Page 54 of Off Limits Daddy

"We have procedures, but…" She trailed off with a helpless shrug. "It was a chaotic morning. First day back after the holidays."

I tried to understand. After all, it wasn't every day a school had a child that the Crew was looking for, assuming that was what this was. Still, there were plenty of parents and otherunsavory types who targeted kids. "Can you show me where it happened?"

She nodded as she rose from her chair. She led me down the hall to a side door near classrooms—the kind of door that's supposed to be an emergency exit, not an entry point.

"This is where he was found talking to Aiden," she explained, gesturing to the spot.

I examined it closely. "Can I open it without setting off an alarm?"

"It's locked from the outside."

I opened the door and looked out, noting its proximity to the parking lot. Too easy for a quick getaway. "Are there surveillance cameras covering this area?"

"Yes, we have one right there." She pointed to a camera tucked away in the corner above us.

"I need to see the footage."

Back in her office, she logged into the school's security system on her computer. As she pulled up the video files from earlier that day, I leaned forward, my gaze fixed on the screen.

The grainy footage showed Aiden being approached by a man in a dark jacket and baseball cap—typical nondescript attire designed not to draw attention. The man bent down to speak to him, and though there was no audio, his body language seemed friendly.

I studied Aiden's reaction. Did he know the man? It was difficult to tell. Aiden's head was down, except for the few times he seemed to look around as if he hoped someone was there.

"Where's his teacher?"

"The children were returning to their classrooms after P.E."

I looked at Ms. Danvers. "They do that unescorted?"

"His teacher was in the classroom. An aide would have been bringing them back… but there are many children switching classes…"

Having helped raise four kids, I knew it was hard to keep track of them. A whole school of them would be difficult, but still.

"Can we get stills of his face?" I asked.

Principal Danvers zoomed in, but the more she did, the more pixelated the image became. Plus the man's face was partially obscured by his cap. Still, it could be something to work with. The FBI had top-notch technical people who could improve the image and help me figure out who this was. My first thought was Wally, although he seemed to keep his hands clean of the dirty work. Could this be Jonny? Perhaps he wasn't with the fishes after all.

"I'll need copies of these. Can you email them?" I handed her my card.

"Of course." Her fingers tapped over the keyboard as she sent the files to my email.

"If you think of anything else or notice anyone suspicious around here again, call me immediately."

She nodded with more vigor than before, perhaps reassured by my assertiveness or simply eager to offload some of this burden onto someone else—someone like me who chased down bad guys for a living.

As I left the school behind me and headed back to my car, I thought about how close Aiden had come to being snatched away from his new life with Duncan. Up until now, there was no hint that anyone was aware that Aiden could be a witness. So, what changed? I didn't reveal it to anyone I was interviewing. The only people who knew were me, Duncan, Oliver Quinlan and Lindsay McKinnon, and his social worker, Ms. Thomas. Her immediate supervisor knew as well, as she was the one who suggested that Ms. Thomas reach out to us. I thought back to the conversation with Ms. Racine. She knew I was FBI. And dammit,I was the one who accused her of being negligent by placing kids with Wally. Could she be a part of this?

My heart went out to Duncan and Aiden. All they wanted was to be a family. I needed to make sure that would happen. I had to protect Aiden and stop whatever was going on before someone tried again. And they would try again—I could feel it in my bones.

When I arrived back at Duncan's home, he met me as I walked through the door.

"We need more protection," he said, his voice hard as steel.

He was right. While his home had advanced security, he couldn't hide there forever.

"I can arrange for you and Aiden to go into a safe house. I need to make a few calls, but I can have you and Aiden in a new place within a few hours. Why don't you go and pack?"

"Good. Great. I knew you'd take care of things." He tilted his head. "You'll come with us, right?"

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