Cradle Robber

by Staron, Chris

  The lights blinked on, bright, fluorescent. The man walked right past the entrance to the reception area and into the hallway.

  “I think I left it in room B.” The younger man’s voice echoed down the hall. “That is, if the cleaning lady didn’t throw it out.”

  The lady stood in the center of the waiting area, not ten feet from Wade. “I’ll wait here.”

  “It won’t take a minute.”

  “I don’t see why we couldn’t have gotten it tomorrow,” said the woman, obviously impatient. “It's so hot out there, Harry.”

  What a bind. What could he do if they caught him? Should he try to run? The man was in much better shape than him and could grab Wade without any trouble.

  His legs throbbed from lack of blood. They begged to straighten out, but he didn’t dare move. What would he say? Would they believe he was a vagabond who needed a place to spend the night? No, they would never buy that. It was more likely they’d think he was looking for drugs.

  “Harry? Maybe it’s in the office. Did you check the office?” The woman picked at her nails with her teeth. “The taxi ain’t going to wait forever.”

  “I gave him twenty dollars extra. He’ll wait.”

  “Check the office, Harry.”

  “This would go twice as fast if you were helping.”

  She muttered something under her breath and dug through piles of magazines in the reception area.

  He could get past her. She was petite and, judging from her slurred speech, a little inebriated. He might get out the front door before she even spotted him. But if both of them blocked the entrance to the reception station, there was virtually no way for him to escape. He might overpower the woman, but certainly not the man.

  “I’m not finding it.” Harry marched back, walking toward the entrance.

  “We’ll find it tomorrow.”

  “I told you––I have to drop it off at the post office in the morning or it won’t get there on time.”

  The woman slapped down the pile of magazines she was looking through. “Have the receptionist run it out for you.”

  “She’s got people to look after. I can’t have her bothering with my tasks. It’s got to be here somewhere. Look.”

  “Harry, I am looking.”

  The gentleman’s dark, shiny shoes passed the reception desk again and headed back down the hallway. Wade’s legs tingled. The pain was almost unbearable.

  Hold on, Wade. They’ll find what they’re looking for and they’ll leave. Two more minutes and they’re gone. Don’t be foolish. There’s no reason to panic.

  The office chair next to Wade moved an inch, emitting a deafening SQUEAK. The woman spun on her heels, fixated on the chair. Wade froze and held his breath.

  Seconds passed, seconds that felt like hours. Wade braced himself to run, prepared to make a dash for the window he forced open at the back of the building.

  The woman turned back to the magazines on the coffee table.

  “I didn’t leave it in the magazines,” the man shouted from the back.

  “I’m looking in case.”

  “In case what? In case I stuck a two thousand dollar rent check inside a fashion magazine?”

  “It could happen. You know how absentminded you get.”

  “Please….”

  The man’s shoes clicked to the reception area. They were five feet away, shining in the greenish glow of the lights. If Wade reached out he could almost touch the man’s legs.

  “Just….” Harry turned toward the reception desk. He pulled the chair out and stood with one knee perched on it, leaving Wade exposed. “Go back to the taxi and I’ll meet you there in two minutes. If I can’t find it in two minutes I’ll leave.”

  Nowhere to hide. The chair, his protection, was gone. If the stranger sat down and put his legs into the foot well he would surely notice the grown man huddled under the desk.

  “Fine,” she said, stamping her feet. “Two minutes and I’m running off with the taxi driver.”

  Harry leaned back on his knee. “Fine by me. My blessing to your future children. Give me a minute.”

  The chair squeaked and pressed into the well, centimeters from Wade’s body. He retreated as far as possible, but there was no place for him to go. The man shuffled through the files Wade left on top of the counter. He flicked through each of the paper stacks, shaking them.

  “Come on, come on.…” growled the man through clenched teeth.

  A thin white envelope with a plastic window fell from the stack and hit the ground. It stopped two feet away. Harry bent down and picked up the letter. If he turned his head a few degrees….

  “There you are,” said the man, flicking the check with his middle finger. “And that’s why you shouldn’t pay your bills when you’re drunk.” Harry exited the reception area and headed for the door. The terror drained from Wade’s face. A wave of relief rolled over him. He started to breathe again, but it took everything he could muster to keep his legs under the desk.

  A loud click and the lights went out once again, blanketing the office with the relative safety of dark shadows. Keys ground in the lock as the man shouted in celebration.

  “I found it. See? Wasn’t in the magazines after all.” They were outside. The lock twisted. “We need to get this lock changed. It’s dangerous to have a lock like this.”

  Wade stretched his legs. Pain surged in his extremities. It was a miracle they didn’t see him. The pain. It hurt so bad, like pins and needles in his feet.

  That was a close one, old boy. Let’s not make that mistake again.

  Wade rolled to his knees. With help from the desktop, he raised himself to his feet. Files lay scattered across the desk. Time to get back to work.

