by Rita Herron
“Okay. I lifted a couple of prints from the doorknob and doorjamb. People usually forget to wipe those down.” He hesitated. “I’ll check the mother’s room if you want to look through Nina’s.”
Cora murmured she would, then crossed the hall to the room Nina had slept in. The twin bed looked bare now, the shelves void of toys. She checked inside the dresser and closet, but they were empty.
She examined the small desk in the corner, her heart clenching when she discovered a notepad Nina had left behind. She flipped it open and smiled at the childlike drawings of herself and her mother. There were also sketches of different houses in the book, obviously places where Nina and her mother had lived.
Faye claimed she was running from her ex. If she’d gone to a shelter, she might have gotten help there. Underground groups helped abused women establish new identities across the country.
Or...was she really running from the law?
* * *
JACOB STOWED THE prints he’d collected in his evidence recovery kit, then shined his flashlight along the furniture in the room where Faye had slept, searching for a hair strand. The drawers had been cleaned out in the bedroom and master bath. No toothbrush, comb or brush, dammit.
Faye had left nothing behind. That fact made her behavior even more suspicious. Did she have Alice? If so, where had she gone this time?
He stooped down on the floor and shined his light along the edge of the bed. Something red caught his attention. He stretched his arm beneath the bed and his fingers touched a rain hat.
His pulse jumped, and he dragged it out and examined it. A small hair clung to the inside of the cap. He bagged the hat, hopeful it belonged to Faye or Nina, then went to find Cora.
She was sitting in the desk chair looking at something. He approached slowly, struck by her sad expression.
“What is it?” he asked.
She moved slightly to the right to offer him a view. “Nina drew these,” she said softly. “There are half a dozen houses here where they lived.”
Jacob squeezed Cora’s shoulder. “Kids adapt.”
“I know, but if Nina is my daughter, I would give her a stable home.”
Jacob sucked in a breath. “I know you would, Cora. But let’s find Faye. Then we’ll go from there.”
Cora lifted her chin in a show of bravado. She wasn’t going to fall apart.
Dammit, he wanted to make everything right for her. But what if he failed?
“Did she draw or write anything in there about where she and her mother might have gone?”
“I don’t see anything about the future, except Nina drew a Christmas tree in this house with a puppy beneath it. She must have hoped Santa would bring her a dog.”
“Did Nina or Faye ever talk about some place they’d like to visit? Maybe a city or town or state?” Jacob asked.
Cora rubbed her temple as if her head ached. “Not that I recall.”
Jacob drummed his fingers on his thigh. He hated to leave Cora alone, but if they got a lead on Faye, he wanted to pursue it without involving Cora.
“Let me drive you home. I need to take the prints and a hair fiber I found to the lab for analysis.”
Cora stood and collected the sketchbook. “Whether she’s Alice or not, Nina deserves to have a safe and secure home, not to be on the run.”
* * *
TEN MINUTES LATER, Jacob dropped Cora at her house.
“Keep the doors locked and the security system activated,” Jacob told her as he started to leave.
Nerves fluttered in Cora’s stomach. She was growing accustomed to having Jacob around to protect her. But she wanted him to solve this case.
“Keep me posted.”
Jacob feathered a strand of hair away from her cheek. “Of course. Hang in there, Cora.”
She’d been hanging in there for five years now. But what else could she do? Falling to pieces was not an option.
As Jacob drove away, she considered calling Julie to visit, but she was too antsy to entertain anyone. She carried Nina’s sketchbook to her writing desk and flipped through it again.
Her heart in her throat, she pulled out her stationery and began another letter.
Dear Alice,
It’s another beautiful summer day. I smell the flowers in the air and imagine you and me walking along the riverbank picking wildflowers to bring back and put in a vase on the kitchen table.
She glanced out the back window and imagined building a tree house for her daughter. As a child, her father had built one for her and it had become her sanctuary. She’d climb the ladder to the inside and sit for hours drawing and daydreaming.
Most of all, she would give her little girl a home where she felt safe and loved.
Her therapist’s words taunted her again. What if you find her and she’s happy and loved?
But what if she wasn’t?
She put her pen back to the paper.
I feel like I’m so close to finding you. I love you so much that I’ll never stop looking.
A loud knock sounded at the door. Cora startled, then realized it might be Jacob, so she hurried to the door. But she hesitated before opening it. “Who’s there?”
“It’s me,” a woman said in a muffled voice. “Faye.”
Cora quickly unlocked the door.
Tears streaked Faye’s cheeks, and she stormed in, swinging her hands in agitation. “Cora, I...didn’t know where to go.”
Cora closed the door, her arms crossed. “What’s going on? I was just at your house and you’d packed up and moved out.”
“I know, I...was scared,” Faye cried. “I didn’t know what to do, so I ran again.”
“What are you scared of?” Cora asked. “And don’t lie to me this time, Faye. I know you weren’t married and there’s no abusive ex.”
Faye staggered back as if she’d been hit. Maybe she was wrong. Maybe Faye had changed her identity to escape her ex.
