Chapter 5

Jonathan sat in his study. A fire burned in the fireplace. Without Jennifer there to share it with him, it had lost its warmth and cheeriness. Jonathan leaned back on the sofa. He put his feet up on the footstool and stared into the fire. Freeway sat next to him. Jonathan scratched him from time to time as he thought over the day's events. He took a sip of brandy from the sifter at his elbow, and continued to think. Charlie's new Angels hadn't been able to find much yet. They were still new on the job. As a matter of fact, Charlie had told him it was their first day. Charlie had every confidence in them, though. He knew they might make some mistakes on the way, but they would get the job done. He was very careful about the people he hired. He had known Sarah since she was a teenager, and knew she was dependable. He had talked to the superior officers at the police academy, and to the girls' guidance counselors at the college. He was satisfied in his choice of hiring them. He gave Jonathan a glowing recommendation of them.

Jonathan thought over what he knew about Jennifer's disappearance. It wasn't much. The kidnapper had obviously stolen Harry's van and key card. Jonathan had called the alarm company and had new codes programmed into the cards, and the groundskeeper card deactivated. The Angels had taken footprints. They looked like they might belong to a small person. If that were the case, it might not be a man they were looking for. Jonathan puzzled it over in his mind.

Jonathan jumped slightly as the phone on the table next to him rang. Freeway also jumped. Jonathan's petting had lulled him into a half asleep state, and the phone ringing disrupted it. Jonathan picked up the phone. "Hello."

"Jonathan, it's Harry Moss. We found your groundskeeper's van."

"Where?"

"At th beach in Santa Monica. I've got men going over it right now."

"I'll be right there."

Harry quickly gave Jonathan directions to where they were and the two men hung up. Jonathan doused the fire. Grabbing his jacket, he went out the door. Freeway followed him as far as the door. Seeing that he wasn't going to be invited to go on this trip, he climbed onto the nearest couch and settled down for a nap.

Outside, once he was in his convertible, Jonathan pulled out the business card that Sarah had given him. He dialed the number printed on it. He left his message with the answering service. "This is Jonathan Hart. Please tell the Angels that our groundskeeper's van has been found in Santa Monica." He left directions and drove to meet the police. Three phones rang, three Angels got message, and they were all on their way to Santa Monica within minutes.

The Angels pulled up to the beach shortly after Jonanthan had arrived. They jumped out of Lisa's Corvette, and ran over to the van. The police were already crawling all over it, collecting evidence.

"Hello, Angels," Jonathan said.

"Hi, Mr. Hart," they answered.

"Have the police found anything?" Sarah asked.

"There are some gardening tools in there. Not much else. The police have dusted for finger prints, but there is only one set. I suspect they belong to Harry."

"Mind if we take a look inside?" Lisa asked. Jonathan indicated that they should proceed, and the Angels climbed into the van.

"More than likely Mrs. Hart would be in the back instead of the front," Kianna said. "Now, would she be lying down or sitting up?"

"Let's look at both angles, " Sarah said. The angels went to work.

"Kind of hard to see anything in the dark," Lisa remarked. "Lt. Moss, are you going to leave the van here or take it to the police station?"

"We will move it to the station as soon as my men finish going over it. Have you found anything?"

"Not yet. We'd like to come back in the daylight and look it over again."

Moss nodded.

"They will be interviewing my employees tomorrow, so they can come by the police station around 6:00. Right, ladies?" Jonathan said as he surveyed the scene.

"Yes, Mr. Hart."

The next morning dawned bright and early. Each of the Angels rolled out of bed and dressed for her new job at Hart Industries. Lisa got up, showered, and dressed in slacks and a blouse. She was told to wear clothes that looked professional, but that she didn't mind getting dirty. Employees of Jonathan Hart did not wear jeans and t-shirts on the job, no matter what their position. Lisa put on comfortable shoes. She got the feeling she would be on her feet a great part of the day. She went out to her kitchen area, and fixed a quick cup of coffee and toast. She gulped it down, and then checked her bag. In their afternoon meeting with Scott, the Angels had taken care of the rest of their paper work. They were issued concealed weapons permits, had their pictures taken for their badges, and were issued guns, walkie talkies, pepper spray, and other odds and ends a PI might need. Scott had mentioned the possibility of them getting mobile phones that they could carry with them. The technology was still in its infancy, and most phones were the size of bricks, but they were being improved upon and streamlined. For now, the walkie talkies and car phones would do. Lisa looked at her new PI badge with smile of satisfaction. She had worked hard to get this job, and she was going to give it her all. She quickly left her apartment, got into her old, second hand car, and drove to Hart Industries.

A few miles away, Kianna was also up getting and dressed. She once again pulled her dark hair into a bun. Kianna looked over her clothing for a minute, and then selected a dark blue skirt, white blouse, and dark blue blazer. She hated nylons, and refused to wear them. She put on low heeled pumps. Kianna looked at a pair of costume glasses, and rejected them. While it might make her look like a secretary, it would be overkill. She put the glasses back on her dresser. She quickly gathered her things, and looked around her little studio apartment to make sure she hadn't missed anything. It didn't look like she had, so she quickly ran out the door, locking it behind her. She gave her Camaro a longing glance, and then headed for the bus stop, as Jonathan had instructed.

