“She certainly gave us no indication she was a flight risk. Or someone who’d steal a baby. I’m sorry we didn’t vet her better than we did. I could say that in my line of work we sometimes have to accept people who are less than stellar, simply because of the work we do.
“But that would be an excuse. I’m not here to make excuses. I’m here to accept responsibility for what happened. And to help get Samson back.”
Chapter 31
“It would be a lot easier to believe you if you told me your name.”
“I’m sorry, I can’t do that. In my line of work giving my last name to people would be tantamount to suicide. You may not believe this, but rightly or wrongly I’ve made a lot of enemies in the years I’ve been in my current and other positions with the DHS.
I was with the agency when it was formed. I’m one of the old timers. There are a lot of people who’d pay big money to know my name, and to use it to track me down.
“If it makes you more comfortable to call me Rebecca, though, that is indeed my real first name.”
Hannah wasn’t sure why. Perhaps it was because she came alone. And because she didn’t have to come at all.
But she believed the woman.
“Rebecca… was it really necessary? To kidnap my husband and I, I mean. To treat us so brutally?
“And to take my baby?”
“Necessary? It depends on your point of view. Yes, we had to take your baby. You went into labor your second day in the box. You were unconscious and we made sure you stayed that way. We had a certified medical team give you medications to induce birth.
“And because Samson was premature he had to be taken from you. He spent his first few days in an incubator.
“If we’d left him with you he likely would have died.
“So yes, it was necessary to take him away from you.
“As far as the rest… whether what the agency did to you and your husband was legal or justified, it wasn’t up to my team to determine that.
“We are soldiers. We don’t wear a uniform, but we follow orders to the letter. No one asks whether we like it, or whether we agree with it.
“We do as we’re told, without question. If we’re unable to do that we’re escorted to the door and they get someone else who will.
“I’m not going to debate with you what’s right or what’s wrong. The DHS is tasked to protect the citizens of the United States. Sometimes they have to trample on the rights of the few to protect the many.
“And yes, sometimes they get it wrong. But I’ve always believed, and continue to believe, that most of the time they get it right. And that the nation and its citizens are better for their being there.
“Having said that, I believe that in your case we were wrong.”
“Do you genuinely feel that way?”
Rebecca paused and took a breath.
“Yes. I genuinely do. That’s why I’m here.”
“You said you want to help find Samson and bring him back. How, exactly?”
“First, I need a drop of your blood.”
“Excuse me?”
She hesitated for just a second.
“I’m going to be honest with you. From now on, as long as you understand there’s certain information I cannot provide for you.
“There is something we need to rule out.
“They’ve found the body of a baby in the Grand Rapids, Michigan area. We have reason to believe Marilyn was headed to that area.”
“Who’s Marilyn?”
“She’s the contractor who was supposed to bring your baby to you.”
Hannah caught her breath.
“And she killed my baby instead?”
“We don’t know that. We have to rule it out before we can go any further.
“The baby they found is about the right age and weight, and matches the general description of your Samson.
“But then again, so do a lot of other babies.”
Hannah was stunned. She suddenly didn’t believe the woman anymore.
But… she felt she had to. She felt it was the only chance she had of getting Samson back.
While she was pondering that dilemma Rebecca opened her bag and took out a small box and what appeared to be a plain white index card.
She handed the box to Hannah.
“What’s this?”
“It’s a box of lancets. Diabetics use them to prick their fingers so they can test their blood sugar levels.
“I knew you wouldn’t trust me to stick you with anything, and I don’t blame you, considering our past.
“You’ll notice the box is still sealed. I want you to open it and take out a lancet and prick your finger. Then I want you to put a single drop of your blood onto this card.”
“Then what?”
“Then I’ll take it to our lab. They’ll cross match it with the blood sample we have from the body.”
“How… how long will it take to find out?”
“I can’t tell you for sure. Hopefully they can rule you out immediately based on the blood types. If it’s inconclusive they’ll have to do a DNA test and that’ll take a bit longer. But they can do it in-house. Hopefully we’ll know by the end of the day, or a couple more days if they have to run a full screen.”
Hannah’s hands were shaking as she tore the cellophane wrapper from the tiny box, then opened the box itself.
Inside was a plastic canister which reminded her of the film cans she used to hold her 35mm film in when she was younger and took up photography as a hobby.
Only this one was white with a hinged lid.
Inside were one hundred lancets, each one contained in a blue plastic body.
“Just take one and twist the top to expose the point,” Rebecca instructed.
“Take a deep breath, prick your finger and then put it down and squeeze your finger until a drop of blood appears.
“Very good. Now just press your finger on the card.”
Hannah did, and Rebecca promptly placed the card inside a zip-lock bag and sealed it.
“Thank you, Hannah. I’ll let you know the results as soon as I can. Hopefully it’s just a couple of hours.
