DC: I don't have any changes to note at this time.
AN: This chapter will be in the narrator's POV. Much will happen in this chapter, including secrets coming out. Therefore, I need to show everything happening, either noticed by the characters or not.
Narrator's POV
Tabitha and Cracked Connie were standing outside Sheridan's cottage wearing dark clothes.
"Tabby, why did I have to come?" she complained.
"Shut up, you good-for-nothing... thing!"
Cracked Connie was quieted, knowing how well Tabitha's new powers were fine tuned.
They looked inside the window. Sheridan, Miguel, Kay, Luis, Pilar, Antonio, Beth, Livia and Alex were laughing merrily with the fire blazing along with them.
Theresa and Lyn walked in after putting the babies down.
"Out like a light," Lyn told Alex. Tabitha walked around to the kitchen entrance and waited.
Alastair was there, as usual, keeping quiet, yet snooping around. He left quietly as not to break his cover. Tabitha waited again and stepped inside.
She found herself in a warm kitchen and looked around. Behind one polished wood door came the sounds of happy discussion about someone getting married. Suddenly, there was someone walking in. Tabitha hid in the empty pantry.
"Anyone want anything?" Sheridan called behind her back.
"Beer, please."
"Some Coke?"
"Tea. Are you sure you don't want any help?" Pilar asked.
"No, no. It's still your week off, and you aren't lifting a finger," Sheridan called back.
"Water."
There were several more requests that blended into the background as Sheridan shuffled about. Soon she was back in the living room, the door shut firmly behind her. Tabitha took a deep breath and led Cracked Connie out.
"Quiet!" Tabitha whispered to her. They tiptoed into a small hallway with several doors leading off it.
The first one was apparently another entrance to the living room, where the lively discussion was still going on. The second was a bathroom, so clean it looked sterile. The next two doors were Sheridan's room and a closet, respectively. The last door was opened and Tabitha struck gold.
Three babies slept soundly, side by side on the bed and surrounded by pillows. Tabitha and Cracked Connie snuck in and gazed on the sleeping mounds on the bed.
"The one on the end must be the Craine kid," Cracked Connie said. Tabitha shushed her and selected one of the other two kids, the male with glossy dark brown ringlets, to the left, not quite two years old.
***********
Theresa's POV
I checked up at Sheridan's clock. Midnight.
"I'm gonna go check on the kids, okay?" I said. Alex was still holding my hand. He pulled me back, kissing me softly.
Finally he let me go and I walked into the last bedroom, where the kids were sleeping. Knowing that the sleeping arrangement was Little Ethan on the left, Mattie in the middle, and Xander on the far right, I was quick to glance in. Mattie and Xander were fast asleep in their respective spots. I turned to go back to the living room, when I realized something.
"Little Ethan?" I asked. I stepped into the dark room. Mattie stirred in her sleep. Xander rolled over, closer to Mattie. Little Ethan wasn't there. I checked under the bed and beneath the covers. The only bodies in the bed were wearing Strawberry Shortcake footie pajamas and Batman sleepsuits. All that was beneath the bed was a shoebox. I rushed out of the room.
"Luis! Little Ethan is gone!" I cried, reaching the living room.
"What?" he asked.
"Little Ethan isn't in bed!"
He followed me into the room. He found the Strawberry Shortcake and Batman suits. Little Ethan and his starry blue sleeper weren't.
"Little Ethan?" he called. Xander woke up.
"Teesa?" he asked. "Daddy?"
"Come here," I said, and took him in my arms.
"Did Little Ethan get up and go somewhere?" I asked him.
"Teesa?" Mattie asked me. Luis picked her up, ruffling her messy blonde hair.
We carried them to the living room, handing them to Alex and Lyn.
"What's wrong, mi Theresita?" Mama asked, seeing the worry in my face.
"Little Ethan's gone. He isn't in bed."
Luis called the police and Chief Bennett drove over right away.
"So Little Ethan's missing?" he asked.
I nodded my head. He took out a notebook.
"Okay, I know this stuff, but it's standard procedure. Full name?"
"Ethan Martin Lopez-Fitzgerald."
"Changed his name?"
I nodded my head again.
"Date of birth?"
I answered him.
"Age, weight and length?"
"Nineteen months, twenty-five pounds, thirty inches."
(AN: I don't know how accurate this is, but at least I tried...)
"Last time you saw him?"
"Eight thirty, when Lyn and I put the kids to bed."
"Anyone leave the room since then?"
"Sheridan got drinks, but she was only in the kitchen."
"I went to the bathroom half an hour ago," Luis said.
"See anything out of the ordinary?"
"No."
"Theresa, when did you go in and check on them, notice he was missing?"
"Five after midnight."
"What did you do when he wasn't in bed?"
"Checked under the blankets and under the bed."
"Then?"
"I went to get Luis."
"And?"
"Xander and Mattie woke up, so we brought them in here."
"That it? Then Luis called?"
