Trapped Read online

  “Chief, I got an FBI agent here who’s insisting he has to talk to you.”

  “Put him on.”

  “Goodman, this is Agent Eugene Jackson from the Cleveland office. We need to talk. How soon can you meet me at the station?”

  “About what?”

  “I’ll explain when you get here. When will that be?”

  Nate looked at Angelina.

  She shrugged.

  “Be there in ten minutes or so.” He looked at Angelina. “Probably more like fifteen.”

  “I’ll be waiting.”

  Nate hung up and looked at Angelina. “I wonder what that’s about. Maybe the guys in the SUV really were FBI. I’ll drive you back to your house first.”

  “Good. I’ll get my car and keep looking for her.”

  “I don’t like that idea.”

  “Why not?”

  “It might not be safe. If those men at her house really were sent from the Perez family and not FBI, we have no idea how far they’ll go to get back their employer’s grandchild.”

  ~*~

  Nate parked his car and walked into the station. A man was pacing at the other end of the room. He was African-American and bald. Not the description of the either man Angelina had encountered. It looked as if he were talking—more like ranting—to someone. He would pace one way and then the other. His hands never stopped moving. Nate wasn’t about to let the FBI come in and bully his officers, no matter the reason. Nate hurried into the station.

  He’d stopped pacing by the time Nate reached him. “Agent Jackson? I’m Nate Goodman. How can I help you?”

  The two men shook hands.

  “It’s more a case of us helping you.”

  “We might have a problem.” Leslie gave a little wave as she stepped around Agent Jackson.

  “Leslie, what are you doing here?”

  “Where else would I be when there’s a problem in my old stomping grounds?” Her voice held a hint of pleasure that she’d been able to shock him. “Nice to see you, Nate.”

  “Always nice to see you, too. Why is the FBI here?”

  “Because we have a situation,” Jackson said.

  “And what would that be?”

  “The Bonita and Carlos Perez situation,” Leslie said.

  His stomach twisted. “I didn’t know it was a situation. What’s the problem?”

  “We received a tip about a plan to kidnap Carlos Perez and take him to Mexico.”

  His worst fear became a reality. His one little phone call had put them in danger—and now Angelina as well. “Maybe you should tell me the whole story.”

  “It seems when little Carlos the Third’s father died, the father’s parents were devastated. They wanted the chance to raise their grandchild as their own. Thus, they wanted to take the child to Mexico where they can raise him without interference from the mother or the United States government.”

  “How reliable is the tip?”

  “Very. It came from a trusted employee who overheard the plan and decided they couldn’t be a part of such a scheme so they called us. The last we heard was that the Perez family have feet on the ground here in Ohio. That means we need to find them before Perez’s people do.”

  Hoping he was wrong, he asked, “Do you have men waiting at their house in a black SUV?”

  “No, why do you ask?”

  “I heard there were two men looking for them there.”

  “From whom?” Leslie asked.

  There was no reason to bring Angelina’s name in the discussion. “Do you think they’re dangerous?”

  “If they’re from the Perez family, very much so.”

  ~*~

  Angelina pulled into the alley behind the Simpson law offices. She’d finally remembered the name. A car pulled in from the other direction at the same time. A dark SUV.

  Quickly, she shut off her car lights, hoping they hadn’t noticed her.

  Two men stepped out from both sides of the car. The same men she’d seen earlier. How had they found Bonnie? Probably talked to a neighbor. If only she’d remembered the name earlier, they’d be long gone by now.

  The men walked over to Bonnie’s old green car.

  She needed to get Charlie and his mom out of there before the men found them.

  Her cell phone buzzed. It was Nate, but she had no time to talk now.

  She shut off the phone and stepped out of the car. Using the bushes to hide, she crept along the alley as the darkness crowded in. Being in the dark had never bothered her before Luther Marks. Now it terrified her. Nothing good ever happened in the dark. Her trembling body wanted to give in to the fear—to hyperventilate, but she refused. Noisy breathing would bring attention to the fact she was sneaking down the alley. Besides, if she breathed too loudly she might wake up sleeping dogs. A bunch of barking dogs would announce that she was there.

  She stumbled on an unseen root and toppled to the ground. She held her breath, sure the men would rush to where she was. One of the men glanced her way but didn’t move. She held her breath and waited. One…two…three…When she was convinced they weren’t coming after her, she stood and peered through the branches.

  The men were talking. The one nodded to the other and walked toward the building.

  Time to get moving. She moved past the cars until she was even with the side of the building. The glare of the lights from the windows brought some comfort.

  The man by the car was on the phone, his back to her. The other was at the door. She took a deep breath, left the safety the bushes provided and ran to the side of the building. She listened. Apparently, neither man noticed her. So far−so good. Quietly she made her way down the side of the building. She peeked into each window as she passed.

  The man began pounding on the door and yelled, “Fire. Fire. Is anybody in here? You need to get out of the building. Fire!”

  That was sure to get Bonnie’s attention.

  Angelina picked up her pace, hurrying from window to window. Finally. At the fourth window Bonnie stood in the middle of the room holding a trashcan, but her attention was focused on the door. She obviously could hear the men yelling and was probably wondering what to do.

