“I don’t know about that. I obviously have my share of enemies, or I wouldn’t be here.”
Bob walked around the room reading the cards and commenting. When he stopped at the three-foot gladiola extravaganza, he asked, “Who are these from?”
“I don’t know. There’s no card, but whoever sent them knows my favorite flower and color, or they just got lucky with their selection. The card must have been lost between the flower shop and the hospital. I wish I knew who to thank for them.”
“Or you have a secret admirer,” Bob teased. She knew the mysteriousness made him uncomfortable. Bob sighed, “Look, Sabre, too many strange things have happened, and the bat incident has put it over the top. I don’t want you to be alone. If I had it my way, I wouldn’t even let you out in public, but I know I can’t stop you. I know you’ll be cautious, but I also know you won’t hide from the world. I’m just worried about you and so damn frustrated I can’t help you find this cowardly son-of-a-bitch.”
“I know. I’ve represented hundreds of clients, especially minors whose parents might be unhappy with me. Heck, all the attorneys at juvenile court have; it comes with the territory. But I’ll be careful, and I already promised you I wouldn’t be at the office alone. You know I won’t break a promise to you.”
“I know, but I plan to stick close to you.”
“Geez, if you stick any closer, we’ll have to wear the same clothes.”
Bob smiled, “Come on Sobs, you need to leave this ‘sick’ place before you catch something you can’t get rid of.”
“I’m ready.”
Bob carted the flowers to the car. While he was gone, Sabre got a glimpse of herself in the mirror. She looked like she had been beaten. Scratches occupied a good portion of her face, a bandage covered the right side of her forehead, and the bruising on her right eye had darkened. In spite of how she looked, she felt fortunate and anxious to return to work.
When Bob returned to get Sabre, he tried to convince her to go home, but she insisted he take her back to the office.
“I won’t work long,” she said. “I just need to go through my phone messages, return a couple of calls, and pick up my files to take home. Besides, my car’s still there. I’ll need to drive it home.”
“All right,” he acquiesced. “But I’m staying at the office with you, and I’m following you home. I’m not leaving until I know you’re safe.”
“You worry too much,” Sabre said. “So how’d court go today?”
“Piece of cake. I’m the king of juvenile court. There’s nothing there I can’t handle.”
“You are the king,” she said. “You have earned the title. You’re the best attorney juvenile court has ever seen, except for me, of course. You know the law, you’re personable, and the judges, the clerks, and the bailiffs all love and respect you. You’re an excellent trial attorney and you have an incredible, although somewhat twisted, sense of humor. I think my cases were in capable hands.”
“Thanks, but it’s no fun without my queen.” He smiled. Sabre’s skills complemented Bob’s. Where he excelled in the courtroom, she negotiated her way through. She was organized. He was not. They both enjoyed the work, and they loved to pull harmless pranks on unsuspecting people. Together on a case, they became almost unbeatable. Even if they lost, they entertained the court.
They chatted all the way to the office. When they arrived, Elaine and Jack greeted her. Sabre handed the red bouquet of roses to Elaine and said, “Here, put these on your desk. They’ll brighten up the place.”
“Thanks, they’re beautiful.” She smiled. “Your mail and messages from yesterday are on your desk, and here are the rest of the messages from this morning. There have only been about six messages from Crazy Carla in the past two days. Have you been talking with her?”
“Yes, I spoke with her several times yesterday and again this morning. I figured it was something I could do while I lay around.”
She took the messages, thanked Elaine, and she and Bob walked back to Sabre’s office. “If you still insist on sticking around, you can use David’s office to make phone calls or whatever.”
“Thanks, I will. Just do what you need to do. I don’t have court this afternoon, and since your trial continued, we’re both free.” Bob placed the bouquet of gladiolas on Sabre’s desk and went into David’s empty office to work.