  He found information on an Asian teenager who came in for a consultation, a career woman in her mid-thirties who was there for a medical exam after an operation, and several with little extra data. Pay dirt came when he found records of a woman on whom a procedure was performed. She was the only person operated on that day. He flipped through the operation file and set the others aside.

  The child was extracted a little more than two months into the pregnancy. It was a healthy fetus growing at a normal rate when it was removed from the womb and “disposed of.” Wade’s heart sank at this loss of life. He paused for a few moments before continuing. A short distance from where he sat, in a doctor’s office that could have belonged to any pediatrician, the life of an innocent was taken. And the only memorials that remained were a few sheets of white copy paper without so much as a photograph in remembrance. The child never had a name, or a social security number, and was only referenced as “the fetus.”

  Wade climbed back out the window from which he’d entered the clinic not half an hour earlier. He'd photocopied key elements of the documents and placed the folders back in their original haphazard arrangement on the desk. While there, he took the liberty of copying documents from a dozen other cases in case he got bored in the future. Addresses, phone numbers, occupations, and counseling records all sewn into a special pocket in his coat. He escaped down the alley armed with information that could lead to the justice of many. But to onlookers, he was just another man roaming the streets, waiting for the sun to rise on his sins.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  A knock at the door. What kind of person visited at nine in the morning?

  Wade looked down at his old pajama pants and hole-ridden t-shirt. He hadn’t shaved or brushed his teeth.

  Another knock. Wade stood from his office chair, but didn’t move beyond his work area. Yes, he should probably open the door. But what if he got distracted by another crazy outing with Tom and Linda? There was so much to do. Wu waited on the line from Seattle. They needed more software updates on the transporter and a laser reconfiguration. Could he really ignore the Department of Defense?

  “I don’t think he’s in there,” came a woman’s voice from outside. Linda.

  “Sure he is. Where else would he go?” Tom. The Grier
sons were outside, up to more shenanigans. Once they caught him at home, they never let him work. They nagged until they got their way. Better to remain quiet and hope they leave.

  Tom walked into the flowerbeds trying to peek through the windows, his shadow projected on the heavy curtains.

  “I’ll try it one more time, then I’m busting the door down. You hear that Wade? We know you’re in there. I’m busting the door down.”

  Wade remained stock still. No, he couldn’t go with them, not today.

  WHAM. The front door bent in, held back by the deadbolt. WHAM. It bowed again.

  Tom was busting down the door.

  Wade rushed to the foyer and opened the door moments before another hit.

  Tom and Linda stood side by side on his little cement porch. They wore matching blue shorts with yellow Hawaiian t-shirts. Ode de sunscreen wafted into the house. Birds chirped. Sunshine stung Wade’s eyes. How long since he had stepped out in the daylight? Not at all since the abortion clinic fiasco.

  Linda reached in and grabbed him by the arm. “Get dressed, because you’re coming with us. This is a kidnapping.”

  Tom clutched the other arm. They yanked at him, giggling. This was their idea of fun. Fun. No, Seattle and the DOD couldn’t handle it. He should work on the transporter. They were weeks behind on their live animal tests. Wade was the only technician to—

  “I’m sorry.” Wade hung his head like a repentant child who broke a window. “I can’t. I have so much to do today.”

  “On a Saturday?” Linda put her hands on her hips. “I’m not buying it. The rest of Indiana is out enjoying the sun. You’re going to do it whether you like it or not.”

  Tom pulled his arm again. “Get a swimsuit, a towel, and a change of clothes. And for goodness sakes, throw on some deodorant. We’ve got company.”

  Company? What was he talking about? Wade leaned out the door jam. The Greiersons’ minivan sat in his driveway, engine running. In the middle seat he saw a dark shadow.

  A woman.

  Wade’s objections disappeared. They brought another “friend” for him to meet. Could he really bail on Wu?

  Of course he could.

  Wade blushed. “You guys didn’t have to do this.” He sank back into the house.

  “Get your stuff. This is a kidnapping, or else.” Linda removed a bright orange water pistol from her back pocket and sprayed it into his gaping mouth.

  Wade raised his hands in surrender, muttered an agreement, and ducked back inside, careful to close the door behind him. The place was a wreck. No matter, he’d take care of that later. He typed in his password to tell Wu that he would not continue their video chat. Then he ran to the bathroom. Not enough time for a shower. How long since he last bathed? Two, maybe three days?

  He rolled on a thick layer of deodorant, washed his face, and brushed his teeth. A haircut was in order, but he wasn’t about to do that while they waited. He practiced his smiles in the mirror for the mystery woman. Was she pretty? Would she like him?

  Where were his swim trunks? He hadn’t taken a dip in so long. Did he even have a swimsuit? Wade pulled all of the drawers out of his dresser, flinging clothes everywhere. At the back of the sock drawer he found a faded, drawstring-style pair of shorts. They would have to do.

