Cries of the Children(42)

Wil leaned forward, taking both her hands in his. It was the gesture of a longtime friend. Samantha considered him with hazel eyes.

“You care about her,” he said in soft, deep tones, “because you are a kind and caring person. I can tell that by the way you responded to my pets. I’ve worked on many child-abduction cases, and I’ve seen true evil. That’s what people who did this to you are—true evil. But I think we can find them, and I know we can stop them.”

For some reason, Samantha felt completely mesmerized. His words reached her as if through a dream. It was a few minutes after he had finished speaking before she managed to extract her hands from his.

“Uh, yes . . .” she stammered. She made a show of looking at her watch. “Oh, it’s late. Julie will be wondering about me.”

“I’ll need a picture of her,” Wil said. “To run through Missing Persons.”

Samantha looked worried.

“You may not be able to get to the police,” Wil said, “but no one tampered with my mind.”

“Of course,” Samantha said.

She stood up. Wil did the same.

“When can I expect to hear from you?”

“Tomorrow morning,” Wil said. “Are you working then?”

“Yes,” Samantha said. “Ask for Marie. If I’m not available, she’ll get a message to me.”

She started out of the office. Wil hurried to precede her, kicking trash out of her way as they walked to the front door.

“I’m going to enjoy the challenge of working on this case,” he said as he opened the door for Samantha.

“As long as you help end it,” Samantha said. “Because I don’t enjoy being someone’s pawn.”





18


LORRAINE WAS BEGINNING to feel restless. She’d exhausted all her activities, and though she held on to the fashion doll, she didn’t really feel like playing with it. It was scary, being kept inside like this. She kept feeling she had to be on her way to . . . somewhere. If only she knew where to find her family!

She began to skip around the apartment, her shoes thudding loudly on the bare wooden floor. A moment later there was a pounding noise from beneath the floor. Someone was hitting the ceiling with a broom. Bettina looked up from her knitting.

“Don’t do that, child,” she said. “Sounds travel quickly in an old building like this.”

Lorraine came to the couch and bounced into the cushions.

“There’s nothing more to do,” she said, frowning.

Bettina went on knitting. Lorraine thought the old woman was ignoring her. But after a few minutes she came to the end of a row and set the work aside.

“I know it’s hard,” she said. “But I promise you, we won’t stay in here forever. We just have to be certain that man never learns where you are. I’m sure you’re right to be afraid of him. The only safe thing to do is stay hidden for a while.”

Lorraine shuddered, and moved closer to the old woman. Bettina put an arm around her.

“I don’t know how to deal with such an intelligent child,” Bettina said. “Your mind works too quickly. Most children would take days to complete the activities you’ve finished in a few hours.”

She looked around herself at the barren apartment.

“It’s too bad we don’t have a television,” she said. She snapped her fingers. “But why not? We certainly have enough money for a small set, don’t we? I saw one in that electronics store down the block. It was only one-ninety-nine.”

“Tax will make it about two-fifteen,” Lorraine estimated. “Are you sure it’s okay? I don’t want to run out of money and have to go back to the streets again.”

“We’ve paid a month in advance for this place,” Bettina reassured her. “And I think the hours will pass more quickly with entertainment.”

She stood up and went to the closet; actually, a door-less recess into the wall. Bettina pulled out her jacket and put it on. Then she took the case of money from its hiding place and removed some of it.

“Two hundred fifty dollars,” Lorraine said, immediately aware of the amount.

“I thought perhaps I’d get a few board games too,” Bettina said. “Surely a smart little girl like you is old enough to play with an adult.”

She tucked it deep into her pocket.

“I’m going now,” she said. “I won’t be but a few minutes, so you keep the door locked tightly and don’t let anyone in!”

She unlocked the door and stepped into the hall.

“Remember, I’ll be back in a short while,” she said. “Keep the door locked. And stay away from the window!”