by Curry, Edna
Would she ever see her baby again? Was she placing Candi in danger by running from George? Maybe she should have just stayed with him, obeying him and ignoring everything that had gone on the whole time she’d known him. That was wrong. Mom and Grandma had taught her that. Daddy had assured her doing the right thing was always for the best.
But was it really? She didn’t know anymore.
When the lawyer finally allowed her into his office, she wasn’t encouraged by his looks or his demeanor. He was middle aged and bald, with dark eyes and a frown.
He greeted her with a stiff smile, making her pulse race harder. Would he help her? He wasn’t pleased to see her, no doubt because she’d just dropped in and not asked for an appointment ahead of time. She reminded him of their former acquaintance and exchanged a polite update on news of her family. She told him about her baby and admitted she was still unmarried.
Then, chewing her lip, she asked, “Can I designate a person to care for my baby if I die?”
“Yes, you can,” he assured her. “But that doesn’t mean a family court judge will honor your wishes.”
She gasped, “Why wouldn’t he?”
The lawyer pursed his lips. “He’ll have to take other things into consideration, too. A father, for example, would have rights.”
“Even if he’s a terrible person?”
The lawyer smiled, making her feel like a naïve child. “In whose opinion?”
“Mine! Doesn’t the mother’s opinion count?”
“Of course. But if the judge feels it’s in the baby’s best interest to be cared for by someone else, he may rule in favor of that better person.”
“Oh.” Despair filled Jolene. She dropped her head and wrapped one hand tightly around the other in her lap.
“But we can’t know how he’ll rule, can we? So it’s always a good idea to do what we can to make things go the way we want them to go,” he assured her gently.
Jolene looked up and wiped her eyes. Maybe Mr. Thomas wasn’t as mean as she’d thought.
“I’ve written my wishes in a letter to my sister, but I don’t want her to have it unless I’m dead. Can I leave it with you and have you give it to her in case I die?”
Mr. Thomas frowned. “Are you ill?”
“No, but I’m being followed and I think she is, too.”
He snapped upright in his chair. “Followed? By whom?”
“I’m not sure,” she lied. She didn’t want to get into explaining her suspicions of George and his friends. She might be totally wrong, after all. “I—I think someone wants to kill me.”
“Good heavens! Have you notified the police?”
“No! I don’t want them involved because they’ll take my baby!”
“Why would the police take your baby?”
“Not the police, the guys who are following me.”
He shook his head. “Miss Lewis, I really think you should go to the police. This sounds like something you need help with. More help than I can give you, surely.”
Jolene stood, opened her purse and handed him the sealed envelope. “Just keep this envelope safe. If I die, give it to Candi. If not, I’ll have handled the situation just fine by myself, okay?”
Mr. Thomas sighed and accepted the envelope.”
“Jolene, you may need more than this letter. You should make a will as well.”
Jolene sank back into her chair, her stomach clenching. “How much will that cost?”
He named a nominal sum. She eyed him, wondering if he was helping her out because of his past relationship with her parents. Whatever. “Okay. Can you do that now? Will it take long?”
Mr. Thomas shook his head. “I can do it now if you’re in a hurry.”
“Good. Just put that I want my sister Candi to take care of Jessie and I leave everything I own to her as well.”
She waited while he pulled up forms on his computer and filled out the info. Then he asked his secretary to print them out in triplicate and told her to ask someone in the next office to come be another witness and to notarize Jolene’s signature.
Jolene fidgeted as she waited what seemed like a long time before the secretary returned with the forms and another woman. She signed the forms and they witnessed them and left again.
“I think that’s all we need,” Mr. Thomas said at last.
“Will you promise me you’ll do everything you can to help Candi keep Jessie?”
“I’ll do my best,” Mr. Thomas said.
Jolene thanked him. She said goodbye, stopped and paid the fee to the secretary and then left, feeling much relieved. She hailed another cab to take her back to her motel.
