Page 12 of Stand By You
“He was?” she said.
“Yes, Simons told me that while you were passed out. Carlos was looking at the reptiles while Travis ran into the restroom. That is when the two boys separated for a few minutes,” Nick said.
“But they were a buddy system. They were supposed to stay together,” she explained. “At least that was the Playland’s hopes for the field trip with this trial run of their system.”
“And they are eight years old,” Nick reminded her. “They didn’t think anything would happen if Travis went to the restroom while Carlos waited for him by the snakes.”
“No, they wouldn’t,” Jillian agreed. “I blame the Playland staff. They made the decision not to have chaperones go with the children on this trip. They wanted to try this buddy system out and look what happened.”
“Any other time it might have worked, but I’d say Travis has been targeted for a while,” Nick said.
“Why do you say that?” she asked.
“Look at those letters you received,” he said. “It all started with them, wouldn’t you agree.”
Jillian suckedin her breath and thought for a moment. “It does make sense. But who? And why now?”
“That’s what we have to figure out while we wait for a ransom demand, if one comes,” Nick said and got to his feet.
“Why wouldn’t one?”
“This might not be about money,” he said. “I won’t tire you out any more than I already have with these questions. I’ll leave you to rest now and go back up to the main house, but if you need me for any reason, here is my number.” He removed abusiness card from his wallet and laid it on the coffee table. “I’ll talk more about this with you tomorrow with a plan of action once we see how tonight unfolds and I’ve had time to think on it.”
“Okay. See you then,” she said.
“Will your door lock behind me?” he asked.
“Yes.”
“Good. See you tomorrow.” And with that he left her going out the door as Mrs. Hudson appeared with her dinner tray. The housekeeper sat it on the island, fixed her something to drink from the refrigerator and then left without a word.
Jillian got up and went over to the island, sitting at one of the bar stools to eat her dinner. However, she found the delicious meal Mrs. Hudson had prepared unappetizing as her mind was fixed on her conversation with Nick.
What if there was a ransom demand? How on earth would she be able to meet the kidnappers’ requests with Mr. McGinty out of the country?
But what if there wasn’t a ransom request? What did the mean about Travis’ abduction? What was the motive? And who was behind it?
As these questions ran through her head, she found her stomach all twisted in knots and she only picked at the food, each bite she put in her mouth made her stomach roll and, in the end, she stuffed the food down the garbage disposal.
Tears streaming down her face, she took her evening medication unable to get Travis off her mind. She feared for their safety, but mostly for him because he was only a child. No telling what those creeps who had taken him were doing to him.
Hobbling to her room, she silently prayed she’d be able to sleep and not toss and turn, worrying about Travis wherever he was at.
CHAPTER 4
Nick was up earlythe next morning on a zoom call the next day with Hank Patterson, Kenneally, Swede and Detective Simons. They ran a surveillance video that had been obtained of Zoo Miami the day before around the time that Travis had disappeared. They also discussed the fact that no ransom demand had come in yet.
Simons wasn’t happy about that because it put a different spin on the case. “This means whoever is behind the abduction has a personal grudge against McGinty.”
“Why do you think it’s a grudge?” Kenneally asked.
“Why else would they go after the nanny first and then the child?” Simons said.
“Jillian got threatening letters before this all started,” Nick said. “She didn’t mention them to you because they were very vague, and the postmarks were in Fort Lauderdale and Key West.”
“See,” Simons said. “This has been a planned out attack against the McGinty household. “Someone who knows him is behind this.”
“It’s clear this is going to be a tough case to solve,” Hank said.
