Claiming What's His (2 page)

So, because she didn’t have
a her mom, George’s wife took that role early on before she passed away. 

Alongside with Sam, Maggie opened her own company as well, Conrad Advertising & Photography.  They rented out the entire first floor of the four-story building they’re in, sharing the space and dividing it equally among each other.  What they did agree upon was turning the front portion into a reception area.  The rest of the remaining floors were recently vacant becoming available just about a month ago when the other tenant closed their office and
moved  to Houston.

They hung up their delinquent days long ago when now Sam’s PI instincts kicked into high gear.
 Maggie liked doing the PI work also (but more for the fun of it).  Instead, she chose to concentrate on photography and her advertising business.  

Sam had actually suggested that Maggie come work with her, handling all the client information and accounting stuff, only because Sam wasn’t looking forward to interviewing candidates for the position.
 Maggie responded by declaring that will happen when Sam had millionaires paying her to find out what happened to their Aunt Gertrude.  

They didn’t have an Aunt Gertrude.

Translation: never.

*******

Sam drove through a small neighborhood where the homes were almost identical, except for the colors of the bricks.  The yards were neatly trimmed and the trash cans had been flipped over next to the mailbox in front of some of the homes (since that day had been trash day). 

This kind of neighborhood reminded Sam of the homes from the movie Pleasantville where Reese Witherspoon and Toby McGuire were sucked into a
tv and living the lives of two tv characters.  They were too neat, too perfect.

She had entered the address in the GPS, continuing until the unit told her which one she was looking for.  She stopped her Beetle at the address labeled 845 Maple Avenue.  There was a front porch,
 furnished with a wooden bench.  The front yard rose bushes were in full bloom to go with the well-maintained yard.  It was the ideal woman’s modern dream home with a white picket fence and children in the front (or a child, in this case).  

A boy.
 

A little boy.
 

Probably about four or five years old,
which matched Danny’s age.

And he was there by himself (with the screen door open). 

With no supervision.

No one was outside with him, watching him like they should be.  This did not sit right at all with Sam.

He was out playing with his toy cars on the sidewalk inside the white fence.  He was wearing khaki shorts, a red shirt with an Angry bird on it, and sneakers.

Sam opened the car door, got
out and shut it behind her.  She slowly walked up, hoping not to scare the boy, and he noticed her almost immediately.  Instead of being scared that a random stranger was approaching him, he jumped up from where he was sitting on the floor and immediately smiled, big.

Sam returned his smile.  He had the cutest smile Sam had ever seen to go with his chubby cheeks.  Sam was tempted to just hold his face into her hands and bite the crap out of them, but she had to contain herself.

“Hi!” He said happily.  Even his personality was so upbeat and cheerful.

“Hi, sweetheart.
 Are you Danny?”  Sam came to a stop about five feet from him.

“Uh huh.
  Are you here to find Billy?”

“Yes, I am.
 Is Mandy here?  Can I talk to her?”

He nodded,
turn on his little feet and ran inside the house.

This had given Sam the opportunity to scan the area for any suspicious cars or people lurking around.  There were a few cars parked along the curb but no one was in them.  The neighborhood seemed safe and quiet enough.  It didn’t seem as if any kidnapping or abduction would occur.  Glancing between Danny’s home and the house next door, Sam could see a playground set far on the other side of the back fence which meant that there was a neighborhood park back there.

A few minutes later, Danny walked out, dragging a teenager wearing khaki shorts, a white tee shirt that had a bow in the front with sparkles on it, and flip flops to the front of the house.  She had to have been about fifteen or sixteen.  She had her phone in her hand and seemed to be confused to be seeing Sam stand at the front.  As Danny dragged her, her feet skidded the pavement.

She blinked and cautiously greeted, “Hi, c-can I help you?”

The girl had every right to be nervous.  With the way that Sam was feeling now, she wanted to give her a piece of her mind for leaving Danny alone in the front yard, but there was another pressing issue at hand.

Before Sam could say anything, Danny jumped in and answered, “She’s here to find Billy!”

She looked down to Danny, her brows furrowed in confusion.  “Billy?”

Sam cleared her throat, turning the girl’s attention back to her.  “Yes.
 Danny called and informed me that Billy was missing.  I’m Samantha Daniels.”

“I’m Mandy Thomas, the babysitter.  Are you a cop?  ‘Cause, you’re not dressed like one, but you look familiar –”

“I’m not a cop.  I’m a private investigator.  You might recognize me from the billboard over on Main Street in downtown.  Are you, by any chance, related to Eddie Mae Thomas?  You kind of have the same eyes and smile.”

Mandy smiled.  “Yes, she’s my grandmother, my mom’s mom.  That’s where I’ve seen you. 
Great picture up there, by the way.  I don’t think I could have my picture blown up that big and still look good.  Anywho, what were you saying about Billy?”

“Danny said he was missing and I am here to help find him.”

Mandy looked down at Danny as Danny looked up at her.  ”Billy’s missing?”

“Uh huh.
 He was out here playing with me and then he was gone.” He answered, shrugging his shoulders.

Sam glanced at Danny then back to Mandy.

“Can you tell me how old he is and describe what he looks like?  We need to notify his parents and get the local police involved as quickly as we can.”

“The police?
 His parents?”

“Yes, if the child is indeed missing, then we should notify his parents and the authorities immediately so they could issue an Amber Alert.”

Her lips twitched as she struggled to maintain her straight face.  “Um, I think you have the wrong idea here.”

Wait.

Something seemed off.  Mandy’s eyes seemed to be dancing as if Sam had some wrong information.  But how could she get the information wrong? 

