Suspicions: a novel of suspense Page 4

  “There are some reporters out there,” Agent Morrison warned.

  Amanda closed her eyes briefly, her lips pressed into a straight line, and stopped. “Stacey, would you mind getting the mail? I don't think I can handle going out there.”

  “Of course.” Trying to ignore the people gathering in front of the Stone's house, Stacey pulled the mail out of the box and carried it back inside, handing it directly to Amanda.

  Sorting through the stack, Amanda gasped and dropped all but one piece of mail.

  It was a single sheet of paper that hadn't come with an envelope.

  “This is Kyle's writing,” Amanda whispered.

  Morrison took it from her, holding on to the corner with the tips of his fingers, and called the local FBI office.

  In Kyle's large block print were the words: I WANT TO COME HOME MOMMY.

  Typed underneath were the words: Kyle will be returned to you when I receive $1,000,000.

  Morrison put the note in an evidence bag. “We'll send this to the lab to check for latent prints.”

  Amanda dropped to the couch, sobbing convulsively.

  Stacey was dumbstruck. She felt as if she were not really there, as if she would wake up and find out it was all just a bad dream. But when she looked at her friend she could not deny reality any longer. Her stomach churned and her ears buzzed.

  Amanda was moaning, “No! Oh please no.”

  Her knees weak, Stacey walked over to Amanda and sank onto the couch next to her. She put her arms around Amanda, who cried even harder.

  I have to get out of this place, Stacey thought frantically. This can't be happening. This can't be true.

  After her cries had become small whimpers, Amanda jumped up and fled the room. Stacey sat there in shock.

  Agent Morrison was on the phone. Soon more people arrived.

  Stacey decided this would be a good time to leave. No one noticed her as she walked toward the front door. Stepping onto the porch, she saw a police officer talking to someone near the curb.

  As she walked down the driveway, reporters converged on her.

  One man thrust a tape recorder in her face. “Are you a friend of Mr. and Mrs. Stone?”

  She didn't know how she was supposed to respond. “Yes, I'm their neighbor.”

  “Has there been any news on Kyle?”

  She shook her head. “I have to go.” As she ran to her house she saw Margie peeking out from behind her curtains. Stacey opened her front door and gratefully locked it behind her.

  The thought of Kyle being kidnapped was just crazy. That can't happen to someone I know, she reflected. If that's true then none of our children are safe.

  She went into Robby’s room and sat on his bed, hugging his well-worn teddy bear. The thought of someone she knew having her child abducted for ransom was too horrendous to imagine. Reminding herself that it couldn’t happen to her because she and Jason didn’t have the kind of money Amanda did had little effect.

  Amanda didn't have any brothers or sisters to share her inheritance with, so she had gotten it all. But, Stacey wondered, who else knew of the Stone's wealth? Outwardly they lived a middle class existence.

  Completely wrung out, Stacey lay down on Robby's bed, shutting her eyes and drifting to sleep.

  The hallway was dark and seemed to stretch on for miles. There were dozens of closed doors lining the passageway. Stacey could hear Nikki crying, calling out for her mother to help her. Frantically running up and down the hallway, Stacey opened doors, searching for her precious six-year-old daughter. “I'm coming,” she screamed. “Mommy's coming!”

  Stacey woke abruptly, fear permeating her every sense. Trying to orient herself, she sat up on the side of Robby’s bed and saw that his teddy bear had fallen to the floor. She picked it up and put it in its proper place.

  Sadness washed over her as she pictured Amanda's hysterical face. She desperately needed to talk to someone. Dragging herself down the hall to her own bedroom, she picked up the bedside phone and called the car dealership where Jason worked.

  They told her he was unavailable.

  Chapter Six

  The harsh sound of knocking pulled Stacey out of her daze. Hoping it wasn’t a reporter, she looked through the peephole and saw Margie standing on the other side. Taking a deep breath, she opened the door and invited her neighbor in.

