���Why wouldn’t they be?���
���Some of these kids were born to single mothers, some to lesbian couples, some to married couples. In cases involving the latter, there may be a bit of touchiness on the part of the dads, if their infertility was the reason the moms went the donor route in the first place. The kids might be sensitive to that, might be afraid that their dads could be hurt if they knew the kid was looking for the sperm donor.���
���But those kids might not want to seem like the wet blanket when their donor siblings were all stoked about the possibility of finding Donor 1735.���
���Exactly.���
���You think one of these kids could be involved in Belinda’s disappearance?��� he asked.
���I think there’s a very good chance that Belinda’s disappearance is connected to her involvement with her donor siblings. It’s premature to say how it’s related, but I definitely think there’s a connection. I just have to figure out what that connection is.���
���We,��� he corrected. ���We have to figure it out.���
���And you went on the foundation’s payroll, when?��� She raised an eyebrow.
���You’re going to want me along when you talk to these kids, right?���
���Hadn’t planned on it.��� Emme frowned. ���But for the record, why would I want to do that?���
���Because I’m the uncle. Her legal guardian. It gives the whole questioning-the-kids thing credibility.���
���I’m not seeing that connection. And besides,��� she added, her eyes on the road straight ahead. ���They think you’re a perv.���
���Yeah, well, we’re going to get to the bottom of that real fast.��� Nick looked justifiably annoyed. ���I’d sure love to know which of them started that nasty little rumor.���
���I’m sure it was just speculation, like Hayley said. They were just looking for a reason why she might have run away.���
���Why would they have assumed that she’d run away, I wonder?���
���Because it’s easier for them to think she’d gone off on her own, than for them to think that she was abducted by someone who meant her harm. Especially if it was someone connected to them.���
���What do you think, Emme?��� Nick asked quietly. ���What do you really think happened to her?���
She hesitated. ���I honestly don’t know. I don’t think she’s a runaway, if that’s what you’re asking. I do believe she was taken against her will.���
���Do you think she’s alive?���
���I don’t know.��� She owed him an honest answer. ���The odds are against it, though. I know you understand that.���
He nodded slowly. ���I know that after five months it’s not looking too good.���
���I’m sorry, Nick. I hate to assume the worst has happened, but������
���Yeah, I know. I still want to find her. I still want to know what happened to her.���
She was about to assure him that they’d do their best to make that happen when her phone rang. She glanced at the number before she answered, then looked at the clock. It was well after six.
Shit. Chloe.
���This is Emme,��� she said with a sigh.
���Emme, it’s Trula. I just wanted to know if it’s okay with you if Chloe has dinner with us here at the house.���
���Oh, God, I am so sorry, Trula.��� Emme blew out a long breath. ���I didn’t think we’d be quite this long.���
���Now, don’t be sorry. You have a job to do. And I appreciate you letting me borrow this girl for a few hours. We’ve had a dandy time this afternoon��� wait a second there, Chloe would like to say something.���
���Hola, Mommy!��� Chloe sang into the phone. ���That means ���Hello, Mommy,��� in Spanish.���
���Where did you learn that, sweetie?���
���At school today. And know what else I can say? Tu eres muy linda. That means ���You are very pretty,������ Chloe said proudly.
���Well, that’s certainly a lot for one day.��� Emme couldn’t help but notice how perfect Chloe’s accent was. If she said it pleased her that her nursery school teacher was teaching the kids a little Spanish, she’d be lying. Anything remotely connected to Chloe’s father would be objectionable. Then again, Spanish was a great language to know. Emme was fairly fluent herself. And to be fair to Chloe, she would someday need to know about her own heritage.
���Mommy? Are you there?���
���I’m here, sweetie.���
���Me and Trula made muffins with walnuts in them. Robert ate one and said it was his favorite muffin ever.���
���You mean Mr. Magellan,��� Emme corrected her.
���No, I mean Robert. He said to call him Robert.���
There was no arguing with the boss.
���Okay. Robert, then. Chloe, please put Trula back on the phone.���
���Okay, bye.��� Chloe giggled and passed the phone to Trula.
���Again, I apologize for being so late, Trula. And judging from this traffic, it will be another hour at the very least before I get back to pick her up.���
���No rush, dear. We’re all going to have a nice dinner and then we’re going to practice printing our C’s.���
���Trula, you don’t have to do that.���
���Nonsense. My C’s could use a little spiffing up. We’ll see you when you get here and we’ll have some dinner saved for you.���
���Bless you, Trula. When I asked if you’d mind picking her up today, I had no idea I’d be so late,��� Emme said before she realized that Trula had already moved on.
���A problem?��� Nick asked after Emme slipped her phone back into her pocket.
