You have no idea.
After their lunch, all three were relaxed and tired. Barney stretched out and took a nap while Charles and Sarah packed up. They headed home in the late afternoon. Charles walked them to their door and kissed Sarah gently. She smiled at him and her eyes glistened. Is that love I see in her eyes, he wondered.
* * *
The telephone rang just as Sarah got into bed. She reached over to answer it but couldn’t see the Caller ID from her angle. “Andy!” she squealed enthusiastically when she heard his voice. “I was hoping you would call today.”
“I’m sorry I took so long getting back to you, Sarah. I didn’t want to call at all. I’ve caused you enough trouble already.”
“Andy. Stop. We need to talk right away.”
“You know where Caitlyn is?” Andy asked hopefully.
“No, Andy. But we have a plan. How and where can we get together? It’s too involved to go into on the phone.”
Andy was silent for a minute. Then he spoke and said, “Is there any way you can come to Hamilton? I hate to ask that of you but….”
“Yes! I’ll come and I need to bring Sophie and Charles with me…”
“But…” he interrupted.
“Yes, Andy. They need to come. They’re part of the plan. You won’t be disappointed.”
“Okay. You can all come to my room. I’ll change hotels after that so you can honestly say you don’t know where I am if you’re questioned.”
“That may not be necessary, Andy. I’ll explain when we get together. Okay, where and when?”
“I’m in Hamilton at the Sheffield. It’s an old rundown hotel on the east side. I was sure I’d see Caitlyn over here. For all I know I have,” he said regretfully. “I probably wouldn’t know her if I sat next to her in the soup kitchen. Oh, speaking of eating at the soup kitchen…what did you find in the quilt?”
“We need to talk about that, too, when we get together. Not now…and what does that have to do with eating in the soup kitchen?” Sarah asked.
“I’m running out of money and I was just hoping…but then…there’s probably nothing in the quilt. Anyway, we’ll talk about it when you get here. When can you come?”
“Tomorrow?”
“That’s good.” They discussed a time and Andy gave her directions. He warned her to park close to the hotel and be extremely careful. It was a dangerous part of town. “Be sure you aren’t followed,” he added.
Sarah hoped the others would be available. She didn’t have any way to reach Andy to make changes. After they hung up, Sarah peeked out the window and saw that Sophie’s lights were still on. She pulled her trench coat on over her gown and hurried across the street.
“Hi’ya Gal,” Sophie greeted as she opened the door. “You look excited. What’s happening?”
“I heard from Andy, and I’m sure hoping you’re available tomorrow. He agreed to meet us at his room in Hamilton. Are you game?”
“I’m in,” Sophie announced.
“Okay, then we’ll see if Charles is available.”
“Charles?” Sophie asked, looking surprised. “Charles can’t meet with Andy. Remember, he said he would be obligated to turn him in even though he’s retired.”
“Nonsense.” Sarah retorted. “He’s taking his oath way too seriously.”
“Well, he’s your honey bunny,” Sophie said dismissively, then added, “but I know what I heard when we talked about this.”
“Hmm. I think you might be right. But now I’m between a rock and a hard place. Charles doesn’t want me placing myself in danger, but he doesn’t want to be there with me.”
“So,” Sophie concluded, “that means it’s up to you to decide. Will it be rock or hard place?”
“You’re right. Let’s go.”
“What’s so dangerous about this mission anyway?” Sophie asked. “Andy’s certainly no danger.”
“No, not from Andy. It’s just a very rough part of town. At first, Andy didn’t want Charles there. Then he said he was glad we’d have him with us for protection.”
“Humph. When did we ever need protection? Wasn’t that you and me out at that hobo camp last year?” Sophie said, snickering proudly. “We can take care of ourselves, kiddo. Besides, I have mace.”
“He said for us to make sure we aren’t followed,” Sarah said with a mischievous smile.
“How cloak and dagger is that!” Sophie responded. “This could be fun.”
They sat down at the kitchen table and planned their strategy. “I hope Andy will go for this. It’s the only chance he stands of getting out of prison before his daughter is a grandmother,” Sophie predicted.
