Profile of Fear: Book Four of the Profile Series (Volume 4) (27 page)

“I found out how miserable my life would be without you. Looking for you and not being able to find you was torture.” Mollie stroked Hailey’s hair. “The doctor told me about doing the rape kit. If you want me, I’ll be there every step of the way with you.”

Sighing with relief, Hailey held her mother’s hand. “Thank you, Mom.”

“Honey, did the man rape you?”

“Mom, I can’t remember what happened. I don’t know if Carlos raped me or not.”

“The doctor told me that you may have been drugged with Rohypnol.”

“I think it was in the water he gave us.”

“At any rate, I think the rape examination is a good idea. Dr. Peterson said she’d come get us within the hour.”

“I’m scared. Don’t leave me.” Hailey looked so young and frail.

“I’ll be there with you holding your hand. Not going anywhere.”

Mollie helped Hailey adjust the head of the bed so she was in a sitting position, and then she straightened the sheets and blanket.

“Does Bryan know that I am here?”

Surprised that Hailey would ask about him, she tilted her head. “He knows. Bryan’s been worried sick about you. We made missing posters with your photograph. Bryan wallpapered the town with them. He’s waiting outside in the hallway.”

“Please ask him to come in. There is something I need to say.”

Mollie went into the hallway, nodded at the deputy posted outside Hailey’s door, and called for Bryan to join her inside. Once in the room, Bryan’s face beamed as he went to Hailey’s bedside.

“I can’t tell you how good it is to see you.”

“Hello, Dr. Pittman.”

“Please call me Bryan. Dr. Pittman sounds way too stuffy.”

“I want you to know that I want you and Mom to be happy. I know you love each other. It’s okay with me. She was lucky to find you.”

“Does that mean I can start coming to your band performances?”

Hailey pretended to grimace, then broke out in a big smile. “Yes.”

“How about your soccer games? I could be the guy cheering the loudest in the bleachers.”

Nodding, Hailey let out a giggle, and Mollie didn’t think her heart could take much more. The two people she loved most were laughing together in this room. Maybe they could be a family after all. Perhaps she’d get her happily ever after.

Bryan removed a small box from his suit jacket and handed it to Hailey.

“What is this?” She asked.

“Guess you’ll have to open it to find out.” Bryan said with a smile.

Peeling the wrapping away revealed a brand-new iPhone. Hailey’s jaw dropped open and she stared wide-eyed for two full seconds. “You got me a new cell?”

“I heard you might be needing one.”

Chapter Sixty-four

Bryan’s lake house was a wonderful reprieve from their dark days of searching for Juan Ortiz. It would have been easy for Robynn and Cameron to think they were on vacation instead of providing a safe house for an endangered little girl.

Becca giggled as Godiva barked at a family of ducks that floated lazily near the shoreline. Cameron and Robynn sat at a picnic table, watching hotdogs and hamburgers sizzle on the grill. Across the lake some young kids were playing at the water’s edge; a group of older kids in deeper water were swimming and splashing each other. Digging her fingers into an ice chest for a bottle of water, Robynn snagged one and handed it to Cameron, who was smoothing a coat of sunscreen on Becca’s little arms.

“That call I took a while ago was Gabe. He talked to Mollie. Hailey wasn’t raped by Carlos Rodriguez.”

“I’m so relieved.”

“There’s something else. He found Lea Essick.”

“Isn’t she one of the girls that disappeared from the mall a month or so ago? Did he find her alive?”

Cameron nodded. “She’s alive. He found her during an Internet search on Backpage. There was a photo of her scantily dressed under the heading ‘Casual Encounters.’ The ad described her as young, with a desire to meet dirty old men.”

“How did he know it was really Lea?”

“Her mother identified her. Lea has a birthmark in the shape of a heart on her shoulder. You could see it in the photo.”

“How did he get to her?”

“Gabe answered the ad and made a ‘date’ to meet with her at a Hampton Inn off I-74. At first, Lea wouldn’t answer to her real name or answer any of his questions. Her traffickers had shown her a photo of her mother and threatened to kill them both if she ever tried to get away. When he showed her his private investigator ID and told her that her mother had hired him, she broke down.”

“That poor girl.”