Sabre sat down at her desk and read through her messages. She spotted one from Ruby Sterling. It read, “Please do not call me at home.” She had left a different number and indicated she’d be there until about 3:30 p.m. Sabre looked at the clock; it read 12:23 p.m. With the time difference in Atlanta, she had about seven minutes to reach her. She picked up the phone and dialed, hoping Ruby hadn’t left early.
A female voice answered the phone. When Sabre identified herself, she put Ruby on the line.
“Hello, Mrs. Sterling. Are you okay?” Concern colored Sabre’s voice.
“Yes, I’m fine. I need to talk to you, but I couldn’t talk from home. I need to know how my granddaughter is.” Mrs. Sterling’s voice cracked. “Where’s Alexis now? Is she safe?”
“She’s fine. She’s in a receiving home. It’s a temporary placement where children stay while they’re waiting for the courts to decide their placement.”
“Can people get in to see her?”
“Not without approval from the court, and then the visitation is supervised. The only ones who can see her are the psychologist, the social worker, her father, and me, of course.”
“Can anyone go with her father on a visit?” Before Sabre could answer, Mrs. Sterling asked another. “Can he take her out of there?”
“No, he can’t take her out of there and he can’t bring anyone with him on the visit. Why? Is Alexis in some kind of danger? Will her father hurt her?”
“Yes, Alexis is always in danger, but not from her father. He won’t hurt her. He loves her with all his being, but he may not be able to protect her.”
Mrs. Sterling took a deep breath. Silence ensued, and Sabre waited.
“Before I tell you anything more,” Mrs. Sterling continued, “I need your word you won’t tell anyone. What I have to say may help protect Alexis. That’s the only reason I’m telling you. But if you talk, it could get her killed. Do you understand?”
“I understand. I promise you, whatever you tell me, I will use it only to protect her.”
“Another thing, don’t call me at my house. If you need to reach me, call this number. They may have the house bugged. I don’t trust them.”
“Who is ‘them’?”
“I don’t know who they are, but they’ve been driving by again and sitting in their cars in front of my house.” She lowered her voice, as if afraid someone might hear her.
“How long have they been doing that? And what do you mean ‘again’?”
“They came a few years ago, when Elizabeth disappeared. And now they’re back.”
“Are you sure it’s the same guys?”
“No, I haven’t seen them up close, but the pattern’s the same. They drive up, they stop, and they just sit there watching my house. They’re not trying to be discreet. In fact, they go out of their way to make sure I see them. Sometimes one of them will get out of the car and lean up against it and just stand there facing my house.”
“Have you called the police?”
“No, I can’t. They may be in on it. You can’t trust the Atlanta Police Department. Please don’t tell them anything I tell you.”
“Okay, Mrs. Sterling, I won’t, but why don’t you start at the beginning. You said they came there before when Elizabeth disappeared. What can you tell me about that?” Sabre didn’t know if this woman was delusional or really being stalked. She sounded genuine and truly frightened.
“Elizabeth is my daughter, you know. She is such a beautiful girl and real smart. She finally had what she deserved – a real good life with a loving husband and our precious little Alexis. Then all of a sudden she was gone, and these guys
came to my house threatening me before I even knew she was gone.”
“What do you mean? You didn’t know your daughter was missing when they came to your house?”
“No, that’s how I found out.”
“Why don’t you tell me what led up to Elizabeth’s disappearance.”
“Ok, let me back up a little,” Mrs. Sterling said. “Elizabeth and Gaylord lived here in Atlanta after they got married. With them so close, I saw them almost everyday, and Alexis and I became the best of buddies. Then, when Alexis was about four years old, they moved to Dallas on a temporary assignment through Gaylord’s work. They lived there for about a year and then they came back to Atlanta. They were only back about a month when … .” Mrs. Sterling’s voice started to break up. She paused for a moment.
“I’m sorry,” Sabre said. “I know this is difficult.”
