Читать книгу Christmas Conspiracy - Susan Sleeman - Страница 12
ОглавлениеJake charged to the door, his chest aching like crazy, but with lives on the line, his pain didn’t matter. Finding the baby was what mattered now. He moved forward, caution in his steps, and scanned the playground. Mulch crunched under his feet near the pint-size playground structure, and the gate ahead swung in the breeze.
He wanted to burst through the opening, but that would be foolhardy, so he paused and swept the area. A larger playground in the distance held a tall play structure with a thick layer of mulch in the fall zone. A six-foot fence surrounded the area and Brady, rifle slung over his shoulder, scaled the fence boards.
“Report,” Jake said into his mic.
Brady didn’t lose a beat at the command but hurled over the top. “Kidnapper went over the fence here. Couldn’t take the baby.”
Jake looked down and spotted the carrier sitting near the fence. The child squirmed and kicked her little feet. He let out a heavy sigh.
“Continue foot pursuit,” Jake commanded. “I’ve got the baby.”
He crossed the playground and directed his voice at his mic. “Cash, call in backup to track this guy, and get some uniforms on scene to set up a perimeter. We’ll need a detective dispatched. Skyler has the best closure rate of county detectives, and I suspect she’ll be assigned to the investigation, but give her a call so she has a heads-up and can ask to work the case.”
“Roger that,” Cash replied, and Jake knew he would immediately phone their teammate.
When not working as a negotiator on the FRS, Skyler served as a Special Investigations Unit detective, and since this case involved a young child, Jake wanted the best investigator on the job.
He crossed the yard and bent over to pick up the carrier. His chest screamed in agony. Of course. His adrenaline was subsiding, and the pain from the deputy’s shots would grow by the minute.
The baby blinked her lashes at him, her eyes wide and interested when he’d expected tears. Some babies were good-natured, and nothing riled them. His little sister had been like that. All giggles and smiles, all the time. That could be true of this child.
Her smile widened into a toothless grin, and his pain receded. His team had done a good thing today. They’d successfully stopped the abduction of this little princess. That felt good. Real good.
She suddenly frowned and narrowed her tiny blue eyes, then screwed up her face like a wrinkled prune and started to whimper.
“Shh.” He gently shook the carrier, mimicking motions he remembered from helping care for his brother and sister. “It’s okay. You’re safe, Kelly. At least that’s what the director said your name was.”
She didn’t settle but wailed in earnest, flailing her arms and legs in her pink snowsuit. Jake stopped and stared at her for a long moment.
What in the world was he supposed to do with a crying baby?
He commanded an emergency response team, leading them into some of the most volatile and dangerous situations law enforcement deputies could encounter, but a baby, let alone one whose cry gave emergency sirens a run for their money, brought more fear to his heart than the toughest spots he’d been in.
He hadn’t had any experience with babies since he’d lost both of his siblings when he was a mere kid himself, but he figured she wanted to be held. Or changed. Once they got inside, he’d hold her. But the other? No way. He wasn’t about to attempt that.
To comfort her, he gently swung the carrier as he walked, each swing like a knife to his chest, but the motion served to slow the crying to a whimper. Inside, he found the director still unconscious on the floor. He hurried over to her, set down the carrier and knelt next to her. He released the carrier to lay two fingers on her wrist. Her pulse beat hard but her breathing seemed shallow.
“So, Rachael Long,” he mumbled. “What did the guy inject you with?”
He wished Darcie Stevens, the team medic, had been with them. She possessed the training needed to enter a volatile situation and would already be tending to the director. Other medics didn’t have such skills. They were required to wait until the suspect no longer posed a threat to their safety before treating Ms. Long.
Jake adjusted his mic. “Are there medics standing by, Cash?”
“Affirmative.”
“Send them in as soon as you’re sure it’s safe.” Jake rocked the carrier as he looked at Rachael.
