Baby Love Lite

by ANDREA SMITH

  “Then what happened?” the investigator questioned.

  “She became very angry; she became a totally different person. She scared me. A white SUV pulled up beside her. I thought she'd just get in the car and get out of my life. But the driver got out and before I knew what was happening, I was pushed to the ground; my purse was taken. I was stunned for a few moments, sort of like being in shock. When I gathered my wits, she was gone and the SUV was gone. I wasn’t positive that they were connected. It all happened so fast. I mean as far as I knew, it was a random theft and one thing had nothing to do with the other.”

  “Did you report what happened to the authorities?”

  Sheila Bradley bowed her head down in shame. She shook her head back and forth negatively. “No, I didn't. I didn’t report the purse snatching nor did I report her request of me in the parking lot that night. I'd very little cash in my purse and as soon as I got home, I cancelled my credit cards. There was really no damage done.”

  “Mrs. Bradley,” the detective pursued, “You didn't feel that it was necessary to report the request that was made of you to assist in an infant’s abduction from the hospital?”

  “That’s right,” she answered succinctly. “Do you know why? It’s because nobody working at that hospital would dare try such a stunt. There are cameras everywhere in that nursery. Not only that, there are cameras at all exits and entrances as well as in the elevators and stairwells. I was concerned enough over the fact that I'd allowed her to be in the hallway after visiting hours without reporting her to security. Let me tell you detective, we see all kind of nut jobs on the maternity floor; mothers, fathers, grandparents and siblings. If I reported these as they happened I'd never get any nursing done. That’s a fact.”

  “Mrs. Bradley, I'm going to show you a copy of a resume that was submitted to a local agency that places nannies, babysitters and housekeepers. Read through this and let me know if you recognize it.”

  Nurse Bradley skimmed through the document then handed it back to the detective. “No, I don't recognize it but to answer your next question, yes, it does contain all of my personal information, including my social security number.”

  “How would a resume such as this be presented on your behalf?”

  “Well, detective, I'd say that most everything on this resume of any importance could be found on my driver’s license. Of course, the woman you're asking me about if involved with the purse snatching would've had that information, along with knowing where I worked and my license plate numbers. That'd be my guess.”

  “So, you're basically saying that you in no way participated in composing this resume for the purpose of signing with an agency that was supplying candidates for interviewing for the Sinclair family as a babysitter? That you're not involved with Maggie Preston, that’s the name of the grandmother in case you weren’t aware, so that she could gain access to the baby and abduct her?”

  “Certainly not, detective! I resent the implication! For one thing, I'm still employed as a nurse, unlike what this resume presents. I imagine this Maggie Preston would've to have had a background check done in order to even sign with the agency, so that's likely where she found my identity to work to her advantage.”

  “But how would Maggie Preston have known the Sinclair’s were looking for a babysitter?”

  “I don’t know the answer to that detective, but by the same token, how would I've known that piece of information, either? I'd speculate that Maggie Preston knew someone closer to the Sinclair family than I did. I actually had never even met them.”

  The investigator seemed puzzled at this point. She was conferring with the other detective in the room. They decided that they had no further questions of Sheila Bradley at this point and she was free to leave.

  I turned to look at Tristan trying to gauge his reaction. I couldn’t read him as easily as I did Trey. “Well, what do you think?” I asked.

  “I think that Sheila Bradley had nothing whatsoever to do with this. I'm totally sure you've been right all along that Maggie is behind this."

  Trey must've shared the recent information I'd received from Daniel about Maggie with Tristan. We thanked Detective Hook and he promised to keep us updated on the progress of the investigation. Tristan and I left the building and headed towards the parking lot in silence. Once settled in the car, I finally shared my thoughts with him.

  “The thing that bothers me, Tristan, is that someone close to us, either at Trey’s firm or at the apartment building has supplied information that helped my mother register at the agency, get the interview appointment, and take Preston. That scares me."

