“I think she might have.”
“It’s not right to tell lies. Ruby doesn’t lie,” she said turning back to the washer, which was now in the spin cycle making the clothes rotate faster.
“Can you tell me anything else you saw that day?” Kate pressed. “Did she have a car?”
Ruby nodded and Kate fought to keep her excitement from showing. “Can you tell me what kind of car?”
Ruby looked blank. “I don’t have a car.”
Kate took a steadying breath. “No, can you tell me what kind of car the bad woman had?”
“A big one.”
“She drove a big car?”
Ruby nodded. “It was white.”
“So the bad woman drove a big white car. Was it a van?”
“Like the Birdman.”
Jo reached down and laid a hand on Kate’s shoulder and squeezed.
“But his is black ‘cause he’s bad. Always looking when he thinks no one is watching.” She hugged herself and started to rock back and forth. “Bad man, bad man.”
“Look,” Jo interrupted in a cheerful voice, “the clothes are finished.”
Ruby looked up and stared at the washer door where the clothing no longer spun.
“We should take them out. Want me to help you?” At Ruby’s continued silence, Jo slowly opened the washer door. “Look how pretty and clean they are,” she said brightly.
“They’re all wet.”
“They’re wet right now, but we’ll put them in this dryer and that will make them nice for you.”
“No good if they’re wet.”
“They won’t be wet for long. Look,” she carefully pulled the clothes from the washer, placed them in the dryer and turned it on. “See, you can still watch them go round.”
Ruby stopped rocking. “Got all wet and didn’t even rain.”
“Can you tell my friend Kate anything more about the lady or her car?” Jo urged. “Think real hard, cause we want to get Christian back to his mama so she won’t be so sad.”
Ruby’s face scrunched up again then she shook her head. “Not on vacation. Are you sure Miss Cindy is on vacation?”
Jo smiled, “Yes, Miss Cindy is on vacation and she’s having a good time. She would want you to have a good time, too. And wait, I almost forgot.” Jo reached in her bag and pulled out a small plastic container of hard candy. “I brought these for you.”
Taking the candy, Ruby looked confused. “For me?”
“Yep, cause you’ve helped my friend Kate and that was really important.”
Ruby nodded and popped the top off the lid. She stared at the brightly wrapped candy like it was a treasure and then carefully selected one piece. Putting the top back on she handed the container back to Jo.
“Thank you,” she said solemnly.
“No,” Jo pressed the box back into Ruby’s hand. “The whole box is for you.”
“I don’t need all this,” Ruby said.
“Ah, maybe you could give a piece to your friends,” Kate offered.
Ruby looked at the candy. “Don’t have that many friends,” she said simply.
“I know,” Kate said standing. “Why don’t you keep the rest for yourself and then you can have one piece each day. That way it will last a long time.”
Ruby nodded. “One piece a day, okay then.” She smiled a toothless grin.
“And thanks again for the help with the bad lady’s car,” Kate said as they turned to go.
“Not from around here,” Ruby called, clutching the candy box.
“What?” Kate stopped in the laundry doorway.
“Didn’t have an orange. Not from around here.”
Jo and Kate exchanged a look. “Ah, do you remember what it had on the tag?” Jo asked.
Ruby nodded. “A horse. A cowboy on a horse.”
In the car, Jo looked at Kate. “Do you actually think we just got a lead?”
“A big white car, which probably means a van with a cowboy on a horse on the license plate. That’s more than we had before.”
“Which state has a cowboy on its license plate?”
“Got me. My first guess would be Texas, but we should be able to find out easy enough.” Sitting in the parking lot and using Jo’s IPhone, she asked the question. “Siri, what state has a cowboy on the license plate?” The female voice answered, “The Dallas Cowboys are on the Texas plate.”
“Let me rephrase that,” Jo said. “Siri, is there a license plate with a cowboy on it?” The IPhone flashed to the Google page then the license plate from Wyoming filled the screen.
“Wyoming?” Kate stared at Jo. “Someone from Wyoming kidnapped Christian?”
