Sergeant David Harper plotted another point on the dry erase board with his blue marker and made a short note next to. The commissioner, the district attorney, and he had been working on a timeline for the kidnapping and he had been dragged out of bed four hours before his original shift. He knew this was a high priority case and not just because of his superiors but also because of who her father was. Despite D.A. Davis' insistence that the kidnapper was targeting her, he wasn't so easily convinced. It was very possible that they wanted her to think that; they wanted to throw her off so that she would be focusing on the wrong thing. It was important to cancel them out as best they could to narrow the scope.
"No, she was kidnapped at seven p.m., not seven a.m." Alexis corrected the sergeant sharply. She knew she should give him a break and, if this wasn't about her daughter, maybe she would let his incompetence slide. However, this was completely about Kristina and the enemies her mother had made over the years, not Sonny's. His denial that she had her fair share was making her want to stand up and throttle him, but Mac's protective hand on her knee kept her seated. He had been incredible through this entire thing, but she had recognized the aftermath of his secret breakdown when he had brought her coffee that morning. She knew this wasn't any easier for him; after all, Maxie had been hurt trying to save Kristina. Alexis needed to apologize to Maxie, she understood this, but every time she neared her room she saw red and her heart refused to be reasonable.
"Maxie said the car was a white Malibu." Mac added, taking a long drink of his coffee as he willed his mind to continue to function even as his body started to drag. Realistically, he was exhausted so he could only imagine how terrible Alexis must feel. Maxie had been hurt severely but at least she was receiving the best possible care, at least he could reach out and hold her in his arms. She'd start physical therapy in a few days. He would be there to see her through it. Alexis didn't have luxury of holding Kristina. She had no assurance that her daughter was even still…no he wasn't going to think about that.
Alexis noticed Mac's head shake as if he was trying to fight the demons that warred within him. She rested her hand on his and he gave her a soft smile. The smile didn't reach his eyes; the effort it must have taken him put a very harsh strain on his features. She wanted to comfort him but she had no positive thing to say to him. Her baby, her perfect little girl, was missing, had been stolen for God's sake, and she didn't have the strength to reassure her fiancé. Dr. Bernstein was upset with her for leaving the hospital in her condition, but she had promised to not overwork herself. She was sick and she knew it, but until she had her baby back in her arms, she had no will to live.
"And there were no other witnesses?" Detective Harper asked for clarification. He already knew there weren't because he had scaled the neighborhood, but there was a chance one of his superiors had gone back and collected more information.
Alexis frowned at him. Why was he making them repeat themselves? She knew they had next to zilch as far as bringing the perpetrator to light right this second, but couldn't he at least pretend he had gone through the police academy? She felt Mac's fingers tighten around hers and assumed her body language had given her away. She had such little patience for bullshit and that's all this seemed to be. They needed more information and they weren't going to get it sitting here. "Call me on my cell if something changes." She informed them, already making her way toward the door.
"Alexis, where are you going?" Mac wondered.
"To find my daughter Mac. I have to be actively doing something." Alexis stressed each word to the point of making tears spring to her eyes. She didn't actually believe she would cry because she had done so much in the past twelve hours, but there was always a chance.
"You are lucky I've let you be involved as much as you have. You are sick whether or not you want to admit it. I won't have you going off on some wild goose chase." Mac raged, throwing his hands out in front of him.
"We aren't living in caveman times. You don't get to tell me what to do." Alexis pointed out, her eyes flashing.
"I am going to be your husband and I damn well get to have a say in how much stress you put yourself under." Mac shot back.
"You're trying to smother me and I hate it!" Alexis screamed at him, oblivious to the sergeant's departure.
"I'm not trying to do anything like that, but yes I am worried about you. In case you've forgotten, the last time you got this worked up you collapsed." Mac gritted through his teeth.
"I was there. I remember." Alexis countered, her tone softening softly. "I'm just scared." She admitted.
"I know, but we will get her back. I swear." Mac promised, pulling her into his arms and holding her while she cried. He knew how much she hated to cry and that for her to do so in front of him must have been a major blow to her pride, but he reveled in the trust she continued to put in him.
