“I was wrong,” he readily admitted. “Emily has to come first. Even if you and I are as different as night and day, we can put our differences aside and do what’s best for her.”
Julia made a sound of agreement. Partial agreement, anyway. “We’re not that different, Russ.”
He raised his eyebrows and gave her a dry smile.
She only shrugged. “Maybe our bank accounts are different, but I inherited my money. Not much accomplishment in that. And until I got that call about Emily, I’d closed down. The press called me a recluse. That’s a kind word. I would go months without leaving the safe little world I created at my estate.”
“But that safe little world was safe,” he reminded her.
“Safe isn’t necessarily the way to live your whole life. What about you?” she asked. “Why did you close down and get lost in your job? Does it have something to do with that scar you showed me?”
He rubbed his fingers against it. “Yeah.” That was all he said for several moments. He checked his watch again, then his phone. “Three years ago I got sexually involved with a woman in my protective custody.” Russ met her eye-to-eye. “She was killed. It was my fault,” he added.
“I doubt that.”
“Then you’re the only one,” he mumbled.
So he’d been punishing himself all this time. “You were in love with her?” Julia asked.
“No.” There was no hesitation in his answer. “But that didn’t make it easier.”
“I suspect not. And I suspect you’re thinking that this situation with me might be history repeating itself.”
“Aren’t you?” he fired back. “The last time you got involved with a dangerous man, you nearly died.”
Yes, and even though there was a huge difference between Russ and her attacker, Julia couldn’t completely tamp down the fear. Part of her wanted to take Emily and go running back to her estate; but if she did that, she would never be able to forget the child she could have saved.
Russ’s phone rang, and he seemed relieved. Maybe because he wouldn’t have to continue this too personal conversation. As usual, he didn’t identify himself when he answered, but a moment later she heard him say “Soto.”
That grabbed her attention, because he was the agent taking Emily to the safe house.
“They’ll be at the location soon,” Russ relayed to her.
“Soon? But I thought it wouldn’t take them so long to get there?”
“They can’t just drive there. They have to make sure no one is following them, so they take what we call a circuitous route. They’re doing this by the book. And everything is okay, going just as planned.”
Julia released the breath she’d been holding and said a quick prayer of thanks. Emily was away from Milo, and she was safe. Now she had to see what she could do so the Richardson baby was, as well.
Russ stayed on the line, listening to whatever Soto was telling him. He asked about Silas. And about Milo. By the time he ended the call, Julia was anxious for answers.
“What about Silas?” she asked.
“Still no sign of him, but they did locate his phone. It was in a trash bin at the park.”
Where he’d last been seen. That could mean Silas had been kidnapped. Or maybe he was setting all of this up so it would appear that way.
Or maybe Silas was dead.
“And Milo?”
Russ shook his head. “He’s staying put at his office. He’s had no visitors, so if he’s been in contact with his boss, then it hasn’t been in person.”
Russ had no sooner put his phone away when it rang again. Julia hoped this would be the call to tell them that another security detail was in place. She didn’t mind being in the police station, but the longer they stayed, the more it might alert Milo that something was wrong.
Again, Julia tried to make sense of what part of the conversation she could hear, but Russ didn’t give much away—except for his expression. The muscles in his jaw turned to iron.
“Repeat that,” Russ asked the caller.
Julia moved closer and waited.
“I want them brought to the Wainwright Hotel ASAP,” Russ insisted. “Keep it quiet, but if they won’t come, arrest them. Do whatever you need to do to get them there.”
He hung up but continued to stare at the phone. “That was Special Agent Toby Kaplan. He’s the one who followed Sylvia. She left here and went straight to another meeting.”
“With Milo?” Julia questioned.
“No. With the stolen baby’s father, Aaron Richardson.”
“What?” Julia was stunned. First, Milo had met with the child’s mother, and now Sylvia had met with the father? “Why would Aaron be meeting with Milo’s assistant?” Julia asked.
“I don’t know, but Toby’s bringing the Richardsons to the hotel, and they won’t be leaving until they tell us exactly what the hell is going on.”
Chapter Eleven
Russ mentally went over the details.
He wanted answers, but he didn’t want them at the expense of Julia’s safety or blowing the case completely. That’s why he’d gotten another room to do the interview with the stolen child’s parents. Thankfully, the hotel had very few guests, and other than Julia, none were on the third floor, which was made up entirely of suites. So they’d have privacy, and Russ would better be able to control security.
Of course, nothing was foolproof. But at least this way the Richardsons wouldn’t be in Julia’s room.
Russ hoped that would be enough.
He had the photos of Tracy’s meeting with Milo, and thanks to a fax from Agent Toby Kaplan, Russ now had pictures of Aaron’s meeting with Sylvia. It would be interesting to see how the Richardsons reacted when they saw the images. And just in case that reaction turned ugly, Toby would be in the bedroom of the suite, so he could respond.
Of course, the Richardsons could be innocent in all of this. Those photos with Sylvia and Milo could be fake. They could be Milo’s attempt at muddying the waters. Or they could be snapshots of desperate parents who’d do anything to get their child back. Still, it was too big of a risk to trust them completely. That desperation could have spurred either Tracy, Aaron or both to cut their own deal with Milo. A deal that involved betraying the FBI and sacrificing Russ and Julia. The Richardsons could have worked things out so they would get the baby, and Milo would get the money—and dibs at killing a federal agent who was trying to bring him down.
