Special Delivery (Mountain Meadow Homecoming 1)

by Laura Browning

  “Don’t forget,” Ernie said. “We’ve got the arraignments this afternoon for our three prisoners. And it might be a bit of a zoo around the courthouse right now. I believe the mayor and the senator are due in court at nine.”

  Sure enough, when Jake emerged from the police station, there were news vans from several agencies, and a satellite truck with a network logo on the side. Great! Just what they needed the week before Christmas.

  * * * *

  Evan dreaded facing the media feeding frenzy as he headed downstairs to the courtroom from his office. He’d been surprised and a little overcome when he’d walked into the office, and his staff had greeted him with hugs and hands on the shoulders, asking if he and Jenny were all right and whether there was anything anyone could do for them. Evan looked at Bill, his assistant with the most experience.

  “I need you to represent the office in court today. I’ll be there, but I want to be as hands off as possible until we can get a special prosecutor in here to handle the case. Let’s push for a change of venue as well. There are too many locals involved for us to ever impanel an impartial jury.”

  “Hell,” Bill had said, “Two of the suspects served on the last grand jury panel.”

  And that was perhaps one of the most telling comments about the case. None of the suspects was scum of the earth. They were excellent students and athletes in high school. Many had gone on to college and successful careers with families of their own. But crime knew no class boundaries in this case. Had Jenny’s father still been living, they would be prosecuting everyone from a moonshiner to a former United States senator.

  The two men walked into the courtroom and were barely able to keep from stopping in surprise at the crowd gathered. Knowing the case would generate interest and seeing it were two different things. Evan saw Amanda Brown from the local paper rubbing shoulders with a reporter he recognized from Washington, DC. Bill took the lead chair and Evan sat next to him. The suspects paraded in and sat on a bench along the wall. Evan felt his father’s glare, but refused to look at or even acknowledge the older man. Far too much had happened. He was no longer a young boy looking for approval, or even the teen who’d hoped to follow in his father’s footsteps. Evan realized now he’d started backing away from his father years ago, and not just because of Jenny. Evan sensed a core in Stoner Richardson as cold as his name. He couldn’t remember a time when his father had been anything other than harsh and remote. Evan could be harsh as well, but his single-mindedness was reserved for the pursuit of what was right, not what benefited himself.

  The clock outside struck nine and the bailiff called the court to order.

  * * * *

  Evan’s phone rang not more than an hour after he finished in court. He punched it, “Evan here.”

  “It’s Holly. Are you okay?”

  Evan smiled. “Sure, darlin’. Thanks for asking. How’s my favorite baby girl?”

  “Sleeping, eating, and pooping. Oh, and I think I caught a smile from her today, but it might have just been gas. Would you like to bring Jenny over tonight and you can both stare at her for a while to see if she’ll do it again?”

  Evan laughed, and everyone in his office relaxed. “Would this involve dinner, too?”

  “Of course. I figured we could throw steaks on the grill because I know how much you and Jake like to freeze your bottoms off while you do the guy thing on the back porch, but I’ve also made this really great homemade pound cake, and…”

  “What time?” Evan interrupted. If her pound cake was anywhere close to her homemade cinnamon rolls, he might just ask Jake and Holly to let Jenny and him move in.

  Holly giggled. “Shy, aren’t you? That’s what I love about you, Evan. The usual time, six. You want me to call Jenny or will you.”

  “I’ll call her. I need to let her know what went on in court today.”

  Despite everything hanging over them, Evan and Jenny were both smiling within a few minutes of arriving at Jake’s house. Being around Holly and Jake made others happy because they were so obviously in love.

  Evan was overjoyed his friend had finally found someone who could match his loving, giving nature. Jake had always been the one in school who’d been everybody’s buddy—male and female alike. Guys knew they could rely on him, and girls discovered he provided a very sturdy shoulder to cry on, but there had never really seemed to be anyone serious until Holly.

  And wasn’t it just like Jake to jump unhesitatingly into an instant family? He’d not only acquired a little brother who was more like a son, but also a brand-new baby girl. And anyone watching him with Noelle and Holly knew he would do anything to make sure they were happy and secure.

