Taken

by Debra Lee

  “You got any real leads here, Al?”

  “Answer my question, Jackson?”

  “You know I’d never do something like this, Al.” Reilly saw Daniels’ chipmunk cheeks begin to shade red. A sure sign the man meant business, which is why Reilly decided he should be more specific with his answer. “I was at home last night. You happy?”

  “I suppose alone too?”

  It was Reilly’s turn to see red. And he glared into Daniels’ steady eyes when he answered. “Alone.”

  Carol tried to conceal her amusement while Mary grew frustrated listening and wanted it to just stop. “If Reilly says he was home, he was home.”

  “I say he has a pretty weak alibi,” Carol said.

  “So where were you last night, Miss Ice Lady?” Reilly shot right back.

  Daniels jumped up and slammed a fist down on his desktop. “Enough.”

  It wasn’t necessarily the word Daniels had used that acquired their full attention, more the tone in which he had said it. It was fierce enough to get the attention of an officer from the outer office as well. He peered around the door Reilly had left hang open when he charged inside Daniels’ office. “Everything okay in here, Chief?”

  “Come in here Officer Brown and bring your notebook.” Once the three year veteran on the force entered the room Daniels glared at Carol and Reilly. “You two step outside. I need to talk to Miss Murray in private.”

  Neither one budged. Instead, they looked at Mary as if the decision was up to her.

  “I’ll be okay,” Mary told them and eased into the chair across from Daniels.

  Once they were gone Daniels returned to his seat, all the while eyeing Mary. “Miss Murray, I want you to give Officer Brown here the names of everyone you’ve come in close contact with these past weeks since you had your baby.”

  “The only person I’ve had contact with that was around when Michael was taken was my grandmother.”

  “And do you think your grandmother took your baby?”

  “Of course not.”

  Mary looked at the young officer who sat down next to her with tablet and pen in hand. Then she looked back across the desk to Daniels. “You really believe whoever took Jena is someone I know, don’t you?”

  “Think about it. I mean, how would a total stranger know the fire escape stairs are outside the baby’s bedroom window?” That is if that’s where the baby was carried out, Daniels kept to himself because he wasn’t ready to come right out and accuse the woman of doing something with her own baby. But Daniels had a feeling that’s what it would eventually come to. “See what I’m saying, Miss Murray?”

  Mary finally did. But she refused to believe it was someone close to her. Then she remembered Elaine’s threat.

  ***

  “For Mary’s sake you suppose we could try bein’ civil to each another?” Reilly put to Carol who paced in front of him as he leaned against the outer wall to Daniels’ office.

  Carol stopped directly in front of him, hazel eyes burning into him. “What’s the matter Reilly; you afraid I’m gonna tell Mare just what a little weasel you really are?”

  Reilly managed to control the strong urge to let her have it right in the kisser. As a matter of fact, he let out an amused chuckle. He knew that would be more infuriating to her than a poke.

  “I think I’ll tell her little man Romeo has this BIG problem called, can’t get it up.”

  Reilly’s blood boiled, but he smiled through clenched teeth. “Even if I’d gagged you and turned off the lights I’d have gone limp. Climbin’ on top of a cold reptile has a way of doin’ that to a guy. Any guy.”

  Crack!

  Reilly forgot to duck and felt the sting of her hand smack into his cheek. On impulse he drew back to let her have it, but before he could throw his fist forward, not that he would have, the door to Daniels’ office swung open and Mary emerged.

  ***

  Inside the chief’s office Daniels waited until he saw the Murray woman head for the building’s exit before he turned to Officer Brown. “There goes our number one suspect.”

  “The baby’s mother?”

  “Of course the mother. Had a case similar to this one when I was working in the city. Found the kid in the trunk of his mother’s car.”

  “But the Murray woman doesn’t have a car according to Detective Rogers.”

  “Where is Kelly anyway?”

  The young officer shrugged his shoulders. “Not sure. He said he had a few things to check out last I heard.”

