Chapter 34
34
Evie was tucked away in a guest bedroom at Logan and Vivian's house with Mary watching over her once more. It had taken all Sisco's persuasive powers to convince Lenore that she didn't need to stand guard over her daughter all night.
Now, she sat in the large living room, surrounded by the Keepers, finally putting all their names with their faces. The men were ridiculously good-looking, and the women were beautiful. She wondered if that was an employment requirement. Wanted: intelligent with heroic tendencies, willing to give all, protect and serve, and more good-looking than any human had a right to be.
She lifted her hand to press against her mouth, hoping to hide the inappropriate chortle that threatened to slip out. As her gaze moved around the room, she spied everyone's expressions of sympathy and realized she must have looked as though she were about to burst into tears. Considering she couldn't tell them what she had really been thinking, she inhaled deeply, let it out slowly, and then turned toward Everett. “I can't imagine what else I have to explain. While the person's face was covered, it was definitely a masculine hand that grabbed Evie. He wore gloves, but his jacket sleeve exposed his wrist slightly, and even though he was thin, I could see a dark arm hair.”
“Any tattoos?” Everett asked.
She opened her mouth to deny the presence of tattoos, then snapped her lips closed as she blew out a long breath. In the dimming light of the evening, shadows had abounded, especially in the alley they were close to. She closed her eyes and tried to pull up the exact image in her head, then sighed. “I suppose it could have been. It looked like arm hair, but maybe it was just a tattoo instead.”
She sat next to Sisco, and his hand was on her shoulder. But right now, his presence gave little comfort. With her elbows propped on her knees, she dropped her head into her hands, feeling more exhausted than ever. “I'm supposed to protect my daughter.”
Sisco shifted, and his voice was soft as he whispered, “What was that, baby?”
Her neck twisted as she lifted her gaze, not realizing she'd spoken aloud. Her shoulders slumped with the weight of everything she'd been trying to remember… or maybe forget. “I feel like I've failed her. I'm supposed to protect her.”
“Lenore, baby, you not only knocked that man's hand off her, but you also punched him in the nose. You reacted. You did what you needed to do. You took care of the situation, and you took care of Evie.”
“Lenore?”
She looked over at Devil. While she'd learned his real name was Devlin, it seemed everyone called him by his call sign from his days in the SEALs.
He continued, “You’ve got to realize you're a fucking badass mama bear.”
Devil's words made her snort-laugh, and she was glad for the reprieve of the oppressing guilt that was pounding down.
Everett went back over the events at the hospital from when she, Evie, and Sisco had been kidnapped. A headache was blooming, but she listened carefully, knowing everything was vital. Of course, from the moment she and Sisco met in the chapel, he had already reiterated their shared experience with the kidnappers.
“I'd like to ask you more about what you remember when you were in the hospital. You might be able to place the man tonight as someone you remember,” Everett said. “In watching through the multitude of the hospital's cameras and feeds from the day you were taken, we can't see everything. If this were a TV show or movie, the hospital would have a series of cameras showing every entrance, exit, and angle from every hall, even in the elevators and stairwells. We would be able to follow who went where and when. It has a good security system for a smaller, rural hospital, but not like that.”
Everett was holding her gaze, and she nodded to acknowledge what he'd said but had no idea what he needed from her.
“From the time you entered the chapel, a few hospital employees were milling around in the hall, but we can't see everything. And no one was in the chapel with you until Sisco came, right?”
She nodded slowly.
“There were a couple of people in the hallway that we couldn't follow. Are you sure no one else was in the chapel with you?”
Her brow furrowed, which only sent more pain shooting through her head. She turned and looked at Sisco. “There wasn't anyone else in there with us.”
“Not in there with us, but I did see a couple of men walking down the hall from the direction of the chapel before I decided to go in. The man walking toward me was an employee. He's been identified as the Food Services Manager. After I came in and saw you in the chapel, it never dawned on me that anyone might've been there with you.”
“With me?” she squeaked. “Do you think I?—”
His arm tightened around her shoulders. “No, no, Lenore. I just didn't know if you had seen them. The other man slipped down a different hall, and we can't identify him or see where he went.”
Everett reiterated, “You were with just Sisco until you had Evie, and the fire alarm went off at 1:23 p.m., right?”
