by Mary Stone
“Just in time, as always,” she said with a watery smile.
“Nice move,” he said with a laugh. “Where did you learn to throat-punch like that?”
“Old ladies I can handle,” she said, breathing hard. Her hands went to her stomach, and her eyes widened.
“Everything okay?” Linc asked, alarmed.
“Yeah, I just…we need to get to Elise. She put something in her IV.”
“I know. The staff was checking on her when I went to search for you.”
Linc turned at the sound of handcuffs snapping closed, and Jacob pulled Leda Butler to her feet. “Now you know not to mess with the Coulters,” he said, winking at Kylie.
Leda kept her mouth firmly closed, almost hissing air in and out of her nose as Jacob began to recite her rights. Linc and Kylie walked away, not looking back at the hateful woman. She wasn’t worth a second glance.
They went back inside the hospital to check on Elise. The girl was alive. Kylie sagged hard against Linc when they were told the news. Leda had given her an overdose of a strong sedative, which they’d been able to reverse. Had it been a poison, the end result could have been so much worse.
An hour or so later, they were told they could visit with Elise. The girl looked around, confused, still clutching her stuffed dog. “What happened?”
Kylie leaned in and patted her hand. “I’ll tell you about it later. Just get some sleep.”
Linc wrapped his strong arm around her, and together they walked toward the elevators. But as they walked, he noticed she still had her hand on her belly and was stroking it, her brow wrinkled in concentration. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
She nodded slowly.
He stopped. “Are you sure? Because we’re at the hospital. You can get yourself checked—”
“No. Wait,” she said, her eyes lighting up as she ran her hand over her belly. “I feel them. Linc. I feel them!”
His jaw sagged in awe. “Really?”
“Yeah. It was just a flutter at first. I thought it was gas or something. But it’s here.” She took his hand and laid it on her belly, just where her hand had been.
At first, he felt nothing, and then, just the tiniest ripple caressed his palm. His mouth opened. “Is that it?”
She nodded.
“Holy shit.”
“Language, Daddy,” she scolded.
He laughed, tears springing to his eyes. “You think they can hear us now?”
“Maybe. But why take chances?”
“Yeah?”
When they got to the parking lot, more police had arrived, and sirens were screaming in the distance. “Do we have to stay?” she asked.
Linc shook his head. “Let’s go. Jacob can get the report tomorrow. You need your beauty sleep.”
He walked her toward her Jeep, and when he put her into the passenger’s seat, he planted a quick, dry kiss on her lips as he fastened her seat belt securely under her belly. Then he leaned down and kissed her stomach through her shirt. “Listen here, kids,” he said very softly. “You have one fierce mommy. She’s going to make you feel very safe.”
She grinned at him. “Just like you make me feel.”
31
The Leda Butler/Southern Hills Child Welfare laundering case ended up being one of the largest in the country. FBI investigators took over the case once Coulter Confidential put a crack in it. It turned out, Leda Butler was only a small cog in the wheel, but further investigations uncovered dozens more involved parties. Twenty-three people from across the southeast were arrested: nurses, child welfare agency employees, doctors, and more. All of them had aided Leda in profiting off stolen babies.
In jail, awaiting trial, Leda had confessed to arranging at least two hundred child kidnappings over a fifty-year period. She told investigators that she’d done so because she believed it was the best thing for the child. Even as she was indicted, she told the judge that she truly believed she’d only done good.
The morning after the indictment, Kylie read the news on her phone and groaned aloud. “This woman is delusional! Purely delusional! Trying to paint herself as a victim. The nerve!”
Linc poured her a cup of decaf coffee and shrugged. “Well, she can have those delusions in jail, because that’s where she’s spending the rest of her life.”
As she continued to read, her phone buzzed with a call from Greg. She answered it. “Why are you not sleeping in? You’re retired.”
“Funny, the fish don’t sleep,” he said, making her grin. “So, I read the papers this morning. Would you look at that. Coulter Confidential is in the news, and my little protégé is a star.”
Her smile grew wider. “I owe it all to you. You taught me everything I know.”
“Are you going to thank me in your acceptance speech? ‘I’d like to thank Greg Starr and all the little people…’?”
She laughed. “Yeah. Something like that.”
The tone of his voice changed from teasing to proud. “Well, you did it again, short stuff. I’m thinking I’m out of a job as your adviser. You probably know more than I do, at this point.”
“Greg, I hope you know that job is always open. Even if I don’t need your advice. I still need you.”
“Aw, honey. Don’t make me get emotional. Fish sense emotion, and I’m going out with the boys this afternoon.” There was a pause. “How are the kids doing?”
“Good. Still cooking. But good.”
“Excellent. If I know you, I know you won’t take this final bit of advice from me, but take some time off. You deserve it. I’ll talk to you soon.”
She hung up, smiling at his abruptness. She’d expected nothing less.
Linc poured a second cup of coffee. “Greg?”
Kylie nodded, took a sip of her sweet and milky brew, and went back to the article. She stared at the picture of the woman. “Isn’t it sad? How for so long, everyone thought she looked too innocent to do wrong, and that’s how she got away with everything? It makes me a little sick. Like, you never really know a person, do you?”
