Page 172 of State of Alert

“I can. They’ve been disgusting from the start. Imagine not showing a scrap of compassion for your daughter’s devastated children.”

“I can’t. I would’ve been on the first plane to take them home and love them forever.”

“I think a lot about what would’ve become of them that night in the hospital if Nick and I hadn’t already been licensed foster parents.”

“Thank God you were and that you stepped up for them when they needed you most.”

“We love them so much. They’ve only been with us for a short time, but it’s like they’ve always been part of us. I can’t imagine life without them.”

“You won’t have to. The minute Andy tells their lawyer you’re on to their scheme, they’ll run away with their tails between their legs. And then you and Nick will adopt the three of them, and no one will ever be able to threaten your family again.”

As if Eli had heard what Freddie said, the BlackBerrybuzzed with a new text from him.I’ve also been thinking a lot about the adoption idea, and the more I consider it, the more I think it makes sense to shut the door on this bullshit forever. I talked to Candace, and she agrees that it would protect all of us, and she knows how much you guys mean to me and the twins. What do you think of Armstrong-Cappuano?

Sam’s eyes instantly filled with tears.

“What?” Freddie asked. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” she said softly as she handed the phone to him so he could read Eli’s text. “Nothing is wrong. Everything is just right.”

Sam and Freddiespent three hours sifting through the contents of Zoe’s and Jada’s bedrooms. What stood out to Sam after the first hour was how neat both rooms were, which was in sharp contrast to the mess in Scotty’s room most of the time.

“Is the neatness a little weird?” she asked Freddie as they were finishing up.

“I think it’s intentional. They knew we’d end up here and were ready for us. Or Elaine cleaned their rooms when she was home alone on Sunday.”

Sam peeled off the latex gloves she’d worn to search the rooms. “Possibly. I hate that we wasted our time.”

“Nothing is a waste of time if it checks a box.”

“That’s true, I guess.” She checked her watch, saw it was nearly six and decided to call it a day. “Let’s go home and regroup at eight tomorrow. I’ll hand off to Carlucci.”

“Sounds good.”

They checked in with the CSU detectives still on-site before they left the house.

“Find anything interesting?” Lieutenant Max Haggerty asked.

“Not a single thing.”

“Us either. We’re thinking someone did a sweep in anticipation of our investigation.”

“We picked up the same vibe upstairs.”

“What’re you thinking?” Max asked as he rubbed the back of his neck. He and his team had been working nonstop lately because of the scene at Stahl’s house.

“I’m almost positive the older daughter and her boyfriend took out the mother. They’re on the run, so they’ve more or less confirmed my hunch by running. The marshals are working on finding them.”

“How old are they?”

“Seventeen and eighteen.”

“Damn.”

Sam’s phone rang with yet another number she didn’t recognize. “Holland.”

“This is Sergeant Walters. I wanted to let you know that I’ve requested the data from the second cell phones and emphasized the urgency. I’ll keep you posted.”

“Thank you.”

---