Concealed (17 page)

Her heart fell at the disappointed tone in his voice. She pulled her hands away from him and clasped them tightly in her lap. “You think I’m an awful person. It’s okay, I know I’m a horrible woman. You won’t be telling me something I don’t tell myself every night.”

“Actually,” he said lifting her chin so he could look her in the eye, “I think you’re an angel. If you hadn’t taken Faith she could have died that night like her mother at the hands of a monster. Her mother asked you to take her and protect her which I can say you’ve done. That little girl is happier and healthier than most kids today. You’re a good mother, Sydney.”

His kind words reopened the floodgates and she cried. She cried for her baby, for Marcy and for all that was taken from Faith by her father. She cried knowing that she would never get to have the life she wanted with Wade and Faith in Elton. It all was going to be taken away from her because of her decisions that day, but she would gladly sacrifice it again for Faith.

“Being a good mother is not necessarily the same as being a good person.”

He surprised her when he scooped her up and pulled her into his lap. Sydney had prepared herself to be shouted at or arrested, but the thought that he would still want to have anything to do with her after he knew the truth threw her off balance. She was completely dumbfounded when he brushed the hair out of her face and kissed her. It wasn’t a gentle kiss either, it was passionate. If his goal was to use his lips to make her forget everything, including her name, mission accomplished.

“So you don’t hate me,” she gasped when she came up for air. Her whole body warmed at the sound of his deep chuckle.

“No, I don’t hate you.” He kissed her again, slowly this time, allowing her to savor it and run her hands over his chest. In the arms of this man, she could believe the impossible was possible.

“I have some questions, though,” he said as he ended the kiss. “Are you up for it?” Not trusting her voice, she nodded her head. “Good. Do you know who’s after you? I need a name.”

“I think it’s Faith’s father. I did some research a few years back. I went online and began trying to retrace what route I might have taken from California. I know it’s ridiculous, but I really wasn’t paying any attention at all. I have a general idea where in Montana I was when I pulled off the highway. I started looking online at land records to find farms in the area near that exit, and who owned them. It took me months, but I think I finally found the right one. There was a farm owned by a man named Ronald Washington. He was a farmer and a member of the local sheriff’s department so that explained why Marcy wouldn’t have wanted to go to the police.” Wade’s head nodded in the affirmative.

“Was there a birth certificate on record for Marcy or a death certificate? Are you sure Washington was her last name?”

Sydney’s head swayed from side to side. “I never could find one. But there’s a lot of land out there in Montana. Plenty of places to get rid of a body. It breaks my heart to think that he might have buried her out there somewhere.”

“Unfortunately, you could be right. Especially if they weren’t married. She could have been a woman he had an affair with, too. No way to know. But someone should have reported her missing, I would imagine. I’ll look into that when I get back to the station.”

Sydney gave him the date this happened and the towns she could remember from when she exited the highway. It was almost six years to the day that Faith came into her life. Wade seemed confident that something would come from his search to give them a lead and he was interested in looking into the police angle. In a small town, it would explain the fear Sydney described in the woman when she brought up the police or 911.

“The only marriage Ronald had was to a woman named Amanda Washington a year later,” Sydney said as she searched her mind for the tiniest of details she had found about Ronald.

“Is he still married?”

“I don’t know, I haven’t checked in a while.”

“Did you get a good look at Ronald that night, or have you seen him since? Could you give me a description?”

“No. That night is crazy in my head. I’ve had so many nightmares about it, and him in particular, that I wouldn’t know what was real and what was my imagination anymore. And even though I’ve felt him watching us or thought that he was coming after us, I never had any real proof until now. There were times I was worried it was all going on in my head, to tell you the truth.”

“Because of your mother.” She nodded in affirmation as she fidgeted with the button on her shirt, not wanting to think about having anything in common with her mother.

“The first year we moved around a lot. It was easier because Faith was so small and we didn’t have too much to take with us. Then we started staying longer, but odd things would always happen after a few months. Mysterious phone calls, dead animals, something destroyed in our yard. Again, things that could have been explained away by kids, vandals, or honest mistakes, but in my heart I knew it was him.”

“So why did you change your last name a year and a half ago? What happened to make you take that step?”

“I started getting calls, daily. The first one came when I was running around trying to make dinner. Faith was crying and someone asked for Sydney Jackson. Because I was distracted, I said ‘Yes, that’s me’, not even thinking. He immediately hung up and I knew I’d made a grave mistake. From then on, whenever we got a call, the person on the other end would sit there and just breathe.”

“I assume you had the cops trace the number that was calling you?”

She shook her head. “What was I going to tell them? The father of the baby I stole is harassing us?”