“I’m okay.” She took a deep breath. “Elizabeth would bring Alexis to my house every morning when she went to the gym. It was our special time together. We enjoyed getting reacquainted. She had grown and matured so much in the year they’d been gone. Every morning when they’d come by, Elizabeth would knock on the door and I could hear Alexis calling, ‘Grandma, it’s me.’ I’d open the door and let Alexis in. Elizabeth would give me a quick kiss on the cheek and take off for the gym.”
Mrs. Sterling paused again. “One morning I heard the knock – only it was much louder – and I didn’t hear Alexis. So I opened the door expecting to see Elizabeth, but she wasn’t there. Instead, two burly looking guys with tattoos stood there with my granddaughter. One of them was huge. He must’ve been six-foot, five. He wore a t-shirt, and I could see the muscles bulging out all over the place. His arms were as big around as most people’s waists. He had a large, blue-and-green tattoo across his arm that read, ‘Mama tried.’
“Well, they pushed the door open so hard it nearly knocked me down. I grabbed Alexis and held her in my arms. She trembled with fright, and her arms wrapped so tightly around my neck I could hardly breathe. She kept her eyes shut, and she buried her head in my chest so she didn’t have to look at them. She lay there in silence, too afraid to speak or even move. They must’ve scared her real bad.”
Sabre waited again while Mrs. Sterling composed herself.
“Then, one of the guys pulled out a gun and held the tip of the cold, steel barrel on the back of Alexis’ head. She squeezed me even tighter. He looked at me with eyes void of any emotion. It wasn’t his lack of concern about frightening a little girl and an old lady to death, but rather that he showed no emotion at all. There was nothing in his eyes, like he was dead inside. Up until then, he hadn’t said a word. The other goon told us what to do. When the big guy spoke, his words cut through my heart like ice, and I knew he wouldn’t hesitate to pull the trigger if I gave him a reason.
“He said, ‘Here’s what you’re going to do. When we leave here, you’re not going to tell a soul anything about this visit. You’re not going to try to find your daughter, Elizabeth.’
“I interrupted him and asked what they had done to her, but he pushed the gun tighter on Alexis’ head and told me to shut up and just listen. Then he said, ‘The only thing you’ll tell the cops is your daughter dropped the kid off this morning and never came to pick her up. You’ll call her father after a few hours and let him know Elizabeth didn’t come back from the gym. And then you’ll stay away from the kid.’
“When I asked him why I couldn’t see Alexis, he said, ‘Lady, it doesn’t matter why. These are the rules. I make ‘em. You follow ‘em. Now let me tell you one more time.’ He stuck out his thumb on his left hand as if he was counting and said, ‘You never saw us.’ Then he raised his index finger and said, ‘Your daughter dropped the kid off and never came back to pick her up.’ He raised the middle finger and said, ‘You call her husband and report it.’ On the fourth finger he said, ‘And then stay away from the kid. You got it?’
“I was too scared to speak, but I nodded my head. It felt like some bad gangster movie. I stood there holding my baby, who clutched me with all her might, and I looked into the eyes of this cold, calculating man. I remember those big fingers in front of my face and the gun stuck against Alexis’ head. I tried to listen to the words and prayed he wouldn’t hurt us.
“He moved his face right in front of mine, and his cold eyes penetrated my soul, and he said in almost a whisper, ‘We’ll be watching your every move. If you don’t do exactly as I say, you’ll live the rest of your life knowing you tortured and killed this little girl.’ Then he pulled the gun away, they moved toward the door to leave, and he told me not to bother to go to the police because he had them in his pocket.”
Sabre listened intently, barely believing what she heard. When Ruby stopped talking, Sabre asked, “Then what did you do?”
“I did exactly as he told me to, nothing. I tried to comfort Alexis. I sat there with her in my arms and rocked her for at least an hour. I tried to get her to eat, but she wouldn’t. I thought about calling the police, but I was too afraid of what they would do. I tried calling Elizabeth’s cell phone, but the big guy answered it. I recognized the voice. Before I ever said anything, he said in a very reprimanding tone, ‘Now, Mrs. Sterling, what did I tell you?’ I heard him kind of chuckle and I hung up. I waited for a few hours, called Gaylord, and told him I was concerned because Elizabeth hadn’t come back for Alexis, just as the goon told me to do. I told him she hadn’t called or anything and I couldn’t reach her on her cell. We both knew she wouldn’t ever do that unless something was seriously wrong.”
