Star Pupil
Chapter 13
Christine was shocked about Mike's behavior but she also understood, he had barely slept and he was blaming himself for something. She just wasn't entirely sure what. Deputy Maxwell had been amazing and Christine was pretty sure the young man had also not slept. His boss finally sent him home when they hit a snag in finding any property registered to Trey Baker. Mike, however, refused to sleep.
"Mike; you haven't slept in nearly two days. At this rate, you are going to make yourself sick and you won't be any use to Katie." Christine said as she stood at the office door. It was already after midnight and the kids had gone to be bed hours before.
"I can't sleep while she's out there. If you need to, go ahead." Mike said. His eyes were on his computer screen and he wasn't even looking at Christine. She decided to take a chance and walked around the desk. She managed to get in between Mike and the desk and put her hands on his shoulders.
"As I said, you will not be any use to Katie like this. Or me or the kids." Christine said as she gently massaged Mike's tense shoulder muscles.
"I just keep thinking about what might be happening. But then, I also know we are at hour forty-eight. If he was going to kill her, the statistics are he already would have." Mike remarked. It hurt Christine, how coldly he had said it, but she also understood the logic. Mike was insulating himself.
"She would want you to rest." Christine insisted.
"My question is; if she is still alive, would she be able to sleep?" Mike asked.
"Mike; Katie is like you. She's smart. She's resourceful. She is intelligent and she is strong. My guess is; his end goal is not to kill her. Its to break her and at some point, he will return the shattered pieces back to us. If that happens, she is going to need us to be strong and well-rested so we can put her back together again. Katie was the glue that kept me together all those years. She bandaged wounds. She held me when I cried. She gave me showers. And now; it may be on us to do that for her. I have no doubt that Brad has hurt her, but I don't believe he's killed her." Christine said.
"You seem so sure." Mike remarked.
"When Lucas died, I wasn't there. I wasn't allowed to be. But; I knew when he died. It was like a dagger to my heart. I think if Katie was gone; I would feel the same way. Until I see her body, I will not believe she's died. Now, I know about the statistics and I know that you were a cop. Everything is based on logic. I'm not asking you to be a cop now. I am asking for you to be a husband and father. Have some hope and faith." Christine said before kissing Mike on the forehead.
"I pray to God that you're right. Losing Lucas was bad enough, but I remember you telling me it was quick. I'm not sure Katie will have the same luck." Mike remarked.
"Just put that out of your head and come to bed." Christine said as she took Mike's hand and pulled him out of the chair. Thankfully, he didn't resist her and he even followed her out of the office after shutting the light off. Mike took a shower and crawled into bed with her. He fell asleep almost as soon as his head hit the pillow. It took longer for Christine. A thought had occurred to her. She could trade places with Katie. It wasn't that she wanted to go through anymore, but she certainly didn't want her daughter to go through it. It was not an ideal plan, but it was the only thing she could think of.
Deputy Maxwell was there at eight am the next morning and Christine waited patiently as Mike, the sheriff and Deputy Maxwell talked. She knew the suggestion would be not be a popular one particularly with Mike. Tom had also arrived and they were pouring over information in the office when Christine carried a tray of coffee and pastries that Hannah had made. She listened to the conversation for a moment before speaking up.
"I could trade places with Katie? If we can figure out where they are at and how to contact them, I could offer to trade places, and that might put them into a position where you could get her." Christine offered.
"IF we could find them, that would work." The sheriff said.
"That's insane." Mike remarked.
"But it could get Katie back." Christine said.
"Christine; you would be walking right into the lion's den. It would be dangerous." Tom warned.
"And we'd have to figure someway of contacting them." Deputy Maxwell added.
"We aren't actually considering this!" Mike exclaimed.
"We wouldn't actually let Christine to be taken. Just use her as bait." Sheriff Gray said.
"Anything to get Katie back." Christine said firmly.
"I don't agree with this at all." Mike commented.
"Mike; I understand where your coming from, but we both want Katie back. This maybe our only option, as terrible as it is. No price is too high for that." Christine said as she wrapped her arms around Mike. At first Mike was resistant but he finally gave in.
"This needs to be well executed." Sheriff Gray said.
"It has to be." Mike said. His face was in Christine's hair and he was holding on for dear life. For Christine, it felt good but in the back of her mind, she wondered if she would many more hugs from Mike. She had a bad feeling.