  * * * *

  Jenny wished she could be as upbeat as Holly about everything, but life had taught her painful lessons. She still watched her back, wondering when fate would deal one or all of them another crippling blow. For a while, Jenny thought the court case would be that blow, but since Evan had recused himself, most of their responsibility would rest in testifying. Jenny knew that wouldn’t be easy, but they would have each other to rely on.

  So what made her so uneasy? She tried to shake the feeling, but it had served her well in the past. She just couldn’t fathom what threat might be out there.

  As they sipped coffee and cut into Holly’s luscious pound cake following dinner, Jenny jumped wholeheartedly into the wedding plans Jake and Evan were hashing out. She asked Holly, “Are you really going to let them plan the entire wedding?”

  Holly laughed merrily. “If it makes them happy, I’d even let them pick out my dress. It’s not the details; it’s the people. New Year’s Eve, I will marry the man I love with my whole heart, and next to me will be my very best friends who will also marry. We will share our love and our lives. What more could I possibly want?”

  There was a moment of stunned silence. They all sat motionless and stared at her. Evan was the first to move. He knelt next to her. Framing her face in his big hands, he gently kissed her forehead. Holly blushed and Jenny saw just the faintest shimmer of tears in Evan’s eyes. “You have taken one of the toughest days of my life and put it into perspective for me. All I have to do is hear you, and it restores my faith in the goodness of man. Are you sure you’re human?”

  She touched his hand with hers. “All too human, Evan, because it hurts to see my friends in pain. If I’ve made you happier, then I’ve justified my reason for being.”

  He smiled at her, then Jake. “If I haven’t already told you, I’m really glad the two of you found each other.”

  Jenny leaned around Evan and touched Holly’s cheek. “And we’re both honored we’ll be sharing your wedding day with you.”

  “Oh gross!” Tyler said into the emotionally charged moment. “Now all of you have that gooey look Evan gets when he looks at Jenny and Noelle. I’m going to bed.”

  * * * *

  Spence watched Holly most of Tuesday. For a short time, he even peered inside the windows and caught her nursing Noelle. It disgusted him. He had the car stocked with what he needed—diapers, bottles, formula. Spence even had an infant car seat properly installed in the backseat. Now all he needed was the opportunity, and this morning he finally heard what it would be. As the boy left to go to that tourist trap country store where he worked, he heard Holly tell him she was going out later. She needed to run errands at the Walmart.

  You couldn’t ask for a better opportunity. The place would be packed these last few days before Christmas. If he could just get close enough, find something to distract her, then he could grab Noelle. Spence took a sip from his hip flask. This would work. And once he had her, he’d take the baby back to Seely.

  He’d taken precautions to cover his tracks. Spence told his family he and Seely were skiing at a different place. Hell, he’d even made the reservations under a different name where they really were. That way, his family would truly believe they were telling the truth if they had to give the police any in
formation. He’d purchased a car last week, and would return the rental he was now driving east of here where he’d stashed the other vehicle. Then he’d drive back to the ski resort.

  Seely would have the kid to take care of, and once the heat died down, they’d go back home. It was a great plan. Spence had absolutely no worries. Everything would be perfect.

  * * * *

  Holly watched Tyler walk down the street that morning while she hummed Christmas carols to Noelle. The baby was more active now, staying awake for longer periods, and Holly was pleased to see the little girl had a very sunny personality. Holly knew she was right. Noelle had smiled. It hadn’t just been gas.

  “It’s you and me, baby girl, the Christmas elves. I think your good cheer power might be just a bit more than mine. What do you think?”

  Noelle blinked and her little mouth curved. Holly kissed the baby on each cheek, inhaling her sweet fragrance. She would never get enough of it.