  “I don't want to keep bothering you about this,” Margie said, obviously not caring how much she disturbed Stacey. “But what is happening over at Amanda's house?”

  Stacey's experience with this woman had taught her caution. She knew that anything could and would be used against her. The woman was a busybody of the worst kind. Once she had called the police because she thought Robby and Kyle shouldn't be playing at their treehouse by themselves. Stacey had been extremely embarrassed by the accusing tone the officer had used with her.

  Margie had tried to excuse the call by saying she was only concerned with the boys' safety, although she never explained why she hadn't come directly to Stacey and Amanda with her concerns. Ever since then, Stacey was reluctant to talk to her neighbor about anything. In truth, she always made Stacey nervous when she showed up at her door. It was almost always with a complaint and never just to chat.

  “It's really not my place to talk about it.” Stacey said, feeling overwhelmed by all that had happened.

  “Oh, come on.”

  “I'm sorry, Margie.” Stacey couldn't bear the thought of Margie acting triumphant at the news of Kyle's kidnapping. As if she had warned them about this very thing happening.

  At the keen look of disappointment on Margie's face, Stacey said wearily, “Look, if you really need to know, I would suggest reading the paper.”

  “We canceled our subscription because the paper boy kept throwing it in the bushes.”

  “Well, try the television news then, okay?”

  “Fine.” Margie opened the front door and stomped back across the grass to her own house.

  Stacey knew she should try to be nicer toward Margie. She had let the complaints roll off her back the first few times Margie had complained about Robby and Nikki. But I can only be expected to take so much before I have to stand up for myself, Stacey thought.

  Trying to put the woman out of her mind, she tried to think of something other than the tragedy unfolding at her neighbor's house. She thought about what she could make for dinner that night. After all that had happened she doubted she would even have an appetite, but she knew the rest of her family would.

  She went into the kitchen to see what supplies she had on hand. There were cans of vegetables and boxes of dry cereal in the cupboard. The refrigerator wasn't much better. Half a gallon of milk, a couple of eggs and plenty of condiments. She made a grocery list and went out the door.

  Glancing across the street, she saw Mark's car in the driveway. There were also more news people milling about. She bit her lip as she climbed into her car. Wanting to help Amanda, but not really knowing what she could do, she consoled herself with the thought that Mark was home now and would comfort his wife.

  The elementary school was on the way to the store and as Stacey drove by she tried to spot Robby or Nikki among the children running around on the playground. She had to keep glancing at the road as she drove by, so it was with surprise that she looked over at the schoolyard once again and saw Robby talking through the chain-link fence to Mr. Gowen. Slowing as she passed, she honked to get Robby's attention. He looked up from his conversation with Mr. Gowen and waved. Mr. Gowen turned and waved too.

  A prickle of concern worked its way up her neck when she saw Robby talking to the old man. Stacey decided to speak to Robby about it after school. Even though she wanted to encourage her children to be friendly to others, at the same time she wanted them to show caution around adults when she wasn't there to guide them. Especially with what had happened to Kyle.

  The swift stab of fear startled her as she thought about the real possibility of any child, especially her own, bein
g kidnapped. Recalling the nightmare she’d just had where Nikki was calling to her and Stacey couldn’t find her, the feelings of desperation and fear she’d woken with rushed back. She didn’t ever want to have to go through that for real. Like Amanda was.

  Breathing deeply, she tried to distance herself from the possibility of such a thing ever happening to her family. Pushing the horrible notion out of her mind, she concentrated on what she needed to buy at the grocery store.

  As she pulled into the grocery store lot, she looked across the street to where her husband worked. It looked like a slow day. The salesmen were standing around talking, waiting for their next victim to approach. She couldn't see Jason and hoped he was in the office making a sale.

  As much as the public disliked car salesmen in general, that was what supported their family and she knew Jason was the exception to the stereotype. He was a good salesman, an honest salesman, although she knew selling cars hadn’t been his first choice as a career.