Jo stared at the display on her phone. “Do you know how many states there are between here and Wyoming?”
Kate sighed, “No, but I think we’re going to find out.” Pulling out her own phone, Kate called in the new information to the Amber Alert Coordinator. “Okay,” she said after a few minutes. “They’ll relay the information – but jeez – this is going to be like looking for a needle in a haystack. We don’t know if they’re going back there or even if they just stole the car from there. And if they are driving back to Wyoming, which direction are they going to take?”
“I think it will be west,” Jo offered and grinned at Kate’s bland stare. “Sorry, you set yourself up for that one.”
Kate rolled her eyes. “Alright, I need to get to the hospital to check on my DUI. Do you want me to drop you at home?”
“Yeah, that way I can get my car and head to Aggie’s. I want some answers.”
“I’m with you there. Look, how about I go with you to Aggie’s before the hospital.”
“Works for me.”
Aggie looked like someone who had slept in the same clothing for days. Her bloodshot eyes might have been from crying, but the stench of alcohol that clung to her told a different story. She blinked from the sunlight, then recognition set in.
“Did you find him? Do you know what happened to my boy?”
“We need to come in,” Jo stated. “We need to talk to you.”
Aggie looked past Jo and saw Kate and immediately began to shake. “I didn’t go to the bar.”
“Aggie,” Jo said, stepping forward and forcing Aggie to step back. “We need to talk to you about Christian.”
“I don’t understand. I’ve told you everything I know.” She turned and staggered back into the dark house. Curtains had been pulled and only the television illuminated the room.
Jo looked around in disgust. No effort had been made to clean anything. Empty beer cans now joined the fast food containers that made up the growing mountain of trash on the coffee table. An air conditioner wheezed in the window but offered little relief from the heat and the room carried the distinct odor of rotting food.
“That’s not true,” Jo said flatly. “You didn’t tell us everything.”
Aggie looked puzzled. “I don’t understand.”
“Why didn’t you tell us that Danny wasn’t Christian’s real father?” Now Jo didn’t bother to keep the frustrated anger from her voice. “We have hundreds of volunteers giving up hundreds of man hours to search for your son and you don’t play straight with us?”
Picking up on Jo’s frustration, Kate interrupted. “Aggie, was Christian your child from another marriage?”
Aggie looked from one angry face to the other. “What are you talking about? I wasn’t married before. I’m married to Danny. And Christian is Danny’s son.”
“No he’s not,” Jo snapped. She picked up the remote and clicked off the television. Turning, she stepped over the clothing that still covered the floor and angrily jerked open the curtains letting light flood into the room. “So damn it, just stop lying to me. We have the DNA report from Christian’s hair. We know alright, so just stop lying and just tell me the truth.”
“Christian might be your son,” Kate stated again. “But he wasn’t Danny’s. Now tell us who his real father is. Is it possible he had something t
o do with this?”
Aggie sank onto the arm of an overstuffed chair. “But he has to be Danny’s.”
“Well, he’s not,” Jo snapped. “Did you have Christian before you and Danny were married? Did you have an affair? What’s the deal here Aggie?”
“I just don’t understand.” Aggie looked from Jo to Kate. “I don’t understand any of this.”
“It’s very clear,” Kate said before Jo could snap again. “The DNA from his hair showed that Christian was not Danny’s biological child. The test is conclusive and the test isn’t wrong. So did Danny know he wasn’t Christian’s father?”
Aggie wrapped her arms around herself and began to rock back and forth. “Your tests have to be wrong. Christian has to be Danny’s ‘cause I’ve never had a child.”
“What!” Kate and Jo said in unison.
“What do you mean he’s not yours?” Jo’s voice had gone very quiet.
Aggie continued to slowly rock back and forth. “Danny already had the baby when we got married.”
“Then you’re not Christian’s natural mother?” Kate asked.
Aggie shook her head. “Danny told me that an old girlfriend showed up,told him the baby was his and then disappeared.”