Chapter 14
Sophie and Sarah decided to take Sophie’s Jeep. “It looks tough,” Sophie said. “We can’t arrive in that sissy car of yours. We’ll be laughed out of town.”
Sarah had wanted to drive. Sophie was easily distracted by her own story telling and sometimes appeared to have forgotten she was behind the wheel. “Okay, Sophie. You drive but no stories today.”
“Humph.”
After they left the Village and turned onto the dual highway to Hamilton for the second time that week, Sophie turned to Sarah and said, “Did you hear about Virginia at the Saturday night social?” Not waiting for an answer, Sophie dived into an hilarious account of Virginia and her husband doing the twist. Both of the Warrens were in their late 80s and both needed assistance with walking. Fred used a walker and Virginia had a cane. The description of the two of them doing the twist with their assistive devices banging into each other was hilarious, and both women laughed until tears ran down their cheeks. Suddenly, Sarah realized Sophie was not watching where she was going and was headed up the wrong side of the road.
Fortunately, no one was coming the other way when Sarah screamed, “Sophie, watch where you’re going!” Sophie jerked the wheel to the right and straightened the Jeep up in the proper lane.
“Sorry,” she said wiping tears from her cheeks as she tried to hold back the laughter. “But it was funny,” she added with one more chuckle.
“That’s it,” Sarah said, looking serious. “No more stories.”
They drove in silence for another few miles when Sophie said, “Did you hear about…”
“Quiet,” Sarah demanded.
“Humph.”
The rest of the drive was uneventful. Sarah told Sophie about her quilt class and the Underground Railroad and how blocks might have been used. Sophie listened, looking just a bit bored, but Sarah continued because it kept Sophie’s eyes on the road. “I’ll show them to you when we get home,” Sarah added. “I think that’s our turnoff right up there…”
Sophie took the turnoff and Sarah read the directions Andy had given her. Charles had programmed the GPS, but she was more comfortable with her hand-written directions. She would turn the GPS on if they got lost.
“Did he program that thing to get me back home?” Sophie asked.
“You just hit go home.”
“How does it know where I live?” Sophie asked suspiciously.
“It will bring you to my house. I think you know the way from there. If not, I’ll give you written directions,” Sarah teased. “Turn right at the next light.”
Sophie made the turn. After several more turns, Sarah said, “Slow down. I think it’s in this block.” Straight ahead they saw a tattered awning with the letters SH-F--ELD. “That’s it. Over there on the left. Park wherever you can,” Sarah added. There were several people on the sidewalk outside the hotel. The women were scantily dressed for such a cool day. The men appeared to be in some sort of negotiation.
“Buying drugs,” Sophie said, with authority.
“How do you know that?” Sarah asked.
“Well, it’s obvious. The one with all those tattoos is the dealer. The other two guys are looking for their next score,” Sophie explained.
“You watch too much television.”
Sophie parked the car and the two women locked up and head
ed for the Sheffield. As they approached the entrance, the woman in red shorts and a sparkly halter said, “Hey girls, this is our spot.”
Everyone standing around howled with laughter. One of the men called over and said, “They’re kinda cute. I think I’ll bring my grandpa next time!” Sophie and Sarah ignored the hoots and hollers that followed and entered the building.
Andy had told them to come up the back stairs, and he was in room 305. Sophie got to the second floor without complaining but refused to go any farther. “That’s an elevator over there,” she said pointing to a metal door with an up and down arrow painted on it.
“Andy said not to use it. It gets stuck. I don’t want to spend the day, or possibly the week, waiting for someone to get us out. Come on. One more floor.”
Sophie sighed and began to slowly climb the last flight with Sarah behind her. “Now,” Sarah said laughing, “I feel obligated to point out to you that you wouldn’t be having all this trouble climbing the stairs if you took the hula hoop class and got into shape.” Sophie tried to respond but was too winded to talk.
