Find My Baby (22 page)

“She does. You saved her life. She just wanted to talk to that man.”

Luke nodded. “I know. So did I.”

She patted his arm and disappeared after Nester.

“What are they up to?” Kayla asked, putting away the last cup.

Luke shrugged. “They always have something going on.”

“That’s so nice.” Though she’d moved from Austin to Houston for her degree, Kayla’s job and studies didn’t allow for close friendships. Sure, she had plenty of acquaintances who were always glad to see her, but no one who shared her life. Jackie’s laughter from the next room gave her pause. Kayla wanted very much to have what her aunt had, a real friend. Right now, Jackie Howard fit the bill perfectly.

Jackie, Terry behind her, wandered into the kitchen. “Are you finished with the dishes? We need to talk.” Terry said.

“About...?” Kayla answered.

“Let’s take a seat,” Luke suggested.

Once more, the four of them sat around the table. “Since the FBI isn’t going to provide protection, do you think HPD will?” Jackie asked.

Terry shook his head. “I called headquarters. Their hands are tied. But the captain said he’d keep a car in the area. They’re simply not in a position to provide the kind of protection Kayla needs if the news gets out.”

“Then they’d better keep it quiet,” Jackie growled.

“The captain told me to do what had to be done,” Luke said. “Until this is over, I’ll camp out here on the sofa, or move Kayla to my house.”

“You’ll keep her safe like last night?” Jackie scoffed. “You almost screwed up, Luke. Kayla would be dead if that kid hadn’t stepped in when he did.”

“You’re right. And if this gets in the news....”

“Don’t blame, Luke, Jackie. I went outside when I should have known better,” Kayla reminded her.

Terry and Jackie exchanged glances.

“Let’s remember that the killer is dead and Kayla’s alive. But we can’t take any chances,” Luke said. “We’ll play it by ear for now. There’s no need for more than one person to be here. Check in with me later. We’ll see how it goes.”

“It’s a plan,” Jackie mused. “Not a very good one, but a plan.”

“It’s the best I can come up with right now. If this goes on too long, we’ll think about hiring bodyguards.”

“That’s extreme,” Kayla noted.

“So is the situation,” Luke reminded her grimly.

Kayla fought the urge to run from the room. How could they sit there so calmly and discuss the fact that there could be another episode like this morning? The thought terrified her. “Maybe you’re wrong. Maybe whoever is behind this won’t find out that Anatoli is dead.”

“He will. It won’t take long once contact is lost.” Luke said. “They can’t keep it out of the news forever. One way or another, you’ll be in danger again.”

“What about Sam? I can’t stop looking for him. How do I do that with someone following me everywhere I go?”

Emotions bubbled up inside her. Anger, fear and frustration rolled into a ball.

“I want to keep you safe,” Luke insisted.

Kayla glanced from one to the other. She had to remember that they may not know where to go from here, but she wasn’t alone. These people cared.

She breathed a little easier. Between them, they’d come up with the next clue, take the next step.

She had to believe that. She had to.

Because if she didn’t, she was afraid she might never feel Sam’s soft, warm weight in her arms again.

Jackie gave Kayla a hug. “I hate to leave, but you’re in good hands.”

“Go help your uncle,” Kayla said. “It will make me feel better.”

“I’ll be back,” Jackie said going out the door.

Terry followed her out.

Luke had the TV tuned to ESPN. On the table next to him, his gun lay beside a plate piled high with cookies. A tall glass of milk sat next to it. He wasn’t going anywhere. Neither was Kayla.

The sight of the gun sent shivers down Kayla’s spine. She could hardly look at it without recalling the one held to her head that morning.

“I hope this isn’t necessary.”

“So do I,” Luke said, taking a cookie from the plate.

Restless, Kayla sought the warmth and solitude of the kitchen.

She couldn’t just sit and wait. It wasn’t her nature. She had to move, do something, look somewhere. She took a pad and pen and went to the table.

Writing out the facts she knew one by one would help her feel more in control. Maybe something would pop up that had escaped her notice.