“You could have said he was a boyfriend or something.”

“And what if they actually tracked him down? I’m sure he would have been more than happy to tell the cops how I stole his daughter. Then I’d be the one in jail and he’d have Faith. There was no record of Marcy’s death. I couldn’t prove anything on my end, but with a simple blood test he could prove Faith was his child, not mine.”

Wade held her and remained silent for a long time. She knew he was digesting every word and it surprised her he wasn’t more critical. He hadn’t condemned her or questioned her judgment yet, but she could feel it coming.

“You know about my past.”

It wasn’t a question he asked, just a simple statement of fact. The tone of his voice told her he wasn’t going to discuss it, he was making a point.

She whispered, “Agnes told me.”

Wade nodded. “We all make mistakes and do things we aren’t proud of. But I think it’s what you do after the mistake that speaks the loudest about what kind of person you are. Did you make a mistake that’s going to have major legal ramifications for you? Yes. But have you given that child a life beyond what she would have had if you had left her behind? Absolutely. No one can question your love and devotion to her.”

“Are you disappointed in me?” It felt silly asking him that, but his opinion mattered. She had to know how he saw her, even if it wasn’t good. The not knowing was going to kill her.

“I’m disappointed I wasn’t there years ago to help you. You did the best you could under the circumstances, Sydney. I can’t tell you what I would’ve done because I haven’t walked in your shoes. But what I know of you now, is amazing.” He kissed her on the forehead and slid her off his lap so he could stand up.

“I need to go to the station to look into a few things. I want to know exactly who we’re up against and see what I can find out about custody of Faith.” Sydney tensed at the mention of Faith and reflexively looked at her emergency pack. Wade picked up on it and took her by the shoulders.

He knew exactly what she was thinking.

“Don’t you dare run off on me, Sydney. I swear I don’t want to take Faith away from you. I want to make sure you can keep her. Let me help you stop him. You don’t have to do this by yourself anymore.”

His words seemed like an answered prayer. She wasn’t alone anymore. After six long years, she had someone else in this world she could count on. It was invigorating and terrifying to think about. It was everything she had longed to hear, but she still doubted his truthfulness. “Really?” she asked as she reached up to brush her hand along his jaw, to make sure he was real. “I don’t know how I can ever thank you.”

“Don’t leave.”

“I don’t want anything to happen to you, Wade. I’d never forgive myself if you were hurt because of me.”

He caught her chin between his fingers. “I’ll be fine. And I swear, I won’t let him hurt you or Faith.”

She closed her eyes and in a show of extreme trust, picked up her emergency kit with everything they needed to run, and she put it in his hands. A look of relief washed over his face. He nodded and slung it over his shoulder.

“I’m going to make sure the house is secure and then I want you to go to bed and get a good night’s sleep. I’ll be down at the station and I’ll have someone drive by every hour. If you hear anything or think something’s not right, you call me and I’ll be here in five minutes.”

She watched him check every window, door, and closet before he left. As the lights of his car disappeared into the darkness, Sydney crawled into bed with a sense of peace that she hadn’t experienced in a long time. Telling him was the hardest thing she’d ever done, but now that it was over, she realized she wasn’t alone anymore. She had Wade by her side.

Ronald Washington wasn’t gonna know what hit him.

“YOU’RE STILL HERE?” SAM
asked Wade just before dawn as he arrived to start his shift. Wade hadn’t slept since he left Sydney’s and his mood reflected that. The middle finger Wade extended to Sam in welcome answered the question. “Sorry, boss. Who knew you weren’t a morning person.” Sam went to his desk and began slathering cream cheese onto his bagel.

The great thing about living in a small town was you knew everybody in the area. The bad thing about living in a small town was that everyone knew everyone else’s business. Be it relationships, employment, or schedules, nothing was a mystery in Elton which was why Sam was very aware of the fact that Wade had been up all night, a night that wasn’t his shift.

“How’s Sydney?”

An innocent question but one that still raised Wade’s hackles more than it should have.

“She’s fine. What do you care?”

His deputy threw up his hands in surrender. “Last night I heard on the scanner you asked for hourly patrols. I thought maybe there was more trouble at her place.”

“I’m sorry,” Wade said with a groan as he rubbed his hand across his whiskered face. He got up from his chair and poured another cup of coffee. He ignored the tiny grounds that floated as he forced the thick black sludge down his throat. There was still more work to do. “I’ve been staring at the computer all night trying to figure something out.”

“Anything I can do to help?” Sam offered. He was a good kid, hardworking and honest. More than anything, he knew how to keep his mouth shut and was a whiz with computers.

