Chapter 5

"Hey," Danny said as he walked into his father's office at 1PP after sunrise, having been waved right in by his father's assistant, Detective Baker, while she was busy on the phone. Frank acknowledged his oldest's arrival with a nod while lifting his hand to finish up a call himself.

Danny stepped over to where Joe sat perched against the back of the long, leather couch, staring out at the gray, overcast city below.

"I'm sorry I couldn't get here earlier. Any word yet?" Danny asked quietly. He was used to being awoken in the predawn hours as an NYPD detective, but never because of a missing family member. Danny couldn't get into the city fast enough from Staten Island to meet his brother and father.

He and Joe were doing all they could to track Jamie. Frank was still hoping that this was nothing more than an unexpected delay because of car trouble and a momentary lapse in judgment by the youngest Reagan sibling to check in with them, but they all knew Jamie well enough to know that each passing minute only solidified their fears that something worse had occurred.

"No reports yet from the New York or Connecticut State Police of accidents with any vehicles matching Jamie's. Dad's talking to an old colleague who's a captain with CSP to get an update and to put a BOLO out for Jay. NYSP already has one out, so does the department in case he made it back into the city. He also has Baker making some calls," Joe reported.

Danny nodded and took in the worry and fatigue on his brother's face, making him look much older than his age. "That's good," he commented to himself while knowing full well that no Jamie and no reports on his whereabouts was worse than knowing he'd been in a fender bender. Worse would also be if an accident involving his little brother had yet to be reported. What sort of shape was he in if that's what they were dealing with here?

"I called as many hospitals as I could find along his route with no luck," Joe added, finally turning toward his brother. The look he traded with Danny confirmed that they both feared the same thing - that Jamie was out there, hurt and alone and unable to call for help.

"Alright. Thank you, Ray. I'll check in with you later," Frank said before hanging up the phone, letting out a tired sigh as we went to greet his oldest. "Danny. Glad you could make it, son," he said as he joined his boys near the window.

"Anything new, dad?" Joe pressed even though he already knew the answer from the expression on his father's face.

"Nothing yet. No reports of any incidents or accidents with anyone matching your brother's description. Captain Ballard is expanding the search to local LEOs on Jamie's route. I have Baker pulling Jamie's credit card and cellphone activity. She should have it for us soon," Frank advised, grateful for his staff and the connections he had with other law enforcement agencies.

"What do we know exactly?" Danny probed, having only received a brief update after being awoken out of bed. His concern for Jamie was the only thing keeping his temper in check at not being brought into the loop as soon as Joe realized Jamie hadn't arrived home safely.

"At 10:15 last night, he was halfway between here and Boston on I-91," Joe began, having been the last person in the family to speak with Jamie while on his way home.

"Why the hell was he driving home so late?" Danny asked irritably, thinking of a 16 year-old inexperienced Jamie who went out and got his driver's license on the day of his birthday and not the overly-cautious 23 year-old second year law student who never even received so much as a parking ticket in his young life.

"He got caught in Boston traffic. It put him behind," Joe explained, ignoring his brother's typical gruff manner. "Anyway, I spoke to him while he was on the road, he sounded fine, we were joking around for a little while, but with the connection the way it was, we ended the call when the line got real bad. The only thing he mentioned that was weird was that somebody in a white pickup was tailgating him, but he said they passed him."

"You think he had trouble with some lousy driver?" Danny frowned.

"Not sure what to think," Frank sighed as he stared out the window just as Joe had a few moments ago. He had just been in this same office less than twenty-four hours ago speaking with his youngest son, happy that he'd soon have him home. Now, he stood here with no clue as to where he was or if he was alright. Frank could hardly think of a worse feeling. He'd already lost his mother and his wife, he couldn't stand to lose one of his children too.

"He hasn't called and our attempts to call him aren't going through. You know your brother," Frank reminded them.

"Yeah...he wouldn't worry us like this if he could help it," Danny replied.

"Your grandfather stayed home, in case he shows or he calls," Frank said.

"I'm off today, dad. I can help here or I can head to my squad to make some calls from there. I know Demarcus would have no problem helping out," Danny offered, referring to his partner.

