The Bones of Others

by Vickie McKeehan

  Skye tilted her head, studied the uneven layers. Because she knew what it was like on the streets for a female, any age female, she shook her head. “No, I’m not mad. But you could’ve told me, us, the truth. Did Josh and I look like we were on the verge of doing away with little kids, Zoe?”

  Zoe looked away, dropped her gaze to the floor. “Don’t send me to a foster home, Skye, please.”

  Skye met Lena’s pleading eyes as well. “We’ll work something out.”

  That made Zoe smile. And then as if thinking of something else, she turned to Josh. “If I start school, do I still get to visit you at Ander All like you promised?”

  “You start school you’re welcome there anytime. In fact, you keep your grades up and I guarantee we could use that energetic gofer Skye mentioned. How does six bucks an hour sound to work as our tester?”

  “Testing games? Sweet!” Zoe exclaimed. “But if I go to school, I want the secrets how to get from Level 12 to 16.”

  “In Mines?” Josh asked. “Deal. But you have to really try at school.”

  “Sure,” Zoe agreed.

  Josh and Skye stayed for supper. And over Lena’s fried chicken and mashed potatoes learned more disturbing details about Zoe’s situation at her mother’s house. The boyfriend had moved in and within days had set his sights on the teenage girl.

  Skye knew it happened all too often. It was just one of the reasons there were so many teen hookers living day to day in a chasm of drugs on the streets. They were sometimes forced out to escape bad situations at home. But it wasn’t only that which contributed to their dire circumstances. Sometimes the reality of it all made her sick at her stomach. So she kept her comments brief over dinner. But afterward, while Zoe and Josh loaded the dishwasher and worked at cleanup, Skye pulled Lena into the living room for a chat.

  But it was Lena who got things going. “You contact the system and I’ll lose her. You know I will. I see you want to in the way you acted at dinner. This is different than any other time you’ve brought me someone from the streets. I’ve never turned away a single soul you’ve brought me, Skye Cree. And they were all a lot older than Zoe Hollister. That girl still has a chance, a future, and I’m willing to give it to her. You have to…”

  Skye had heard enough and held up a hand to stop. “I just want to be sure you’re certain Zoe really doesn’t want to live with her mother? At all?”

  “Skye, her mother is a biker chick with a slew of drug problems.”

  “You know that for a fact?”

  “Yes. Zoe and I made a trip over to the address she gave me.”

  “I don’t want you to get played here, Lena. I’m trying to protect you. Do you know what you’re getting into with Zoe? You take on the responsibility at her age and you’re looking at those difficult high school years you’ll have to deal with all over again. Is that really what you want to do…at…this stage of your life when you could be…I don’t know…traveling?”

  “Go ahead and say it. At my age? I don’t want to travel. I have a nice home here. And yes, that’s exactly what I want. I lost one son and that ripped my heart out. My other has a busy life away at college in California. He comes home for four days at Christmas. That’s it except for a few emails he sends when he feels like it. He has his own life and although I might be his mother, he doesn’t seem inclined to stay in touch. I still have the ability to love something, Skye. I don’t want to see a girl this young trying to make it on the streets. You send her back with her mother and that’s exactly where she’ll end up again.”

  Skye sucked in a breath and let it out. “Okay, okay. I’m on your side already. But do you know what a fight you’re in for? Her mother will likely take you to court, biker chick or not, and she’ll likely win.”

  “Then I’ll just have to find me a kickass lawyer. Do you know one?”

  “The only attorney I know is Doug Jenkins. He knows his stuff. But the man’s the antithesis of kickass. In fact, he’s more laid-back than that guy in that movie, what was it? Ah, The Big Lebowski, minus the long hair and the mismatched clothes.”

  “That’s a shame. I mean I really need a hard-nosed advocate that knows something about kids living on the streets and their awful situations back at home.”

  Skye knitted her brow as if considering. “Hmm, Doug’s certainly a stand-up kind of guy.” Skye thought a few minutes more before saying, “You know what?”

