Taken (2 page)

He sat down next to her on the step. When he turned to her, she could barely think straight. His soft green eyes were the kindest she’d ever seen.

“What’s the favor?” he asked.

“You know the Novaks? Up the street? Well Mrs. Novak just had their baby and someone stole it from the hospital!”

“Are you serious?” He took her hand. “Who would do that?”

Jessie could feel herself blush.
Don’t let go of my hand, Bryce.
“I took a picture of the baby when we visited the hospital today. Could you develop it? The police will want it and it takes so long at the camera shop.”

“Sure. Let me have the film and I’ll take it to the lab at school. Mr. Swanson will let me use the dark room. How many copies?”

She handed him the roll of film. “Is three too many? One for the Novaks, one for the police and I’d like one too.”

“Okay,” Bryce said. “I’m gathering that you’ll need one for some detective work. Right?”

“You’re getting to know me very well, Bryce.” She smiled. “Yeah, I would love to find out where the baby is. Mom says time is important because a newborn’s looks change so fast.” Jessie stood up. “Oh…I forgot. My dad said not to tell anyone I was at the hospital today. So please keep it a secret. He says Mom and I could be in danger.”

“I promise I won’t tell anyone—not Mr. Swanson or my dad.” He squeezed her hand and stood up. “I’d better get moving on this picture. I’ll come back as soon as I finish.” He smiled down at her.

Jessie’s heart did a little flip.

She watched as he ran across Willow Lane and then came out of his driveway on his bike. Farley, the Peterson’s sheepdog, ran behind him to the curb, but returned to the yard when Bryce said, “Stay, Farley.” Bryce waved at Jessie and raced down the street.

Chapter Three

Jessie watched him disappear through the falling leaves.
Where is Tina
? Suddenly Tina appeared pushing the big double stroller up the sidewalk. Tina looked small maneuvering the babies toward Jessie’s house. At the steps, she set the brake on the buggy and plopped on the step next to Jessie.

“I’m telling you, my muscles are getting big from pushing those two around.”

Jessie checked Tina’s skinny arms. “I don’t see any difference.”

Tina laughed. She was smaller than Jessie with short dark hair, cut in a pixie style. Her eyes were brown and her skin tan. Everyone thought she needed looking after because she was little and petite. But Jessie knew she was plenty smart and able to take care of herself.

Jessie stood and went to the stroller. “They are so cute!” She smiled at Pam and then Tori. The twins were eight months old now and looked exactly alike. They wore little pink caps that matched their jackets. Dark curls peeped from the hats and their eyes were big and brown like Tina’s. They both stretched out their arms to Jessie and laughed. She leaned down and gave each a kiss on the cheek.

Tina watched with pride. She complained about all the work the twins created, but actually loved them like a mother.

“How come you have the babies?” asked Jessie.

“Mom went to the hospital to help with the crises. So guess who was appointed babysitter?” She looked at the babies. “What do you want, Pam? You want a drink?”

Jessie looked at Pam who had her fingers bunched together and was tapping her lips. “What the heck are you doing?
Pam
can’t talk.”

“Well, in a way, she can. We’re teaching them some Sign Language. Just some easy signs to show us what they want.” Tina stood and took a Sippy Cup from the bag in the stroller. She put it to Pam’s mouth. “My mom read about it in a medical journal of Dad’s.”

Pam finished drinking, patted her chest and then pointed to Tina.

“That means, ‘thank you.’ You’re welcome, Pam.” Tina made the same gesture back at Pam.

“This is amazing,” Jessie said. “Will it keep them from learning to talk?”

“The article says it just helps them communicate before they can express themselves verbally. You always say the words with the signs. Then when they can talk, they quit doing the gestures. We sort of make up our own gestures and keep them simple.”

“Can I try it?” asked Jessie.

“Sure. Tell them you love them. Here’s the sign.” Tina pointed to herself, then patted her heart and then pointed to the twins. “Say ‘I (point to myself) love (pat your heart) you (point to the twins).’”

Jessie made the sign for “I love you,” and both twins made the sign back.

“Be sure to say the words when you make the sign,” said Tina.

