Chapter 1:
As much as she missed working alongside her husband, Eddie Janko-Reagan was beginning to enjoy the independence of being on a different shift. As challenging as their schedule was, finally Eddie felt like she was establishing herself as an individual at work. She had been proud to be a part of their highly successful partnership at the 12th precinct, and certainly she was proud of being Jamie's wife. Working on a different squad had been initially challenging because she and Jamie worked so well together in any capacity and she missed his input and support. Finally though, Eddie was becoming confident in herself as an individual on the job. She was one of the senior women patrol officers. In addition, she was a wife, a mother and she was respected by her fellow officers and superiors.
While her life had changed for the better since she and Jamie became parents to a 2 year old, it had also become more complicated. She now found any cases involving children increasingly difficult. It was hard not to think of Ellie when encountering young crime victims. As soon as she and her partner received the call over the radio, Eddie had a sinking feeling. Hearing that a potential child abduction had taken place, sucked all of the oxygen out of the car. Just minutes before, she had been having an animated discussion with her partner about which DVR'd television shows to watch first so they could review them as they drove around at night on patrol. Now both of them had strained expressions and as her partner drove them to the address they got from the dispatcher, Eddie stole a peek at the pictures inside of her cap. In addition to a picture of her and Jamie, was a small picture of Elizabeth from her daycare's school picture day only weeks before. It was inconceivable to Eddie to imagine someone taking the little girl from them, and she knew she had to put on her game face before reporting to the scene.
As soon as they pulled up, Eddie put on her hat and jumped from the car. With steely determination she walked up to the front door of the home. The family inside was in a state of chaos. The door was opened by a woman in her mid-50s who was frantic. On the couch was a younger female in her late twenties with tears streaming down her cheeks. She was wailing and sobbing making it clear to Eddie that she was going to be difficult to get information from, so she and her partner turned back to the other adults in the room. An adult male sat on a chair across from the couch, head in hands. The woman who had opened the door for them, spoke first and told them that her granddaughter was missing. As Eddie questioned the family, her partner was on the phone relaying the information gathered to the dispatcher. The little girl, Emelia Perez, aged six, approximately 40 pounds, with long brown hair and brown eyes was last seen by her mother in the front yard of her home. Mom had gone inside for a bottle of water and returned to find the yard empty and a maroon sedan speeding away from their residence. Her screaming had woken up the child's father who was sleeping between shifts and drawn the grandmother from inside the home. They hadn't seen anything.
More officers responded to the home as Eddie continued to gather information from the family. Her sergeant had arrived moments earlier and could see she was getting all the relevant information and establishing a rapport with the family. While Eddie was learning everything possible from the mother and father, she had a strange feeling about the grandmother. Before she had a chance to dig any deeper, a detective also arrived on the scene and after hearing the specifics from Eddie, he rudely dismissed her. At first, she balked at his behavior but catching her sergeant's eye, she stopped. Outside the residence they spoke. "Sarge, something's off with the grandmother. It just doesn't seem right." Eddie pleaded.
"Janko, there's nothing we can do about that right now. He's the detective and it's his show. Let's start looking for the car."
Before she could begin to join the others and canvas the area with her partner, Eddie heard the detective calling her back. Now all three adults in the room were beside themselves. The male was yelling at the detective and both women were now hysterical. As soon as she walked into the room, the male calmed slightly. "Good, now let this lady cop finish talking to my wife. You can't treat Gloria like this. Some creep takes my kid and you're asking us if we know who did it! Why the hell wouldn't we tell you if we knew who has her? We're victims and you're treating us like criminals. You're wasting time when you should be looking for my baby girl!"
Eddie was successful in calming the man down, and assuring the family that they needed to ask all kinds of questions. She assured him that anything and everything he shared, however insignificant it seemed, might be the key to bringing Emelia home. Eddie was reluctant to catch the detectives glance since she expected him to resent the way she was able to get through when he couldn't. Surprisingly, he gave her a reassuring glance and mouthed, "Thank you".
Three hours later, when nothing had changed, there was no sign of the car with the little girl, and the detectives were becoming irritated again. They continued to question the child's parents, with questions to the father becoming steadily more accusatory. Meanwhile, the grandmother seemed to be moving towards the fringes of the room, and Eddie found it strange that she was not sitting with her daughter offering comfort. She seemed to get more upset the harsher the questions directed at her son in law became, but still seemed to be trying to remove herself from the room. Eddie knew her suspicions were correct. The grandmother knew something.
Eddie went into the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of water. She handed it to the grandmother and sympathetically asked her if she needed anything. "Rosa, I can't imagine how difficult this is. Please let me know if there is anything you think of, no matter how small."
Rosa Martinez accepted the bottle and kept her eyes locked on Eddie's. It was clear from her expression that she had something she wanted to share, but as quickly as the look appeared, it passed when Rosa glanced around the crowded room. Eddie knew she needed to try something else. She gently placed her hand on the older woman's elbow and guided her to a chair in the small kitchen. As soon as she sat down, Rosa began to speak in a quiet voice thick with emotion. "Thank you so much Officer Janko. I just can't believe anything my daughter and her husband are involved in are to blame for this. It has to be some stranger that took her...But that's bad right? If it's a stranger, we will never find her." Rosa began to sob.
Eddie paused to collect her thoughts and then grabbed Rosa's hand from the table. "We are doing everything we can to find your granddaughter and we will keep looking for her until she is found. All you have to remember is to share anything you can think of, no matter how small or insignificant it might seem. People like me are here to help the detectives chase down any leads you might give us. We all want to help bring Emelia home." Eddie waited while she let the words sink in.
Rosa looked up at her. "I clean houses. It's a good business and I'm good at it." She smiled ruefully, pausing briefly. "I have lots of clients...and sometimes I find things I'm not supposed to. Could something that I found be the reason this happened? I'm just not sure."
"It depends...Did you find something?" Eddie inquired.
Before Rosa could respond, the detective came in from the other room. "Officer, you can head out now. We have guys stationed on the door and out front The rest of us are checking some things out for right now."
"Ok Detective," Eddie responded but she stayed rooted to her seat and maintained eye contact with Rosa.
Rosa seemed more overwhelmed than reluctant to share, so Eddie made a decision. "Do you have the detective's card?"
Rosa nodded. "It's on the table."
"Well, here's mine." She handed the woman her card. "Take a few minutes to yourself. Make a list of things that you may have seen or even heard at a client's home. You can call the detective directly if it helps when you think of something or call me. Either way, we are all here to help you." Eddie slid the card the woman had placed on the table back towards her. Then, she reassuringly placed a hand on the older woman's shoulder. In response, the older woman stood up and embraced her.
When Eddie walked out of the kitchen, the detective was waiting for her. "Thanks for that Officer...Janko" He completed her name after reading her name tag. "You really have a way with the family. Would you mind if I ask your Sergeant about using you for a while on this one? I think it might take a mother's touch...or a woman's… Pardon me for assuming. It's just I think the young guy I'm partnered with and this gruff old man lack that certain something." He chuckled slightly at his characterization of himself.
"No pardon needed. I am a mother - foster mother for right now but hoping to make things permanent. My daughter is turning two in just about 10 days." She smiled at the detective. I would be happy to help out in any way I can. As long as we're talking about helping, I think the grandmother is suspicious of someone. She's not exactly holding back on us, but I feel like she's either scared or struggling to accept something. I can't put my finger on it. I told her to call either you or me if she thinks of anything. Of course if she calls, I'll let you know right away."
"Good thinking, Janko." the detective said somberly. "Wait for word from your brass about being assigned over to us for a while."