  “What?”

  “He might be laid-back, but Doug is a big believer in kids, any kids, and he loves the underdog. It’s worth a shot. He certainly watched over me when it counted and worked a few miracles when it came to my future finances. Without Doug I’d still be flipping burgers at Country Kitchen. Not that there’s anything wrong with that.”

  “Doug sounds like he might be just the man I’m looking for after all. Give him a call, will you? Zoe needs as many believers watching over her as she can get because I’m not sending that child back to live with her mother as long as that boyfriend is still in the house.”

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  Susan and Jay Prescott lived in a restored Tudor revival in the Phinney Ridge section of Seattle. Both had good jobs, a mortgage to deal with each month, bills that had to be paid on time, and the occasional marital spats about those everyday issues that went along with any busy household of five.

  Susan worked as a paralegal while Jay had been an architect for almost fifteen years. They attended dance recitals, paid for piano lessons, spent their Saturdays at little league games, along with every other event associated with their kids. Basically, they were the typical American family trying to deal with the stress of ordinary life the best way they knew how.

  They had two other kids besides Erin, one boy, one girl. But Erin was their oldest. Susan and Jay Prescott had decided to send Erin to the private preparatory academy after she’d gotten in trouble in her spring semester of middle school for cutting class. Erin had started trying to impress the wrong crowd. At least her parents believed that since their daughter had shown a rebellious streak in the past. In order to nip that kind of behavior in the bud, Susan and Jay thought the change of scenery at the more disciplined Catholic school would keep Erin on the straight and narrow and therefore out of trouble.

  They hadn’t counted on the likes of Brandon Hiller entering their daughter’s little world. But then what parent wanted to consider that their child might one day decide to ditch school—even if that child had been heading someplace she wasn’t supposed to—only to have the misfortune of crossing paths with a rapist? Little did they know rapist was Hiller’s side career and that he’d already promoted himself to killer?

  Both Jay and Susan knew they were lucky to have Erin back at all. Like any parent they watched the news and were aware of the dangers out there. So they were fortunate Skye Cree had somehow been able to locate and rescue their daughter so soon after she’d been taken. Otherwise…

  Jay and Susan wanted to do something to show their gratitude.

  As much as Skye understood that, she didn’t like the idea of meeting with the parents. Parents invariably asked questions. Number one and foremost on their minds, they wanted to know how she’d been able to stumble upon their daughters. And wasn’t that the niggling little bugger she couldn’t afford to divulge? In the past, Ali Crandon’s parents had wanted specifics, so had Hailey Strickland’s. Skye could share her determination, her obsessive nature, even that feeling that compelled her to go out every night in search of the missing. But anything beyond that like dreams that came in the dark of night, voices she couldn’t get rid of, or a wolf no one but she could see had to be held back.

  They wouldn’t have believed her anyway.

  And now, after being ushered into the Prescott’s living room, after peeling off her coat and handing it to Susan Prescott, her eyes settled on Joshua Sebastian Ander. Skye couldn’t help it, she gaped, open mouth and all. The man sat comfortably on the sofa, as if he owned the place, with a cup of tea in one hand, and if she wasn’
t mistaken, a homemade sugar cookie in the other.

  They hadn’t seen each other in two days. Skye had spent that time steeped in details, pouring over the list of girls reported missing within a hundred-mile radius of Seattle while Josh had been bogged down in the grind of running a multi-million dollar company.

  They hadn’t exactly found common ground yet. After all, they needn’t be joined at the hip just because they’d slept together. But seeing Josh at the Prescotts had her wondering what was going on. “What is he doing here?”

  Josh’s face creased into a smile when Susan answered for him. “Josh called to tell us about the idea you both had. We think it’s not only brilliant but doable so when you agreed to meet with us, we invited him along, too. We want to help the cause anyway we can—that means monetarily as well as helping get things going.”

