Chapter Seven
Tracy had never been happier to see her eldest child. She hadn’t wanted Brooke to come running home but was glad she had. Her presence—and Nate’s—was comforting.
“What’s the latest?” Brooke asked.
“Nothing new. Sam and her colleagues are working the case. Her friend Archie from IT has been working on the computer at our house for hours. They’ve put out an alert to be on the lookout for Ethan and his friend Tomas.
We’re trying to figure out who this other kid, Brecken, is.
We know he doesn’t go to school with the boys and could be a homeschooled kid who’s a few years older, but we don’t know for sure that he’s the Brecken we’re looking for. ”
“So you haven’t met his new friends?”
“We’ve asked to meet them, but it hasn’t happened yet.”
“But he’s still been allowed to go out with them?”
“You’ll have to take that up with your father. He’s the one who allowed it.”
Mike came into the room and hugged Brooke. “Yes, I did allow it, Tracy, because every one of his friends is allowed to go out, and I don’t want him to hate us for not letting him do what his friends can do.”
“God forbid he should hate us, but of course that won’t matter much if he’s dead.”
In all the years they’d been together, she’d never been this angry with Mike. Most of the time, she kept him on a pedestal for the way he’d stepped up as a father to Brooke after her biological father had cut and run when Tracy got pregnant.
“You guys.” Brooke glanced nervously between her parents. “This won’t help anything.”
“It makes me feel better to say it out loud,” Tracy replied.
“So if something has happened to Ethan, it’s always going to be my fault?” Mike asked. His face had gotten very red.
“Well, it’s not my fault! I was adamantly opposed to him going out with his friends without an adult with them, and I said so many times. No one wanted to hear my opinion, and once he knew he had you on his side, there was no point in arguing anymore. Whatever happened to our united front?”
“I thought you were being unreasonable.”
“And now? Do you still think that?”
Mike turned and stormed out of the room.
“Mom…”
“I’m sorry, honey, but I’m so angry, and I can’t contain it.”
“If you blame him for this, you might never recover.”
“Who else should I blame? If it were up to me, Ethan would be upstairs in his room playing video games, not God knows where with God knows who.”
“I’m sure he’s going to be just fine,” Brooke said, her voice tremulous.
Tracy put her arm around her daughter. “I want to tell you what we all want to hear, but I’m scared he’s not okay.”
“I am, too.”
Sam and Freddie left Walters and yet another group of CSU detectives working at Luna’s house and headed for the last known address for Brecken Mayfield. “I feel like we’re spinning our wheels.”
“Because we are. Ethan could be anywhere by now.”
“Our family can’t sustain another loss so soon after the other two.”
“Don’t give up hope. For all we know, he might’ve found himself involved in something way out of his depth.”
“It’s hard not to let all the worst-possible scenarios run through my mind.”
“I know, but don’t do that. Remember what you always tell me… Just because we’ve seen something horrible on the job doesn’t mean it’ll happen to someone we love.”
“I do say that. I’m very wise that way.”
He rolled his eyes and smiled, seeming relieved by the usual banter. “I’m actually comforted by the fact that two other kids have been reported missing. Whatever this is probably doesn’t involve only Ethan.”
“That’s assuming Luna’s disappearance is related to Ethan and Tomas.”
“How can it not be?”
“Is that a rhetorical question?”
“No, but really, it has to be related.”
“We don’t know that for sure, and we don’t assume things without proof.”
“Right, I know, but still…”
“But nothing. Until we have proof they’re connected, we’re treating them as if they aren’t. How would Luna even know them? They’re zoned for different schools.”
“Are you really asking how she would know them? Through social media, sports, friends of friends, cousins, running into each other at a mall or an arcade or a pizza place. There’re a million ways other than school that kids know each other these days.”
“Granted, but these kids are young.”
“They’re young, but they’ve been allowed out with their friends to all corners of the city, so it’s very possible they know each other.”
“I’ll concede that point.”
“Thank you.”
“I’m not on social media. I forget it exists.”
“Trust me, it exists, and for kids their ages, it runs their lives. Please tell me you know that Scotty’s on Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok. I’m friends with him on all of them.”
“I know that, but I’m not monitoring his activity on social media. Should I be?”
“Probably, but you have the Secret Service keeping an eye on him, so it’s not as critical for you as it is for other parents.”