Sarah got out of bed and quickly got dressed. She and Jill had talked for several hours last night, and then Mr. Hart had called. It was very late when she got to bed. Sarah wasn't sorry she had stayed up so late. She had asked Jill for pointers. Jill was very helpful, and told Sarah the kinds of things she should be on the watch for. Sarah felt confident that she could handle this assignment. She went out to the kitchen for some breakfast. She opened the breadbox. It was empty. "Jill!" Sarah shook her head. She was going to have to do something about Jill and her appetite. Tonight, Sara decided, she would eat at Jill's. There was not time to worry about it right now. Sarah looked down at the casual clothes she was wearing. The khaki pants and polo shirt would do. She was going to be issued a uniform when she got to the job. She pulled her shoulder length blonde hair into a pony tail. Sarah double checked her bag, and grabbed a piece of fruit that Jill had missed as she went out the door.

Kianna was shown to her workstation and introduced to her co-workers by Connie Lyons. Connie was middle aged, had graying hair that was pulled into a bun, and wore glasses. Kianna was glad she had left hers home. Connie looked like a stereo typical librarian. Connie cleared her throat to get the attention of all of the typists. "Ladies and gentlemen, this is our new associate, Kianna Morgan. She will be working with you. Please show her what to do, and be nice to her." Connie smiled. "Ms. Morgan, these are your coworkers- Jerry Martin, Jeffery Fellows, Judy Evans, Natalie Miller." Each person smiled and nodded. Kianna smiled and nodded back. "Take the empty desk next to Natalie, and I will give you your assignments," Connie directed.

"Yes, Ma'am."

Connie left to get a stack of paperwork for Kianna. Kianna sat in the vacant desk next to Natalie. Kianna smiled. Natalie looked her over and smiled back. "Welcome to Hart Industries," Natalie said, slightly sarcastically.

"Thanks." Kianna turned her attention to Connie, who had returned with a stack of forms to be typed. Connie explained what needed to be done, and Kianna got to work. The morning passed rather quickly. Soon it was break time. Kianna followed her coworkers to the break room. As she got a drink and a snack, she listened to the idle gossip. There didn't seem to be much information she could use, but sometimes even the most insignificant remark could be useful. Kianna approached Judy and Natalie, who were seated on a couch. Kianna headed for the chair next to them.

"Hi. Mind if I sit here?"

"Not at all," said Judy. "How do you like the job so far?"

Kianna shrugged. "It's OK. How long have you two worked here?"

"I've been here six months," Natalie said as she put cream and sugar in her coffee.

"I've been here a few years," Judy said.

"Do you guys like it here?"

"It's been a good job for me so far," Judy said.

"Yes," Natalie added. "Mr. Hart is a wonderful boss."

"Do you ever see him?" Kianna asked. "I'd think in a company like this, the head honcho would be in his office while his underlings toiled."

"Oh, no," Natalie defended Jonathan. "Mr. Hart comes by every so often and says hello. He likes to get to know his employees. He's a great boss."

Kianna noted the stars in Natalie's eyes. Judy checked her watch. "We'd better get back to work, or he won't be our boss." The three of them rose and went back to their work stations.

Sarah pushed the cleaning cart along the hall. Her first assignment was the restrooms on the first floor. "Lovely," she said as she entered the ladies' room. Seeing no one around, she set out the "Closed" sign and got to work. She quickly scrubbed sinks and toilets and mopped the floor, while she wondered how on earth she was ever going to get information this way. She continued on to the mens' room, with a groan. "I hope we find the culprit soon," she thought as she called "HELLO!" into the mens's room. There was no answer in there, so once again she put out the sign and cleaned. She got out of there as fast as possible. On her way out, she bumped into Stanley. "Oh, excuse me!"

"Anything so far?" Stanley asked in a whisper.

Sarah shook her head, and pushed her cart on to the next set of restrooms.

:Lisa was sorting mail in the mailroom. "We sort the incoming mail according to floor. The office number will be on the envelope. Mr. Hart's mail will go into this bin here, and his secretary will go through it," Michael, the mailroom supervisor told her. "If you see anything suspicious, it will go in this bin here."

"Suspicious?" Lisa asked.

"Unmarked envelopes or packages, addresses cut out of newspapers, that kind of thing."

"Where do they go?"

"They are sent to special handling, where they are examined to make sure they aren't dangerous."

