Man of the Hour

Glynnis looked at her sister-in-law. “It’s okay. I understand.”

“How about if I take Michael with me? He can spend the night with us.” Michael, head leaning against Glynnis’s shoulder, had fallen asleep an hour ago. “In fact, you can spend the night with us, too. I don’t think you should be alone if…” Sabrina, looking stricken, let her voice trail off.

“If they don’t find Olivia tonight,” Glynnis finished for her. Her eyes filled with tears. “I don’t think they’re going to.”

“Oh, honey,” Kat said. “They might. They haven’t finished searching everywhere yet. That woman might have found a hiding place.”

Glynnis shook her head. She knew Olivia was not in the mall, because if she had been, that woman—whoever she was—would not have been able to keep her quiet. Livvy was nothing if not vocal. If she was anywhere within hearing distance, the police would have discovered them.

Gregg, who’d been out front talking to the security people, walked back into the office. “You going to leave now?” he said to Sabrina.

“Yes. And if it’s okay with Glynnis, I’ll take Michael home with me.”

“Yes, I think that’s a good idea,” Glynnis said. “But I won’t be coming. When they finish here, I’m going home.”

“You shouldn’t be alone,” Sabrina said. She looked at Kat. “Don’t you agree?”

“Yes, I do.”

“But what if Livvy or that woman who took her should call? I have to be there.”

“How could they call? You said you didn’t know the woman. Do you think she knows you?” This question came from Dan O’Neill, who had walked in behind Gregg.

“No, I don’t think she knows me, although I can’t be sure. But Olivia has an ID tag inside her jacket, sewed on to the lining in front. It’s required at her day care center. The tag lists her name and our phone number.”

“You’re right, then. You should be at home,” Kat said. “Don’t worry, Sabrina. I’ll stay with her. In fact, I’ll call Bill right now and tell him.” Out came her cell phone before Glynnis could even think of protesting. Not that she wanted to. She had no desire to be at home alone.

“I just came back to give you a status report,” Lieutenant O’Neill said. “We’ve finished searching all the stores and the areas behind each store, as well as all the places in the inside of the mall. Everything is locked up now, and the mall’s been emptied of all the shoppers and most of the store employees. The only ones left are a few maintenance people, the mall manager and his assistant, and the security personnel.”

Glynnis’s shoulders sagged. Even though she’d been afraid the woman who took Olivia was long gone, it was one thing to fear something and another thing entirely to know it for sure.

“Now that we’re sure your daughter isn’t in the mall,” the lieutenant continued, “I called Chief Crandall, and he’ll take care of issuing an Amber Alert. Do you know what that is?”

“It’s a nationwide alert system, isn’t it?” Gregg asked.

“Yes. A description of Olivia, along with her photo and the photo of the woman from the security tape will be faxed to primary radio stations under the Emergency Alert System. In turn, that information will be sent by them to area TV stations and radio stations. The radio stations will interrupt their programming to broadcast the information and TV and cable stations will run a ‘crawl’ on the screen along with the photos. In some places, the authorities will even incorporate electronic highway billboards. Every possible avenue will be covered. We’re also setting up an 800-number hotline for people to call.”

Glynnis nodded, unable to speak.

“Chief Crandall said to tell you we’ll work on this night and day until we find your daughter.”

“Th-thank you,” Glynnis managed.

“Yes, thank you,” Gregg and Sabrina echoed.

“Now I think you should go home and try to get some sleep,” Dan O’Neill said.

But everyone in the room knew Glynnis wouldn’t sleep tonight.

Not until Olivia was home again and safe in her own bed, would Glynnis be able to sleep again.

Chapter Three

“What if they don’t find her?”

Gregg looked at his wife, who was in the process of undressing for bed. She’d voiced the question he’d tried not to think about, yet it had hovered at the back of his mind like a poisonous snake waiting to strike. “They’ll find her.”

“But Gregg,” Sabrina insisted, her green eyes clouded with worry, “what if they don’t?” She lowered her voice, although no one could possibly hear her. Samantha, their one-year-old, and Michael had been asleep for hours, and Glynnis was at her own home with Kat. “It would destroy Glynnis. I’m not sure she could survive.” She shook her head. “God. Hasn’t she been through enough? I know other people think she’s really strong, and she is, but everyone has a breaking point.” She unfastened her bra and tossed it on the bed.

