by A. K. Evans
He listened again, and suddenly, his face got angry.
“We do it in two hours, and she’s home with her family tonight,” he growled.
The federal agent got close, got Max’s attention, and somehow silently communicated that Max needed to pull it together.
Not even a minute later, the call was disconnected.
Jim didn’t wait. “What did they say?” he asked.
After getting a nod from the agent, Max looked at his sister, his brother-in-law, and finally me before he declared, “They want the money transferred via Page Pay.”
Wow. One of my other apps was going to be used to facilitate the collection of a ransom. This was awful.
“What?” Jim asked, evidently confused.
Max stood and looked at me. “I assume that’s yours as well?” he asked.
I offered a quick dip of my chin in return, but at the same time, I wondered what was going through his mind. Was he relieved it was my app or was he annoyed that I’d created something that made me a lot of money, and now that app was going to be involved in transferring funds to ensure the safe return of his niece?
Before Max could say anything else, Courtney pleaded, “We’re going to get her back today, right? She’s going to be home tonight?”
At that point, the federal agent who’d been listening in to the call took a step forward and explained, “They don’t want to release Claire until the funds have cleared. Normally, a transaction through an app like that is immediate; however, sometimes there can be holds put on it. Given the size of the ransom that Max already agreed to give them, it’s likely there will be a hold on the funds. It can take up to seventy-two hours sometimes to have the funds released.”
“They can’t keep her,” Courtney cried.
I decided to step in. “I can take care of the hold,” I started. “It’s my app and my software. I’ll see to it that the funds are released immediately, but I will not make that transfer until we see that Claire is safe.”
“Ma’am?” the agent directed his attention to me.
I stood from my spot on the floor next to Julian and extended my hand to him. “Eleanor Page, sir.”
He took my hand, shook it, and returned, “Agent Palmer. You said this is your app?”
I nodded. “Yes, I’m an app developer and Page Pay is one of mine. I handle all of the development and tech for it, and I’ll easily be able to lift the hold on the funds.”
Agent Palmer looked at me curiously for a moment before he asked, “Do you have a means for tracking the recipient, Ms. Page?”
I smiled and confirmed, “Yes. And please, call me Eleanor.”
“Okay, I’m going to have you sit down and talk with one of the other agents about the technical side of that if you don’t mind,” he remarked.
“Absolutely. Anything I can do to help get Claire back here safely and see to it that these people can’t ever do this again,” I assured him.
Agent Palmer looked at Courtney, Jim, and Max, and advised, “Give me a minute. I’m going to get Eleanor set up with one of the other agents. After I do that, we’ll discuss what the plan is for when they call back.”
At that, Agent Palmer led me out of the room to meet with Agent Garza. When he left to get back to Max, Courtney, Jim, and the rest of their family, I sat down with Agent Garza and explained everything he needed to know about how my app worked, what data it collected, and how he could use it to locate the kidnappers.
He even drove me back to my house, so that I could get my laptop. Even though I didn’t typically work on my laptop, mostly because I liked having a large screen to look at when I was working, the laptop still had all the programs necessary to do what had to be done today.
Just under two hours later, the phone rang again. Max was instructed to put the phone on speaker so that I’d be able to listen in and confirm if anything the kidnappers were saying wouldn’t be possible.
“Max King,” he answered.
“Down the road from the post office on Chickadee Avenue, there’s a park. It’s got a big hill where kids go sledding. Your niece is on her way there right now. You’ve got fifteen minutes to get there. There’s a sniper on her, so do not approach her until you hear from me. I’ll call with the payment address. Once I’ve got it and it’s been transferred out of the account, we’ll call off the sniper and you’ll be free to get her.”
The line went dead.
There was silence for about half a second before Agent Palmer ordered, “Max and Eleanor, you’re both going with me. Mr. and Mrs. Golden, since you need Claire’s car seat, Agent Booker will ride along with you.”
As we began moving toward the door, Agent Palmer shouted orders to his team and the local police department. The most important of those was that aside from him pulling up close in the unmarked vehicle with me and Max, and Agent Booker riding with Claire’s parents, the rest were to remain at a distance until Claire was safe.
“Stay with Julian!” Courtney yelled out to her parents.
“Bring our girl home safe,” her father demanded.
That was the last thing I heard before we raced out the door.
Twelve minutes had passed between the time the call with the kidnappers ended and the time we arrived at the park. Looking out the window, it suddenly became clear to me why they chose this park. With all the snow we’d received two weeks ago, there were a lot of kids and quite a few adults there as well.
There were kids at the top of the hill, kids at the bottom, and a bunch of them in the midst of riding a sled down the hill. My eyes scanned through everyone looking for a little girl that could be Claire. I believed I’d finally found her and declared, “That’s got to be her.”
“You see her?” Agent Palmer asked.
“She’s the little girl in the bright pink snowsuit at the bottom of the hill trying to climb back up to the top,” Max confirmed.