"I know." Alexis nodded into his blue blazer. "I know.
She watched him with an amused grin. In the entire time Patrick had been with her cousin, Maxie could count on one hand how often he willingly interacted with Robin's family. There was Mac's birthday, Georgie's goodbye party, and that was it. And now here he stood, awkwardly shifting from one foot to the next. Maxie grinned at him. "So you can pick me out of a crowd. I'm impressed."
Patrick managed a small smile. Maxie was a spitfire; he had always thought so. She didn't let anyone within an emotional mile of her, ever, probably because of the way her mother had abandoned her and Georgie at such young ages. He had told Robin he would come and check on her cousin and aunt and that's exactly what he planned to do. "Don't you know better than to play in the street?" Patrick wondered, repeating Morgan's question from their last conversation.
Looking him up and down she settled her gaze on his brown hair. "Don't you know to comb your hair before going out in public?"
"I could lather it up with gel; it'd still look like this." Patrick assured her, gesturing toward his unruly hairstyle. "How are you feeling?"
"Like I got hit by a car."
Patrick cringed at her scratchy reply. "I'm sorry this happened to you."
Maxie shrugged off his attempt at sympathy. She had enough with the sad looks, whispered words, and the hand patting. Sympathy wasn't going to get Kristina back. Sympathy wasn't going to get her out of this bed to look for her little sister. She needed action, not sympathy. "Hey you're into cars right?"
"Yeah. I used to race them in high school." Patrick answered, smiling in spite of himself. She couldn't be any more different than Georgie if she tried. He was learning his way around these Jones-Scorpio women. "Why?"
"Because you can help me identify the exact car that asshole used to take my sister." Maybe if she looked at enough cars, she could remember a detail, something to lead them to Kristina.
"You told your dad it was a white Malibu. I'm guessing you don't know the year, but maybe there's a way we can determine it. If it was the 2008 Chevy Malibu when he drove away he would have had to turn pretty quickly and the breaks, even if the turn wasn't very sharp, would squeal like a cat that just got his tail stepped on. If it was an older model, it would have looked far junkier because, let's face it, the 'Classic Chevy Malibu' was a piece of shit. It was cheaply made and massively produced." Patrick informed her.
"Then get your information Spikey. We've got work to do."
"No. No. No." Dillon shook his head defiantly. "We can not be friends if you prefer that remake to the original." He snarled on the word remake, making it sound as if Robin and Elizabeth had decided to support terrorists in their spare time.
"Dillon, calm down. Really." Robin placed her hand on his arm. "It's Alice and Wonderland. If you tell the truth, no one has ever liked that movie, past or present."
"It's a bit creepy. And psychologically damaging. I had nightmares about that disappearing cat for weeks when I first saw it." Elizabeth agreed.
Dillon shook his head in disappointment. "You poor, uneducated women. I suppose you prefer that new version of The Thomas Crown Affair as well, since you have no respect for the classics."
"Well of course. Pierce Bronson doing the tango. What's not to love?" Elizabeth wondered.
"I don't know. I thought Sean Connery was the best James Bond myself." Robin mused, tilting her head to the side in deep thought. "And he's just gotten better-looking."
"There's hope for you yet." Dillon hugged Robin to his side. He waved a finger in Elizabeth's direction. "You're going to be thrown out of the cool people club."
"Can't be that cool if they let you in." Elizabeth pointed out with a deceptively innocent smile on her face.
"Who said you were part of our club?" Robin asked Dillon, eyebrows lifted. "Can you make Cherry Chocolate Cheesecake?"
"That's right, can you?" Elizabeth crossed her arms on top of her stomach and leaned back in her chair.
"No. But I can bring over any hot man in Hollywood history in their hottest role." Dillon said proudly.
Robin smiled devilishly. Amazing what a little sleep and good company could do for a person. "We might have use for you."
Elizabeth nodded. "Now you're in the cool people club."
"Do I get a decoder ring?" Dillon wondered.