I nodded my head.
Chief Bennett looked around the bedroom.
"Anything different about the room?" he asked Sheridan, who walked in.
She briefly glanced around.
"No," she said.
Chief Bennett took the short hallway to the kitchen, the only other exit from the cottage.
"Anything different here?"
"No."
Sheridan looked around again, stopping her eyes on the empty pantry.
"I could've sworn that was closed. I don't use it, so it's usually closed off."
Sam used an ink pen to open the ajar door. He looked around and went back to the living room.
"Mind if I use your phone? I'd like to get Forensics down to check for some out-of-place prints on the pantry. You don't use it, right?"
Sheridan nodded her head as he dialed the phone.
"Hank? I'm at Sheridan Crane's cottage. Theresa Lopez-Fitzgerald's son's disapeared. Get over here and bring Forensics."
There was muffled speaking on the other end and Sam hung up.
"Hank'll be here in a minute. Now, no one goes into the bedroom or the kitchen until then."
Fifteen minutes later, the "Forensics team" arrived. Noah Bennett and an older, tired looking man with graying hair, wasted no time in dusting the pantry door for prints.
"Noah's training to take over for Mr. Gustaff," Sam explained.
Mr. Gustaff and Noah expertly lifted three prints off of the pantry door, as Hank questioned everyone in the living room.
"Sheridan, I'll need a print off yours and one of Pilar's. She's the only other person who's opened the door, you know of, right?"
Sheridan nodded her head. Noah took a glass out of the cupboard and rubbed any fingerprints off of it with a rag, setting it in front of Sheridan at the kitchen table.
"It's cleaner than getting out ink and stuff," he explained. Sheridan touched her index finger to the clean glass and pressed gently. Noah used an artist's paintbrush to dust powder on it. Mr. Gustaff put a piece of Scotch tape on the print and lifted it off, putting the tape on a piece of paper. Noah did the same with Mama.
"It doesn't look like any of the prints we lifted, but they're two different prints off of the pantry. Noah's in collecting prints from everyone in the living room now," Mr. Gustaff said.
Half an hour later, none of the three prints matched anyone's in the house.
"No one's let anyone in, like a fast-food delivery guy or anything?" Sam asked.
Everone shook their heads.
"We'll keep in touch. One thing: don't tell anyone he's missing just yet. Stay here, but out of the kitchen and bedroom. If you're going anywhere, make sure you're back tomorrow morning. This'll be home base, and we'll need everyone to stay in touch," Sam said.
AN: This chapter will be in the narrator's POV. Much will happen in this chapter, including secrets coming out. Therefore, I need to show everything happening, either noticed by the characters or not.
Narrator's POV
Tabitha and Cracked Connie were standing outside Sheridan's cottage wearing dark clothes.
"Tabby, why did I have to come?" she complained.
"Shut up, you good-for-nothing... thing!"
Cracked Connie was quieted, knowing how well Tabitha's new powers were fine tuned.
They looked inside the window. Sheridan, Miguel, Kay, Luis, Pilar, Antonio, Beth, Livia and Alex were laughing merrily with the fire blazing along with them.
Theresa and Lyn walked in after putting the babies down.
"Out like a light," Lyn told Alex. Tabitha walked around to the kitchen entrance and waited.
Alastair was there, as usual, keeping quiet, yet snooping around. He left quietly as not to break his cover. Tabitha waited again and stepped inside.
She found herself in a warm kitchen and looked around. Behind one polished wood door came the sounds of happy discussion about someone getting married. Suddenly, there was someone walking in. Tabitha hid in the empty pantry.
"Anyone want anything?" Sheridan called behind her back.
"Beer, please."
"Some Coke?"
"Tea. Are you sure you don't want any help?" Pilar asked.
"No, no. It's still your week off, and you aren't lifting a finger," Sheridan called back.
"Water."
There were several more requests that blended into the background as Sheridan shuffled about. Soon she was back in the living room, the door shut firmly behind her. Tabitha took a deep breath and led Cracked Connie out.
"Quiet!" Tabitha whispered to her. They tiptoed into a small hallway with several doors leading off it.
The first one was apparently another entrance to the living room, where the lively discussion was still going on. The second was a bathroom, so clean it looked sterile. The next two doors were Sheridan's room and a closet, respectively. The last door was opened and Tabitha struck gold.
Three babies slept soundly, side by side on the bed and surrounded by pillows. Tabitha and Cracked Connie snuck in and gazed on the sleeping mounds on the bed.
"The one on the end must be the Craine kid," Cracked Connie said. Tabitha shushed her and selected one of the other two kids, the male with glossy dark brown ringlets, to the left, not quite two years old.
***********
Theresa's POV
I checked up at Sheridan's clock. Midnight.
"I'm gonna go check on the kids, okay?" I said. Alex was still holding my hand. He pulled me back, kissing me softly.