  A towel on his shoulder, Wade dashed out the door, happy for the first time in weeks. Happy! Going to go to the lake with friends. They’d made a special trip to see him and they brought a blind date to boot. What a thing.

  Tom guided him to the minivan, his arm around Wade’s shoulder.

  “Okay, we expect you two to play nice.” Tom leaned in, inches from Wade’s ear, whispering the details. “She works at the hospital, never married. A really sweet girl. Kind of shy.”

  They were close to the van now. The shadow inside the car flicked her hair.

  Wade straightened his posture, head high, stretching out his flabby chin. A full day of fun, food, and laughs. Minutes earlier he huddled over his computer station, and now he was free.

  Linda opened the sliding door of the minivan. Inside was a woman with dark curly hair. She was thin, a little shorter than him. Her soft blue eyes sparkled as her lips curled into a smile.

  Something was familiar.…

  Oh no, it couldn’t be. Instinct dug his heels into the ground, stopping him three feet from the van. He struggled to keep his legs under him. Was he going to pass out?

  No way, it couldn’t be her.

  There, staring at him from across the minivan seat, was Traci, Carter’s mother. She was healthier than the last time he’d seen her on the porch after the abortion. Color was in her cheeks. Her once dead hair bounced on her shoulders. The traces of nicotine were gone from her fingernails which were painted a light pink.

  Did she recognize him? She couldn’t. She hadn’t seen him in thirty years.

  Linda clasped her hands together. “Wade, I’d like you to meet my friend from small group. Traci, this is Wade Rollins.”

  Traci leaned over the seat and offered her hand. “Pleased to meet you, Wade.”

  Her eyes glistened with innocence. A nice smile. No, she didn’t know who he was. What a relief. He relaxed his body and forced himself to smile, taking Traci’s hand in his own.

  Wade squeezed her palm. “Pleasure to meet you.” It was cordial, pleasant. Good. He’d somehow managed to recover. Of all of the people in the world to run into, he never suspected Traci.

  She was bright, healthy, aware. Did Tom say she worked at the hospital? He did. That meant she used the money he gave her to get an education. She bettered herself and now…, now she was his blind date.

  Wade slid into the seat next to Traci, careful to sit as far away from her as was polite. They shut the side door and Tom hopped behind the wheel.

  Linda turned around in the co-pilot seat and stared at the two of them. How embarrassing. “This is a kidnapping. We aren't telling you where were going. You're our prisoners.”

  Small talk, Wade needed to make small talk. “Judging by the swimming clothes and picnic basket, I’d say we’re going to the lake. You didn’t leave too many options.”

  “Oh, didn’t we? Okay..., well, you're our prisoners, and so you have to listen to what we tell you. You're going to have a good time or else.” Linda waved the squirt gun between the two captives and then faced forward, beaming from ear to ear. “We're so excited to have you two join us, get some fresh air. Wade, you don't get outside near enough.”

  The vehicle slipped down the driveway while they sat in silence. Beads of perspiration rolled down Wade’s back. Was she really the same person he convinced to have an abortion? He tried to sneak a glance. Yes––the same hair, same mouth, same eyes. Traci sat straight in her chair and spoke soft, much quieter than she did when they last met.

  Time treated Traci well, better than the first time around. In another world she was too burned out to care about personal hygiene. Now she looked healthy, muscular, with the figure of a runner.

  “Angie sends her love,” said Tom looking back in the rearview mirror. “She wishes she could come, but baby Jake’s doctor couldn’t reschedule.”

  Wade pulled the seat belt loose to get some more air. “Is he okay? Goes to the doctor a lot for a four-year- old, huh?”

  “He’s fine. A dental cleaning. Still, she wanted to come.”

  Traci turned to him. “You like kids?”

  Could he look her in the eyes? Yes, of course.

  Wade locked to her gaze, instantly lost in her baby blues. “I think they're very important to our future.”

  # # #

  The small park covered two square miles of forested land with three or four open spots large enough for family gatherings, pickup baseball games, and a small lake for swimming and fishing. A place straight out of Wade's memory. So many good memories were made here with Linda. Before Carter. Before everything got so complicated.

  They canoed across the lake to a secluded spot where they swam without fighting the crowds. L
inda served salty fried chicken with salad, soda, and cookies for dessert, still warm to the touch. Two heron searched for food off shore. The Greiersons chatted about their recent trip to Florida to visit his parents while Wade stole glances at Traci. Every now and again she caught his gaze and he looked away like a teenager with a crush. She was stunning. Too good to believe.

  After lunch they canoed across the warm lake to a dirt trail that wound through the trees. The married couple walked in front, hand in hand, leaving the single people to take up the rear. She was only two feet from him. At one point their hands brushed against each other and they pulled them away in a hurry.