Once they got to the third floor and Sophie caught her breath, she said, “Don’t think you can trick me into taking that confounded class of yours!”
“There’s his room,” Sarah said, ignoring Sophie and pointing up the dark hallway. “Poor Andy. He doesn’t belong in a place like this.” She walked up to the door and tapped lightly. “Andy, it’s us.”
Andy opened the door and, with tears in his eyes, hugged both women. The room was small and contained a dilapidated-looking bed, a wooden chair, and a floor lamp. There was a box on the floor which contained a few items of clothing. He told them the bathroom was up the hall if they needed it. They both declined. “I’d offer to get you something, but, as you can see, there’s nothing to get. We could go across the street for coffee, but I can’t guarantee they wash the cups.” Sarah, looking around at how Andy was living, suspected he just might be glad to get back to Evanston.
“Take the chair, Sophie,” Sarah offered. “I’ll sit on the bed.” Sophie looked at the chair suspiciously and said that she would prefer the bed, too. Andy pulled the chair over facing the bed and sat down facing them.
“Okay, girls. What’s this all about?”
Sarah began and, again, Sophie interjected where she saw fit. Together they explained their plan. They told him that Amanda had assured them that the only way to avoid an extensive prison sentence would be for him to turn himself in voluntarily.
“Amanda?” Andy looked worried. “Isn’t Amanda your cop friend?”
“Yes. But she’s helping us. She said to tell you that it’s no guarantee, but that the judge is likely to be more lenient if you turn yourself in. She also said the judge would probably be willing to take into consideration your reason for leaving.”
“That’s taking a big chance,” Andy said reluctantly. “It’ll all depend on the judge?”
“That’s right,” Sophie said. “But if the police pick you up you stand no chance at all of a reduced sentence. It’s like I told Sarah, you would be lucky to get out before your daughter is a grandmother!”
“Let me get this straight,” Andy said frowning at the two women sitting on his bed. “Your plan is for me to go back and, hopefully, have a less severe sentence. How does that help me? I don’t care about the sentence. I want to find my daughter.”
“That’s the best part of the plan, Andy,” Sarah began. “Once you’re safely back in prison, Charles has agreed to help us find Caitlyn. The three of us will find her. And, besides that, Amanda was able to get Buck to report her to Missing Persons. The entire Hamilton police department is out there searching for her!”
“We just don’t want them to find you in the process!” Sophie added.
Andy looked overwhelmed. He rested his elbows on his knees and held his head in his hands. When he finally looked up, Sarah could see tears standing in his eyes. She couldn’t read his reaction to what they’d said. She and Sophie waited for him to speak.
Finally, he wiped his eyes on the tail of his shirt. Sarah could see his ribs as he lifted his shirt and knew he had lost a great deal of weight. He had been on the street well over a month and probably had very little to eat. “I’ll do it,” Andy said softly. “I’ll do it if you promise to find her and take care of her until I get out.”
“We’ll do both, Andy. We’ll need to take this one step at a time, but I think, once we find her, we need to establish paternity. That will get her out of the clutches of that Buck character.” Sarah continued, “Then we need to get a temporary guardian and I’d be more than happy to be that person.”
The tears Andy had been struggling to control flowed down his cheeks. “You mean it, Sarah?”
“Of course I mean it. What do you say? Is it a deal?”
“It’s a deal,” he said, smiling through his tears.
“Let’s call Amanda now.” Andy stood and put his few scattered belongings into the box while Sarah pulled her cell phone out of her bag.
“Amanda. I’m with Andy. He’s coming in. Can you meet us?”
Amanda said that Sarah should drive him to the Middletown police station but that she and Sophie should remain outside. “Andy should walk in alone and head straight for the desk sergeant,” she continued. “He should immediately say who he is and that he’s there to turn himself in. That’s what will look best for him.”
“Okay. I’ll explain that to him. Will you be able to see him at all?”
“I want you to call me on my cell when you arrive outside the station. I’ll walk out to the sergeant’s desk and offer to take over. That way, I can walk him, personally, through the process,” Amanda explained.
