Willow Pond (23 page)

“Laura, what’s wrong? What’s going on? Erich called me last week, you know. He wanted to know how you were. He’s all torn up.”

Laura glared at her. “Why can’t you mind your own business?”

“Oh, Laura. This is so unlike you. Please talk to me. When’s the baby due?”

Laura sighed and the armor holding her together melted away. “In a few weeks. Did you know tomorrow is the first anniversary of Todd’s kidnapping? What do you expect from me? That everything should be just fine? Well, it’s not. I’m terrified for this baby I’m carrying. I’m terrified that someday, when he’s smiling and toddling around and loving me, he’ll be kidnapped. What happens if he disappears, too?” Tears streamed down her cheeks. “I can’t go through that again.”

“Laura, come on. The likelihood of that happening is almost nonexistent.”

“How can you be so sure? Oh, everything seems so wrong. I don’t know what to do.”

“That’s because you’ve been trying to cope with everything all by yourself. Why don’t you put your feet up? Get some rest. I’ll fix us some lunch. What are you in the mood for?”

“Tomato soup and grilled cheese. It’s what I crave all the time,” Laura said, lying back on the couch.

Virginia covered Laura with a light blanket then went into the kitchen, chuckling to herself. It had been so long since she’d prepared a meal for anyone she didn’t know if she’d be able to. But she managed to find the ingredients she needed. Before too long, soup simmered on the stove and sandwiches sizzled in the frying pan.

If she had known Laura was pregnant she would never have agreed to stay away. She was certain Erich never would have, either. That was a dilemma. Erich was about to unknowingly become a father. He had the right to know. But Virginia didn’t want to go against Laura’s wishes even though the way she was acting made no sense. Laura and Erich loved each other. They belonged together.

“Laura,” she said, sitting beside her on the sofa. “What are your plans for the baby? Are you planning to keep it?”

Laura stared at her in shock. “What? Why would you even ask that? Of course I’m keeping the baby. Why wouldn’t I?”

“Have you thought about how much trouble you’re going to have raising a child as an unmarried woman?”

Laura frowned, looking puzzled. “A little. I wonder if it will affect the baby. That’s what I should be worried about, isn’t it?” Her frown hardened. “But I will absolutely not be forced into going back to Phillip.”

“Laura. I can’t believe this. How thickheaded can you be? Unless the baby is his, which we both know it isn’t, the only consideration you should give Phillip is to ask him for a divorce. Is the baby Phillip’s?”

Laura’s silence gave Virginia the answer she’d expected. “Laura, I’m going to tell you something about myself that I’ve never told anyone. The only people who knew this story were my parents.” She took a deep breath. “When I was sixteen I met a man who was ten years older than I was. We fell in love. Everything was fine until I discovered I was pregnant. Soon after that, I learned the man I loved was married.”

Laura stared at her, not knowing what to say.

“My father, your grandfather, treated me like a pariah. He sent me away to one of those unwed mothers’ homes. You know, the ones run by the cruelest nuns in the world. Anyway, after I gave birth to my son I ran away, determined to make a life for the two of us.”

“Were you planning to raise him on your own?” Laura asked.

“Yes, but that was impossible.”

“How can you compare your situation to mine? You were a child and I’m an adult,” Laura said, sounding annoyed. “They are two completely different situations.”

“No, they aren’t. You’ll suffer and so will the baby. Why do you want to do this to yourself and your baby when you have a man who loves you and who will love the baby? I had no choice. I had to give up my baby. It was the most difficult thing I’ve ever had to do.”

“Virginia, I can’t talk to Erich right now. And the baby isn’t the reason.”

“I don’t understand.”

Laura sighed deeply. “He believes you’re behind Todd’s kidnapping. I can’t live with that. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to live with him thinking that way.”

“What? That’s why?” Virginia asked, incredulous. She shook her head. “No. I won’t stand for you giving up your happiness for my sake. That’s ridiculous. Call him right now. Tell him about the baby.”

“I need time to think. I’m just not sure we’re right for each other. And I won’t make that mistake again.”
She got up and left the room, then returned moments later with an envelope which she placed in her aunt’s hands. “It’s the divorce papers. I signed them earlier and will mail them to the lawyer tomorrow. My divorce from Phillip is almost final.”

