.” She accepted Hagan’s call. “Hello, Stephen.”
“Hi, Alice,” Hagan said. “I’ve checked Melissa’s birth certificates and the adoption order. All these documents are authentic.”
Alice froze. “It’s impossible.”
She felt as though she were drowning in quicksand.
He’s lying.
He has no reason to lie. Stop being paranoid, Alice.
“Your daughter’s birth was registered with the county, which means that she wasn’t switched with a dead baby at the hospital. Court records show that you consented to Melissa’s adoption by the Keeners and that she was legally adopted by the Keeners.”
John LaCross was bolder than she had thought. Although it was very risky, he had filed the paperwork with the court and made Melissa’s adoption by the Keeners official.
“Here’s what I think happened,” Alice said. “They tricked me into believing that Melissa was dead, and then, after I left the hospital, someone posed as me and took Melissa. I believe it was that woman in the video.”