The heater kicked in, sending a whiff of her sweet perfume wrapping around him and temporarily overpowering the antiseptic odor of bleach permeating the air. About five-five, she was small compared to his six-foot-two frame. She appeared fit, had curling, shoulder-length hair and freckles peppered high cheeks. She seemed sweet, almost innocent. Exactly what he’d expect of a child care director.
She wore a wedding ring, but preliminary information gathered as the team raced toward the scene told him she’d lost her husband in a car crash about four years ago, and she hadn’t remarried.
Now she lay there. Near death? He wanted to do something to help.
He jumped to his feet and retrieved a few child-sized blankets from the cribs. He returned to cover her, then turned his attention to Kelly, whose cries had escalated. He ripped off his tactical gloves and took off his helmet, figuring it might be scaring her. Then he released her restraints and lifted her into his arms. The steel plates of his vest weren’t likely comfortable, so he lowered her and held her slightly away from his body while he rocked back and forth.
“Shh,” he whispered and listened to the chatter on his comms unit to keep updated on the chase.
The kidnapper had disappeared from Brady’s view, so Cash had called in a search dog. Jake didn’t get his hopes up, though. Since most properties were fenced in the city, and dogs often lost the scent at fence lines, odds were against them in locating the kidnapper.
Jake continued to listen while rocking the baby until she settled down and drifted to sleep. The front door opened, and the sound of gurney wheels finally echoed down the hallway.
Two men entered. The thin guy who stepped in first wore a Santa hat. The other guy was bald and tough-looking, and Jake suspected he’d never worn a Santa hat in his life.
Jake stepped back to give them access to Rachael. “You up to speed on the incident?”
The guy with the hat knelt on the floor next to Rachael. “The woman was injected with something and is unconscious but breathing.”
“Exactly,” Jake replied.
“Dog has lost the scent,” Brady said over Jake’s earbuds, then reported his exact location.
“Widen the perimeter and stand ready,” Jake replied. “We’ll have to hope 911 receives a call reporting the kidnapper’s movements.”
And hope he doesn’t harm anyone as he makes his escape.
“Roger that.” Disappointment lingered in Brady’s tone.
Suddenly weary beyond his thirty-five years, Jake ran a hand over tense muscles in his neck and watched the medics do their thing. Once they had an IV going, they loaded Rachael onto the gurney.
An overwhelming desire to protect her and Kelly from additional harm rose up and caught him off guard. He worked each callout with the thought that he would do everything he could so he didn’t have to live with regret, but he’d never taken a personal interest in the people he rescued.
Until right now. But why?
Could have to do with losing his infant sister and six-year-old brother, he supposed. When he’d just turned thirteen, they, and his parents, perished in a bombing, leaving him with a soft spot in his heart for children in danger and the special people who cared for them. And a burning desire to see anyone who threatened them pay for their actions.
He glanced at Ms. Long on the gurney as the medics strapped her in, and her eyelids fluttered.
Lord, please. I know you decide who lives or dies, but please let this woman live. Please.
Jake crossed the room and stood over her. She blinked a few times and seemed almost lucid.
“Who are you?” she asked, her voice sounding thick and heavy. Then her eyes widened. “Kelly!”
“She’s fine and right here.” Jake held the baby up for Rachael to see.
“Thank you, sweet Jesus,” Rachael whispered, her words slurred. “You were looking out for us.”
Her lips tipped up in a sweet smile, and Jake’s heart hesitated. Despite the medics standing by, he couldn’t seem to pull his gaze from hers.
“We should get her and the baby transported,” the medic said, ruining the moment.
“We’re going with you.” Jake reluctantly pulled away and settled Kelly in her carrier, then glanced back at Rachael. He wasn’t sure if Kelly or Rachael looked more vulnerable.
Didn’t matter, now, did it?
There was no way he’d let anything bad happen to either of them. He’d make sure they were both protected until he was certain that neither of them remained in danger.
* * *
Rachael saw the light flashing over her head before she opened her eyes. Bright fluorescent tubes wavered in and out of her view in squiggly lines. She concentrated harder and battled the residual fog from the drug.