There, with tears running down her cheeks, she cut her long blonde hair for the first time in years and carefully flushed all the strands down the toilet.
She used the brown hair dye and changed clothes. Next, she put on the scarf and new sunglasses. Checking the mirror, she heaved a sigh of relief. She looked quite different from her usual self. Would it be enough?
Luckily, she still had a couple of the fake ID’s that George’s friend had made up for them. When George had seen her shocked reaction, he’d said it was just a joke. Now she knew there was nothing funny about anything George and his friends were mixed up in or did.
Jessie should be safe with Candi and the FBI guy for now. If George or any of his friends was following her, she had to lead them away from her baby and Candi to keep them safe. She shouldn’t have taken a chance on seeing them today. God, what if she’d been followed?
George had never wanted the baby, but he knew how much she loved Jessie. He might use Jessie to get her to return to him. He’d never forgive her for leaving him. What was so important that he’d make such a fuss about it, anyway? Did he just want to control her? Or punish her for crossing him? He hated being disobeyed, but she wasn’t his slave.
Thank goodness he hadn’t agreed to marry her when she’d jokingly proposed after she’d first learned she was pregnant. As her husband, he’d probably have had some legal rights to tell her what to do.
She took a taxi to the airport and hurried inside in case anyone was following. She hadn’t seen anyone, but the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end, like someone watched her. Were they reliable or was she getting paranoid?
After studying the departure schedules, she saw the next flight was to Chicago. She bought a ticket on it, knowing she had to put miles between her and her little one for now. Which city she went to didn’t matter, as long as it was far from Candi and Jessie.
She settled into her seat, closed her eyes and whispered, Please, God, don’t let George remember what names were on the fake IDs his friend gave me. Better yet, don’t let him remember I still have them at all. Don’t let him find me. Keep Candi and Jessie safe, too.
She hadn’t prayed in a long time. Would God still listen? He had to. Someone had to help her now.
After landing in Chicago, she again took a taxi and cruised until she found a cheap motel. She settled in and took stock of her money supply.
She’d stay out of sight a couple of days, to make sure they weren’t still following her. She was running low on cash. She’d have to find a job using another of the fake IDs. She was an experienced waitress and there were always openings for those. Although small restaurants didn’t pay much, she’d always made out good on tips. People liked her. She’d be okay.
Two mornings later, Jolene found a note someone had slipped under her motel room door. With trembling fingers, she opened it.
It read: Return what you took immediately if you know what’s good for you.
Oh, God! They’d found her. They must have followed her right from Las Vegas. That’s how they’d known to search Grandma’s house and how they knew where Jessie was. Could Candi and this agent keep her safe?
Frantically, Jolene called Candi, but got only her voice mail. She left a message saying they’d found her and to be extra careful.
She peeked out the window, but saw no one suspicious
hanging around. Were they still watching her? They must have tracked her here, so they knew she’d taken a plane. She couldn’t do that again. They’d be watching the airport.
Quickly she called a cab and threw her few belongings in her suitcase. When the cab arrived, she got in and asked to be dropped at the bus station. As they drove, she looked for any cars following her cab, but the heavy traffic made it impossible to tell.
At the bus station, she bought a ticket to St. Louis, just because it sounded interesting and the bus was leaving in two hours. She slipped her suitcase into a locker and went to the restroom. Had they followed her? And if so, how long would they follow her? How many cities would she have to go to before they gave up and left her alone?
She stayed in the ladies room for a while, disappearing into a stall whenever anyone seemed to notice her.
Finally, she cautiously walked out of the ladies room, and through the waiting area. She looked around but saw no one who looked suspicious or seemed to be paying any attention to her.
Her stomach growled, reminding her she hadn’t eaten today. There would be no food on the bus. She walked out onto the street, saw a sign for a hamburger place up the street. With a sigh of relief, she started for it.
