A high-pitched squeal of delight pierced the air, and Sidney Taylor smiled as she watched the two little girls in pigtails chasing each other. Obviously sisters, one was like a miniature version of the other — both small copies of the woman off to her left, who set a little boy down in the sandbox with his toy dump truck. The child immediately went to work filling the bed of his truck with sand with the tiny plastic shovel the woman handed him.
The scene was idyllic. A mother and her three small children enjoying a morning at the park. Besides her, they had it all to themselves this time of day.
Something about the boy made Sidney think back on a conversation she’d had with Isaac about the little boy he kept seeing in a strange vision.
Back at Christmastime, Isaac had scared her when he first told her about the vision that kept haunting him. They’d been in the car headed home from holiday errands when he’d suddenly been overwhelmed by the emotions of a small boy. A boy neither of them knew.
Isaac had gotten so emotional he’d pulled the car over. Sidney wasn’t certain what it was about the vision that upset Isaac so much. Except for the fact that every time he saw it, the child was traumatized and covered with blood.
What scared Sidney so much though, was the fact that Ike had completely lost himself when he was trying to tell her about the little boy. It was the first time she’d ever seen her husband connect with the emotions of another person before. And to watch him be completely overtaken by those strange emotions was terrifying.
Sidney shivered and pulled her lightweight sweater a little tighter around her and folded her arms. It wasn’t chilly on this nice spring day. But the memory of watching Ike in the throes of his gift was powerful.
The things Ike could do with his mind always fascinated her, and usually she was proud and in awe of his gifts. But that day was the only time she’d ever been truly frightened by his superpowers.
Watching the man she loved lose himself and be ruled by the emotions of someone else was scary. Granted that time it was only a traumatized little boy. But what would happen if Ike lost himself to the emotions of someone more sinister?
Could that happen?
Was it even possible?
Sidney didn’t know, and she didn’t like to think about it.
She and Ike talked about the mysterious little boy often. Every time he saw that vision he let her know, and Sidney could tell he was even more unsettled by it than she was.
She looked up towards the sky and closed her eyes, loving the feel of the sun on her face. She loved sitting in this park, watching the kids play. Watching the mothers pushing babies in buggies. She promised herself that someday in the near future, she would bring her baby to this park. The thought of Ike pushing a baby stroller made her heart light enough to take flight.
Soon.
She was so lost in that sweet fantasy she didn’t pay any attention to the stocky man who sat down on the bench beside her.
“Lovely spring weather we’re having, Sid the social worker.”
The familiar, thick Irish brogue pulled her out of her daydream. She opened her eyes and glanced around, but she didn’t look directly at her associate, or at the blue jacket he’d set on the bench between them.
“Yes, it is lovely. How are you, Ronan?”
Ronan O’Dwyer was a talented forger that Sidney called on whenever she needed to help one of the abused women who came through Hope House to get away from their abusive significant other. Since one of the main components of fleeing an abuser and starting a new life was taking on a new name, convincing false documents were a necessity. And they just happened to be Ronan’s specialty.
“I have no complaints, lass. You?”
“None that I’ll bother you with.”
Ronan chuckled. “Aye. Save that fer yer lovin’ husband.”
They’d never spoken about her husband before. Not even in a joking way, like now. But Sidney sometimes wondered what Ronan would think if he knew that her loving husband was a police detective. Or that he was the one who had given Sidney his name when she needed to find a good forger.
“Indeed.”
“It’s been a while, Sid. Though in your business, I suppose that’s a good thing.”
Sidney nodded. “I guess it could be. Of course, it could also mean that I’m dealing with some who are too afraid to run.”
“Aye, I guess it could at that.” Ronan’s tone was thoughtful. “Well, at least you were able to help this one.”
He picked up his jacket and put it on, leaving the manila envelope beneath it on the bench.
Sidney picked up the manila envelope and slipped it into her purse. Then she replaced it with an envelope of cash.
Ronan picked up her envelope and slipped it into the inside jacket pocket. “Until next time.”
He stood and walked away without another word. Sidney turned back to the action at the swing set where the two little girls were now, and enjoyed the nice weather a bit longer.
When she got back to Hope House fifteen minutes later, she was met on the porch by Dr. Lance Tobey as he was leaving.
“Hey, Sidney. How are you today?”
He smiled and gave her the kind of once over that used to make her uncomfortable back when they’d first met. It was no secret that Lance had once had a pretty serious crush on her, and she’d had to put him in his place once or twice about it. But she was fairly certain his little talk with Isaac last Christmas Eve had cured him of any notion that he had any chance with her at all.
“Good, thank you.”
“How’s that sister of yours doing? You heard from her lately?”
Lance and her younger sister, Heather, had shared a small flirtation when they met at Christmastime. Sidney was eternally thankful nothing seemed to come of it.
“Only every day.”
“Really? I didn’t realize you two were that close.”