“And you didn’t wonder about this?” Jo asked incredulously. “You just bought the story?”
“Danny wanted to marry me,” she said simply. “He said we’d be a ready-made family.”
“And where did this happen?”
Aggie heaved a tired sigh. “Out west somewhere. I don’t really remember. We moved around a lot back then. We’ve lived in a lot of different places.”
Kate looked at Jo and gave a slight shake of her head. “Aggie, do you have Christian’s birth certificate?”
“Danny probably has it in the important paper box.”
“You need to get that for me,” Kate said. “I’m going to need to take that and Danny’s computer. I’ll give you a receipt for them and you’ll get everything back when the investigation is over.”
Aggie stood slowly and, swaying from the effort, walked over to a cabinet. She opened the door and took out a metal strong box. “We don’t have a computer. And Danny would be angry if you went through his things.” She pushed some of the dishes aside on the table and set the box down. “I don’t have the key. I’m not allowed to go in here. It’s private.”
“Aggie,” Jo struggled to get her calm back. “We need to find Christian and we need to find out who killed your husband. The truth and the facts are what are important. And Danny isn’t here to tell you what to do anymore.”
Aggie unsuccessfully bit back a sob and began to cry again.
Kate took a good look at the tiny lock on the front of the box. “I can open that.” And taking a small pick from a case in her purse, she popped the lock.
The inside was filled with newspaper clippings; some old and yellow, others fairly new. Two bank books showed miserly balances but there was no birth certificate.
Jo picked up one of the clippings and scanned quickly-- ‘Bank robber still at large, police have no new leads,’ another read ‘Home invasions on the up rise – Police baffled.’
“What are these?” Jo asked, offering the clippings to Aggie.
She shook her head. “I don’t know. We lived in Cheyenne once,” she said wiping at her eyes. “And I think we lived in Lincoln for a time, too.” She looked at Jo with confusion. “Why would he keep something like this?”
“Well, we’re going to need to take these with us,” Kate stated. “I’ll write you a receipt. Are you sure you don’t have a computer?”
“No, Danny only had a laptop.”
Jo rolled her eyes. “Aggie, that is a computer. Kate will need to take that, too.” She looked at the stack of empty beer cans. “And you’re not supposed to be drinking, remember?”
Aggie’s eyes began to water. “Do I have to go back to jail? I thought I could drink in my house. I didn’t go to the bar.”
“Aggie, the judge put “no alcohol” on your probation order. I know you’ve been under stress and it’s good you didn’t go to the bar. But you’ve got to stop drinking. Regardless of what’s happened you’re still on probation. If you do this again, I’ll have to initiate a warrant for your arrest. Do you understand?”
Aggie dropped her head and nodded. “It’s just so hard.”
“Don’t you have any family you could call? A friend who could come and stay with you so you wouldn’t be alone?”
“Danny was my family,” Aggie sniffed as two huge tears tracked down her face.
Jo reached into her pocket, pulled out one of her cards and wrote Isaac’s number on the back. “Aggie, you shouldn’t be sitting here alone in this house. I want you to call my friend Isaac. He’s a counselor and he’s someone you can talk to.”
“Will he send me to jail?”
“No, he’ll listen to you and try to help.”
“What about Christian? What’s going to happen to my boy?”
Kate closed the strong box and handed it to Jo. “We have police in several states looking for him. We’re doing all we can to find him, Aggie. Jo’s right. You should call Isaac and talk with him. He’s a good man. Now where is the laptop?”
Aggie looked down at the card.
“The computer,” Kate urged.
Aggie reached over and, pushing a mountain of untouched mail aside, revealed a shiny laptop. “You’re sure I’ll get this back? It would be nice if Christian had it to help with his homework.”
“As soon as the investigation is over,” Kate said and picked it up. “It’s listed on your receipt so you’ll get both of these items back as soon as our investigation is over.”
“You call Isaac and talk to him about what’s been happening,” Jo said as they turned to go. “And remember, no more drinking.”
