Page 138 of Chaotic Curse
“Who?”Vinnie asks.
“Gordon Brown.I mean, I think he was my father’s chef, and I think he’s the one who’s been stalking me, and now…” I can’t breathe.“Now…”
Raven shakes her head once, hard.“No.We are not jumping to abduction.”
I inhale, inhale, inhale…
“Easy,” Vinnie says.“Breathe out.You’re hyperventilating.”
“She didn’t run,” I say, panting.“That voice in the note isn’t hers.And she was giddy at dinner.Plus she’s always saying how much she loves it here.”
Raven’s jaw flexes.“Okay,” she says.“Okay.”
The doorbell rings again.Vinnie opens it.Two uniformed officers step into the foyer with a practiced calm that does nothing for my heart rate.
“Ms.Bellamy?Mr.Gallo?”the taller says.“I’m Officer Ruiz.This is Officer McClain.We’re here about your daughter.”
“Foster daughter,” Raven says.“Belinda.Eleven.”
They take statements.They ask for a recent photo.They ask what Belinda was wearing, when she was last seen.We try to build a timeline out of thin air and panic as we show the officers to Belinda’s room.
Officer Ruiz steps into the room.“We’ll dust for prints.For now, please don’t disturb anything.”
“We won’t,” I say, even though every part of me wants to dig.
“Any friends she might be with?”McClain asks.
“Gwen,” I say.“Gwen Charleston.From school.”
“I already called them,” Raven says.“They’re part of the same homeschool group.Natalie has the list, but she’s out for the evening.”
“And Natalie is?”Ruiz asks.
“Belinda’s nanny,” Raven says.“I called her cell, but she didn’t pick up.”
Ruiz makes a note.“We’ll call the parents again.Sometimes you just don’t ask the right questions.”
“Excuse me,” Raven says, “but what is there to ask besides ‘is Belinda over there?’”
Ruiz doesn’t reply.
“Seriously, what?”Raven pushes.
“Ma’am, please.Just let us do our jobs.”
“I know Chef Charleston,” I say.“He’s my cooking instructor.I can call him.”
Except I don’t move.Just saying the word “chef” sends me spiraling.
Different chef.Different time.
Fear courses through me.Mostly for Belinda.But also for myself.What if I get sent back to Colombia?What if I never see Hawk again?
Ruiz and Raven are talking, but I stopped listening.Vinnie pulls feeds on his phone.We stand there and try to pretend time isn’t sprinting away from us.
Vinnie is still holding the packet from Officer Patel.I try not to think about it.
Belinda.