  “The cause?” Skye asked and shot Josh a lethal glare. Her first impulse was to storm out, get the hell out of there. She didn’t like being kept in the dark. Not only that, she felt cornered, trapped. Since she had no idea what Susan was talking about and didn’t want to cause a scene, Skye simply went with a benign comment. “Ah, that is good news.”

  Josh knew it was unfair to blindside Skye like this. But he believed in her even when the woman didn’t always believe in herself. He’d wanted to be here—and now that he was—he’d just have to deal with her temper. The extra perk was a godsend. Skye Cree wore a snug-fitting, flowing white dress that showed off her cinnamon skin which of course included a look at her long legs. She’d added high-heels with straps that wrapped around her ankles. The shoes made him want to start nibbling at her toes and work his way up. She had feathery-like dangles hanging from her ears that glittered all the way down to her shoulders. The woman absolutely took his breath away.

  When he realized Jay Prescott was in the middle of a dialogue, Josh had to slide his fantasies into another drawer to deal with later.

  “After what you did for our daughter, we wanted to show you how grateful we were. We’d already talked to Detective Drummond about offering you a monetary reward but he explained to us you wouldn’t take it. Then when Josh called us with your idea about starting a private foundation to help find missing kids here in Seattle locally, we didn’t have to think twice about it before we realized it was a fantastic way to pay you back and help other kidnapped children at the same time.”

  Josh cleared his throat, turned his focus to Skye. It was time he entered the fray. “Any donations would be used to help you with expenses as you continue to have the same kind of success in the future that you’ve had in the past locating children like Ali and Hailey and now Erin. We want to make sure that goes on.”

  Jay took it from there. “I’ve asked a number of my clients from work to donate money to the foundation already. They jumped at the opportunity to get in on the ground floor of such an enterprise, one that would take an active role in helping you find the missing, kids that have been kidnapped by the likes of Hiller, especially when Skye Cree is personally involved in the foundation’s day-to-day operation. I already have pledges in excess of twenty thousand dollars.”

  Skye put her hands on her hips, ready for battle. “Let me get this straight. Your donors want to give this so-called foundation twenty grand to pay expenses to do what I already do on my own every single night anyway?”

  “That’s right. We could name it The Skye Cree…”

  “No,” Skye said emphatically, her voice steely in its resolve. “I’m only going to say this one time. I do not want anything named after me. That’s non-negotiable. The only way I’ll be involved in this thing at all is if you call it something else.”

  Prepared for that pigheadedness he’d seen so often before, Josh calmly set his teacup in its saucer and offered, “How about calling it The Artemis Foundation then?” When he noted the puzzled look on Skye’s face, he went on, “Artemis, Greek goddess of the hunt, adored for her devotion to animals, protector of children, and the vulnerable.”

  “You’re kidding?” Skye tossed back, ready to argue with that description. That is, until she looked over at the Prescotts who were beaming from ear to ear. Their dazzling smiles told her they were voting in Josh’s favor on this half-baked idea. Outnumbered three to one, Skye retorted, “Now wait a minute…that’s a corny name and this is moving way too fast…I’m not ready to have a foundation…”

  But Susan didn’t let her finish. “Perfect assessment of our Skye, I especially like the protector of children,” Susan said, putting an arm around Skye’s shoulder just as a mother might do. “That’s exactly what you are.” Susan put her own hand over her heart. “This mother is so thankful. Because of you, I have my daughter back. She’ll need counseling of course but that’s minor compared to…getting her back alive. I want you to do this for other children, Skye. Please. For me. For Jay. For Erin and the others out there who need your help.”

  And just in case Skye wanted to debate further, Josh was ready to enhance his position. “In mythology Artemis was often depicted carrying a bow and arrow. The hunter, Artemis could be the logo. I’ll design it.”

  “Great,” Jay decided. “I’ll work up the non-profit setup and tax exemption angle with the federal government so we’ll have all the legal stuff clearly defined and covered.”

  “Is this really happening?” Skye asked, obviously uneasy with the high profile aspect of it all. “I feel like I’ve stepped through the looking glass. I really don’t want…this.”

