Page 62 of Chasing a Kidnapper

The little girl’s fingers and mouth were stained orange. She didn’t say anything, either too shy or unable to talk. As Trisha moved closer, she saw there was a note pinned to the little girl’s coat.

My name is Joy. I’m Agent Daniel Slater’s kin.

“West? You need to see this.” She knelt beside the toddler. The child didn’t seem overly afraid of strangers, which was a good thing. “Hi, Joy. Where is your mommy?”

The little girl didn’t answer. Then again, she was too young to talk much.

“What in the world?” West had Peanut on leash, and the K-9 was sniffing Joy curiously. “Who would leave a kid alone out here?”

“I don’t know, but we need to take her inside.” Trisha smiled at the little girl. “Joy? Will you come with us?”

Joy looked shyly at her, then nodded. She lifted the little girl off the bench and set her on the grass. Maybe it was because of Gabriel that the child felt safe with them.

“Hang on. I’m calling Dan.” West made the call, and less than a minute later, the tall, blond ATF agent came running toward them.

“I don’t understand,” Dan muttered, reading the note for himself. “I don’t have any kids. Or siblings.”

“A cousin?” Trisha asked helpfully.

Dan ran his hands through his dark blond hair. “I have no idea how she could be related to me.” He reached down and snagged the backpack that was partially hidden beneath the picnic table. He rummaged inside, then looked up. “There’s a birth certificate here, but the mother’s name is blacked out and there’s no father listed.” Dan appeared shell-shocked. “I’ll need to take her to the hospital to be checked out, and maybe this birth certificate can be traced to the girl’s mother.”

“Good idea,” Trisha said. “She looks fine, but it’s not exactly warm out here.”

“Yeah, okay.” Dan looked as if he wanted to say something more, then bent to lift the little girl into his arms. Thankfully, Joy nestled against him, her hands staining his black shirt orange.

She exchanged a glance with West, as Dan headed to the parking lot. She couldn’t imagine what it felt like to have a relative show up in the shape of a small child out of the blue.

After following West inside, she set Gabriel on the floor, then quickly wrote her report. West had disappeared for a few minutes in Ross’s office, then had found a computer nearby to work on his.

When she was finished, she battled a wave of sadness as she picked up her son. She would miss spending time with West, but heading to Raina’s house until hers had been cleared was the right decision.

Tears pricked her eyes. She ruthlessly swiped them away. She had much to be thankful for.

“Ready to go?” West asked. Peanut came over to greet Gabriel. If only West was as easy to win over as his K-9.

“Yes.” She jumped to her feet.

They headed back outside, her stomach growling with hunger. She did her best to ignore it. Although Gabriel would need to eat, and soon. And she needed to check in on Laurel, too.

Once they were settled in the SUV, she pulled out her phone. After texting Laurel, she glanced at West. “I’ll call Raina to let her know we’re on the way.”

“No need.” West reached over to lower the phone. “I’ve arranged for the officers at your house to pack supplies for Gabriel and to bring them to my place.”

Her jaw dropped. “Why would you do that?”

“I told you, it’s better for you to stay with me until your house has been cleared.” He held her gaze for a moment, then added, “Please. I think we need to talk.”

They did? About what? The case? Yes, that was it. He still needed to find the rightful owner of the gold bars.

And maybe he wanted her to help with that. She shrugged, relenting. “Okay.”

The trip to his house didn’t take long, and there was a squad car in the driveway when they arrived. West released Peanut, then took over carrying Gabriel’s car seat.

Officer Skinner slid out from behind the wheel to join them. “I packed everything I could think of,” he said.

“It’s fine,” she assured him. “Thanks so much.”

“No problem.” Skinner hauled the box up to the house. She didn’t have the portable crib but would make do.

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