“Gabe said she identified Carlos Rodriguez as the man who abducted her from the mall. She also said that she’d seen Juan Ortiz as recently as two days ago, when he announced to the girls he was taking over Carlos’s business.”

“Another possible witness for the prosecution.”

“Gabe returned Lea to her mother, but he said it was going to be a long road for both of them to heal after that kind of experience.”

Robynn gestured with her head to the hot dogs and hamburgers on the grill. “Looks like they’re almost done.”

Cameron flipped the meats and then headed toward the kitchen inside. “I’ll get the potato salad, condiments, and that amazing chocolate cake you made.”

“I’ll help.”

Robynn had opened the refrigerator door when she heard a scream, crying, and then loud barking. Becca!

She ran outside to find that Becca was yelling at Godiva. Each step the little girl took toward the lake, Godiva pushed her down to the ground. They were nearly a foot away from the water.

“Becca!” Robynn screamed as she hurried to the water’s edge. Reaching Becca, she lifted the little girl until her feet dangled helplessly above the ground.

Cameron rushed to her side. “What happened?”

Tears flowed hot and humiliating down Robynn’s face. “It’s my fault. What was I thinking going inside the house when a toddler was this close to water? I am so sorry.”

Cameron arms encircled them both in a hug. “Hey, everyone is okay.”

“She wouldn’t have been okay if Godiva hadn’t prevented her from getting to the water. The dog saved her life.”

Chapter Sixty-five

That night, Robynn’s bedroom was next to Cameron’s and it was all he could do to keep himself from breaking down her door. He’d never wanted a woman like he wanted her—in his bed, and involved in every aspect of his life.

His cell phone sounded. It was Robynn.

“What if I told you that the most I can handle right now is to be held?”

“I’d tell you to unlock the door. I’d ask you to trust me.” He arose from his bed and moved to Robynn’s door, his heart beating out of his chest. Cameron whispered a prayer for her to gain the strength she needed to lay down her barriers and trust him, let him love her.

For a minute, he thought she’d backed out, until he heard the click of the lock. The door slowly opened, and soon Robynn stood before him wearing an oversized Indiana State Police T-shirt. Her eyes were huge with fatigue, and he wondered when the last time was that she slept through the night.

Leaning against the frame of the door, he wore only boxer shorts and a slow, sexy smile that uniquely belonged to Cameron Chase. His gaze slid down her body before rising to meet her eyes. As he stared down at her, she could feel the heat sizzling in his dark brown eyes. But he just gazed at her for the longest time before he reached out to touch her hair, just the lightest stroke, and it was her undoing.

Robynn wasn’t cold, but she began to tremble, and crossed her arms over her breasts. Closing her eyes, she drew in a slow, calming breath. Before she could exhale, she felt his strong arms encircle her body, making her feel things she’d thought impossible to ever feel again. Loosening her arms, she wound them around his waist to press her body closer to his, and the world melted away. Effortlessly, he scooped her up, and gently placed her on the bed. Lying down beside her, he pulled her closer until her head was on his chest and one leg was thrown across his hip.

This was when he would initiate sex. She was sure of it. He had to be as turned on as she was. Most men would, but he didn’t. Instead he lightly stroked her arm and kissed the top of her head. Reaching for her hand, his fingers intertwined with hers, sending shivers up her arm.

“I know a thing or two about loss, Robynn.” His low voice echoed through her like a lingering caress. “I know what it’s like to be only a child and lose both parents. That young, you’re not quite old enough to understand the finality of death. ‘Mommy and Daddy are in heaven’ means nothing to a child, who waits for them to come home like they always did.”

Robynn closed her eyes, willing herself not to cry. She snuggled closer to him and realized there was so much more to this man than a handsome face.

“Losing Mom was tougher than losing Dad. I was still a child, but old enough to understand she wouldn’t be there to chase the monsters from under my bed, or out of my closet. She wouldn’t be there at bedtime when I kneeled to say my prayers. And how I envied the other kids who had mommies to dry their tears when they hurt themselves, and cuddle them after a nightmare woke them screaming out of a sound sleep.

“I’m not saying that Brody didn’t do his best. I’m saying that I’ve had a close and personal experience with loss. It can eat at your soul until nothing’s left, if you let it.”

She swallowed hard, nodded, not trusting her voice.

