Let's see what resourceful Steven does next, and what steps his father is taking to find him.

Thanks for reading.

Chapter 71.

Marty and Nancy returned to the hospital, unsure about what to do next. One thing they decided they could do was to find out what rights Marty had. So, before they went to their separate offices, he called Ed Stein, the lawyer who'd written up Audra's adoption papers.

"Ed, it's Marty Wilson," he said after a secretary put him through to the lawyer.

"Marty! How's the family?" Ed's jovial voice boomed through the phone.

"Nancy and Audra are fine." Marty hesitated. "Um, I'm calling about my boy." He'd told Ed about Steven and Helen when she was in the hospital and his son was living with them.

"How can I help you?"

"I want to fight for custody." Marty hadn't realized it until he said it, but it really made the most sense to him and was what he wanted. He could see Nancy nod in agreement. "Full custody."

"What about his mother? Helen something, wasn't it?" Ed asked.

"Auerbach. She's been acting more and more erratic lately. Now she's done a disappearing act, taking Steven with her."

"Oh! Do you have any idea where they've gone?"

Marty hesitated. "No. Do I have the right to go after them or call in the police?"

"Well, since it's not considered kidnapping for the custodial parent to take a child, even if it's out of state, the police probably wouldn't do anything. How erratic has she been? What kind of proof do you have of her mental state?" Ed needed more information before he could advise Marty.

"Is that important?"

"It could serve as the basis for a custody suit if you do find them."

"Doesn't the fact that she suddenly took off count?" Marty asked.

"I'm afraid not. Has she threatened you or the boy in front of witnesses?"

"No," Marty aditted with a sinking feeling.

"What has she done?"

"Well, she wanted to move in with me, she and the boy," Marty replied, realizing how weak it sounded.

"How do you know that?" Ed asked.

"She told me so, and I told her calmly but firmly that it wouldn't happen. This was a couple of days before she left."

"Were there witnesses to her telling you that?"

"No." Marty had to be honest. "We do know that she left voluntarily. A neighbor saw them leave their apartment with suitcases, and none of their things were left behind."

"I'm afraid there's not much you can do," Ed told him. "You can probably hire someone to try and trace them."

"I guess that's what I'll have to do," Marty agreed. "And then find proof that she can't take care of Steven. Well, thanks Ed."

"If you can prove that she's a danger to the boy, or negligent, you'd have a case. Call me again when you do. And give my regards to Nancy and Audra."

"I will. Thanks for the advice. Bye." Marty turned to Nancy after he ended the call.

She'd been following his end of the conversation, periodically nodding her approval of what he was trying to do.

Now he was frowning. "We'll have to hire someone to find them and then find the proof we need about Helen."

"Then let's do that." She put an arm through his.

"You agree that I should fight for custody?" he asked, but he already knew the answer.

"Of course I do! Marty, you know I love that boy as much as you do." She slipped her other arm around his neck and kissed his cheek. "We'll find him, and then we'll do what we have to so we can provide him with the kind of home he deserves." She kissed him again. "I'd better get back to my office. Call me if you hear anything. And whatever you need to do, just do it! You have my complete support, and I'm sure you have Audra's too."

"Audra! How are we going to tell her about this?"

"We'll just tell her. She'll feel the same way we do."

He nodded. "I love you Nan."

"I love you too." She smiled and walked away.

Steven started back to the apartment. As he carefully crossed the street, looking both ways the way he was taught, he noticed a pay phone near the corner. Maybe he could call his dad! But when he reached the kiosk, he realized that you needed a phone card to use it. The cards he'd seen for sale in stores cost ten and twenty dollars. His shoulders slumped. Still he was now determined to contact his dad to tell him where they'd gone. So how could he do that?

Maybe he could send an email. Too bad he couldn't use either his PS6 or his palm reader to call or message anyone. Where could he find a computer? He continued walking down the busy street as he thought about it. Then it came to him, the library! Every library he'd ever been in had computers for people to use.

Up ahead he saw the policeman he'd talked to before.

"Did you find the school?" the man asked.

"Yes, thank you. They told me that I could start tomorrow after they get my records from Princeton," Steven told him. "Now I need to find a library."

"A library, huh?" the patrolman chuckled.

Steven nodded. "So I can use a computer to email my dad. He probably doesn't know where we are. I'm Steven, by the way."

The man continued to smile at him. "Well, Steven, you're very resourceful. You can call me Patrolman Dugan. Let me see." He turned and looked down the street. "I think there's a library two streets further than the school."

"Thanks Patrolman Dugan," Steven said. "I guess I'll see you around here again."

"I guess you will." He watched the boy walk back the way he'd just come.

