Fatal Charm

Hope’s eyes gleamed as she noted that the cookie count had suddenly been increased. “Yeah!” She took the cookies and followed her mother out of the room.

* * *

TONY GLANCED AROUND the living room while he waited for Amanda to return. The woman had Spartan tastes. Everything was meticulously clean, but there wasn’t much in the way of furniture. A simple wood-framed sofa with plain off-white cushions stood in the center of the room. Two straight backed chairs that looked like something left over from the Spanish Inquisition had been placed across from it.

He turned around, hearing Amanda’s returning footsteps on the baked-tile floor. Steely anger was clearly etched on her features.

“Mr. Ramos, how dare you show up here at my home? The fact that I’m willing to help you does not give you that right. And while we’re at it, how did you get my home address?” she demanded, searching his face with all the warmth she’d reserve for an insect that had crawled out of her cupboard.

“I have friends who help me from time to time.” He summoned his best smile, hoping to thaw her. Most women considered him handsome, and he wasn’t above using his looks to get their cooperation when the situation called for it. Considering how angry Amanda was, he certainly needed any edge he could get with her. “I’m not as impossible to deal with as you might think,” he said. “Why don’t you give me half a chance?” He kept his gaze steady, penetrating, and locked on hers, a gesture meant to disarm. He’d been told before that it packed a sexual wallop that made it particularly disconcerting to the fairer sex.

Amanda continued to glower at him, apparently unaffected. “Oh, I see. So you obtained my address behind my back and that’s supposed to be okay with me?”

So much for sexy looks. “Well, no, not exactly.” Tony gave her a chagrined half smile, and quickly changed tactics to reasonable concern and an apology. “I’m sorry if I’ve upset you, but after your last call, I felt it would be best for us to talk in person. I came by, saw that your home was secluded, and figured it would be okay for us to meet here. Everything would have worked out fine, too, if you hadn’t panicked.”

“So it’s my fault? You have a lot of nerve!”

Tony looked at her admiringly. She was beautiful in a girl-next-door kind of way, all gentle curves and softness. Right now, fury made her look radiant. Her cheeks were flushed and her hazel eyes sparked with life. “I don’t know how to make you understand,” he said in a conciliatory tone, or as close to it as he could ever come. “It’s obvious how devoted you are to your own daughter. Think how awful it would be for you if our positions were reversed.”

He deliberately moved closer to her, standing near enough to hopefully shake some of her self-assuredness. He knew he had to play on her emotions, because if she backed out now, he’d lose his only lead to Carmen. With that in mind, he glanced around. He needed ammunition. Spotting what he was searching for, he walked over to a shelf and picked up a Christmas photo of Amanda and Hope. He smiled sadly.

“Hope looks just like you. She has your eyes...and your smile. I envy you.” He saw her start to thaw.

Amanda moved to the sofa and motioned for him to take a chair. “I will help you, Tony, but if you continue to act like a Neanderthal, I’ll treat you like one, even if it means beating you over the head with a club to prove I mean what I say. Is that clear?”

He blinked. No one had spoken to him like that since Mrs. Trujillo in sixth grade. “Er...sure.”

Amanda gave him the details she could afford to divulge about the call she’d received, then told him about the car she’d seen near the day-care center. “I called the police to ask them to stay on the alert for that vehicle, but I didn’t tell them about you or the messages from the kidnappers. I just told them someone was watching the center.”

He nodded thoughtfully. “The kidnappers—and I think it’s safe to assume we’re dealing with more than one person here—left you no other option. You did what you had to do to protect the children in your care.”

“Right. So what’s next? Like it or not, we’re in this together. Is there any way to stop them? My life, by your standards, might be dull, but I like it. I want it back.” Amanda was determined.

“So you want to go on the offensive?” Tony asked, surprised.

“I didn’t pick on them, they picked on me. I don’t want any trouble with these people. They scare me. But if we go strictly by their rules, they have no incentive to keep their word. I don’t think we can afford to put any faith in their assurances.”

Tony watched Amanda carefully. Something about her had changed and instinct told him that it had something to do with the reason she’d been chosen as intermediary. “This goes beyond your trying to protect the reputation of your day-care center. You’re holding something back.”