She heard rushed, hurried voices in the distance. Smelled the antiseptic of the hospital, reminding her she lay in a hard bed in the ER. She’d woken thirty minutes ago and talked to the doctor, but the drug’s effects kept pulling her back under. She had to try harder to stay awake so she could talk to Pam and see Kelly.
She blinked hard and made an effort to clear her vision.
“She’s awake,” a deep male voice said from across the small room.
Did he mean her—and who was he, anyway?
She heard his footsteps as he came near, and she forced her head to turn toward the sound. The resulting wave of dizziness sent her stomach roiling. She blinked until she could focus on a large man wearing a black uniform now looking down on her.
“Ms. Long,” he said softly, his face so familiar—but she was sure she didn’t know him. “Can you hear me?”
“Yes,” she replied.
“I’m Deputy Sergeant Jake Marsh. I was one of the deputies who found you unconscious in the baby room.”
Ah, so that was who he was. She remembered him now. His kindness in the ambulance. Holding precious Kelly’s carrier for the ride, safe and secure in his hands. He’d said a neighbor noticed the masked man enter the playground and called 911. He arrived to help and had chased off the kidnapper.
“Deputy,” she said. “Yes. I remember you.”
“Call me Jake.”
“I’m Rachael.”
“It’s nice to see you’re awake, Rachael.” A dazzling smile broke across his face.
A little zip of awareness shot through her stomach, catching her off guard. She’d been only vaguely aware of him this far, as she hadn’t been fully awake when he’d ridden along in the ambulance. Then after the medics rushed her into the ER, the staff forced him to wait outside her door, and she hadn’t seen him since then.
He was a fine-looking man. Six foot two, maybe, muscled and brawny. Chocolate-brown eyes. Olive skin. Ebony hair. Yeah, he was a striking man, but why was she noticing? She’d been immune to men’s charms after she married Eli. Especially immune after he died in the car accident that was all her fault, so where was the reaction to this guy coming from all of a sudden?
She was probably confusing this interest in him with gratitude for his rescue and protection. After all, he’d saved her life. Or maybe the drugs had caused her to let down her guard. Either way, she wouldn’t waste time analyzing it when she doubted she’d ever see him again.
“Thank you for your help,” she said.
He gave a clipped nod. “It was a team effort, and we were just doing our jobs.”
His job. A dangerous and difficult job, she suspected. One she could never do, at least not if she hoped to sleep at night.
Scenes of the attempted kidnapping flooded her brain. Her fear. Her anger. Little Kelly, vulnerable. Everything came to her except details of the intruder’s face. That she couldn’t seem to call up from her memory. In the times she’d been awake, she’d tried to recall what he looked like, but only fuzzy images came to mind.
The doctor had told her that the police found an empty vial of ketamine on the floor at the center. Doctors and veterinarians used the drug for conscious sedation. He said as the drug left her system, she might remember the kidnapper in more detail, but the levels of drug in her blood meant she wouldn’t likely recall much of anything after the ketamine had taken hold.
She might not remember the kidnapper’s face, but she would never forget Kelly sleeping peacefully in her crib, danger lurking all around her.
“Is Kelly really okay?” She managed to get the words out through a mouth that felt like it was stuffed with cotton.
Jake smiled. “She’s fine. She’s with her mother.”
A woman stepped around the deputy and displayed a wallet that held a shiny badge. “I’m Detective Skyler Hunter. I’ll be handling this investigation, and if you’re up to it, I have a few questions for you.”
Rachael ran her gaze over the woman. She looked like she was an inch or so taller than Rachael, had red hair and wore khaki pants and a blue blazer. The lapel held a Christmas button that said Jesus Is the Reason for the Season.
Never having been questioned by the police, apprehension settled in Rachael’s stomach, but the concern in the detective’s expression seemed sincere and gave Rachael hope that the questioning wouldn’t be too bad.
“You’re the one who’ll catch this terrible man, then?” Rachael asked.