His hand went to the door handle, but Agent Palmer stopped him. “Patience, Max. I know it’s hard, but be patient. I’ve got a team searching the surrounding areas for anywhere a sniper could be sitting. There’s another one checking for any vehicles in the area that match the description of the one your sister gave to the detectives. They had to get her here somehow.”
Poor Claire.
Poor Max.
I felt horrible for the entire family.
All I wanted to do was get out of the car and run over to the little girl. Luckily, we didn’t have to exercise too much patience because Courtney’s phone, which Max still had, rang in his hand.
“We’re here,” Max answered.
“I didn’t doubt it,” the kidnapper replied. “Are you ready to make the payment?”
Max and Agent Palmer’s eyes came to me. I already had my laptop out and had set up a hotspot, so I gave them a nod.
“Yes, we’re ready,” Max replied.
The kidnapper rattled off the email address associated with the account the money was to be sent to. I entered it in and continued the process of sending a payment by filling in the rest of the required details. Once I had everything all set to send the payment, I looked up and mouthed, “Send?”
Agent Palmer gave me a nod.
I sent the payment, saw there was a hold put on it, and immediately worked on the back end to release the funds into the payee’s account. After I’d done that, I brought my eyes to Max and whispered, “It’s done.”
“The money’s been sent,” Max declared.
There was a beat of silence before he received a response. “Yes, I can see it just arrived. You’ll wait until I’ve transferred it out.”
We had no choice. If there was a chance they had a sniper on Claire, we couldn’t take that risk. So, we waited. And I watched as Max’s eyes never left Claire.
Finally, after what felt like hours, we heard, “I’ve transferred the funds out of the account and called off my sniper. It’s been a pleasure doing business with you, Mr. King. You’re free to get your niece.”
Max didn�
�t even wait to disconnect. He dropped the phone and was out the door. I got out behind him, but he was already taking off. Glancing behind Agent Palmer’s car, I saw Jim and Courtney exiting their vehicle. We took one look at each other and they were off.
I started moving in that direction, but I didn’t run. I hadn’t ever met Claire and didn’t want her overwhelmed.
“Claire!” Max yelled as he ran toward her. It didn’t seem he cared that most of the adults standing around had turned to look at him.
When Claire spun around at the sound of her name being called and saw her uncle running in her direction, she threw her hands up in the air and called out excitedly, “Uncle Max!”
The little girl moved as fast as her little legs would allow in her big, puffy snowsuit until finally she collided with Max. He picked her up, pulled her tight to his chest, and kissed her cheeks.
“You found me,” she squealed.
“Of course, Claire. I wouldn’t have ever stopped looking for you,” he promised her.
Courtney and Jim made it to Max and Claire.
“Mommy! Daddy! Everybody came to play!”
“Oh, baby,” Courtney cried, taking Claire from Max’s arms.
“Are you okay, sweet pea?” Jim asked his daughter after he’d put one arm around her and the other around his wife.
While they poured their affections over their daughter, I looked at Max. His eyes were filled with unshed tears as he looked at the little girl who seemed to have no clue of the ordeal her family had just been through.
Max eventually turned his eyes to me, but he never had a chance to say anything because Agents Palmer and Booker had come up beside us.
“Folks, why don’t we make our way back to the cars so we can get her home?” Agent Palmer suggested.
With that, we all turned and moved back to the cars.
It was several hours later when Max and I were back in his truck on the way home. He was quiet, as he’d been with me most of the day. Part of me wanted to talk to him and make sure he was doing okay, but the other part of me felt it was wise to let him be the one to lead the discussion.
It had been a long emotional day for everyone. After Claire was rescued, we’d all gone back to her family’s home. While there weren’t as many officers in her house as there had been before she was rescued, there were still a handful hanging around tying up some loose ends with the family. She didn’t seem the least bit bothered by having all the extra people around.
At one point, a few minutes before Max and I left, Claire asked, “Who’s that?”
“Who?” Courtney wondered.
Claire pointed at me and stated, “Her. The lady next to Uncle Max.”
Courtney stood, with Claire in her arms, and moved toward us. “This is Uncle Max’s girlfriend, Eleanor.”
I’d just been officially introduced to Max’s niece as his girlfriend. Of course, I knew that’s what Courtney assumed I was. Heck, it was what I assumed I was. But with the way Max had been acting since he’d learned the truth about me, I wasn’t sure things would remain that way. And it saddened me to think this little girl was being introduced to me in such a way when it might not last beyond the night. I tried to push the negative thoughts away and brought myself back to the people standing in front of me.
I offered Claire a bright smile and said, “It’s so nice to meet you, Claire.”
“You’re pretty,” she marveled.
I let out a laugh. “That’s so sweet of you to say. I think you are one beautiful girl, too.”
“Can you play in the snow with me and Uncle Max?”
“Well, your Uncle Max and I are getting ready to leave now,” I explained. I wasn’t sure if I was overstepping when I suggested it, but I added, “But maybe I can come and join you another time. Besides, I totally didn’t bring my snowsuit with me this time.”
Her eyes widened. “Mommy says I can’t go out in the snow without my snowsuit and hat and gloves on.”
“That’s right. You have to make sure you stay warm,” I agreed.