Lisa nodded and got to work. She meticulously sorted letters and packages, and glanced over them as she did so. One letter in particular caught her eye. There was no return address or stamp. Nor was there a postmark. Lisa put it in the special handling bin. When everyone went on break, she took it out, and hid it inside her shirt. Lisa hurriedly left the mailroom. Earlier, she had seen signs directing people to various locations inside the building. She found the one she was looking for: "Employee Fitness Center." Lisas followed the signs. She found the Employee Fitness Center. It was a well-equipped workout room with various kinds of exercise equipment. Off to her right, Lisa found what she was working for. The steam room and sauna. She checked her watch. 10 minutes left on her break. She hoped it would be enough time. Lisa ran into the steam room. She set the temperature on high. She pulled the envelope out of her shirt. Soon, the glue on the flap loosened. Lisa opened the envelope and took out the letter. She began to read. Her eyes widened. "My darling Jonathan..." It read. "I think of you constantly. I dream about you at night. I love the furs and jewels you have bought for me..." the letter went on to describe romantic interludes between the writer and Jonathan. It was signed, "N." Lisa checked her watch again. Only a few minutes left. She needed to get back to work. She ran back out of the room. There was a stack of towels near the door. Lisa took one and quickly wiped off the sweat. She dropped the towel in the towel bin. She folded the letter up again and put it in the envelope, and then once again concealed it in her shirt. She would make a copy on her lunch break.

Jonathan paced his office. It had been 24 hours, and there was no sign of Jennifer. No ransom note, no demands. The police and the Angels had not been able to find any clues, other than the ones in the house. Jonathan was worried sick. Jennifer was his whole life. They had no idea who could've taken her and why. Interviewing his employees was like looking for a needle in a haystack. It could take months, and he didn't have that kind of time. Jonathan needed more help. The police and the Angels were doing what they could, but they could only do so much. Jonathan walked over to his desk and picked up the phone. "Deanne, get me Caesar's Palace." Jonathan waited while the connection was made. "Yes, room 252."

A groggy Max rolled over to answer the phone ringing in his ear. He had had good luck at the poker tables last night. Then he and a few buddies had celebrated with some beers and a burlesque show. They had a few more beers. Max staggered back to his room around 4:00 a.m., and collapsed into bed. The sound of the phone drove through his head like an ice pick. He fumbled around and lifted the reciever.

"Yeah?"

"Max?"

"Yeah...Mr. H?"

"Yes, Max it's me. There is an emergency."

Max sobered up right away and sat up in bed. "Emergency? What kind?"

"Mrs. H is missing. Can you come home right away?"

"I'll be out on the next flight."

Max hung up the phone and sprang out of bed. He quickly showered, shaved, and dressed. Then he called the airlines, and booked a seat on the next flight to LA. Max threw his things into his luggage and ran downstairs to the main lobby. He checked out of the hotel and grabbed a cab. All the way to the airport and on the flight home, he wondered who would want to hurt a nice lady like Mrs. H.

Jonathan was waiting for Max when the plane landed. They gathered his luggage and hurried out to the car. They said very little on the way home. Jonathan filled Max in on what they knew so far, then they rode in silence. Jonathan pulled up to the gate at the entrance to his property. He inserted his card in the electronic gate keeper, and drove to the front door. He parked in front of the house, and unlocked the door while Max got his luggage out of the trunk. Jonathan opened the door. Freeway heard them and came running to greet them.

"Hi, boy!" Max said as he put his bags down and picked up the dog. "I'll bet you weren't expecting to see me so soon, were you?" Max scratched Freeway behind the ears and put him down. He picked up his bags again. "I'll put these away, Mr. H, and then come back out so we can talk."

Jonathan clapped Max on the shoulder. "You're a good friend."

Max smiled at Jonathan and took his bags to his room. He was back in a minute. Jonathan had fixed them each a drink, and was seated on the couch. Max sat down on the couch next to him, and took his drink.

"So, what happened?"

Jonathan sighed deeply as he put his head in his hand and pinched his nose between his thumb and forefinger. "Sometime after we dropped you off, or maybe even while we were gone, someone stole our groundskeeper's van and got onto the property. They got into the house, and hid behind the drapes in Jennifer's study. There was a fight in there, and both Jennifer and Freeway were chloroformed. Freeway was tied up and stuffed into the closet. Jennifer was taken away in the van. I've called the police and Charlie Townsend. Charlie's people and the police have both been over the house and grounds. They've found footprints, dusted for fingerprints, and taken a plaster cast of the van. It was found down by the beach late last night. Harry's people are going over it now, and Charlie's people will look over it later this afternoon. Right now, they're undercover at the office to see what they can find there."

"Who would want to hurt Mrs. H?" Max wondered.

"I don't know, Max." Jonathan shook his head. "I can't believe this has happened."

"Me neither, Mr. H."

"I've been thinking. Jennifer's father would like toknow. I need to tell him in person. Max, are you up for a trip to Maine?"

"Good thing I haven't unpacked yet."

Jonathan made a few phone calls. One to the kennel to house Freeway during his absence. One to his office to let them know he'd be away for a few days. One to Charlie to let the Angels know they would have to carry on without him. One to the airport to get his private jet ready. Max came out of his room with his suitcases in his arms. "Ready, Mr. H."

"I'll put a few things in a suitcase and be right with you." Jonathan went into Jennifer's study. When he came out, he had her high school yearbooks under his arm. "I thought we would take these and go over them with Jennifer's father. Maybe there is a clue somewhere in these." Jonathan went upstairs to pack.