Checking Out the Apartment

It was barely a week later that Will was getting training on using shotguns from Ashley when her phone started vibrating. Watching him demolish a target with two slugs to the chest and one to the head as she pulled the phone out of her pocket, she signaled him to stop so that she'd be able to hear better.

As she pulled the earplugs she was wearing out, she was already speaking. "Yeah, Mom?" she paused. "The shooting range, with Will."

Will pulled his own earplugs out in time to hear the rest of Ashley's side of the conversation.

"Nah, just training...An emergency meeting?... Yeah, we can meet you and Henry in five. On our way."

"Did I just hear an emergency meeting get called?"

"Yep. Let's go put that away. We're supposed to be upstairs in five." As Ashley led the way out of the shooting range and into the armory, she gave Will a playful punch on the shoulder. "By the way, I think we can move on to buckshot in the twelve-gauge next time. I think you've got slugs licked."

"Is that entirely necessary?"

"Told you, I'm gonna check you out on everything. That includes a potato gun loaded with bean bags and Henry's new DEMP gun, when he gets it working correctly."

"Wait." Will turned to Ashley as the elevator doors closed. "You're going to check me out on Henry's new gun? What makes you so qualified? He hasn't even finished it yet."

"I've been involved with testing it from day one. I've probably fired it more than Henry."

"Oh." The door dinged and Will put a hand on Ashley's back as they walked down the hall together to Magnus's office.

As they entered, Magnus told them, "Don't bother taking a seat; the two of you will be headed back out right away."

"Sounds serious."

"Yes, it is. There's been a kidnapping."

"A kidnapping? That's a little out of our jurisdiction, don't you think?"

"Not at all. The boy who was kidnapped is an abnormal who is expected to develop psychic powers."

"Expected to?" Ashley interrupted.

"Yes, as far as I far as I know, he hasn't begun to manifest them yet, but because of who his parents are- were- whatever- it's a virtual certainty that he will inherit their gifts that way."

"So what are we looking at? Teleportation, telekinesis, telepathy, telecoercion, prescience, what?" Henry inquired.

"His father was a very skilled telepath and his mother is a strong telekinetic whose powers include moving herself and levitation for hours. With that kind of a pedigree, it could be either or both. And it sounds like Mariah is worried that they took him either to force her to use her powers or in the hopes that his will break soon and they'll be able to use him directly." Turning to Will and Ashley, she continued, "I want you two to go to her apartment immediately and see what you can discover. Will, if you can call your contact in the police department en route and get this kicked to us, that would be great, because we would like to actually formally report this to the police as a kidnapping. It'll be safe since the boy appears fully human."

"Well, Magnus," Will replied, "that might actually be a problem since all kidnappings are considered federal jurisdiction. We'd need to get the FBI to give it to us. Your clout might actually work better for us there. But I might be able to smooth it over with the local LEOs so that we get the crime scene first."

"Okay, I'll make some calls, then. Here's the address." She handed him a piece of paper. "Let me know if you get any leads at the apartment. Meanwhile, Henry, I want you to be running a cybersearch. Try to get a bead on why the kidnappers chose Joshua.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" She snapped when Will stood there just looking at the paper for a minute. "Go, interview, check out the crime scene, find the boy."

Will raised an eyebrow. "Okay, Boss. Mind if I take a minute to figure out where this is and the quickest way to get there?"

Ashley snatched the paper out of his fingers. "Oh, for heavens sake, let's just get going."

...

three hours later, Kingsessing, PA

Ashley pulled the van up in front of a building that managed to look neither well cared for nor abused. Well worn, but not just left to fall apart. Kind of gives the impression that someone would do more for the building if they could afford to, but they can't. I like all the flowers and plants on that balcony. Come to think of it, that might even be the apartment that we're looking for. The number is listed as 2-B.

"Come on, Will, let's go." She turned to give her partner a light slap on the arm, only to discover that he wasn't in the seat next to her. Hearing a noise behind her, she saw Will pulling a black duffel bag from the back of the van. She grinned back at him. Okay, so he's ahead of me. Well, let's go Ashley.

Walking up in front of him, Ashley held the door and was rewarded with a soft-spoken "Thank you."

Will's been pretty quiet all the way up here. I wonder what's going on with him? Ashley wondered as they walked up the stairs to the second floor. Knocking on the door, Ashley realized that this apartment was indeed the one with all the plants on the balcony.

"Who is it?" There was no disguising the fact that the feminine voice on the other side of the door was distraught.

"Will Zimmerman and Ashley Magnus from the Sanctuary."

"Magnus? Wait, Did you say Ashley Magnus?" The door was pulled open, but the redhead in the doorway looked distrustful.

"Yes," Ashley smiled, familiar with this reaction from people who knew her mother. Everybody hears that last name and thinks of Mom. I'm just the afterthought, the cheap knock-off in their minds. Second choice, definitely. "I'm Helen's daughter. You're Mariah Jones?" At the woman's nod, she added, "May we come in?"

"Oh. Where are my manners?" The door was pushed all the way open and Mariah waved them in. "Sorry about that. I didn't realize that Magnus had a daughter. And, as you might guess, I've been a little suspicious about everyone today."

"Don't worry about it, you're hardly the first to expect my mother instead of me."

While the women had been talking, Will's eyes had been darting all over the kitchen and living room. He noticed the blanket and well-worn Elmo doll on the couch; the mug, empty box of kleenex, and cell phone on the end table. He noticed the congealed tomato soup in the bowls on the kitchen counter, the now-disgusting looking grilled cheese sandwiches from an uneaten lunch- despite the fact that it was now close to four in the afternoon. Looking back at his companions, he noticed the swelling around Mariah's eyes and her red nose.

Clearly, she's been crying a lot. Too upset to eat, too worried to concentrate on anything. She's probably been sitting on the couch waiting for the phone to ring and someone to either tell her what to do or tell her they've found her child.

"Mariah? Can you tell us what happened?"

"I was cooking... making lunch... Josh was playing in his bedroom." Mariah sniffed, tears starting to leak out of her eyes. "I'd checked on him just before I started lunch, and when it was ready I shouted for him to come out. And when he didn't come, I yelled again. I thought he was just caught up in playing with his legos and didn't hear me. And then when I went back to his room again, he was gone. I still don't have any idea how they got him, there's only one door into the apartment, and it's right there!" She pointed at the door, nearly screaming. "If anybody had come into the apartment, I would have seen them, I would have noticed! The only way that I can think of that anyone could get to him would be teleportation. But even then, I should have heard something- Josh screaming, a struggle, something! And there was nothing, nothing." She rubbed her forehead with hand and reached for another kleenex with the other."

Will stepped over and began rubbing slow circles on her back as he tried to comfort her. "Shhh, it's not your fault. It sounds like there was nothing you could possibly have done to prevent this. Maybe you could just take us back to Josh's room to look around?"