The bottom line was that Russ had to be ready for anything.
“It’s been nearly an hour,” Julia pointed out. She was pacing in the new suite and kept glancing out the window. When she wasn’t doing that, she was checking her phone in the hopes that Zoey would call her with an update about Emily.
“They’re on their way,” Russ answered, though time did seem to be crawling by.
He hadn’t realized just how on edge he was, until his phone rang, and he nearly jumped. From the caller ID, he could tell it wasn’t Toby, but someone at FBI headquarters. The number was encrypted and listed as unknown. It was yet another precaution, in case he got such a call in front of one of the suspects.
“Yes?” Russ answered.
“It’s Denny Lord.” Denny was the tech who’d already helped Russ out several times during this investigation. “I have the financials you asked for on the Richardsons. I found a few new things that I didn’t find in our initial background check.”
Probably because the initial check had been just that—initial. Something to rule them out as obvious suspects in the disappearance of their child.
“The couple has about ten million in assets, mainly from Aaron’s trust fund and the business he owns. But I did some checking and found out that Tracy Richardson has some debts in her maiden name. She made some bad investments with her own trust fund and lost nearly everything. I don’t think her husband knows about the losses, because he listed her trust as an asset on a recent application for a loan.”
“Interesting. What kind of loan?” Ru
ss asked.
“One to make improvements to his business. Or maybe a better word would be to salvage it. He’s had some stock market losses, too, and he drained the business profits to cover them.”
“Does his wife know?”
“Hard to tell. The loan wasn’t made through a bank, but rather, through one of Aaron Richardson’s friends who owns an investment company. It’s not off the books, but it’s not a traditional loan, either. In fact, the money they’re using to put up for payment to Milo is from this same source.”
So, the Richardsons were having money flow problems and were borrowing to get back their child. That wasn’t unreasonable. Unless the Richardsons had actually had their own baby kidnapped so they could play the sympathy card with their money-lending friend. The friend could be in the dark and not have any way of knowing that the payoff money was really a payoff to the Richardsons’ debts.
There was a knock at the door. “It’s me, Toby,” the person said, from the other side.
“Finally,” Julia mumbled.
Russ ended the call so he could check the peephole viewer and make sure the agent wasn’t being held at gunpoint or something. But everything looked normal for Toby. Not for the Richardsons though. They looked as if they were about to face a firing squad.
Russ opened the door and ushered them in. “Anyone see you?” he asked Toby.
Toby shook his head and lowered his voice so that the others wouldn’t be able to hear. “Milo’s man is still being held. The guy had an outstanding warrant for writing hot checks. We got lucky.”
And luckier still that Milo hadn’t sent a replacement. Or maybe he had. Maybe one of the Richardsons was working for him, and that’s why Milo hadn’t felt it necessary to send in another henchman.
“Sit,” Russ instructed the couple. He took out the photos and dropped them on the coffee table in front of them. “And explain these.”
Neither Aaron nor Tracy touched them, but they both leaned forward and had a long look. When Tracy saw the one with her husband and Sylvia, her hand flew to her mouth, as if to mask her gasp. Aaron kept his reaction more concealed. He picked up the photo of his wife with Milo and stared at it.
“I met with Sylvia Hartman because I thought she could help me find my son,” Aaron offered.
“What made you think that?” Tracy demanded.
Aaron dodged her gaze. “Because I learned that Sylvia works for the man whom I believe has our child. Milo. But obviously, you already know him.”
Tracy didn’t make another gasp, but it was close. “I can’t believe this—”
Aaron held up the picture, cutting off whatever else she’d been about to say. “You didn’t tell me about this meeting, either. Why did you see this monster?”
Tracy grabbed the other photo of Aaron and Sylvia and pushed it closer to his face. “The same reason you met with this monster.”
“And how did you know they were monsters?” Julia asked, taking the words out of Russ’s mouth. She wasn’t detached from this, either. Judging from the anger in her voice, she didn’t think the Richardsons were innocent.
Aaron looked at Tracy. She looked at him. And he shook his head. “The P.I. I hired to follow you also had Milo followed, after he left Julia and you in the alley at the Silver Dollar bar. When he left there, he went to Sylvia, and that’s how I learned she worked for him.” He glanced at his wife again. “I didn’t tell Tracy that part,” he explained to Russ.
“Because he knew how I would react,” Tracy clarified. “Is Sylvia the woman you’ve been seeing?”
Russ decided it was a good time to stand there and listen.
“I’m not seeing another woman,” Aaron spat out. “I’d never met Sylvia Hartman until I learned she worked for Milo. That’s why I went to see her. I thought I could reason with her.”
“And you didn’t bother to tell me any of this,” Tracy fired back at him.
Aaron only waved the photo again, to remind her that she’d done the same with Milo.
“I met with him because I didn’t think you were doing enough to save Matthew.” She turned her teary eyes toward Julia. “You’re a mother. Certainly you understand I was desperate to get back my child.”
