Eyes of the Innocent

  ***

  While Matt did his best to downplay the whole incident, Lauren fussed around him, making sure he wasn't in shock. There was no way he was going into the full details of what he'd seen in the cemetery. He didn't even give a hint. Just said that the body of a baby had been found and they wanted him to confirm it wasn't Jack. Later he'd tell Valdieri, and only Valdieri, but not yet.

  While everyone was drinking coffee, Wendell Harris called on Matt's phone. Still in a daze, Matt answered. He went into the hallway and briefly explained what had happened at the cemetery. In spite of the trauma he and Zoé had suffered, Wendell Harris was insisting they come to Boston as soon as they could. His nosey girlfriend had just discovered that the girl might already have a baby who was about six months old.

  "Wendell, that's biologically impossible."

  Wendell said it was what his friend thought, and she should know. She lived in the same street.

  Although Matt felt his mind was falling apart, he had an idea. And it made sense, too.

  "Wendell, give us the name of the family and the exact address, and I'll hand it all over to the police here who are working the case. They're the ones leading the search."

  "You mean the exact name and address?" Matt could detect some uncertainty in Wendell's voice.

  "Yes, Wendell. The exact address. I don't want cops knocking on the wrong apartment and alerting the family if they live close."

  "Hey, yes, Matt. The thing is, my friend took me to it. I know the family are called Garcia, if that helps. I can recognize the door on the apartment block, not the number. Stupid of me, but there you are. Sure, I'll check with her now and phone you back. In the meantime, let me know the time of that train so I can meet it."

  He could see Zoé shaking her head. He wanted to be on a train bound for Boston, but he had to back Zoé's instinct that the train they should be on would be going to Washington. He briefly explained about Zoé's phone call to Washington, but decided not to ask Wendell Harris to follow it up. Someone like that blundering into the Senator's house in Washington wasn't going to help.

  Wendell said he couldn't see why a baby in Washington had anything to do with the kidnap.

  "I agree with you," Matt said, "but Zoé seems to think it's worth checking. She wants to go to Washington and talk to the Senator's wife. You know, mother to mother, that sort of thing."

  Wendell drew in a sharp breath. "Don't mess there."

  "I can't see it will do any harm -- if it helps Zoé," Matt said.

  "Yeah, well, good luck with that. But I seriously don't recommend it."

  Matt stuck to his decision not to go to Boston, and made Washington the excuse. Wendell's girlfriend didn't sound too reliable.

  "So what are we doing?" Zoé demanded, as soon as Matt had finished his call and explained about the second baby.

  Lauren came and stood between Matt and Zoé and put her arms around them both. She was obviously an affectionate person. "Why don't you two guys go with Steve and see the police? Tell them all about Wendell and Boston, and share Zoé's suspicions about Senator Harding's wife in Washington."

  Valdieri shook his head. "I don't advise we tell the police about Washington. I'm convinced they won't take any notice of such a wild accusation against a senator."

  "But they might," Zoé said.

  "And if they did," Valdieri said quietly, "what would they do? They'd send a very senior officer to warn them that an English couple, who they believed had harmed their own baby, were about to accuse Mrs. Harding of kidnapping. No, no," he said as Zoé was about to speak, "that is what they would say. It is not what I think. Lauren and I are certain you're both innocent in this. But the police here in New York aren't convinced of your innocence."

  "It is late in the day now to go to Washington. I do not want Senator Harding to come to the door if he is back from work. I will take the train there tomorrow morning on my own if Jack has not been found," Zoé said firmly. "And you, Matt, you can go to Boston."

  Matt gave her a kiss. "No, not on your own. We are going to Washington tomorrow morning." He turned to Valdieri. "Stephen, I know we're supposed to stay here in New York. You're going to have to cover for us if Simon Urquet or the police start asking questions."

  Stephen Valdieri nodded somewhat reluctantly, and only after receiving a dig in the ribs from Lauren's elbow.

  Matt saw Lauren wink at him, and that made him feel better. "Stephen," he said, "I hope you have the full address as well as the phone number for the Harding's house. Not that we're going to phone them. We're just going to turn up unannounced and talk our way into the house -- unless Mrs. Harding comes to the door holding Jack." Which she wouldn't, because Jack was in Boston.

  They stayed back at the church for the rest of the day, as instructed by Detective Chavez. There was no point in arriving in Washington in the evening and finding a hotel. They planned to be there and back the same day.