Faye rubbed her hands over her face, her face milky white.
“Talk to me, Faye. Did you lie to me?”
Faye nodded, her voice choked, “I’m sorry, I never meant to hurt you.”
A sense of betrayal welled inside Cora. She wanted to scream at Faye for deceiving her. But she had to remain calm so Faye would confide in her. “Sit down and tell me everything.”
Faye followed Cora to the den and sank onto the sofa, but her hands were shaking as she accepted a glass of water.
“Is there an abusive ex or isn’t there?” Cora asked bluntly.
Faye shook her head, her expression pained. “Not exactly. I made up that story because I was scared, and you were asking about Nina’s adoption.”
Cora sucked in a breath. “And that upset you because you didn’t legally adopt her?”
Faye went stone-still, her face crumpling. “I...thought I did.”
“What does that mean?”
Faye closed her eyes and sighed, then opened them and looked up at Cora. “I was distraught over my latest miscarriage,” Faye said. “A couple of nights after that hospital fire, this woman approached me. She said she knew I lost a child, and that she had a baby who needed a good home. She claimed the baby’s father paid her to take the child and give her away.”
Cora stared at her in shock. Was she talking about Alice? “And you believed her?”
Faye nodded. “She said that the mother died in childbirth, and the father couldn’t bear to look at the baby because she reminded him of his wife’s death.” Her voice broke. “She had adoption papers already drawn up, and I signed them and the little girl was mine.”
Cora’s heart pounded. Drew had been worried about his career, but he wouldn’t have paid someone to take Alice away.
Would he?
Perspiration beaded Cora’s neck. “Where is Nina now, Faye?”
Faye
released a sob. “That’s just it. I don’t know where she is.”
Panic shot through Cora. “What do you mean?”
Faye’s voice cracked. “Last night, I got this threatening phone call warning me that if I talked about the adoption, I’d be sorry. So early this morning, I packed up Nina and told her we were taking a trip.”
Cora’s blood went cold. “Go on.”
Faye swiped at tears. “On the way out of town, someone ran me off the road. I hit a ditch and blacked out. When I came to, Nina was gone.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
Jacob met Liam at the sheriff’s office to hand over the evidence he’d collected at Faye’s house.
“How are Evie and her little girl?” Jacob asked.
Liam shrugged. “Fine. I left her with your deputy looking over mug shots of suspected child kidnappers.”
Jacob explained about finding Faye’s place empty. “See if Evie recognizes Faye or if there’s a connection between the two of them. Faye had miscarriages and Evie couldn’t have children. Maybe they met at a support group or a fertility clinic or something.” That was a long shot, but Jacob couldn’t ignore any possibility, no matter how remote.
“I’ll ask her,” Liam agreed.
Liam’s phone buzzed, and he checked the text, then returned one. A second later, Liam addressed Jacob. “The analyst found a file about Drew Westbrook and his wife. Philips was supposed to meet with him for questioning the morning of the day he died.”
Jacob had disliked Cora’s ex from the beginning. How could you respect a man who abandoned his wife when she was grieving for their kidnapped child?
Some men wanted a namesake. Perhaps he’d been disappointed Cora had delivered a daughter?
Acid boiled in Jacob’s blood as Liam described the man’s findings. If Drew Westbrook orchestrated the kidnapping of his own child, he was a cold-blooded monster. He’d nearly crushed Cora.
Jacob would see the damn man behind bars.
“I’m going to question him, and this time he’d better talk,” Jacob said.
Jacob rushed outside to his car, then dialed Cora. But she didn’t answer.
Dammit. If something had happened to her, he’d never forgive himself.
A minute later, she texted him. Call you in a minute.
Relief spilled through him. At least Cora was safe.
* * *
CORA BARELY CONTROLLED her panic. “Who was the woman who gave Nina to you?”
“She said her name was Valerie and that she worked for an attorney who’d already drawn up the adoption papers.”
“And you believed her?” Cora asked.
Faye’s face wilted. “I know it was stupid, but at the time I was so desperate for a child I didn’t question her. She seemed truly afraid that the father would hurt the child if I didn’t take her. So I didn’t lie about being afraid the father would come after Nina.”
“Why did she offer you the baby? Did you know her?”
Faye massaged her temple. “After the last miscarriage, I met her in the waiting room at my counselor’s office.”
“So she knew you’d lost a child?”
Faye twisted her hands together. “Yes, I told her everything. She seemed so...nice.”
Suspicions reared their ugly head in Cora’s mind. Valerie had papers from an attorney. Drew was a lawyer. No...she couldn’t believe he’d give their child away...
She gritted her teeth. “What was the attorney’s name?”
Faye rubbed a hand over her eyes. “I really don’t remember. That night is a blur.”
“Think, Faye, this is important. He and this woman may have been working together.”
“I’m sorry,” Faye said, her voice breaking. “I believed her, but I realize now I was wrong. I had no idea she stole Nina.”
A chill rippled through Cora. “Is Nina my daughter?”
Tears trickled down Faye’s cheeks. “I’m not sure, but I think so.”
