Chapter 9

She rose to leave, and Bobby quickly grabbed her hand. "The boys," he hissed at her.

She tilted her head.

"Tit for tat, Nicole. Your turn."

She gave him a smile and pretended there was affection in the way he held her hand. "I may have seen some writing on the bathroom wall. Good night, Bobby. I can't wait for our next encounter." She kissed the air and he let her go.

Bobby hurried to the women's restroom. He knocked and entered, then searched the cubicles surrounding every toilet. In the last stall, she had written boldly:

"210 Amore." And she'd drawn a picture of a heart.

Bobby dialed his phone.

The Logans were at the hospital, exuberant from the relief that their son was all right. Andy was happy, too. His face was scarred from the glass, and he had an IV in his arm, but he was with his family and a bowl of soup was on the way. He smiled and let his parents pet him.

Alex and Katie arrived. Katie gave Andy a fierce hug, and then hugged Mike and Carolyn. Alex greeted them all in much the same way.

When Bobby arrived a few minutes later, Andy was already digging into his bowl of soup. Bobby just smiled at the boy, and gave his shin a squeeze. He patted Carolyn on the arm and nodded at Mike.

"You must be hungry," Bobby said.

"I haven't eaten," he said between bites, "since Friday night."

"Your captor, didn't…"

"She locked us in a room and left."

"He already talked to the local PD," Mike said.

"Did you see her?" Bobby asked.

"No, but Darren did."

He gave the boy's shin another squeeze and left the room. Katie followed him.

Down the hall, he found Darren with his parents in a very similar situation. Bobby hesitated in the doorway, but Darren saw Katie and perked up. "Katie!" He said happily.

She came in, bent over, and kissed his cheek. "I'm so glad you're all right, Darren!" Introductions were the next order of business.

"Darren," Bobby said quietly, "Andy said you saw the woman who kidnapped you."

"Yeah, I helped her drag Andy up the hill and put him in her car. Then she made me carry him down the stairs into her basement, into that room."

Bobby opened his binder and removed a picture of Nicole, taken by stealth when she met him at the bar. "Is this her?" He asked.

Darren's face paled with recognition. "Th-that's her," he said.

Bobby quickly put the photograph away. "Thank you, Darren." Bobby went to stand by the door until Katie was ready to leave him. He needed a moment to himself, anyway. In the rush to find the boys, he hadn't had a chance to let down after his meeting with Nicole.

"I want to help," Mike said quietly, as he paced the hall with Bobby. Goren's energy was up; he'd been wired for hours.

"It's not that simple, Bobby said. I'm just a consultant."

"I'm a PI, they could use me."

"All I can do is put in a good word. Detective Lichter would have to decide."

"I'll do it free of charge."

"I'll tell her, but Mike… she knows about Andy. She's not likely to want you involved; you're too close."

"She knows you're worried about Katie and she hasn't fired you yet."

Bobby stopped and turned to his friend. "Look, I'll tell her. After that…" he raised his hands in the air, then resumed pacing. At the nurse's station, Bobby stopped and turned back to Mike. When Mike was closer, he said. "How is he, really?"

Mike wiped his hand over his hair. "He's all right. They said he probably had a concussion, but that was already healing. They're just keeping him tonight to rehydrate him."

Bobby clapped Mike's arm, then dropped his hand to his side. "I'm sorry, Mike. I was so worried about Katie that I didn't even think-"

"Oh, shut up, Goren. You're not a…" Mike glanced quickly around him and lowered his voice, "fucking psychic. I don't expect you to know what that psychopathic bitch had planned." He jammed his hands into his pockets. "The kids are all right. That's all that matters."

The Gorens had a hotel room, and though Katie's college home was less than two miles away, she joined her parents for the night. Bobby was still restless. He paced until Alex made him stop, then he flopped on the bed and flipped channels with the remote in an endless circle, never stopping for more than 30 seconds on any one show.

"Daddy," Katie said, and Alex lifted the remote from his hand. "I don't want you to be upset. Everything's okay now."

He rested his hand in her hair for a moment, then stood and went out onto the tiny balcony for some air.

"He just needs some time, honey," Alex said. "And some space." Alex handed her the remote, and after a few more glances in her father's direction, she found a documentary that was interesting and became engrossed.

Katie was in a sound sleep when she heard the balcony door open again. She sat up quickly, and saw her father outside again, staring into the clouds that were blowing in. She knew something was wrong.

Katie slipped out of bed and slid the door open behind him, stepping out into the windy night.

"Did I wake you?" He asked.

She nodded, holding her arms to stay warm.

"It's cold. We can go in."

"No, it's okay," she said. "I kind of like storms." As they stood in the whispy breeze, with the heat lightning strobing in the clouds, his thoughts carried him far away from her.

No one but Bobby would ever know the dream that woke him, that frightened him enough he had to get away from the woman he loved.

It was Nicole. He had her pinned against the wall, his mouth roaming against her long neck as he moved slowly inside her, their breath coming in heavy gasps and moans of pleasure. His hands wandered up, lifted her breasts until they fell from his grip, then as his mouth devoured hers his hands cupped her soft neck. He broke the kiss, heard her whisper his name, and snapped her neck in one swift motion.

"Daddy?" Katie said, her hand gentle on his arm.

He turned to her, and for a moment, she saw the dismay in his eyes. Katie didn't know what to say. She'd never seen him like this. "I love you," she blurted.

It seemed to work. In the same way she'd managed it as a child, she rooted him in the present time and place. Bobby pulled her into a hug. "I love you too, baby girl," he said. He rubbed his hands up and down her arms. "You're cold. We'll go inside." Quietly, the two came back into the room and climbed back into their beds.