“Oh. I forgot. I love you, Pam and Tori.” Jessie made the sign again. The twins laughed and signed back.

“Pretty nifty, isn’t it?” said Tina. “Sometimes my mom amazes me. Course, I don’t tell her that.”

“I’ll bet Phillip could do this with them. When he wakes up, I’ll try it.”

“Are you two sleepy? asked Tina. She put her hands together against her cheek and tilted her head. The twins did the same. Tina adjusted their stroller seats back and placed little pillows under their heads. By the time she had covered them with tiny white fleece blankets, they were fast asleep.

“Okay, let’s make a plan while all the children are napping,” Jessie said. “If these baby snatchers are still in town, what would they need and where would they have to go to get baby stuff?”

“I should know all the places. That’s all we’ve been doing since the twins were born,” said Tina. She stood and adjusted the stroller so the sun wasn’t on the babies. “First of all, they need food and formula and diapers. They might already have a supply if they were planning this ahead of time. But they’re going to run out fast. We’d better write this down.”

Jessie ran into the house and got a pad and pencil. Back on the porch she said, “So we should sort of hang out at the grocery store. What about the drug store? They carry that stuff too.”

The sun was high in the sky. Tina unbuttoned her jacket. “Yeah. And so do the convenience stores. Let’s make copies of the picture and ask if we can pin them up at some stores.”

Jessie started writing on the pad. “I’m making a list so we don’t forget stuff. Do we have to ask the police before we post the pictures?”

“Oh. Maybe. We’d better find out,” Tina said.

“I’ll bet Miss Tyler at the library will help us make copies of the pictures. I think they have a color copier in the back room. She’s being a lot friendlier these days because she’s friends with Bryce and his family.”

“Good idea,” said Tina. “Let’s think about this. Where did they go with the baby? Are they still in town? Could they have left Fairfield? If they live here, would their neighbors be suspicious. You know, them just suddenly showing up with a little baby?”

Jessie flipped her braid back over her shoulder. “If I saw that baby again, I think I’d recognize him. He was really different than babies I see around town. Most of them are blond, but he has really dark hair and eyes. And he looks like he’s been to the barber and had a trim already.”

“Oh, honestly,” said Tina. Her eyes welled with tears. “He sounds darling. Those poor parents. How will they stand what’s happened.” She pulled a tissue from her pocket and wiped her eyes.

“Let’s find them!” Jessie stood up and studied the twins. “Would they try to change his appearance somehow? Maybe dress him like a girl or bleach his hair?”

“That would probably work!” Tina said. “It’s something to think about. Maybe we should see who’s buying hair color or baby girl clothes.”

The screen door slammed. Phillip hopped down the steps and ran to the yard where piles of leaves had been raked together, ready to be put in bags.

“Watch this,” said Jessie. “Daddy won’t be thrilled.”

Phillip took a flying leap and landed on one of the piles. He laughed with glee when the leaves flew in all directions. The twins woke and struggled to sit up. When they saw Phillip, they started giggling.

“Hi, Pam-a-Tori,” called Phillip. “Watch me!” He ran to the next heap and jumped on it. The twins thought it was the funniest thing they’d ever seen. Their arms went into the air.

“Want UP?” said Tina. She picked up Tori and Jessie took Pam. They carried them to the lawn and sat them down. The babies could crawl now and they took off toward Phillip. He got on his knees and gave each a kiss. They sat up and clapped their hands, laughing so hard they toppled over. He sat them up again and ran through the rest of the piles swinging his arms like windmills, his red jacket bright among the leaves.

Jessie and Tina laughed too, entranced by all this happiness and glad that their own siblings were safe at home.

The screen door slammed. Jessie’s mom said, “What’s so fun…?” She saw Phillip clowning for the babies. “Oh, boy. All your dad’s work—undone! “She sat down beside Jessie and Tina and joined in the laughter.

Chapter Four

“Look. Here comes Bryce,” Tina said.

Bryce leaned his bike against a big oak tree and hurried to the porch. “Hi, Mrs. Hanson. Hi, Tina. Here’s the picture, Jessie. It’s a good one!” He handed an envelope to Jessie.

