Missing in Flight

CHAPTER TWELVE TINA

CHAPTER TWELVE

T INA

Tina watches Jack Rossi’s expression falter before he casts a wary glance at the phone in his hand. Wearing only his boxers, he didn’t seem startled by their presence on his doorstep in the middle of the night. Only now, at the mention of his son.

Rossi lifts his gaze. “What’s happened?”

“May we come in?”

Tina glances at Pratt. The agent’s expression is stoic, unreadable beyond the fact that this is not good news.

Rossi steps back, allowing them inside. “Is Liam all right?”

Tina shuts the door behind them. “Could we have a seat?”

Rossi motions to his living room. They pass a white baby grand as they follow him through the condo. “Please tell me what’s going on.”

Tina and Pratt sit side by side on Rossi’s white leather couch. Tina glances out the window, which would offer sweeping views of the Hudson during the day. Rossi sinks into a velvet armchair across from them, seemingly unbothered to be wearing only his boxers.

Agent Pratt’s mouth is set in a hard line. Tina remains quiet, allowing him to lead the interview.

“Have you spoken to your wife this evening?” Pratt asks.

“She texted me before boarding her flight to LaGuardia. I just saw a missed call from her less than an hour ago, but I was asleep, and my phone was on silent. I haven’t checked the message yet.”

Pratt leans forward, resting his forearms onto his thighs. “Your son, Liam, appears to have gone missing in flight from Anchorage to LaGuardia.”

“Missing?” Rossi shoots Tina a confused look before returning his attention to Agent Pratt. “How is that possible? I don’t understand.”

“It seems your wife, Makayla, got up to use the lavatory while Liam was asleep in his bulkhead bassinet. When she returned to her seat, he was gone.”

Rossi’s expression turns to shock. The shift in his demeanor from when he first opened the door gives her the feeling Rossi was expecting different news from them.

“But haven’t they searched the plane?” he asks.

Pratt nods. “They have. And there’s no sign of him.”

Rossi brings a hand to his temple.

“I understand you’re a senior account manager at Rothman Securities?”

“Yes.” Rossi’s voice comes out a hoarse whisper.

“How much money would you estimate that you manage?”

“Um.” Rossi runs his hand up the back of his hair, appearing to be either doing a mental calculation or debating telling them the truth. “Around eight hundred million. Why?”

“Given the amount of money you have access to, we wanted to see if you’ve been contacted for a ransom.”

Rossi straightens. “Ransom? No, no I haven’t. You think someone took him? For money?”

“We’re considering all angles at this point.”

Rossi sits forward, narrowing his eyes. “Meaning you have no clue what’s happened to my son.”

The truth in his statement causes Tina to glance at Pratt.

Pratt ignores Rossi’s comment. “So, you haven’t been contacted by anyone?”

Rossi checks his phone in disbelief as Tina and Pratt look on in silence.

“No,” he says after a moment, shaking his head before playing Makayla’s voice message.

“Jack, call me.” Tina recognizes Makayla Rossi’s voice from her video on social media. But there’s a wobble to it now. “Liam is—” She breathes into the phone. “He’s gone , Jack. And we can’t find him anywhere. Oh, God—” Her voice breaks. “I don’t know how this could’ve happened. Please call me.”

Rossi lowers his phone, staring at the screen until it goes black.

Pratt gestures toward her. “Analyst Farrar found that you were featured in a Forbes article last spring. It’s possible that it made you a target.” The agent’s eyes bore into Rossi’s. “Has anything suspicious happened at your work recently?”

Rossi shifts uncomfortably in his seat, as if trying to read the agent’s expression. “What do you mean?”

He’s worried about something, Tina thinks. But what?

“Since that article ran, have you had any suspicious encounters with anyone? Or has your wife?”

Tina watches Rossi’s whole body go rigid. What’s he hiding?

“It could be anything at all,” she says. “Even if it seems small, it might still help us.”

Thirteen stories below on the street, a police siren wails.