“I’ve finally found the single advantage to Nick being president.”
“That’s a huge advantage, as you’re discovering tonight. There’s no chance of your kids going missing on their watch.”
“Well, there’s always a chance, but it’s far less likely than it would be for kids who aren’t surrounded by federal agents at all times.”
“Those agents would die before they’d let anything happen to your kids.”
“Yes, they would,” Vernon said. “They love the kids like their own.”
“I know they do,” Sam said. “I can see that every morning when they come to collect them for school. The kids run to them the same way they do to us. I wish every kid had the Secret Service looking out for them.”
“Malone just texted me. There’re active warrants for Brecken Mayfield and his father, Asher, for failing to report into parole on schedule.”
“That tells us they both have records.”
“Long ones. Malone sent that info, too.”
Connecting Ethan to actual criminals only added to Sam’s already considerable anxiety.
Sam noted that it was almost twelve thirty as they pulled up to the last known address for Brecken Mayfield on O Street Northwest, also in Truxton Circle. She was starting to get seriously tired but couldn’t stop when there were threads to pull that might lead them to Ethan.
With Vernon escorting them, Sam and Freddie walked up the sidewalk to the front door of the dark house and rang the bell. In deference to the stressful situation, she didn’t care to comment on the fact that it was a normal doorbell rather than some of the air-raid sirens they regularly encountered.
No one answered, so she rang it again, pounding on the door this time. “Police. Open up!”
When the door next door opened, Sam, Freddie and Vernon instinctively reached for their weapons.
An older woman poked her head out the door. “No one lives there. The Mayfields moved out months ago.”
“Did you know them?” Sam asked.
“Just to say hi to.”
“Do you know where they went?”
The woman’s expression changed in an instant when she realized who she was talking to. “I, uh, no. They didn’t say. They were here one day and gone the next. Haven’t seen them since.”
“Were they friendly with anyone in the neighborhood?”
“Not that I know of, but I keep to myself.”
“Thank you for your help.”
“I can’t believe the first lady is out working late at night. Thank you for all you do.”
“Oh, well… It’s my job, but thank you.”
“Are we waking up the neighbors?” Freddie asked as they returned to the sidewalk.
Sam looked around, saw that most of the homes on the street were dark and weighed her options. “I don’t know what to do.”
Freddie’s head swiveled in her direction. “I’ve never heard you say that before.”
“I’ve said it before.”
“Not that I can recall.”
“Where do we begin to look for him, Freddie? He could be anywhere, including the other side of the country—or out of the country entirely, for that matter.”
“We’re not going there yet,” Freddie said. “It’s too soon for doomsday scenarios.”
“We both know how critical the first hours are in a situation like this. If we don’t find him soon, we might never find him.”
“What can I do? I’ll do whatever is needed.”
“I appreciate it, but you should go home and get some sleep. Let’s meet at HQ at seven and start fresh.”
“Are you going home, too?”
“After I see Tracy. I’ll decide what I’m doing after that.”
“You’re sure you don’t want me to stay with you? I don’t mind at all.”
“I know you don’t, but go get some sleep. We might be in for a long few days if this drags on.”
She could see he was torn by the tense expression on his face and the rigid set of his shoulders.
“What about the new case at the hotel? Should I get over there to help with the canvass?”
Sam thought about that for a second. “Go get some sleep so you can relieve Gonzo at the hotel by seven instead of meeting me at HQ.”
He hugged her tightly. “Call me if you need me during the night. I don’t care what time it is. Call me.”
“I will,” she said over a lump in her throat.
He gave her a last squeeze and then took off, looking at his phone as he went, probably hailing an Uber.
“Back to Celia’s, then?” Vernon asked.
Sam nodded as she got into the SUV.
Vernon stood next to her, one hand hooked over the open door. “Don’t let your mind go crazy. Remember, like Freddie said, you experience the worst of everything in your job. That might not apply here.”
“You’re right. I know you are, but my brain can’t help cycling through all the disasters I’ve seen over the years.”
“Which is entirely normal for you, but you’ll only make it worse for yourself by applying those disasters to this situation before you know what’s going on.”
She looked up at him, the man she’d come to love and trust like a surrogate father, and asked the question that scared her the most. “What if we never find him?”
“You will. I’m sure of it. I believe in you.”
“That helps. Thank you.”
“Keep the faith.”
“I’m trying.”