by Aimée Thurlo
“Oh, yeah. I work mainly in the mornings and goof off in the afternoon and evenings.”
“What do you do for a living, Mr. Biddle?”
Ricky gave him a suspicious look. “Who are you? The IRS?”
“It’s okay, Ricky,” Amanda said. “He’s a friend.”
Ricky’s shoulder sagged slightly. “I develop and program computer games. Have you ever played Cannibal Cafeteria?”
Tony stared at the guy, wondering what, exactly, he found so irritating about him. “No, I’m not much into games.”
“Well, Cannibal is one of the most popular simulations on the market,” Ricky said with a shrug.
“Did you happen to see someone hanging around here earlier, or maybe notice an unfamiliar car speeding down the road?”
“No, I wish I had.” Ricky glanced at Amanda. “I’ll come by and check on you every once in a while, if that will help.”
“Thanks, but it’s really not necessary, Ricky,” Amanda answered. “I’m sure this was an isolated incident.”
Tony watched Biddle. He was continually glancing around, unable to stand still, like some hyperkinetic kid. Tony schooled his face into polite neutrality and used his best authoritative tone. “Everything’s under control here, Mr. Biddle.”
Amanda led Ricky back toward the door. “Thanks for stopping by, Ricky. I’ll make sure to call you later, okay?”
“Do that.”
“Okay. It’ll be just as soon as I have a free moment.”
Once Ricky left, Amanda went over to Tony. “What exactly were you trying to pull? Didn’t you think I’d have enough sense to know that Ricky would be in the way if the kidnappers called?”
“I was taking charge of the situation before any problems cropped up.” That was only a partial reason. The fact was he didn’t want Biddle around Amanda, though he was at a loss to explain why he’d taken such an instant dislike to the guy.
Bernice began working pieces of glass loose from the window frame in preparation for covering the hole. “Ricky makes me nervous every time I see him.”
“He’s okay,” Amanda said with a thin smile. “He just tries too hard. The poor guy works and lives all alone. All he seems to have for company is that rottweiler of his. He’s probably just lonely.”
Tony shrugged. “Does he come by your house often?”
Amanda shook her head. “Not that it’s any of your business, but I haven’t encouraged that.”
Tony nodded, relieved to hear it. His possessive feelings surprised him. He certainly had no personal claims on Amanda. Yet somehow she’d managed to get under his skin in a way no one had for a very long time.
As Bernice left the room to find a broom and dustpan Hope came into the room. Amanda smiled at her reassuringly. “It’s okay, Peanut. I’ll be in your room in just a few minutes. Will you wait for me there?”
Hope nodded wordlessly then ran down the hall. Amanda’s gaze stayed on her as if she was torn between making her home safe for her daughter or rushing to her side.
Tony placed a hand on her shoulder, and as their eyes met, blood thundered in his veins. “Go take care of your daughter. I’ll clean up the glass.”
Tony bent down, gathering the pieces into his palm. He needed to put some distance between himself and Amanda. He was finally starting to hope he’d get his daughter back and his brain was going soft from the strain. The last thing he needed was any complications. He needed to stay focused on Carmen. That was all there was to it.
As Raymond’s car pulled up outside, Amanda returned and met him by the front door. With a wave of the hand, she invited him in.
“I stopped at a friend’s house and borrowed his caller ID device,” Raymond said. “Let me get it set up for you, okay?”
“Sure.” Amanda showed him to the phone in the living room.
Hearing footsteps and the clicking sound of a dog’s nails against the tile floor, Amanda turned around. Hope was standing in the hall wearing her pajamas, hanging on to Winston’s collar. The dog stared at both Tony and Raymond, then took a step forward, positioning himself in front of Hope.
“Mommy, come back. I’m scared,” Hope said, big tears running down her cheeks.
Amanda hurried over to put her arms around her daughter. “Don’t be. There’s nothing for you to be frightened of,” she said softly. “We’re okay, Peanut.”