���I guess not. Robert Magellan’s housekeeper-I say housekeeper because I don’t know what else to call her-is entertaining my daughter until I get back to pick her up. Or maybe Chloe is entertaining Trula, I’m not sure.��� She smiled in spite of her discomfiture at being late.
���How old is your daughter?���
���She’s four.���
���One of the women who works for me has a four-year-old. That seems to be a fun age. At least, this kid is fun. She likes to help polish the chrome before the cars get picked up.���
���You let a four-year-old touch those valuable classic automobiles you restore?���
���Sure. She’s very careful not to smudge. Better than some of the guys sometimes.��� He smiled. ���They’re always in a hurry, but this kid, never. She takes it very seriously.���
���Well, four seems to be the age of earnestness. Chloe is very much into helping and doing things just right.���
After a few minutes had passed, Nick asked, ���So, are you divorced from her dad?���
���I’ve never been married.���
���Oh.���
���Chloe is adopted,��� she told him. ���I’ve had her since she was only a few days old. She was born on a Friday, and on Monday morning I walked out the front door of the hospital with her in my arms.��� She smiled across the console. ���Long story. The short version is, it was love at first sight.���
���I guess it’s hard sometimes, raising a child by yourself.���
���Only on days like this when work runs over. Thank God for Trula.���
���It’s always good to have a backup,��� he agreed. ���Who backed you up where you used to live?��� Before she could answer, he added, ���You have to be ne
w to the area or you wouldn’t be living in a hotel, right? Unless your house burned down or something like that.���
���We are new to the area, and we haven’t found a permanent place to live yet, so yes, that’s why we’re still in the hotel.��� She nodded. ���It isn’t too bad, other than the fact that it’s Chloe and me in one and a half rooms, not counting the bathroom. There’s a pretty good fitness center, which I haven’t been able to use as much as I’d thought I would, and an indoor pool, which Chloe and I have used several times. And they do have a pretty good restaurant, so we’re able to eat well. Though I’m afraid Chloe is getting spoiled. The chance of me making waffles or pancakes for breakfast every day once we’re in a place of our own? Slim to none.���
���Not a cook?���
���Not really. I do okay, but-truthfully-not my thing. Before Chloe, I ate most of my meals on the run. Now I have to make sure we eat healthy and watch the sugar, which means my days of having leftover cake or brownies for breakfast are over.���
���You eat brownies for breakfast?���
���Doesn’t everyone?���
He laughed, and she found herself liking the sound of it.
They drove a few miles in silence. Finally, Nick asked, ���Are you going to be talking to the parents of the donor kids?���
���I haven’t decided yet,��� she admitted. ���On the one hand, most of these kids are over eighteen, so it’s not a legal issue. On the other, if there is something else going on here, the parents should know about it. I’m just not sure they should hear about it from me.���
���That’s why I think you need me to set up these appointments, take the lead on contacting these kids.���
���I seem to have missed that connection.���
���Because my niece is the one who’s missing. It’s a great cover. Besides, I’m starting to grow on you. You like me.���
���Why do I need a cover?��� She ignored his attempt at humor.
���Because otherwise you, being an official investigator-a private investigator-could create a panic amongst these kids, who are then unlikely to talk to either of us.���
���Panic might be too strong a word,��� she said, ���but I suppose some of the kids might feel uneasy if they knew there was a full-scale investigation going on.���
���You said you thought that some of these kids were contacted by the police when they were checking the phone numbers on Belinda’s cell phone. As I recall, they all denied knowing her, or said the calls were wrong numbers,��� he reminded her. ���Which tells me they didn’t want to be part of any investigation.���
���Possibly. On the other hand, at least one of these kids thinks you’re the reason Belinda is missing.���
When he started to protest, she said, ���And remember that you’ve already contacted these kids via the message board, and no one responded. So I think we’re just going to play this by ear. Sometimes I’ll take the lead, sometimes you will, but when you make the contacts, I tell you what to say. And I tell you what to type in your emails and I’m on the line when you make those calls. I want to hear exactly what’s said and the manner in which they say it. I want to hear the pauses-what’s not said as well as what is said.���
���Fair enough.���
���You won’t mind working from a script if it comes to that?���
���Hey, I did theater when I was in high school.���
���Really? What plays were you in?���
���I had the title role in Harvey,��� he said loftily.
���The title role in Harvey was an invisible rabbit.��� She worked unsuccessfully to control the smile that tilted the corners of her mouth. ���And had no lines.���
���None that you could hear.���
Emme laughed. ���All right. We’ll try it your way and see what happens. But if I think we’re getting off track, or I don’t like the way things are going, I call you off and you don’t argue with me.���
���Okay.���
���Okay what?���
���Okay, if you don’t like the way it goes, you get to shut it down.���
���And shut you out.���
���Right. You get to shut me out.���
���And you don’t argue if that time comes.���
���Right.��� His sigh was loaded with reluctance. ���I won’t argue with you.���
���I call the shots.���
���Sure. You call the shots.���
She smiled in the darkness. Somewhere she’d read the line, ���Promises made in haste are the first to be broken.��� She didn’t believe for a minute that Nick would keep his word.