  “Well find him. Then get someone to go with you and bring in that Frederick woman.”

  Officer Brown hesitated. It was as if he wanted to ask something, but wasn’t sure he should. Daniels sensed as much.

  “Somethin’ you wanted to say, Brown?”

  He stammered. “If you think the Murray woman did something with her baby why do you want me to bring in the Frederick woman?”

  “Cover our asses. Now go.”

  Those last words had Brown scrambling for the door until Daniels’ next words slowed him down. “Oh and Brown, see if we have an old unsolved murder case for a Michael Murray.”

  Once Officer Brown was gone Daniels closed himself inside his office. He needed time alone to think. And the more he did the more uncomfortable he felt about putting the Murray woman at the top of his list of suspects.

  He studied the list of around a dozen names Brown had scribbled down as the Murray woman tried to remember who she’d had contact with since her baby’s birth.

  Following his gut instinct had always worked in the past for him. And in this case Daniels’ gut was telling him it was no stranger who snatched the Murray kid. If not the Murray woman though, then it was someone on that list. And he was counting on Kelly Rogers singling out the right someone.

  Knowing Kelly as he did it wouldn’t surprise Daniels if he turned up with the kid. Hopefully alive and well. But he knew that was completely out of Kelly’s hands.

  Chapter Twenty

  Kelly Rogers waited until the officer loaded the k-9 into the SUV before he crossed the parking lot to his old Impala.

  It was already noon and he didn’t have anything more substantial than what he had started with hours earlier. Maybe the fingerprints lifted from the crib and windowsill would give him more to go on.

  The Murray kid was taken out the bedroom window and down the fire escape. That he was certain. What the Murray woman had suspected, the dog had confirmed. There was something else the k-9 had made Kelly aware of. The dog lost the kid’s scent in the parking lot, several yards from where Kelly leaned against a dinted fender.

  He pulled the cocktail-sized straw from the pocket of his overcoat and began chewing on it. A cigarette would taste a lot better. Might even help speed up the process of untangling the web of questions spinning inside his head. But Kelly didn’t have a cigarette.

  This time when he decided to quit smoking cold turkey he made up his mind he was going to make it. Besides, he didn’t need a cigarette to crack this case. But he did need a lot more than the possibility the kid was taken away by a vehicle that had been parked a few yards away.

  He caught sight of the apple red sports car pulling into the lot as he ducked inside his car. Kelly watched it pull into the space the k-9 had stopped next to. He decided to wait around to see who got out. At least once he shoved aside the empty take-out bag and Styrofoam cup from the dash where they blocked his view.

  The Murray woman got out on the passenger’s side. He didn’t recognize the woman crawling out from behind the wheel. He didn’t think she was one of the building’s tenants though. He had questioned all of the tenants, except for the woman in 2B. But he was told she was a senior citizen and had been away for the night.

  Away where? Kelly had scribbled in his pocket-sized notepad he made a habit of carrying around with him. Though he’d never admit his memory wasn’t as sharp as it was thirty years ago when he started out as a patrolman, having the notepad as backup had saved his ass mo
re than once this past year.

  Kelly waited until the women went inside the building before turning over the key. Nothing happened. He gave it a second try. Dead as a door.

  Before he tried to start the car again he saw another car turn into the empty spot beside the sports car. When Reilly Jackson stepped out and hurried toward the building Kelly didn’t think much of it.

  Reilly was here to hound the Murray woman for information so he could report back to the paper he worked for. Kelly knew the guy was a pain in the ass more times than not, always pestering the guys at the station for information on whatever they were working on. But Kelly also admired him. When it came to getting the inside scoop, Jackson dug until he had all the facts. Sometimes he had those facts before anybody else. Kelly still hadn’t been able to figure that one out. Or get the name of his snitch. If he even had one.

  Maybe it had come time to call a truce with the guy, Kelly contemplated. He had a feeling he was going to need all the help he could get on cracking this case.

