The Bathroom Series

by Ariel Hedgehog

Everything at the warehouse starts in the bathroom.

11. Hide and Seek

A huge thank you to Eridani Moon for helping me with this one. Hope you'll enjoy it! Please review!

Hide & Seek

The snow was slowly falling on Univille, covering the city with a fresh layer of white powder. Leena was folding the laundry after having spent the last few hours playing in the snow and sledding with Oliver. The little boy was now two and he had a lot of energy. They had spent two hours going up a hill and then going down on a sled; Oliver laughing hysterically each time. His parents had gone to see Dr Calder in Atlanta for Myka's insemination. Pete had gone to do his part before joining his wife and twin daughters, who were visiting Lauren's mother in New York. Helena and Myka were taking a few days off to give the procedure a chance to work and to relax. Artie had decided to accompany them to see Vanessa, while Claudia and Steve had volunteered to take care of Oliver with Leena. Both agents were crazy about the little boy and he loved his auntie Claudia and his uncle Steve very much.

Leena was placing the towels in the bathroom cabinet when the phone rang. Figuring it was probably Helena calling to check on Oliver, Leena left the bathroom in a hurry and ran downstairs to answer.

Lifting the phone to her ear, she cheerfully offered, "Leena's Bed and Breakfast, this is Leena speaking."

The Brits' crisp tone filled the line as the other woman replied, "Good afternoon Leena, this is Helena."

The innkeeper smiled at the formalness the older woman hadn't lost even after all of her years at the warehouse. Leaning against the wall, Leena returned, "Hi Helena, how are you? How's Myka?"

"I am well, thank you. Myka is resting with her feet up," the Brit answered, taking her wife's feet in her hands and placing them on the pile of pillows she'd already made for that purpose.

"Honey, it's not necessary that I do that," Leena heard Myka say.

"Yes it is," argued Helena. "That's how I got pregnant with Oliver, so keep your feet up until I say otherwise."

Leena had to bite back a chuckle to keep it from escaping her lips as Helena refocused her attention on the call, saying, "Pardon me Leena, I got distracted by a very beautiful, but stubborn woman. How's Oliver?"

"I just put him down for his afternoon nap." Rubbing the ache in her lower back from going up and down the hill, Leena added, "We played in the snow this morning and I'm afraid I exhausted him so much that he fell asleep during lunch."

"Oh, poor little man!" Helena's laugh filtered over the line as she added, "He takes after his mama; she always falls asleep after being exhausted by physical activities."

This time Leena couldn't stop the laugh and she could hear Myka laughing as well. Half way across the country, Helena looked at her wife with desire in her eyes and almost forgot the phone until Leena inquired, "Do you want me to wake him so you could talk to him?"

"Hum? Oh! No, that won't be necessary…" Winking at the woman behind her on the bed, Helena murmured,"I'll just call back in an hour to talk to him."

Myka raised an eyebrow as she got to her feet and hugged her wife from behind. She put her mouth next to her ear and whispered, "I think an orgasm is much more efficient at stimulating conception than keeping my feet up will ever be." She nibbled on Helena's ear and put her hands on her breasts, her thumbs playing with the nipples. Helena closed her eyes and let out a moan.

Feeling distinctly uncomfortable with the direction the other conversation was going, Leena called, "Helena?"

Leena's voice sounded very far away, and blinking several times, Helena managed to concentrate for a few seconds, answering, "Yes Leena, better make that at least two hours, ok? Bye!"

The call was disconnected and Leena hung up with a laugh. Myka and Helena had always had a hard time keeping their hands to themselves. Leena went back upstairs to Myka's old room to check on Oliver. She felt the blood rush away from her face when she saw the empty bed. Turning in a circle, she called, "Oliver?"

The room remained silent as no answer came from the little boy in question. Leena went to the bathroom, thinking that maybe he'd had to potty, but felt her heart sink when she found that the bathroom was empty. Trying to remain calm, Leena went back to Myka's room and took another look around. Maybe he had rolled between the bed and the wall while asleep?

Crossing to the bed, she found it was completely empty and Oliver wasn't between the bed and the wall. Leena looked under the bed, in the closest and everywhere she could think a two year old could hide. Refusing to let her fear take over, Leena started looking methodically for the little boy. She slowly searched the second floor and the more time that went by without a trace of the little boy, the more worried she grew. Oliver loved to play hide and seek, but he was always very easy to find because he giggled so much. This time there wasn't so much as a peep, even when she called his name. Feeling a nasty fear growing inside her, Leena went down the stairs and grabbed the phone to call Claudia.

"Hey Leena what's up?" The younger woman's perky voice filled the line even as the sound of her fingers flying over the keyboard sounded in the background.

Forcing a smile into her own voice, Leena replied, "Hey Claudia! Could you come here with Steve, Trailer and the durational spectrometer?"