She started at the beginning with her mother and Aunt Nester. What other relatives did she know about? None. No close friends. She’d never really connected to anyone until she met David in college. Both were determined to get their degree. Both worked. Both were determined to succeed. Thinking she was in love, she agreed to marry him. For a while, life was bliss. She worked, went to school, studied, but now David was there. The few hours they spent together made all the work worthwhile. They had goals. And once they reached those goals there would be more time for each other, more time for a family.

Then her period was late. A pregnancy kit confirmed her suspicions. Elated, she told David, only to have him change from the loving, caring person she’d fallen in love with, to a snarling stranger. “How could you ruin my life like this?” became his mantra.

Things went downhill from there. When they were together, his tirades against her pregnancy escalated. So much so that she became afraid of her own husband.

It ended a month later on what should have been an ordinary Sunday morning. When the phone rang, he answered, listened for a short while. Through clenched teeth, he growled, “Stay out of my life!”

When he slammed the phone down, she asked who had called. His answer had been another tongue-lashing. Didn’t she know that, because of her, his life was ruined?

He left the apartment, slamming the door behind him. She was packing to leave him when the Sheriff came to the door to tell her David’s car had skidded around a corner and into a telephone pole. He’d died instantly.

Kayla looked at what she’d written. The shock and disbelief of that time came to her again.

With trembling fingers, she went on. She couldn’t bear to live in the apartment they’d shared, so she moved to another. There, she spent every spare minute preparing for her baby. At first, she took two jobs, barely managed to keep up her studies. Then as her baby grew inside her, she dropped one of them, leaving her with her student teaching job, and one last course to get her degree.

She’d been so proud of herself. She’d managed to work, get the hours her degree demanded, plus save enough money to take a few weeks off after her baby was born before she began teaching full time.

Two weeks before her due date, she went for a walk and was kidnapped.

Her hands shook so badly, Kayla didn’t know if she could finish. Just recalling those moments brought back the horror.

She went to the stove to put the kettle on. A cup of chamomile tea would help.

When it was ready, she went back to her writing, reliving the nightmare that had consumed her for the past weeks.

Her fingers flew over the pad as she recalled every detail of her capture. It wasn’t easy. Every sentence brought back her panic, her fear for her baby, how powerless she felt. Everything had been taken from her—her freedom—her baby—her rights.

Although she was now free from her captors, she had no idea who had Sam. A wave of longing had her trembling. Yearning for him wasn’t just a mental thing, but a physical one as well.

Luke, Jackie and even Aunt Nester thought she was holding up so well. If they only knew. She was hanging onto sanity by a thread. Most of the time she felt emotionally and spiritually dead. Only Luke made her feel whole and alive. She put the pen down.

There was no denying it, she loved Luke Garrett.

She hid her face in her hands.

How could she give Luke what he wanted, what he needed and what he deserved?

She could never turn her back on Sam.

His name was a silent scream in her head.

Chapter Nineteen

Luke thought the best way to ease Kayla’s stress was to look relaxed; thus the cookies, milk and football game. The only thing was, he hadn’t seen a single play and didn’t need the cookies. The props were good though and seemed to work. Kayla had been in the kitchen now for quite a while. He’d lost count of the times he’d looked in on her. Each time, she was bent over a pad, pencil in hand, working over something.

He fought the urge to go to her, pull her into his arms and make them both forget this nightmare search. But he didn’t want to disturb her. At least she wasn’t demanding they look for Sam. Where the hell would they look?

After peeking in on Kayla, he made his fourth call to Jackie’s friend, Odell. “Have you found anything?”

“Told you I’d let you know.”

Disappointed, he hung up.

In all Luke’s years in law enforcement, he’d never felt so helpless. Killing the one person who might have given them a lead didn’t help. He’d give anything if it could have been different. Taking a man’s life, no matter how evil he might be, had put a stain on his heart he didn’t think he’d ever be able to shake. He’d have to deal with it later with HPD’s resident psychologist.