  After closing the door and locking it, Holly took the infant back upstairs and laid her in her crib so she could get ready to go. She had a million things to do to get ready for the upcoming holiday weekend. There was food and presents to buy. She would stop by the jeweler’s first. She had found an old pocket watch of Jake’s that no longer worked. He admitted it had belonged to his grandfather, and he’d always treasured it; he just never took the time to have it fixed, so Holly had seen to that for his Christmas gift. Tyler was a different matter, and after talking with Jake, they had decided he deserved the video gaming system he’d been so keen on. That was the main reason she was headed to the discount store with Jake’s debit card in hand, and she figured she could purchase most of her groceries there as well.

  More than an hour later she loaded Noelle in the infant carrier in the backseat of the car and drove down the highway. Shopping options were minimal, so folks tended to hit the huge store for socializing and shopping. Today the shopping was paramount and getting harried as people rushed to buy last-minute gifts and necessities.

  With the jostling crowds, Holly decided to leave Noelle in her carrier and put it in the basket. She was afraid to use the sling in case anyone bumped into her. She pushed the cart to the Christmas wrapping section first to get paper, boxes, bags, and bows. Noelle slept peacefully despite the crush of people. Once she was done there, Holly maneuvered to the back of the store where the electronics were located.

  What a crush! Wall-to-wall people made it difficult to get through with the cart. As she waited for an opening, a woman just in front of her bumped a display of DVDs, knocking them all to the floor. The woman was so embarrassed, and Holly felt sorry for her.

  “Here, I’ll help.”

  She looked up, her face red with mortification and exasperation. “Oh thank you. I came on my lunch hour to finish shopping for my little girl, and I just didn’t think it would be this crowded at this time of day.”

  Holly smiled reassuringly as she collected the DVDs. “It does get a little hectic. We forget why we celebrate this time of year. Your daughter must be very special for you to brave these crowds.”

  The woman beamed, her face relaxing and a smile actually appearing as she picked up the last of the DVDs. “Oh she is. Heather’s nine.”

  Holly stood and smiled at her. “Well you and Heather have a wonderful Christmas.”

  “You too, and thank you.”

  Holly grabbed her shopping cart. The infant carrier and blankets were still there, but not exactly as she’d left them. Coldness trickled through her. She touched the blanket with cold, stiff fingers. Gone. Noelle was gone!

  “My baby.” It came out the first time as just a whisper of sound. The disbelief still outweighed the horror. “My baby!” This time her voice was stronger. “Someone’s taken my baby!” Holly shouted.

  The store clerk behind the register pushed his way through the crowd. “Ma’am?”

  Holly gasped for breath. “Noelle! My daughter! Someone’s taken her!”

  Why didn’t they understand?

  “Could she have wandered away?”

  Holly blinked at the clerk. “Wandered away? She’s only three weeks old.”

  The clerk pulled a walkie-talkie from his belt. “I need a Code Adam issued on a newborn infant girl. She was taken from electronics in the last five to ten minutes.” He looked at Holly. “What was she wearing?”

  She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself, but inside creeping coldness and almost certain knowledge settled. Spence had gotten her. “She had on a pink snowsuit and…and underneath a Christmas sleeper that was green with red trim. Please! You have to find her.”

  She swallowed jerkily, thinking her heart might beat right out of her chest. The clerk patted her back as he relayed the information, and two burly security guards hurried their way, but Holly saw all of it through a fog. The only thing she could really hear anymore was the frantic beating of her own heart and her shallow, uneven breathing. Somewhere deep in her consciousness she acknowledged the bitter irony of the Christmas carols playing over the speakers in the stereo section.

  * * * *

  Spence had tucked the baby inside his leather bomber jacket and walked out the doors of the huge store right before he heard the Code Adam go out over the loudspeaker. After walking casually through the parking lot, he unlocked the rental car, bent inside the vehicle, and slipped the baby from inside his jacket and into the infant car seat. Somehow, amazingly, the girl still slept. It had all gone even easier than he suspected thanks to that stupid woman knocking over the DVD display, and of course Holly just had to help. She had always been a little too good to be true. Well, that’s what being nice got you—the purple shaft with the barb-wire cluster.

  Spence looked at the sleeping baby, feeling only curious detachment, not any real tie to her at all. Hard to imagine one night of really bad sex had resulted in the kid strapped in the car seat.