���So when do we start? And where?��� he asked.
���We start with the email addresses and phone numbers I expect to get from Hayley tonight.��� She checked her rearview mirror before taking the exit that would lead them from I-95 back to Conroy. ���In the morning, I’ll call the chief in Eastwind to see if we can get our hands on the surveillance tapes from the museum, see if we can get a picture of this guy who was stalking Belinda. It could mean something, or nothing.���
���Why don’t you just call the museum and ask to see them?���
���That would constitute a huge security breach for them. The firm that handles the security isn’t going to want anyone to know where their cameras are or what measures they take, and I certainly don’t blame them. The only way we can hope to get a look is by subpoena, and the museum and the security company will probably want to fight that-again, not that I blame them. My guess is that the case will be solved before the legal issues are resolved, but since you never know for sure how things will play out, we’ll get that ball rolling anyway.���
���All right. I can start calling some of these kids. Maybe I can arrange to meet with-���
Emme shot him a loaded glance, and he caught it.
���What?��� he asked.
���Did we not just agree that I call the shots?���
���Well, yes, but������ He held up one hand in surrender. ���Right. Sorry. When you’ve run your own business for as long as I have, you’re used to being in charge. It can make you bossy and impatient at times.��� Nick took a deep breath. ���Just tell me what you want me to do.���
���I think I’m going to like this new Nick.���
���You like men who do whatever you tell them to do?��� He frowned as if the idea was foreign to him.
���There are times when it works for me.���
���I’ll keep that in mind.���
���I’m counting on it.���
He raised an eyebrow, but did not comment further.
���In the meantime, we need a game plan. There are too many questions, too few answers right now. For starters, I think we want to approach the kids who were at the art museum on January twenty-fourth. Maybe one of them will have a better description of the guy Hayley says was flirting with Belle.���
���Hayley said that after lunch, Belinda and one of the other girls went in one direction, the others went somewhere else,��� Nick recalled. ���Maybe she’ll be able to tell us if the guy followed them, and if Belinda spoke with him.���
���That was Ali, I think. So we’ll put her near the top of the list. And then Henry and Lori. Maybe Ali can shed some light on just how far your niece had gotten on her search for their donor, and where Belinda went after they left the group. After that, we go on to the others on the message board, see if anyone knows anything or has heard anything from our missing girl.���
Emme thought for a mo
ment, then added, ���And we need to find this kid, Aaron, to find out exactly what he told Belinda to do that would help her find her donor. I’m pretty sure I saw a reference to him when I was reading through some articles online. I think we need to know, step-by-step, what formula he followed to find his donor, and if he gave those same instructions to your niece.���
���The next obvious question being, if he did, did Belinda follow them?���
���And if she followed, where did they lead?���
THIRTEEN
It took a great deal of patience to sit through the dinner Trula had kept warm. As thoughtful and as much appreciated as that dinner was, and as congenial as the company may have been, Emme was eager to get back to the hotel, settle Chloe for bed, and get to work on her laptop.
Settling Chloe wasn’t easy even after they’d returned to their room. She was wound up from her afternoon with Trula and overtired after having been out a little later than she should have been. It was almost nine before the bedtime storybook had been selected and the story read a sufficient number of times. Finally, Emme tucked Chloe in and turned off the light next to the bed. She retreated quietly to their tiny sitting room and set up her laptop on the desk. Moments later she was skimming her mail.
There, as promised, was the email from Hayley.
Emme opened it and quickly read its contents, pleased to see email addresses for all other eight members of the Donor 1735 message board. Several, however, had no phone listings. She dashed off a reply to Hayley, thanking her for the information and asking about the missing phone numbers. She busied herself on the website of the Philadelphia Museum of Art and awaited a reply. It was forthcoming in minutes.
Will and Wayne don’t have cell phones, their mom doesn’t like them. Go figure. I never had a number for Justin, just email, but I wouldn’t have called him anyway. Jessie must have gotten a new phone when she moved to France ���cause the old number doesn’t work anymore and no one has a new one for her. No one’s heard from her since she moved.
Emme studied the list, then forwarded the email to her work computer so she could print it out in the morning before Nick showed up. She’d called the house and tried to gauge Robert’s feelings on having Nick come to the house to work with her, but he seemed ambivalent. Finally he said, ���Oh, for heaven’s sake, this is not Fort Knox. If you need to work here, there’s a conference room on the second floor. Someone should use it once in a while.���
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