“The problem is that I left my two children here at this center so that they would be safe and supervised while I went to my spa appointment,” Abigail explained. “When I came back they were gone!”
“Oh my,” Gifford replied. “Let’s see what we can do to find them!”
“Mrs. Newton’s two kids apparently got out of here while Jocelyn was on duty,” Santos explained. “Neither Maria or I remember seeing them since we arrived, and no one has left the center since we were here.”
“We need to talk to this Jocelyn immediately,” Abigail said in a voice bordering on hysteria. “I can’t believe this is happening!”
“Don’t worry,” John Gifford replied. “We will do everything we can to find them. Let’s go over to the gift shop and talk to Jocelyn.”
The two hurried over to the gift shop. Mr. Gifford pulled Jocelyn aside and asked her what she knew about the situation after he told here that two of the kids were missing.
“I definitely remember them being checked in, but no one left during the time I was on duty there, “Jocelyn said. “I think that they went outside into the yard and played out there. The yard is fenced in, so how could they get out unless they were able to climb it? There were two kids inside the main indoor room who weren’t getting along, so I spent a lot of the time with them, and then I was pulled to work here. I’m very sorry that your two children are missing. I don’t understand how they could have gotten out, however.”
“Let’s go back and look in the back yard,” John Gifford suggested. “Before we do that, let me put an announcement on the public address system. If they are just wandering around the resort, they should hear the announcement.”
After making the announcement for Jamie and Olivia to report to the day care center, and an advisory for all resort employees to be on the lookout for them, John and Abigail went back to the day care center. Once inside they went out into the enclosed play yard. There were a few children playing there.
“As you can see, this area is fenced in, with a six foot tall fence,” John said. “It would be very difficult for two young kids to climb it, and even if they did, someone would most likely notice it.”
“Then how did they get out?” Abigail asked. “They didn’t disappear into thin air! They had to leave here somehow.”
“The only way in and out of this yard, other than the main day care room is through that gate over there on the side, but it is always kept locked, especially during day care center hours.” The two walked over to look at the gate. When John tried the gate latch, it easily opened.
“Oh my God, how is this possible?” John exclaimed. “I can’t believe that this gate was left unlocked.” John immediately got on his cell phone and called the security office. “Paul, come over to the day care center immediately. We have a situation with a couple of missing kids.”
Abigail was now beginning to feel a sense of desperation and panic, as the reality that Jamie and Olivia were gone sank in. John Gifford and Paul Garvin, the security officer on duty began to organize a thorough search of the entire resort. Paul had Abigail give a complete description of Jamie and Olivia and what they were wearing. All employees at the resort were directed to be on the lookout for those two kids, or to report if they happened to see them anywhere this morning.
With no information or sightings forthcoming, John Gifford felt that they had no alternative but to call in the authorities, so he contacted the sheriff’s department. Within a half hour, a team of four deputies was at the resort. The deputies did their own search of the resort, and then starting questioning anyone who might have come into contact or seen Jamie and Olivia that morning.
They also questioned Abigail extensively about their family situation and what she thought the mental state was of her two children. “Were they unhappy about anything? Do you have any idea why they would want to run away? Did you have an argument or discipline issue with either of them recently?” were some of the questions she was asked.
This made Abigail even more upset and angry, but there was nothing she could do. The detectives were very much interested in the breakup of her marriage and whether Mr. Newton would try to take the kids away from her custody. “I do have custody, but he does have visiting privileges every two weeks. He hasn’t expressed anything lately about being unhappy with the custody issues, although I know that he had trouble dealing with the divorce.” The deputies then asked how they could get into contact with him.
Two deputies came around to the cabin area where the Newtons were staying. They knocked on the Hunter’s door. When Edith answered the door, the deputies explained that two children, Jamie and Olivia Newton, were missing.
“I didn’t have any direct contact with them, but I believe my son and his friend, who are staying with us, did. Let me get Jason for you.”
Edith called Jason to talk to the deputies. He explained how they had met yesterday and played some ball. Jason was just starting to explain what he knew about Jamie’s mental state, when the deputies received a phone call. Several people at the resort had reported seeing two kids matching the descriptions of Jamie and Olivia walking out of the south entrance of the resort and getting into a car.
“Sorry to cut our interview short, but a lead has come up. Thank you for your cooperation.” The deputies then got up and left.
At the south entrance to the resort, there was now quite a collection of sheriff’s cars. With several people providing corroboration for the sighting of the two kids leaving and getting into a vehicle, the sheriff decided to focus his investigation and search. The working theory was that an unknown man, possibly the children’s father, had somehow arranged to pick the two kids up. If it was their father, this could be the start of a parental abduction, which was an unfortunate but all too common result of an unhappy custody battle.
The search for Jamie and Olivia Newton fanned out south of the resort and into the nearby town. The sheriff tried to contact Mr. Newton, but with no luck. A deputy sheriff from the county where he lived was sent to his residence, but no one was home. Meanwhile searches around the area continued but to no avail. Although a lot of effort was put into their investigation, they had no success in finding Jamie or Olivia.