“Let’s not talk about this, okay?”

“I think we have to talk about it, because if the unthinkable happens and they don’t find Livvy…or they find her—” Sabrina swallowed “—they…find her body…we have to be prepared. Glynnis will need us more than ever before.” She reached for her nightgown.

Gregg knew Sabrina was right, but he didn’t want to say the words out loud. To do so would give them a reality he couldn’t acknowledge. “I’m sorry, I can’t talk about this.” He put the shoes he had just removed back on. “I know I won’t sleep. I’m going for a walk. I need fresh air.”

“Gregg, it’s midnight.”

“I won’t be gone long.”

“Gregg…”

“What?” He didn’t look at her, although under normal circumstances he would rather look at Sabrina than anyone else in the world.

“Running away won’t solve anything,” she said gently.

“I’m not running away.”

She didn’t answer for a long moment. When she did, her voice was resigned. “All right, I’m sorry I pushed you. If you don’t want to talk about it, I won’t make you.” She climbed into bed and reached for her reading glasses.

“Don’t wait up,” he said and then went out to the entryway closet, where he donned his heavy jacket and gloves. After letting himself quietly out the back door, he headed down the driveway, all the while reassuring himself that he was right not to consider the worst.

The police would find Olivia. Dan O’Neill was a good cop. He was doing all the right things.

They had to find her. Nothing less was acceptable.

Sabrina was right about one thing, though. His sister had suffered enough. For a long time, Gregg had been furious with Ben March. If the older man hadn’t already been dead, Gregg would have cheerfully strangled him with his bare hands for what he’d done to Glynnis.

But in the past year—mainly since Samantha was born—he’d gotten past his anger and started moving toward some semblance of understanding.

Gregg knew it couldn’t have been easy for Ben to live with Sabrina’s mother all those years. Even now, when she was supposedly happily married to her longtime love, she was a hard woman to be around.

It always amazed Gregg that Sabrina—who was one of the warmest women he’d ever known—could have been born to Isabel March, who, on her warmest day, was closer to the Arctic Circle than to the equator.

For Sabrina’s sake, he was friendly to Isabel, but he’d never love her, although he was glad she and Sabrina had a decent relationship again.

But even though he understood Ben better now, he still couldn’t completely forgive him for what he’d put Glynnis through. Those days after he’d died, when Glynnis had found out she was not legally married to him and that he had another wife and an adult daughter, had been tough. But the worst days had come later, when all the well-wishers were gone and Glynnis had to face everyday life with two small children on her own. At least Ben had left the children well provided for.

As Sabrina had said, Glynnis was a strong woman. She’d proven that by everything she’d overcome: their parents’ death, a disastrous relationship when she’d been in college, having to give up the baby that resulted from it, and then Ben’s death and the truth about their marriage. A weaker woman might have broken. Glynnis hadn’t. Throughout, no matter how much she was hurting, she’d gone on and made the best life she could.

This, though, could destroy her.

Gregg was so lost in his thoughts he didn’t realize a car had pulled alongside him until he heard his name called. Turning, he recognized his cousin Steve’s dark blue Ford Explorer.

“What’re you doing out walking this late?” Steve said when Gregg came around to the driver’s side to talk to him.

“I needed some air. You just coming home from the restaurant?” Steve had been Gregg’s assistant for the past two and a half years and Gregg now wondered how he had ever managed without him.

“Yeah.”

“We have a good night?”

“Real good. From seven-thirty on, all the tables stayed filled.”

Gregg nodded. The first few years he’d owned Antonelli’s, it had been touch and go as to whether he’d make it. The odds were against him; he’d always known that. Start-up restaurants didn’t have a good track record. But with a combination of hard work and luck, he’d made Antonelli’s into one of the most successful restaurants in the area.

“I take it there’s no news,” Steve said.

“No.”

“Geez, Gregg, I’m sorry. Is there anything Maggie and I can do?” Maggie also worked for Gregg as first assistant to the chef. She and Steve had met at the restaurant, fallen in love and married a little over a year ago. Now she was pregnant with their first child.