  He hoped she wouldn’t make noise. He didn’t like crying babies. Plus, Spence still had a bit of a hangover. He’d never spent much time around kids and didn’t really want to have much to do with her. The kid was for Seely and their parents. He hoped Seely knew something about babies. Spence pulled out of the parking lot just as the sheriff’s cars slid to a stop in front of the store with their lights flashing.

  * * * *

  Jake had just left Mercer’s where he’d met Evan for lunch when his phone rang.

  “Lieutenant Allred?” the unidentified caller asked.

  “Yes. Can I help you?”

  “This is Joshua Patterson, manager of the Walmart. I have your fiancée with me, Holly Morgan. She needs to speak with you.”

  Jake’s senses went on high alert. He heard Holly’s ragged breathing through the phone. “Holly? Honey? What is it?”

  “Noelle. He’s taken her!”

  Jake stumbled and had to lean against the corner of Mercer’s building. Evan stopped too and put a hand beneath his elbow. “Jesus!” Jake breathed. “Are you sure?”

  Holly cried softly. He heard her even through the phone, and it broke his heart. “Who else could it be?” There was a long pause. “Jake, I need you.” Four little words that ripped him right in two.

  “I’ll be right there.”

  He jammed his phone in his pocket and began swearing a blue streak, his voice cracking with pain. “The son of a bitch has taken Noelle. We let our guards drop, and he’s fucking taken her!”

  Evan held Jake’s shoulders and shook him slightly. “Jake! Hold it together. You still got lights on your truck?” At Jake’s nod, Evan hurried him across the square. “Get in. I’ll drive. You radio the chief, let him know what’s happening.”

  Two sheriff’s cars, with lights still flashing, idled in front of the store. As soon as Jake and Evan arrived, a deputy was there to escort them to the business office where Holly was seated. She was in a daze, her face pale and her eyes unfocused.

  “Lieutenant?” The deputy standing near her said, “We ha
ven’t been able to get anything out of her.”

  Jake squatted in front of her and Evan sat next to her. While Evan stroked her hair from her face, Jake rubbed her icy hands.

  “Holly, honey,” he rasped. “I’m here. Can you hear me, sweetheart?”

  “Jake?” she whispered, but she didn’t seem focused on what was happening, and her skin felt so cold.

  “I think you’d better get hold of Doc, Ev.” To the deputy, he ordered, “Bring me a couple blankets. She’s having a stress reaction.” He’d seen it so many times in the military, but seeing it in Holly was a thousand times worse.

  “Jake?”

  “What, hon?”

  “It’s time to nurse. Noelle will be hungry. Do you think he’ll feed her?”

  “I’m sure he will, but we’ll find her so you won’t have to worry.” While Evan wrapped the blankets around her shoulders, Jake stood and spoke to the deputies. “Sam deputized me, so there’s no problem working this together. I can give you a name of a prime suspect, but we’ll need to see security tapes. If you can pull them, I’ll get her to ID the person. In the meantime, begin looking for Spencer Dilby as a person of interest in this. Family’s from Richmond; he may also have ties to Lynchburg.”

  Jake knelt in front of Holly. “We’re going to get the security tapes for that part of the store. I’ll need you to look at them Holly. You’ll need to look so you can tell for sure if it’s Spence. Can you do that for me?”

  She nodded, burying her face in Evan’s shoulder. He cradled her head against his wool coat. “I’ll stay with her while you get things set. The faster the better, as you and I both know.”

  Jake hated to leave her. He desperately wanted to be the one holding her and comforting her, but his first priority had to be getting a BOLO out for Spence. He’d never met the man, but he was filled with an overwhelming urge to smash his fist in his face.

  * * * *

  Spence drove east first until he reached the small community where he’d stowed the SUV he’d purchased. He had almost finished transferring everything from the rental car to the SUV when the baby began to wiggle and shift. She waved her fists and her face reddened. Now what the hell was this? He had stuff to do. Didn’t she know any better? Noelle added a loud, indignant cry.