The young techie sensed the concern in her friend's voice and her tone was grave as she demanded, "Why? What's going on?"

"I need your help," Leena confessed. "I can't find Oliver."

Claudia's voice went up an octave as she demanded, "What do you mean, you can't find Oliver? He's missing?"

"I mean, I put him down for his nap an hour ago and now he's not in his room and I can't find him." Biting back a sob, Leena whispered, "That's why I need the durational spectrometer… So I can see where he went."

Claudia was annoyed, but fought to keep her tone calm as she explained, "Problem is… HG took it apart before she left and she hasn't put it back together yet."

Panic flaring inside of her, Leena cried, "Can't you do it?"

Nodding even though her friend couldn't see her, Claudia answered, "I could if I knew what modifications she did; but since I don't, I'd rather not risk it."

Leena grew impatient; time was of the essence and they were wasting too much of it. "Well at least come here with Steve and Trailer. We need to find him before Helena calls back."

Claudia jumped to her feet, scrambling for her car keys as she stated, "Keep looking for him Leena, we're on our way."

Twenty minutes later, Claudia and Steve jumped out of the Prius, running inside the B&B, followed by Trailer. Claudia didn't waste any time, ordering, "I need something of Oliver's for Trailer."

Leena gave her Oliver's pyjamas from the night before. Claudia placed the clothes under Trailer's nose, watching as the dog took a deep breath before he ran to the kitchen; stopping in front of Oliver's chair with a soft woof. Leena followed him, while Claudia and Steve took off their winter clothes.

Irritated that the dog had led her to an empty piece of furniture, Leena ordered, "Keep looking, Trailer! Where's Oliver? Find him! Come on boy."

Trailer kept sniffing around and finally went up the stairs, followed by the humans. He went to the bathroom, then to Pete's old room, followed by Myka's room, before he came back into the hall and started going around in circles. Then, he stopped and lay on the floor. Leena was puzzled. Glancing at her companions, she asked, "Why did he do that?"

Claudia shared a look with Steve, questioning, "Do you think he's confused because of last night?"

Shrugging, Steve replied, "I don't know. It's possible."

Leena was confused. "Why what happened last night?"

Claudia blushed a little. "Well... you know... I gave him is bath and..."

Steve came to her rescue, explaining, "While I went to get Oliver's pyjamas, Claudia was running the water and Oliver decided to undress on his own and started running around in his birthday suit. And you know the silly dance Pete has been teaching him? Not as funny when he's naked, trust me."

Leena couldn't help but laugh at the image, quickly sobering when the phone rang. Checking her watch, she realized it was too early for Helena to be calling back but it was entirely possible. Claudia paled and glanced at the device, softly questioning, "Is that HG calling back?"

"I'm not sure." Offering the other woman a weak smile, Leena added, "When we spoke, Myka was about to have her way with her, so I guess it could've been fast…"

Claudia made a disgusted face. "Ew Leena! TMI! It's like hearing about your parents' sex life!"

The phone kept ringing. Frowning at the annoying sound, Leena asked, "What should I do?"

"Let the machine pick it up," Steve suggested. "When she calls back, tell her you were busy with Oliver and couldn't answer the phone, which is true."

Leena nodded and they all waited for the phone to stop ringing. When they heard Pete's voice, they released a collective sigh as they listened.

"Hey guys it's me! I just wanted to let you know I made it to New York and I'm with Lauren and the twins. Myka and HG are at the Westin in Atlanta if you need to reach them. Oliver, be a good boy for aunt Leena okay? Mama and mummy will be back in two days and daddy in three days. Love you, Little Man!"

Claudia was the first to regain her senses. "Okay, we're off the hook for now, but we have to find the munchkin or they will kill us. What should we do?"

"Do you think someone could have taken him? Or maybe he went to his house?" Leena asked.

"I think he's smart enough not to go out in the snow," Steve answered with a shake of his head.

Leena's eyes grew wide as she whispered, "But you do think he could have been kidnapped?"

"I think it would take someone quite ballsy to come here and snatch him right under your nose. But I hope I'm right about this one, 'cause if someone took him, this person is dead and so are we. I knew I should have implanted a GPS on the kid when he was born!" Claudia said, exasperation making her blurt things best not mentioned.

Steve squatted and began to pet Trailer. "Maybe we should give him another chance. Do we have something else he could smell?"

Leena went to Myka's room and brought back a blanket with a star design. The cloth was worn and showed signs of affection. Handing it to Steve, the innkeeper said, "If that doesn't work, nothing will."

Trailer smelled the blanket and went straight to the bathroom, where he sat in front of the cabinet where the towels were stored, barking happily.

Leena sighed when she saw where Trailer had stopped. "I thought dogs were supposed to be good at tracking? Especially him, since he can track you guys in the warehouse!"

