The man had shot her three times, but she’d survived. With God’s help, she’d survive this.
Why wasn’t he in prison? How could the U.S. government—her government—leave an avowed terrorist and murderer to roam the streets?
He hadn’t called back yet. She hoped she would be in Florida with Patti before he did.
She had no idea how organized Raymond’s group was, or what they were able to do, but she wasn’t taking any chances. All transactions would be cash so they couldn’t track her by her credit card.
Unfortunately, there was still the matter of the cell phone, but it was turned off. He couldn’t track her unless it was on. At least that’s what the TV shows said. Eventually, she’d have to turn it on and deal with him.
But not yet.
The FBI had told her Raymond’s terrorist cell had been decimated, but then again, they’d also told her Raymond was dead. She had to remember she couldn’t trust anything the authorities had said.
10
Conrad stood in front of the flower store, staring at the closed sign on the door.
“Why would she be closed?” Zink asked. “The sign says they should be open.”
“Don’t ask me. I just got here. There could be any number of reasons.”
“My radar’s going off.” She moved closer to the window and peered in.
“Oh, no. The dreaded radar.”
“You aren’t making fun of my radar, are you? Because the radar works.”
“Not at all. I respect your radar.” He held his hands up in mock surrender. “Can your radar tell me where she is right now?”
“It’s radar—not a GPS.”
“That’s what I thought. Let’s see if we can find a home address. She might not be open because her daughter was upset and they’ve decided to continue looking for Emily.”
“It’s possible, but that’s not what my radar is saying. Something suspicious is going on.”
“What is it about this woman that you don’t like?”
“Something is hinky about her. Like the way she made me show her my ID. Who does that in this town?”
“She’s new to this town, and she’s being careful. Nothing wrong with that.”
“Really? Why don’t you just admit you think she’s pretty?”
He ignored her and walked back to the cruiser.
Zink jogged past him. She was already typing the name on the laptop mounted on the console between them as Conrad slid into the driver’s side.
“No home phone listing. Something else suspicious.”
“That is not suspicious, and you know it.” He shrugged. “A lot of people are doing away with home phones. Who needs ‘em? We all have cell phones.”
“You just don’t want to admit there could be a problem with the pretty flower lady.” She snapped her seatbelt in place.
“That’s ridiculous. I barely know the woman.”
“You had coffee with her last week. Now I know why you’ve been buying flowers for your mother every week since she opened up the place.”
It was true. He did find Maria attractive, but he certainly wouldn’t admit that to Zink. Especially now that she seemed to be on a crusade against the woman.
“Any other ideas on how to get her address?” he asked.
“Her kid goes to school, so they’ll have her address.”
“Good idea, partner. I knew there was a reason I keep you around.”
“You keep me around? Let’s not get confused who has the seniority in this car.” She laughed and followed his gaze back to the flower store.
A dark-haired man now stood in front of it, not moving, as if mesmerized by the flowers.
“What do you suppose he wants?” Zink asked.
The man moved closer to the door and peeked inside.
“Flowers, I would imagine.”
“You’re so witty, Conrad Travis.”
“I try my best to keep you entertained.”
“My radar’s beeping. Do you recognize him?”
“Nope.” He put the cruiser back into park. “Mine is, too.” He stepped out of the car.
The man was so intent on the flower shop that he didn’t notice Conrad, at first.
The movement apparently broke his trance. His eyes widened as he took in Conrad’s uniform. He turned to leave.
“Hold up a minute, sir.” Conrad’s voice echoed through the empty street.
The man’s body language screamed wariness and he tensed, as if to run.
The moment passed as he relaxed so quickly that Conrad thought he’d imagined it.
The stranger stared at Conrad. “Yes.”
“Did you need some help?” Conrad asked.
“Not at all, officer. I wanted to buy some flowers for my wife, but the place is closed even though the posted hours say she should be open. I was trying to see in—see if maybe she was in there and forgot to unlock the door.”
“Used the shop before, have you?”
“No, just passing through town. I actually live in Circleville. I thought my wife deserved some flowers.”
The guy didn’t look old enough to have a wife. He looked more like a college student. Then again, Conrad was getting at that age where everyone looked like a kid to him. “How did you know a woman owned it?”
“Call me sexist.” He smiled. “My wife does—all the time.” He looked back at the flower store. “I guess she’s not opening. The flowers will have to wait for another time. If we are finished?” he asked.
Conrad nodded and went to the cruiser.
The man got in his car and started to drive off.
“Something odd about that man,” Conrad said to Zink.
She smiled and held up her cell phone. “I took his picture and…” She snapped another picture as they drove past his vehicle. “…and a picture of his car.”
“And the license plate?”
She turned the phone in his direction. “Clear as day.”
They drove to the school as Zink uploaded information to the computer.
“I’ll go get the address and you can check out that license plate.” Conrad stepped out of the car and jogged towards the school. In ten minutes, he was back.
Zink looked over at him as he slid into the driver’s seat. ”The car’s a rental. He rented it early this morning at the airport. His name is David Hamm. According to his New York license, he’s a resident of New York City.”