  “I know,” he agreed. “I’ve been thinking about that angle as well. Trey shared with me the incident with your housekeeper getting run down. I'd have to bet it’s someone at the apartment building; someone that knows your comings and goings ---.”

  “One of the doormen,” we both said in unison.

  “Okay,” Tristan said, taking charge, “I'm going to get background checks done on all of the maintenance and security personnel at the building. Trey gave me the name of a local investigative agency that gets things done very quickly.”

  “Sounds good,” I replied. “What should I do?”

  “How about you go and visit Jean?”

  “I haven’t seen her since before Preston was taken. I’m not sure what I'd say when she asks about Preston and I know she will.”

  “Tylar, she may know things that she doesn’t realize are in any way connected to what happened to her much less to Preston’s abduction. You can find a way to break it to her. It may motivate her to really think deep and hard about what she observed on the days she worked for you and Trey.”

  “Okay, Tristan, take me back to get my car and I’ll go see her."

  Jean had just finished with physical therapy for the day when I arrived at her room. As soon as I saw her face, I knew that she knew. “Oh Tylar,” she wailed, “Please tell me that you have good news about the baby. I’ve been watching the television and when I saw her precious little face on the screen, I couldn’t believe that someone would steal her. Is it true that your own mother is the prime suspect?”

  “More or less,” I replied. I didn’t want to get into all of the sordid details surrounding my bloodline at the moment. “Jean, I need your help.”

  "I'll help in any way I can, Tylar.”

  “We’ve come to believe that the hit and run accident you fell victim to was done purposely and is connected with Preston’s abduction. Can you think back over the past several months, or even as far back as when I had the baby, and recall if you noticed anyone lurking around the apartment building, coming to the door while you were there, phoning and asking questions about Trey or me – anything no matter how trivial that involved us?”

  “I don’t understand. Why would someone want to run me down in order to take Preston?”

  “My suspicion is that someone hoped to gain access to our apartment by perhaps applying for the cleaning job that you currently hold. When Trey’s mother came to stay with us that thwarted any plans someone may have had in an effort to gain access to the baby through a temporary position.”

  “There is something I recall! It was when you were in the hospital having the baby - I was on my way out that day and the doorman on duty started chatting with me while I waited for my bus. He was kind of nosey come to think of it.”

  “Do you recall what he said?"

  “He asked me if I lived in the building or just came to visit a lot. He said he was trying to recognize the faces of the tenants or their family. I told him I came in three days a week to clean the Sinclair apartment. He was very personable and friendly; said he and his wife had just moved to Atlanta and was glad to have found a job here."

  She paused trying to recall if there was anything else. "Oh and he mentioned that his wife might be interested in cleaning and wondered what agency had placed me. I gave him the name of the agency that Mr. Sinclair had used when he found me.”
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br />   “Did he say anything further or ask any more questions?”

  “He acted as if he knew you and Mr. Sinclair. When I mentioned that I cleaned for you he said something about your new baby girl. I found that kind of odd.”

  “Why?”

  “Well, because I hadn’t even found out that you’d had a baby girl. This must've happened the day after you delivered the baby because my next day back you were already out of the hospital and that’s the first I'd have known about you having a girl if it hadn’t been for the doorman. I figured Mr. Sinclair had told him.”

  “Jean, which doorman was it that asked you these questions?”

  “I don’t know. I never saw him after that. You know there’s a fairly high turnover there, so I guess I never thought much about it.”

  “Could you describe him after all of this time?”

  “I’d be hard pressed to, I’m afraid. About the only thing that I recall is that he was probably late forties; had kind of brownish hair. I mean he wasn't very tall - maybe 5'7"; he was built very slender."

  That description could fit thousands of people in this town. Tristan was getting the names of the security and maintenance personnel at the building maybe that would help pin down the identity of the man that Jean remembered. I didn't recall anyone fitting that description during the time that I'd lived there with Trey, but then they were mostly just a voice I heard over the intercom.