“Did they ever give you back your cell phone?”
“No. But I got another one and kept the same number.”
“Is that the best number to reach you at?”
“Yes.”
“Please keep it close by. I’ll call you as soon as I know anything.”
She got up and headed for the door. In the doorway she paused and said, “I know it’s hard for you to believe me, Hannah. But I really am on your side.”
He let herself out. Hannah remained seated on the couch, and never felt more alone in her life.
Chapter 32
Hannah picked up her phone on three different occasions to call Tony.
Each time she put the phone back again.
She wanted to tell him there was a chance they’d lost little Samson. He needed to know.
And she needed, more than any other time since she’d known him, to hear his voice.
But she couldn’t bring herself to call him. Not yet.
It wouldn’t be fair to put him through the same agony she was feeling.
The not knowing. The uncertainty. The chance his son was dead.
No. As painful as it was, as much as she needed him, she’d wait until she had an answer for him.
She went to her knees and prayed.
Hannah wasn’t a very religious person by nature.
It wasn’t that she didn’t believe in God. She just didn’t display it. She and Tony weren’t church goers, and they didn’t flaunt their beliefs like many of their friends did.
But at a time like this she needed all the help she could get.
She called her mom outside of Houston.
Just like she’d called her every day since her release.
And her mom instantly knew something had happened.
Moms always know.
“Honey, what’s ha
ppened?”
“Who says something has happened?”
“Honey… what’s happened?”
Hannah drew a deep breath.
“She came to see me. The lady who was in charge of the people who kidnapped me.”
“Oh my God! Are you okay? Did she hurt you again?”
“Oh, no, it was nothing like that. She came to tell me…”
She had trouble finding the words.
“She came to tell me… they found a baby’s body… it might be… it might be…”
“Honey, stop right there. It’s not Samson. It’s just not. Okay?”
“Okay.”
“Is she still there? Let me speak to her, please.”
“No. She’s gone. She’s… she took a sample of my blood. For comparison with the baby’s. She’s going to call me and tell me if it’s Samson.”
There were a few seconds of silence before her mom continued.
“Hannah, honey… this might be a trick of some kind.”
“I know that, Mom.”
“If they tell you it’s Samson, tell her you don’t believe her. Tell her you know she’s lying so they can keep him. Tell her… well, I don’t know what to tell her. Tell her to go to hell. That’s what you can tell her.”
“No. I’ll wait and see what she has to say first.”
“Honey, do you want me to drive up there? I can be there in the morning.”
“No. You take care of Dad. He needs you much more than I do.
“Oh, my gosh. I feel like the worst daughter in the world. I didn’t even ask how he was.”
“He’s okay. His cardiologist said he was lucky. It wasn’t as bad as the last one and he’ll recover fully. But he has to stay in bed for a few more days.
“He wanted me to ask you guys again to move down here. There’s plenty of room, you know. Your old room is still pretty much as you left it. And nobody ever uses the den.
“Your dad was talking about knocking a hole in the wall between the two and putting in a door to connect them. And the den already opens into one of the bathrooms. It could be like a small apartment for you and Tony.
“And we could even have a contractor come in and install a door to the outside if you wanted to come and go as you pleased.”
“I don’t know, Mom. We’re in the safe zone here. There’s no real need for us to move. Have you talked to Rachel to see if she wants to move down there?”
“Yes, but you know how stubborn she is. She says Dave doesn’t want to leave Anaheim and she’s not gonna leave him.”
“Well, the same applies for her too, Mom. Anaheim is safe, so there’s no real reason for them to move either.”
“Are you sure it’s not because you two just don’t want to live with us?”
Hannah rolled her eyes and said to herself, “Here we go again…”
“No, Mom. That’s not it at all. It’s very generous of you to make the offer, but we like it here and we’ve made it our home.
“I’ll tell you what. As soon as we get Samson back we’ll plan a trip down to see you so you can check out your new grandson.
“And you can try to twist my arm again then. Okay?”
She could tell her mother was getting a bit exasperated.
But every word she said was absolutely true. Little Rock was their home.
And they were considered to be safe when Yellowstone blew.
Yes, it was true they could probably sell their home for three times what it was worth. Several of their neighbors were in the process of doing so.
But then what? Homes everywhere in the safe zone would be overpriced for many years to come. They’d live with her parents for awhile and still pay an inflated price to buy another house elsewhere.
No, they were over sixteen hundred miles from the center of Yellowstone National Park. She knew because she’d Googled it.
There was no real reason for them to go anywhere.
What she really needed, more than a new home, was to find out her son was still alive and to bring him safely back to Little Rock.
Chapter 33
Hannah sat on the couch, then sprawled across it. She pulled a folded quilt her mother had made from where it rested upon the back of the couch and covered herself up with it.
She wasn’t cold. But she needed the comfort of someone she loved wrapping their arms around her.
