Title: Autumn In New York: The Case Of Sofia Tyler
Disclaimer: Not mine, nah-uh.
Rating: PG:13

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Chapter 1

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They call it autumn in New York, but when the leaves change colors, it makes you feel like your in a completely different world. By the time that 18 year old, Sofia Tyler, arrived in New York, the leaves had already started to change.

She had been scheduled to arrive months earlier, but had come across problems. So she was there, one week before her classes at New York University started, thinking about how different the east coast was from the west.

"Miss Tyler?" She spun around to see an elderly woman looking at her with a smile.

"Yes?" Her gaze moved from the woman to the crowd of people moving around them, as if they weren't even there.

"Welcome to NYU, I'm Rebecca Carrington, I'll be showing you around campus." She smiled, wondering if all the other students got administration to show them around, or if her fathers name made her different.

x

A week later, she grabbed a jacket and stepped outside the dorm room. As she walked down the hallway she stopped and turned back around, trying to remember if she had forgotten anything. She shook the thought out of her mind and continued walking, down the stairs, out of the building, and into the great city that is known as New York.

x

Samantha stepped out of the car and made her way over to where Jack stood in the middle of campus grounds. Though classes had started that week, the place seemed to be fairly dead, everyone must have been inside.

"What do we have?" She asked Jack, coming to stand beside him. She glanced down at the file he handed to her, quickly running her eyes over information that she already knew he would tell her.

"Sofia Tyler, 18, was supposed to start her very first day of classes today, never showed up." He quickly glanced down at his notes before continueing. "A Rebecca Carrington filed the missing persons report."

"Friend?" Samantha questioned.

"No. Secretary here at the university. Apperantly, she was supposed to be showing Ms. Tyler the route to her classes. Didn't find her in her dorm room and got worried."

"This girl has administration showing her around? What is she, the President's daughter?" Jack glanced curiously over at Samantha, a small smile threatening to escape.

"I was just getting to that part. Sofia is here from Oregon. Her father, Joseph Tyler, is the Governor of that state. Better book a flight, you and Martin are on your way to Oregon for a game of good old fashioned politics." Samantha couldn't help but groan.

x

Making his way into the dorm room, Danny immediately noticed the scarce amount of personal affects. It reminded him of his apartment. He moved to stand beside Vivian, glancing over her shoulder at the computer screen she was looking at.

"Anything good?"

"Not yet. She didn't seem to be too interested in porn and chat sites. It looks like we have a normal eighteen year old girl on our hands," Vivian replied, looking through Sofia's hard drive.

"Unless you count the fact that other then a box of clothes, and a computer, she has nothing in her room. How long has she been here?" Danny made his way over to the box that was sitting on the bed, opening it and glancing inside at the many items of clothing. He carefully took one piece out at a time, slowly, as if expecting something to jump out and grab him.

Vivian stood up and looked at Sofia's posession's with Danny. "She moved in last week, recently moving here from Oregon. I don't think she had much time to settle in. Must be hard, thrust into a life like this one."

"How long did it take you to unpack when you got to college?" Danny glanced over at her, smirking. "I personally had all my stuff set up quickly. Maybe thats just me, but it was like moving into your first house, you want to make it your own and soon."

"It depends on the kind of person you are Danny, and that's what we're here to do. I'm going to send her computer to the lab to get thoroughly checked out. I'm definitely not a technology buff," Viv explained, smirking right back.

Danny reached in to the box, grabbing what he thought was a shirt, he pulled it out and examined it. After a moment, he laid it down and unfolded the fabric, revealing a picture of Sofia and a older man being a little too friendly. "Ten bucks says that's not the father."

"Do you have a photo of the father?"

"No, not yet. Jack's working on getting one." Danny let out a chuckle. "If I kept up with the national news I'd probably know what the father looked like."

"You and me both," Viv replied, grinning. She looked around the room and noticed not much at all was there; an open suitcase on the floor and a few opened boxes. "It does seem strange she didn't try and put up pictures or posters though, make this more like home."

Danny held up the picture, giving Vivian a serious look. "Maybe she was trying to escape from home. If this isn't dad, then it could have been he found out and that's the reason she picked a college 3000 miles away."

"I wouldn't blame her; being surrounded by a corporate lifestyle all her life. Maybe we have a pissed off rich father on our hands?" Vivian suggested, looking closely at the photo.

"Probably where we should start. Sam said she'd call when their plane landed, I'll fill her in then."

"Okay, let's get to it then."

x

Jack sat in Mrs. Carrington's office, trying to get information out of the distraught woman. "When was the last time you saw Sofia?"

"Last week, when she arrived on campus. I showed her around, then got her settled in her dorm. I told her I'd be by this morning, show her how to get to class, introduce her to the teachers, all of that." She wiped at her eyes, feeling overwhelmed with the situation, tears slipping down her face occasionally. "She just got to New York, how could she have made enemies that fast?"