“I’ll do my very best, yes.”
Rachael eased herself up on her pillows until she reached a sitting position. The room swam, but she battled the dizziness and focused on the detective again. “Not to be rude, but how good is your best?”
“That’s not rude at all. In fact, I get asked that question all the time.” She sounded pleasant enough, but Rachael heard frustration in her voice. “I’ve been a deputy for twelve years and a detective for the last seven of them. My case closure rate is the highest on our team.”
“I’m confused,” Rachael said. “Are you a detective or a deputy?”
“Both, actually. All sworn staff except the sheriff himself are deputies, no matter the rank or position attained in the agency. So, for example, Jake is a sergeant in charge of the First Response Squad, but he’s still a deputy.”
“First Response Squad. That’s the team who came to my rescue.”
Jake nodded. “We’re a team of six and are dispatched on emergency callouts, especially those with a potential hostage situation.”
“Please thank the others on the team for me,” she said.
He nodded. “Detective Hunter serves as a negotiator on the team, but she is a well-qualified detective, too.”
For some reason Rachael trusted his opinion. “Okay, good. Then let’s get those questions out of the way. I want to visit Pam and Kelly, and I need to talk to my staff at the center and call all of my parents.”
“Slow down there.” The detective held up her hands. “Ms. Baldwin is off limits until I take her statement, and we can’t allow you to talk to her.”
Rachael met her gaze. “Why in the world not?”
“When people involved in incidents compare stories, they often alter their own stories to match.”
“I wouldn’t do that.”
“It’s not a conscious thing,” Jake offered. “But it happens.”
“Okay, fine. I’ll wait to talk to Pam, but I can still get my records from the center to call the parents and my staff.”
“In this age of technology, I’m surprised you don’t keep that information on your phone,” Jake said.
“Some directors may, but I don’t. I care for a hundred and twenty children, and I won’t risk having my phone stolen and the contact information for these families falling into the wrong hands. Besides that, for tax purposes, I keep my business and work activities separate whenever possible. I do keep the contact information on an iPad that I take home every day and use for center business only. Since I came by ambulance from the center, my iPad is still in my office.”
“I’m sorry, but you won’t be able to go to the center,” the detective said. “It’s a crime scene. Only official personnel are allowed inside, and it will remain closed during the initial investigation.”
“Closed?” Rachael asked. “For how long?”
“We won’t know for sure. I can give you a better estimate later in the day.”
“Then it’s even more important for me to get going and find a way to contact the parents. Many of them are low-income and can’t afford to miss even a day of work, and I need to help them find alternative care. I also have to notify my state licensing representative, who will need to complete her own investigation.” Rachael swung her legs over the edge of the bed and nearly tumbled to the floor.
Jake grabbed her arm to steady her. Warmth from his touch rushed up her arm. Shocked at her response, she pulled her arm free.
He met her gaze and held it. “It’s admirable to want to take care of these people, but it’s not wise to leave before the doctor releases you.”
“He’s already given the okay. I’m just waiting for the nurse to take out my IV and bring my papers.” She raised her chin to show her sincerity in helping her families. “The parents must be frantic over what’s happened. Can’t I at least pick up my iPad so I can call them?”
Jake turned to his fellow deputy. “What if, after Ms. Long answers your questions, I accompany her to the center and keep an eye on her while she gathers any information she needs?”
Detective Hunter arched a brow, watching Jake like a hawk. She didn’t look happy with him. “I’ll have to check with our forensic team, but if they’ve processed the office, then that should be fine.”
He turned his focus back to Rachael. “Our questions won’t take long.”
The detective leaned against the wall, appearing casual and at ease, but her eyes were sharp and direct. “You seem especially fond of Kelly. Do you have a connection to her other than as the center director?”
“Connection?” Rachael thought about it as she planted her feet on the floor to test her strength. “I’m fond of all the children at the center. In fact, I take care of some of them at my house when their parents have to work outside the normal center hours. I guess I care for Kelly more often than most, so I might be a bit more protective of her.”