But she’d only gone half a block when she heard footsteps coming up fast behind her and knew she hadn’t gotten away after all.
A muscular arm reached out and caught her around the neck. The smell of sweat stung her nose as she tried to scream, but the arm pressing on her windpipe had cut off her breath. Everything went black as the man pulled her into the alley.
***
Luke was having a wonderful dream about making love to Candi. He stroked her delightfully bare skin under his own naked body. His mouth had just settled on her soft breast and she was arching to meet him in response.
The shrill ringing of his cell phone spoiled the fantasy. He shook himself awake and reached for it on his bedside table.
Half awake, Luke groped, found it and raised it to his ear. His hello came out in a croak.
“You still asleep?” his partner Curt growled into his ear. So much for pleasant dreams. It was time for the real world.
Luke cleared his throat and tried to bring his voice back to normal. “I’m awake. Now. What’s up?”
“We traced Jolene’s last phone call to a neighborhood pay phone in West Chicago.”
“And?” He knew from Curt’s voice that there was a lot more to this than what he’d said so far.
“We found the motel we think she was staying in. Ransacked. The clerk called it in, but he thinks the break-in occurred after she left. He described the girl who’d stayed there. The hair color’s different, but the description sounds like Jolene.”
“So did you find her?”
Curt hesitated. “We think so.”
Luke’s gut tightened at the ominous tone of Curt’s voice. He knew before Curt answered. They hadn’t found her before the jewelry gang had. “A body?”
“Yeah. In the alley near the bus station. We’ll need someone to ID her. Sorry.”
“God.” Luke closed his eyes against the thought of taking Candi to the morgue. He hated going there himself, and it would be so much worse for her to have to go, knowing she might see her sister there.
But it had to be done and she was the logical choice. He didn’t want to wait for the mother or grandmother to fly up from Florida to do it.
“Give me the details and I’ll bring her there.” He grabbed a pen and wrote down the address of the morgue and motel where Curt was staying.
“We’ll be there as soon as possible. Have you called her mother in Florida?”
“I’ll do that after we’re sure it’s her.”
“Of course. How about George?”
“They’re checking on his whereabouts. If it’s Jolene, the guys in Vegas will go see him. We want to check his alibi as well as his reaction to the news. Maybe he was in on it.”
“Damn it, I should have arrested her when I had her in my sight.”
Curt snapped, “Don’t second guess this, Luke. Forget the past. This is a new case and the decision not to take her into custody, but to just follow her, was not yours. That was our boss’s call. You had to follow orders.”
“Yeah, I know.” Luke drew a deep breath. “But it still sucks. And, like the last time, the woman is still dead.”
“Damn it, Luke, forget the last time. Get it through your head that it wasn’t your fault either time.”
“I know, but, assuming the body is Jolene, this George bastard wins.”
“What do you mean?”
Luke said, “Jolene didn’t want George to have Jessie. She left that note telling Candi to keep her safe from George, remember?”
“So?” Curt’s voice was puzzled.
“Don’t you see? If Jolene’s dead, he will get Jessica.”
“If he’s the father, yeah, I guess,” Curt agreed.
“Wait a minute, they’re not married, right?”
“Not that I could find. Does Candi know if they married?”
“I’ll ask her. If they aren’t, then he can’t get her legally, yet,” Luke said.
“Right. If they’re married, the law assumes he is the father and he could claim her immediately. But, as I understand it anyway, if they weren’t, he’ll have to prove he’s the father to get her. That means court hearings, a judge and DNA tests. That all takes time.”
“Then we still have time to make sure he’s in jail and can’t do that,” Luke said.
“Right. But we’ve still got a problem.”
“What?”
“We need Candi in Chicago. But we shouldn’t take the baby out of the state, should we?”
“Why not? Until Jolene’s identified, we don’t have any proof she’s dead, right?”
“Okay. But as soon as she is, we’ll need to notify child protection, or get a judge to give Candi temporary custody or something,” Curt said.
