LAST SEEN...

by Carla Cassidy

  Adam moved to sit next to her as she perused each file. He thought he could hear her heartbeat, feel it pounding as if her heart was in his chest. Find Maggie. Find Maggie. That was the rhythm of the beats—find Maggie … find Maggie.

  "I don't know … I just don't know," she said softly. She looked at him, sheer agony reflected in her eyes. "There isn't enough information here. I don't remember half these cases. How am I supposed to do this? How am I supposed to find Maggie?"

  He took the files from her and pulled her against him. "Calm down," he said as he stroked the length of her hair. "We'll find her. I swear, we'll find her." He prayed as he'd never prayed before, wishing he could do more for her.

  She held tight to him, as if he were her lifeline to sanity. "It's so dark outside, Adam. It's so dark and she has to be so frightened. I can't stand the thought of her being afraid." She pulled away from him and reached for the files once again.

  "Breanna, the phone calls started about ten days ago. Maybe you should take out all the old files, concentrate on the ones only a week or two before the calls started," he suggested.

  She nodded and for the next few minutes weeded through the files until she had a total of ten in her lap. "Now, take them one at a time and tell me about them."

  As she did, people drifted in and out of the living room, but nobody interrupted them by speaking. Adam listened as Breanna went through the cases. As she studied the files and spoke aloud, she seemed to remember more than she'd initially thought she would.

  "This guy was a newlywed … two weeks married and he was trying to pay me for sex." She shook her head ruefully. "He went a little crazy when we arrested him, screamed that we were mining his marriage."

  "What happens when these men are arrested for soliciting prostitution?" Adam asked.

  "They're taken down to the station, fingerprinted and photographed, then given citations and they have to appear in court," Breanna explained. "It's only a misdemeanor charge … really not a big deal."

  "Unless the little woman finds out and the marriage ends. His loss in exchange for yours?"

  The slump disappeared from her shoulders as she sat up straighter on the sofa. "How can we find out quickly if his wife left him?" she asked.

  "Easy enough. Give me your cell phone." There was a phone number on the arrest report and Adam quickly punched in it. "Could I speak to Mrs. Jennings?" he said into the receiver.

  "What are you crazy? It's the middle of the damned night. She's sleeping. Who the hell is this?"

  Adam hung up. "The little lady is in bed where she belongs."

  Breanna dug out another file. They made eight phone calls before they hit one that counted. "May I speak to Mrs. Duncan?" Adam said into the cell phone to the gruff hello.

  "She doesn't live here anymore. Who is this?"

  Adam clicked off and turned to the young officer standing nearby. "We need to get some information on Eddie Duncan," he said. "When he was arrested he said he was unemployed. We need to know immediately where he's working and the circumstances of his family life."

  "I remember him," Breanna said as the officer hurried out of the room. "He was a tall, burly guy. He was another one that went crazy when we arrested him. Called me all kinds of names, told me if his wife found out his life would be ruined." Her eyes held an edge of wildness. "One ruined life for another? Now we're even?"

  It seemed to take forever for the officer to return to the living room. "Eddie Duncan. Address is 5981 Cypress Road

  . Currently employed with the highway department. It will take a little longer to find out about his family status."

  "Highway department. Tar … concrete … it's too coincidental to ignore." She jumped up from the sofa, but Adam grabbed her arm.

  "You aren't doing this without official backup," he said firmly. "If this guy is the same one who hit me in the head with that brick, then we know what he's capable of. You don't want to put Maggie at risk by going in alone."

  "You're right." She got on her cell phone and called Cleberg who was at the station waiting for a break in the case.

  Within minutes a team of police officers was being dispatched to check out the situation. Despite the fact that Cleberg had put another officer in charge, everyone looked to Breanna for guidance, knowing she was the one with the most at stake.

  "His house is off the beaten track," Breanna said, apparently knowing the area. "If it's the one I'm thinking of, it's surrounded by trees. We'll park on Highway Ten and go in on foot. Nobody approach the house until I give the go-ahead."