“No. Nothing comes to mind.”

He’s lying, Tina thinks.

Pratt clears his throat. “We understand your wife’s mother had a memory disorder.” He casts a sideways glance at Tina.

“Transient global amnesia,” she adds.

Rossi narrows his eyes at the agent. “What does that have to do with Liam being missing?”

“Has your wife ever had any short-term memory loss? Any amnesiac episodes that you’re aware of?”

Rossi shakes his head in bewilderment. “No. Never. What her mother had was a rare disorder.” He looks between the pair sitting on his couch. “Why?”

“Has your wife been under any emotional stress lately?” Tina asks.

“She just had a baby a few months ago, but aside from that, no.”

“Any migraines?”

“She gets headaches sometimes, yeah. But what does that have to do with my son going missing?” He raises both hands in the air, his agitation evident on his face.

Pratt and Tina exchange a look before Pratt laces his long fingers together atop his lap.

“Anchorage FBI has confirmed with your wife’s father that he dropped Makayla and Liam off at the airport earlier this evening. However, when we checked the airport security footage, we were unable to verify whether Liam went through security with your wife.”

“Of course she took Liam through security! She texted me from the gate.” Rossi scoffs. “What are you trying to say? You should be looking for my son , not making wild accusations against my wife!”

“We are,” Pratt says, his voice remaining calm despite Rossi’s outburst. “Anchorage authorities are searching the Ted Stevens Airport as we speak.”

Rossi gapes at the agent. “This is crazy! Makayla’s fine.”

“We aren’t saying that she didn’t take Liam through security,” Tina says. “Only that from the footage, we cannot be sure. And no one on the flight can confirm seeing Liam aside from a slight bulge beneath your wife’s wrap. We—”

Rossi jumps to his feet. “How on God’s green earth did no one on a flight see a baby ? Everyone notices babies. They’re terrified to sit next to them because they cry.” Jack’s voice breaks on the last word. As he sinks back onto the couch, it’s as if all the anger has bled out of him. He puts his face in his hands.

Agent Pratt shoots Tina a sharp look. In the hall, Pratt told her to keep her “trap shut,” and she shrugged it off. She’d met enough guys like him to know they liked to be in charge of anything, even if it’s just ordering at the drive-through at McDonald’s. But from everything Pratt was going on about in the car, Rossi needs to know there’s a possibility his son didn’t get on that plane.

Tina keeps her voice low. “We have to consider every possibility until we know what’s happened to your son.”

Instead, Rossi slides his hands to his temples. “How could this happen?” He lifts his eyes to Pratt’s. “You need to find him! He has to be on that plane.” He points toward the sky out the window.

Pratt raises his palms in the air. “We understand this is incredibly upsetting, but I can assure you the entire aircraft has been thoroughly searched. We’re—”

“Upsetting?” Rossi stands from his seat at the agent’s effort to placate him. He glances down as if realizing for the first time that he’s only wearing his underwear. “I don’t care. Have them search it again!”

“We’re doing everything we can. We promise you that,” Tina says.

Jack looks unconvinced. “I need to call my wife.”

Pratt shoots Tina another look as they stand from Jack’s couch.

“Of course,” Tina says before making for the door.

Pratt lingers in the room and pulls out his card. “If you think of anything, and I mean anything that could help us, call me.”

Jack takes the card before leading the agent out of his condo. Tina waits beside the piano for her colleague.

Pratt pauses, turning his head toward the adjacent hallway when they move past the kitchen. “Is there anyone else in the condo with you?”

Jack shakes his head. “No.”

“I thought I heard something.”

“There’s major renovations going on down the hall. They’ve practically gutted the apartment after a water pipe burst.”

“It’s the middle of the night,” Tina says.

“Oh, right.” Jack brings a hand to his forehead. “I can’t think straight with Liam missing.”

Pratt takes a last look down the hall before following Tina out of the condo. She assesses Jack Rossi for a final time before he shuts the door.

He’s hiding something, she thinks. But what?