  ***

  Hours earlier Jim Thomas had worked his legs off the bed and slid his feet into his slippers. As he stood pulling on his robe, his wife crawled out on the other side of the bed.

  “I told you to stay here, Betty. Least till I find out what’s goin’ on.”

  Betty Thomas was not a large woman. In comparison to her husband she might be considered a midget. But by no means was she about to start taking orders from this giant. Especially not after being treated as his equal for the thirty five years they’d been married.

  Jim looked over his shoulder to his wife once or twice as he headed out of the bedroom and descended the stairs, but said nothing.

  He hesitated at the front door of their two-story home. When the sound of a baby crying filtered through the wooden structure, Jim reached for the doorknob.

  He quickly pulled open the door. Like Jim, Betty gasped in surprise when she saw the baby.

  There was even the start of tears in Betty’s eyes as she watched her husband bend at the knees and reach for the noisy little bundle someone had left on their doorstep.

  Almost the instant Jim took the baby up in his arms it became quiet. Jim and Betty stared at the child in awe.

  “You sure it belongs to Teddy?” Betty questioned as she continued to gaze at the infant.

  “The voice on the phone was disguised, but I’d bet a weeks pay it was Teddy.”

  “But this little darling doesn’t look anything at all like Teddy.”

  Her statement made Jim Thomas rethink his assessment of whose voice he had heard come through the phone line. He had to admit he wasn’t at his best coming out of a sound sleep like that. Maybe he had mistaken. Actually, the muffled voice could have belonged to a man or woman.

  But then, he didn’t know anyone else who knew how long and hard he and Betty had prayed for a child of their own. And Teddy knew for certain they’d give the best care to an infant such as the one he held in his arms.

  ***

  “What? You getting sick or something?” Carol pressed when Mary doubled over in pain from where she sat on the couch in her apartment.

  “My breasts feel like they’re gonna explode.”

  “Want me to call your doctor? There are pills that can dry ‘em up.”

  As Mary straightened, she used the backs of her hands to dry her wet cheeks. “I’ll use the breast pump, thank you very much.”

  “Well that’s only a temporary solution,” Carol said and watched Mary stand. Carol assumed to go in search of the pump she probably hadn’t used since Friday morning before leaving for work.

  “Won’t they just fill up again?” Carol pressed further.

  Mary stood still. It was good her back was to Carol. Otherwise she would’ve seen her holding her breath as she silently counted to ten. Once she swallowed back the mounting frustration she tilted her head toward Carol. “Exactly. Jena will be hungry when they bring her home.”

  The knock on the door kept Carol from telling Mary she might have a long wait. And before she could tell her to go pump her breasts if that’s what she wanted and she’d get the door, Mary was already at the door yanking it open.

  Mary’s belief that whoever stood on the other side of the door would have Jena in their arms was dismissed when she saw that it was only Reilly. The disappointment showed when the glimmer of hope shining on her face disappeared as quickly as it appeared.

  “Okay to come in?”

  Mary stepped back so Reilly could enter.

  “What are you doing here, Reilly?” Carol couldn’t resist putting to him. Even though she believed he had come because he thought he would have Mary all to himself.

  Reilly ignored Carol and focused on Mary. “Stopped at the paper. They’re printing up thousands of flyers with Jena’s picture on it.” He saw another glimmer of hope flash over Mary’s face. “They’re even roundin’ up a slew of volunteers to start passin’ them out as soon as they’re printed.”

  “That’s wonderful, Reilly,” Mary said before breaking into tears.

  Confusion overcame Reilly. “I thought you’d be happy.”

  “How can I be happy when Jena might end up being one of those pictures on milk cartons? No Reilly that doesn’t make me happy.”

  Another knock on the door. This time Carol was the one to pull it open. “Who are you?”

  “Detective Rogers. Who might you be?”

  “Have you found her?” Mary demanded the second she saw the detective.

  “Not yet. But everything that can be done is in the works.”