  They all started out the door and Adam followed Breanna. She stopped him at her car. "Adam, you can't go."

  "You can't stop me. I can either ride with you or I'll take my own car, but I'm going." She started to protest, but he held up his hand. "You're wasting precious time arguing a lost cause. You've forgotten … I love her, too."

  She gazed at him for a long moment, then nodded and together they got into her car. "No sirens, no lights," she said into her radio. These were the last words spoken until they reached a section of dark, deserted highway where the patrol cars gathered and shut off their engines.

  There were a total of six officers along with Breanna and Adam. Adam could tell that the other officers didn't approve of him being there, but Adam wasn't leaving.

  He had to be here, wanted to see firsthand if Breanna was reconnected with her daughter in a happy reunion. And he needed to be here in case the reunion wasn't joyous at all.

  * * *

  She thought she could smell Maggie's scent as they made their way through the thick woods toward Eddie Duncan's house. It was that special blend of childhood innocence, of sweet little girl and peach bubble bath.

  Of course, it was impossible that she smelled it, but she needed to believe that she was close enough to Maggie to smell her, close enough to Maggie to save her.

  She didn't even know if they were on the right trail. It was a hunch with little else behind it. It was possible that Eddie Duncan was a perfectly innocent man in all this and Maggie was a hundred miles from here.

  She clutched her flashlight in her hand, although it wasn't turned on. Thankfully the moonlight cast down just enough illumination to allow them to move through the trees without artificial lighting.

  Adam was right behind her and even though she knew his presence here wasn't right, she was grateful for it. He loved Maggie, too. She had to be here. Please let this hunch pay off, she prayed.

  The house came into view, a small ranch. Lights shone from within, creating splashes of light on the overgrown lawn. Tall grass in the yard, dying flowers in a weed-choked flower bed gave the place an air of neglect.

  She clicked on her radio. "Check in," she said softly.

  "Unit one in place."

  "Unit two ready."

  "Three is ready, too."

  The officers checked in, each from a different side of the house. Breanna and Adam remained hidden in the trees about twenty feet in front of the house.

  "I'm going to cheek it out," she said. "Hold your positions." She turned to Adam. "You stay here. I'm just going to get closer and take a look around." She started to leave, but he grabbed her by the arm and stopped her.

  "Be careful," he said, then leaned forward and covered her lips with his. It was a fast kiss, over almost before it had begun, but it warmed her as she left the copse of trees and moved closer to the house.

  She avoided the pools of brightness from the lights inside the house and clung to the shadows as she made her way across the lawn.

  When she reached the front of the house she paused. She couldn't take a chance on stepping onto the porch. The wood might creak or make noise that would draw the attention of whomever was in the house and she wasn't ready for that.

  Instead she crept to the right side of the house where a window beckoned her to peek in. Cautiously, she raised her head just enough to look into the house. The window was in the kitchen, and the kitchen was empty of people. But her heart bucked
and kicked in her chest as she saw the remnants of two tv dinners on the kitchen table. A beer can set next to one, a half-emptied glass of milk at the other.

  The sight caused a wave of relief to wash over her that was almost overwhelming, if, indeed, Maggie was inside the house, then the odds were good she was still alive. Hopefully, that glass of milk and tv dinner indicated she was not only alive, but had been fed dinner as well.

  But of course there were a million other scenarios. The extra dinner could have been for a friend of Eddie's, or a relative that lived with him. There was absolutely no guarantee that Maggie had sat in that kitchen chair.

  She moved around to the back of the house where there were four windows. The first was dark, but as she peered in she realized there was a hall light on and she could see that this room was probably the master bedroom. The double bed was unmade and clothes were strewn over the floor. Several coffee cups sat on the nightstand, along with balled-up tissues and a lamp with a torn shade.

  If nothing else, Eddie Duncan should be cited for being a slob, she thought as she moved to the next window, which was a bathroom.