She and Simon had only found out about their three other siblings less than a year ago when their father died. But in that time, Heather had bulldozed her way into their hearts, demanding that they love her, while the other two were still pretending they didn’t exist.
“We talk or text every day.”
“Well, tell her I said hello sometime.”
“I’ll do that.”
Sidney went inside and headed straight back to the office where her boss, Zoe Ridley, was seated behind her desk. She looked up and smiled when Sidney walked into the room.
“Did you get them?”
When Sidney had first started this venture of helping abused women run away from their tormentors, it was something she’d done on her own. Since those first few, though, Zoe had become more involved in the process, and it was nice finally having someone she could share the responsibilities with.
“Yep. New driver’s license, passport, and birth certificate for Margo.” Sidney put her things away and pulled the manila envelope from her bag. “Now all that’s left to do is finalize her transportation out of here.”
“That’s all taken care of. The used car is gassed up and ready to go. It’s parked behind the building. Byron dropped it off not half an hour ago.” Zoe sounded pleased with herself.
It was a new strategy they were trying out. Instead of leaving the chore of buying a used clunker up to the scared, fleeing woman once she was out of the state, they decided one of them should take the woman’s cash and purchase the car for her. That way, the vehicle couldn’t be traced to Margo, and it was one less thing she had to worry about.
“Please thank your husband for me,” Sidney said.
“Oh, he was happy to do it. He even insisted on using our money. Said he just couldn’t bring himself to use Margo’s cash.”
“Oh, my God. Zoe.”
“I know. I told him we can’t buy every fleeing woman a car, no matter how clunky and cheap it is. But I let it slide this time because he was being so damn sweet.”
Zoe sounded like a woman still in love with her husband after nearly thirty years of marriage, and Sidney could only laugh at her.
“I’m sure Margo will appreciate having the extra cash in her pocket. She’ll need it with the long drive she’s got ahead of her.”
“Yes, she will. I still wish we could have talked her into flying.”
Sidney shook her head. “With her husband’s airline connections, that was never going to happen. And I can’t say I blame her for being terrified. If my abuser worked as a baggage handler for a major airline I wouldn’t want to try to run from him by going through the airport either. He probably knows that place like the back of his hand. Probably knows everyone there.”
Sidney shook her head again in a no-way-no-how manner.
“You’re right. It just would’ve been easier on her, you know? Less stressful. Less travel time. Easier on her and that baby she’s carrying.”
Margo was four months pregnant, and in the right clothes no one could tell. It was a secret she was trying desperately to keep from her husband.
“True. But, at least she has a friend waiting for her at the end of her journey. So many of the women we help run don’t have that built-in support system waiting for them.”
Margo would be driving the used car across the country to Bellingham, Washington where she would board the Alaska Marine Highway Ferry and sail off to Anchorage. Her mother’s college roommate would be waiting for her there, a woman Margo’s husband had never met and didn’t know about. She would help Margo get settled in Anchorage.
At lunchtime, they pulled Margo aside and Sidney handed her the new paperwork.
“Peggy Amos.” Margo read the name on the new documents as though she were trying them out for size. “Guess I need to get used to that.”
“It’ll get easier the more you use it.” Sidney placed a hand on her shoulder. “Have you decided when you’ll leave?”
“First thing in the morning, I suppose. When my due date gets closer, my parents are going to take a trip to visit my mom’s old college roommate. That’s the plan anyway.”
“I’ll be looking for a note or a postcard from Peggy Amos, so don’t forget.”
“I won’t. Sidney, thank you so much for everything.” Margo’s gaze bounced from Sidney to Zoe and back again. “Seriously, you two ladies are my heroes.”
Sidney laughed. “I’m sorry, it’s just that I call my husband that all the time. He’ll get a kick out of it when I tell him someone called me that.”
Margo swamped her with a bear hug, then flung herself at Zoe too. Then she left the office, wiping tears as she went.
Zoe looked at Sidney. “Can I interest you in a salad for lunch?”
Sidney smiled at her boss. “Yes, you can. Please and thank you.”
They went into the kitchen where some of the other residents were busy eating lunch and feeding small children. Sidney was halfway through her salad when the knock came at the door.
“I’ll get it,” Zoe got up and left the kitchen.
Sidney continued eating, but she kept her ears trained for Zoe’s voice, just in case it was trouble at the door. They were always ready to call 911 if an irate husband showed up uninvited.
There weren’t any raised voices, but what she did hear a few minutes later was the sound of Zoe leading someone down the hall.
“Sidney? Could you join us in the office, please?”
Sidney looked up from her lunch and spotted two police detectives standing behind Zoe. Sidney wiped her mouth and stood.
“Of course. What is this about?”
One of the detectives — the taller of the two with an intense scowl at his brow — seemed to be studying Sidney with great interest. Her stomach tightened and she wondered if she was imagining that.
“In the office, ma’am.” He stared at her, unsmiling, and the tightness in Sidney’s stomach gave way to ripples. She followed Zoe into the office and closed the door behind them.