  Reilly wasn’t about to stand there without taking a shot at Kelly too. “You have to have somethin’ by now. Somebody who saw somethin’.”

  “You tell me, Jackson? What do you know or think you know?”

  “Sounds like you know Reilly well, Detective Rogers,” Carol commented. Then she extended her hand to him. “Carol Sanders. I’m a friend of Mary’s.”

  “And I’m chopped liver,” Reilly plugged her with before shifting his attention back to the detective. “So you gonna tell us what you want, Kelly?”

  “Yeah. My car needs a jump. You mind givin’ me a hand?”

  Reilly hadn’t heard that line before. But he knew Kelly was up to something. He probably watched him come into the building. He came up with the story about his car needing a jump just to get Reilly alone. But why?

  Curiosity and a thread of hope Kelly would fill him in on the lead he had is what convinced Reilly to assist the man.

  Chapter Twenty One

  Elaine had put Lisa down for her afternoon nap several minutes ago and lingered in the nursery. She was stalling for time. Kyle still hadn’t returned from the conference in Harrisburg. He was past due his scheduled noon return. If he didn’t arrive soon, Elaine would have to face Audrey Frederick alone.

  It was almost thirty minutes ago when the housekeeper was told to make Mrs. Frederick comfortable in the library. The housekeeper had also been told to inform her Elaine would join her as soon as she got Lisa to sleep.

  Elaine knew exactly why Audrey had showed up unannounced. She heard the troubling news about the Murray baby’s disappearance. Elaine had no idea what the woman expected her to do about it. It wasn’t as if she knew who was responsible. Unless….

  No. Not Kyle, Elaine told herself when the thought struck her. But where was he? And where was he last night when she continued to phone his hotel room until way past midnight without getting an answer? He hadn’t answered the numerous calls to his cell phone either.

  When the sound of Kyle’s voice suddenly echoed from the downstairs foyer, Elaine felt herself jump.

  She hurried out of the nursery and down the open staircase uncertain if it was relief or fear that had gripped her. Most likely a combination of both, she decided by the time she entered the library.

  “Kyle, you’re home.” Elaine smiled as she rushed to give him a hug and kiss.

  “Save the pleasantries for later. We have something more pressin
g at hand here.” Audrey Frederick insisted as she came away from the window.

  Kyle gave Elaine a quick pat on the rump to shoo her away. He then stiffened with seriousness. “I just came from the police station.”

  “You what?” Audrey demanded in instant fury.

  “Driving home I heard about Jena being taken. I had to see for myself if it was true.”

  “You fool.” The words had shot out before Audrey had time to think. She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly to harness her anger before speaking again. Especially since her son was glaring at her as if he might bodily remove her from the premise if her insults were to continue.

  “I’m sorry, Kyle. You are not a fool. But don’t you see what you’ve done? It’s going to be public knowledge now that you’re the missing baby’s father.”

  “What would you have me do, Mother deny the fact?”

  “What fact?” Elaine declared. “How do you know Reilly Jackson isn’t Jena’s father? Your mother and I—”

  Audrey’s cutting gaze threatened Elaine to be quiet. But Elaine knew she had already said enough to arouse Kyle’s curiosity.

  “Go on. My mother and you what? Answer me, Elaine?”

  “Well we—”

  “If you must know, I hired a private investigator,” Audrey broke into Elaine’s hymn hauling around with. “Mary Murray has been seen in the company of this Jackson fellow as far back as a year ago.”

  Kyle wanted to laugh but was too angry. “What does that prove?”

  The two women glanced at each other, neither one prepared to give him an acceptable answer. Yet Audrey made the effort. “The Murray woman told you you’re the child’s father for the money. Those fat monthly checks you told her you’d send.”

  Like the obedient son, Kyle permitted his mother the opportunity to try and persuade him he had been conned. But it didn’t work. He knew both women had something to gain by convincing him, and anyone else who questioned Jena’s paternity that Reilly Jackson was her biological father.