Virginia grinned a little. “And how did that go? Did Phillip treat you well?”

Laura chuckled. “Very well. Better than I thought he would, actually. Let’s see ... well, my favorite part is he let me have Willow Pond. He kept the ranch in California and the apartment in New York, but I never cared about either one of those places anyway.”

“Are you happy he gave you Willow Pond?”

“I am. After we find Todd I’m going to take him back there. I know he was only a baby the last time he was there, but I hope he remembers the place somehow.”

Virginia put her arm around Laura’s shoulder. “I like how confident you are about finding him, how you refuse to give up.”

“I’ll never stop searching for him. My life won’t be complete until I find him.”

Chapter Forty-Five

Virginia sat on the edge of the bed and gazed down at the tiny baby nestled in Laura’s arms, all pink and white. Her downy cap of flaxen hair had gathered all the early morning light in the room.

“She is beautiful,” she said quietly. “Though I had little doubt she would be.”

Laura smiled up at her aunt. “She is, isn’t she? Thank you for being here for me, Virginia. It would have been so much harder if you hadn’t been.”

“Laura, Erich Muller has the right to know he has a daughter.”

Laura smiled down at the baby in her arms. She touched the perfect nose with her fingertip. “In time he will.”

Virginia lifted the baby from her mother’s arms and walked to the window. The sun had begun to rise, and the baby’s dainty reaction to the light was comical.

“You still want to name her Rachel?” Virginia asked.

“Yes. Rachel Amanda after my mother and grandmother.”

“I know how much that would mean to them.”

Laura’s eyes shifted from her baby to Virginia. “I’m starved. Can you make me something to eat?”

“What would you like?”

Laura grinned. “Let’s see. How about a cheese omelet with bacon, toast and a pot of tea? Then we’ll see.”

“You are hungry,” Virginia said.

Virginia cradled the baby, remembering the night Todd had been born. It seemed a lifetime ago. “Are you disappointed you didn’t have a boy?” Virginia asked.

“No. A boy would remind me too much of what I lost.” She sighed. “I can’t believe it’s been a year since he was kidnapped.” Tears filled Laura’s eyes and she brushed them away with an impatient swipe. “No. I won’t cry. She deserves a happy mother.”

“You’ll be a wonderful mother to her. Here.” Virginia said, setting the baby back in her mother’s waiting arms. “I’ll get your food ready.”

“Rachel Amanda.” Laura touched the baby’s cheek with her fingertip and she smiled when the tiny face turned instinctively toward her.

“Oh, you’re going to be something, aren’t you, Rachel? Pretty little thing. You look just like your daddy, don’t you?”

The next day Virginia dialed Harry’s extension. “Bring me Rudy’s personnel records, would you? I’ve got a little time to look them over.”

“Might be a few minutes, boss. I’m meeting with a couple of Owney Madden’s boys and I just heard them walk in the door. I don’t want to keep them waiting.”

“How’s the new kid working out?”

“He’s young and has a lot to learn, but he’s smart. I wondered at first if you’d just hired him to piss off that reporter, but you’ve got an eye for talent. He may be a real asset to you someday.”

“Good. When you’re done come to my office. Don’t bring those two, okay? I can’t stand them.”

“Who can? Don’t worry. I’ll make the meeting short and sweet.”

She was on the phone when Harry walked in the door half an hour later. He laid the requested folder on the desk in front of her and opened it.

“Hang on, Paul,” she said into the phone, then motioned toward the door. “Lock it, Harry. I don’t want to take any chances.” Her attention went back to the phone for a few moments. When she hung up, the look on Harry’s face made her smile.

“Paul O’Malley?” He grinned. “Are you two picking up where you left off?”

Virginia laughed. “Twenty years later? Not a chance. Just getting the location of a warehouse in Chicago where we’re supposed to meet in three days.”

“What do you need from me?”

“Pour yourself a drink while I take a look at Strauss’s folder.”

He dropped a couple of ice cubes into a glass and filled it with gin. “Some for you, Virginia?”

She didn’t look up, but shook her head. “I gave up Gordon water months ago. Ginger ale instead.”

After a few more minutes of reading she put the folder down and glanced at Harry, looking pleased. “You are thorough.”

