Eye of the Abductor (16 page)

Jill closed the door and joined her on the loveseat. “What’d he
want?”

“He knows who I am. He wanted to hear my side of the story. The
night we went out, I told him I’d been in prison.”

“Why in the hell would you do something that stupid?”

“To prevent any chance of falling in love with him.”

“He’s after the damn money.”

“I don’t think so.” Allison came clean about how she’d been going
to the daycare on Mondays to watch Nathan play. Then she showed Jill the
picture Brance had taken. “He let me keep it. And one more thing, his friend
Randy recognized me.”

“That’s just great. Oh, Allison. The Wilsons are bound to hear
about it. What are you going to do?”

“I’m not sure. I can’t stay here.”

Allison thought about telling Jill about Plan B, but she resisted.
With her new identity, she'd be almost impossible to trace.

"You can move in with me."

"I'll think about it."

Allison wanted to be alone, but Jill wouldn't leave. Instead, she
talked about herself for a good twenty minutes. Finally, she grabbed her purse
and headed for the door. "Call me if you need me."

"Will do. Take care." Allison closed the door behind
Jill and locked it.

The phone rang. It had to be the caller who'd held the line
without speaking. She didn't answer it. Finally, it stopped. With the pressure
rising, she decided to snatch Nathan and disappear Wednesday night instead of
waiting until Sunday as she’d planned.

***

Wednesday evening, Allison parked on the far side of the church
as always. Though unusually warm and stormy for late November, she planned to
go through with Plan B. Her heart beat rapidly with anticipation, anxiety, and
a lot of emotions she hadn’t pinpointed. This was it. In less than an hour, she
and Nathan would be on the road.

The fact that Nathan knew her as Miss Allison would help with his
transition and would make the experience less traumatic.

She entered the nursery, then realized she'd arrived too early.
Nathan wasn’t there. She had to find a reason to leave the room before Dorothy
showed up. “Mona, do you mind if I go see the nursery babies for a few minutes?”

“Would you rather work with the infants?”

“Oh, no. I just want to see them. Babies are so cute. But I like working
with children who are potty trained for the most part.”

Mona chuckled. “Sure, go ahead.”

Allison stalled in the nursery, walking from crib to crib. She
stopped at the swing and cooed to a baby. Memories of Nathan as an infant
flooded her mind, and a sense of loss engulfed her. She thought of all the
special things in his life she’d missed- his first real words, first steps,
first everything. She held back the tears. He’d be with her tonight if things
went well.

She glanced at the clock. Surely by now the Wilsons had dropped
Nathan off.

At snack time when no one was looking, she’d spill Nathan’s milk
in his lap and use that as an excuse to clean him up. By the time they checked
on her, she’d be out the door with him.

She returned to the preschool room, but Nathan still wasn’t
there. Her pulse quickened, and her stomach twisted into knots. Uncertainty
choked her. This couldn’t be happening.

No, please no.

She walked over to Mona. It took a moment to find her voice. “Not
as many here tonight.”

“No, the change in the weather might’ve kept some of them home.
Tornado watch issued.”

The Wilsons had stayed home tonight.

Of all the rotten luck.

Allison didn’t have any idea what to do. A wave of dizziness
swept over her. Why had fate screwed her over again? Her well calculated plans
had just hit a speed bump.

Calm down.

Get a grip.

I’ll just have to try again on Sunday.

On the drive home, a car stayed on her bumper. At the
apartment complex, she pulled into the parking space and turned off her
headlights. The gold sedan cruised past her. The tinted windows prevented her
from seeing who was inside, but she had an idea it was Escobar’s man.

She blew out a long nerve twisting breath. Would the man
make a move before she left town on Sunday morning? Since she’d never called
Escobar, he’d probably want to teach her a lesson. A very painful lesson.

“If I can avoid Escobar’s man, waiting until Sunday might work
for the best,” she spoke aloud. “At least now I can pick up my check on Friday
and cash it. Oh, God. I'm talking to myself. I'm losing it.”

Light glowed between the cracks in Brance’s blinds. The
bloodhound was still awake. She'd have to wait until his lights were out before
unpacking her car.

