Risky Return Page 12

  She’d never truly gotten over it. How could she when her entire life had been falling apart? She’d not only lost a child, but she’d also been abandoned by her husband. And she’d kept it all a secret from everyone she knew. It was no wonder she hadn’t been able to get over it. She hadn’t even dealt with it, had just hidden it away in a corner of her heart and nursed her pain in the intervening years.

  He reached across the seat and gave her hand a squeeze as if he could sense what she was thinking. Maybe he could. Losing their child had sent her reeling with grief and Collin running for the door. Now they were pretending to be a happily married couple ready to restart their family. The irony stung.

  Collin pulled into the parking garage of the building where the clinic was located. He turned to her. “Are you ready for this?”

  She nodded and opened the door. She had to be. More than one girl’s life was at stake.

  They took the elevator to the fifth floor. The doctor’s name was painted on a door as they stepped off. So far, everything looked respectable. His office was located in a reputable medical center. The waiting room was full of pregnant women and the receptionist greeted them warmly.

  Collin asked for a moment of the doctor’s time, giving her the cover story they’d created on the drive here. The receptionist agreed to pass along the request and instructed them to take a seat. He led her to a pair of chairs and they sat down. Collin took her hand as her leg jumped nervously.

  She glanced at the women surrounding her and tears sprang to her eyes. They’d been in an office like this before only it had been during happier times before they’d lost the baby and he’d left her, when they’d been patients instead of hunting a kidnapper. She glanced around at the women she saw and hoped each of their pregnancies would end happily. Although she was around pregnant teens often, being here with Collin was a painful reminder of what they’d lost.

  After a short wait, the receptionist called their names. “Dr. Rayburn has agreed to see you between patients. Follow me.”

  She led them down a thickly carpeted hallway. Rebecca noticed state-of-the-art equipment and luxurious furnishings and couldn’t help thinking of Missy’s description of the girls being held captive in a basement. She doubted they’d had access to such high-tech health care. Had Dr. Rayburn built his wealth by kidnapping women and selling their babies?

  The receptionist led them into a private office with the name Jack Rayburn, MD on the door. “He’ll be right with you,” she said, then closed the door as she left.

  Dr. Rayburn arrived moments later. He was tall and lean with thick hair and glasses. “Jack Rayburn. Nice to meet you,” he said, shaking both their hands, then taking a seat behind his desk. “My receptionist tells me you two are planning to start a family and are interviewing physicians. Do you have a reason for needing a high-risk obstetrician?”

  Collin took the lead. “I’m afraid we haven’t been completely honest, Dr. Rayburn. We aren’t looking for a physician. We’re actually searching for a missing girl.” He pulled out a photograph of Missy from before she’d been abducted. “It’s my understanding she was one of your patients.”

  Rayburn glanced at the photograph, then shook his head. “I don’t recognize this girl, but I see a lot of patients. I can look up her file if you give me her name.”

  “Her name is Missy Donovan,” Rebecca told him. She couldn’t read anything from his expression. Either he was a good actor or he truly didn’t recognize her. “We believe she was kidnapped and held captive until she gave birth, then someone sold her baby.”

  Most people would be shocked to learn about suspected kidnapping and baby selling, but Dr. Rayburn didn’t flinch, which struck her as odd. Collin glanced her way, a silent acknowledgment that he’d noticed it too.

  Rayburn typed the name into his computer and then shook his head. “I don’t have a record of a patient by that name. Who told you I was her doctor?”

  Of course there was no file for Missy because she hadn’t been an actual patient. “Her boyfriend thought he recognized your name, but it was months ago and he may have been confused.”

  “I’m sorry I couldn’t be of more help.”

  Collin handed him another photo, this one the security image of the woman who’d tried to kill Rebecca in the hospital. “What about this woman? Do you recognize her?”

  He picked up the images and studied them. “It’s hard to see. Is this the best image you have? Didn’t you photograph her face?”

  “No, she kept it hidden from the cameras. We suspect she knew where they were located.”

  He slid it back across his desk. “I’m sorry. I don’t recognize her. Who is she? Is she involved in this baby-selling operation you mentioned?”

  “She tried to kill Rebecca at a hospital in Moss Creek.”

  “How awful.” He stood, bringing an end to the meeting. “I’m sorry I can’t be more help to you, but I do have to get back to my patients. You remember the way out?”

  “We do,” Collin said, shaking his hand. “Thank you for your time.”

  Dr. Rayburn exited the office through one door while Collin opened the one that led back into the hallway.

  “Well, that was a bust,” he said, and Rebecca was ready to agree with him. The doctor had truly seemed to have no recollection of Missy or the mystery woman who’d attacked her at the hospital. The only odd thing had been his lack of a reaction to his name being linked to a baby-selling operation. It seemed Dylan had either been mistaken in his identification or else he’d intentionally misled them. Talking to him again would be their next step.

  They headed down the hallway toward the front office and were nearly to the waiting room when Rebecca spotted a familiar face across the receptionist’s desk. Panic filled her and she grabbed Collin’s arm.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked as she dug her fingers into his arm, never removing her eyes from the round face and stocky build of the woman who’d attacked her in the hospital.

