Page 35 of The Fix
He picked up the computer and then moved it in front of the chair so he could sit down and study it closely. It was as Cami had described. The space was dim, though a murky light glowed in a corner and the moon shone through the window. It was a mostly barren room that looked like a cabin of some sort with wood floors and planked walls. There was one window with white curtains that had been parted and, just like she’d said, thick black bars that appeared to be made of iron. A bed was against the opposite wall with nothing but a mattress and a thin blanket crumpled at the end. And that’s where the young boy sat against the wall, knees drawn up to his chest. He was awake, even though it was nighttime.
Rex’s heart gave a strong knock as his eyes held on the boy. He looked so small and alone, his posture speaking of his fear and isolation. He made the video larger and homed in on the kid’s face. He did see the resemblance to Cami. It was in the eyes and the nose and the shape of her face. Though he reminded himself that a resemblance alone didn’t prove anything. This might turn out to be some sort of shakedown, using a child who had a similar bone structure.
Thewho,how, andwhatof that possible scenario could come later, though. For now, he was simply gathering information. The kid was wearing a pair of jeans with a hole in the knee that didn’t look like one of those purposeful ones, but rather a more threadbare rip that had been caused by time and wear. They were also too big and too long, the cuffs covering half his shoes, even though his knees were pulled up.
And from what he could see of his shoes, they looked cheap and well worn too. He noticed that the boy’s toe was coming through the nylon at the top of one shoe.
He had on a T-shirt and a zip-up sweatshirt and, while the pants appeared too big, the zip-up sweatshirt’s sleeves were an inch too short on the boy’s skinny wrists.
It was possible kidnappers had given this kid clothes to wear, but it was more likely the outfit he was wearing was what he’d had on when he was taken.
So, the kid was probably poor, wearing hand-me-down clothes that were both too large and too small and overly used.
Not the type of clothes adoring adoptive parents who’d waited years for a baby would put their son in. No, a kid like that would at least—even if he wasn’t wearing the most stylish brands—have clothes that fit.
Rex attempted to download the video to the desktop but was unable to. “I tried that too,” Cami said. “But it wouldn’t let me. I was hoping you’d know what to do. I did record some of it on my phone just so I had evidence, but I couldn’t save it to my computer.”
“A DRM is being used to encrypt the video stream,” he said. “We’d need a decryption key to download.”
“I have no idea what you just said,” she murmured with a huff of laughter, “but I’m glad to know the why of it.”
The kid suddenly lifted his head, eyes focused on the window as if he’d heard a noise outside. Rex turned up the volume on Cami’s computer, and sure enough, the sound inside the room poured through the speaker.
“Oh my gosh, I didn’t even think to turn up the volume,” Cami said with a grimace.
“I didn’t think of it right away either.” There was an owl hooting outside, the sound that must have caught the boy’s attention. Rex turned the volume up to its highest setting and thought he heard ... was that the wind? It was so distant and muted by the glass, it might have been anything. A breeze against the house, the sway of trees. When he turned the volume down a few notches, it was undetectable. Other than the owl, the room was silent, and Rex continued to take stock.
Like Cami had said, there was a bedpan on the floor at the foot of the bed and an empty bottle of water near the side. Rex glanced at the time displayed on the laptop: 8:57 a.m.
“If this is a live feed, he’s in a different time zone than us. Most likely, Pacific. It looks like the sun is going to rise any time now.”
“The family my son went to lives, or lived, in San Diego, California.”
Rex studied the trees outside the window. They were shadowy and difficult to see in the near dark, but Rex was pretty sure by the shape that they were all pines, full and towering. This was no backyard. It appeared to be a forest or a section of woods, and while he wasn’t overly familiar with San Diego, he figured there were several such places within a couple of hours’ driving distance from just about anywhere in California.
“There should be something on the news about this kid by now,” he said.
“I thought so too. I did a search last night, but there was nothing about a missing boy who fit his description. Not in California, or nationally. I mean, that stuff usually gets put out over the airwaves immediately, you know? So people can keep their eyes open.”
“It wouldn’t hurt to do another search now. It might be that the kid didn’t return home from a sleepover or something where his parents thought he was safe all night.”
Rex leaned closer when the boy moved, slowly getting off the bed, clearly being careful not to make any sounds, and Cami pulled in a small breath and leaned in, too, just next to Rex’s shoulder.
The springs on the bed let out a tiny squeak, and the boy froze and then began to move again, this time noiselessly. He put his feet on the floor, his eyes going up to the corner of the room where the light was. He studied it for a few minutes, obviously thinking, and then turned to the door. He hadn’t looked directly at the camera and seemed oblivious to it, so it had to be hidden. Perhaps someone in a room beyond used it to monitor the child.
Outside the window, the sky was just beginning to brighten, murky light creeping around the bars.
The boy put his ear against the wood and listened and then got down on his stomach and put his cheek against the floor as he peered under it. If he saw anything at all, he made no indication. He got to his feet and went over to the window.
“He’s investigating the room,” she said, and her voice was slightly breathless with emotion as if she’d just discovered that the little boy was real. And maybe in a way she had. The kid was showing that he had intentions and intelligence. He was taking stock of his situation and perhaps attempting to figure out what to do.
And he’d waited for very early morning, perhaps wanting a bit of additional light but hoping to investigate his surroundings before anyone arrived.
They watched as the child opened the curtains as wide as possible and used his hand to feel around the frame. Then he pressed his face against the glass, appearing to study the bars on the other side. From their vantage point, the bars looked solid and sturdy and were far too close together to allow for the escape of anyone, even a skinny kid.
The boy ran his palm over the glass and then gave a small push before drawing back. The glass, too, seemed to be solid.
“It looks like woods outside the window,” Cami said. “So why would there be permanent bars on a window in a location like that?”