  The third window was another bedroom. She slapped a hand over her mouth to stop the cry that threatened to escape. It was a child's room. A rocking horse stood in one corner and toys littered the floor. But that wasn't what made her heart threaten to explode from her.

  Maggie. She was on a single bed, her thumb in her mouth. She hadn't sucked her thumb for years and the sight of her baby made Breanna want to smash through the window, pluck her up off the bed and carry her to safety.

  But it was her training that forced her to maintain control. She had no idea where in the house Eddie Duncan might be, knew that as long as Maggie was on the inside with him she was in imminent danger.

  Was she okay? Was she sleeping? Breanna held her breath, watching her baby. Had he drugged her … or were they already too late? Maggie stirred restlessly and a sigh of relief escaped Breanna.

  As difficult as it was, she forced herself away from the window. The last window yielded a view of a spare bedroom packed with boxes and furniture.

  As stealthily as possible, she made her way back to her original position. "She's there," she whispered to Adam. "And she's alive."

  "Thank God," Adam murmured.

  Breanna got on her radio and let the other officers know exactly where Maggie was located and the fact that it appeared through deduction that Eddie Duncan was probably located in the living room.

  "I'm going to try to get Maggie through the bedroom window, but I need two of you here in the front to provide a distraction," she said.

  Plans were made and once the officers were in their new positions, Breanna worked her way back around the house and once again to the window of the room where Maggie was sleeping. She radioed her men that she was in position, then waited, heart racing, palms sweaty and gun ready.

  "Eddie Duncan … this is the Cherokee Corners Police Department." A voice boomed through the night. At the same time Breanna tapped on the window.

  "Wake up," she whispered. Maggie had always slept hard.

  "Come out with your hands up."

  The male voice once again filled the air. She knocked on the window once again, nearly sobbing with relief as Maggie stirred. The thumb came out of her mouth as her eyes opened.

  Breanna, afraid to knock again without knowing if Eddie Duncan was at the front of the house or heading back to this room, willed her daughter to look at the window.

  "Eddie Duncan. We have the house surrounded. Come out now with your hands over your head."

  As the officers in the front of the house spoke over the bullhorn, Breanna reached up and tried to open the window. Although she didn't budge the locked window, her motion caught Maggie's attention. Breanna quickly signaled her daughter to keep quiet, then motioned for her to unlock the window. Seconds. It was all she needed to get Maggie to safety. Maggie's face was tearstained and her mouth formed the word mommy as she tried to unlock the window, but she didn't have the strength to switch the lever that would unlock the window.

  A gunshot exploded and full-fledged panic slammed into Breanna. She had no idea who had fired, the police or Eddie, but she knew she had to get Maggie out the window now.

  "Stand back," she yelled to her daughter. She took the butt end of her flashlight and crashed it into one of the little panes on the window. When the glass was out, she reached through, flipped the lock, then yanked the window open.

  "Come on, baby," she cried as another gunshot resounded.

  Maggie ran to the window and climbed over the sill and into her mother's arms. At that moment Breanna saw a shadow coming down the hallway toward the bedroom.

  She set Maggie on the ground and gave her a shove. "Run, baby. Run as fast as you can for the trees."

  Maggie didn't hesitate, but did as Breanna told her. Breanna sobbed in relief as she saw Maggie make the cover of the trees. Only then did she turn to run. She got only a few feet away from the house, then looked over her shoulder and froze. Eddie Duncan's face appeared in the open window, along with a pointed gun.

  "You bitch!" he cried, his voice filled with venom.

  Breanna knew he was going to shoot and she also knew at this close range he probably wouldn't miss. At least Maggie is safe, she thought as she fumbled for her own gun.

  She heard Eddie's gun roar, as if from a million miles away, then she slammed to the ground, somebody else's body covering hers.

  Another shot went off and Eddie screamed. It was the scream of the wounded and Breanna knew the officers had stormed the house.

