Page 13 of Chasing a Kidnapper

Braced for the perp to turn and fire at him, he shouted, “Stop! Police!”

Gabriel wailed as the perp ran haphazardly down the street. The little boy seemed to know the situation was dangerous. West put on a burst of speed, determined to catch up.

As West grew closer, the masked man suddenly let go of the stroller, giving it a shove as he whirled and darted to the left. The stroller teetered on two wheels for a moment at the abrupt movement. West lunged forward, grabbing the handle in time to prevent the stroller from toppling over and dumping Gabriel onto the street.

He knelt in front of the crying baby, reaching out to smooth the palm of hand over his fine hair. “It’s okay, you’re okay.” He wasn’t sure if he was trying to appease the little boy or himself.

“Gabriel!” Trisha came running toward them, limping badly as she favored her left leg. “I’ll take him. Go after the perp!”

“Peanut, stay!” He didn’t want his K-9 to be in the line of fire as he took up the chase. Leaving the baby and the stroller with Trish, he turned, sweeping his gaze over the area. He searched for the masked man, thinking he couldn’t have possibly gotten far.

But there was no sign of him.

Where had he gone? West kept moving, slower now, peering around one house and then another, checking backyards. But it was no use. The perp must have cased this neighborhood well enough to know how to get around without being seen.

As much as he didn’t want to give up the search, he was concerned about leaving Trisha and Gabriel behind. Regret burned as he turned and jogged back to where Trish, Gabriel and Peanut waited.

“I’m sorry, I lost him.” He frowned as she rubbed her knee. “Are you okay?”

“Fine. Just a bruise. Nothing a little ice won’t fix.” She had Gabriel in her arms, holding him tight against her body. “Thank you for saving my son.”

“I can’t believe that guy went after the baby while we were both in plain sight.” The kidnapping attempt was sloppy at best, since he grabbed the stroller instead of quickly getting Gabriel out to make running off with him easier. “I don’t think he’s a professional. At least, not when it comes to abducting kids.”

“Thank goodness for that,” Trisha murmured. “But you’re right. He also could have waited and followed us to a different location before making his move. Either he’s desperate, impulsive or both.”

He nodded in agreement, crouching down to pet Peanut. “Good girl, Pea. You’re a very good girl.” The dog wiggled and licked his face. He needed to reward her for alerting to the scent of gunpowder, but not until he had Trisha and Gabriel safe. Trisha was a cop and a good one, but with a dangerous perp on her and her baby son’s trail and that injured knee... He rose to his feet. “Let’s go talk to the locksmith, then we need to get out of here.”

“Agree.” Trisha tried to set Gabriel back in his stroller but hesitated when he whined and clung to her. “Okay, it’s okay. You’re fine, big guy.” She pushed the stroller with one hand, limping back toward the house.

“I’ll take it.” He reached for the handle of the stroller. “Did you get a good look at him?”

“Not as much as I’d have liked,” she groused. “He’s roughly six feet tall, slim yet muscular, maybe weighing around one hundred eighty to one hundred ninety pounds. He’s Caucasian. I could see the white skin around his eyes and the back of his neck. But the ski mask covered his facial features.” She shook her head. “I can’t even say what color his eyes were. Maybe dark like brown or black.”

“Yeah, I agree with your height and weight assessment.” He glanced down at Peanut. “I believe he was armed. Peanut alerted right as this guy rushed you.”

“I should have expected something to happen,” Trisha murmured. “This guy knows where I live. I shouldn’t have returned here with Gabriel.”

“We’ll get him.” He injected confidence in his tone. This kidnapping attempt probably wasn’t related to the gun running venture, but it was possible the perp had gotten his weapon illegally.

If so, they’d need to convince him to talk. Once they’d arrested him.

“Why don’t you and Gabriel wait in the SUV while I speak to the locksmith,” he suggested.

“My house. I’ll talk to the locksmith,” she said curtly. “But if you could stick close, I’d appreciate it.”

He wanted to argue, but she was a trained patrol officer and this was her home. “Will do.”

She shifted Gabriel in her arms, and they headed up to where the locksmith was waiting. Trisha asked, “Did you see that masked man grab my son’s stroller?”

“I—uh, not really.” The locksmith looked sheepish. “I was looking at my notes. Then I saw you both chasing him, but I can’t give you an ID or anything like that.”

“Okay.” She looked resigned, but then turned to the issue at hand. “I need all the locks changed to a type of lock that is difficult to break into. Someone picked the lock on my back door to gain access, and that cannot happen again.”

The guy looked surprised at that. “I would recommend a keyless entry. Nothing is absolutely burglar proof, but the higher-end model can be set up with a fingerprint and key code.”

“Let’s do that,” she said without hesitation. “Cost is not as important as safety.”

“Understood. I have plenty of these in stock.” The locksmith gestured to her modest home. “You should consider adding motion lights and cameras, too.”

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