And that wasn’t happening anytime soon.
The quilt would have to do for now.
She watched television for a few minutes but grew tired of it.
All they wanted to talk about was the “Yellowstone Event.”
It was a catchy term and she wondered for a moment who thought of it.
Probably some unknown producer, slaving away behind the scenes at one of the big news networks.
She changed the channels until she stumbled across a favorite movie: Love Story.
It was halfway over, but that was okay. It was a comfort movie, and she needed comfort right now more than anything.
If there’d been a gallon of chocolate ice cream in the freezer she’d have gone to get it and devoured every bite.
But they didn’t have any.
And it made her break out anyway.
Instead of ice cream, she pulled the quilt up around her neck and watched her movie until she dozed off.
She was awakened by her cell phone an hour later, surprised she’d fallen asleep.
She hadn’t realized she was that tired.
She looked at the caller ID and saw a number she didn’t recognize.
In the fog of her sleepy mind she almost didn’t answer it, then suddenly remembered she was waiting for a call from Rebecca.
She caught it on the fourth ring, just before it went to voicemail.
“Hello?”
“Hannah?”
“Yes.”
“It’s Rebecca. The baby isn’t yours. Yours, as far as we know, is still alive and healthy and somewhere in the Grand Rapids, Michigan area.”
Hannah realized she’d been holding her breath.
She exhaled, then said, “Thank goodness for that. Now what?”
“I assume my phone number showed up on your phone?”
“Yes. Yes it did.”
“Save it in your contact list. Feel free to call me anytime, day or night. Meanwhile I’ll call you at least once a day to keep you updated.”
“Updated on what?”
“On my search for your baby. My team and I are flying to Grand Rapids this evening to find Marilyn and to get your baby back.”
“But the airports are all backlogged. You won’t be able to get a flight.”
Rebecca laughed.
“We’re the government, honey. They’ll make space for us.”
“Rebecca?”
“Yes ma’am?”
“Thank you.”
She wasn’t sure why, exactly, she felt the need to thank the woman she so recently thought her enemy.
Perhaps it was to stay on her good side, for Rebecca quite literally held her fate… and Samson’s… in her hand.
Or perhaps she got the sense she’d misjudged Rebecca. That maybe Rebecca had a thankless but essential job, and was only doing that job. And maybe she wasn’t all bad after all.
In any event, Rebecca didn’t think she deserved the gesture.
“Don’t thank me yet. You can thank me when I bring your baby home.”
She hung up the phone and placed it gently, almost tenderly, on the coffee table.
She looked back to the television.
Love Story was gone. It had finished while she slept.
Something else was now showing. Something with Clark Gable. She’d seen the film before but couldn’t remember the name of it.
She didn’t remember liking it.
She turned it off.
Her mind wandered here and there and she was a jumble of emotions.
She felt happiness the dead baby wasn’t hers.
Then she felt guilt. For some other mo
ther out there was mourning for real.
She was apprehensive.
For she hadn’t a clue what the days ahead would bring.
She thought a lot about the baby. What he looked like. How it felt to hold him. Whether he’d recognize her as his mommy when she got him back.
She imagined him looking up at her in wonder. Cooing at her. Making faces at his daddy.
His daddy.
She’d forgotten to call Tony.
She felt bad for forgetting. He needed to know his son was still alive.
She picked her phone back up and held down the number two.
She smiled, remembering the day he asked her why he was number two on her speed dial.
“Well, actually you’re number one in my life, but it would break my Mom’s heart if I didn’t reserve number one for her.
“And besides, number two fits you because you’re a little…”
“Don’t say it! Don’t say it!”
He’d tackled her and she never got the word out. They’d wrestled on the floor and he’d tickled her and they ended up making love.
She’d called him her “number two” since.
The phone rang four times and went to voicemail.
“Tony? Call me, baby. I have something very important to tell you.”
Chapter 34
Marilyn picked up the baby and held him close. He had colic, she thought, but she couldn’t be sure.
Her sister Shelly walked into the room.
“He’s crying an awful lot. Are you sure he’s okay?”
“He’s fine. He’s tough. Just like his daddy. Aren’t you sweetie?”
She held the baby in front of her and looked at his tiny face. He stopped crying for a moment and studied her. Cocked his head to one side and stared into her eyes.
He whimpered a bit before the pain came back and he started crying again.
She sat in the rocker and rocked him gently back and forth.
Shelly sat on the edge of the bed.
“Tell me about his daddy, Marilyn. Is he a nice man?”
“Oh, yeah. He’s great. His name’s Mike. He’s a year older than me and he has a steady job. That’s how come he didn’t come with me. He couldn’t get off work.
“What does he do?”
“He’s a steel worker. He lives in Dayton.”
The Yellowstone Event (Book 3): A Nation Gone Crazy Page 11