As Tony looked from Amanda to her daughter, a knot formed in his gut. Amanda and Hope belonged together. The love they shared marked them as a family. They shared something he would have given everything to have—something he’d quite possibly lost forever.
A slow ache continued gnawing at his insides as he heard Amanda comforting Hope. To his surprise, he found himself walking around the dog, despite a throaty warning growl, and crouching down beside them.
“Hope, honey, please don’t cry,” he said gently. “Sometimes bad people act mean, but there are always good people around to make things come out okay.”
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Raymond’s surprised face and Amanda’s expression of disbelief. Even Bernice had stopped looking for glass and was watching him. Well, what the hell. They could think whatever they pleased. Hope had stopped crying.
“You’re a good guy?” she asked, looking up at his face.
“Yep, I sure am. Though sometimes people don’t know that right away.”
“Why?” Hope moved away from Amanda and toward Tony.
“I guess it’s because I’m not always polite and nice,” Tony said softly. “But if they look past that, they find I’m okay to have around.”
Hope smiled at Tony, then gave him a hug.
Tony saw Amanda’s jaw drop. He felt as stunned as she looked. “We’re friends?”
“I like you, Tony.” Hope disentangled herself and looked up at Amanda. “He’s not a stranger anymore. And he looked like he needed a hug. It’s okay, right? You told me that grown-ups need hugs sometimes, too.”
Amanda smiled. “It’s okay, Peanut.”
“Can we play?” Hope looked at Tony.
“In a little bit, all right? Let me fix this window for your mom first.”
Bernice moved next to Tony as Amanda took Hope back to her room, Winston by their side. “You may have convinced Hope and Amanda,” she whispered, “but I’ll be watching you, mister.”
No longer needed, Raymond excused himself and left. Bernice, on the other hand, seemed determined to remain as long as Tony was there. They worked side by side, removing every trace of glass and taping together pieces of cardboard shoe boxes to repair the window.
Tony finished the section he’d been working on, aware of the way Bernice was watching him out of the corner of her eye. When he glanced past her, he noticed Amanda was standing by the phone, lost in thought. “What’s wrong?”
“I think I should report this incident to the police. It’ll make it easier to file a claim with my homeowner’s insurance.”
Her unspoken question came through to him clearly. She didn’t want to jeopardize the situation if he thought this was connected to the kidnappers. But it was more than that, too. She was being careful around him, like someone would be around a ticking bomb. The knowledge knifed at him. It didn’t seem so long ago that people had turned to him for assurance.
“Go ahead and call,” he said. “It can’t hurt anything at this point, though I don’t think the police will be able to do much except file a report.”
Tony continued working with Bernice as Amanda called and answered routine questions over the phone. The bright patchwork of cardboard they had put together effectively covered up the hole.
“Well, it’s colorful, that’s for sure. I wish I had found some sturdier cardboard, but the shoe boxes will do for now,” Bernice said.
Amanda finally hung up the phone. “They said they’d be here in thirty minutes to take a report, but the officer said that they don’t generally have much luck tracing acts of vandalism.”
“That’s the same response I
got when my tires were slashed,” Bernice said, shaking her head. “I guess all these cuts in the city budget are beginning to take their toll.”
Amanda saw Bernice glance at her watch and knew what was on her friend’s mind. “Why don’t you go home, Bernice? I know Phil’s going out of town tomorrow, and you’ve got things to do.”
“It’s just one of his overnight business trips. Why don’t you and Hope come over and keep me company?” Bernice asked.
Amanda shook her head. “I can’t. I’ve got things to do here.” She gestured to the front window.
“Then let me take Hope with me. She can sleep over. You know how much Phil and I like having her. And she loves having Winston sleep with her.”
Amanda laughed. “I can’t really say that’s a selling point with me, but okay. It’ll give me a chance to make sure I find all the pieces of glass.”
