“I was the same way. I was always slender and in good shape. Susan was only five pounds five ounces. When did you talk to Susan last?”
“She called to tell me she was short on money and I gave her two hundred dollars extra to get by until pay day. She lost her job. The company downsized, she said. Did she tell you that?”
“No, but I’m not surprised. She kind of went crazy when that new baby came. She was working most of the time until he popped. I don’t know about that worthless guy that got her pregnant. I think he’s big trouble. Why couldn’t you two just stay together? That baby wouldn’t be here, and she might be alive.”
“Stephanie, do you remember that it wasn’t my choice? She asked me to leave. She wanted more freedom. All I know is that I want my son back. That baby is Javier’s problem. Put the seat back and try to get some rest. We have about five hours to go, and it’s going to get emotional when we get to Key West.” Carl was speaking evenly, but his eyes narrowed behind the sunglasses as he watched the road and thought about Javier Trujillo.
She tipped the seat back and closed her eyes. “What a mess. Ever notice that the people who make messes usually just walk away from them and leave the world for others to clean up?”
It was a rhetorical question, so Carl just quietly drove on, but he couldn’t help but think that Susan didn’t walk away from this one.
* * *
Back in Key West, Rex Jamison, local crime author and former forensic psychology professor, met Detective Sharkey in the lobby of the police station.
“Rex, thanks for coming.”
Rex nodded. “Sounds like you have your hands full again.”
“Yeah, it’s going to be a difficult one. The ones with kids are always difficult for everyone,” Sharkey said, holding the door to the office open for Rex.
“I remember when Enrique was taken. It’s the most horrendous feeling and the most helpless I’ve ever felt.”
“We were lucky and blessed that time. This could be worse. We haven’t a clue about the mother or the situation behind the taking of the kids.” They entered the office and Harris was setting out yellow tablets at the conference table.
Sharkey made a fresh pot of coffee and set the cups on the table and started to fill Rex in on what they had so far.
“Sounds like this one is particularly time sensitive,” Rex noted.
“Yeah. We’re waiting for the mother of the victim and the separated husband to arrive this afternoon. They’re driving down from Miami. What I need to know is what our options are.”
“Of course, your first option is a parent. But you said the two children have two different fathers. The father could have taken the baby or the boy. But it feels a little unusual for taking both unless the mother was unfit.”
“We don’t know that and there are no immediate indicators like drug use or deviant behavior,” said Sharkey. “She physically looks pretty clean and in good shape. But that’s a question to ask the mother and husband.”
“If your missing fathers are cleared, then the next most likely option is that the children are victims of child trafficking. That’s less likely but certainly an option. It’s early in the investigation but it can’t be ruled out yet. Typically, abducted children are brought into the country, there is more money here, but given that, you could have abducted children leaving the country. If that’s the case, they will have to have some venue to get the children out of the country. Passports would be needed for both children, assuming they’re both leaving.”
Sharkey and Harris looked upset.
“That’s the worst scenario,” Sharkey said, sounding like he was trying to comfort himself.
“No,” said Rex, “Things could be worse. But we don’t want to go there yet. I would say that you might not want to confront the relatives with those possibilities until you have more information. I’m somewhat familiar with kidnapping. I had a big case involving victims and it’s one of the most difficult cases to deal with. Counterfeit papers are always a concern, but the good news is the system is much more sophisticated now. But with child trafficking in the news so much now, it’s something that the family will probably consider.”
Rex took a long sip of his coffee and then continued. “Talk to the relatives and see what you’re dealing with. Keep in mind that it’s always possible that they may be involved in the children’s abduction.”
Harris said, “We have two different fathers involved. The father of the baby child may be a foreigner who is different than the father of seven-year-old. We’re checking for him now.”
Rex was nodding. “After you talk to the husband and the mother-in-law, and if you think I can be of help, just let me know. It will be very emotional. Death of a daughter, a husband’s wife, plus the disappearance of the children, is a lot to deal with for both of them. You might want to talk to Sloan and get familiar with the legal end of this.”
“Good idea. I’ll give him a call.”
“In the meantime, I’ll look into the child trafficking in this area. One thing to consider is that if this is child trafficking, and we don’t know that yet, then someone who knows how to traffic people is involved in the time and place of the abduction. People who sell people are not nice people, so be prepared to be careful. Very careful.”
* * *
Later that afternoon, Sharkey got a call that Carl Abbott
