Take On Me

by Stacy Claflin

  “See you in a few.”

  “Wait!” Macy said. “Can Zoey sign Ayla out?”

  “No. I’m the only one listed as her guardian. It would’ve made more sense to have her added, now that I think about it. But it doesn’t matter. I’ll be right down.” Alex ended the call and let the sergeant know what was going on before he left.

  His mind raced so fast, he struggled to keep up. Maybe he should just take the rest of the day off. Between a death threat and everything going on with Ayla, it only made sense. Plus, he still needed to find out how Nick was doing.

  Once at the mental hospital, he checked in the same way as the night before, showing ID and signing a sheet. Even wearing his police uniform, it took more than five minutes. It made his mind spin that someone had breached security. The door between the security desk and the main part of the building where the patients were was a locked door.

  He found Macy in the main waiting room.

  She leaped up. “Did you fill out the paperwork?”

  “To release her? No. I just got in.”

  “Never mind. I’ll find Tamika. She’ll be able to get that for you. Or at least find someone who can.”

  Alex looked around the sleepy room, finding it hard to believe all the excitement he’d missed just before Macy’s call. “What happened to the guy who broke in?”

  “They never found him, but they cleared the building. At least we know he’s gone. I’ll be right back.” She disappeared down the hall.

  Alex sat and checked his phone. No new threats and no word from Nick. Hopefully no news was good news. Although, he knew better than to expect that. That wasn’t the way things went in his world.

  Before long, Macy appeared with a nurse who handed him some papers. “Just complete these, then we’ll get Ayla checked out. Like I told your sister, I’m really sorry she was given the Zylaphat. I wasn’t here, and if I had been, I’d have argued that decision.”

  “She’s okay now, isn’t she?”

  The nurse exchanged a glance with Macy.

  Alex looked at his sister. “What did you leave out?”

  “I mentioned on the phone that she’s not speaking. There’s a small chance it could be permanent.”

  Alex dropped the papers. “Permanent?”

  She frowned. “It happened to one kid in the trials.”

  “And they gave that medicine to Ayla?” He picked up the papers.

  “That’s why I’d have fought it,” the nurse said. “It hasn’t been proven safe in children.”

  “Why is it even here?” Alex demanded. “In a children’s hospital?”

  “This wing is for kids. The rest of the building is for adults.”

  Alex shook his head in disgust and started filling out the paperwork. “Let’s just get her out of here.”

  “Yes,” Macy agreed. “The sooner, the better.” She turned to the nurse. “I can’t thank you enough for everything. You’ve been incredibly helpful.”

  “I want what’s best for the kids, and in this case, that means checking her out. I’d have a hard time going home tonight with the knowledge that she could be administered the Zylaphat again.”

  Alex looked up from the paperwork. “You deserve an award. I really appreciate your commitment.”

  She shook her head. “You’re the one who puts your life on the line.”

  “I’ve seen what nurses do. You’re the unsung heroes.” He turned back to the paperwork, finished it, then handed it back to her. The nurse left to find her supervisor, and Alex turned to Macy. “Did you tell me about Ayla’s voice over the phone?”

  “I’m pretty sure I did.”

  “Maybe you should consider speaking slower so people can understand you.”

  “And maybe you should consider answering your phone when people call and text.”

  “I was working. Actually, I was on the phone with the precinct in Spokane.”

  “Any updates? Are they any closer to finding Brock and Robin?”

  “Brock might be in the area.”

  Macy gave him a double-take. “This area?”

  “A vehicle matching his was seen downtown.”

  “We’re downtown.”

  “I know.”

  Macy tugged on her hair. “Do you think Brock is trying to get to Ayla?”

  “How would he know where she is? He hasn’t contacted anyone. Only our family knows she’s here.”

  “It’s just odd that this place had a break-in while Ayla’s here and Brock is in town.”

  “Potentially in town. It wasn’t a positive ID.”

  Macy frowned. “Still, it seems a bit much to be a coincidence.”