Gregg didn’t answer for a moment. He couldn’t. He was all too aware of just how bad the situation was and how much worse it might get. “Pray,” he finally said. “Pray hard.”

“Yeah,” Steve said softly. Then, “You want a ride back to the house?”

“Thanks, but I’m not ready to go back yet.”

“Okay. You sure you’re all right?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. You go on. Maggie’ll be waiting.”

Steve smiled. “All right. You comin’ in tomorrow?”

“I don’t know. We’ll see.”

“Well, don’t worry about us. We can manage if you want to stay with Glynnis. Everybody’s torn up about this, you know.”

“Yeah, I know.” Glynnis had spent a lot of time at the restaurant since Ben had died, and the employees had pretty much adopted the kids. He smiled thinking how Jeff, their pastry chef, always let the kids roll out leftover dough and Trish, who was training to take Maggie’s place as their sous-chef, taught Michaael to chop carrots.

Gregg watched as Steve drove off, then he headed toward the park. Since he didn’t normally go to the restaurant before ten, in nice weather he always took Samantha to the park in the morning before he left for work. Many times, he’d included Olivia in their excursions, picking her up before Glynnis left for the school and then dropping her at her day care center on his way to the restaurant.

Samantha adored her older cousin. The two little girls always had a great time together, and Gregg enjoyed watching them. From the time of their birth, he’d been a surrogate father to Glynnis’s children, and he knew they’d always occupy a special place in his heart.

Reaching the park, he walked down the main path to the pond and his favorite bench. As he’d known it would be, the park was deserted. It was too cold for lovers and too late for joggers. There weren’t even any homeless people there, because last year, in cooperation with half a dozen businesses, the city had opened a shelter.

Locating the bench he’d come to think of as his, Gregg sat and pensively looked out over the pond. Moonlight shimmered across its dark, quiet surface. None of the lily pads or ducks that dotted the pond during the daytime were visible. He smiled, thinking how the girls loved those ducks. Whenever they came, they brought bread or crackers or popcorn to feed them. Samantha would squeal whenever one of them came too close, but Olivia wasn’t afraid of them. She’d let them eat out of her hand if Gregg would allow it, but he was always afraid they might accidentally bite her, so he insisted that she put the food on the ground.

Soon the pond would freeze and the ducks would migrate somewhere warmer, but they always came back in the spring.

From somewhere across the pond, he heard the low, mournful who-who of an owl. The sound caused his chest to tighten.

Livvy. Where are you?

He felt so completely useless. If only he could do something to help. But what? What?

He thought about Samantha sleeping peacefully in her crib. Sabrina, probably lying awake in their bed worrying about him. Glynnis, frightened and sleepless in her house.

All of them needing him.

So what was he doing here?

He should be home with his wife and child. He should try to get some sleep so that he’d be better able to help Glynnis tomorrow.

Getting up, he began to run and didn’t stop until he saw the welcoming lights of home.

Glynnis never did go to bed. Kat tried to make her, but she refused. She did change into an old pair of green velour sweatpants and a matching sweatshirt and put thick socks on her feet so she wouldn’t be cold. But she spent the night curled up under an afghan on one of the love seats in the living room, and Kat spent the night on the other one.

As the night passed, Glynnis was aware of every sound. The ticking of the grandfather clock in the entryway. The hum of the refrigerator and the occasional clunk as the ice maker spit out its new supply of cubes. The distant drone of traffic on the interstate that cut through downtown. The wail of a siren somewhere in the distance. The rattle of the overhanging branches of the big maple tree in the side yard against the roof.

All so ordinary. The sounds of a normal night in a normal world. Only this wasn’t a normal night or a normal world. Any world where some stranger could grab a child and walk off with her was a nightmare world.

Glynnis just prayed the nightmare would be over soon. That Olivia would be restored to her, safe and sound.

Where was she tonight? Was she warm? Safe? Was that woman taking care of her?

Glynnis’s eyes filled with tears.

Please, God, watch over her. Watch over my baby.

“Glynnis?” Kat said softly. “You feel like talking?”

Glynnis surreptitiously wiped away the tears. “I thought you were sleeping.”

“I tried, but too many thoughts are spinning around in my head.”

“I know.”