“Let’s cross that bridge when we get to it. The letter Jolene left asking Candi to care for her should be enough for temporary custody anyway, I would think,” Luke said.
“I hope you’re right,” Curt said and rang off.
Luke quickly showered and dressed. He went back across the street to his rented apartment, threw clothes in a duffel bag and put them in his car. He wanted to be ready to leave as soon as he told Candi. She’d be upset and would need help with Jessica. Then he went back to Candi’s house.
When he walked into the kitchen, he could hear Candi talking to Jessica. She’d already made coffee and had a cupful beside her on the table. He paused, watching as she fed Jessie her cereal. For a woman who’d said she had little experience with babies, she was doing a good job of mothering the little one.
He poured himself a cup of coffee and sipped it for courage, then set it on the table and took a chair beside her. Candi eyed him and set down the bowl and spoon. “What’s wrong?”
So much for subtlety. He’d better not try to play poker with her if she could read him that well.
“My partner called with bad news. They think they’ve found Jolene.”
“What do you mean, think they’ve found her? Won’t she tell them who she is?”
He swallowed hard. “No, she can’t, Candi. I’m sorry, but the woman they found is dead.”
“Dead? But how? How can Jolene be dead? I just talked to her yesterday. The phone—Jessie cried and I forgot to look for messages—” White faced, Candi ran into her office to her phone. The message light was blinking on her answering machine. She punched play and heard Jolene’s frantic message. “Candi, they found me. Please, please, be extra careful! I’m moving on again.”
Candi turned to stare at Luke. “Oh, God. They found her. She sounds so scared.” Candi’s voice was shaking and so were her hands.
“Who, Candi? Who was she afraid of?” He knew Curt would already have a copy of the tape. Thank God for that. It might help them catch the bastards.
“She didn�
��t tell me who she was running from, Luke. But that means she knew—.”
She rose and he rose with her. He put his arms around her, holding her tightly as she trembled and tried to take in what he’d said.
After a moment he said, “We need to go to Chicago to ID the body.”
“Then they’re not sure it’s her,” she said, her voice rising to a squeak. “Maybe they’re wrong. Maybe it’s just another girl the same size and coloring. It could be, couldn’t it?” she demanded, her eyes wide and full of tears.
He nodded. Why not leave her some hope? It was possible, though he thought it unlikely. “Yes, it could be. We need to go there to see.” He held her tightly against him until she pushed away.
“I…I need to get dressed. And…and we’ll need to pack some stuff for Jessica. Oh, God, plane tickets. We need to find out when the next flight goes.”
“I’ll take care of that. There are several flights a day between Minneapolis and Chicago, so I’m sure we can get on one soon. You go get ready.”
“Okay.”
“Candi?” She looked at him. “If it is her, maybe we should fly on to your mother’s in Florida?”
“I—I don’t know. I can’t think of that yet.”
Chapter 8
On the flight to Chicago, Luke worried about Candi and did his best to help her with Jessie. She’d spoken very little on the way to the airport. She seemed to have put her feelings on hold.
Later, she roused herself, muttered, “My deadline!”
Luke eyed her as she pulled out her cell phone and called her editor. She told the woman she had a family emergency and didn’t know when she’d finish the manuscript. Yes, she’d keep her informed. No, she couldn’t set a new delivery date. She hung up.
“She wasn’t happy?” Luke asked.
“No.”
Her dull voice and blank expression plainly said she couldn’t care less. What had been the center of her attention only a few days ago now seemed unimportant. All her thoughts now focused on whether the dead girl in the morgue was Jolene.
Luke understood and his stomach knotted in sympathy. He helped her with Jessica, who slept most of the way, but screamed during takeoff and landing. The poor baby’s ears probably hurt from the change in air pressure. Sucking on a bottle of water seemed to soothe her a little. Candi held onto her like she was the last bit of connection to her sister.