A quick tap on the door prevented Frank from responding and he turned to find Baker making her way in with a file in her hand.

"Baker, anything yet?" Frank pressed, eager to have a solid lead on Jamie's whereabouts.

"The bank and credit card companies just got back to us. The last activity on his debit card was last night - 9:50 p.m., two purchases at a gas station off of Interstate 91 near Cromwell, Connecticut," she reported with a look down at the file.

"Cromwell?" Joe asked, wondering how far Jamie had gotten before disappearing.

"Fifteen miles south of Hartford," Baker advised.

"Anything unusual about them?" Danny asked.

"No," Baker said with a shake of her head. "It appears that one could be for gas with a much smaller retail purchase just minutes apart, both from the same gas station."

"I can make a call, see what they know," Danny volunteered, reaching out for the information Baker received along with the contact information for the gas station she had ready. Danny retreated to one corner of the room to put his detective skills to work.

"What about his cell phone?" Frank questioned.

"His phone last pinged off cell towers along I-91, between Cromwell and New Haven, at approximately 10:37 pm last night," Baker reported as she handed over the log from the phone company. "But you know how that works, sir. It's a general area and not an exact pinpoint of his location."

Frank nodded.

"Whatever happened, happened not long after we talked," Joe commented, cursing the crappy phone connection that cut their call short. If he stayed on the phone with Jamie, maybe he would know what went on and where his brother was right now.

"Baker, get me Captain Ballard again," Frank ordered. "I want to get him this information so he can focus their search in that area. It's not exact, but it's a start."

"Yes, sir," Baker responded on her way back out to her desk.

"We can't sit around here waiting for someone to come up with something, dad," Joe pleaded. He was sure Jamie never made it back into New York state and he hated waiting in this office for news to come in. He was practically begging his father to give him permission to go searching for his little brother on his own. And if he was denied, he was ready to head north on his own.

"We won't, Joe, but at least now we know where to start looking," Frank replied calmly, knowing his sons were both on the verge of running off to canvas every major roadway between here and Hartford themselves.

"….alright, thank you," Danny said into his phone while making his way back to the other men. "I say Joe and I start with the gas station," Danny suggested, having overheard the exchange between his father and brother.

"What did you find out?" Frank pressed.

"The clerk that worked last night is not there right now, which is no surprise, but the manager is on shift now and he has security video of the pump area and the convenience store from last night. He has no reports of any incidents from the previous shift but it's a start. We need to head up there and check it out," Danny advised. He wasn't willing to leave it up to the state police to investigate, not when it involved family.

"We should take the same route up that Jamie would have taken down," Joe said as he mapped out the trip in his mind.

"I'll let Ballard know that you're heading up there. You should have a local LEO meet you," Frank insisted as he looked at the lines on both his older sons' faces which were born not only from worry for Jamie but from a sleepless night for Joe. "Joe, you haven't gotten much sleep, are you sure you're alright to make the trip up? You also came off a double yesterday," Frank asked. He was already worried about one child, he didn't need his other boys getting into trouble as well.

"I'll be fine, dad," Joe promised. It was true, because so long as they found Jamie alive and well, he would be fine too. "I got some sleep last night, you know that," he added. His comment was dripping with self-recrimination. Joe would always feel guilty for the late start on their search for Jamie.

Danny could see the concern in his father's eyes and it went beyond his one missing son, but they didn't have time for this now, not when every minute mattered. He recognized that Joe was a lot like him and there was no way his middle brother would stay behind to watch from the sidelines. He certainly wouldn't. Plus, despite the grief he gave Joe about the job, he valued the newly-minted detective's skills and insight, especially given his close bond with Jamie.

"He can nap on the way up, I'll make sure of it, dad, but there's no way we can just sit here and wait anymore," he said, repeating Joe's earlier plea.

"Alright," Frank conceded, knowing it was a losing battle. Plus, he felt better knowing that both his boys were out looking for their brother. "Just keep me posted and I'll get you connected with the Connecticut State Police. And drive safe," he stressed as the two detectives made their way to the door.

"Will do, Dad," Joe promised as he let Danny out first.

Frank stared at his office doors long after Danny and Joe left, feeling like he should have been the one to go instead.

"Sir, I have Captain Ballard for you."