20 hours missing
While they were waiting for Danny to arrive Sam sent Viv a text,
You need to see if Hanna and Kate recognise the man in the truck.*
Sam was careful not to suggest that the man was Maria's boyfriend because the description that Hanna had given would fit millions of men but she was hoping that it was as it would give them a desperately needed lead. And that in turn would give them a chance of finding Jack.
Sam's phone beeped with a return text from Viv,
Anything else I should ask them about?*
Sam thought before typing,
Ask them why they don't like Maria's new boyfriend.*
As she sent the text, Danny came in, saying with his most charming smile,
'Do you two mind having a chat with Viv?'
Sam smiled wryly as Hanna clearly suppressed a sarcastic response, merely saying,
'If it will help you find Dad, she can ask us anything she wants.'
Sam and the two girls followed Danny to Interview Room 2.
Viv was waiting inside and smiled tightly at the girls, saying,
'Take a seat, girls. Are you happy for Samantha to represent your interests or do you want me to get someone from Child Services?'
'She can do it,' said Hanna, sitting down and pushing Kate towards another seat.
Sam took one of the seats off to the side and forced herself to push Jack out of her mind so that she was thinking solely about Hanna and Kate and protecting them, not anything else. Danny sat beside Viv, casually putting a piece of paper face down in front of him.
Viv turned on the recording equipment, they all identified themselves, then Viv said,
'We're trying to eliminate your mother from our enquiries so we need to check a few things about her private life. Is it all right if I ask you some questions?'
'Yes,' said Hanna.
Kate nodded without speaking so Danny said gently,
'Kate, can you say your answer, please.'
'Yes,' said Kate, smiling hesitantly at Danny, clearly intimidated by the formal setting.
'Thank you,' said Viv, 'The first thing I need to know is, does your mother have a boyfriend at the moment?'
'Yes,' said Hanna, 'He's called Steve.'
'Stink-eye Steve,' said Kate.
Viv decided to try to get the basics out of the way before asking Kate what she meant so continued,
'Do you know his surname?'
'No,' said Hanna, 'I'm not sure Mom ever told us.'
'No and I didn't ask because I don't want to know,' said Kate.
Kate's voice was prim and severe and Sam smiled slightly at the little girl's tone which had clearly been copied from one of the adults in her life.
'Do you know what Steve does for a living?'
'Yes, he's a realtor,' replied Hanna.
'Realtors aren't trustworthy, grandma says,' said Kate.
Viv smiled at Kate, saying,
'Sometimes they aren't, no.'
Turning to Hanna, Viv asked,
'Do you know which company he works for?'
'South... something... I'm sorry, I can't remember.'
'Kate?'
'No... but his car has a bright red logo on it.'
'Thank you, girls. That's very helpful. Kate, why do you call him Stink-eye Steve?'
'Because he's weird and he gives Dad the stink eye whenever Mom isn't looking.'
'Weird how?'
'He thinks he and Mom are going to be married even though they've only being going out for a few weeks,' explained Hanna, 'and he wants us to call him Dad.'
'And he said we wouldn't need to see Dad any more because he was our dad now. I hate him!'
Kates vehemence was followed by tears and Sam hurried towards her, saying to Viv,
'You need to wrap this up; the girls have had enough.'
'All right. One last question, do either of you recognise this man?'
Viv turned over the piece of paper, showing the photo of the man in the truck.
Hanna drew in a shocked breath, saying,
'That's Steve.'
'You identify this man as your mother's boyfriend, Steve?'
'Yes.'
Hanna's face crumpled as she realised what it meant and Sam found herself holding both of Jack's daughters as they cried.
Viv ended the recording and hurried out of the room feeling a mixture of dismay and exultation. Dismay over the heartbreak that Hanna and Kate were probably facing and exultation because they finally had a lead.
Jack was woken by his thirst. His body was demanding water but he had no way of getting any. He was also shivering despite his makeshift shelter. Forcing himself to think, Jack considered his options. It was still pitch black so wriggling randomly about whilst tied up, hoping to miraculously stumble on a water source would be an act of madness. However, freeing himself from the ropes swaddling him might be possible. It might take a long time but at the moment he had nothing but time and if he could get free then as soon as the sun rose he could be on his way. If he'd never tied anyone up, how would he do it? Where would he put the final knots? Carefully, Jack moved his right arm around, tightening and loosening different sections of the rope wrapped around his body, trying to feel the knots against his body. It took a long time, but eventually Jack found one of the knots, nestled against his ribs, underneath his left arm. Rejoicing at the stupidity of whoever had tied him up, Jack began slowly and carefully moving his right arm and hand so he could reach the knot. There was barely any slack but Jack began gently and patiently feeling around the knot, looking for the loose end, working out how to undo it.
Viv and Danny went into the bullpen and Viv said,
'Any updates?'
'I'm still waiting on ANPR data,' said Elena.
'Forensics are running fingerprints from the third mug at Jack's place,' said Martin, 'No hits yet.'
'We might have a name for them soon,' said Viv, her face grim, 'Hanna Malone identified the man in the truck as Maria's boyfriend, Steve. Surname unknown as yet but he works as a realtor in Chicago and his vehicle has a bright red logo on it.'
'I'll start looking at Chicago realtors,' said Martin.
'Good. Elena stay with the truck. Start waking people up if you need to. Danny, you're with me; time to go and question Maria.'
Picking up the picture of Steve with Jack, Viv walked out of the bullpen, Danny following.
On their way to the interview room, Viv paused, saying,
'You know Maria better than I do so I want you to observe to see if you think she's telling the truth.'
'Understood. Will you caution her?'
Viv frowned, saying,
'It will put her on her guard...'
'But if you don't the judge might rule everything she says inadmissible. After finding our what we have about Maria's boyfriend, we can hardly pretend we aren't viewing her as a suspect.'
'You're right... all right, we do it by the book. Has she asked for a lawyer yet?'
'No.'
'This could be a very short interview then.'
Going into the interview room, Viv and Danny remained standing as Viv said,
'Maria Malone I am questioning you on suspicion of the kidnapping of Jack Malone. You do not have to say anything...'
Danny tuned out Viv's words and watched Maria intently. Maria was definitely surprised and dismayed to be cautioned but within seconds she had her face under control, showing nothing but bland indifference.
The moment Viv had finished speaking, Maria said,
'I want a lawyer.'
Sighing, Viv said,
'Danny, help Mrs Malone call her lawyer, please.'
With someone else, Viv might have tried to convince them to discuss the basics before their lawyer arrived but Maria was a lawyer herself; there was no way she would talk to them before her lawyer arrived, whether or not she was guilty.
Heading back towards the bullpen, Viv hoped that Maria's lawyer would arrive quickly despite it being three in the morning.
Jack lost track of time as he tried again and again to untie the knot holding the rope together. His hand was numb from the cold and only being able to use one hand made it incredibly difficult. Eventually, he used his left arm to hold the rope completely still while he struggled with the knot. Swearing as he tugged and pulled, Jack carried on, determined not to let his captor succeed. Suddenly the knot loosened and he pulled it apart then began unwinding the rope around his body. After about ten minutes, he was undoing the only other knot and then he was free. Taking a deep breath, Jack thought about what to do next.
