Page 91 of Winter Vows

“For now we can work on the assumption that he drove that car here,” Justin said triumphantly, then bellowed, “Becky!”

“I’m right here, not in the next county,” she retorted from just outside the door.

“Call those hotels back and check to see if this tag number is on any car in their lots.” He added a description of the car, as well. “For all we know he could have put stolen plates on it by now.”

“Or stopped off and registered it in another state, if he’s planning on settling someplace new with Bobby,” Dylan said thoughtfully. “Damn. Have you called his employer in Miami?”

Justin nodded. “First thing this morning after we knew for sure he had Bobby. As far as his boss knew, Paul is just on a two-week vacation.”

Dylan couldn’t hide his surprise. “What did you make of that?”

“Either he was covering his tracks or he fully intends to return home in a couple of weeks.”

“He can’t go back with Bobby,” Dylan protested. “Does that mean he intends to give him back to Kelsey before he goes home?” He shoved away from the desk and started to pace again. “Is this some sort of temporary game with him?”

“I’d give anything to be able to get inside this guy’s head,” Justin said. “I can’t figure out if he’s got a screw loose, if he’s desperate, or if he’s just plain mean.”

“Or if he’s just a dad who misses his son,” Dylan said quietly.

Justin’s gaze narrowed. “You sound sympathetic. Whose side are you on here?”

“Kelsey’s, of course,” he said, but he couldn’t hide the defensive note in his voice.

“You sure of that? Because if you’re not, I’ll see to it you’re off the case and out of town before you know it.”

“Look, I’ll admit to having a custody issue of my own, but it’s not influencing how I handle this case. I’m on Kelsey’s side.”

“I sure as hell hope so,” Justin said, his tone and his steady gaze a warning.

“If that changes, you’ll be the second to know,” Dylan promised. “The first person I’ll tell is Kelsey.”

People kept coming and going. It was driving Kelsey just a little bit crazy. They all meant well. They all wanted to help, some by offering to join the search, some by bringing food for all the other people dropping by, some just by expressing their concern.

The one person she wanted to see, Dylan, hadn’t been by in hours. Nor had he called with any news. Lizzy had kept her from calling him by reminding her that he and Justin were doing their jobs.

“Leave them alone and let them work,” Lizzy said. “Now I am going to shoo everybody out of here and you’re going to get some rest.”

Before Kelsey could protest, Lizzy pointed her toward the stairs. “There’s a phone by the bed. If it rings, you’ll be able to grab it. If you can’t sleep, fine. At least close your eyes and rest. Otherwise, you’re going to collapse. The clinic’s going to be a madhouse when we open it again. I can’t afford to have the pediatrician out sick.”

Kelsey had finally started toward the stairs, but her head snapped back. “You closed the clinic?”

“Who was going to treat anybody? You and I are both here. People will just go to Garden City if there’s an emergency. That’s what they did before the clinic opened. Besides, I’m pretty sure my father has forbidden anyone to have a medical emergency while we’re in the midst of this crisis. You know how people around here listen to Harlan Adams.”

Kelsey chuckled. He very well might have. He would have been affronted if anyone dared to defy him, too. When her chuckle threatened to turn into hysteria, she knew Lizzy was right. She needed sleep.

Still, she went upstairs reluctantly. One of the reasons she’d avoided going to her room was because to get there she had to pass Bobby’s. She hadn’t been sure she could bear to walk by it, knowing it was empty, that he might never see it again. Now, she dragged in a deep breath and paused in the doorway.

The room was exactly the way it had been when he’d disappeared, a mess. She smiled at the clutter, something she didn’t always do. She had bought a huge old trunk at a garage sale and painted it bright colors. It was meant to be a toy chest, but as far as she could tell nothing was in it.

Bobby’s favorite toys—and he had almost none that weren’t favorites to hear him tell it—were all over the floor, scattered under the bed, and piled on the colorful desk that had been one of his birthday gifts from Harlan Adams. Stuffed animals Bobby claimed to be getting too big for still seemed to find their way onto his bed. She went in and picked up his Pooh bear.

Well-worn from all the loving a little boy could give it, Pooh smelled of grass stains and orange juice and Bobby. The mixture of scents brought tears to her eyes and she sank down on the edge of the bed feeling lost. Had Bobby been able to sleep without his beloved bear? Had he asked for it? How had Paul consoled him? By buying him a replacement? Or just ordering him to be a big boy and forget Pooh? That sounded more like Paul.

Suddenly she was sobbing, hot, scalding tears of fury and betrayal this time. Clutching the fragile bear, she rocked back and forth, letting her tears roll down her cheeks until they soaked her blouse and eventually Pooh himself. He’d seen his share of tears before, she knew, and her own mixed with Bobby’s.

“Hey, hey, what’s this?”

She didn’t have to look up to know it was Dylan. His voice was becoming as familiar to her as her son’s. She felt the bed sink under his weight and the next thing she knew he had gathered her close, Pooh smushed between them. His murmured words of comfort were mostly nonsensical, but it was the sound of his voice that soothed, the strength of his embrace that gave comfort. She gave herself over to it, letting the tears flow.

---