Abigail Newton was now in a state of shock. She returned to her cabin awaiting news of any sort, or for contact from her ex-husband or whoever was responsible for Jamie and Olivia’s disappearance. A deputy sheriff was with her to monitor the phones in case there was a ransom demand. All through the long afternoon and evening her telephone was silent.
Later that afternoon, Edith Hunter came over and stayed with Abigail for a while to provide moral support and advice from her experience when Jason was kidnapped. At best that was cold comfort for Abigail. The only thing that would comfort her now would be word that her children had been located and were safe.
Chapter 11
Hunter & Holmes Ride Again
(Tuesday Morning)
By Tuesday morning things were pretty grim at the resort. A large search party was being organized with volunteers. They were planning to start at the south end of the resort and fan out from there. So far there had been no contact at all from whoever had taken Jamie and Olivia. The sheriff’s department was still unsuccessful in locating their father, Roger Newton.
Monday afternoon, Jason and Daniel had tried to stay focused on their vacation activities of swimming and basketball, and went on a short hike with Bill Hunter. But the activities at the Newton cabin and the knowledge that those two young kids that they had met on Sunday were now missing put a real damper on things.
After Jason got up Tuesday morning, he looked over at Daniel and said, “I know we are on vacation and everything, but I don’t think I can concentrate on having fun or enjoy myself until Jamie and Olivia are found. I keep getting this gut feeling that they told us something that will provide us with a clue if we can only figure out what that was!”
Daniel, who was still lying on his bed, replied, “I understand exactly wha
t you are saying. Even though I don’t want to get involved with another case, I feel the same way. I really sensed that there was something going on with those kids that was upsetting them, but they were afraid to, or didn’t want to talk about it. I remember Olivia told me that she was expecting hard times ahead, whatever that meant.”
“Let’s get ourselves some breakfast, and then brainstorm everything that we can think of about this case,” Jason suggested.
“Yeah, I’m up for that,” Daniel said. He got up, took a quick shower, and then got dressed. Twenty minutes later, the two were seated at the kitchen table.
Daniel and Jason reviewed everything that they remembered about their conversations with Jamie and Olivia. The one thing that seemed out of the ordinary was Jamie mentioning the scavenger games that he played with his father.
“It boils down to the scavenger game,” Jason decided. “It had to be something new and exciting for both Jamie and Olivia to be willing to escape from the Day Care Center in order to play it. Now we need to find the clues to the game that they must have been playing. When I asked him what the scavenger hunt games were like, Jamie was very vague in his answer. He said they were different every time.”
“If that is the case,” Daniel added, “there would have to be some sort of serious directions, especially regarding their escape from the day care center. Whoever did this had to be familiar with the resort facilities and layout as well as the Newton family schedule to pull this off. That person would have to know that Abigail was scheduled for a massage and beauty treatment that morning.”
“I wouldn’t be surprised if those appointments were part of the plan,” Jason surmised. “What better way to insure that Abigail would be isolated and away from her children than to have her in a spa getting a massage.”
“The kidnapper had to be the person who cut the lock off of the play yard gate,” Daniel said. “And he or she wouldn’t know when the kids would be in day care unless he or she was aware of when Abigail Newton had her appointment.”
“Still, for two little kids to follow through on the plan so well,” Jason continued, “that seems to be highly unusual unless the kidnapper knew the capabilities of the two kids. To me, all of this points toward their father.”
“Yeah, even though their parents are divorced,” Daniel concluded, “Jamie and Olivia would still trust their father and follow through on something that he set up, especially if it was touted as a fun activity, like a scavenger hunt.”
“And the start of the game was sneaking out of the day care center,” Jason decided. “If we can find out any information about where they were supposed to go after they got through the gate, we will have the first true lead to where they really went.”
“The sheriff’s department seems to think that they went to the south entrance of the resort and then got into someone’s car,” Daniel said. “That’s where all of their efforts have been so far.”
“I don’t know about that, Daniel. It seems too convenient to me. Why go to all of the trouble of sneaking out of the gate and through the resort unseen, only to go to the main entrance where a lot of people would see them? That doesn’t make sense to me unless the kidnapper set something up to throw the authorities off. We have certainly seen that before!”
“Amen to that, Jason. I think we need to look in Jamie’s room and see if there are any clues to where they went or why they went there. Let’s go over there and ask Mrs. Newton if we can. It beats sitting around here!”
Jason and Daniel walked over to the Newton’s cabin and knocked on the door. The door was answered by Evelyn Sosa, the sheriff’s deputy who had been assigned to stay with Abigail. Edith Hunter was also there. She had come over with some fresh coffee and pastries. Deputy Sosa was about to shoo Jason and Daniel away when Abigail and Edith interceded and the boys were allowed to enter.
Abigail Newton had a rough night, and was somewhat disoriented and haggard looking. She did perk up a little when Jason and Daniel explained that they were working on a new theory about what happened. Edith Hunter told Abigail that Jason and Daniel often worked on cases like this involving kids.