  But Josh bulldozed over any of her objections to point out, “It’s a great way to make sure the work you do is funded so there’s never a chance a kid might fall through the cracks. You wouldn’t want that to ever happen, would you?”

  “Of course not, but…”

  “Then it’s settled,” Jay stated quickly. “Let’s open a bottle of champagne to celebrate.”

  While he disappeared to get champagne, Skye asked Susan, “How is Erin?”

  “They released her yesterday from the hospital. She and my other two children have gone to spend the rest of the week with their grandparents on their farm in Eastern Washington. We’re headed there right after this meeting. Jay and I are taking time off from work until we see that she’s okay. I don’t know what you said to her in the hospital but…it helped. Since then she’s determined to be just like Skye.” Susan smiled.

  “You let me know if she ever needs to talk.”

  “I’m sure she will,” Susan said. “But right now, she’s trying to recover both physically as well as mentally.”

  “Believe me, I know,” Skye said, reaching out to take Susan’s hand.

  Later behind the wheel of her Subaru as she headed over the Aurora Bridge and back to her apartment, Skye turned to Josh and commented, “That might be the sneakiest thing I’ve ever seen anyone do. But then I don’t suppose I really know you all that well. Trusting one minute, stab me in the back the next.”

  “Come on. You know this is a great way to continue doing the work you do and get help from the citizens of Seattle,” Josh said, resting his hand over hers as it gripped the gear shift. “And getting to know each other better will come over time. But as stubborn as you are I decided I needed to be a helluva lot more clever and crafty to get around your obstinate streak.”

  “Because you of all people knew how I’d feel and yet…you did it anyway.”

  “Skye, you’re good at what you do better than anyone I’ve ever seen. Who else finds three missing girls?”

  At least he wasn’t asking how she did it. Yet. “When did you cook up all this foundation stuff?”

  “You make it sound like a scam. It’s not. I got to thinking about it the first day I found out about the three-for-three saves. Skye Cree walks the Seattle streets at night, patrols them really for the good of its citizens. And I should know because I’m one of those citizens who benefited firsthand. She’s like a cop but isn’t. She doesn’t get paid for what she does which is saving people. She’s committed to finding kids who’ve bee
n abducted and taken, snatched right out of their safety zones. She should have resources at her disposal, financial backing to get the job done on a grander scale. People want to get involved but they don’t know how. They want to help, Skye, but don’t know how to do it. They can’t exactly go out every night like you do. But they still want to be a part of it. Donations to the cause are the answer.”

  “Money,” she harrumphed and added, “So you’re sitting on the Board of Directors. You, Jay and Susan Prescott and Ali Crandon’s parents are welcome to use the fancy titles. One of you can take care of the money that comes in, because I don’t want to deal with that. I don’t want to be some figurehead—”

  “It isn’t why you do it. I get that and believe it or not, they do, too. Jay volunteered to keep track of the money, at least initially. Bill Strickland, Hailey’s father is an accountant. He’s agreed to act as treasurer down the road. These parents are indebted to you, Skye, and want you to have the financial help to find as many as you can, anyway you can.”

  “You really think so?”

  “I know so.”

  She sighed with the realization things were about to change and probably not for the better. But she didn’t intend to stand in the way of change if it could help find a single missing kid. “I’m not wearing a suit.”

  “Why would you want to put on a suit? That dress by the way is kickass. You look fantastic. The heels are a great touch. So why would you need to wear a suit?”

  “Because that’s what people expect of someone who runs a foundation…”

  “I’m the owner of my own company, Skye, and I’m rarely forced to wear a suit.”

  “We’ll probably have difficulty getting donors.”

  Josh grinned, realizing the white flag of surrender from the other side signifying he’d won the skirmish. “I disagree. There are parents out there who’ve discovered a nasty side to Seattle. I think they’ll want to do something about it.”

  She tapped the steering wheel as she drove. “Were you aware when you got this going that our state was the first in the nation to criminalize sex trafficking?”