  “I still don’t think it’s possible. Why would he sneak in when he could call any one of us? He could even sign her out. He’s her dad. I only have temporary custody because nobody knows where Ayla’s parents are.”

  She tapped the chair. “I still think it’s a possibility.”

  “A highly unlikely one.”

  They debated until the nurse returned. “Everything is all set. Let’s get Ayla.”

  Macy rose and walked to the door. Alex stayed put.

  The nurse turned to Alex. “Come on.”

  “She’s scared of me—of all men.”

  “I’m sorry, but you have to be in the room and walk her to the parking lot. It’s our policy. After that, you can do what you feel is best.”

  “There’s no workaround?” he asked.

  She shook her head. “You need to be there. Macy can be with you, and she can even be the only one speaking to Ayla.”

  Alex relented and rose. He followed behind them until they reached the room. His heart raced, and he hesitated in the hall. The last thing he wanted was to set Ayla back, to upset her. Images of her freaking out at his sight ran through his mind.

  The nurse poked her head out and waved him in. “Come on.”

  He ignored the sudden onset of lightheadedness and stepped in the room. Barely. He leaned against the doorframe. Watched as Macy spoke with Ayla. He studied the room, and as his gaze landed back on the bed, he noticed restraints. The sight made his stomach twist. Sure, she had outbursts, but enough to require those? Especially after giving her medication that wasn’t approved to be used for children?

  Macy and Ayla walked his way before he had the chance to jump out of sight. Ayla made eye contact with him, and her eyes widened.

  His heart dropped, and he braced himself for the freak-out.

  Instead, Ayla ran right for him then threw her arms around him.

  Answer

  Shocked, Alex wrapped his arms around Ayla. “It’s great to see you, kiddo.”

  She squeezed him, and he exchanged a surprised glance with Macy. Maybe her time in the hospital wasn’t a complete waste, after all. Unless, of course, she now had more trauma, and that was why she was clinging to him.

  “Are you ready to go home?” he asked.

  She squeezed tighter.

  Alex gasped for air. “I’ll take that as a yes. Let’s go.”

  Tamika led them all through the building and waved goodbye as they exited. Ayla continued clinging to him, but he waited for her to recoil at him. She didn’t.

  Macy turned to her. “I think I know the answer to this, but I’m going to ask anyway. Do you want to come home with me or Uncle Alex?”

  Ayla squeezed his middle again. She was strong.

  “Easy there, kiddo.” He tried to loosen her grip. “You can stay with me if you want to.”

  She nodded.

  Macy gave her an awkward hug since she was still wrapped around Alex. “You can call me anytime. Or stay with us. That room is yours.”

  Ayla nodded.

  Alex exchanged a worried glance with Macy, trying to silently ask what they should do about her not talking? What if it was permanent? He sent up a silent prayer that it wasn’t—that it and everything she’d been through was all something she’d heal from, and quickly.

  Macy stood up straight. “Call me later
. If I’m with a client, I’ll call you back after my session is done. If it’s urgent, send me a text.”

  He nodded. “Will do.”

  They said goodbye, then he helped Ayla into the car. Thankfully, she let go of him long enough to sit and latch her belt.

  Alex got into the driver’s seat and started the car before texting Zoey a quick update letting her know they were heading home. Then he turned to Ayla. “Does your throat hurt?”

  She shrugged.

  “Can you say anything?”

  Ayla frowned.

  “Don’t worry about it. We’ll get home and you can just rest. Nobody’ll bug you there.”

  A look of relief covered her face. She looked around outside, her eyes wide.

  “We won’t bring you back here. Don’t worry.” He pulled out of the parking spot and headed for the road. “If I’d known it’d have gone like it did, I would’ve never agreed to bring you, and neither would Aunt Macy. We both thought…” He struggled to find the right wording. “We thought things would be different.”

  Ayla’s only response was to look back.

  “I’m sure it was scary being given that medicine and then for the alarm to go off.” Alex stopped at a light and glanced at her.