  Adam's bright blue eyes gazed at her. "You okay?" he asked, his voice sounding funny.

  "You saved my life, but you're really heavy," she said.

  "I always thought if I ever got shot, the bullet would probably come from your gun. Guess I was wrong." His eyes rolled up in the back of his head.

  "Adam!" Breanna screamed as she struggled to get out from under his dead-heavy body. It was only when she got to her feet that she saw the blood gushing from the wound in his back. "Help me!" she cried, tears blurring her vision as she tried to staunch the bleeding.

  "Hang on, Adam," she whispered. "Please, hang on." They had managed to save Maggie, but she'd never be able to forgive herself if the price she had to pay was Adam's life.

  * * *

  Chapter 16

  «^»

  It had been two weeks since Adam had taken a bullet in the back that had magically missed every vital organ except his spleen, which the doctors had removed.

  He stood at the window of his hospital room, waiting for Breanna, who was coming to take him back to the cottage. He'd been champing at the bit for the past three days, eager to leave this medical institution behind.

  For the past two weeks he'd been treated like a hero by everyone in town. It had been embarrassing as hell. He wasn't a hero, he was just an accountant who had somehow managed to get in way over his head.

  Eddie Duncan's story had made the rounds. It had been a nurse who had told him that Eddie had been arrested by Breanna on a solicitation charge. His wife had found out and had left him, taking their four-year-old little girl with her. Neighbors said the little girl had been Eddie's life, and he went just a little bit crazy. According to neighbors, he'd stopped going to work, but had left the house at odd hours. He'd become secretive and furtive, and more than one source had indicated they thought he was drinking a lot.

  He was in a bed in the same hospital where Adam was, being treated for a gunshot wound to the leg before standing trial on a number of charges.

  Breanna and Maggie had come to visit Adam every day, as had most of her family members and half the town. His hospital room was overflowing with flower arrangements, their cloying fragrance filling the air. He'd told the nurses to disperse them around to other rooms.

  "All set?"

  He turned from the window to see Breanna. Her loveliness filled his heart, his soul and he knew it was time to leave Cher
okee Corners behind. Today. When he arrived back at the cottage, he'd pack and leave. It was way past time for him to say his goodbyes.

  "More than all set," he replied. "I hope I don't see another hospital room for years to come." He grabbed the duffel bag from the bed.

  "Oh, no, you don't," a nurse said as she entered the room pushing a wheelchair. "All of our discharged patients get curbside transportation."

  "That really isn't necessary," he protested.

  "Yes, it is," she replied and took the duffel bag from him. "It's the rules." She looked at Breanna. "If you'd like to pull your car up in front, I'll push him to the curb."

  "Okay." She disappeared and Adam reluctantly got into the chair. "We're going to miss you," she said as she pushed Adam out of his room. "You've been a terrific patient."

  "The staff here has been wonderful," he replied. It was true. He'd had good treatment by doctors, nurses and all other staff.

  Breanna was waiting for him at the curb and she hurried out of the driver's seat as they appeared. "You don't have to treat me like an invalid," he protested as she opened the car door for him.

  He threw his duffel bag into the back seat, then got into the car. He was irritated and he didn't know why. He drew a deep breath to gain control as she got into the car and they pulled away from the curb.

  "I'm leaving today." The words fell out of his mouth without his volition.

  "I'm sure it will be good to be out of the hospital," she replied.

  He realized she'd misunderstood what he was saying. "No, I mean I'm leaving Cherokee Corners. It's time for me to go home."

  She took her foot off the gas and flashed him an unreadable look. "Are you sure? I mean, are you sure you're up to it?"

  "I'm fine." He realized the thought of leaving was what was making him irritable. But he had to leave. All loose ends had been tidied up. Maggie was safe, Breanna was fine and Edward and Anita were thrilled by Maggie's existence and had already planned a trip to meet Maggie and Breanna next week.

  "Where's Maggie?" he asked.

  "Spending the night with my folks," she replied.