  When they'd met in college Jason had been in his second year, working toward a degree in business. Stacey had only begun college and hadn't known what she wanted to do. Jason had always wanted to open his own business, to be his own boss.

  They had married eight months after they'd met. Stacey had become pregnant with Robby almost immediately after the wedding and Jason had insisted on quitting school so he could get a full-time job to support his growing family.

  She hoped one day they would be able to afford for Jason to begin his own business. Lately he'd begun talking about opening his own used car lot. But the way things were going with their finances, it would be a very long time before they could hope to reach that goal.

  Wondering if there was anything she could do to help him reach his goal, Stacey shook her head. It’s up to him to reach for his dream, although I could encourage him, she realized. But I don’t want to be like Mom.

  She smiled, knowing her relationship with her husband was much better than her parents' had been. Then, frowning with disapproval, she thought about her parents.

  Her mother had always pressured her father to achieve more, to provide more for their family. When he had finally gone too far in his quest to give her all she wanted, her mother had left him, not even understanding all he had done had been in an attempt to please her.

  Stacey had been disappointed in her mother's lack of ability to stand by her husband in his greatest time of need, especially after she had been a large part of the reason he had stepped over the line.

  I guess we all have to make our own choices in life, she thought. But if anything happened with Jason, I would stand by him. I wouldn't lose faith.

  Climbing out of the car, Stacey headed toward the entrance of the grocery store. It was one of those warehouse places where the customer packs her own groceries. Stacey didn't mind packing her own food, as long as it saved her money.

  Bagging the produce she needed, she moved onto the meat department. She found the least expensive beef and picked up two pounds, placing it in a plastic bag. On the breakfast aisle she bought only store brands of cereal. As she gathered her items she realized what she could do for Amanda.

  I could make dinner for her and Mark, she thought.

  Happy to have something specific to do for the Stones, Stacey smiled as she unloaded her groceries onto the conveyor belt. Her smile was quickly replaced by a frown as she considered the check she was about to write. Jason would deposit his check that afternoon, and she hoped the money would be credited to their account before the grocery store tried to get the funds.

  Every other week it was the same thing; the cupboard and refrigerator would become bare, payday would arrive, and Stacey would do the marketing, hoping the money would be in the account by the time it was needed. She sighed as she wrote the check, tired of this checkbook dance.

  Pushing the shopping cart out to the car, she placed the groceries in the trunk then climbed behind the wheel and looked across the street at the dealership again. This time she saw Jason standing among the other salespeople and smiled to herself.

  Looking at her watch, she knew she would have to hurry to have time to put the groceries away before she met Robby and Nikki at the school.

  She didn't see the late model red car pull into the dealership lot or the driver talking to Jason.

  Chapter Seven

  “At least getting the money won't be a problem,” Stacey informed Jason, a grim smile on her face. “She has a fortune invested in stocks and other things. They just live off the dividends and Mark's income, you know.”

  They were in the kitchen preparing dinner. Actually, Stacey was doing the preparing and Jason was doing the sampling. She'd told him about the ransom note Amanda had found in her mailbox and felt calm enough to look at the situation with some detachment.

  “Exactly how much money do they have?” he asked. “Mark's never told me and I certainly wouldn't ask him. You and Amanda are pretty close. Has she ever told you how much she inherited?”

  Glancing at her husband before turning back to the stove, she said, “Actually, she did mention one time that her parents had left her two million dollars.”

  He shook his head in astonishment. “I knew they had at least one million.” He gave a low whistle. “But two! Wow! I never guessed they had that much money.”

  She raised her eyebrows in question. “You want to know something else?”

  “Of course. We don't have any secrets.”

  “Apparently, Mark receives a monthly allowance from Amanda.”

  “What?!”

  “That's right. She didn't want to give up any control of her money.”

  He looked at her in amazement. “And he agreed to that?”

