* * *
They left early the next morning, hoping to catch Officer Harper before he got too busy. They stopped at the office door and read the plastic plaque, Police Chief Chevy Harper.
“Chief now,” Bailey muttered as Ryan knocked.
He was older and had to be nearing retirement. His hair was completely white, and he wore a spare tire around his midsection. Chief Harper had a very wide and warm smile, though, and it put Bailey at ease instantly.
“No need to knock,” he bellowed, then his eyes rested on them. “Oh, sorry. The officer at the desk can help you if you’re lost.”
“No, sir, I’m Ryan Walker. I called a few days ago about Baby Bailey. We had an appointment for this morning.”
His face froze with a half-smile before he relaxed. “Yes, you did, and I pulled the file already. Come on in.”
The office walls were opaque glass, modern, and looked brand new. The office furniture looked totally out of place in the swanky space, but, then again, so did the occupant. Two hardwood chairs faced the desk, and they looked like they were straight out of Bailey’s elementary school. In the corner sat an old couch from the seventies that must have hosted many naps over the years. The only new furniture to match the new office was the glass desk, covered in paperwork and coffee rings
“Thank you, Chief Harper. We really appreciate your help,” Ryan said as he and Bailey sat across from his desk.
“No problem,” he said, plopping down in the desk chair. “No problem at all. It was an unusual case and kept me up nights for a long time. Fortunately, it had a happy ending.”
“Chief, this is Bailey Morton,” Ryan said.
“Oh.” He stood back up and raised a hand to shake Bailey’s. His smile broadened, and she felt like he fought to keep from embracing her. “My goodness, all grown up. Well, welcome back to Appleton, Ms. Morton.”
“Please, call me Bailey.” She smiled back and actually felt welcomed. He had a very relaxing presence for someone who worked in law enforcement. Usually, cops had very cold personalities. She imagined it made it easier for them to do their jobs and not get attached too easily.
“How are your mother and father doing?”
She lowered her eyes, then lifted them back up to meet his. “They’ve both passed. My mother just a few weeks ago. I lost my father when I was twelve.”
“Oh, dear, I’m sorry to hear that. They were the best kind. Of course, we grieved the loss years ago when y’all moved west. Couldn’t blame them, though. Hard to raise a child with all that attention. Everyone in town knew the story, and your folks got no peace.”
“Well, it worked. Nobody knew anything about it until my mother died. Not even me.”
Harper stared at her for a long time, then cleared his throat. “Your parents didn’t tell you about the abandonment?”
“No, sir, they didn’t even tell me about the adoption.”
“Well.” He paused for a long moment. “I guess they thought it was for the best.”
“Chief Harper, we’re hoping to find out something new about Bailey’s birth parents. It’s a hard thing for her to swallow, not knowing where she comes from. Is this something you can help us with?”
“Son, I checked every avenue possible and couldn’t find anything. And I mean everything. I thought for sure she was born to a drugged-out teenager who didn’t want to tell her parents she’d gotten pregnant. I just couldn’t prove it. Then I thought maybe a single woman had given birth and was unable to keep her. I checked every hospital within a thousand miles. I even checked into pregnant women’s deaths, thinking maybe she’d been ripped from the womb of some poor lady in the late stages of pregnancy. Nothing.”
Bailey felt sick. The possibility of being stolen from her mother’s womb had never occurred to her. She must have looked pale because Harper gave her an apologetic smile.
“We appreciate all the time and effort you put into the search all those years ago,” Ryan said. “If you haven’t found anything new, is it possible to share what little you do know?”
Harper nodded and flipped the file cover open. “I don’t think it would hurt anything.” He placed a pair of reading glasses on his nose and started to read from his notes. “Bailey was found on the north side of the Mortons’ yard, the side yard that faced an empty field. A juniper bush bordered the yard, but ended about six feet from the back fence, which is where Mr. Morton stored his trash cans.” He glanced up for a moment then read on. “Mr. Morton heard the clanking of the cans, which is what caused him to go outside.”
Harper glanced up at Bailey, and as much as she wanted to react, she didn’t. She didn’t want to give him a reason to stop reading. “She was wrapped in two blankets. One was pink, thin, and wrapped around her fairly tight—this is what Mrs. Morton said. The second was a white blanket with little pink flowers embroidered along the edges.” He ran his finger along the page and said, “She…you, Bailey, was warm when Mr. Morton picked you up, so you hadn’t been out in the cold for very long. He took you inside the house directly, where Mrs. Morton looked you over. She said you were unharmed from what she could tell and that you didn’t even cry.” He flipped the page. “The doctor who examined you estimated you were about six weeks old and in excellent health.”
“Do you know— Did my father say if he’d seen