Jo heard the locks click into place when the door closed behind them.
“Do you think she’ll follow through?” Kate asked as she put the items in her trunk.
“Anybody’s guess,” Jo said wearily. “She has a chance without Danny but, damn – I think it rocked her to learn Christian wasn’t Danny’s child. And I can understand her need for a beer. The poor woman has lost her husband, jerk that he was, and her child is missing. That would be enough to push anyone over the edge.”
“Then let’s hope Isaac can help. But you know what’s really bothering me? From all you’ve told me about Danny, I can’t see him taking on an infant from some old girlfriend. He’d be more likely to turn his back and walk away.”
“You’re right,” Jo said. “Knowing his personality, there had to be something in it for him. There’s no way he’s going to be saddled with a kid unless he could make it work to his advantage.”
“Now we just have to find out what that advantage was. And maybe that will lead us to Christian,” Kate said.
“Or to Danny’s killer.”
* * *
After dropping Jo back at the house, Kate drove to the Florida Hospital. Stopping at the nurses' station on the fifth floor, she placed her identification on the counter.
“I need an update on Richard Smith’s condition.”
The head nurse scanned her identification then gave Kate a hard look. “He’s the one involved in that accident with that young girl?”
Kate nodded. “Can you give me his status?”
“He’s in Room 524,” she said picking up a chart from the hanging rack. “Broken arm, messed up shoulder, mild concussion, broken nose and minor facial lacerations – probably caused by the airbag that saved his worthless life.”
“Do you know Richard,” she asked, surprised by the anger in the nurse’s voice.
“Not personally, but I know his type. His blood alcohol was over the top when they brought him in. And anyone who drinks and drives is just scum in my book.”
“He was cited for DUI,” Kate offered.
“Fat lot of good that did for the little girl who was with him. And just for the record,
her blood alcohol was over the top, too. I mean who feeds that poison to a child?” At Kate’s silence, the nurse continued. “My dad was killed by a drunk driver. And if you ask me, and I know you didn’t, if someone is caught drinking and driving they should be thrown in jail and left to rot.”
“When did you lose your dad?”
“Two years ago and yesterday,” she said blinking back tears. “That little girl was only 15 years old.”
“I know,” Kate said slowly. “I was the one that had to tell her parents.”
“Oh, gosh.” The nurse reached over and touched Kate’s arm. “That had to be the worst.”
“It wasn’t pleasant. Can you tell me anything more about Mr. Smith? Has he had any visitors? Anyone call to ask about him?”
The nurse shook her head. “Nope, you can go and talk to him if you want. He’s awake. Been crying for his pain meds.” She checked the clock. “Not due for another 15 minutes so he can just wait. Scum bag.”
“Thanks. Look can I ask a favor?” Kate pulled one of her cards from her pocket.
“Would you make a note of anyone who comes to visit him then give me a call?”
The nurse took the card and slipped it in her own pocket. “No problem.”
Kate made her way to Room 524 and found Richard propped in bed and trying to get the remote to work the overhead television. Sun-bleached hair fell carelessly against his forehead and even sporting two black eyes and a swollen split lip, Kate could see how his angular face could be enticing to a young teenage girl.
“Do you have my medication?” he snapped.
“No, I’m Detective Snow.”
“Then get the goddamned nurse and tell her I want my pain meds and I want them now.”
Kate pulled a chair over and sat down. “I’m not sure you’re in any position to issue orders, Richard.”
“It’s Ricky, and in case you haven’t noticed, I’m hurting here.” He shifted the cast that covered his arm.
“I’m sure they’ll bring you your medication when it’s time. Meanwhile you need to tell me about the accident.”
“Some goddamned car hit me. That’s what happened.”
“I have witnesses that say you drove through a red light.”
Ricky’s face went sullen. “I don’t remember.”
“Tell me about the girl you were with.” The one you’ve never even asked about, Kate thought.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” but his eyes shifted away.
“Sure you do. Her name was Sherry.”