  “What other choice did he have? It's her money. He couldn't force her to part with it, could he?”

  Jason drew his eyebrows together. “I wonder if that causes problems.”

  Stacey thought about that as she chopped the tomato for the salad. “It’s a possibility,” she said. “Don’t they say money is the number one thing couple’s fight about?” Thinking about Amanda’s comment that there were issues in her marriage, Stacey wondered if money was one of them.

  Jason bent over the pot of spaghetti sauce, dipping a spoon in for a taste. “I wouldn't know. We don't have any money to fight over.”

  She laughed at their standing joke. “Poor, but in love, that's us.” As she laughed out loud, she allowed herself to smile inwardly as well. The last few days things had seemed better between them and she hoped that was a sign of their future relationship.

  Stacey tossed the salad in a bowl, then put it on the table. The spaghetti and French bread were next. “Before we eat I want to take some of this food over to Mark and Amanda.”

  Jason nodded. “They'll probably appreciate that.”

  Spooning a generous helping of spaghetti into a bowl, Stacey then tossed a small salad and put several warm slices of French bread into a basket and walked out the front door. It was getting dark outside, but that didn't stop the reporters from practically pouncing on Stacey as she walked to the Stone's front door.

  After knocking several times, a man in a suit opened the door and looked doubtfully at the basket in Stacey's hand.

  “Can I help you?”

  The unmistakable smell of food wafted out as Stacey held out the basket. “I brought some dinner for Mark and Amanda.”

  He took the basket from her. “And you are?”

  “Stacey Hunter.” She pointed across the street. “I'm their neighbor.”

  “I'll give it to Mrs. Stone.” He smiled briefly and shut the door.

  Stacey walked back across the street, ignoring the questions that were tossed at her like pebbles. As she entered her home, she went directly into the kitchen where Jason was standing in front of the counter, making some lemonade.

  Stacey walked over to where he was stirring the yellow liquid. “I'm not sure if the guy who answered the Stone's door will let them eat our food.”

&nbs
p; He looked at her quizzically, but didn't comment. She helped him carry the glasses to the table, then called Robby and Nikki to come eat. She noticed Robby was quieter than usual and wondered what he must be thinking about all the commotion going on at his friend's house. She wondered if he had any idea what had really happened. Were they talking about it at school? She made a mental note to talk to Jason about it that evening.

  After dinner the children went into the family room to watch a DVD before getting ready for bed. Jason and Stacey stayed in the kitchen to clean up the dinner dishes. This was a nightly ritual for them. It gave them some uninterrupted time to be together to talk and the only topic of conversation that night was Kyle's kidnapping.

  Whispering so the children wouldn't overhear, they didn't notice Robby wasn't paying attention to the movie, but instead had his head turned so he could make out a few words they were saying.

  * * *

  Robby knew something was wrong with Kyle because Mrs. Hershfield hadn't been at school that day and some kids said she was talking to the police about Kyle. The substitute teacher had even talked to them about being careful of strangers. Everyone was acting weird and the police had been at Kyle's house all day. And Mr. Gowen said Kyle wouldn't be coming to school for a while, but he wouldn't say why.

  Though he could not forget what had happened the previous afternoon, Robby was afraid to tell his mom because he thought he would be in worse trouble if she knew he had been sneaking out. Not only that, he had promised Kyle he wouldn't tell he had been at the treehouse alone.

  Scared and confused, he didn’t know what to do. Then he heard a word that made him even more frightened. He heard his Dad say the word “kidnap.” He knew what that was. That was when a bad person takes you away from your parents and sometimes hurts you. His heart pounded and he suddenly had a pain in his stomach at the thought of Kyle getting hurt.

  He wondered if maybe he should tell his Mom what he had seen yesterday. He could tell she was worried about Kyle. Maybe if he told her what he had seen, she would forget he was supposed to be in his room after school that day. He decided to tell her when she tucked him in.