  Angelina rapped against the window.

  Bonnie jumped then turned toward her. Her eyes grew wide when she recognized Angelina. Angelina shook her head, put a finger to her mouth in a shushing gesture, and then mouthed the words—I need to talk to you. Right now.

  The pounding and screaming at the door continued.

  Bonnie looked at her then back at the door. She seemed frozen.

  Angelina motioned for her to come to the window. A moment later, the window opened.

  “I know this is crazy, but I don’t have time to explain. We need to get out of here. Right now. Where’s Carlos?” Angelina used an urgent tone.

  Bonnie gasped. “My son’s name is Charlie. Not Carlos.”

  “We don’t have time to play games. We’ve got to get out of here. Right now. There’s no fire. Those men are here to find you. Trust me. I want to help you and Carlos.”

  She blinked and then nodded. She called out, “Char—”

  “Momma. Those men said there’s a fire. We better get out—”

  “Charlie. Come here now. We have to go.” Bonnie motioned toward Angelina at the window.

  His eyes grew wide. “Miss Angelina.”

  “Hush now. We have to go with Miss Angelina. Right now.” Without a moment’s hesitation, Bonnie hefted Charlie through the window into Angelina’s arms. A moment later, Bonnie climbed through the window.

  “This way.” Grabbing each of their hands Angelina led them to the bushes. Once hidden, she whispered, “We need to be quiet. My car’s this way.”

  When the parking lot came into view, Bonnie stopped moving. Angelina tugged on her hand to urge her forward.

  One man now stood beside Bonnie’s car, but his attention was on the building and his partner. Slowly, they moved past him. He yelled at the other. “Just break a window. Let�
�s get the kid and go. Before someone calls the cops. We’re making too much noise.”

  The shattering of glass echoed through the darkness. Angelina tugged again, Bonnie seemed frozen in fear. They had to get to the car before the men realized they weren’t in the building. Finally, the darkened shape of her car came into view.

  She leaned toward Bonnie and whispered, “Get in the back and duck down.”

  Angelina ran to the driver’s side and opened the door. The moment she was in the car, she hit the lock buttons. Behind her Bonnie and Charlie hid on the floor. A moment later the car roared to life.

  The man turned toward them He yelled at the other man. “Get the car.”

  Angelina slammed the car in reverse and hit the gas. Her own nerves were getting the best of her, but she’d fall apart later. Right now, she had to get Charlie and Bonnie away from these men. She held her breath as they careened down the alley—backward.

  The SUV barreled toward them.

  Angelina hit the brake long enough to move the gear into drive. Then her foot pressed down—hard—and they surged forward out of sight of the SUV.

  Seconds later, lights from the other vehicle entered the street.

  “Where are we going?” Bonnie asked.

  “Away from them.”

  “I’m scared, Mama.” Charlie’s voice trembled.

  So was Angelina, but she couldn’t tell them that. She’d made this mess and she needed to fix it. She yelled back, “Don’t be scared, Charlie. Just a little adventure like in the book, Where the Wild Things Are.”

  “That was pretend. This is real.”

  Angelina had to agree with that—very real. She looked in the rearview mirror. The SUV was gaining on them. “We’ve got the get away from them so we can go back to my house. Until we can figure out what to do.”

  The SUV slammed into her back bumper.

  She struggled with the wheel. The moment she felt back in control, she hit the gas and surged away from them. At the next street she turned left. The car fishtailed but kept moving forward. At the next street she made another turn and then another.

  The SUV was still behind them but was losing ground.

  She made another turn and then shut the lights off as she quickly turned into another alley then quickly did several more turns. She looked over at Bonnie.

  Charlie was clutching his mother and crying. Bonnie was wiping tears from her own face but was doing her best to calm him down. “It’s OK, sweetie.”

  “I think we lost them.”

  Bonnie looked behind them. After a few moments, she said, “I think you’re right. I don’t see them.”

  “Good. We can go to my house.”

  They drove in silence.

  If Keren or Peter saw them, they’d start asking questions. Keren, the mother hen, would probably be watching out the window if she heard Angelina’s car. Knowing her, she might even come out to the car to check on Angelina so she pulled the car to the side of the road. “I’ll drop you off here. Then you’ll need to walk to the back of that building so nobody sees you.”

  “Why can’t they see us?” Charlie−Carlos asked.

  “Hush now, Charlie. We’ve talked about this before. You know it’s important for nobody to know our real names. It’s the same thing now. We need to do exactly what Miss Angelina says. She’s helping us.”

  “OK, Mama.”

  “Thank you, sweetie. We’ll talk about all this soon. Very soon. But not right now.”

  “Yes, Mama.” His voice was filled with complete trust for his mother. Charlie obviously knew she would never do anything to hurt him.

  What must it be like to have that sort of trust? She thought of Nate. Did she trust him that much? She did. “Walk to the back of the garage. That building there. I’ll let you in as soon as I get there.”

  Bonnie was already getting out of her side. She leaned in to pick Charlie up.

  “No. Mama. I’m a big boy I can walk by myself.”