  “It’s her,” she told Collin. She pointed at the woman. “It’s her. It’s the woman that tried to kill me.”

  * * *

  Collin glanced to where she indicated and tensed as he recognized the woman from the photo. Although the photo didn’t clearly show her face, her hair and build matched. She was even wearing what looked like the same scrubs she had been wearing in the photo. Besides, Rebecca’s reaction was all the proof he needed to know it was her.

  The woman glanced up and spotted them, scanning both their faces before she turned and disappeared down the hall.

  “She saw us,” Collin told Rebecca. “And she recognized us. I’m going after her to make sure she doesn’t leave the building.” He pressed his phone to her. “Call Kent and tell him what’s happened. I’ll go track her down.”

  He hurried into the hallway just in time to see the stairwell door swing shut. He glanced through the window, spotted the woman hurrying down and followed her. A posted sign alerted him to the entrance to the parking garage. He couldn’t let her get there and into a car or she would get away. He saw her exit through the garage door and followed her.

  As he pushed open the door, she swung a large metal object at him, smacking him in the face and propelling him backward. Pain burst through him, sending him to his knees. She tossed the object aside and he realized it was a fire extinguisher.

  When he got his bearings again, she was nearing a car. He scrambled to his feet and followed her, but she was already in the car and pulling away by the time he reached her. She hit the accelerator and disappeared before he could follow her.

  Rebecca burst through the door and saw him. “Collin, what happened? Where is she?”

  “She got away.” He slid to the curb and held his nose, which was bleeding profusely. He couldn’t believe he’d let her clock him that way. Amateur move. He stared at Rebecca’s face and realized he’d let her down again. �
�I’m sorry, honey. I’m so sorry.”

  She kneeled beside him and pulled off her scarf, pressing it against his head to stop the bleeding. “It’s not your fault. She may have gotten away, Collin, but now we know who she is. The receptionist gave me her name. It’s Joanne Pierson. She’s been working for Dr. Rayburn for eight months.”

  He knew she was right. They were on the right track. This Joanne Pierson had tried to kill Rebecca so she had to be involved in the ring. And she worked for Dr. Rayburn. “He lied when he said he didn’t recognize her.”

  “He had to have known it was her. The photo may not give a good image of her face, but it is definitely her.”

  He couldn’t believe Rayburn had fooled him that way. The man’s face had been devoid of recognition. He supposed anyone involved in baby selling would have to be good at hiding his involvement.

  And Dylan had been clear that it had been a male doctor who’d snatched Missy. Rayburn was definitely involved.

  They’d finally caught a break in the case.

  * * *

  Collin and Rebecca made a report at the police department in the jurisdiction where the medical center was located. Kent phoned them ahead of time to alert them about the situation they were currently investigating and he arrived an hour later as Collin and Rebecca were finishing up giving their statements.

  “How sure are you that it was her?” Kent asked Rebecca.

  She didn’t hesitate. She would never forget that face or the contempt in her words. You should have listened to our warnings. Now, you’ll go to sleep and never wake up. “It was her.”

  “She ran when she saw Rebecca,” Collin reminded him. “That should be enough to confirm Rebecca’s story.”

  Kent pulled out the photographs the hospital’s camera had captured of the woman and compared it to her hospital credentials the office had provided for Joanne Pierson. “It certainly could be her,” he said. “I ran her history. She’s never been arrested, but she was a person of interest in a kidnapping in Alabama. A two-year-old boy went missing two days after the mother took him to his pediatrician. Pierson was working at the office. The mother chatted with her during the visit and stated she seemed very interested in the boy. The day he disappeared, the mother recalled seeing Pierson in the parking lot of the store where he vanished. The locals couldn’t prove she was involved and she left town before they could question her. Before that job at the pediatrician’s office, there’s no record of her. We checked out the last known address she had, but it was either too old or a fake. She also doesn’t have a car registered in her name. All this leads me to believe that Pierson is most likely a faked identity.”

  “That makes sense,” Collin said. “What about Rayburn?”

  “I’ve contacted Dr. Rayburn but he’s refusing to cooperate. He claims you lied your way into his office then caused a commotion that affected his business and frightened his patients. He denied having any involvement in a baby-selling ring.”

  Collin couldn’t deny they’d lied and that they’d caused a commotion, but under the circumstances, they’d been justified. “He lied to us about knowing his own nurse, Kent. If he lied about that, he must have lied about Missy, too. I think he knew exactly who we were talking about.”

  “Maybe. I’ll do some digging into his background to see if we can find anything that might indicate his involvement. It’s possible he hired this nurse with no knowledge of what she was doing. An OB nurse could be useful to the operation just like a doctor.”

  Rebecca shook her head. “No. Dylan said a male doctor abducted Missy, not a nurse or a woman. He was very specific. Plus, he identified Rayburn as the man he’d seen.”

  “He might have been lying,” Kent suggested.