Wade leaned back in the chair at his desk. “I’m trying to find information on someone but I don’t have much to go on. I think the name is Ronald Washington and he’s from Montana. Six years ago he was living on a farm way outside of Billings. I know he was married to a woman named Amanda, but then about three years ago, they both vanished.”

“A lot of folks in that area like to go off the grid from time to time. Anti-government and such. I have a cousin up there who says the mountains are covered with people doing just that. They live off the land, do odd jobs, and get paid cash under the table. Maybe that’s what this guy did.” Sam skimmed the papers Wade passed him. “He sold his farm for a fair amount, but the money never made it into his bank account. If he and his wife did go underground, they would’ve had a bit of cash to do it.”

“But after that sale, I can’t find a hit on his social security number for anything. No credit cards, no driver’s license, no banks, taxes, or insurance.”

“Is he in the system?” Sam’s fingers flew over the keys of his computer. “Nothing here in the national database but let me see something.” He leaned closer to the screen, his brows furrowed. Wade craned his neck to get a look at what the kid was doing. “Here. There are a bunch of guys with the name Ronald, Ron, or Ronnie Washington in the penitentiary system in Montana. Is it possible one of these guys is your man? You know cons give bad socials all the time or use fake identities to try and avoid priors following them. Might want to go through their mugshots and see if you can find him that way. Want me to print this list?”

“Can you cross-reference anyone with that name who might have been a recent release, too?”

“For that, I’d have to make a formal request but it should come back in the next day or two. I’ll get it to you as soon as it arrives.”

They both stood up and Wade clapped Sam on the shoulder. “Thanks.”

Sam nodded in acknowledgement and headed out to start his shift. Knowing the deputy as well as he did, before long Sam would end up finding his way over to Pete’s for an early morning cup of coffee and the newspaper. Wade also happened to know the kid was interested in the newest hire at the diner, none other than the coffee scorching Hailey.

Wade returned to his desk to try and finish up a few things, but he was distracted by thoughts of Sydney. He had been thinking a lot about her confession and everything she had told him. In his heart, he knew Faith was better off with Sydney than she ever would have been with her abusive father, but the cop in him, the part of him that believed in the law and rules, was conflicted by her choices.

No matter what happened, he was glad she trusted him enough to share her past, but he found himself struggling with the details. If she was lying about any of it, he was done with her. It wouldn’t be easy—he was more attached to her than he realized—but he’d fallen for a liar once, and he swore he’d never do it again. He’d been taken advantage of, had his heart ripped out, and all for nothing. No matter how gorgeous and sweet a woman she was, if Sydney lied, it was over.

Fortunately, everything he’d found so far corroborated her story. She didn’t know all the details he had on her before she made her confession, or that he had already connected Sydney Ross to the pregnant high school girl reported by her unstable mother as a runaway, but her story matched exactly with what he knew. He made a few calls overnight and found that she had used a different name when she was at the clinic, probably trying to avoid her mother’s, and potentially her boyfriend’s, snooping.

On some level, he was more than a bit disturbed at how well she lied. But when he stepped back and looked at it, she did it when she was protecting someone. Her baby, or Faith, especially. She didn’t lie for her own gain. That eased his mind somewhat, but the uncertainty lingered.

In all his searching, he couldn’t find anything on Marcy. There was no Marcy Washington that he could link with Ronald at any time before or for that short window of time after the incident when he was still on the farm. It was as if she didn’t exist. He could search missing children and runaway reports from the western third of the country, but that could take weeks. There were a few Jane Does that had been found in Montana in the months after Sydney found Faith, but before he could begin the process of matching one of those bodies to the woman who was killed by Ronald, he would need a DNA sample from Faith and he was willing to bet his life Sydney would never go for that.

The day had flown past when he was startled by a text message. What flashed across the screen made him feel like a hypocrite.

We need to talk. I’m tired of waiting.

Tara. She’d been harassing him for about two weeks. She blew into his life every now and then, usually when she needed money, or if she was in trouble with the police somewhere. Mostly she did it just to parade Max in front of him and tear out his heart for the fun of it. He was an idiot for ever getting involved with her. It was ridiculously early for a text from her but she probably had been out all night drinking, or whatever she was into these days, and was just getting home.

Sydney knew the town gossip version of his past and from what she said, she’d caught an eyeful of the two of them in the parking lot, but he highly doubted she knew how often his ex-wife was still slinking around his life, asking for things and threatening to cause trouble.

You have your secrets and I have mine.
Sydney’s words came back to him and he couldn’t help but shake his head. He was just as guilty as she was of withholding the details of his past, and yet he had the nerve to be irritated with her for concealing things from him?