Max reached out and took Claire from her mom. “Give me hugs and kisses, Claire-bear. I’ve got to get going now.”
Claire wrapped her tiny arms around Max’s neck and squeezed him tight. Then, she gave him kisses before he handed her back over to her mom. Courtney seemed to be having a tough time with letting go of Claire. I figured that would fade as the time ticked by.
Max and I said goodbye and left.
And now, we’d made it back to our neighborhood in complete silence. When Max stopped at the top of my driveway, he turned off the truck and came around to meet me on my side. I opened my front door and stepped inside, but Max didn’t follow me in.
“Max?” I called, turning back to look at him standing on the other side of the door frame.
His troubled eyes came to mine. “I’m going to call it a night here, Ella. I think I just need to go home and be by myself for a while.”
Oh God.
Oh no.
“Are you sure?” I asked.
Nodding, he answered, “Yeah.”
I got it. Or, at least, I hoped I did. This had to have been the most grueling day of his entire life. I couldn’t begin to imagine the thoughts running through his mind. But I truly didn’t think he’d want to be alone with those thoughts. I believed he’d want someone to unload them on. It worried me that he wouldn’t want to unload them on me, especially when I knew that he’d learned something so shocking about me only hours ago.
“Don’t you think it might help to talk about what you’re feeling right now?” I asked.
“Maybe,” he answered with a shrug. “But considering I’m not quite sure I even know what I’m feeling right now, I don’t know how I could do that. I really just need to be alone right now.”
This was it.
I knew where things were heading.
And because Max meant as much as he did to me, I had to step in and do something about it. He had been through a lot today; it couldn’t have been easy for him. So, I decided I needed to make the effort for the both of us right now.
My eyes were pleading with his when I begged, “Please come in, Max. We don’t have to talk about it right now, but I’d rather know I’m right by your side if you change your mind.”
I did my best to swallow past the lump forming in my throat as I waited for him to respond.
Max hesitated. I could see him struggling with what he wanted to do.
“Okay,” Max agreed as he gave a slight downward jerk of his chin and stepped inside.
Relief swept through me even though I knew there was still so much unresolved between us. Max locked the door behind him.
“Can I make you something to eat?” I asked, thinking that food always helped in situations like this.
Max shook his head. “I’m good,” he insisted. “But if you’re hungry, you should eat.”
I didn’t want to eat. My stomach was already churning at the unknown. I had only offered him food because I was simply planning to use food as a way to break the tension.
“I’m good,” I repeated his words.
Max dipped his chin and muttered, “It’s been a long day. We should probably get some sleep.”
I nervously bit my lip before I gave him a nod. “Yeah. Okay,” I agreed.
At that, I turned off the lights on the first floor before climbing the stairs with Max following behind me. When we made it to the bedroom, I asked, “Did you want to use the shower first?”
“You go,” he insisted.
“You could join me,” I offered. I didn’t know if that was the right thing to do in a situation like this, but I was willing to try anything. I’d managed to get him to stay, but I didn’t think my efforts should have just stopped there. I was prepared to do whatever it took to either distract him from whatever horrible thoughts were still lingering in his mind about what happened to Claire or convince him to open up and share his worries with me.
Sadly, Max declined my invitation.
“Not tonight,” he said.
Feeling disappointed but trying not to let it show, I turned and walked away from him. While I went into the bathroom, he stayed in my bedroom. And as I stood under the hot spray of the shower, I began to wonder what I should do.
I was feeling a lot of regret about how I shared the truth of who I was with Max. Never did I imagine a situation like this would occur where I’d end up having no choice but to blurt everything out the way that I did. But it happened, and there wasn’t anything I could do to change it. All I knew now was that I was terrified that Max’s change in demeanor meant that we were at the beginning of the end of us.
Sadness consumed me at the thought.
And I hated the way that felt.
As I finished up in the shower, I realized I had a choice to make. Either I could sit around wondering where Max’s head was, or I could come out and ask him. The distance he was currently putting between us was precisely the thing I’d been worried about from the beginning. And I knew that if I didn’t step in and say something now, things were just going to get worse.
With my mind made up, I got out of the shower and toweled off.
When I entered my bedroom again, I found Max on his back in the bed with the fingers of one hand rubbing his eyes. He never stopped to look over at me. If ever there was a time when Max didn’t join me in the shower, he was always guaranteed to watch me when I walked out.
It seemed he wouldn’t be doing that tonight.
I got myself dressed and climbed in the bed beside him. Feeling nervous about his mood, I figured it was best to stick to my side of the bed.
I waited a few minutes, but Max made no attempt to say anything to me. So, I knew I was going to have to be the one to do it.
“Max?” I called quietly.
“Yeah?” he replied, his eyes never looking in my direction.
“Is everything…are we okay?” I asked.
His hand stopped moving over his eyes, but he still never looked my way. “What do you mean?” he wondered.
Did he really not know what I meant?
“Well, it’s just that you’ve been a bit distant the last few hours,” I started. “I know a lot happened today, but I think we need to talk about this.”