The Advocate's Conviction (32 page)

“You poor child. I am so sorry.” Sabre didn’t know what else to say. “And when it was all over, Scott didn’t go away?”

“No. Mom didn’t keep any of her promises. I think Scott paid her off in drugs. She got worse every day. But Apollo threatened to kill Scott if he ever touched me again, and with my lock on my door I wasn’t as afraid. Apollo also fixed the window in my bedroom so I could sneak in or out, especially if I needed to get in without being seen.”

“Did Scott ever go to the meetings?”

“Not all the time, but pretty often, and when he did go he always picked something up from the fat man or this other tall, skinny guy.”

“And you never saw any of their faces?”

“No. They always had masks on.”

“Did you ever see Scott give them money?”

“No, but one time the tall guy gave Scott some money. I couldn’t see how much or anything.”

45

The first thing Sabre did when she woke up on Saturday morning was to call JP and tell him what she had learned from Bailey the previous night. He scolded her again and made another Texas slang remark about how stubborn she was and how they once again missed the opportunity to follow Bailey.

“I think she’s living at home,” Sabre said.

“At her home? Did she say that?”

“Not in so many words, but she left a lot of clues. First of all, she’s very close to the canyon because she arrived before I did and this time she must’ve walked because there was no bike. Second, she told me someone
came
to her house looking for her—not that they
went
to her house. It sounded as if she was at home when they arrived. And third, Apollo fixed the window in her bedroom so she could sneak in and out if she needed to. Oh, and she had a change of clothes this time. The other two times I saw her, she was still wearing the same clothes as she wore when she left the foster home.”

“Hide in plain sight. It’s possible.”

“Bailey also told me where the third disc was, in case of an ‘emergency’ as she put it. I think she meant if she died or something and we needed to save Apollo, but she didn’t actually say that.”

“So where is it, in case of an ‘emergency’?”

“It’s in her room in a cardboard box under the bed. It’s in the box her
Juno
DVD came in.”

“Juno?”

“Yeah, it’s a movie that was released a few years ago about a pregnant teenager. It was a big hit. Kind of apropos, don’t you think?”

“But none of this excuses your behavior,” JP said. “You have to stop meeting Bailey by yourself. These people are dangerous. They kill people. If they’re crazy enough to kill an innocent baby, they sure aren’t going to think twice about killing a lawyer.”

“I hear you.”

“By the way, I received a call from my friend at the DMV. She said that Robert Cavitt had a 1948 Plymouth registered in his name. And she gave me his address in Lakeside. I’ll be going by there shortly to see what I can see, and then I have my appointment at World of Hope with Collicott’s pregnant teenage client.”

“Are you going to confront Rob?”

“No, not until we have something more. He may not even be involved. His brother, Dr. Ric, could’ve just borrowed his car the night Apollo filmed him.”

Sabre dressed and went for a run on the bay. She ran the entire boardwalk from one end to the other, a distance of six miles; then she walked two more before returning to her car. The exercise cleared her head. When she returned home she took a shower, made herself a large cup of herbal tea, and sat down with the Lecy file. She parked a legal pad on the table next to her. The top sheet was divided into two columns labeled “Facts” and “Questions.” The entries consisted of what she knew and what she needed to know. She read through every single report and bit of information she had, jotting down notes as she read.

When she finished the Lecy file she moved on to the Johnson file, creating the same columns on her yellow pad. She read through the social workers’ and JP’s reports, taking diligent notes. She emptied the envelope of photos JP had collected for her and dumped them out. She studied each one carefully until she came across one particular photo.

“Oh my God!” Sabre said aloud. She jumped up, grabbed her keys and phone, and ran for her car. She had forgotten to put gas in the car, but she still had just under a quarter tank. It was plenty for now.