Nice double standard.

He was going to have to tell her the ugly details soon. Tara was becoming more obnoxious. And jealous. She was threatening to tell Sydney her version of events and how he had wronged her. The woman could weave a tale of lies that even a saint would believe. Everything would be carefully designed to ruin what Wade and Sydney might have built together. Tara was a very convincing liar, and before she appeared on Sydney’s doorstep, Wade felt obligated to warn her.

He had no idea how long he had been staring at his computer but the sun was up when he heard his name. “Wade, you have a call on line one,” Mrs. Watts, the receptionist, said over her shoulder. “It’s a David Post?”

This was a call he’d sat by the phone all night waiting for. Thank God Dave, one of the men he had served with, was a lawyer on the east coast and still liked to get up early. He’d emailed him shortly after leaving Sydney’s last night to share with him a hypothetical situation and was interested to get his thoughts on it.

“Dave,” Wade said with a smile as he cradled the receiver against his shoulder.

“Rip, how are you, man?”

Wade winced at hearing his handle from their time together in Iraq. “I’m good, how about you?”

His friend laughed. He had a solid practice back in Boston, and in all the years he’d known Dave, he was someone Wade never argued with, because against Dave, you’d lose every time. “There are plenty of bad guys to keep me busy, that’s for sure. So I got your email.”

“Yeah? And?” The anticipation was killing him. He needed to know how badly Sydney was screwed.

“And I’d say you have a hypothetical shit storm on your hands, my friend. Do you have some time to talk? Hypothetically, of course.”

Over the next forty-five minutes, Dave painted a somewhat grave picture of the situation. If Ronald Washington was Faith’s father, according to Montana law, he could take her away from Sydney. There was no legal adoption of Faith, in fact Sydney would probably be facing jail time for transporting a minor across state lines, kidnapping, and a slew of other offenses they could charge her with. Even if Marcy herself came back from the dead and said she wanted Sydney to keep Faith, Ronald would still have a claim to her as the biological father.

He was beginning to agree that her only chance of keeping Faith was to run.

For someone who had sworn to uphold the law, he was certainly bending his fair share of them on Sydney’s behalf lately, and he wasn’t quite sure how he felt about it. Up to this point, he’d tried not to think about how far he was willing to go to protect them, but sometime soon he was going to have to look himself in the mirror and account for all of his choices. The one thing that wouldn’t change was his need to keep Sydney and Faith safe. She’d made a mistake in taking Faith back then, but the little girl might not have survived that night if Sydney hadn’t intervened, or worse, grown up with an abusive father who would have done God-knows-what to her. Honor or not, he needed to see this thing through with Sydney or he’d never forgive himself.

Strangely enough, when he hung up the phone, he knew the second Sydney walked into the station. It could have been the exaggerated greeting he heard come from Mrs. Watts, or the faint smell of her perfume, or maybe the fact that she was so far under his skin, she was in some ways already a part of him. He met her eye and waited for the awkward smile and wave she’d offer.

God, he really needed to get a life.

He relaxed in his chair and enjoyed the show as she approached his desk. The way she moved was a gift from heaven. She wasn’t even trying to be sexy. If she had, it would have been a turnoff, but the fact that she had a natural seductive quality really caught his eye. She was young, beautiful, and nervous as hell from the way she as wringing her hands together.

“Hi,” she said, playing with her ponytail as it hung over her shoulder.

“Hey.” He motioned to the seat across the desk and she perched herself on the edge. She looked like she was ready to bolt, so he tried a little small talk to try and put her at ease.

“Faith at school?”

“Yeah, I just dropped her off. I-I was actually on my way to work.”

“So what are you doing here?”

“I don’t really know.” She shook her head and seemed to be mustering her courage. “I just wanted to see if…if we’re okay?” she asked in a rush.

“I wasn’t planning on arresting you today at the diner, if that’s what you’re asking.”

She tilted her head to the side as she considered something. “You’ve been here all night.”

“Yep.” He rubbed his hand against the whiskers on his cheek as if to prove it.

The fiery look in her eyes was comical. She tried to put out this tough façade to the world, but he knew, probably better than anyone, just how vulnerable she was. But he let her take her shot at him. “Up all night checking out my story?” She splayed her hands out on his desk, leaning forward.

He took a swallow of coffee just to let her stew and tried not to stare at her chest. “I’d be an idiot not to.”

“And?”

“Everything you told me checks out. I already knew quite a bit about your past before our conversation.” When he saw her eyes flare wider, he explained. “I ran your prints the day I pulled you over. I got your real name and knew about what happened to you up until the time you left California.”