Page 9 of Chasing a Kidnapper

He hadn’t liked how silently the perp had accessed her house. Lock picking wasn’t as easy as it looked on TV. Whoever had gone inside and managed to subdue a former cop was likely a professional.

“Could your ex-husband be involved?”

Trisha sighed and shrugged. “I don’t know why he would be. Bryan didn’t have a criminal record. He was a lousy husband and had no desire to be a father, but to resort to breaking and entering, and assault and battery? That seems a bit much.”

She would know better than anyone, yet in his mind, the guy was a loser. “Maybe he picked up his criminal habits after he left you.”

“Anything is possible.” She stared out the passenger side window, then turned in her seat, craning her neck to look at her son. Reassured he was sleeping, she settled back. “It doesn’t make sense, though. Bryan has no reason to break in to search for a key. A key to what? I don’t have any valuables that have been locked up or anything like that.”

“When did you last see him?” Talking about the break-in was easier than talking about personal stuff. He pulled into the driveway of his house and hit the garage door opener. In the rear crate, Peanut lifted her head, recognizing they were home.

He’d rather work with dogs over people any day.

“He walked out when I was barely two months pregnant. Left his house key and divorce papers on the table. If I didn’t contest the divorce, I was able to keep custody of Gabriel and the house.” She shrugged. “I signed them and that was the end of that.”

“Did he smoke?”

“Never.” She frowned. “I know he could have started the habit. But I still think someone else broke into the house. Not Bryan.”

He shut down the engine and released his seat belt. “Let’s go inside. Grab the diaper bag but leave the rest for me.”

“Thanks, that’s very nice of you.”

He let Peanut out first, giving the K-9 time to do her business, then reached for Gabriel’s car seat. He couldn’t imagine Trisha lugging it around, although obviously she was no weakling. Passing the physical for the police department required a high level of strength and fitness.

Gabriel squirmed in his car seat as he carried the boy inside. The baby lifted chubby fists, rubbing at his eyes. West had to admit, the kid was cute.

Not that being cute meant he wanted one of his own.

Trisha took Gabriel from the car seat, cradling him close. Then picked up the portable crib. “I’ll get him settled in the guest room.”

“Help yourself. It’s the first bedroom on the right.” Glancing at his watch, he realized it was going on eleven thirty at night. His stomach rumbled with hunger, and he decided to make a quick snack. Okay, maybe cooking a pizza was more than a snack, but he was hungry. And Trisha might be, too.

He had the pizza in the oven and was petting Peanut, praising her for a job well done, when Trisha returned. “I’m so glad Gabriel is a good sleeper.”

“I threw in a frozen pizza if you’re hungry.” He watched as she began unpacking the food from the box, putting everything neatly on one end of the counter.

“That sounds great.” She glanced at him over her shoulder. “Tomorrow morning, I’ll need to head to the precinct to talk to Captain Ross. I’ll have to take a couple of vacation days if Laurel can’t babysit.”

“I’m sure the captain won’t mind.” He stood at the other side of his counter, wondering why his house suddenly seemed ridiculously small. Having Trisha there knocked him off balance.

“I hope Laurel’s not hurt too badly.” She rubbed her temple. “I hate that she was hurt trying to protect my son.”

“She’s a cop at heart, remember?” He smiled reassuringly. “I get the impression she’s tough. She’ll pull through this.”

“Yeah. I know.” She lifted her gaze to meet his. “I just wish I knew what was going on.”

He nodded. “We’ll dig into this first thing tomorrow, starting with your ex. See if he’s been in the area recently.”

“We?” She smiled. “Thanks, but this is my problem. You have the gun runners to focus on.” She peeked into the oven. “Looks like the pizza is ready.”

“Great.” He was relieved to have something to do. He removed the pizza and sliced it. Trisha grabbed plates and glasses from the cupboard.

Soon they were seated at the breakfast bar. She bowed her head to pray. “Dear Lord Jesus, we thank You for this food we are about to eat. We also thank You for keeping us all safe in Your care. Amen.”

There was a brief hesitation before he echoed, “Amen.” He took a bite of his pizza. “Hmm.”

They ate in silence for a few moments, Peanut curled on the floor at his feet. He wondered if the K-9 missed Kenyon. She seemed to have adapted to living with him, but there were times she stared out the window as if waiting for Kenyon to return.

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