“Don’t underestimate how much my day-care center means to me. By encroaching on it, they declared war.”

Tony watched Amanda. From her expression, especially her eyes, he could tell she was terrified of something. Yet she was not about to tell him what it was. He wouldn’t get answers by asking, either. Good thing he still had several tricks up his sleeve. “Their primary interest isn’t your day-care center. That stakeout was focused on you. I’d bet my last dime on it.”

Amanda shrugged, nervously searching for an answer. “It’s not your money you’re betting. That day care is part of me. The question remains. What are we going to do?”

“I want to attach a tape recorder to your phones, here and at work. If the woman calls again, I want to hear her voice, disguised or not.”

“All right.”

Tony studied her telephone. What he needed in addition to the recorder was one well placed bug hidden right in the middle of her living room—one she’d know nothing about. He had one in his surveillance kit in the car. A little gem like that would allow him to hear anything Amanda said, either here or in the adjacent room. A receiver and tape recorder hidden outside in the hedge would ensure it.

He turned around abruptly and caught the unguarded expression on Amanda’s face. She was frightened and trying hard to keep the lid on her fears. She was doing a pretty good job of it, too. He wondered what was going on inside her head. He had to know what secrets Amanda was keeping locked away—the stakes were too high to allow her any privacy. At the first opportunity, he’d set up his equipment and lay her life bare before him. As he contemplated the thought, it twisted in his mind. Passion sent a furnace blast of heat flashing through him.

Forcing the distracting thoughts away, he took out a tape recorder from his pocket and made a show of setting it up. He felt Amanda coming up behind him a few minutes later.

“What good will it do to use that little tape recorder? Surely you can come up with something more sophisticated?”

“Not without getting the phone company and local law enforcement involved.”

“You’ve decided not to do that, I take it.”

“I have a friend in the FBI, my former partner. He’ll help me and keep it unofficial.”

“Good.” She knew that there was no way he could elicit official help, but this way at least there would be someone there in case the kidnappers turned ugly. “You’re too close to this emotionally, and I have no experience with this kind of thing. It was a bad idea for us to try and handle this on our own.”

Tony sat down in one of the chairs. “I’ve dealt with this kind of animal before. Bringing the FBI or the police in officially is what will blow it. Believe me, that’s what happened before.” He remained silent, his bitterness hanging between them. Finally he continued. “After my daughter’s disappearance, the kidnappers contacted me within a day. The woman asked me for quite a bit of money. I didn’t have it, but I knew I could raise it one way or the other.

“While I was getting the money together, I continued to go after them through official channels. I was one hundred percent certain that I would succeed in getting my daughter back. I was well trained, with all the Bureau’s resources at my disposal. But something must have scared them away. They never called me back with instructions for the drop-off, and this is the first time I’ve heard from the woman since.”

“Did you ever find out why?”

“I always suspected a leak at the Bureau, though I never did find evidence to support it.” Tony shook his head, then met her gaze. “All I know for sure is that my daughter and my wife, everything that really mattered in my life, vanished. Carmen was only a baby, and it was snowing and very cold that March. I have no idea if Carmen is even alive. There’s no evidence one way or another. This is the chance I’ve been waiting for, and I won’t blow it this time.”

“I’m fighting for everything I value, too, Tony. If this situation became public knowledge, people would start wondering why the kidnappers chose me as go-between. You certainly did. I’m blameless, but the implications alone would ruin me. Without my income from the day care, I’d have nothing except debts. How could I support my daughter? We need trained people on this job, people who can be trusted and who can find answers fast. We can’t cover all the possibilities alone.”

“I understand you’re trying to safeguard your livelihood. But what about your husband, if you don’t mind me asking? Wouldn’t he take care of his own daughter?” As he watched Amanda, Tony sensed a battle going on inside her. She wasn’t just afraid of bad publicity.

“I don’t need Ron, and it’s a good thing. He never comes to see Hope, and he pays only minimal child support. He’s barely spoken to me since the divorce. You see, he didn’t want us to split up. It wasn’t because he loved me or Hope, or even because he wanted us to stay together as a family. It was just that he couldn’t stand the thought of publicly failing at anything. I was the well-dressed, attractive woman he kept on his arm to show off. Not having me there like a trophy hurt his pride.”