It only took a few minutes to pack an overnight bag for Hope. The little girl gave Amanda a hug and a kiss, then turned to Tony and gave him a hug, too. “Take care of my mommy, even if she’s crabby. She’s really nice, once you know her.”
Tony laughed. “I’ll do that.”
“You just mind yourself,” Bernice said, her glare icy as it focused on Tony.
Tony nodded, his expression neutral as he watched Hope, Bernice and the big dog walk out to the car. “That woman obviously doesn’t like me,” Tony said to Amanda as soon as they were alone.
“Do you blame her? She’s protective about me.” Her gaze strayed to the tape recorder next to her phone. “You should come with a warning label.”
“The choice to have you involved wasn’t mine.” Those words brought to mind the one question that continued to prey on his mind. Tony didn’t believe in coincidences, he never had. Amanda was tied into all this somehow, and he didn’t have much time to figure out what her connection was. Maybe the bug he’d decided to plant just as soon as he had time alone would reveal what he needed to know.
As Tony helped her search for stray pieces of glass, his eyes scanned the room, always vigilant. “You have a terrific kid,” he said, hoping to make Amanda relax. Maybe then she would lower her guard and reveal more about herself. He needed to get a handle on her that didn’t involve the one weak point he’d seen—her daughter. He and Amanda had one thing in common—their determination to keep children safe. He just didn’t bother to pretty things up with a lot of fancy, useless rules and regulations.
“Hope is a wonderful little girl,” she answered, “but she’s so very vulnerable. She needs protection and love. I intend to see that she gets both.”
She was warning him off, like a lioness protecting her cubs. She’d do whatever was necessary to keep him away from her child. In that one respect, they were more alike than she knew. “Hope is one very lucky little girl.”
“I think you better be going, don’t you? The police will be arriving soon.”
“I can handle them. I’m here with your permission.”
“Yes, but I’d rather not have anyone link you and me, particularly with you here at this hour. This police department is a small one and rumors travel fast. Two of the parents at the day school are cops, and I don’t want them to get wind of this.”
Amanda’s telephone rang just as she finished speaking. Tony felt the hair on the back of his neck stand on end—a sure sign he’d learned never to ignore. “Remember to write down the number that flashes on the caller ID,” he said, automatically moving toward the extension. “The system will store the number in memory, but it’s better to have a hard copy.”
She glanced at the number marked Pay Phone that appeared on the LED display. She jotted it down.
With a nod, Tony picked up the extension at the same time Amanda did. The electronically altered voice had the same effect on him as fingernails on a chalkboard. He heard Amanda argue briefly as the woman moved up the deadline they’d given him to get the file. Now she wanted it by the end of tomorrow. Amanda protested, but the woman hung up abruptly.
Amanda gave the phone a hostile glance, then slammed it down. “So much for trusting them to keep their word.”
“I had a feeling she’d call tonight and find some way to keep the pressure up. These variations of routine and changes of plans are meant to keep us off-balance. This person knows what she’s doing.”
“Can you get the file they want?”
“I think so.” Tony dialed Raymond’s direct number. “Track this pay-phone number, will you?” he said without identifying himself. He read out the number, then added, “Use my cellular when you call back.” Tony hung up and glanced at Amanda. “I’m going to take the tape with me—”
Flashing red lights suddenly could be seen through the smaller side windows that hadn’t been broken. Amanda’s eyes grew wide. “It hasn’t been twenty minutes! What a time for them to become efficient! Now what?”
“I’ll duck into your garage and wait there. My pickup’s in your driveway, so with luck, they’ll assume it’s yours,” he said, deciding to leave the tape where it was for now.
Through a crack in the door, Tony watched Amanda greet the officer and usher him inside. The officer stepped in, looked around, and then asked her a few routine questions meant to give him some leads. Getting nothing useful, he held out the report while she signed it.
“I’m afraid that we have very little to go on,” he said. “Our chances of catching the person or persons connected to this are slim.”