Later that night, she moved everything back inside her apartment
except the bulky cradle. It had been an ordeal to load and maneuver to fit in
the trunk.

Would the Wilsons make it to church on Sunday?

A foreboding shiver raced down her spine. What if Randy or some
other cop had informed the Wilsons she was back? Was that why they’d stayed
home?

Chapter Nine

Brance sat in the stark briefing room, giving a rundown on the
pharmacy burglaries. He studied the list given to him by Mr. Lanier. Ten people
had the knowledge and accessibility to the system. Detective Dreyer had agreed
to interview them.

Brance stood and walked to the podium where he addressed a room
full of uniformed officers. "I mapped out pharmacies that haven’t been
hit, and those are the ones we’ll watch. You'll team up. Some of you at the end
of your watch will have an hour of OT. I need the first shift people to begin
in service an hour earlier so that patrols will overlap.”

He didn’t mention they’d only keep surveillance on the ones that
used Safety First as a security provider.

"This sucks," someone said, complaining.

Randy spoke up. “These guys are invisible.”

“No. We just haven’t had enough manpower on the roads at the
right time,” Brance insisted. He explained his plan and answered questions.

“If we blanket the area," the inspector said, "we’ll
apprehend them on the next job. Then you’ll return to your regular hours.”

After the briefing, Brance joined Shawn. “I heard you and Randy
talking about Paige Wilson. What was that about?”

Shawn had the
opossum in headlights
look. Finally, he
regained his composure. “You know what she did?”

“I’m aware of it. Johnny Jenkins was my brother’s partner. So why
were you talking about her?”

“Randy was telling me about her. That’s all.”

“Did he mention the five million that vanished?”

Shawn’s face paled. “No.”

Brance suspected the young officer was lying.

Randy joined them. “What are you two being so solemn about?”

“Paige Wilson,” Brance replied. “I have a source who told me she
was innocent and doesn’t know where Rob Wilson hid the money.”

“Your source wouldn’t happen to be your neighbor, Allison?”

“No, Dillon. He believes she’s innocent and doesn’t hold a grudge
against her,” Brance lied. “That says something.”

“That’s not the impression he gave me,” Randy said.

“Dillon has changed his opinion.”

“Funny, but I could swear your neighbor is Paige Wilson. And I
think she’s your source. Maybe you’re romancing her for the money,” Randy
accused.

Anger exploded in Brance’s brain. “An officer’s blood was spilled
for that money! I wouldn’t want any part of it.”

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said it.” Randy paused. “I know
Allison is Wilson’s old lady. I’ve done my homework.”

“You haven’t done your homework well enough,” Brance snapped, his
tone defensive. “For one thing, Allison has been working two jobs to stay
afloat.”

“She’s only hanging around for the kid.”

Brance had hoped Randy had forgotten about Allison’s son. “She
wasn’t involved in her husband’s drug operation.”

“How’d you ever make detective being this naïve? As soon as she
has her son, she and the stash of money will disappear. Then she’ll live like a
queen.”

“I see you’ve given this a lot of consideration.” He turned his
attention from Randy to Shawn. “Someone left a message on Allison's windshield
last Wednesday.”

“Don’t look at me.” Shawn glanced at Randy. “We’ve gotta go.”

“You’re the only ones who knew she worked at the church,” Brance
stated. “Stay away from her.” He glared at Randy.

“You’ve got yourself caught up in her web. Remember the black
widow kills her mate.” Randy grinned slyly, then walked away with Shawn.

Brance still suspected Shawn had written the crude message on
Allison’s car. Apparently, he’d been hyped up from the story about her crime.
He doubted Shawn was much of a threat. At least now, Shawn might think before
bothering Allison again. Since Randy had probably alerted others, it’d only be
a matter of time before trouble knocked on her door.

What Randy proposed about her disappearing with her son concerned
Brance. It wouldn’t have been so disturbing if she hadn’t finagled a job at the
church where she had access to her kid.

Did she plan to abduct him? Maybe it was time to speak to the
authorities about it. Though he knew he should, he couldn’t be the one to
betray Allison.

***

Thanksgiving Day, he picked up a carryout dinner from Cracker
Barrel. He started up the steps to his apartment and paused. Latino music came
from Allison's apartment.

