Cry in the Night (2 page)

“Of course.” Bree returned her friend’s smile, feeling the weight fall from her shoulders. “We landed our Westleys.”

“‘Wuv, twue wuv,’” Naomi said, mimicking the Impressive Clergyman in
The Princess Bride
, their favorite movie.

They both burst into giggles. “I’ll be praying for you!” Naomi shouted before running up her window and pulling away in the van.

A smile still pulled at Bree’s lips when the car disappeared around the curve. The stiff wind blew snow into the tracks left by Naomi’s vehicle. Life seemed to be doing the same to Bree, the winds of change obscuring the path she’d seen so clearly a few years ago.

As she left Rock Harbor, she saw people parked along the frozen shoreline. They stared and pointed out across the frozen water. What had captured everyone’s attention? Then she saw it.

An ice volcano. Sometimes high surf slamming against the face of the ice shelf created a cone formation resembling a volcano.

The ice built up, and the surge of waves erupted through the cone like lava through a volcano tube. It was always a sight to see, so she drove slowly and did her own amount of staring until she left Rock Harbor’s city limits behind.

Driving to Houghton, where her doctor’s office was located, she felt the knot in her belly tighten with every mile. She’d handled worse than this by herself. Turning on her CD player, she cranked up her favorite Elvis album,
Elvis in Concert
, and fast-forwarded to “Can’t Help Falling in Love.” In her mind that was Kade’s song, and the lyrics strengthened her.

The music blared loud enough to drown out the fears. She left Samson in the Jeep when she parked. All eyes turned to look when she walked into the ob-gyn office. Most of the women were pregnant, and Bree saw their eyes drop to her belly. She swallowed her hurt and smiled as she checked in at the window, then sank into a black leather chair nearby. If nothing else, it was good to be out of the cold. She slipped off her coat and laid it across her knees.

She’d barely had time to warm up when the nurse called her name. Her pulse ratcheted up a notch as she followed the nurse down a long hallway lined with pictures of smiling mothers holding newborns. She kept her gaze firmly latched on to the nurse’s back. It hurt too much to see those photos. The nurse led her to an examination room, then took her blood pressure and pulse before leaving Bree behind the closed door to await the doctor.

Bree had waited here too many times, just like this with her heart in her mouth. Maybe she would give it up. This path was so difficult.

The door opened, and Dr. Zook walked in. About fifty, the female doctor had been Bree’s ob-gyn ever since Bree moved to the area. The stylish pumps, khaki slacks, and red-and-khaki striped blouse she wore fit her slim frame impeccably. Her pageboy blonde hair swung in a perfect curtain to her chin. Bree always felt dowdy in her doctor’s presence.

“Good morning, Bree,” the doctor said. She carried a manila file. Perching on a stool, she flipped it open and studied the top sheet of paper. “How are you feeling?”

“Fine. No problems. I started my period last week.” She couldn’t keep the disappointment from her voice. “I’ve been on Clomid two months. This will be the last month you said I should take it.”

Dr. Zook closed the file, crossed one crisp pant leg over the other, then laced her fingers together on her knees and smiled at Bree. “I have the test results back. There’s no obvious reason why you aren’t conceiving.”

That sounded like good news. “What do you suggest?”

“We could try another few months of Clomid, but you might want to jump directly to in vitro.”

Bree suspected in vitro was way too expensive for them. “I got pregnant before.”

“And miscarried at seven weeks,” Dr. Zook said. “The problem may be genetic. With in vitro, we could maximize your chances and have fifteen or so fertilized eggs to test for problems.”

Bree shook her head. “I’d want to implant every fertilized egg.

It’s for God to decide the outcome.” Dr. Zook’s face remained impassive, but Bree knew the doctor didn’t agree with her stand.

“How much does it cost?”

“About five thousand dollars a month. I’d guess we might have success the first month.”

Bree winced. “I’ll need to talk to my husband.” How on earth could they afford something like that? Tears hovered dangerously close when the doctor left Bree alone. Maybe she and Kade would never have a child together.

He claimed to love Davy like he was Kade’s own flesh and blood, and Bree knew it was true. But she saw his stares at small children and the way he fielded questions from kids who came through park headquarters. If ever a man was cut out to be a father, it was Kade Matthews.

She gathered up her purse and slipped on her coat in a daze. Clutching her purse, she walked back down the hall and through the waiting room. A newborn baby mewled in her mother’s arms as Bree neared the exit. She had to look, and her heart melted at the sight of a rosebud mouth and smooth, perfect skin. The Native American baby had the biggest thatch of black hair that Bree had ever seen.

“She’s precious,” she said.

The mother smiled and thanked Bree, who quickly escaped into the harsh wind that scoured the tears from her face.

Kade glanced out his office window into the back lot. There were no baby animals in the rescue area that he was so proud of, but come spring, the pens would be full.

Judith Kettrick stuck her head in the door. “You hear the report?” The ranger-brown of her uniform accentuated her sallow complexion.

Kade turned from the window. “What report?” He hoped she hadn’t gotten her pink slip. The place was becoming a ghost town since the budget cuts.

“A woman on the reservation reported her baby was taken by a windigo.”

Kade raised an eyebrow. “Windigo? Why would she say that?” Windigos were the Ojibwa Indians’ version of a vampire. The evil spirit was said to have an insatiable hunger.

“She heard a scream. I’m wondering if she heard a cougar. Thought you might be interested in checking it out.”

