James Romson’s morning was not going well at all. He and his wife had noted the three-month anniversary, but unlike Charles they had had no positive input. Attitudes around their home had become rather strained. A call to Detective Summers had not gone well. She still had no answers; in fact, she had no leads to follow. As she said, it was as if the earth had swallowed the plane. There were no reports of a Beaver matching their description anywhere. FBOs around the entire country, and even into Canada, had been queried, but nothing matched. As she told James, “‘I don’t know’ means I don’t know.”
James tried hard to work, but he was glad he had placed Tran in charge because his thoughts kept wandering to Jed and Elizabeth. The missing airplane was an inconvenience, but what really mattered was the two kids. He would gladly give up the plane to get the kids back. He blamed himself for not giving Pete the money when he asked for it. He couldn’t help feeling it was his fault the kids were missing. Yes, he knew such thinking was pointless and self-defeating, but the thought remained in his head.