  A glance at the main house showed no lights. Of course, that didn’t mean Keren wasn’t up and peeking out. But there was no way she could see Charlie or Bonnie behind the garage.

  Angelina pushed the button for the garage door. She drove in and quickly hit the close button. A minute later she was opening the back door of the garage. “Be careful, it’s dark in here. I don’t want to turn the light on. We’ll talk in a minute,” Angelina said to her guests.

  No one spoke as the three of them made their way up the darkened steps.

  She opened the door, herded Bonnie and Charlie inside and turned on the light. She locked the door and finally took a deep breath. She leaned against the door, trying to gather her wits. Then she forced a smile and turned toward Bonnie and Charlie.

  They both looked confused—and scared. And why wouldn’t they? “Bonita, do you want me to talk in front of Carlos?”

  “Please call us Bonnie and Charlie. Those are our names now. Right, Charlie?”

  “Right, Mama.”

  Bonnie leaned down and hugged Charlie then looked over at Angelina. “He’s probably tired. It’s way past his bedtime. I had to work a little later than normal.” She took a deep breath “Do you have a place for Charlie to sleep and then we can talk?”

  “Of course.” Angelina walked over to her bedroom door and opened it. “He can sleep in here.”

  Several minutes later Bonnie walked out of the room wiping away the tears.

  “I’m so sorry about all of this.” Angelina gave her a quick hug. “I know this has been terrifying. Do you know those men who followed us?”

  “Not them, but I know men like them and I know who sent them.”

  “Who?”

  “Charlie’s grandparents. On his father’s side. They are very rich and powerful people in Mexico. They are used to getting what they want, and they want my son.”

  “Oh.”

  “My husband walked away from his family, their nasty little business, and their money. As much as they didn’t like it, they allowed him to do that. We were happy and living our own life in California, but when Carlos died everything changed.”

  “I can imagine.” Angelina motioned at a chair.

  Bonnie sat down. “At first, they were nice to me after my husband’s death, but they kept trying to get me to come to Mexico. For a visit, they said. But I knew enough about them to not trust them. They became more insistent, and that’s when I decided to leave. But I don’t understand how they found us. I’ve tried to be so careful.”

  “My fault. I messed everything up. Something bothered me about Charlie so I went to my friend. He’s the Chief of Police and one thing led to another, and we found out you were listed as missing. He called the Sheriff’s Department in California and I guess they contacted them.” Angelina took a breath. “I am so sorry.”

  Bonnie sat down. Her head drooped. “I just…I can’t let them take my boy from me. He…” She looked up at Angelina. “He’s my everything. When I wouldn’t go to Mexico, they made up lies about me and said a judge would give them custody. Before it got to that point, I left. I couldn’t take the chance.”

  “I can help you disappear again.”

  She nodded.

  “But I don’t think it’s the best way. You don’t really want to live like this for the rest of your lives, do you? Hiding out and running.”

  “I will if it means I can raise my son. I don’t care how hard it is.” Her voice was fierce. “He’s my son. I can’t let those people have him.”

  “What if we can find a better way?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I’m not sure, but there has to be a way for you and Charlie to be free to live your lives. We just have to figure out what. The government won’t let them come and take Charlie. He’s an American citizen.”

  “I’m not sure they care about American law.” Her head drooped once more. “But I’m so tired of running. I want my son to have a normal life. Do you think that’s even possible?”

  22
/>   Nate walked up to Bonnie Wright-Perez’s car while Leslie walked toward the building.

  “Looks like a break-in. We’ve got broken glass over here,” Leslie called.

  Nate and Agent Jackson walked over.

  “It looks as if we’re too late. They got here first.” Jackson was glum.

  Nate’s stomach twisted. “You think they’ve kidnapped the boy?”

  “Unless they got away. Which isn’t very likely. Wonder how they knew where she was?” Jackson looked down at the broken glass.

  “It wouldn’t be all that hard, Eugene. All they’d had to do was ask a neighbor. Most people in Mt. Pleasant are too nice. They’d just tell them what they wanted to know to be helpful.” Leslie sounded irritated.

  “Being nice is usually considered a good thing, Leslie.” Nate was reminded how truly different the two of them were.

  “Not in this case.” She stalked off to the side of the building. A moment later, she called, “Found something!”

  Nate and Agent Jackson met her at the side.

  Leslie stood by a window. “All the rooms are empty but this window isn’t completely closed and the lights are still on. As you can see.”

  “Maybe they got out.” Nate suggested—hoped. Could Angelina have found them in time? He started to open the window.

  Leslie grabbed his arm. “Don’t touch it. We need to get fingerprints.” She motioned at the ledge. “The ledge and the window.”

  “Why would we need to do that?” Nate asked.

  “I’m hoping she was here cleaning when someone showed up at the door and scared her. And then she climbed out the window to get away. Of course, it could be that someone else came in through the window and she didn’t get away at all. That’s why we need the fingerprints. To see who actually touched this windowsill.”

  “Got a fingerprint kit?” Jackson asked.

  “In my trunk.”

  After a search of the building showed it to be empty and the fingerprints were taken they headed back to the station. He left one officer behind on the off-chance that Bonnie Wright- Perez showed up again.