"Only if you get more ice cream." Elizabeth pointed out. "It's part of the initiation rite."
"Already putting me to work. Where is that boyfriend of yours? Aren't cravings his deal?" Dillon challenged.
"Oh this isn't a craving. This is one of the five basic food groups. Dairy, meats, grains, fruits, and vegetables, and ice cream."
"How could I forget a major food group?" Dillon smacked his forehead humorously.
"For reals." Elizabeth shook her head. "Should have paid more attention in school."
"Speaking of school..." Robin's voice trailed off as she read the number that had just flown across her caller ID. "Hello?" She said into the receiver.
"Is this Robin Scorpio?" Margaret Winthrop, the principal of John L. Collins, sounded depleted.
"This is she." Robin gave her friends a motion with her hand to quiet down. She could barely hear Mrs. Winthrop.
"Miss Scorpio, I'm calling to inform you that your son, Morgan, left school grounds during a fire drill and hasn't been seen since." Mrs. Winthrop told her.
"Left school grounds? Like he walked off alone? Are you sure we're talking about the same little boy? My son is very wary of strangers, Mrs. Winthrop." Robin assured her confidently.
"One of his classmates noticed him talking to a woman, but she—" Mrs. Winthrop began.
"What woman? What did she look like?" Robin demanded, causing her friends to look worriedly in her direction.
"Robin? What's going on?" Elizabeth questioned.
"She couldn't say for certain." Mrs. Winthrop insisted.
"What's her name? The child who saw Morgan?" Robin wanted to know.
"I can't—"
"What's her name?"
"Tori Cassidy. She was only returning the classroom to collect her show-and-tell pet. She only saw him for a second—"
"Robin. Calm down." Dillon wrapped his arms around her waist, trying to stop her shaking.
"She's a witness then. Listen, my uncle is the commissioner. I'll have him contact you. I need to talk to Tori." Robin ignored her friends as she barked orders at the principal.
"I'm afraid that's impossible, Miss Scorpio."
"Impossible? How dare you? How dare..." Robin blinked back tears and dropped the phone, suddenly oxygen-deprived.
"Sweetie? Sweetie? What's going on?" Elizabeth begged grabbing Robin's hands. "Tell us."
"Morgan." Robin managed, choking on her tears. "He's missing." Robin struggled out of Dillon's protective hold and retrieved the phone. "Mrs. Winthrop? Are you still there?"
"Yes, Miss Scorpio. I know this is difficult to understand..."
"It's not difficult, it's unacceptable! You let my son be snatched up by a stranger!" Robin accused furiously. "If he is not found in one hour, I'll tear your school apart. Do you understand me? Find my son!" She slammed the phone into its cradle and wrapped her arms around her stomach, trying to hold it all in. This simply wasn't happening. No. No!
Dillon pulled her close to him, cradling her next to his chest. Resting his chin on the top of her head, he gently rocked her back and forth. He bit his lip to keep his own eyes from tearing. Lance went to the same school. It was too close. Too close.
Elizabeth grabbed hold of Robin's hand. "He'll come home. You're going to find him."
"Just like Kristina, right?" Robin shrieked incredulously.
"Both of them. They are both coming home."
"What are you talking about? Did you hear what that monster said to Alexis in regards to Kristina? He wants her 'to know loss.' What do you think that means? Huh? And if he has my son now too? What then? What then?" Robin screamed, pushing away from them.
Dillon pulled his phone out of his pants. "I'm calling your uncle."
"No call Alexis. She knows more about Sonny's enemies." Robin countered, closing his phone.
"But the police need to be on this now. And they are probably together anyways." Elizabeth pointed out.
"What can they do?" Robin challenged. "Honestly. This doesn't have anything to do with the PCPD. This is about Sonny. It's always about Sonny."
"The more people that are looking for Morgan and Kristina the better. Even the mob can't hide forever." Dillon answered.
"Fine. Call him. I'm outta here." Robin decided, her legs giving out before she could even take a step toward the door.
"Robin!" Elizabeth called out, racing as fast as she could to catch her friend before she hit the floor.