Detective Hunter flashed a knowing look at Jake, who gave an almost imperceptible shrug.
“But today you chose to watch Kelly at the center,” the detective said.
“It just made more sense to have Pam bring Kelly to the center as they live nearby. She’d have to take several buses to get to my house. Plus Pam would have dropped Kelly at my house right when I’d have to leave to open the center.”
“Why don’t you tell us what happened this morning,” he said. “Every detail.”
Rachael would rather not have to rehash all of the details, but she had to do everything she could to make sure they caught this creep. “The day started out crazy. Pam has been late for work a few times because we don’t open until six thirty. So this week, I’ve been opening at six so she can get to work on time. I should mention that my center is licensed by the state, and I am required to operate within my posted hours. So by opening at six, I violated my licensing agreement.”
“And yet you did so,” Skyler said.
“Yes, for Pam,” Rachael said. “But you should also know if the schedule needed to continue beyond this week, I would have called my licensing rep and asked to change my hours. Also when my teacher was late and Pam needed to get to work, I should have made Pam wait, as licensing regulations require two staff members be on-site when children are present.”
Rachael paused and looked away. “You must think I’m a terrible person, but I strive to follow the rules, and I realize I made a mistake. It’s not an excuse, but I did it for Pam and Kelly. If Pam lost her job, she would have to apply for government subsidies and that could be endangered by her past drug use. She’s afraid she would lose custody of Kelly. That wouldn’t be good for either of them.”
“What will happen when licensing learns of your actions?” Jake asked.
“I don’t know. Since I’ve never had a violation before, I hope they’ll give me the benefit of the doubt.”
“Let’s hope so,” Jake said.
“So you took Kelly,” Skyler said, moving them back to the incident.
“Since she was sleeping, Pam laid her in the crib, and then she went to work.” At the thought of precious Kelly lying there oblivious to the masked man, Rachael’s voice caught, but she forced down the anguish, just as she did whenever she thought of the child she’d lost in a miscarriage.
Detective Hunter raised an eyebrow. “I don’t pretend to know anything about child care centers, but it seems odd to me that even if one teacher was late, there weren’t other teachers present.”
“That’s typical for us. Staffing is the largest expense in child care, and very few children arrive when the center opens. To save on staffing dollars we combine all age groups when we open, and ramp up the staffing as the morning progresses. My next teacher was due in at seven.”
“I’ll need to see your time cards to confirm this is the norm.”
Rachael couldn’t imagine why the detective had to confirm that, but she had nothing to hide. “I can get them for you once I’m allowed back in the center.”
The detective jotted down a few notes on a small notepad, then looked up. “So, you were alone in the room with Kelly. What happened next?”
“I was putting fresh sheets on the other mattresses when a masked man pried the door open and pointed a gun at me.”
“I noticed you have an alarm system at the center. Didn’t this set off an alarm?”
She shook her head. “During times when children are present, we turn off the burglar alarm for the building. The front door remains locked for safety reasons. During open hours, each parent has a code to enter on a keypad to gain access through the front door.”
“This keypad is only at the main entrance?”
“That’s right. When I arrive, the first thing I do is turn off the burglar alarm, and then, when I’m ready to open, I activate the parent controls at the front door.”
“Okay, the man is in the baby room and holding a gun on you,” the detective continued. “What does he do next?”
“He told me he was going to take Kelly, and he threatened to hurt me if I didn’t cooperate. I tried to protect her, but he overpowered me. He gave me that shot, and I fought him off. I don’t know what happened after the drug took effect.”
“You fought hard,” Jake added. “You should be proud of the way you stood up for Kelly.”
Her ribs ached from the man’s grip, and her arms were bruised from trying to escape, but only she and the intruder could possibly know that he had manhandled her.
She eyed Jake. “How do you know what happened?”
“We accessed your center’s closed-circuit video.”
“Oh, right. The video. I should have thought of that.”