Tony watched her speculatively. She wasn’t asking for his sympathy, despite her bitterness. She was a strong woman. It would take one heck of a man to claim her heart now—she’d encased it so protectively in steel. Yet something told him that she’d be worth the effort. But he had other priorities now. He had to make sure he remained focused on finding the kidnappers. He needed all the information Amanda had, not just what she chose to give him.

Amanda stood and paced restlessly around the room. Finally she turned around and looked at him directly. “You frighten me, Tony. You want to find your daughter so badly, you’re not going to allow anything to get in your way. I won’t let everything I value become a casualty.”

Tony nodded. She was right to protect herself. The more he got to know her, the more he liked her. Under different circumstances, they might have been one helluva team. But he couldn’t afford to be a team player. “I will get them, Amanda. I won’t rest until I do.”

“How about this old partner of yours? How much can he help us now?”

“He’s going to be involved soon enough, one way or another. I can’t get the file they asked for without his help.”

Amanda walked to the portable phone on the wall and handed it to Tony. “Call him right now. Ask him to meet you here. If he’s going to get involved, I want to meet him. While you’re doing that, I’ll go check on Hope.”

Tony dialed Raymond’s number as Amanda walked out of the room. The die had been cast. There was no turning back now.

* * *

AFTER AN HOUR OF PLAYING with Hope and putting the whole kidnapping mess out of her mind, Amanda left Hope with her favorite video, a hot dog and fruit salad. This was usually their time together, and she hated leaving her daughter to her own devices. Yet, although she felt guilty, she knew this was the best way to handle the situation. After meeting both men, Amanda had decided she didn’t want Hope to spend much time around either of them. There was a darkness about them that spoke of a side of life where despair and sorrow were always the victor. She was determined to shield her daughter from people who might give her a glimpse into a world no child should know.

“Sorry to keep running out on you,” she said, returning to the kitchen. Tony’s ex-partner, Raymond Atcitty, a Navaho, appeared almost cherubic, with his round face and slightly protruding belly, but his eyes were hard and cold.

“There’s a state-of-the-art voice-activated tape recorder attached to your phone now,” Raymond said. “All you have to do is pick up the phone, and it will start recording. We’ll do the same for the one in your office. I’ll also get hold of one of those caller ID machines. Once we find the woman who’s contacting you, your part in this will be over. We’ll take it from there.”

Tony studied the recording device, then stepped over to join them. “We have your word that you’ll keep this out of official channels?”

Raymond met his gaze and hesitantly nodded. “For now, I’ll let you call the shots. That’s all I can promise.”

Tony shot him an icy glare. “For as long as it takes.”

Raymond didn’t answer.

Amanda watched the Navaho. She had a feeling Raymond would blow the whistle if he felt that either Hope or she was threatened. She took comfort in that thought. Where Tony had an edge that came from his lawlessness, Raymond was methodical and, from all appearances, a careful man who did not believe in taking unnecessary chances. Protecting and serving the public seemed to be far more than mere words to him.

“We’ll be leaving now, Amanda, but don’t worry,” Tony said, “I’ve left a card on your counter with my home number and address, my pager number and my cellular. If you need to talk, just pick up the phone.”

Raymond walked back into the room. “Let me show you one more thing. You need to know where I placed extra tapes in case you need them.” He glanced back at Tony. “I’ll be with you in a minute.” Raymond reached into the drawer beneath the phone and showed her the tapes. “You’re all set. Just remember one thing,” he said, dropping his voice. “Be careful how you play things out. My old partner has had to contend with more pain than most of us. He’s on the edge. He’s been there for a long time. Just make sure he doesn’t get pushed out of control.”

As Amanda walked with Tony and Raymond to the door a car pulled up. Bernice quickly opened the rear door and Winston catapulted out. The bullmastiff bounded to the front door and stopped less than three feet in front of Tony.

Tony froze. Raymond backed up a step, but hearing the ominous throaty growl that came from the dog, stopped dead in his tracks.