“If you want a sleeping pill, I’ve got some in my purse. They’re just over the counter, nothing too strong.”

“You carry sleeping pills around with you?”

“I grabbed them when I stopped at the house for my nightgown.”

“No, I don’t want one.” How could she sleep when Olivia was out there somewhere, probably scared, probably crying for her?

“You want some hot chocolate or something? I could go make us some.”

“No.” All I want is Olivia. “But if you want some, go ahead.”

“No. I just thought…” Her voice trailed off.

After that, Kat fell silent, and when another half hour went by, Glynnis thought she’d probably fallen asleep. Glynnis knew she should try to sleep, too, otherwise she’d be a zombie tomorrow, which would help no one.

But sleep wouldn’t come.

At four-thirty Glynnis gave up. Quietly, so as not to wake Kat, she headed for the kitchen, where she put on a pot of coffee. She also took some frozen cinnamon rolls from the freezer so they’d be thawed by the time Kat awakened. Then she headed for her bathroom, where she splashed water on her face and brushed her teeth and hair. When she returned to the kitchen, the coffee was ready, its rich aroma filling the air.

Glynnis poured herself a cup, added powdered creamer and a packet of sweetener, then sat at the table. Slowly, she drank. She was just about finished when Kat, rubbing her eyes, padded into the kitchen.

“Did I wake you?” Glynnis said.

“The smell of coffee did.” Kat walked over to the counter, yawned, got a mug out of the cupboard and poured herself a cup. She pulled a chair out and joined Glynnis at the table. “Did you get any sleep at all?”

Glynnis shrugged. “I dozed a little.”

“You know, I was thinking. Maybe you should offer a reward for information.”

For the first time since Olivia’s disappearance, Glynnis felt a spark of excitement. “Kat, that’s a great idea!”

“We could even take up a collection.”

“That would take too long. Besides, it’s not necessary. I can sell some of the stock Ben left the children. How much do you think I should offer? Would five thousand be enough? Or do you think I should offer ten thousand?”

“Ten thousand would probably get you more attention. But you know, we should probably ask Dan if this is a good idea. Maybe a reward will just muddy the waters.”

“What do you mean?”

“You know, bring the nuts out of the woodwork with a lot of false leads.”

“Oh, I hadn’t thought about that. What time do you think it would be okay to call him?”

“What about right now?”

“Now? Kat, it’s not even five o’clock. Won’t he be sleeping?”

“Hon, Dan has probably been at work all night. I doubt he’d go home and sleep when Olivia is out there somewhere.” So saying, Kat got up and went in search of her handbag. A few minutes later, she came back into the kitchen with her cell phone in hand. Quickly, she punched in some numbers.

“Hello? May I speak with Lieutenant O’Neill, please? Thank you.” Grinning at Glynnis, she handed her the phone. “What’d I tell you? He’s there. Here. You talk to him.”

It warmed Glynnis to know he was there working in her behalf. A moment later, he came on the line.

“Lieutenant O’Neill.”

“Dan? This is Glynnis. Glynnis March.”

“Yeah. Hi, Glynnis. How you holding up?”

“I’m okay.”

“Kat there with you?”

“Yes, sitting right across the table from me. Neither one of us could sleep.”

“Yeah, I know the feeling.”

“Um, Kat’s the reason I’m calling. She had an idea, and we wanted to know what you thought about it.”

“Oh?”

“Yes, we thought it might be helpful for me to offer a reward. You know, for information.”

For a few seconds, he didn’t answer, and Glynnis’s heart sank. He didn’t think it was a good idea.

Then he surprised her by saying, “You know, that’s a pretty good idea. A reward might jog someone into remembering something they wouldn’t ordinarily notice.”

“You think so?”

“Yeah, I do. But to be enough incentive, the reward should be substantial, I’m afraid.”

“I was thinking of ten thousand dollars.”

He gave a low whistle. “That’s substantial.” Unspoken was a question. Could she afford that much money?

“Don’t worry. I have the money. Thing is, how do we publicize this for maximum benefit?”

“Leave that to me. We’ll call the TV and radio stations and the newspaper office. By tonight, everyone around here will have heard about it. And I wouldn’t be surprised if the wire services pick it up.”

