“This suggests the killer isn’t a proficient baker,” Flora said. “Maybe not a member of the Stillwater Dozen?”
“Unless he, or she, is attempting to throw the police off the scent? Or, when plotting the crime, perhaps the finer details of the recipe weren’t important?” Leon tried to picture the sort of person who would cold-bloodedly bake that pie and place broken glass in it, planning all the time to offer it to a child. “I guess the police may be able to check on sales of cherry pie filling and pie crust.”
Flora’s despondent expression told him she thought as little of that idea as he did. After thanking James, they headed out to the parking lot. Once they were in the car, Leon drew a breath.
“Flora, I need to talk to you...” He swore softly under his breath as his cell phone buzzed. “Why? Why now?”
She smiled. “Answer it. It could be Laurie.”
He drew his cell from his pocket, his heart dropping when he saw the caller display. Daisy’s Daycare. With fingers that felt clumsy, he swiped to answer.
“Dr. Sinclair?” Although her voice was oddly muffled, he could tell it was Tegan. His blood turned to ice as he realized she was crying. “Please hurry. I’ve already called the police...”
As Leon sped toward the daycare center, Flora alternated between feeling completely numb and totally terrified. Her stomach clenched in a hard, cold knot of nausea, and she fought off the light-headedness, willing herself not to faint. Something was terribly wrong. Her precious babies were in danger, and every instinct in her was crying out to go to them.
She pressed her knuckles to her temples, feeling as though she might go crazy before they even got to Main Street and found out what was going on.
“Hang in there.” Although Leon’s voice was shaky, his hand on her knee restored some of her sanity. “Just a few more minutes.”
She focused on his touch, staring at his fingers, telling herself to stay calm. It could be nothing. A minor accident. A bumped head. Stevie had gotten his arm stuck again. Who was she kidding? Tegan had called the police...
As soon as Leon drew to a halt in front of the daycare center, Flora was scrambling for the door handle, tumbling from the car and almost falling over. The few seconds it took her to run into the building were the longest of her life. Once she and Leon passed through the security system at the reception desk and were admitted to the main play area, her worst fears were confirmed. There was no sign of the sweet, familiar faces of the twins.
“Tegan is in the kitchen with Detective Nolan.” One of the assistants, her face pale, directed them to a room at the rear of the building.
As they stepped inside, Tegan, who was seated on a chair with her back to the door, turned her head, and Flora gasped. Tegan’s left eye was swollen closed, and a lump the size of a golf ball bulged above her cheekbone. Blood dripped from her nose down the front of her shirt, and her bottom lip was split. Joe Nolan held a cold compress to the back of her neck.
Although there were obvious questions about how she got in that state, Flora had other things on her mind. “Stevie? Frankie?”
Her eyes searched the small room, even though it was obvious that the boys weren’t there.
Tegan choked back a sob. “Daisy took them.”
Flora’s head began to spin, and her knees gave way. Leon caught her as she lurched forward.
“What do you mean she ‘took them’?” Leon’s voice sounded far away, dulled by the roaring of blood in Flora’s ears. She hooked an arm around his waist and held on tight, refusing to give way to the dizziness. Her boys needed her to stay strong.
“I’m so sorry.” Tegan was obviously having trouble speaking because of her injuries. “I tried to stop her.”
“Why don’t you tell us exactly what happened?” Joe said.
Tegan gulped in air and sat up straighter. “No one really comes into the kitchen at this time of the day, but I had a headache and I needed some water to take painkillers. When I opened the door, I saw Daisy going toward the exit with Stevie and Frankie. We were all on high alert to take care of the twins, so I knew straight away something was wrong. I asked her what was going on and she...she attacked me.”
Flora thought of the assault on Raj. He had been subjected to the same fury as Tegan. When he was asked if his assailant could have been a woman, Raj had been undecided. Daisy was as tall as Raj, with a powerful, muscular build. Was she his attacker?
She has my boys...
“I tried to fight her. I couldn’t even call for help, or tell the boys to run, because she was punching me in the face, coming at me like a boxer in a fight. Then she shoved me back and I hit my head on the corner of the cabinet. I fell and maybe blacked out for a few seconds. When I managed to get to my feet, there was a car pulling away from the staff parking lot.”
“A car?” Joe said. “Not Daisy’s usual vehicle?”
“No,” Tegan said. “It was an SUV with blacked-out windows.”
“That sounds like the vehicle that tried to run me off the road.” Flora plunged further into the sensation that she was wading through her own nightmare.
“I’m going to need details of that vehicle and Daisy’s cell phone number,” Joe said. Once Tegan had given him the information, he moved fast, making calls to his colleagues in the Stillwater Police Department and the West County Sheriff’s Office.
“What’s