“A cougar, huh? Interesting. Did they find the baby?” He suppressed a shudder at the thought that a big cat might have taken an infant.

“Nope.”

“Where did it happen?”

“In the community building. She was there with a bunch of other women, and they heard a scream outside. There were several babies in carriers along the inside wall. The women went to the door to look. When they came back in, she went to check on the baby, but he was gone.”

“A cougar couldn’t have taken the baby then. Not from inside the building.” At least that was a relief.

“Which is why she’s blaming a windigo. She claimed they heard weird screams and saw huge humanoid tracks.”

“Bigfoot,” Kade said, and then wished he hadn’t. It was too flippant for the seriousness of a missing baby.

Her brown eyes widened. “You think bigfoot would take a baby?”

“It was a joke, Kettrick. Not a very good one though. When was this? You tell Landorf?”

“Yes. He wants you to go check it out. This was about ten days ago. Not sure why we’re just now hearing about it.”

“Who’s the mother?”

“Diann Meadowlark. The res police have filed a missing person’s report with the different sheriff ’s departments around.” She lowered her voice. “Way I heard it, this is the second report of a missing baby.”

“You’re kidding! Why hasn’t this hit the media?”

She shrugged. “You know how the Natives like to handle their own problems. They might not have reported it until now. I heard both babies were part Caucasian.”

“I’ll see what I can find out. But you know, they may not talk to me.”

“I do. Let me know if you find out anything.” Kettrick left the doorway.

Kade turned to his computer. This grant application he was trying to complete was a nightmare. Landorf wanted it done though, so he had no choice.

As if summoned by Kade’s thoughts, Head Ranger Gary Landorf stepped into the office. Landorf was a slight man in his early fifties. His quick movements and keen dark eyes had always reminded Kade of a ferret. He ran the park with an iron fist that seemed out of keeping with his small stature.

“How’s that application coming?” Landorf asked.

“Working on it.”

“How’s the wife?”

“Good. I’m a lucky man.”

“It was her lucky day when she met you. That last husband of hers was a piece of work.” Landorf shook his head.

Kade glanced up and watched him fiddle with the bird band on his finger. It was the band from the first eagle Landorf had ever tagged, and he’d worn it for three years, ever since he found the twenty-five-year-old eagle dead. Landorf ’s love of eagles was one of the things the two men had in common.

“I’ve only heard people speak highly of Rob,” Kade said.

Landorf shrugged and shut the door. “Listen, Kade, just between you and me, that grant has the power to save some jobs around here. I want you to pad some of the lion sightings and ask for more money. Maybe get out in the woods and fake some tracks.” He held up his hand when Kade shook his head. “Hear me out. It’s for a good cause. If we can show more wildlife activity, we can justify money to pay for manpower. Do you want to see your friends have to move away?”

“No,” Kade admitted.

“Neither do I. And it doesn’t hurt anyone. It’s just government money. There was no call for them to let our people go. This is a way around it.”

Landorf made sense, and Kade had no good reason to contradict him. It
was
a boneheaded decision by the park service to slash jobs here. They were doing important work. Getting enough grant money to hire more people would rectify the error. Still, his nod was reluctant as Landorf told him to have the application ready by the middle of next week.

Quinn Matilla was in no mood to listen to whining. He sat on the mahogany coffee table to remove his shoes, dropped them onto the plush hotel carpeting, then leaned forward. He glanced out the window at the quiet Sault Sainte Marie street. “The baby has to be somewhere. Find her,” he barked into the phone.

“I’ve looked everywhere,” Rosen said in his high voice.

Quinn glanced at his watch. The newscast should tell them tonight if their orders were being followed. “You check with her friends? Maybe she asked someone to watch the baby.”

Rosen sniffed. “She told me I’d never find it. I saw her with a backpack, but when I caught up to her, it was missing. I looked all over.”

Quinn wanted to smash something. What a nightmare. “Are you telling me that baby could be out in the woods?
Find her!

We’ve got no leverage if she dies.” He picked up the remote control and threw it across the room. “I didn’t want to get involved in this in the first place.”

Probably the wrong thing to say. Their partnership had been fraying since a storm sank a boatful of drugs in Lake Superior. It hadn’t been his fault, but their first argument over this latest deal only made things worse.

“We might have to assume we’ll have no baby to give back.”

Quinn balled his fists. “What’d you do with the body?”

“I left her there. It looks like she just fell and hit the branch.”

He swore. “I didn’t mean to kill her.”

Quinn let his contempt show in his voice. “You’re an idiot, Rosen.”

“I’m not the only one who messed up. Some kid saw you bury the other one in the snow last Saturday. The autistic dude saw too. The boss thought you should know so you could handle the situation.”

Quinn straightened. He’d caught a glimpse of figures in the woods on his way back to the car but was sure they’d seen nothing. “How’s he know what they saw?” He shouldn’t be surprised though. The man had eyes in the back of his head.

“His old lady told him. Florence was with them.”

Quinn hadn’t made out much beyond the kid’s IU jacket and hat and the other guy’s size. “The adult is autistic? Would he even say anything?”

Rosen shrugged. “Maybe. Maybe not. Can’t take the chance though.”

If Florence hadn’t gotten cold feet, he wouldn’t be in this situation. The past few years he’d managed to stay out of Rock Harbor, and now here he was, being forced back twice in three days. “I’ll handle it.” He hung up the phone.