“Okay.” Glynnis actually smiled. Kat, who was watching and listening to the one-sided conversation, smiled back at her.

After hanging up, Glynnis said, “I think I’ll go take a shower and get dressed.”

“Good. I’ll take mine when you’re done.”

As Glynnis headed for her bedroom, she felt ten times better than she’d felt just an hour earlier. She had a good feeling about this reward. And God willing, by tonight maybe Olivia would once again be sleeping in her own bed.

True to his word, Dan notified everyone he could think of about the reward Glynnis was offering. He spent the rest of the day questioning people and following what slim leads they were able to unearth. A couple of times he thought he was on to something, but nothing panned out. He was beginning to fear the woman who’d taken Olivia March had gotten away clean. No one had seen her leave the mall and so far, no one seemed to know who she was.

The bus station and cab companies were long shots, and Dan knew it. In all likelihood, the woman had come to the mall in her own car and left the same way. Without knowing what kind of car she drove, there was no way to trace her. Trouble was, the mall had been really busy the day before. A woman and child—even if the child were crying—would not stand out. Hell, Dan had seen half a dozen crying kids when he’d arrived at the mall yesterday. Crying kids were the norm, not the exception.

No one else had any luck, either. All in all, it was a damned frustrating day. Their only hope was the reward Glynnis was offering. News of it would reach the majority of people tonight, on the evening news.

At five o’clock, Chief Crandall walked out to Dan’s desk. “Go home, Dan. You’ve been at it for what, twenty-four, twenty-five straight hours? You need to get some sleep.”

“Not sure I can sleep, Chief.”

“Well, try. You’re no good to me if you’re punchy, and without sleep, you’re gonna be. Don’t worry. I’ll call you if anything happens.”

Dan didn’t want to go, but he could see by the expression on the chief’s face that he wasn’t going to take no for an answer, so reluctantly Dan stood and put on his coat. “You’ve got my cell phone number? In case I’m not home?”

“Dan…”

“I just thought I might stop by the mother’s house on my way home, that’s all.”

“Fine. But make sure you get some sleep after that, you hear? And yes, I’ve got your cell phone number.”

Dan knew Glynnis’s neighborhood. One of his best friends from high school had lived one street away from where she lived now. It was the kind of neighborhood working class families aspired to, near Whitney Park and the public golf course. It wasn’t far from downtown, so it only took him a few minutes to get there, locate her home and park in front. She lived in an attractive red-brick-and-frame, one-story bungalow. A giant blue spruce tree stood on one side of the house. A black Honda Passport sat in the driveway. Dan had wondered if his sister was still there, but he didn’t see her red Accord anywhere.

Dan took note of the Christmas welcome mat on the front stoop. It was going to be one helluva lousy holiday for Glynnis and her family if they didn’t find her little girl. On that somber thought, he walked to the door and rang the doorbell.

Only a few seconds went by before the door opened. He wanted to kick himself when he saw the expectant light in her eyes. He should have called first.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “There’s nothing new. I just stopped by to see how you’re doing.”

“Oh.” The light died. She shrugged. “I’m okay.”

She didn’t look okay. She looked like hell. Tired, pale and worried. Despite this, she looked younger than she had the day before, probably because today she wore no makeup and was dressed in jeans and a sweater, with her hair tied back in a ponytail. The sweater, in some kind of reddish-brown shade, complemented her eyes and hair.

“I also thought I’d give you an update of what we’ve done so far.”

“Come on in, then.”

He followed her into the house, his eye—trained to notice even minute details—taking in the warm colors and hominess of the interior, from the beautiful wood floors to the comfortable-looking furniture to the family photos on the walls.

He stopped in front of an eleven-by-fourteen framed photo of a chunky infant with a dimpled smile. “This is Livvy.”

Her eyes widened. “How can you tell? She’s only eleven months old in that picture.”

“The dimples gave it away.”

She made a brave attempt at a smile. “I love her dimples,” she said softly. “They reflect her mischievous personality.”

Next to that photograph was another, this time of her son, who looked to be about three. He, too, was grinning, but even with the wide smile on his face, it was easy to see this child was much more serious than his younger sister.

As if she’d read his mind, she said, “Michael bears the weight of the world on his shoulders.”

Dan looked at her. “Like his mother?”