“Mmm. He told me he lived in Circleville. Said he just arrived in town early this morning.”
Zink pointed a finger at him. “Why would he lie about living around here? And why was he at the flower shop at all?”
“I don’t know,” he said. “But it might be worth checking.”
“Speaking of The Bouquet, did you get an address for the pretty flower lady?”
“You think she’s pretty? I hadn’t noticed.”
“Of course, you didn’t.”
“Stop playing matchmaker, Zink. I’m perfectly content with my marital status.” He winked at her. “It took a little charm, but Mrs. Davenport finally let me take a peek.”
Six minutes later, they pulled into the parking lot of Sunberry’s one and only high rise apartment building.
After knocking several times on Veronica Minor’s door, Zink pulled out her cell phone. “Might as well call the chief and see what’s going on with the search.”
“Good idea. I’m going to see if I can find a neighbor or two.” Conrad went to the next door and knocked. A moment later, the door opened. He held out his ID before the woman could ask. “Hi, I’m Officer Conrad Travis. We’re trying to reach Mrs. Minor, but she’s not at her flower store and not here. Have you seen her today?”
The woman pointed at the end of the hall. “You might ask the man in two-fifteen. I saw her talking to him late last night. Way too late. Shameless, I say. I can just imagine what the two of them…” She held up a hand. “I’m not getting involved in it, but the man’s a bit too young for her, if you ask me.”
<
br /> “Thanks.” Conrad took a step back, but the woman moved towards him.
“Her and that daughter of hers move in and act like they’re too good to talk to the rest of us. Every time I’ve tried to be friendly, she just waves and shuts the door.”
“Thank you very much for your help. We need to go to talk to him.” Zink chimed in as she grabbed Conrad’s arm. “We better talk with him right now, partner.” She headed towards the other end of the hall.
“Thanks for the rescue,” he said in low tones.
“You’re very welcome. What are partners for?” She knocked on the door of 215, and a few seconds later it opened.
A young man poked his head out. His hair was disheveled, and it looked as if he hadn’t shaved—or bathed—in a few days.
“Yeah.”
Conrad held up his badge in case the kid didn’t notice the uniform. “I was looking for your neighbor—Veronica Minor. Do you—”
“Of course, you are. I knew it was too good to be true.” The man closed his eyes and shook his head.
“What was too good to be true?” Zink stepped up.
The guy opened the door further. “You might as well come in. You’re probably going to have a few questions for me and…I need to report a stolen car.”
11
“Mommy.”
Maria opened her eyes, surprised she’d actually fallen asleep. “Yes, Layla?”
“Do you still love me?” Her daughter stared at her with worried eyes.
“Of course, I love you. What sort of a question is that to ask?”
“Are you mad at me?”
“Why would I be mad at you, sweetie?”
“Cause I told you I hate you.”
“Did you mean it?” She scooped Layla closer.
“No, but I shouldn’t have said it. It was mean.”
“It was mean, and you shouldn’t have said it, but I love you, anyway. And I will always love you, no matter how mean you are to me. That’s just the way mommies are.”
“Why did we have to leave Sunberry? It was a nice place.”
Her daughter was right. Sunberry was a nice place.
“It was time to move. I’ve explained it to you before. We can’t live anywhere too long.”
“Because of the bad men?”
Her heart lurched.
Layla shouldn’t know there was so much evil out in the world. But it was a part of their life and the only way to keep Layla safe was for her know that evil existed.
“Yep, because of the bad men.”
“I thought they couldn’t find us anymore.”
“I thought so too, but even mommies can be wrong.”
And Witness Protection.
“But Daddy’s angel can protect us. We should go back. Daddy’s angel is probably looking for us. Daddy sent him to help us. I know he did.”
Ah—the innocence of a child. Maria hoped she’d never have to tell Layla the truth about what kind of a monster her father really was.
“Angels can find us wherever we are.”
“Really?”
Maria nodded, hoping this particular angel never found them again.
“I’m worried about Emily. Do you think they found her yet? Can we call and see if she came home?”
“I’m worried about her, too, but we can’t call. I’ll figure out a way for you to call later. OK?”
“Did the bad men take Emily, Mommy?”
“I don’t know.” Raymond claimed he’d taken Emily and Maria was acting on that assumption, but logic said he had nothing to do with kidnapping Emily. He was just using the girl’s disappearance for his own gain. It didn’t make sense that he’d snatch Emily when Layla was right there, too.
“But they might have?” Layla sat up in bed, waiting for an answer.
“Yes, they might have.”
“Then you have to tell the police, Mommy. If you tell them about the bad men, they’ll be able to find Emily, right?”
Shards of guilt pricked her conscience. “Not necessarily, sweetie. I have to take you somewhere safe first then I’ll do exactly that. “
“But, Mommy—”
“No buts, Layla,” Maria said. “It’s my job to keep you safe. And that’s what I’m going to do.”
“What about Emily, Mommy? Don’t you want to keep her safe?”
****
Conrad exchanged a look with Zink as they listened to Ricky Snyder.