He reminded himself of her class and the furniture she’d
purchased. If she had plans to abduct her son, it was probably in the distant
future. For now, he’d just keep an eye on her.

Inside his apartment, he turned on the television but couldn’t
concentrate on the program or the plate of turkey and dressing. Allison
lingered on his mind, her fresh scent and soft lips. The way her body had
meshed with his while dancing.

He fought the urge to go downstairs. His father was right. A
relationship with her would ruin his career and alienate him from every cop in
the tri-state area. Basically, he’d be washed up. Besides, she didn’t want him.

He thought of his family having dinner together today. It hurt.
He didn’t fit in the picture anymore. Something had changed. But what?

Saturday morning, he answered his phone. “Stone here.”

“Brance, it’s Tammy. I’m surprised you haven’t called.”

“Sorry, I’ve been busy. Besides, you didn't seem interested.”

“Oh, that. I was upset because you answered your door in the
middle of my orgasm. Let’s kiss and make up after dinner.”

Tammy didn’t waste any time. He hesitated, debating on what to
do. He hadn't gone out with anyone since taking Allison to dinner. Maybe an
evening with Tammy was what he needed to get his mind off of Allison. “Sure.”

“My mother’s babysitting for me. She thinks I’m working at the
bar. How ‘bout I meet you at your place?”

“That’ll work.”

That evening Brance answered the door, expecting the voluptuous
petite blonde. Instead, it was Allison.

“Hey, this is a surprise,” he said.

“I just stopped by to...”

Tammy brushed past her. “Hello, Brance.” She kissed his cheek.
"Sorry, I'm late."

Allison blushed. “I should go.”

“No, what were you going to say?”

“It’s not important.” She studied his date. “Forget it.”

Tammy's questioning gaze landed on Brance. “We do have a dinner
date, right?”

“Yeah.” He introduced the two women. But it seemed more like
introducing a cobra to a mongoose.

Tammy flashed Allison a pissed off cat look. “You’re the neighbor
who drives him crazy?”

Allison narrowed her eyes. The dragon appeared to be focusing in
on another village to incinerate.

“Your music, remember?” Brance reminded.

“Oh, yes. That." Her face relaxed a little. She met Tammy’s
gaze. “We worked out a deal. My music isn’t a problem any longer.” Her gaze
traveled back to him. “I’ve kept my part of the bargain. Just remember yours.”

But Brance saw something more than embarrassment or anger in her
expression. Disappointment. And it wasn’t fair of her to refuse to date him and
then appear upset when he dated someone else. “Allison, you made it clear you
weren’t interested.”

“You’re right. I’m glad you’re dating again.”

“And I’ll make him a happy camper,” Tammy declared.

“I just bet you will,” Allison muttered as she turned and hurried
down the steps.

He wanted to run after her but didn’t. Finally, he turned to
Tammy. “You ready?”

“You bet. I wouldn’t mind skipping dinner and going straight to
dessert.”

“Tempting, but I haven’t eaten since lunch.”

“Let’s go. The sooner we get through dinner the sooner we can
kiss and make up.”

   By the time he returned from the restaurant with Tammy,
Allison’s car was gone. He sighed with relief as he escorted Tammy upstairs.

   Inside, she stripped down to her bright red G-string panties
and a low cut bra. She wiggled into his arms and leaned her body against his.
Then she unbuttoned his shirt and lowered her mouth to his chest, nipping his
skin with her teeth.

Her actions should’ve had him as hard as a brick. When she
reached her hand to his crotch and squeezed, she stopped. “What’s wrong?”

“I’m sorry. I can’t do this.”

“You weren’t exactly a stud-muffin before, but this is hopeless.”
Tammy’s lips curled into a smile. “This has something to do with your neighbor,
doesn’t it?”

“Yeah, but there’s no hope for us. I figured tonight might help
me get over her. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. It’s obvious she feels something for you. So what’s the
problem?”

“Differences. She has some baggage,” he said, deciding not to mention
Allison’s prison record. Tammy probably knew every cop in the tri-state area.

“If you really care about her, you’ll find a way to work around
those differences." She slipped back into her dress and zipped it.