She bent over and scratched Trailer's head. "I should have known that by giving you the freshly washed blanket, that you would track it to the freshly washed towels. If anyone would know about laundry, it would be me, huh?"

Claudia and Steve were lost.

"What are talking about Leena?" Claudia asked.

"The detergent Helena created has virtually no smell and the consequence is that the clothes don't retain smells either. Do you remember the bad reaction Oliver had with regular detergent when he was just a baby?"

Claudia nodded, wincing. Oliver had been covered in red spots for days and HG had been frantic about it. They had finally figured out that it was the detergent and had switched brands, but it had started all over again. Myka kept trying new detergents while HG kept trying to find a solution, until she locked herself in her home laboratory for a week; barely sleeping and eating until she found the answer she was looking for. Myka had not been happy with Helena's absence, but in the end she was glad Oliver was spot-free.

"So Trailer is not helping?" Claudia inquired.

"Well, I don't think he is helping very much," Leena replied.

"Did you at least look in the cabinet?" Steve asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Of course I did!" Leena said and opened the cabinet's door to show Steve that Oliver wasn't in there, jumping as a bundle on the floor moved. Placing her hand over her heart, Leena demanded, "Dickens! What are you doing there?"

The feline gave a low meow as he opened an eye, looked at her, rose into an arch and stretched before curling into a circle and going back to sleep.

"What, you mean you never saw him do that?" Claudia asked with a laugh. When Leena shook her head, she pointed at the sleeping cat, explaining. "You know how Pete always leaves cabinet doors open all over the house? Well, when he lived here I found Dickens caught in here so many times it was almost routine to look for him when he didn't come when called to be fed. He loves towels; especially warm ones. Just leave him alone and when he wants out, he'll let you know."

Claudia closed the cabinet's door as Leena shook her head, sighed and said, "Well that explains the claw marks inside my cabinet doors, but this is ridiculous! Those towels were clean and now I'll have to wash them again… Steve, he likes you best… get him out, would ya?"

Leena opened the door as she spoke, but the cat was gone. Steve drew his head back in puzzlement, demanding, "Wait, where did he go?"

"Let it go Jinxy, we have bigger problems," Claudia said, patting her friend on the back. "Now, if I were a two year old, where would I hide?" She thought for a moment. "The laundry chute! Maybe he fell in and hurt himself!"

Claudia ran to the chute and looked down the hole. There were no signs of Oliver, and Leena was growing more distressed by the minute. Meeting Steve and Claudia's eyes, she suggested, "Maybe we should call Helena and Myka. If Helena can rebuild the durational spectrometer we'll know what happened."

Claudia's eyes grew bigger as she shook her head in an emphatic NO. Grabbing Leena's shoulder, she hissed, "What? You have a death wish or something? They'll kill us; then they'll use an artifact to bring us back to life so they can kill us again! After what happened two years ago I can't really blame them. In all my life, I've never been as afraid of Myka as I was then… Besides, calling them won't help us find Oliver and the durational spectrometer can only work for five hours so it'll be pointless. We have to retrace your steps starting when you last saw Oliver."

Leena sighed. "I already did that Claudia, and I didn't find him. I really think he was abducted and we should get all the help we can get and... Steve? What are you doing?"

Steve didn't answer, but kept taking the towels out of the cabinet. Something was wrong with it; cats didn't just disappear in cabinets! He half entered the cabinet and started tapping around inside, smiling when the back panel sounded hollow. He touched the panel but nothing happened. Then he touched the bottom, in front of the panel; and feeling an indentation in the wood, pushed it. Steve was very surprise to see the back panel slide to the side and a large space behind it. He entered the cabinet completely under the bemused eyes of Claudia and Leena and crawled several feet inside the secret space, taking note of the narrow passages that shot off in different directions.

Taking out his cell phone to have some light, he started looking around. Steve saw a bundle of what looked like towels about a foot from him; gasping when the bundle suddenly sprouted two glowing eyes. He held his phone closer to the bundle and looked again, relaxing onto his heels as he exclaimed, "Dickens!"

The cat closed his eyes and snuggled against the hairy bundle. Narrowing his eyes, Steve told himself that towels didn't have hair and it could only mean one thing. Slowly rising to his knees, he crawled forward and lifted the corner of the towel to reveal a sleeping toddler. Joy filled him and he yelled, "Oliver!"

The cry awoke the little boy, who peered up at his uncle in confusion. He rubbed his sleepy eyes and then popped his thumb in his mouth before mumbling, "Hi!"

"Hi yourself, little man." Relief flooded Steve, and taking a deep breath to steady his nerves, he leaned back down the passageway, calling, "I found him! He's here at the end of the passageway... Gimme a minute to make sure he's okay and then I'll bring him out."