Chapter 72.

When Steven saw the school again he smiled, then continued on. Instead of the apartment buildings he'd passed before, the next street held several shops. On the corner was a bakery, with beautiful cakes in the window. As he went by, a woman came out carrying a bag and a box, and he caught a whiff of the wonderful smells inside.

The next store had a display of large red apples on one side of the double doors and even larger red tomatoes on the other side. They made him even hungrier than he was before.

Next was a clothing store. One of the dummies in the window was wearing a shirt like one that Audra had. Steven sighed. He missed her, and his dad and Nancy too. The last store was a jewelry store with watches and rings on display. He looked at his own watch, surprised to see that it was already 2:30.

He crossed to the next street, the one with the library. Above the first doors the words 'Harrisburg Public Library' were carved into the stone and below that 'Midtown Branch'. Just inside was a big lobby and an information desk, like the one at the hospital. Steven walked up to it and asked, "Where are the computers?"

The young man sitting at the desk looked at him. "The ones for kids are downstairs in the children's room." He pointed to a wide staircase.

"Thanks," Steven said. He walked down the broad flight of stairs to a large bright room. It looked like the kids area of the library back in New Jersey. Shelves of books lined the walls. There were also a few low book cases in the center, and some kid-sized desks with computers on them. A few little kids sat at a table with a woman who was reading to them.

Two more women were working behind a counter, one checking out books for a kid and the other taking books out of a carton. Steven sat down at one of the computers. It was similar to some he'd used before. But now that he was here, he wondered if he'd be able to use it to send email.

The woman who'd been checking out books came over to him. She was blond, kind of pretty. She reminded him a lot of Nancy. He sighed.

"Can I help you?" she asked.

"I wanted to email my dad," Steven said.

"I'm afraid you need a parent's permission to use our computers to send email," the woman told him.

He sighed deeply. "Oh. Well, thank you," he said and started to turn away.

"Wait. What's your name?" she asked.

"Steven. My name's Steven Auerbach. My dad's Marty Wilson. He works at Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital. I just wanted to let him know that I'm OK." The words came out in a rush, but didn't hide the increasing panic the boy felt.

"Do you know his email address?" she asked, and Steven gave it to her. "OK, Steven. I'll send your dad a message for you."

"Thanks!" His face brightened considerably. "Can I wait to see if he answers?"

She smiled. "Sure." She went back to her computer and sent a message, saying that Steven was OK and in Harrisburg, but there was no immediate reply. Eventually Steven left, promising to return the next day after school to find out if the woman had heard from his dad.

"Ask for me," she told him. "My name is Jeannie."

"I will. Thanks, Jeannie. Good-bye."

Marty had called a private investigator to begin the search for his son. But then he'd gotten busy, first with a new shipment of surgical masks and gloves, then he had to go down to the receiving dock to supervise the unloading of a new X-ray machine, and finally he had to begin some forms for the latest order of disposable diapers for both infant and elderly patients.

At five he noticed that he had an email message from a library in Pennsylvania. He was about to send it to 'trash' when something made him open it instead.

'Mr. Wilson, my name is Jean Corwin. I'm a children's librarian in Harrisburg. Your son asked me to email you to tell you he's OK and he's here in Harrisburg. He's waiting for a reply.' She'd signed it 'Jeannie Corwin'

He answered immediately:

'Miss Corwin. Thanks for writing me. Please tell Steven that we've been looking for him. Where is your library? We want to come get him.'

He looked at the time. He just hoped the woman was still there to reply. While he waited, he also noticed that he had a voice mail message.

'Mr. Wilson, this is Miss Banks at Franklin Elementary. I just wanted to let you know that we had a request from an elementary school in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania for Steven's records.'

It was too late to call her back, but at least they were finally getting somewhere.

Once more Steven retraced his steps. This time when he passed the school, children were coming out. Classes must be over for the day. Many of the kids headed to waiting yellow school buses, but some were walking away from the building in every direction. He wondered if he'd make friends with any of them. Somehow he didn't think he'd ever have another friend like Alex. He might be younger, but he was so smart and so much fun.

Patrolman Dugan was still at his corner. Now he was making sure that the kids going that way got across the street safely. He smiled at Steven and waved to him. Steven didn't realize that the man was determined to keep an eye on him, maybe even check to see if there were reports that he was missing.

Steven reached the apartment building. It wasn't until he was on their floor that he realized that he didn't have a key. He had hoped to be home before his mother, but now he hoped she was there. He knocked on the door and rang the bell but no one was there. He tried the knob, even though he heard it lock when he closed it earlier. Yes, it was locked. So he sat down next to the door and waited.