  When I got back to the apartment, Tristan was already there; so was Trey. Trey was pacing. His face visibly relaxed as I walked through the door. Within a moment, he was pressed against me, hugging me close. I was scared. I wasn't sure if this was good news or bad. I pulled back from him immediately, searching his face for a clue.

  “The Mississippi State Police just phoned, baby,” he said calmly. “They found the white SUV abandoned at a truck stop about fifty miles north of Jackson. They're fairly certain it's the vehicle that Maggie was driving and ditched once she knew she'd been identified on the news.”

  I wasn’t sure what all that meant, but Trey seemed pleased. “Where’s Preston?” I asked, hopeful that he had more to tell me.

  “For right now, we don’t know, but the authorities have verified Preston was in the vehicle. The investigation has really heated up.”

  “In the vehicle? What exactly does that mean, Trey?”

  “Baby, it means that we're getting closer, I promise.”

  I trusted my husband. I could read him well enough to know that he was encouraged by this latest chain of events. That was enough for me.

  CHAPTER 14

  I slept restlessly in my husband’s arms that night. Trey was very optimistic that she'd be back with us very soon. I felt cautious knowing that if Maggie had ditched the vehicle it was because she was fully aware of the magnitude of search efforts being made. The fact that a large sum of money was being offered for someone to divulge anything they might know, with no questions asked, certainly opened the door for anyone who was in cahoots with her to nark her out and take the money.

  Trey had pretty much cleared his calendar for the next week so that he could be home and focus on any other avenues we might pursue to expedite our baby’s return.

  Tristan and I'd shared the information we'd gleaned from Sheila Bradley’s interview. I shared what I'd learned from my visit with Jean. Tristan had met with the building management. Unfortunately, identifying the doorman that had initiated the conversation with Jean around the time Preston was born wasn't going to be easy.

  Apparently the building manager used a temp agency to fill doorman slots because it was cheaper and presented less headcount to the corporate board who oversaw maintenance and operating costs. The temp agency was one of questionable repute being that many of the doorman candidates were found to be illegal citizens; the background and reference checks on these individuals were non-existent. Trey had hit the ceiling upon hearing that. I'm sure he'd put that on his agenda once we got Preston back home.

  Tristan had gone to his room earlier to call Libby. Trey and I'd busied ourselves folding laundry and loading the dishwasher. I'd taken the last load out of the dryer and was folding it when I came across several of Preston’s sleepers and tee-shirts. Tears had immediately streamed down my face. Trey came into the laundry room to ask me something and stopped when he saw my emotional meltdown.

  He'd immediately pulled me into his arms and consoled me; assuring me that our baby girl would be home soon.

  It was just past dawn when my cell phone chimed on the nightstand next to the bed. I disengaged myself from Trey’s arms quickly grabbing for it. The caller I.D. wasn't recognizable simply showing "Indiana Call." It was Daniel’s voice on the other end.

  “Tylar it’s Daniel Henderson. I’ve heard from Maggie. I think I can help you.” I sprang up immediately; he had my full attention.

  “Where is she?”

  “Whoa, wait a minute. I want to make sure that if I give you this information that I'm not going to be dragged down with her for this. That’s why I'm calling you first. If you can’t give me that assurance, then all bets are off.”

  “Daniel, don’t fuck with me,” I hissed. “If you don’t give me the information then you're withholding evidence in a felony kidnapping. If she's taken my baby across state lines, it’s a bigger felony. Besides, there's a reward being offered, if in fact, your information nets us the return of Preston.”

  “Really?” he asked. “Well, I wasn’t looking for any monetary reward, just your assurance that I won’t somehow be incriminated in all of this shit.”

  By this time Trey was up hovering over me as I continued the conversation. He was shaking his head at me indicating he wanted me to back off of Daniel. “You have my assurance. Please tell me what you know.”