  Her eyes were wide and darting around. She seemed to be trying to say something.

  It made Alex want to turn around and go back to the hospital just to punch the person who had given orders for the medication to be given to Ayla. What had they been thinking? He was definitely going to call the attorney who’d helped him when he’d run into some legal trouble and ask some questions.

  What if the poor girl was mute the rest of her life because of this? It was hard not to feel guilty. He’d signed Ayla in, thinking they were going to provide the best care possible—not the worst.

  She pointed to the light, which was green. He hit the gas, and they were silent the rest of the ride home. His mind raced back and forth between everything with Ayla and the death threat. Was it a coincidence that Brock had been seen in the area? Could he have anything to do with any of it? And where was Robin? With him? Somewhere in Spokane, alone? Or worse?

  By the time they arrived home, he’d worked himself up. He took a deep breath before turning to Ayla and trying to smile. “We’re here.”

  Once out of the car, she walked so close to Alex, he nearly tripped.

  Zoey met them at the front door, with Laney on her hip. “Hi, Ayla. Are you hungry?”

  She nodded.

  “Come on in. I was making myself a grilled cheese sandwich. Do you want one? Maybe with tomato soup?”

  Ayla nodded again.

  Zoey lifted an eyebrow at Alex.

  He mouthed, “We’ll talk.”

  She nodded and continued speaking to Ayla as they made their way to the kitchen.

  Once Ayla was settled at the table, Alex turned to her. “I need to call work. Are you going to be okay if I leave the room for a moment?”

  Ayla’s eyes widened.

  “I’ll just be in there.” He nodded toward the apartment.

  “And I’ll be right here.” Zoey added butter to a pan, which made it sizzle. “You can help, if you want.”

  Ayla glanced over, appearing interested.

  Alex squeezed her shoulder. “That sounds like fun. Go for it.”

  She didn’t budge.

  “You might enjoy it.” He headed for the apartment, and turned back as he opened the door. Ayla was rising from her chair. Hopefully, settling into a routine would get her talking—if her vocal cords weren’t destroyed.

  He shoved that thought from his mind and closed the door behind him. The room was dim, which meant Zander was probably napping. Not the best place to make a phone call.

  “Dada.”

  Alex froze. Did Zander really just say that? He couldn’t have. Or could he?

  Zander made more babbling noises, none of them resembling dada. Probably just a coincidence. He just put the two sounds together just like the others. It didn’t mean anything.

  Though Alex wanted it to, especially since Zander wasn’t his biologically—a thought he wished would quit popping into his mind.

  He turned on the light and smiled at the little guy. Zander’s face lit up and he clapped his chubby hands. “Dada!”

  Alex nearly fell over. He pulled Zander out and held him close, taking in his sweet scent. The baby snuggled for a moment before reaching for Alex’s scruff. He’d scratched him last time, so Alex set him down with some toys. “Why don’t you play for a few minutes while I call into the station?”

  He called Sergeant Wu, who answered right away. “You heard already?”

  “Heard what?” Alex’s mind raced. Was it about Brock or Nick or something else?

  “Confirmed sighting of Brock close to your neighborhood.”

  “What?” Alex exclaimed.

  Zander let out a startled cry.

  “Sorry,” Alex whispered and picked him up.

  “Traffic cam picked up his plates. Exact match. He’s here, and he’s close. Are you still at the hospital?”

  Alex swallowed. “I’m at home—with Ayla.”

  Wu swore. “We have to assume he’s armed and dangerous, and that he wants to get to Ayla. Until we know otherwise, he’s our suspect.”

  Alex hated thinking of his cousin like that, but it was the only option. “There’s more.”

  “What?” Wu demanded.

  Alex told him his theory that Brock could be behind the death threat.

  “I didn’t realize there was a connection, but it makes sense.”

  “Did you locate the IP address?”

  Wu threw some technical jargon at Alex, but the gist was the sender had gone to great lengths to hide his whereabouts.