Finally he let me go and I walked into the last bedroom, where the kids were sleeping. Knowing that the sleeping arrangement was Little Ethan on the left, Mattie in the middle, and Xander on the far right, I was quick to glance in. Mattie and Xander were fast asleep in their respective spots. I turned to go back to the living room, when I realized something.
"Little Ethan?" I asked. I stepped into the dark room. Mattie stirred in her sleep. Xander rolled over, closer to Mattie. Little Ethan wasn't there. I checked under the bed and beneath the covers. The only bodies in the bed were wearing Strawberry Shortcake footie pajamas and Batman sleepsuits. All that was beneath the bed was a shoebox. I rushed out of the room.
"Luis! Little Ethan is gone!" I cried, reaching the living room.
"What?" he asked.
"Little Ethan isn't in bed!"
He followed me into the room. He found the Strawberry Shortcake and Batman suits. Little Ethan and his starry blue sleeper weren't.
"Little Ethan?" he called. Xander woke up.
"Teesa?" he asked. "Daddy?"
"Come here," I said, and took him in my arms.
"Did Little Ethan get up and go somewhere?" I asked him.
"Teesa?" Mattie asked me. Luis picked her up, ruffling her messy blonde hair.
We carried them to the living room, handing them to Alex and Lyn.
"What's wrong, mi Theresita?" Mama asked, seeing the worry in my face.
"Little Ethan's gone. He isn't in bed."
Luis called the police and Chief Bennett drove over right away.
"So Little Ethan's missing?" he asked.
I nodded my head. He took out a notebook.
"Okay, I know this stuff, but it's standard procedure. Full name?"
"Ethan Martin Lopez-Fitzgerald."
"Changed his name?"
I nodded my head again.
"Date of birth?"
I answered him.
"Age, weight and length?"
"Nineteen months, twenty-five pounds, thirty inches."
(AN: I don't know how accurate this is, but at least I tried...)
"Last time you saw him?"
"Eight thirty, when Lyn and I put the kids to bed."
"Anyone leave the room since then?"
"Sheridan got drinks, but she was only in the kitchen."
"I went to the bathroom half an hour ago," Luis said.
"See anything out of the ordinary?"
"No."
"Theresa, when did you go in and check on them, notice he was missing?"
"Five after midnight."
"What did you do when he wasn't in bed?"
"Checked under the blankets and under the bed."
"Then?"
"I went to get Luis."
"And?"
"Xander and Mattie woke up, so we brought them in here."
"That it? Then Luis called?"
I nodded my head.
Chief Bennett looked around the bedroom.
"Anything different about the room?" he asked Sheridan, who walked in.
She briefly glanced around.
"No," she said.
Chief Bennett took the short hallway to the kitchen, the only other exit from the cottage.
"Anything different here?"
"No."
Sheridan looked around again, stopping her eyes on the empty pantry.
"I could've sworn that was closed. I don't use it, so it's usually closed off."
Sam used an ink pen to open the ajar door. He looked around and went back to the living room.
"Mind if I use your phone? I'd like to get Forensics down to check for some out-of-place prints on the pantry. You don't use it, right?"
Sheridan nodded her head as he dialed the phone.
"Hank? I'm at Sheridan Crane's cottage. Theresa Lopez-Fitzgerald's son's disapeared. Get over here and bring Forensics."
There was muffled speaking on the other end and Sam hung up.
"Hank'll be here in a minute. Now, no one goes into the bedroom or the kitchen until then."
Fifteen minutes later, the "Forensics team" arrived. Noah Bennett and an older, tired looking man with graying hair, wasted no time in dusting the pantry door for prints.
"Noah's training to take over for Mr. Gustaff," Sam explained.
Mr. Gustaff and Noah expertly lifted three prints off of the pantry door, as Hank questioned everyone in the living room.
"Sheridan, I'll need a print off yours and one of Pilar's. She's the only other person who's opened the door, you know of, right?"
Sheridan nodded her head. Noah took a glass out of the cupboard and rubbed any fingerprints off of it with a rag, setting it in front of Sheridan at the kitchen table.
"It's cleaner than getting out ink and stuff," he explained. Sheridan touched her index finger to the clean glass and pressed gently. Noah used an artist's paintbrush to dust powder on it. Mr. Gustaff put a piece of Scotch tape on the print and lifted it off, putting the tape on a piece of paper. Noah did the same with Mama.
"It doesn't look like any of the prints we lifted, but they're two different prints off of the pantry. Noah's in collecting prints from everyone in the living room now," Mr. Gustaff said.
Half an hour later, none of the three prints matched anyone's in the house.
"No one's let anyone in, like a fast-food delivery guy or anything?" Sam asked.
Everone shook their heads.
"We'll keep in touch. One thing: don't tell anyone he's missing just yet. Stay here, but out of the kitchen and bedroom. If you're going anywhere, make sure you're back tomorrow morning. This'll be home base, and we'll need everyone to stay in touch," Sam said.