Idyll Fears by Stephanie Gayle

Author:Stephanie Gayle [Gayle, Stephanie]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781633883581
Publisher: Prometheus Books
Published: 2017-08-07T04:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWENTY

Finnegan was hard at work on his second or third pack of the day. “Anything?” we asked each other, at the same time. He set his cigarette atop a pyramid stack of stubs and shook his head. “So far no one friendly with the Forrands lives near Barkhamsted. Greg Baker left work early today. Personal time. He’s not answering his phone.”

“Could we get someone to drive by? Check his place?”

“I’ll call,” he said. “What’s up with the car you found?”

“Techs are on it, but you know how long those tests can take. I had a thought on the way over. What if there’s more than one kidnapper?”

“Risky, but maybe. Cody never said anything about two people, did he?”

“No. There could’ve been one driver, and then Cody was drugged so if there was someone else, I don’t know, I’m spit-balling. The Forrands want to have a press conference. I’ve urged them to have it here.”

He looked around the station. “Where you gonna put everyone?” Men hustled, waving papers, shouting. It looked like the floor of the Stock Exchange. There wasn’t room for the Forrands and a bunch of reporters and camera people.

“Outside,” I said.

“Outside? It’s fifteen degrees.” He exaggerated, but not by much.

“People watching at home will see it’s cold. They’ll pay even more attention when they think about a kid out in these conditions. Tell Wright he’s our rep.”

“Tell him yourself.” He pointed.

Wright walked our way; a glower set so deep in his face a crowbar couldn’t pull it free. I said, “Hey, we’re having a press conference in,” I checked my watch, “thirty minutes. You’ve been elected Mr. TV.”

“Why?” he asked.

Because I didn’t need more press. “You’re most photogenic,” I said.

“Where will we have it?” He gave the station the same skeptical eye exam Finnegan had.

“Outside, so hold on to your hat.”

He clenched his hands. “I was just beginning to feel my fingers.”

Mrs. Dunsmore appeared, wearing pumps and a nice dress. Church clothes. Interesting. She unwrapped her scarf. “How was your holiday?” she asked me.

“Interrupted,” I said. “Thank you for the gifts. My parents loved them.”

She smiled. “Good. I’ve left the receipts on your desk.” She looked at our map. “All the TV networks are covering the abduction. They want to know where to set up.”

“Chief thinks the good viewers at home will work harder to find Cody if they see his family and Wright freezing their asses off,” Finnegan said. “So it’ll be outside the station.”

The Forrands arrived four minutes later. Frantic was one word to describe them. Pale, shaken, upset, and on the verge, were others. They’d brought Anna with them.

Jane Forrand said, “She wanted to be with us.” Maybe Anna didn’t feel safe at home.

Mrs. Dunsmore went into action. “Hello, there. I’m Mrs. Dunsmore. We’ve met, once before, at the church last Thanksgiving, I think it was.”

“Oh, yes,” Jane Forrand said, attempting a smile.

“Why don’t we see if we have some hot cocoa?” Mrs. Dunsmore said to Anna. She looked at Mrs. Forrand. A nod from Jane indicated this would be acceptable.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.