“I didn’t talk about it with anyone else, either.”

“I just can’t.” Robynn clenched her teeth against the wave of hopeless, bitter pain. She didn’t know if she was strong enough to relive the memories and pain of losing her husband, her detective, Alex Easton, and then almost losing her daughter to a hit and run. And today she would have been responsible for losing Becca if she’d fallen into the lake.

“It’s okay. I’ll be here for as long as it takes.” He rolled her on her side and curled around her body like a warm glove, his hard chest against her back, his arms wrapped around her. “You need sleep, Robynn, the kind of sleep that makes tomorrow a better place to be. It will get better. I promise.”

Soon she heard his soft breathing as he eased into slumber. His spicy, masculine scent surrounded her, making her feel safe and warm. Robynn closed her eyes, curled her fingers around his arm, and fell into the deepest sleep she’d had for a long, long time.

Chapter Sixty-six

The next morning, Cameron cooked cheesy scrambled eggs, Becca’s favorite, while Robynn dressed his little girl in a yellow checked dress with a white pinafore. Godiva sat at Cameron’s feet, waiting for a morsel of egg to come her way. Picking up Becca, holding her to her chest, Robynn moved to where Cameron was cooking at the stove and kissed him lightly on the cheek. He smiled, turned, and pulled them both into a group hug.

“Anyone up for some cheesy eggs, toast, and orange juice? Gabe and Kaitlyn should be here any minute to start their shift. Hope I made enough for everyone.” He filled their plates while Robynn adjusted Becca in her high chair.

Robynn glanced at the skillet-full of food and laughed. “I think you’ve made enough to feed a small army. I vote for coffee, and keep it coming.” Robynn sleepily rubbed her eyes and sat down at the table. She handed Becca’s sippy cup to her while Cameron poured some dog kibble into Godiva’s bowl.

Cameron set their plates of food before them, and then filled Robynn’s cup to the brim with the hot brew. He fell into his chair and reached for his cell. There was a text from Henry Stephens at the jail.

“Message from the jail. Diego attempted suicide last night and was put on suicide watch—still in solitary away from other prisoners. It seems a man came to the jail yesterday asking about him, but was told he was not there, just as I instructed. Diego heard about the visitor and was hysterical. He kept repeating that Juan Ortiz would kill his mother. They had to give him a sedative to calm him.”

“Is his mother still at the safe house on Washington Street?”

“Safe and sound, but he doesn’t know that.”

“Now that he’s had time to stew a bit, perhaps he has more information to give us.”

“A definite possibility.” Cameron shoveled in his eggs and gulped his coffee down as he simultaneously helped Becca with her food and sippy cup.

“Robynn, I have an idea. It will require a lot of coordination and there’s an element of danger, in addition to an extraordinary amount of trust I’ll need to give to a pint-sized petty criminal I barely know.”

“Okay, you’ve got my attention.” Robynn leaned forward in her chair. “Tell me about it.”

“It will be dangerous. If you don’t want to be involved, I’ll understand.”

“Seriously? I’m already involved and I want to be—resolving this situation, and falling in love with you. Where do I sign up?”

Cameron stared at her with surprise, she stared back in challenge. The moment he’d been waiting for had arrived. Robynn loved him and he loved her right back.

Chapter Sixty-seven

Trembling, Diego gripped the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white. His breath burst in and out as he waited for Juan. Nervously, he fingered the knife he’d strapped to his ankle. There were two ways Sgt. Chase’s plan could go, and one of them could get both him and his mother killed. Juan Ortiz would kill his mother first, cutting her into pieces, and make him watch.

Pushing that image to the back of his mind, Diego took a deep breath, willing himself to calm down before Juan Ortiz arrived. The man could sense fear a mile away. He’d convinced Sgt. Chase it was too dangerous for him to wear a wire, so he was on his own. He wondered how fast the cop in the unmarked car at the corner could get to him if he needed help. If he wasn’t convincing, he had no doubt he would die.

Soon Juan pulled up to the convenience store driving an old Dodge Dart and made his way to Diego’s vehicle. There was no mistaking the pissed-off expression on his face and Diego’s heartbeat raced, nearly exploding out of his chest.

Juan jumped into the car, slamming the door behind him. “Where the hell have you been? Why haven’t you answered my calls?”