“You have quite a system.” An accusation of some sort lingered in the detective’s tone.
“I installed it for parents to be able to check on their children any time of the day. They can all log in to view a live feed.” She shook her head. “Thankfully there wasn’t a reason for any of them to watch this morning.”
Jake pulled a chair up to her bed. A hint of his musky aftershave drifted over, and she peered at him. This close, she could see striations of black and gold in his eyes, and she couldn’t pull her gaze free.
“Forget I’m a deputy,” he said softly. “I’m just Jake. The guy who held your hand in the ambulance. I’m sorry we have to question you after all you’ve been through. It’s just routine. We’ll make this as quick and painless as possible. Then I’ll give you a ride to your center.”
Detective Hunter pointedly cleared her throat.
Rachael suspected Jake was breaking the rules of questioning, or maybe he didn’t care about the rules but truly wanted to help her through a difficult time. Either way, the detective didn’t seem to like it.
“We were unable to see the intruder’s face on the video,” he continued. “But I know you ripped off his mask. Can you describe him?”
“Other than getting to see Kelly and Pam and talking to my center families, I’ve thought of little else, but I can only call up a vague image of his face. It’s too fuzzy to see in detail. I do remember his eyes though...his eyes and his breath.”
“Go on,” Jake encouraged her.
“His eyes were mean and hard. Like he enjoyed hurting us. They were gray, almost black. His breath was minty fresh, like a man who takes good care of himself.” She paused to calm her nerves. “I know it’s a weird thing to remember, but I didn’t expect a kidnapper to have good hygiene.”
Detective Hunter pushed off the wall and stepped forward. “Since you’re the only one who can identify him, I need you to keep trying to picture his face.”
“What about one of the neighbors?” Rachael asked. “Or someone on the street, or the person who called 911? Maybe they saw him before he put on his mask.”
“Deputies are canvassing the neighborhood right now, but the woman who called this in didn’t see his face.”
“Go back earlier in your day,” Jake said, changing the subject. “On your way to work, or even in the last few days, did you notice anything out of the ordinary?”
“Like I said, I expected to see my teacher waiting for me in the parking lot, but she wasn’t there. She called to tell me she had a flat tire and had to take the bus.” Guilt crowded out other thoughts, and Rachael bit down on her lip.
“What is it?” Jake asked.
“If I’d waited for her to get there before letting Pam go, maybe this wouldn’t have happened.”
“If an armed man wanted Kelly,” Jake said, “he would’ve taken her even with two people present, and something bad could have happened to Ms. Baldwin or your teacher.”
“Unless, of course, Ms. Baldwin is involved in this somehow,” Detective Hunter said.
“Pam? Involved? But why? She has full custody of Kelly. She has no need to kidnap her.”
“You mentioned that she had a past drug problem. Maybe she started using again and needed money,” the detective said bluntly.
“No.” Rachael shook her head hard. The room spun, so she waited for it to still before continuing. “Pam is clean, and if you think she’d fake a kidnapping to sell Kelly to someone, you’re wrong. Pam loves Kelly, and she’s a good mother. She’d never hurt her child.”
The detective fixed her eyes on Rachael. “What about you?”
Rachael swiveled to face her directly. The room swam, but she grabbed the arm of Jake’s chair. “You think I’m involved in Kelly’s attempted kidnapping? That’s unbelievable. I would never do that. Never. Not in a million years.”
Jake stood. “I think this is enough for now.”
Rachael shot him a look. “You think I did this, too?”
“I—” Jake said, but the door opened and the nurse entered, taking his attention.
She didn’t seem to notice the tension in the room, but smiled and marched across the small space. “Let’s take that IV out so you can get going.” The nurse cocked an eyebrow at Jake and the detective. “If you’ll excuse us...”
“I’ll wait in the hall to give you a ride to the center,” Jake said.
Rachael nodded, but she wasn’t sure if she should be glad for his help or concerned about spending more time with him. Especially if he thought her capable of kidnapping an innocent little baby.