“He doesn’t like either of you,” Bernice said pleasantly, walking up to the porch. “He always blocks the path of people he takes a dislike to. I wouldn’t do anything too quickly right now, gentlemen,” she added pleasantly. “And for your sakes, please don’t even think of sneezing. He might not understand.”

“It’s all right, Bernice,” Amanda said quickly, trying not to laugh. Both men appeared to have stopped breathing. She crouched and called Winston, but the animal continued to stare at Tony.

“Winston, heel!” Bernice said. The dog went to Bernice’s side, but his gaze stayed fixed on Tony. “I’m sorry, but as I said before, he doesn’t like you.”

“Occupational hazard,” Tony muttered, then edged around the dog, never turning his back. Raymond followed. “See you later,” Tony said.

Bernice waved at them sweetly. “Goodbye, gentlemen.” As the men drove off, she quickly turned to Amanda. “I came by to make sure you were okay, but I didn’t expect to find Ramos here with a friend. What the heck was that all about?”

As they stepped inside the house Winston loped past them running straight to Hope’s bedroom. The little girl squealed with delight. Used to this routine, and certain the child and dog would be safely occupied for some time, Amanda and Bernice went into the kitchen.

Amanda gave Bernice the latest news as she brewed a fresh pot of coffee and made a bedtime snack for Hope. “I’m terrified of going up against these people, but I can’t just sit tight and do nothing. If they make good on their threat I have no doubt I’ll have to fight Tony. If that happens, the more I know about him, the better off I’ll be.”

Bernice shook her head. “Amanda, listen to me. Ramos is nobody’s fool. The kidnappers wouldn’t be able to trick him into believing Hope was his for long. A simple blood test would establish the truth.”

Amanda placed two cups brimming with hot coffee on the table, then sat down. “The problem is, he would want to believe them. Given the lack of documentation at the state level, thanks to the kidnappers, he might not even stop to question it. At that point, he could do anything. He might even take off with my child. He’s already proven that the law is something he’s willing to bend to suit his own purposes.”

“But surely that’s a bit drastic, even for him,” Bernice said.

“Maybe, maybe not. He’s desperate to find his child. Who knows? And if he makes the authorities suspect I obtained Hope illegally, even if he didn’t take her, it might take months of legal action and cost me everything to get her back. And if word leaked out to the press, the publicity could damage my credibility as the owner of a day-care center. Even if that didn’t happen, there could still be a problem. When Ron and I took custody of Hope, we promised never to reveal that she was really his sister’s child. There could be problems in the family, especially since Louise’s husband knows nothing about the baby. And even though Ron told me his sister hasn’t heard from the father for quite a while, he could turn up and claim he wants her back, if only as a way to extort money from me.” Amanda shook her head. “I won’t risk it. I’ve got to stay one step ahead of everyone else.”

The quiet that descended over them was interrupted only by enthusiastic squeals from Hope, who was still happily playing in her room with Winston. Amanda rose to take her empty coffee cup to the sink, when suddenly a monstrous crash erupted from the front of the house. As a gust of wind blew through the kitchen doorway, Amanda heard Hope scream. Spikes of fear pounding through her, Amanda raced to her daughter.

Chapter Three

Tony sat sipping a cup of black coffee in the corner booth of the small café. Though most other people couldn’t read Raymond, years of practice had made Tony proficient at it. He knew without a shadow of a doubt that Raymond was really ticked off. “Buddy, I wouldn’t have asked if there was any other way, but I really need that file. It’s payback time.”

“Don’t pull that crap on me. You and I have been through a lot of close calls. I think the score’s about even,” Raymond answered through a clenched jaw.

“That’s true while we were both agents. But I wasn’t an agent last year, and if it hadn’t been for me, the perps you ran across in the parking lot of Santiago’s would have killed you.”

“Do you really think I’d be doing you a favor by loaning you that file? Think about it,” Raymond snapped back. “You, of all people, should know that it doesn’t pay to negotiate with kidnappers.”

The words hit him as hard as Raymond meant them to. Tony swallowed, but maintained his confrontational gaze. “Don’t become my enemy on this.”