They all crowded in to look at the photo. Bryce had blown it up to an 8″ x 10″ size. The baby was adorable. And his hand was in the picture showing the tiny bracelet on his wrist.

“I can hardly stand this,” said Mrs. Hanson. “I’m going inside and fix something for the Novaks’ dinner tomorrow.” She stood and started toward the door. “Jessie, please keep an eye on Phillip.”

“Thanks, Bryce,” said Jessie. “We thought we’d make copies and post them around town but I guess we better ask the police if it’s okay first.”

“Not me,” said Tina. “I have to take the twins home and feed them.”

Bryce stood and strode into the yard where Phillip was rolling in the leaves. When Phillip saw Bryce, the little boy stood and ran. “Chase me, Bryce,” he shouted. Bryce chased after the little boy, not quite catching him. Phillip screamed with pleasure. The twins laughed so hard they fell over onto their stomachs.

Farley charged across the street and joined in the fun. Leaves were scattered to the winds.
Brother! Wait ’til Daddy sees this!
thought Jessie.

Jessie helped Tina return the twins to the stroller and walked her down the sidewalk. The babies were rubbing their stomachs and whimpering. “Are you hungry?” Tina asked the twins. She rubbed her own stomach when she said ‘hungry.’ “I hope we make it home before they go into full howl. The neighbors will wonder what I did to them. Bye.” Tina took off down the street, pushing the buggy fast.

Then Jessie remembered and ran after Tina. When she caught up to her she said, “I forgot. Please don’t say that Mom and I were visiting the hospital today. We’re witnesses and Daddy’s worried we might be in danger.”

“Oh. My gosh!” said Tina. “I promise I won’t say anything to anybody.”

Jessie collected a laughing Phillip and got him into the house with the promise of a cookie.

When she came back outside, Bryce was waiting for her. “Want me to go with you when you take the picture to the police?”

“That would be great. I told Mom I was going. I’ll get my bike.” Jessie ran to the garage and rolled out her bicycle. “Let’s stop at the library and make some copies. Just so we have them on hand, even if the police say not to post them.”

Bryce smiled a knowing smile. “In other words, copy them first before the police tell you not to.”

Jessie smiled. “Right!”

While they rode side-by-side, Jessie told Bryce all the details of the visit to the hospital. “The fake nurse was wearing a white mask. So we didn’t get a good look at her. She also wore tennis shoes.” Jessie steered around a broken patch on the brick street. “I’ve been trying to picture her again. She looked kind of old to be having a new baby. That is if she wanted the baby for herself. She had gray hair. Course maybe it was a wig.” She checked to see if the photo envelope was safely tucked into her bike basket. “But I remember her eyes. They were sort of sleepy looking—half closed and a gray color.”

“Was she tall? Thin?” asked Bryce.

“She was about Mom’s height and not really thin. Maybe five feet five.” Jessie was quiet for a minute. “There was something else. A scar or burn or something on the back of her left hand. I noticed it when she took the baby from Mrs. Novak.”

“Well that’s pretty important,” said Bryce. “It could identify her.”

“Unless it heals and disappears,” said Jessie.

Chapter Five

The library sat in the Town Square along with the white painted bandstand and the red brick County Court House. Shops across the streets faced the Square on all four sides. City workers tended to the lawn, raking leaves and putting flowers to bed for the winter.

Jessie and Bryce fastened their bikes to the rack near the wide steps that led up to the library. He carried the envelope with the picture of the baby. The concrete lions that guarded the steps looked peaceful with red leaves drifting onto their manes and paws.

Inside the tall double doors, the two stopped talking. Jessie noticed that Miss Tyler wasn’t at her usual place behind the high desk. Then she spotted her speaking to a patron next to a tall window.

“We’d better wait,” said Jessie in a low voice. “I don’t think she’d like us interrupting her.”

After a few minutes, Miss Tyler returned to her station. Jessie thought she looked prettier than a year ago. She was tall and her hair was light brown, but it was cut differently. It was longer and more casual and she wore earrings and dressed more stylishly.
Maybe because she was going out with Bryce’s dad
.