Billy. 

Child.

Missing.
 

Clear as day.

But of course, Sam had to ask.  “What do you mean?”

“Billy isn’t a child.”

“He’s not a child?  Is he older, like a teenager or an adult?”

Her lips twitched.  She pressed her lips together from laughing and her eyes glowed with amusement.

Did she think this was funny?  This was a very serious matter and she was trying not to laugh.

“No, he’s not a teenager or an adult.”

If he wasn’t a child, a teenager, or an adult, then what was left?

“Then what is he?”

“H-he’s a… a dog.”

Sam’s head slightly jerked back, flabbergasted.  Sam tilted her head to the side as if this position would help her better understand what Mandy had said.  But no matter how she shifted, it still came out the same. 

A dog?  She received a phone call about a missing dog?

Mandy continued, “Billy is a dog.
 He is the family’s new Golden Retriever puppy.”

Sam had received a phone call about a missing dog. 

Not a
person
, but a
dog
. 

She couldn’t believe it.  She didn’t think anyone would call and ask her to find a dog.  People were all that Sam was
willing to find.

This would be one of those moments where Sam could look back and laughed about.

Or at least she hoped so.

“Have you used that before?
” Danny asked, taking her out of her thoughts as he pointed to her handgun that was hidden inside her denim jacket.  Somehow, he managed to see it.

“No.”  Luckily, that was the truth.

A white Chevy Trailblazer with lightly tinted windows pulled up to the driveway and parked.  Through the windows, Sam could see that it was a woman.

“Mommy’s home!”
 Danny shouted and jumped, throwing his arms up in excitement, again.

A woman, who looked to be in her late twenties, left the car with her arms full of groceries.  She had light brown hair with some blonde highlights in her hair and it was tied up in a messy bun.  She was wearing a three-quarters sleeve, navy,
boatneck shirt, beige shorts and tan gladiator wedge sandals.

Cute outfit.

“What’s going on, Mandy?  Who is this?”  She continued walking until she was closer, stopping right next to Sam.  ”Can I help you with something?”

“Um, I think we may have just cleared it when you pulled up.
 You see, Danny called to tell me that his friend was missing.” 

She immediately dropped the bags, crouched down to Danny, balancing low on her heels, held his hands, and used her thumbs to rub the back of his hands.
 ”Who’s missing, honey?”

“Billy.”

Sam saw her cheeks blushed crimson and she timidly looked up, biting her lips.  

She was embarrassed.

Sam couldn’t blame her.  She probably would’ve been embarrassed too if she had some stranger looking for a dog.

“Billy is our new dog.  We just got him two days ago from the adoption center.”

Sam smiled.  “Yes, I just got that when you pulled up.” 

“Gosh, I am
so
sorry.  I’m so embarrassed.  I had no idea he would do this.  Wait, did he call you?”  Danny’s mother said, surprised that her son had managed to dial a phone number at his age.

Sam nodded.  “Yes, he did.
 He said he saw the billboard with my picture.  He’s very smart for his age.”

“Yes, I wanted to make sure he is advanced as he could be.
 I practically shoved those Leap Frog learning systems in his hands as soon as I could.  I wanted him to be as advanced in school as he can, never wanting him to be behind.  He has a very photographic memory.  Even the teachers at pre-school said he excelled very well.”

Just then, a little bark came from around the house and out came a small tan colored Golden Retriever puppy, ears flying and tongue wagging, as fast as his little puppy legs could carry him.

“Billy!”  Danny shrieked, throwing his hands in the air.  Danny definitely had a high pitch squeak in him.  He dropped down and the puppy jumped up to him, constantly licking his face as if they haven’t seen each other in years, even though it was probably only half an hour at the most.

Danny fell over and laughed loudly.
 He looked up and yelled, “Yay!  You found him!  You found Billy.”

Sam smiled, never have witnessed a more happy moment than when a little boy is reunited with his puppy.

Danny immediately got up and stuck his hand in his pocket, pulling out a lollipop.  ”For you.”

Sam crouched down and opened her hand as he placed the candy in it.
 ”Thank you.  Watch Billy and be careful.”

He nodded, yanking Mandy back way towards his toy cars.

Sam stood up as Danny’s mother stood next her.

“Again, I’m so sorry.
 I had no idea he did this.  I was only gone for about half an hour.  I’d be willing to pay you for your troubles.”

“No need.  I’m just glad it had a happy ending.
 He mentioned that you went to the store and that your husband is at work.”

Danny’s mother shifted uncomfortably and sighed.  “Oh, uh
… I’m not married.”

If she wasn’t married, then why would Danny tell her his dad was at work? 

Sam looked quizzically at her, not quite understanding her comment.  “Danny said that his dad was at work.”

She was silent then sighed.
 ”That’s what I told him.  Danny’s father isn’t in the picture.  He left us long before Danny was born.  He’s been a sore topic to discuss so I try to avoid it.  Are you with the police or something?”

Sam shook her head.
 ”No, actually I just opened my PI firm down off Main Street, next door to Cozy’s Inn & Cafe.”

With the snap of her fingers, she replied, “That’s where I’ve seen you.
 I pass by you when I go to the Whole Foods store.  You’re on the billboard.”

Nodding, Sam confirmed
, ”Yes, the billboard was the work of my best friend who’s an advertiser.  If you ever need any PI work, let me know.”  Sam handed her a business card.

Taking the card, she looked down and nodded.
 ”I sure will.  Thank you, Samantha.  And by the way, by name is Charlotte.  Charlotte Murphy.  But you can call me Char.”