The door to one-ten was ajar and she could hear cartoons playing on the television.
Smiling, she entered—and froze. The child’s bed was empty.
* * *
John was running late. He glanced at his watch. If one more person pulled out in front of him and kept him from getting to the hospital in time to escort Sam home he was going to be tempted to roll down his window and yell at them.
“Come on. Move it,” he muttered, maneuvering his pickup in and out of traffic in a manner that would have earned a civilian a ticket from him if he’d been on traffic duty.
Wondering if Sam might like to share another pizza, he flipped open his cell and hit her number on speed dial. The ringing went directly to voice mail.
John scowled. “Hey, Sam,” he grumbled into the empty cab. “Whoever you’re talking to, hang up. We have plans to make.”
He snorted in self-derision. “Plans? Hah! In your dreams, Waltham. In your dreams.”
She was in his dreams, of course. And in nearly every waking thought. If he’d envisioned this strong a reaction to her he might not have come home. Then again, if it just so happened that Sam was starting to have tender feelings for him, too, maybe he’d made the right choice.
A large, dark vehicle swerved and passed him going in the same direction. Considering the speed at which John was traveling, the other guy had to be going sixty—in a thirty-five-mile-an-hour zone.
He peered after the disappearing SUV, hoping to get the license number, but it was impossible to see clearly enough. Instead, he grabbed his two-way radio and contacted the station.
“Dispatch, this is John Waltham.”
“Copy. What’s the problem?”
“I’m northbound on Highway 62 in my private vehicle, crossing Main. Some dude just blew by me like I was standing still. Do we have reports of robberies or assaults? Anything he could be running from?”
“Not recently,” the dispatcher said pleasantly. “You don’t have to work 24/7, you know. It is okay to kick back when you’re off the clock.”
“Yeah, I know. Just curious. Thanks.”
The sleek, black vehicle was disappearing into the distance. It was through town now and therefore back into a fifty-five-mile-an-hour zone so it would probably not cause any accidents.
If he happened to catch up to that driver before he passed the hospital, however, he might stop the guy long enough to ask him where he was going in such an all-fired hurry.
* * *
Samantha checked the tiny bathroom in one-ten just to be sure she wasn’t overreacting, then raced down the hallway to the nurses’ station.
“Was the Southerland boy discharged?”
Her friend Alice scowled at her. “Not according to the early shift. You should know. There was a standing order to notify you if he was leaving.”
“Well, his bed is empty and I can’t find him,” Samantha said, breathless. “Call the police. I’m going outside to see if I can track him down while you search in here. He might have gotten it into his head to try to go home on his own.” Except in Danny’s case she figured that home would probably be the last place he’d want to go, primarily because his father might be there.
What about Lindy? When had she last seen Danny’s mother? Encountering her around the hospital had become so commonplace she wasn’t positive. After lunch? Maybe. Maybe not. One thing was certain. She had not bid the woman goodbye or seen her leave the hospital, with or without her son.
“If I were Lindy, what would I do?” Sam muttered to herself. Flee? Stand my ground? It didn’t matter at this point. Wherever Danny was she hoped and prayed he was at least safe. If his mother had made off with him that was certainly better than having his father show up again.
It took Samantha little time to check the parking lot. Since it was between the afternoon and evening visiting hours there weren’t many cars there.
“Think. Think,” she told herself as she pivoted, studying the area to no avail. “What kind of car did she drive?”
The only vehicle Sam could recall was the silver luxury sedan the Southerlands had been using when she’d seen them in Ash Flat. Chances were good that that was Ben’s car and his wife drove something far less ostentatious.
Fisting her keys, Samantha made her way to Elvina’s old car and checked to be sure the backseat was empty before unlocking the doors and getting in. Her hands gripped the wheel. Where should she go? Where should she look first?
She decided to start by making easy circles around the hospital lot, then progress to driving up and down nearby streets before heading toward the Southerland residence. Lindy might be introverted but she was smart. She was a mother tiger protecting her cub. The likelihood that she’d take Danny to a home where both the authorities and his fugitive father might find him was slim.