  "I got a call from her a few hours ago. She ditched my SUV because the heat's on and the word's out. She gave me a sob story about how she only took your baby because she'd lost mine and she wanted us to be a family, again. I didn’t mention that you had been here. I acted as if what she was telling me was the first time I'd heard it. She asked me if anyone had contacted me or if the authorities had been around questioning me. I told her no. She admitted to having a nice chunk of change stashed away and wants me to meet her at a Greyhound Bus station in Wheeling, West Virginia."

  Wheeling, West Virginia??

  "She gave me the arrival time of her bus and said she'd be looking for me. I agreed to be there. She wouldn’t tell me what city she was departing from. She probably doesn’t trust me a hundred percent since she’s screwed me over so many times.”

  “Did she call you from a cell phone?”

  “Nope, she's playing it cool. She called from a pay phone that had a Georgia area code on it; same area code that your phone has as a matter of fact. I wrote down the number of the pay phone if you want it. She had to keep feeding change into it. Now, I won’t hear from her again before the bus arrives in Wheeling. Oh, and just so you know I did hear your baby crying in the background.”

  My heart lurched. Oh, dear God, Preston was crying.

  “I asked her if she felt like she'd be recognized and she said she'd taken care of it. She wouldn’t tell me anything further. She said that I'd see for myself when she found me at the bus station.”

  “Daniel, I'm going to put Trey on the phone. You give him the details, okay?”

  “I guess,” he replied somewhat reluctant. “Don’t fuck me over on this, Tylar.”

  The irony wasn't lost on me with his warning. I handed the phone to Trey and scrambled to get a pen and paper for him to jot down the information. For the first time, I held out hope that this would lead us to getting our baby back.

  Trey was scribbling away and responding to Daniel in a very re-assuring and encouraging tone. That's why I let him take over; I knew he would handle it more diplomatically than I ever could. I wasn’t above thinking that perhaps Daniel had been involved all along. As long as we got our baby back, we could deal with the rest of the issues later.r />
  Trey ended the conversation by telling him that he'd phone him within the hour to work out the details. He made sure he mentioned to Daniel that he'd be financially rewarded if this led to our getting Preston back. He thanked Daniel for ‘doing the right thing.’

  As soon as Trey was off the phone, he swung into action, phoning the detectives and relaying the information he'd gotten from Daniel. I scrambled to get dressed and get an overnight bag packed before he finally noticed what I was doing.

  “What are you doing, baby?”

  “I’m getting packed and ready. We’re going to West Virginia, aren’t we?”

  “Sweetie,” he sighed, sitting down on the bed and pulling me onto his lap. “The feds are involved now. We've reliable information that she intends to take Preston across state lines. I know as screwed up as this is going to sound to you, this is actually a good thing. Up until this point while we'd notified the FBI of her abduction, the jurisdiction remained in the hands of state and county law enforcement officials. Now that it's likely she's taking Preston out of state, the FBI can step in because they have jurisdiction in every state. This is mandated by the Federal Kidnapping Act also known as the Lindbergh Law.”

  “Okay, Trey, I appreciate the government lesson and I’m glad that the FBI's on it, but why does that prevent us from going to Wheeling? I want to make sure they recognize Maggie! She’s not entirely stupid, you know? If she smells trouble closing in on her, she may very well be disguised to the extent she can elude the FBI agents.”

  “Okay, baby, let’s presume for a moment that your mother, I’m sorry, your aunt is the absolute master of disguise; what makes you think that you'll recognize her?”

  “I have instincts where Preston is concerned! I don’t understand how you could not want to be there.”

  Trey shifted a bit and hesitated before speaking again. “Well, actually, baby, I intended to fly to Wheeling.”

  “What? If you’re going then so am I!"

  By this time, I'd teared up; she belonged to both of us. Trey was emotional now; torn between telling me something I might want to hear or the truth. He opted for the truth.