“How did Gaylord react?”
“He was beside himself. He called the police, who said they couldn’t do anything until she was missing for twenty-four hours. So he called his father, who has a lot of influence in this town. They had an investigation going immediately once old-man Murdock got involved.”
“Did the police come to your house?”
“Yes, these two cops came – one young, one quite a bit older with gray hair. They had already been to the gym, and no one there had seen Elizabeth that morning. I was supposedly the last person who had seen her, so they came to me. The young guy asked most of the questions and he took a lot of notes. I felt so nervous I could hardly talk. They asked Alexis a few questions, but she wouldn’t say a word, and they had no reason to press it because they didn’t know she had seen anything.”
“What did you tell them?”
“I just told them Elizabeth had dropped Alexis off and left like she always did. They asked me questions about her demeanor, and if she’d said anything else. But I just told them she acted normal. The younger one kept asking me things. He tried to be sensitive and still do his job, but the older guy told him to let up, just the same. I was grateful. I didn’t want to slip and say something. I thought at the time the older cop was concerned about upsetting me.”
“What do you mean, ‘at the time’?”
“Well, later on, I went down to the police station. I decided to tell them what I knew. I figured the goon lied about having the police in his pocket and they could protect Alexis. When I pulled into the parking lot, I saw the gray-haired cop standing by a car talking to someone inside. At first I wasn’t sure it was the same cop who had been at my house earlier, so I drove up closer and sure enough it was. I thought, ‘This is good; I caught him before he left.’ He was the one I wanted to talk to anyway because he’d been so nice to me.” Ruby paused to take a breath.
“So did you stop and talk to him?”
“No, because when I got close enough to see his face real good, I could see the big goon who had been at my house earlier sitting in the car. The really big goon.”
“Are you sure?”
“I’m sure. He filled the whole space in the driver’s seat and I could see the tattoo, ‘Mama tried,’ on his arm sticking out the window. He reached over with his other hand and gave the cop an envelope full of money.”
“How do you know it had money in it?”
“Beca
use the cop took the money, fanned it out, stuck it back into the envelope, and put it in his pocket.”
“So what did you do then?”
“I drove out of the parking lot and went home. I was so afraid they might have seen me, but apparently they hadn’t, because the cops came back to my house a few times and asked more questions. The gray-haired one always treated me real nice. They both did, but I figured he’d act different if he’d seen me. I always told them the same thing. Once the young cop came by himself, but I didn’t know who to trust, so I didn’t say anything. I was too afraid of what they would do to Alexis if I told.”
“Did Gaylord know about any of this?”
“Not from me. They may have threatened him, too. I don’t know. But if they did, they made a believer out of him, because he never said a word. Nor have I ever told a soul, until now. I sure hope I’m not making a mistake trusting you.”
“All I want is the same thing you do, Mrs. Sterling, for your granddaughter to be safe. I’ll do whatever I can to make that happen.”
“I hope so. I don’t care what happens to me. My daughter is gone and I don’t get to share in Alexis’ life anymore. I don’t know if I’ll get a chance to see either of them ever again. It’s all I live for – that possibility. I’d gladly give up my life to have Alexis safe and unafraid.”
“It’s not going to come to that. And we’re going to make sure Alexis is protected.”
When Sabre hung up the phone, she wondered just how she would be able to keep her promise. She looked up and saw Bob standing in her doorway. “You’re pale as a ghost. What’s up?” he asked.
The knots tightened in Sabre’s stomach as she shared the details with Bob in hopes he could help her form a plan.
17
The dawn awakened Sabre long before the alarm rang out. She opened her eyes, looked around, and let out a lingering sigh. Her own bed, her own home, and the need for routine and normalcy overpowered her.
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