Julia shook her head. “Desperation I understand. But you didn’t think you were putting Matthew in more danger by meeting with a man like Milo?”
“No,” Tracy answered, readily. “I thought I could plead with him or offer him money. But I was wrong. He said he didn’t know anything about my son, that I was mistaken, and I should go to the police.”
Milo might have indeed said that, because Tracy had already been to the police and still didn’t have her son back.
“You offered him money?” Russ wanted to know.
“I did. But he just kept saying he didn’t know anything about my son.” More tears came, and she buried her face in her hands.
“And you?” Russ said, looking at Aaron. “Did you offer Sylvia money?”
“No. She denied knowing anything about Matthew’s kidnapping so I didn’t see any reason to offer her anything.”
“You should have offered her the money!” Tracy practically shouted. “What, were you trying to save a dollar or two, Aaron? Is that it? You’re too cheap to give these people what they want so we can get Matthew back?”
“I want him back.” Aaron didn’t shout, but there seemed to be a storm brewing behind his dust-gray eyes. “But I’m not convinced either Milo or Sylvia has him. If they did, they would be willing to deal with the source, with me, rather than trying to sell him to someone else.”
“Maybe this is Milo’s way of trying to get a higher price,” Russ replied, and Julia nodded. “The longer he waits, the more desperate you become.”
“The more desperate I become,” Tracy mumbled.
“What do you mean by that?” Aaron tossed right back at her.
“It means I don’t think you’re all that interested in getting our son back.”
Aaron didn’t answer that—not verbally, anyway. But he silently hurled daggers at his wife. Tracy’s tears started to flow again, and Julia crossed the room and caught onto the woman’s arm.
“Why don’t you come with me,” Julia said, softly. “You can freshen up in the bathroom.”
Good move. Russ didn’t think Julia had freshening up on her mind. Maybe Tracy would spill more with some girl talk. In the meantime, Russ concentrated on Aaron.
“You’re having an affair?” he asked Aaron, pointblank.
“No.” Aaron paused. “But I’ve had them in the past. Tracy doesn’t trust me.”
“Can you blame her?” Russ poured the man a Scotch from the minibar and took it to him.
“She’s had affairs, too,” Aaron practically whispered, and he downed the drink in one gulp.
Russ sat down next to the man. “Do your former trysts have anything to do with your missing son?”
“No.” He didn’t hesitate, either. “I think the person who took him is greedy and sick. This is about money, not about my personal life.”
“Money and personal lives often cross paths,” Russ reminded him.
“Not in this case.” Aaron met him eye-to-eye. “I didn’t have anything to do with my son’s disappearance. I love him, and despite what my wife says, I want him back. I’ve sold stocks and cashed in investments. I’ve even borrowed from friends to get the money to pay whatever Milo asks. Would I do that if I didn’t love him?”
“I don’t know. Would you?” Russ couldn’t think of a good reason why he would, unless this was some bizarre way of getting his friends to cough up money.
“I won’t continue this conversation without my attorney present.” He stood. “I love my wife, too, but I don’t think she believes that.”
“That might have something to do with your affairs.” Russ stood, as well.
Aaron lifted his shoulder. “Those were a long time ago, on my part, anyway. I don’t think Tracy can say the same.” He paused only long enough to draw a quick bre
ath. “As I said, this interrogation is over, and I’m going to my car. Tell my wife I’ll be waiting for her.”
Russ didn’t stop Aaron when he walked out the door, mainly because he didn’t think the man would add more to his story, or change it. Maybe because he was telling the truth.
Or maybe because he’d rehearsed the lies so well that it just sounded that way.
“Do some checking,” Russ whispered to Toby, “and see if Aaron told the truth about his affairs being old news. I want to know if he’s sleeping with Sylvia.”
Toby nodded but didn’t say anything, because Julia and Tracy came back into the room. Tracy looked around but didn’t seem surprised that her husband wasn’t there.
“He’s in the car,” Russ informed her.
“Of course. Aaron has trouble handling emotional situations. My crying embarrassed him.” Tracy turned to Julia. “Thank you for listening.”
“Anytime.” She gave Tracy a brief hug and walked with the woman to the door. “Remember, call me if you want to talk.”
Julia shut the door behind Tracy and waited, no doubt to give the woman some time to get down the hall and completely out of hearing range.
“Will someone follow them?” Julia asked.
“There’s an agent posted outside the hotel who’ll do that,” Russ explained. “I want both of them in our sights until this meeting with Milo is over.” He stared at Julia. “So, what did you learn from your chat with Tracy?”
“This isn’t exactly a news flash, but the Richardsons are on the verge of a divorce. According to Tracy, she already hired an attorney, and was about to serve Aaron papers when their son went missing.”
Russ gave that some thought. If Aaron was telling the truth about loving his wife, then maybe this was his extreme way of trying to hang on to her. It had certainly delayed the divorce.
Toby checked his watch. “I’ll get started on the things you wanted me to check,” he told Russ. “I have a laptop and some other equipment down in the lobby.” Then the agent glanced around. “Should I use this room, or Ms. Howell’s suite?”
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