Jack leaned over and offered her a tissue. "It's all right, just breathe okay? Now, did she have any friends that you knew of on campus? Or anyone she knew at all?"

"I don't believe so. Unless she made some in this past week."

"Okay," Jack muttered, scribbling on his notepad. "Uh, can you tell me, do you know if she had been to New York before? Lived here, visited here? Anything like that?"

"She hasn't lived here, that much I know from her file," She pointed towards the file laying on the desk. "Born and raised in Oregon, lived there all her life."

Jack looked at the file, recognizing most of the information. "And what do her parents do for a living?"

"I haven't ever seen any information on the mother. Her father, other then the fact that he's the Governor of Oregon, I'm not sure about. I think I saw on the news once something about him being a lawyer. Or was it a doctor?" She looked down at her desk, trying to remember but coming up empty. "I can't quite remember."

"So that's why she got all of this special treatment; being personally shown around, helped out with classes, that sort of thing?" Jack asked, writing the information down, getting an idea of where they could be headed.

"What are you implying, Agent Malone?"

"I'm just saying that most students don't get personal tours of the campus and shown to each of their classes in their first week."

"We get alot of high-classed people here, we like to make them feel welcomed."

"That's understandable. Did it seem like she... I don't know, liked the preferential treatment at all?" Jack asked, going out on a limb.

"Not anymore then they all do." She glanced towards the clock. "Agent Malone, I know your just trying to find this girl, but I really should be going. I have to make sure a few of my other students got to class alright."

"Of course, thank you for your time." He stood up and handed her his card. "If you think of anything else, let me know."

"Don't worry, I will." Jack nodded and watched her walk ahead of him out of the office.

x

Samantha walked down the terminal, bag in hand, with Martin following close behind. Martin followed Sam closely, reading over the file as he walked. "Okay she lived here all her life with her father - the governor of the state. No mention of the mother."

"No mention at all? Death report? Nothing?"

"Not yet. I think Danny and Viv are looking into it."

"I should call them." She smiled over at him. "I'll do that if you go rent us a car."

Martin clapped his hands together and nodded his head, smiling. "Yes, Master." He walked away, leaving Sam to call the office. Samantha laughed slightly before grabbing her phone and dialing Danny's number.

"Taylor," Danny answered, reading over some papers.

"Hey. How are things on your side of the country?"

He smiled at the sound of Sam's voice. "Probably not as good as yours. Arrive safely I hear?"

"No, actually the plane crashed. I'm calling to say we've lost Martin." She looked over at Martin standing talking to someone at the Rent-a-Car counter, and smiled.

"I hear the sadness in your voice, there there." Danny couldn't help but laugh.

"Got any new info for me?"

He shuffled through his papers. "Well, we did find the mother. She left when Sofia was two with the man she was seeing on the side. She currently resides in Oregon City. Name Daniella Roberts."

"Oregon City? I'm gonna go out on a limb and guess that's in Oregon, right?" Samantha questioned.

"Uh yeah, upstate."

"How far is it from PDX? We'll stop by there on our way down to see the Governor."

Danny checked the map and looked at his watch. "A little over half an hour, if the traffic there is anything like it is here."

Samantha smiled and took down the address and directions from Danny. "Anything else? What do we know about the father?"

"Aside from the fact he controls the ground you're walking on? Nothing. You'll find out yourself," Danny smirked.

"Are they legally divorced?"

"Yes, 15 years now."

"He's never been remarried?"

"Actually yes; twice. Both lasted a little under a year. Definitely not a man of commitment," Danny quipped.

"Sounds like your life." She laughed. "When was the last time you had a girlfriend for longer then three months?"

Danny laughed. "I'll answer if you will."

"Martin's coming back over with the keys to the car. Do we know all we need to before we jump right into this thing?"

He sifted through his papers again, not having much luck with a messy desk. "Uh, the boyfriend Daniella ran off with, now her husband, is Nathan Roberts, 36 years old, builder, a bit of a history of domestic violence. You sure you can handle this petite blonde woman?"

"I'm gonna pretend you didn't just say that."

Danny laughed. "I expect to see two agents when you get back okay? Have fun!"

Samantha closed her phone and looked up at Martin as he walked back over. "Tell me you got us a sports car."

Martin smiled and shook his head. "They didn't believe you were the Queen of England, so we got a Jeep." He dangled the keys in front of her.

"Fun." She started to walk towards the exit. "You're driving."

"I love it how you offer my services," Martin quipped, following her out of the airport.

"You should feel blessed. The only other man I do that for is Danny." She smirked, opening the door and going towards the parking garage that Martin pointed towards.

"Speaking of Danny, did he have anything new?"

"Gave me the address of the girls mother. That's about it."

"She is alive and well?" Martin asked, unlocking the car.

"Seems to be." Samantha threw her bag in the back before going and getting in the passenger seat.

"Are you going to tell me the details or do I have to guess?" Martin pulled out of the garage after reading the address and figuring out where to go on a map.