“I know,” she admitted.
“We’ll increase patrols in this area, and if you have any more problems, give us a call.”
Tony waited until Amanda closed the front door before coming out. His patience was strained to its limit. Glancing out the front door to make sure the officer was gone, he went to his car and retrieved his cellular phone. He joined her back inside a moment later.
Amanda gave him a worried glance. “What if Raymond already called you?”
Tony shook his head. “It takes longer than that to track down a number, particularly at this time of night. We have a few minutes more to wait.” He walked to the tape recorder and rewound the message. “Help me listen for background sounds. See if there’s anything significant.” In his own mind, Tony blocked out the dialogue, concentrating. Finally he shut off the recorder.
“All I could hear was what sounded like traffic,” Amanda said.
“Same here.”
His cellular phone rang just as he finished speaking. Raymond confirmed that the number matched a pay phone and gave him an address. “Let me go over there,” Raymond said. “Maybe I can dust for prints and get something.”
“No, no way. They may be watching the booth, waiting for my next move. They expect me to have some contacts. Finding out I traced the call shouldn’t come as too big a surprise. Seeing me there won’t be, either. On the other hand, having my former partner show up might scare them off. I don’t want them to know you’re involved. And, again, don’t tell anyone at the Bureau about any of this. We don’t know who might feed information to these bastards,” Tony said, writing down the address. “I’ll take care of this. All I need you to do is meet me tomorrow so we can go to your office, as we agreed.” Once again, regret flooded over him. His planned betrayal could cost him the best friend he’d ever had.
“I’m going, too,” Amanda said, looking at the address he’d written down.
“Why? There’s no reason for you to come.”
“That address is about a block from my day-care center. If someone’s throwing rocks at my house, they might have done something worse at the center. Don’t try to talk me out of it. I’m coming,” she answered flatly.
Tony decided against arguing. The lady had a mind of her own. If he said no, she’d probably just follow him. He didn’t really have a choice, and at least this way he could keep an eye on her. He’d find out nothing useful unless she relaxed. Maybe pretending to confide in her would help.
As they got underway, he glanced over at Amanda. He had to find some way
of getting her to lower her guard around him. “I don’t think we’re being followed, and that’s a good sign. I don’t expect to find anything at the phone booth, but I’ve got to make a show of going there to look around and dust for prints. These people will expect me to have a few tricks up my sleeve and connections to check out things like fingerprint records. If I don’t act as they expect, they’ll get nervous, thinking I’ve got some master plan in the works or something.”
“I wonder how they’ll react to my coming along?” Amanda’s voice was hesitant, as if she had suddenly become unsure of herself.
“How else could you keep an eye on me?” Tony suggested, watching her reaction carefully.
Amanda glanced at him, startled. “Does an intermediary do that?”
“Sometimes.”
Tony gave her an appraising glance, then focused his attention back on the road. He could see the lines of worry that sharpened her face in response to the thoughts she was keeping hidden from him. Amanda seemed determined to keep him at arm’s length, though he was doing his best to disarm her. He knew women found him attractive, and he’d always managed to get what he wanted. Until now. He fought the urge to pull over to the side of the road and kiss her until she went soft in his arms, her reserve shattered.
The thought suddenly gave way to another realization. That impulse had nothing to do with finding a key to making Amanda more cooperative with his investigation. Exasperated with himself, he clenched the steering wheel tightly.
“You don’t allow yourself to need anyone, do you?” he asked.
She shrugged. “Certainly not people I don’t know.”
“Like me?”
“All I know about you is that in one day you’ve turned everything in my life upside down.”
She had a point. “If you want to know anything about me, ask.”
He saw the questions crossing her face. She studied him for a moment, then with a more guarded expression, shook her head. He couldn’t be sure, but her reluctance made him think that she’d decided making him angry was not to her best advantage. “You’re a man of secrets,” she said. “I know the type, believe me. I could ask you a million questions and never get any genuine information.”