Hope House had a good relationship with the police, particularly with the officers of the domestic violence unit, so whatever this was, Sidney knew they couldn’t be in any kind of real trouble.
Could they?
“I’m Detective Wayne, and this is my partner Detective Penski. We’re working on a missing person’s case and we were hoping you ladies might be able to help us out.”
“Why us, Detective?” Zoe asked the question before Sidney could.
“The person in question is a woman named Margo Littleton.” Detective Wayne’s tone was no-nonsense-just-the-facts intimidating, and Sidney exchanged a covert glance with Zoe.
“Her husband, Howard Littleton, reported her missing yesterday,” Detective Penski said. “We’ve spoken to her parents and her coworkers, but no one has seen her.”
“Well, that is certainly awful,” Zoe said, looking the man in the eyes. “But it still doesn’t explain why you’re looking for her here at the women’s shelter.”
Wayne sighed, and it was one of those okay-let’s-cut-the-crap sounds. “Margo’s family didn’t seem to be real worried about her well-being. Kind of like they already knew she was safe. And we have it on good authority that you ladies only take in those referred by a doctor or the police. We’ve spoken to the guys in the domestic violence unit at length.”
Sidney and Zoe looked at each other again, and a silent decision was made.
“All right, Detective, we do know Margo Littleton,” Sidney said. “She was here for almost two weeks while she recovered from the brutal beating Howard gave her. Did he happen to mention that part to you?”
“Actually, he did not. But we suspected as much when her parents suggested she might be here.”
“She was here,” Zoe said, her voice holding a touch of defiance. “For about two weeks, like my colleague said. Interesting that her husband is only now reporting her missing.”
Detective Wayne glanced at his partner before looking back at them.
“My partner and I were wondering if you ladies may have helped Margo to get out of town somehow?”
Sidney and Zoe each made no move. Had no reaction. They only stared at the detective, saying nothing.
“Look,” Detective Wayne took a step closer. “We’re on your side. Like I said, we’ve spoken to the guys in the domestic violence unit. We know the good work you ladies do here. We’re also aware of the um… special service you provide to those who ask.”
Sidney’s rippling stomach dropped to the floor of her abdomen. They knew? The cops knew that she and Zoe helped facilitate women who wanted to escape their abusers?
She folded her arms in front of herself, but said nothing.
“We’re also aware of who your husband is, Mrs. Taylor. That, along with the good you two do here, is the reason we look the other way when it comes to certain… connections you may have.”
He was looking her dead in her eyes, and Sidney knew in her bones that he was talking about Ronan O’Dwyer, the forger.
Her already battered stomach began to churn, making the salad not sit very well. Maybe she was in trouble after all. If they knew about Ronan and the forged papers she obtained from him, she could be in a lot of trouble.
“Personally, I think what you ladies do here is very admirable. Heroic even. But we need to contact Margo Littleton so we can stamp this one closed. That’s all.” Detective Wayne shrugged his shoulders like it was all no big deal.
Sidney could feel Zoe’s eyes on her, but she stared directly at Detective Wayne. Finally, she licked her lips and softly cleared her throat.
“Margo’s safety—”
“Is our main concern,” Detective Wayne said, cutting her off. “She’s an adult. She has every right to go wherever she wants to, whether her husband likes it or not.”
He sounded sincere, and Sidney wanted to believe him. But she was terrified about what their knowledge of her association with Ronan O’Dwyer meant for her. And for Isaac.
Isaac.
Oh, God. Isaac had warned her that helping women run could lead her down some not-exactly-legal roads. Specifically the purchase of false documents for these women. He’d told her all the risks, they’d discussed them at length. They’d even argued about it. But even though he didn’t approve, he’d still given her the name of the best forger he knew of.
Would her decision not to heed his warnings lead them both to disaster?
“Mrs. Taylor, Mrs. Ridley, the truth is that as long as we know Margo Littleton is okay, we can tell her husband that she’s safe, but she simply doesn’t want him to know where she is. This is basically a wellness check. So if you do know how to contact her, please have her give us a call.”
Detective Wayne handed Sidney his card.
“Thank you both for your time.” Wayne nodded to his partner and they turned and left the office. They headed down the hallway to the front door. Sidney and Zoe followed after them.
Before the detectives could open the front door, Margo stepped into the hallway. She shot a glance across the hallway at Sidney before addressing the detectives.
“I’m Margo Littleton.” Her voice was guarded and meek, but Sidney could sense her strength just beneath the surface. “As you can see, I’m alive and safe. And no, I don’t want Howard to know where I am.”
Margo had obviously been listening at the office door.
The detectives exchanged a look and then they quietly began to question her. Sidney and Zoe both stayed close by, but Sidney couldn’t concentrate on their conversation because she was too preoccupied with the revelation that the police were well aware of her association with a known forger.
Arms still folded around herself, she worried her bottom lip and thought about the implications of that. Getting herself into deep shit was one thing, but she would never be able to forgive herself if her actions somehow got Isaac into trouble with the police department.