Cora’s breath caught. She had finally found Alice?
Faye cleared her throat. “When you started asking questions and I saw the drawings you did of Alice, and then your allergy... I started putting it together.” She released a sigh. “Then the phone calls started.”
“What phone calls?”
“From the woman. She warned me to keep my mouth shut or I’d be sorry.”
Cora swallowed hard.
Faye’s chin quivered. “Cora, I think she tried to kill you and she sent you that basket, and that she killed that private investigator because he found out about her.”
Terror clawed at Cora. “Oh my God,” Cora whispered. “And this woman has Nina now?”
Faye released a sob. “I’m afraid so.”
Cora barely suppressed a scream. “Do you know how to contact this woman?”
“No,” Faye said brokenly. “She called from an unlisted number.”
Fear seized Cora. “Where do you think she’d take Nina?”
“I have no idea,” Faye cried.
“We have to call Jacob. His brother is with the FBI. They can issue an Amber Alert and start looking—”
“No, she might hurt Nina.”
Anger rooted itself deep inside Cora. “And if we don’t, she may take her someplace where we’ll never find her.”
Faye looked miserable, but she finally agreed. Cora punched Jacob’s number, pacing as she waited for him to answer. He picked up on the third ring.
“Cora?”
“Jacob... I think Nina Fuller is Alice. Faye is here,” she said in a choked voice.
“Whoa, slow down. Did Faye tell you Nina is your daughter?”
Cora relayed Faye’s story. “Faye thinks this woman killed Kurt and she tried to kill me, and now she has Nina. You have to find her, Jacob. She sounds crazy.”
“Tell me everything you know,” Jacob said.
“The woman claims her name was Valerie. Faye can’t remember the lawyer’s name.”
“Does she still have the adoption papers?” Jacob asked. “They would have the lawyer’s name on them.”
Cora covered the phone with his hand and asked Faye about the papers.
Her face paled. “I...put them in a safety deposit box.”
Hope sprouted in Cora’s chest. “Then we’ll go get them.”
“Cora?”
She passed on the information. “Faye and I will get the papers and call you back with a name.”
“All right. Meanwhile I’ll get an Amber Alert issued.”
“Jacob, Faye said the woman told her the baby’s mother was dead, and that the father paid her to take the child. What if that lawyer—”
“Was Drew?” Jacob finished. “I’m almost to his place now. Don’t worry, if he’s involved, he’ll talk.”
Cora hung up, emotions threatening to overcome her. She couldn’t bear to think that the man she’d once loved and married would sell their child.
If he had, she wanted him to pay.
She looked up at Faye and saw the misery on her face. Misery because she loved Nina.
She’d betrayed Cora by lying about being afraid of an abusive ex.
But she was here now. Telling the truth. Asking for her help to find her daughter.
Their daughter.
She had to put her own feelings aside. Once Alice was safe, she and Faye would talk about the future.
But first they had to find Alice...
* * *
ANGER RAILED INSIDE Jacob as he drove toward the Westbrook house. He phoned Liam and explained the situation. Liam agreed to issue the Amber Alert and to post Nina’s picture on the news.
“That son of a bitch,” Jacob said. “If he’s behind this, he’s going to find out what it feels like to be behind bars.”
With every passing mile, Jacob’s anxiety rose. He
tried not to imagine the worst-case scenarios, but they taunted him, intensifying his fear.
Cora may have overreacted in the past, but this time she’d been right. The girl down the street had been her missing daughter. She’d felt a connection.
He had to bring her home safely to Cora.
But what about Faye? If she truly hadn’t known Nina was kidnapped, she was a victim in the situation, too. And what about Nina? She loved Faye and thought of her as her mother...
He maneuvered the last turn down the drive to the Westbrooks, steeling himself against punching the bastard. He had to remain professional. Persuade him to talk.
Confess.
Drew’s Mercedes sat in the front circular drive.
His phone buzzed with another text. Liam with news about Philips’s computer. He skimmed the information, his pulse hammering.
Jacob parked behind the Mercedes, adjusted his weapon, clipped his phone to his belt, then climbed out and walked up to the front door. He rang the doorbell, shifting to survey the land. He didn’t see Hilary’s car, but the garage door was closed, so her vehicle could be tucked inside.
The door opened and Drew stood on the other side, his brows knitted in a frown. He wore dress slacks and a collared shirt suggesting he’d been at the office or was heading there.
“Mr. Westbrook,” Jacob said. “We need to talk.”
Drew tunneled his fingers through his neatly clipped hair. “What now?”
“Let me come in and I’ll explain.”
“If you came to accuse me of killing Kurt Philips again, I’ll phone my lawyer.”
Jacob swore silently, then elbowed his way past the man. Westbrook closed the door and spun toward him. “Listen to me, Sheriff Maverick, I’m fed up with—”
“Shut up,” Jacob said, barely holding onto his temper. “Your daughter may be in danger.”
Drew’s face went stark white. “What the hell are you talking about?”
“We found notations in Philips’s files indicating that he’d uncovered evidence implicating you in your daughter’s kidnapping.”