  “Great.” Alex paced. “Now what?”

  “You stay home with the girl. Keep her safe. I’ve got some of our people looking for Brock.”

  “Call me as soon as you hear anything,” Alex said.

  “And you call me if you learn anything.”

  Alex ended the call and took Zander into the kitchen, where everyone else was eating.

  Zoey threw him a concerned look. “Everything okay?”

  He just shook his head then put Zander in a high chair.

  “What is it?” she asked.

  “Not here.” Alex turned to Ayla. “How are you doing?”

  She was scrawling something on a scrap of paper. Maybe art therapy.

  He motioned for Zoey to follow him to the hall, where he whispered the news about Brock and the death threats.

  Zoey’s face paled. “And he’s in our neighborhood?”

  “Somewhere close, yeah.”

  “What are we going to do?”

  “We’re going to act normal, so as not to upset the kids. I’m going to make sure all the windows and doors are locked, then set the alarm.” He patted his gun. “And I’m keeping this on me instead of locking it up.”

  Zoey nodded. She took short breaths.

  “Officers are already tailing him. They’ll find him and bring him in for questioning. Probably find a good reason to arrest him. Then we’ll be safe again. For now, let’s go back in there and act normal.”

  “Right.” She frowned.

  He wrapped his arms around her and gave her a kiss. “This isn’t a repeat of Dave, Zo. And I’m not going to let anything happen to any of you. I give you my word.”

  She didn’t respond for a moment, then she nodded. “Okay.” She spun around and marched into the kitchen. “Who wants more food?”

  Ayla held up her paper and waved it around.

  Alex took it from her. “What did you draw?”

  The sight knocked the air from his lungs.

  “What’s wrong?” Zoey asked.

  He struggled to breathe. “It—it’s a map. To a cave near Spokane.” Then he turned to Ayla. “Is this where your mom is?”

  She nodded.

  Zoey dropped the spatula.

  Seize

&n
bsp; Ayla clung to the doll—Sierra. She remembered the name now. Basically remembered everything. There were still a few details that eluded her, but more details were filling in every time she tried to recall things.

  The one thing she couldn’t get out of her mind was the image of her dad in the hospital.

  The good thing was he’d left after that loud alarm. Or at least, she hadn’t seen him since then. The nice nurse had scared him away from her room then the wailing started. She hadn’t seen him after that.

  She kept waiting to hear about her mom. Uncle Alex had taken a picture of her map and sent it to the police back home. But he hadn’t told her anything new about it. He would tell her if they’d found her mom, wouldn’t he?

  What if she wasn’t okay? He’d probably keep that to himself. Wouldn’t want to upset her more than she already was.

  If only she could get her voice to cooperate. If she could talk she could convince them she was fine. Or at least as fine as possible. But every time she tried to speak, nothing happened.

  At least she’d been able to draw the map. Now the police knew where to look for her mom.

  She tossed and turned, unable to sleep. Relaxed breathing sounded from all over the apartment—the babies and Uncle Alex and Aunt Zoey. Everyone else could get the rest they needed. Not Ayla. Not when she didn’t know where her parents were.

  She sat up and rested her chin on her knees. Why wouldn’t anyone tell her what was going on? Just because she couldn’t talk, didn’t mean she couldn’t understand. And she needed to know!

  Why were they keeping it from her?

  Ayla kicked off the covers and swung her legs over the bed. She stood and took a step, then froze to make sure no one heard her get up.

  Just the quiet sleep-breathing.

  She tiptoed over to Uncle Alex’s laptop and tapped the return button. The screen lit up with a picture of all five of them at a beach, smiling. A little rectangular box appeared for the password.

  Dang it.

  Ayla wouldn’t give up that easily. She tried everyone’s names before giving up and closing the laptop. Then she crept over to their bed and found Uncle Alex’s phone. Also password protected.

  Maybe Aunt Zoey didn’t have a password. Her mom didn’t, so maybe it was a mom thing.