  Collin shook his head, agreeing with Rebecca. “He isn’t sophisticated enough to give us just enough to lead us here but mislead us on other things. He’s just a scared kid, Kent. Rayburn is involved. I know he is. Now, we just have to prove it.”

  Kent packed up his papers. “I’ll swing by the hospital and see if I can interview some of the staff on the OB floor. Maybe other medical personnel who’ve worked with him will have something different to say about him and his practices.”

  Rebecca stood. “Thank you, Kent.”

  “I’m only doing my job, Rebecca. I’ll collect as much evidence as I can until the FBI arrive to take over.”

  “I know, but I’m grateful you’re on our side.”

  He seemed pleased by her words but then his expression darkened. “We haven’t found any evidence that points to a dirty cop being involved in this. Is it possible Missy was mistaken?”

  “Anything is possible, but she was scared and so certain.”

  “Well, I’ve had one of my most trusted officers looking into it, but whoever it was Missy saw could also have come from one of the other local police agencies or sheriff’s offices around. In fact, given the location of the warehouse being so far from Moss Creek, it’s more likely.”

  “I know you’re right,” she told him.

  He nodded. “I’ll see you two back in Moss Creek.”

  Rebecca watched him go and realized he was another person she was slowly learning to trust. She was glad she’d taken a chance on him.

  * * *

  Collin couldn’t get Dylan’s words from his mind.

  How can I take care of a baby?

  I’m not ready for that responsibility.

  What about my life?

  He recalled having the same questions when Rebecca had told him about their pregnancy. He’d had no one there, no male figure to reassure him that everything was going to be okay. He’d realized last night after the talk with Rebecca that he could be that person for Dylan, if not about the baby then about other important life matters. Despite what he’d done, he was still just a scared kid who needed guidance if he had any shot of becoming a man who mattered.

  After taking Rebecca back to her father’s house, he drove to the jail and asked to see Dylan. A deputy led him into a long corridor that housed the holding cells. Collin had already spoken to the public defender and the prosecutor about not charging him in covering up the abduction in exchange for helping them find the people behind this baby-selling ring. It was at least some good news he could share with the boy.

  The deputy led him through the gated door and motioned toward the last unit before he closed the door behind Collin. He glanced at the empty holding cells near the front and found it odd that Dylan had been placed in the last cell, farthest away from the guards. He would speak to Kent about having him moved so he didn’t seem so isolated.

  He approached the last door and spotted Dylan even before he made it all the way to the end of the corridor. The boy was hanging from a noose and he wasn’t moving.

  “Dylan! Help!” Collin hollered back to the gate. “Someone help!” The deputy appeared at the gate. “Open the cell. Open the cell!”

  He ran toward them, spotted Dylan and quickly unlocked the cell door. Collin hurried inside, grabbed Dylan and tried to hold him up while the deputy climbed onto the bed and untied him.

  Collin lowered the boy to the ground and checked for a pulse. It was faint. “He’s alive. Call for an ambulance.”

  The deputy nodded and radioed in the request.

  Collin untied the noose from around Dylan’s neck and saw the bruises. He cried out to God. Why had He allowed this? Why hadn’t someone been watching Dylan more closely?

  He should have heeded the calling to help Dylan before now. He should have known how the boy was feeling, the despair of knowing he’d messed up and caused a person he cared about pain. Collin shook his head. He’d failed this boy just as surely as he’d failed Rebecca.

  As the paramedics arrived, so did Kent. He approached Collin. “What happened?”

  “He tried to hang himself. Why was he in here all alone?’

  “
According to the report, he wasn’t deemed a suicide risk.”

  “He’s just a kid!” Collin felt his insides constrict. If he’d been here earlier, this might not have happened. Anger bit through him. It wasn’t right. It wasn’t fair. He should have been able to stop it, to help Dylan. That’s what he’d come for and that’s what he should have told the boy when he first saw him. Instead, he’d allowed him to be placed alone, seemingly forgotten, with nothing but his failures to mull over.

  He stayed with Dylan until the paramedics arrived and transported him to the hospital.

  “We’ll order an official investigation,” Kent told him. “We’ll find out what happened here.”

  But Collin knew what had happened. He’d failed yet another person he was meant to protect.

  * * *

  Rebecca was waiting for Collin in the garage when he arrived back at the house. Kent had phoned to let her know what had happened to Dylan and that Collin was taking the blow hard.

  She saw it, too, in the way his shoulders slumped as he got out of his car. Those shoulders had seen so much pain and had tried to carry it all.

  She walked to him and hugged him, wrapping her arms tightly around him, and he enveloped her before digging his head into her shoulder.

  “One thing you learn working with these kids, Collin, is that you can’t solve everyone’s problem. I learned that lesson a long time ago. You need to learn it, too.”

  “What are you talking about? They were our problems.”

  She realized they’d slipped back to talking about the past. “And we should have solved them together.”

  “We needed something, Rebecca, something I couldn’t give you. I didn’t know where to turn or what to do back then. I needed help.”

  “I never asked you to give me anything. It’s always been in your nature to want to fix everything, but some things are just broken. It’s the world we live in. If you could fix everything, we would never need Jesus.”