“I do things the way you tell me to do them. So where the hell is Strauss? No one’s heard from him in months.”

“That’s what I want to know. The rat kidnapped Todd and I’ve got enough evidence to hang him. I think he may also be responsible for two murders.”

Harry didn’t seem surprised. “There’s one thing I didn’t put in that folder because it didn’t seem important at the time. A couple of months before the kidnapping I walked in on Rudy scrounging around my desk. When I asked what he was doing, he said he was looking for a set of keys.”

She frowned. “What are you talking about? Keys to what?”

“One of the storage cabinets in the basement.” He sipped his drink. “I told him he was too damn nosey.”

“The keys are all here in my office. But he knew that, because he’d helped Pinella put away a couple of deliveries.”

“Should I call a locksmith and have the locks changed in case he shows up?”

“No, he won’t come here. But you may have hit on something. Maybe he was looking for cash and when he didn’t find any he came up with the plan to kidnap Todd. I wish he’d robbed me instead.”

She was aware there had been talk about her and Rudy. She knew people wondered if she’d gone soft. She and Harry had argued about it once, and she had even considered firing him because she thought he was being disloyal. She changed her mind when she realized he was concerned with her wellbeing. One thing Rudy had taught her through all this was to question people and their motives all the time. No one would ever take advantage of her again.

“What are we going to do about the bastard?” asked Harry.

“The file says he has a cousin or an uncle in the San Francisco area. Did he ever mention anything to you about them?”

“Strauss and I never talked much. I remember hearing something about Berkley, but I don’t know if it had anything to do with Strauss. Want me to ask around?”

“No. I don’t want to arouse suspicion. I’ll have to get the answers I need from Paul.”

There were no flights to Chicago until the following week, which meant Virginia had to drive. The trip, with stops only when necessary, left her so exhausted she checked into the first hotel she could find. She slept for nine straight hours and would have slept longer if a hotel maid hadn’t woken her up, wanting to clean the room.

The next morning she drove to the address of the warehouse Paul O’Malley had given her. He was going to meet her there. She knocked three times. Another round of knocking produced no response, so she tried the door and discovered it was unlocked.

She reached into her purse and fumbled for her gun but came up empty-handed. Just then a figure emerged from the shadows and raced past her, running so fast she couldn’t be certain of what she’d seen. She ran back to the car to look for her gun, then remembered she’d left it at the hotel. How could I be so stupid?

She pulled a flashlight from her glovebox and walked cautiously back into the warehouse. Clicking it on, she shone a pale circle of yellow light into the darkness. Something moved on the ground in front of her, and she gasped when she recognized it was a body. Then she saw who it was. Virginia ran toward him and knelt at his side, trying not to cry. Paul lay in a pool of blood, making awful gurgling noises. His eyes fluttered, then opened wide one last time. Whatever he’d wanted to tell her died with him.

Chapter Forty-Six

For several weeks, Erich heard nothing. Then he got a lead from a friend of his, Tim Scanlon, a crime reporter at the Chicago Tribune. Tim told him Paul O’Malley, the former fiancé of Virginia Kingsley, had been found dead in a warehouse in Chicago.

The first place Erich went when he arrived in Chicago was the offices of the Chicago Tribune. He, Peter Bergen and Tim Scanlon had worked together at a community newspaper in the Bronx before they’d moved on to dailies.

“I hear you’re socializing with the elite,” Scanlon said, lifting one eyebrow.

“That’s yesterday’s news,” Erich said. “Back to business, gentlemen. What else do you have on O’Malley?”

“He was one of Torrio’s drivers. He was liked by everyone: Capone’s people and Torrio’s, which is unusual in this town. Everyone I’ve spoken to thinks an outsider was responsible.”

“Who told you this?”

Tim Scanlon handed Erich a piece of paper. “You need to see this guy.”

Erich found the North Side speakeasy which Tim had scribbled on the paper, and parked his rental on a side street. He didn’t like the neighborhood or the look of the speakeasy, but he followed Scanlon’s directions and knocked on the door three times. The door was opened by a big guy who looked more interested in chewing on a chicken drumstick than in asking Erich any questions.

“I’m here for Rossi,” Erich said.

The doorman continued to chomp on a chicken leg, pointing toward the back of the place with his chin.