Childfinders Inc - Hero For Hire Part 8

"I was on the police force for five years." He paused, taking another sip. "Being with ChildFinders suits me better. It's a focus."

The word hit her wrong, snapping her tenuous hold on overly frayed nerves.

"That's all it is to you? A focus?"

She had a right to rail. He took no offense. She was going through h.e.l.l. If shouting at him helped her, it was all part of the job. "A very good, rewarding focus. We have an amazing success record. It's an unbroken streak."

"Yes, I know." Her mouth was so dry she could hardly get the words out. What was wrong with her? Why couldn't she remain in control for more than a few minutes at a time? "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to..."

He waved away the apology. There was no need to compound her frustration with embarra.s.sment. "That's okay."

She nodded her thanks, then sighed as she set down the untouched cup. "You know what they say about streaks."

Yes, he knew what they said. That streaks ended. It was inevitable. Everything ended eventually. But she needed hope, not reality, with its pessimistic bent.

Chad placed his hand on her wrist, drawing her eyes to his. "This one won't end here." He needed to get her mind occupied. "Can you give me a list of people who were at the party?"

She blew out a breath, struggling to lift the fog from her brain. "A partial one."

He turned his pad to a clean page. "Go ahead." She gave him six names, then hit a wall. "No problem," he a.s.sured her. "I can get the rest from Mrs. Sullivan."

Terror leaped into her eyes. He couldn't say anything to arouse suspicion. Common sense warred with fear. "He said not to tell anyone."

"He meant anyone official. Police, FBI. That's all kidnappers ever worry about."

He saw she was unconvinced. "We can start out by telling your friend that you want to hire the same caterers and entertainers for a party for Casey." That had a drawback. "But if she knows your son dislikes clowns..."

Veronica nodded, understanding. "Do whatever you think is best. Just get me my son back."

He made a couple of more notes to himself, ideas that had just occurred to him.

"That goes without saying."

"But I want you to keep saying it. Keep saying it until he's here." Maybe if she kept repeating it, if he kept repeating it, then it would happen.

She realized that she'd reverted back to one of her old childish beliefs. If you believed hard enough in something, it would happen.

"I'm sorry. You probably feel like you're babysitting an overgrown child."

"Nothing to apologize for. You're going through h.e.l.l and you need to believe that heaven's waiting for you."

That was one way to put it, she thought.

The doorbell rang, cutting off her breath. On her feet so quickly that she upset both her coffee cup and her chair, Veronica left both where they fell. She ran to the front door with Chad only half a step behind her.

He knew what she was thinking. That somehow Casey had eluded his kidnapper and found his way back home. Hadn't that been what had actually happened with him? The only difference was that he hadn't known it at the time. He hadn't realized that he was leaving his kidnapper behind. All he'd known was that he'd walked out on his father when the man had been too drunk to realize what was happening.

But cases like his were not common. This kidnapping was entirely different from his own. There was no mentally unbalanced ex-husband in the wings waiting for his chance.

The motive was ransom, he reminded himself, pure and simple.

Except that there was never anything pure or simple about kidnapping.

Chad reached the door ahead of her, his legs being longer. She looked at him in surprise when he placed his hand over the doork.n.o.b. "I'll take it from here," he told her. Just in case.

Hand near the weapon he always carried on his person, Chad opened the door. He

saw a casually dressed, dark-haired man of medium build slouching more than standing on the doorstep. Beside the man was a woman who looked far too flashy for him. She was half a head taller than he was, wearing jeans and a tight aqua sweater, and his hand around her waist.

The man's expression turned from openly genial to confused as he looked up at Chad, who was a good five inches taller.

A very faint whiff of alcohol floated in. The man peered through the doorway.

"Veronica?"

Veronica squeezed in beside Chad, her body brus.h.i.+ng his as she forced the door farther open. Her tension telegraphed itself to Chad in the single contact. She was looking at the man. "Neil, this isn't a good time."

Confusion changed to a not-too-subtle smirk as pale blue eyes took in both of them one at a time. Neil held one hand up in silent protest at his error.

"Hey, sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt anything." He turned to look at the woman beside him. "C'mon, Jo, we can come back tomorrow."

Torn, Veronica debated between asking her brother-in-law in and telling him everything or just letting him go on his way. But Neil's companion temporarily took the decision away from her.

The well-endowed woman's deep-brown eyes slid over Chad with unabashed interest.

Her appraisal of him was obviously favorable, for she gently pushed Neil across the threshold and into the house. She never took her eyes off Chad.

Her smile bordered on wicked as she inclined her head toward Veronica, her eyes still fixed on him. "Who's your friend, Veronica?"

For a moment Veronica's mind went completely blank. But before Chad could say anything, she managed to recover. "You're not the only one with a social life, Josephine." Her voice became stronger as she slipped further into the lie. "Chad, this is my brother-in-law, Neil, and his girlfriend, Josephine."

If the preamble to her introduction surprised him, Chad gave no indication.

Instead, he extended his hand to first Neil, then Josephine. He kept his interest in them covert.

His a.s.sessment was rapid and thorough. Neil gave every indication that he drank too much and enjoyed it even more. His companion looked like a hundred other women Chad had come across during his career. Women who aged too quickly and whose fire went out too fast. Women who traded on what they had before it was gone, hoping to upgrade their lives.

"Chad, huh?" Josephine's eyes drifted over him again. She seemed to like what she saw a little more each time. "Nice name. Nice bod, too." But even as she said it, Josephine tucked both her arms through Neil's and hung on, beaming. There was no doubt in Chad's mind that Josephine regarded Neil as her trophy.

And that Neil was eating it up.

"You've got to excuse Jo-she likes to speak her mind." Neil laughed, patting the hands that rested on his arm. He winked at Chad. "What there is of it." He glanced at his companion. "Don't talk too much, Jo. You don't want to use yourself up."

Josephine's only response was a high-pitched giggle better suited to a character in a Sat.u.r.day-morning cartoon program.

Normally Veronica enjoyed Neil's company. He made her laugh and, except for one instance, was like the younger brother she'd never had. With Stephanie in New York, Neil was her only family, besides Casey.

But right now, she wasn't up to Neil's antics and certainly not to Josephine's.

"Did you come here for a specific reason, Neil?" Impatience prompted Veronica's question. "Because if you didn't..."

The dark head bobbed up and down. "I understand. Here." He thrust a small bag at her. "I prom-ised Casey I'd pick this up for him the next time I went to Dodger Stadium." The grin was just the slightest bit sloppy, testifying to his imbibing more than one beer at the stadium. "It's an autographed baseball from..."

Veronica took out the plastic-encased ball. She read the almost illegible signature. It was Casey's favorite pitcher. Oh Casey, I wish I could just run up to your room and give this to you.