Linc nodded. “That’s exactly the story of how I ended up marrying you.”
She smacked his arm and held up a fist to him. “I’m going to mess your face up.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Yeah? Come at me, bro. I’d like to see you try.”
She wrinkled her nose. “Did you just call me bro?”
“Indeed I did.” He checked the clock on the microwave. “But enough of that. We’ve got to get ready. We have to be there by noon.”
Kylie’s eyes lit up. She’d been waiting for this day for a week, and now it was here. She sprang off her stool and charged up the stairs. Her belly was not so large yet as to be preventing her from a lot of things, but now as she walked, she was fond of holding it, as if it might pop off at any second.
When they both finished showering, they took Linc’s truck to a park in downtown Asheville, where the first of many reunions was about to take place. Kylie’s heart was beating a steady drumbeat from the nerves, and she wondered if she felt that way, how was Elise feeling? She’d texted Elise a few times, and Elise had said she couldn’t wait, but it had to have been nerve-racking.
They pulled up to the entrance of the park, where there was a small lot, and a pond with a fountain in the center. When Kylie stepped out of the truck, she was holding tissues, already a little teary-eyed. She saw the social worker she’d met with earlier in the week, as well as Daisy’s adoptive parents, and waved. The father held Daisy, dressed in a pink fairy dress, in his arms.
According to the police reports, the parents who had adopted children from the underground adoption ring were told that their children needed special care and that their adoption “fees” of up to $500,000 were for surgeries or other necessary medical treatment, transportation, and care of the child.
Parents, eager to adopt a baby, were willing to hand over whatever amount of money it took in order to have a child. This family, the Smiths, were one of many who had been duped into an ille
gal adoption, domestically and all across the world.
When the news broke of the case, the Smiths were more than gracious. Worried that they might lose Daisy, they offered Elise as much support and visitation as she’d like, as long as Daisy would be allowed to remain with them. They’d even offered to take Elise in for a time, until she found a better place to live.
But all of this was decided over the phone, since the Smiths resided about two hours away, in Georgia.
Today was the first time they would all meet in person.
As they said their hellos and made introductions, another car pulled up. This was Elise, along with the attorney who had arranged to represent her.
Elise stepped out of the car, wearing her nicest dress, her fingers laced in front of her, holding the stuffed animal Kylie had given her. Biting nervously on her lip, she approached the waiting group, her eyes on the curly haired two-year-old with the big blue eyes.
“Hello,” she said to the little girl, a tear running down her cheek. “I’m Elise.”
The little girl popped her thumb from her mouth and reached for the stuffed dog, which Elise held up for her to see. Mr. Smith put the little girl on the ground, and Elise crouched to talk to her.
Linc leaned over and whispered into Kylie’s ear, “This is all you, you know. You’re responsible for this and all the others that will come after this.”
Kylie started to bawl. She lifted the tissue to her eyes to cover the ugly cry she was currently having. “Yes,” she said when she was finally about to talk, “but it’s my bleeding heart that’s going to put us in the poorhouse. Remember?”
He smiled. “I like your bleeding heart, and all your other parts. I wouldn’t trade any piece of you for anything in the world.”
Linc kissed her lightly and laid a hand protectively on her belly.
They watched as Elise walked off, hand in hand, with her daughter, to the edge of the pond. Elise pretended to attack Daisy’s nose with the dog, and the girl giggled.
Linc whispered, “What do you say we go get some lunch?”
“Oh, yes,” Kylie said, licking her lips and winking at him. “I thought you’d never ask.”
Epilogue
Six months after Leda Butler and her cohorts were arrested, Linc stood outside with the dogs, playing catch. Now, the puppies were nearly full grown, and for the past few months, training had been going well. Oh, a few of the dogs still had a Vader-side to them, but they each had a unique personality and had become part of the family.
For now.
Kylie had admitted, that as much as she would miss them, it would only be selfish to keep them from fulfilling their destiny and going to live with their own SAR owners. Linc would train them, then one by one, they’d have to say goodbye.
Except for Roxy, who they’d decided to keep.
Kylie watched from the porch swing, and even though it was a chilly spring day, she was wearing short sleeves. She was always hot now. In the last month of pregnancy, she’d gotten so big that he sometimes looked at her and wondered if she’d pop.
Because she could barely move, she’d decided to put Coulter Confidential on a couple-months-long hiatus, so Kylie and he could get the hang of parenthood. Ever since the Leda Butler case broke, business had been booming, so much so that she’d had to turn away work and was considering hiring an assistant. But for now, she wanted to enjoy her babies and concentrate on bonding with them.
If they ever decided to burst from their warm and snug world.
From the yard, he could see her sitting on the porch, her feet up, hands clasped over her enormous belly. “That’s good!” she called. “I think Riot’s aptly named.”
Riot might have been one of the more rambunctious ones, but Kylie was right. He was definitely the fastest. He’d gotten about half of the hundred balls he’d tossed out to them, because of his sheer speed. “Yeah. He’s fast.”