“I’m willing to try anything at this point. What do you boys need?”
“We would like to look in the bedroom where Jamie was staying. Have the police already done a search in there?”
“Yes, they have,” Mrs. Newton replied, “so I don’t have a problem with the two of you going in there. There isn’t much to look at.”
Jason and Daniel went into Jamie’s room. Other than the suitcase of clothing and some toys he had brought along, there wasn’t much else in the room.
“Not much here, Daniel. You would think he would have written something down or have some sort of directions to get started.”
Daniel was looking at the writing desk in the room. “Take a look at this, Jason.” Daniel was pointing to a map of the resort, received at check in, lying on the desk. Daniel pointed to a place on the map in which some trees had been circled. “I say we go and check it out.”
Daniel and Jason went back into the living room where the adults were seated. “Any luck?” Edith Hunter asked.
“We’re not sure,” Jason replied. “We have a hunch, but it is only that until we look around and decide whether it has any merit.”
“If you do find anything at all, be sure to notify us immediately,” Deputy Sosa said.
“Yeah, we have our cell phones,” Daniel replied as they were leaving.
The two boys stopped by their cabin to grab their backpacks, get some water bottles and snacks to take along, put on baseball caps, and tell Bill Hunter that they were going on a hike.
Jason and Daniel walked over to the northeast side of the resort property where Jamie had circled the trees. When they arrived, they began checking out all of the trees.
“There are plenty of trees here, but there would have to be something distinctive to get the attention of young kids,” Daniel said. “Isn’t part of the process of a scavenger hunt to find clues?”
“I don’t see anything inside the property here, but what about those trees just beyond the resort fence?” Jason asked. “Just outside the resort would be a safer place to put something than on the resort property which is constantly monitored.”
Jason and Daniel climbed over the wooden rail fence and began to look around. “Look over here,” Daniel exclaimed. “This tree has a nail in it, and a tiny scrap of paper. On the ground over there is a ‘No Trespassing’ sign that appears to have been torn off the nail. What if the clue was placed behind the sign on the nail? That way it could have been left there a day or two before, and no one would be the wiser.”
“I think you are on the right track,” Jason replied. “The other consideration is that we are dealing with young kids here. There would have to be more clues for their scavenger hunt right away to keep them engaged.”
Jason and Daniel continued to search the area for signs of other clues. By systematically examining each tree, they found a couple of other nails hammered into two other trees. “I think that we have most likely exhausted the tree clue idea,” Daniel concluded. “What would be some other potential hiding places for clues?”
“Probably under a rock or perhaps nestled in the roots of large trees,” Jason answered. “However, the clues are long gone. We need to figure out what the clues were most likely directing Jamie and Olivia to do.”
“I would think that the goal of the clues would be to get Jamie and Olivia to walk somewhere,” Daniel speculated. “My first thought is that they would be led to a place where they could be grabbed and held prisoner. Another possibility is that they were taken somewhere else after they were immobilized or restrained.”
“Not a happy end at all to their scavenger hunt,” Jason said.
“What we need to do is search for a trail,” Daniel went on. “Once the two kids were involved in searching for an finding clues, they would be directed to travel to that meeting place.”
Jason and Daniel wa
lked around to search for a trail. Soon they found the trail marker directing hikers to the lake. “This trail leads down to the lake,” Jason declared. “That is a likely possibility because it adds the potential of escape by water. Plus lakes normally have resort cabins and houses nearby. Do you see any signs of other trails?”
“If there were other trails, I would assume that there would be trail markers like this one. Since the kidnapper was dealing with little kids, I believe that he or she would want to make it easy for them to find. So let’s go with this trail to start.” Daniel led the way down the trail. It was a pleasant walk. When they got to the clearing, they stopped to look around and take some sips of water.
“You can see the edge of the lake already,” Jason pointed out. “Is that a cabin over there to the right?”
“Yeah, let’s check it out,” Daniel replied. He got up and slung his backpack over his shoulders.
In about five minutes, the boys arrived at the front of the log cabin. “This cabin looks like it has seen better days,” Jason remarked. “I wonder if anyone still uses it.”
“Only one way to find out. Let’s check it out. It doesn’t look like anyone still lives here,” Daniel said. He opened the door and they went inside.
Even though it was gloomy inside, Daniel immediately spotted Jamie and Olivia chained to the wall. “Jamie! Olivia! Is that you?” he called out.
Although they were somewhat delirious and fading in and out of consciousness, the sound of a human voice woke Jamie and Olivia up, and they made muffled sounds into their gags.
“Don’t worry! It’s Jason and Daniel; remember from the cabin near you. We will get you released and call for help right away.”
Jason and Daniel went up to Jamie and Olivia and pulled the gags out of their mouths. They then took the water bottles out of their backpacks and held them up to Jamie and Olivia. They had to get down on their knees to do it. “Take little tiny sips at first,” Jason warned. “Then we will see about setting you free from those shackles.”
Jason's Network Page 7