It couldn’t be coincidental that Veronica had left the same day as Emily’s kidnapping. Why hadn’t she taken her own vehicle? Could she be one of those women who kidnapped children because she couldn’t have her own? Maybe Jasmine was a kidnap victim, as well.
Zink’s radar was working much better than his own.
He’d been too enamored with Veronica Minor and those big dark eyes. His mind flashed back to their conversation about secrets. She hadn’t actually said she didn’t have any. He should have asked more questions.
And now she’d fled during the night.
With Emily?
Was it possible Emily was in that flower store the whole time they were talking to Veronica? The three croissants and juice churned in his stomach. If that was the case, he should give up police work—he had no right to wear a badge.
“So, you don’t really know if she stole your car since you didn’t actually go up to the airport, yet,” Zink asked.
The young man slouched on his sofa, but nodded vigorously, his greasy hair bobbing. “Yeah, that’s true. But I figure if you’re looking for her, she probably needed a car y’all wouldn’t be looking for. So…there you have it.”
Zink looked at Conrad and shook her head as if to say I told you so. “I’m going to call airport security and have them check the parking lots.” She stood up, holding the paper she’d written the information on. “I’ll let you know what I find.”
“So, how many kids did you see her with last night?” Conrad asked.
“Just the one, but I didn’t go down to the car with her. You think she stole that little girl I heard about on the news?”
“Was it her daughter?”
“Couldn’t really tell. The kid was asleep and her face was hidden.”
Asleep or drugged?
There was nothing else to learn here. But he’d sure like to take a look in Veronica’s apartment. He didn’t have enough for a search warrant, yet.
Conrad looked down at the coffee table. “And the next time you invite police into your apartment.” He leaned down and picked up the baggie and tossed it on the man’s coffee table. “I suggest you put your stash away.” Conrad had already judged it to be less than an ounce, so he couldn’t bust the kid for anything more than a misdemeanor.
Ricky Snyder’s mouth fell open. “Uh…it’s not mine.”
Conrad met his gaze. “Good, then you won’t mind if I take it to dispose of it?”
Ricky’s nose twitched and his face turned red. “Uh…no…of course not. I don’t even know how it got there. One of my buddies must have dropped it. I don’t do that stuff.”
Sure he didn’t.
Zink turned away so the kid wouldn’t see her smiling, but not before Conrad saw. “We’ll let you know about your car, Mr. Snyder,” Zink said.
“Uh—OK, thanks.”
“No, thank you for all your cooperation.” Conrad held up the baggie. “Especially for this. We wouldn’t want this to get in the wrong hands, would we?”
“Uh…no, sir.”
Conrad stared hard at the young man. “Look, I know you think everyone does this stuff, but you do know this isn’t good for your brain, right?”
Ricky nodded.
“I’m giving you a break this time, but you better clean up your act. Next time, I won’t be so lenient.”
They walked out and down the hall.
“Think he’s watching out of his peep hole?” Zink asked.
“Without a doubt. He wasn’t the brightest bulb in the pack, was he?” Conrad motioned towards Veronica Minor’s door.
“I’d sure like to get into that apartment. It could tell us a lot about where she went and why she left in such a hurry.”
Zink nodded. “Good idea, but we don’t have a reason to ask for a warrant. Although, it wouldn’t hurt to ask the manager, I suppose.”
He slipped the baggie in his pocket. “I don’t want to walk around with that. Let’s go find the manager.”
They found a door marked “Manager” and knocked. The salty smell of bacon made Conrad’s mouth water.
“Hi, can I help you?” A young woman smiled at them. “Are you looking for something to rent?”
He pulled out his badge. “No. I was hoping to take a look at someone’s apartment, but they’re not answering. Think you could let me take a look?”
Her eyes widened, and she twisted a lock of hair. “Why? Who?” She glanced over her shoulder, and then back at them. “Hold on, I need to shut off the bacon before it burns. Be right back.”
True to her word, she was back in a moment. “Who’s apartment?”
Zink stepped in front of him with an easy smile. “Veronica Minor. She didn’t open up the flower shop this morning, and we wanted to make sure she was all right.”
“Gosh, I don’t know. This has never happened before. I’m not sure if I’m allowed to do that or not. I usually just collect the rent.”
“Do you have someone you want to call and ask?”
“Uhm…no…I don’t see why you can’t go check on her. Hold on a minute, let me get the keys for you.” The door closed.
“That was easier than I expected.” Zink smiled.
“It was.” He agreed.
The door opened and the young woman handed Zink the keys. “You don’t need me to go with you, do you? I got a baby and I’m cooking breakfast.”
“No need at all.” Zink gave her a bright smile.
12
Conrad unlocked the door and held it open for Zink.
“What a gentleman. Any woman would be pleased to have you. Even the pretty flower lady.”
“Not likely, now that we’re breaking into her house.”
“We are not breaking in. We have permission.”
“I doubt if Veronica will see it that way—or a judge, for that matter.” He stepped inside the apartment and closed the door. The apartment had a barren, empty feeling.
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