“How can we ever thank you, Amanda,” Sarah said affectionately.
“You can bake me one of those double chocolate cakes like you made for Charles’ birthday,” she responded and both women laughed.
“Call me tonight, if you can, and let me know how it goes,” Sarah requested.
“I’ll do it. Good work, Detective Sarah Miller,” Amanda said with a chuckle.
The three left Andy’s room and walked down the dark, dingy hall, Andy holding his box and the two women looking very out of place. Sophie stopped at the top of the stairs and gave Sarah a pleading look.
“It’s easier going downhill,” Sarah teased, smiling at Sophie.
Chapter 15
Sarah woke up feeling relaxed and fresh after a long and peaceful night’s sleep. Barney greeted her with a smile and the two went into the kitchen, Barney to the backyard and Sarah to the coffee pot. Sarah smiled when she saw the coffee, brewed and ready to pour. Charles had given her a new electric pot which had the coffee ready when she got up in the mornings. The smell wafted through the house, waking her up with its delicious aroma every day.
Once she poured her coffee, let Barney back in, and sat down at the table, she found herself still smiling. Amanda had called the night before with encouraging news about Andy. Andy’s attorney met with the district attorney and asked that he recommend the new charges be dismissed. He argued this based on the fact that Andy had turned himself in, and there was no violence involved in his escape. He simply walked away. His lawyer and the district attorney came to an agreement, and they will make the recommendation to the court.
Amanda said she thinks there’s a good chance the court will agree. Andy has friends among the guards who’ll probably testify for him. He’ll also have an opportunity to tell the judge why he felt he had to leave. Depending on the judge, Andy may simply return to prison and continue serving his original sentence. The judge might add time, but Amanda didn’t think he would. She said the worst case might be that Andy wouldn’t be paroled as soon as he had expected. The attorney agreed that it may go against him at his next parole hearing.
Andy was going to be okay. He might not get out as soon as he had hoped, but he was going to be okay. With the Hamilton police departments looking for Caitlyn, Sarah felt hopeful and didn’t
feel the pressure to be out there trying to find her alone.
Amanda had talked with a friend of hers on the Hamilton force who agreed to keep Amanda informed of their progress. Hamilton had already filed all the reports that are required when children are missing or abducted, including notifying the FBI. They began their investigation and were interviewing staff and students at her school, and, of course, doing extensive questioning of Buckley and his neighbors.
“Life is good,” Sarah said aloud, quoting one of her favorite tee-shirts.
Sarah looked at the clock and realized she was going to be late for class if she didn’t get moving. She put a piece of cheese on a slice of bread, folded it over, and took off for the sewing room to pack her quilter’s tote. She would see if Charles wanted to come over in the afternoon and hang the design board she had made using the foam board and cotton batting.
* * *
Katie explained that she would be filling in for Ruth today and pointed to the flying geese block in the sampler quilt hanging in the classroom. “This is today’s block. It’s called flying geese and its message in the springtime was probably something like ‘follow the geese as they fly north.’ We won’t be doing the North Star block, but that’s another one that seems to point the way north.”
“Here are your instructions,” Katie said, passing out the sheets Ruth had left for her. “Read them through and see what you can do on your own. Come get me if you have any problems. I see two customers in the front. I’ll be right back.”
Delores spoke up saying, “I’m very familiar with this block and can answer questions until you get back if you’d like.”
“Great!” Katie responded with a smile. Delores was a seasoned quilter; Katie knew the class would be in good hands if the customers took more time than she expected.
Everyone studied their sheets and started working on their blocks, except Dottie. “What’re we supposed to do?” Dottie asked without picking up the instruction sheet. Delores patiently moved to the chair next to her and walked her through the steps. She then walked around and watched what the others were doing. Katie had come back into the room and stepped back to watch. Delores stopped by Kimberly and gently helped her to rearrange her fabric on the cutting board to make it easier to cut. Katie knew her mother wanted to hire a teacher for several hours a week. Delores might be just the ticket.
Running Stitches Page 7