One twenty-three. One twenty-three. She rubbed her forehead and looked down. Why does one twenty-three sound familiar? Suddenly, her head jerked upward as she gasped, wide-eyed. “Oh my God. One twenty-three!” All eyes were on her as she sucked in a breath but felt as though the oxygen had left the room. “There was someone in there!”
She looked up but couldn't process everyone's face staring at her. Her brow continued to pound, but she ignored the headache. “How could I have forgotten? Oh God?—”
“Don't worry about that,” Sisco said. “Trauma makes everyone forget things that can come back to them later. What do you remember?”
Her mind racing, she shook her head. “But they were just talking about hospital business. It didn't have anything to do with what happened to us.”
“Ms Keller, why don't you start from the beginning,” Everett prodded. “Something about one-twenty-three triggered your memory, so just tell us what you now remember. Let us determine if it's important for the investigation.”
As she still struggled to process what was happening, Sisco shifted around so that his face was the only one she could see. “Focus on just me and forget everyone else,” he said softly. “Obviously, a memory has come back to you, so take a deep breath, have another sip of tea, and don't worry about anything except just telling me what happened before I came into the chapel.”
She reached down with shaky hands and lifted the teacup to her lips. Taking a fortifying breath, she breathed deeply for a moment with her eyes closed. Finally, she opened her eyes to find that he had not moved and was the only thing she could focus on.
“I entered the chapel and was the only one there. I sat on the second from the front pew and wanted a few minutes for peace. I got a phone text from a friend, and when I placed my phone back in my purse, it fell off the seat, scattering the contents. I knelt between the pews to retrieve my spilled items. This sounds silly, but I had to lean way down to get everything. Suddenly, I heard the door open and stayed where I was.” She shrugged as the memories came back. “I had that second of indecision that hits when you find yourself in a weird situation. You know? Uncertain if I should pop up and try to explain why I was on the floor. Or stay down and take a chance they might walk to the front and see me practically lying on the floor to reach all the items that fell out. Or stay down and hope they were leaving soon. But they started talking so I just stayed down.”
She rubbed her forehead at the memory, then focused on Sisco's face again. “There were two men's voices. Um… I… I can't remember…” She sighed and shook her head again, this time closing her eyes. “One said they needed to move him regardless of who was involved. The other assured they were ready. The first one said they couldn't make any mistakes. The other promised it would be fine if they stuck to the plan. Then the first one asked if he remembered what he was supposed to do. And the number 123 was said. It was mentioned twice. I just assumed it was hospital business with a patient in room number 123.”
She looked over Sisco's shoulder to see Sadie type something quickly on her laptop before she shook her head.
“Nope,” Sadie exclaimed. “There is no room 123 in the hospital. Not an office nor a patient room. Nothing. So, it could be referring to the time since the alarm sounded at one twenty-three in the afternoon.”
Lenore stared at Sisco and sucked in a shuddering breath. “I don't understand. Do you think those two men were part of getting Raul out of the hospital? And if so, I didn't see them so I can't identify them. They didn't see me either.”
“You said both were male. Deep voices? High-pitched? Accents?”
“Um… definitely male. One had a bit of an accent… Hispanic, perhaps. It was sort of like how Raul speaks. But the other one had no accent. He sounded less sure.” She shook her head. “No, that's not right. He assured the other man that he knew what to do and there would be no mistakes.” She grimaced. “I mean, his words were assuring, but his tone didn't sound confident.”
“Anything about that man's voice? Anything at all?” Everett prompted, leaning forward as his gaze penetrated hers.
Closing her eyes again, she willed her mind back. It was strange how trauma could steal some memories and sharpen others. Now, she breathed deeply and let the memory play in her head. Suddenly, her eyes snapped open. “Three. It was how he said the word three. He had a slight speech defect with his r's. Almost not noticeable. But being around kids Evie's age, I notice it. His word sounded more like thwree instead of three . Evie's best friend still struggles a little with her r's. This man also did, but just a little. It hit me because it reminded me of Evie's friend.”
Sisco's eyes widened, and his face morphed into a slow grin as he leaned forward, kissed her quickly, and then turned to the others. “Sam. Fucking Samuel Johnson. The man who set the alarm at one twenty-three.”