The dogs had started to get tired, and the sun was going down, so he took the ball and said, “No more, guys. My arm’s getting tired.” He rubbed his shoulder and rolled the joint in a circle as he jogged up to the porch, where Kylie was sitting, looking a little pale. “You okay?”
She nodded.
“I’ll make dinner.”
“Actually, I’m not hungry.”
He stopped with his hand on the doorknob and simply stared at her. She hadn’t really eaten very much all day. “What?”
“I think…maybe I should go to the hospital.”
His eyebrows shot up to his hairline. “What? Now?”
“Well, I’ve been timing my contractions, and you know how they’ve always been five minutes apart? Just now, this one was three minutes apart. And I’m feeling a little queasy.”
They’d been planning for months, just what to do when this moment came. There was a list of a number of things. But right now, he couldn’t remember a single one of them. The only thing he could think of was packing her into the truck and getting her to the hospital. He reached for the keys and then bent down to help her up.
“Suitcase?” she reminded him.
“Oh. Right.”
He rushed into the house and returned a few moments later with her packed suitcase, which he threw into the back of the truck.
Then he stood there for a moment, a deer caught in headlights. “What else?”
She shrugged. “Me?”
“Right.” He rushed up to meet her, took her arm, and guided her down the stairs and into the cab of the truck. When she was safely inside, he went to close the door.
“Don’t forget to put the dogs inside and lock up the house. And put the heat up a little because it’s supposed to get colder tonight.”
“Right.” He dashed back inside. Kylie was usually the one spacing, and he was the voice of reason. But not today. Right now, his mind was not capable of any coherent thought. He wondered if he’d even remember how to drive.
As they drove down the curvy mountain, Kylie winced for a period of about thirty seconds. She glanced at her phone, then folded her hands over her belly.
“Was that a contraction?”
She nodded. “Getting closer together, I think.”
Linc couldn’t understand how the hell she could be so calm. “Okay, hold on.” He pushed on the gas.
“Relax. They’re closer together, but it’s not like the babies are coming now. I’m sure we have time.”
“But how do you know?” he asked, tense.
She shrugged and turned on the radio, probably to calm him down because he was getting insane. Some Jason Aldean song was playing, and he tried to get into it, tapping his hand on the steering wheel to the beat.
It didn’t help.
“You know,” he said. “I know we’ve been planning for this for months, but I have a feeling I’ve forgotten something.”
“That’s just because we’ve never done this before,” she said calmly. “But we’ll be fine.”
“Yeah.” If she believed it, then he’d believe it too. “We can do anything.”
“Just…no matter what happens, stay with me. Okay, Linc? Don’t leave me.” She looked pleadingly at him, so much so that he almost couldn’t drag his eyes away from her and put them back on the road.
He took her hand. “Never.”
They made it to the hospital at around their normal dinner time, but Linc couldn’t think about food. All he could think of was getting Kylie taken care of. Every time she winced, he had a flash of guilt, knowing he was the one who made her this way.
They were brought up to a room, and when Kylie was checked, she was seven centimeters.
“Epidural,” she yelled.
The nurse frowned. “We’ll do our best, but there was a multi-car pileup and our anesthesiologist is busy in the operating room.”
He watched the terror appear on her face and took her hand. “Look. You can do this. You can do anything.”
After another contraction ripped through her, this one making her nearly scream, they asked her if she
wanted to walk. She got up to do just that, but when another hit her, she slumped down, and there was a gush of fluid from her water breaking.
They helped her back into the bed, and the nurses got the room ready for delivery. In less than an hour, the doctor checked her and told her it was time to push.
She pushed, she screamed, all while nearly massacring Linc’s hand. She didn’t let it go for a second. And in the next hour, she pushed out their babies—a boy followed closely by a girl.
He wiped the sweat from her brow and kissed her, relief and excitement making his smile tremble. “See, I told you. We have a boy and a girl.”
“They’re okay?” she asked breathlessly, her eyes half-closed.
“Yes. They’re beautiful. Do you want to see them?”
She nodded.
The nurses brought them over and showed them to the new parents, and Kylie’s eyes, fighting to stay open, filled with tears. “Oh, they are beautiful.”
“Watch them, okay, Linc? Don’t let them out of your sight,” she said, drifting off.
Even though Leda and her cohorts were behind bars, he supposed she had a right to worry about that. He kissed her forehead. “Don’t worry. I will.”
The babies were cleaned and given their initial exam and determined to be completely healthy. Linc watched them in the nursery, as promised, and meanwhile, he contacted all of his family to let them know the news. What seemed like a split-second later, the grandparents—Rhonda and Jerry, Jonathan and Linda—all arrived to see the babies in the nursery.
They were all thrilled and wanted to know the babies’ names. Linc had to break the news: Though they were prepared for everything, they still hadn’t one hundred percent agreed on names. They knew Kylie and Linc Jr. were out, and though they’d been tossing around a number of names, they hadn’t decided on anything firm.
A few hours later, Kylie woke up, and the babies were brought to her to be fed. As she held them at her breasts, one in each arm, Linc was amazed at how motherly she looked from the very start.
“I wish my father could be here to see them,” Kylie said suddenly, taking the little girl’s hand in hers.