Oliver giggled, patting Steve on the cheek. "I's fine Uncle Stee"

"That's good, bud, but I still need to check you out." Doing a quick survey of the toddler, and finding no injuries, he then held out his hand, questioning, "What say we go join Auntie Claud and Aunt Leena?"

"Kay." Rolling onto his knees, Oliver eyed the passage behind Steve and frowned, shaking his head. Tapping the wall behind him, the boy emphatically stated, "Here!"

"No Ollie, it's this way." Frowning as the child pulled away from him, Steve coaxed, "This is this the way out... See the tiny hall behind me?"

"No!" Glaring at the man for failing to understand him, Oliver smacked the wall once again, repeating, "Here!"

"Okay... Let's see what's so special about this wall of yours." Crawling closer, Steve studied the wall, understanding filling him as he found the hinges along the top. Shifting his attention to the bottom, he found the small latch and gave it a tug, chuckling as the newly-found trapdoor lifted upwards. Glancing at his smiling companion, Steve stated, "Smart boy... This must be how you got in here."

Giggling, Oliver crawled towards the opening, shoving a small pile of Leena's newly washed and folded towels out of the way as he ordered, "We go!"

Sighing, Steve followed the youngster from the hiding place, muttering, "A man of few words you may be, but you definitely have your mother's ability for giving orders."

Slipping through the panel and into the deserted hall, Steve allowed the door to snap closed behind him and then rose with a groan. Scooping the toddler up with one arm, he headed towards where he'd left the women, grinning as he called, "Look what I found."

Whirling around, Claudia and Leena let out shrieks of happiness as they pulled their charge into their arms, showering him with kisses. Finally breaking away from the celebration, Claudia glanced at Steve, demanding, "Where the hell did you come from, dude? We've been sitting here waiting for you to come back down the passageway."

"We decided to take Master Oliver's shortcut." Indicating the hall behind him with a jerk of his head, Steve added, "I do believe I know what happened to the little scoundrel."

"Shortcut?" Frowning as she moved towards the hall, Leena muttered, "Hidden doors, secret passages and shortcuts... What else don't I know about my house?"

"This is a biggie, Leena." Pausing before the panel, Steve dropped to one knee and pressed on the back wall. Shifting to the side as it gave a slight click, he lifted the trap door, adding, "There seems to be a whole series of passages back there… Perfect hidey-hole for a two year old."

"How did I not know this was here?" Dropping to her knees, Leena studied the space behind the wall, hissing, "This is NOT on the house's blueprints! Artie and I have been over those a hundred times when we've had to make renovations... How could we have missed this?"

"Mrs. Frederick." Laughing as they said the name in unison, Steve and Claudia shared a look, before the other woman added, "You could've been staring straight at it and she'd make you forget... Woman's got some scary juju going on."

Perking up at the older woman's name, Oliver asked, "Is 'Rene here?"

"NO! No, she's not here." Claudia responded.

"Ollie, why were you in there? Did you have a nightmare?" Leena asked.

The little boy shook his head.

"Towel is warm!" Oliver said while wrapping himself in the towel he had with him.

"You're definitely spending too much time with Dickens. Next time I'll know you'll be going crazy chasing around a red laser dot," Claudia said with a laugh.

Leena knelt to be at the boy's height. "Now Oliver, you have to promise me not to do this again, okay? You really scared us and we thought we had lost you. Do you understand?"

"Yes Aunt Leena, I's sowwy," Oliver said sheepishly.

Offering the boy a stern look, Leena asked, "Now, do you know what a secret is, Oliver?"

The toddler nodded. "Yes, is like when daddy eats all the cookies and we can't say to Lauren, 'cause she'll be mad at daddy."

Leena bit back a chuckle. "Yes, exactly like that. We can't tell mummy, mama and daddy that we lost you today, okay?"

Confusion filled the boy's eyes. "Why?"

Sighing, Leena explained, "Because they will be mad at us and they will never ask me to take care of you ever again. Would you like that?"

"No!" Fear filled the child's face, and throwing his arms around her neck, he cried, "I luv you Aunt Leena!"

Smiling at his enthusiasm, Leena pulled back so she could meet his eyes, prompting, "I love you too, Oliver… So promise me you won't say anything."

Nodding happily, Oliver repeated, "I promise."

"Good boy!" Rising with a groan, she took his head and questioned, "Now how about we go bake some cookies?"

When Helena called back, Oliver told her about the cookies he had just made and didn't mention his escapade. Leena, Claudia and Steve were relieved that their secret was safe.

Two days later, Helena and Myka returned home and Oliver ran to welcome them with open arms. Giggling as the two women cooed over him, he exclaimed, "Mummy! Mama! Guess what?"

Leena felt dread wash over her, her head dropping wearily as the toddler happily added, "Aunt Leena losted me!"