"From what Danny told me, she left with a man she had been sleeping with on the side. Sofia was two at the time, and I would bet that they haven't spoken since then."

"I guess the divorce lawyers had a field day."

"How many times have you been to Oregon before?" She questioned, glancing over towards him.

"We went a couple of times for holidays when I was growing up. Nice place... why?" Martin asked, concentrating on the road.

"Just wondering if we were going to get completely lost, or if you knew where you were going."

Martin glanced briefly at her. "I have a vague idea... very vague idea."

"Great." She groaned, leaning back in her seat and glancing out the window. "Lets hope it isn't that hard to find."

"You're welcome to drive if you don't trust my lack of judgement," Martin quipped.

"You don't like my driving, remember?"

"Your leg's fully healed now. And I'd rather blame you for getting lost than you blaming me."

"Just keep driving. If you do something wrong and I'd rather drive, I'll let you know." She glanced over at him, giving him a small smile.

x

Martin pulled into the driveway of a nice looking suburban house. He got out and waited for Sam to join him. "Looks nice enough."

Sam stood beside him, looking at the house. "How we gonna handle this? Think she's considered a suspect?"

"Everyone's a suspect until we can prove otherwise, remember?"

"Of course I remember. But what are your feelings on it? Do you actually think she'd kidnap her daughter after years and years of not seeing her?"

Martin shook his head reluctantly. "No, but we've seen worse. Let's just talk to her and then judge her, okay?"

Samantha nodded, walking up the porch to the front door and knocking.

Daniella answered the door. "Can I help you?"

"Hi, Mrs. Roberts?"

"Yes, who are you?"

"I'm Special Agent Samantha Spade," Sam turned and motioned towards Martin, "This is Special Agent Martin Fitzgerald, we're with the FBI. We need to talk to you about your daughter."

Daniella stood still for a second. "My daughter?"

"Sofia Tyler."

"Why would you come to me about her? I haven't seen her in... a long time," Daniella stuttered.

"She went missing from NYU yesterday morning."

"And you think I took her?"

"No. We just need to ask you a couple of questions."

"Um, okay." She held the door open and allowed the two agents to move inside, suddenly extremely nervous.

Samantha stepped inside, glancing around and noticing that it looked a bit nicer in there. "How long have you been remarried for?"

Daniella led them into the living room and took a seat. "Um, almost 12 years."

"Any other children?" Sam sat down on the sofa, focusing her attention on Daniella.

"Uh no, I never wanted to be a mother in the first place really."

"Was Sofia a mistake?"

Daniella shifted slightly in her seat. "What are you implying Agent Spade?"

"Did your ex-husband want children and you didn't? Or did you both not want children?"

"Well, Sofia just sort of... happened. I can't explain it. Being a mother was great at first, but it became... tiring after a while."

Samantha nodded. "What made you get a divorce?"

Daniella chuckled slightly. "Would you handle living with a politician and an infant for a long period of time Agent Spade? It's not all it's cracked up to be... I'd had enough of feeling single."

Samantha glanced towards Martin, silently asking him if had any questions for the woman.

Martin looked at Daniella, "Have you had any contact with your daughter since she left?"

Daniella looked at her hands, fidgeting them nervously. "I uh... I sent her a couple of letters a few years back and got one reply. It wasn't positive, let's just say that."

"Do you still have the letter?"

"Uh, yeah." She got up and walked into her room, digging the letter out of the back of a drawer. She walked back into the living room and handed it with a shaky hand to Sam.

Samantha smiled softly, taking the letter and opening it to read. Martin watched Daniella intently, "Mrs. Roberts, do you know of anything else that might help us find your daughter?"

Daniella shook her head, keeping her eyes down, hating how little she knew about her own child. "She always cried when her father left as a baby... but other than that, I don't know, I'm sorry."

"Was your ex-husband ever abusive?"

"He um... I wouldn't say abusive, he was just very, forceful. He always wanted his own way - as all politicians and hot-head money makers do," Daniella explained, shrugging her shoulders.

Martin smiled and nodded, thinking about his own father. Samantha looked up, folding the letter and putting it back in the envelope.

"Do you mind if we hold onto this?"

"No, by all means. If it will help find her."

"Thank you. You've been alot of help." They both stood, shaking Daniella's hand.

"Let me know when you find her," Daniella muttered, smiling politely and walking them to the front door.

"Don't worry, we will." They left the house, walking back towards the car.

"So, you still think she took her?" Martin asked, looking at Sam.

"I was the one that said she wasn't a suspect." Sam said, getting in the passengers seat.

"What do you think of her?"

"That she wasn't able to handle being a politicians wife, so she left."

Martin nodded, pulling away from the house. "She seems to miss her daughter though, but I doubt she'd take her."

"I doubt the daughter would ever talk to her again. She said some nasty things in that letter."

"Like what?"

"I'm not going to repeat her. You can read it when we get to Salem."

Martin nodded. "Okay."

x

To be continued...