Taking out the wrinkled sketch of Sam, he studied the tiny features. He was beautiful. Caressing the baby’s likeness with his thumb, Luke wondered what it would feel like to hold a baby. There had never been one in his world before, but right now, right this minute, he’d like nothing more than to sit and hold Sam. His ex-wife had made it clear after they were married, that a kid would tie her down. Why hadn’t she told him before? But then, she hadn’t told him a lot about herself. He knew more about Kayla in the short time they’d known each other than he did his ex.

He’d never yearned for a woman. Never felt such bone-deep certainty that this woman was meant to be his partner for life. Every touch, every look sent his heart beating faster. They had to find Sam. If not, Luke didn’t think he, or anyone else, could ever make Kayla happy.

Carefully, he folded the sketch, put it back in his pocket. He popped another cookie in his mouth, realizing then that the plate was empty. Had he really eaten them all? He’d have to run extra miles to make up for the calories.

Unable to be away from her another minute, Luke took the empty plate and walked into the kitchen.

Kayla was still writing. Leaning over her shoulder, he asked, “What are you doing?”

She jumped, clutching at her chest. “You startled me.”

“Sorry. What is all this?” Controlling the urge to kiss her, he gave her a hug before sitting down.

“I thought if I cataloged everything the way it happened, it might help me understand.”

“Did it?”

Tears forming in the corner of her eyes broke his heart.

She blinked them back, handed him the papers. “I’m afraid not. Why don’t you take a look? Maybe you’ll see something I’m missing.”

It was a precise breakdown. At first glance, it seemed quite ordinary. But was it? Something about David’s anger at her pregnancy sounded off to Luke.

The sentence she’d written when David got the call the morning he’d died stuck in Luke’s head. Why did he say those precise words, “Stay out of my life?” Who was he talking to? Luke wondered if he could access phone records that far back. He’d check with Terry who could ask his contact at the phone company.

Right now, he was counting on Odell to come through. If they could get information on David’s family, they would find out if Kayla’s husband had told her the truth. If his parents were dead as he claimed, it was another dead end. If not, it would be a place to look. It was past time for things to go their way. He gave Kayla’s shoulders another squeeze and went back to the living room where he called Terry.

“I doubt the phone company keeps records that far back,” he said. “But I’ll ask.”

Once more, he dialed Odell’s number. Only this time there was no answer. “Sonofabitch! If he’s goofing off, I’ll arrest him.”

The doorbell chimed. Luke grabbed his gun and went to the door.

Odell stood there, a silly grin on his face, his computer bag under one arm, folder under the other.

Luke dragged him inside. “Tell me what you found.”

With a flourish, the kid handed Luke the thick folder.

Luke went to a chair, sat down and opened it. With shaking fingers, he lifted the pages. He read quickly, unable to believe his eyes. Excitement ratcheted up with every page. By the time he’d finished, he didn’t know whether they’d found something of consequence, or just hoped they had.

“There’s a family in Connecticut whose last name is Sinclair,” Odell explained. “That in itself didn’t set off any bells, as there are thousands of Sinclairs out there. But some of the things I did find were suspicious. The man’s name is William David Sinclair II. He and his wife had a son named William David Sinclair III whose age would be about right to be Ms. Hunter’s husband.”

“If the Sinclairs are alive. And if they are behind this, then the fact that Kayla changed her married name to her maiden name, should have put them on the wrong track,” Luke said. “So why didn’t it?”

“The man’s a multi-millionaire, with most of his holdings on the east coast,” Odell continued, as if Luke wasn’t reading the same information.

That would explain the hired killer being from New York. Excited now, Luke pored over the pages. “What does it say about the son? I don’t see a thing about him. It’s as if he dropped off the map when he graduated high school. Is that the way you read this?”

Odell nodded. “It does. I couldn’t find anything on him after that. If he was the husband, where did he go?”

If the David Kayla married was the son of these Sinclairs, it coincided with what Kayla had told him about David being on his own. But why?

“His family is beyond wealthy,” Luke mused. If these were the Sinclairs he was looking for, neither Kayla nor her husband should have had to struggle financially.

“Can you find out more? We need to dig deeper. What happened to the son? Are they still living in Connecticut?”

“The information I found implies that they do. I’ll look a little deeper, but I don’t think I’ll find anything else.”