“I’m not your enemy, you jackass.” Raymond leaned over and lowered his voice to a growl. “I’m only telling you what you already know. You need a few cards up your sleeve, and the only way you’ll get them is if we talk to the S.A.C.”

“The special agent in charge?” Tony looked at Raymond as if he’d lost his mind. “No way. After that fight we had right before I quit, he wouldn’t give me a glass of water if I were dying of thirst.” He leaned back. “You’re either with me or against me, buddy. That’s the way it’s got to be. I’ve never been convinced that it wasn’t a leak somewhere within the Bureau that made the kidnappers bolt.”

“I looked into that. You’re way off base there.” Raymond stared at him for several long moments. “I’ll get you something that looks real, but not the genuine thing. The substitute will have to be altered. Deal?”

“Okay, but I’ll have to see the original file.”

“I can arrange that, but you’ll have to come to my office tomorrow morning at six before anyone else gets there. The S.A.C. is at the Albuquerque office, but I still don’t want you to show up while the support staff is present.”

“I’ll be there.” Tony felt as if a great weight had landed on his shoulders. He knew what he had to do. Although he’d never betrayed a friend before, he had no choice now. He wouldn’t risk blowing everything by giving the kidnappers false information.

“By the way, once I get you inside, remember to duck your head. I don’t want your mug showing up on the surveillance cameras. All I’ll have to say then is that you’re one of my more nervous informants.”

“No problem.”

Raymond stared pensively across the room. “Have you considered the possibility that pursuing this lead could take you someplace you don’t want to go?” Raymond asked quietly. “Are you prepared to face the worst, if it comes to that?”

Tony met his friend’s gaze, using all the willpower he had to shutter his emotions. “You still don’t believe she’s alive.”

“No, I don’t. If she were, they would have used her before now.”

Recognizing the grain of truth in Raymond’s words made his gut clench, but he knew he had to see it through. “I’ve got to know either way.” Tony stood up. “One more thing. I’d like you to do a full background check on Amanda Vila.”

“Good idea. I was about to suggest it myself.”

As they reached the door, Tony’s pager went off. He glanced down. “It’s Amanda’s number.” Tony spotted a public phone near the cash register and went directly to it. Amanda picked up the phone on the first ring.

“Did you get a description of the car?” Tony asked after hearing her story. “Okay, don’t worry about it. Sit tight. I’m on my way.”

Tony glanced back at Raymond. “We’ve got trouble.”

* * *

TONY ARRIVED ALONE at Amanda’s less than fifteen minutes after her call. Raymond would come by shortly after handling a few necessary details. As he glanced around the living room, he measured the damage. The center of the wood-framed picture window that faced the front yard had been reduced to a pile of glass shards scattered over the tile floor. A large rock lay near the wall, where it had come to rest. The rough, porous surface of the volcanic rock left him convinced no prints could be lifted from it.

Tony glanced up at Amanda. Her face was gray, as if someone had dusted it with ashes, but she was still very much in control of herself. His admiration for her grew. “Do you ever have any vandalism in your neighborhood?”

Amanda shook her head but remained silent.

“Well, actually we do, but nothing like this,” Bernice volunteered.

“What do you mean?” Tony’s gaze fastened on Bernice. “If you know something, don’t hold back now.”

Bernice nodded, then continued reluctantly. “Last week someone slashed my tires. Right in front of my house, too. I thought it was Jerry, my neighbor’s son, since he and my husband had argued about his speeding down the lane.”

“Does he know you and Amanda are good friends?” Tony asked.

“Yes, but I doubt this had anything to do with that,” Bernice said. “It’s just too far a stretch.”

Amanda put her hand on Bernice’s arm. “I think the same would apply to us linking this to the kidnapper. It doesn’t make sense, not in that context.”

She started to say more, when a knock sounded on her open door. “Are you okay, Amanda?” Ricky Biddle came into the room. “I was out for a run, and I saw all the cars and the broken window.”

“Hello, Ricky.” Amanda forced a thin smile. “We’re all fine. Thanks for asking.”

“You’re going to need help fixing that,” he said, glancing at the smashed window. “I can call my brother’s hardware store. It’s late, but he’d open up for me. I’m sure I can get everything you need delivered, and we’d have a new window up in no time.”