As soon as she was out of her driveway she called JP and left a message to call immediately, and then she drove to the park. She looked around for Mama T but didn’t see her. She wondered if Mama T would ever find her way back. Sabre crossed over the abandoned railroad tracks and across the field to the bridge. For the first time she was wearing decent walking shoes. Even so, it was difficult avoiding the glass. She felt a chill. The sun had disappeared behind the clouds.

Mama T was not there, as Sabre had hoped, but the other woman she had met earlier was there. Sabre reprimanded herself for not asking her name. She was treating her like everyone else did, like she was a non-person, and she suddenly felt ashamed. She approached the woman and extended her hand, “I’m Sabre, by the way. I’m afraid I didn’t get your name.”

She smiled. “I’m Megan Lily, Piccadilly, Princess of the Lily Pad People.”

“That’s a lovely name. May I just call you Megan?”

“No. Call me Piccadilly.”

“Okay, Piccadilly it is. So, Piccadilly, has Mama T been back?”

“No, not yet, but she will. She always comes back.”

Sabre remembered that was almost exactly what she had said the last time. “Has Mama T left before for any length of time?”

“No, but she’ll come back. She always does.”

Sabre looked around at the people lying on the ground or sitting against the wall. It was a regular little community with many of the same people. This was their home. The overpass provided shelter from the sun and the rain. Underneath was a flat area about the size of a Little League infield that abutted the concrete wall. The edge of that area formed an embankment with about a forty degree decline. Each resident seemed to have their own spot with their own pile of junk.

She spotted the man who almost fell on her the last time she was here. He was standing against a mound of clothes and junk on the edge of the embankment. He was drinking from a cheap wine bottle. She approached him.

“Hello, Dean.”

“What do you want?” There was anger in his voice.

“I want your son, Cole. Where is he?”

“He ain’t here,” he said gruffly.

Sabre started to look around for any sign of him, but Dean staggered after her following her wherever she went. “Get out of here,” he yelled.

Sabre continued to look in any nook or cranny where he might be hidden, but there was so much trash it was hard to see anything and she had to climb over boxes and around carts. “Where is he, Dean? This is no life for him.”

Sabre started back toward the mound where Dean had been standing earlier. She heard Dean yell, “I said, get out of here, you stupid bitch.” And then she felt the bottle hit the side of her head.

46

JP drove to the Lakeside address his friend from the DMV had told him belonged to Rob Cavitt. The long driveway led to a huge, two-story house with a three-car-garage attached. The garage doors were all closed so he couldn’t see if the Plymouth was there. The new home appeared to be rather expensive for a clerk at Home Depot.

Since there were no other homes within at least twenty acres, he dared not go too close. If anyone saw him, it would be obvious he was looking for something or someone at this address. So he turned around and headed back toward the road. Just after he turned out of the driveway, a yellow Volkswagen beetle approached him. As they passed one another, the driver, a brown-haired woman who JP estimated to be in her mid-forties, stared at him. He could see in his rearview mirror that she continued to watch him throughout her slow, calculated turn.

JP arrived at World of Hope only to learn that Mena had run away about two hours earlier. He spoke to the counselor in her unit.

“How long has she been gone?”

“The last time anyone saw her was about four o’clock. She checked into the day room to do her chores. We can’t account for her whereabouts after that. When we sat down for dinner, we discovered she was missing.”

“Do you know why she left?”

The counselor appeared quite upset. “I spoke to her about three-thirty and told her the doctor had pulled her pass for the weekend because she’d been having some pains.”

“Was she in labor?”

“No. He examined her and said she wasn’t. I looked at her records. It says she’s not due for another month, but she’s awfully big. That’s probably why the doctor was concerned, but apparently not enough to send her to the hospital.”

“So why was Mena angry?”

“She wanted to go somewhere this weekend and when she couldn’t go she threw a fit. I guess she decided to go anyway.”

“Did anyone see her leave?”

“I’ve asked everyone on staff, as well as the other girls. Either no one saw her or no one is fessing up.”

“Do you mind if I ask around a little?”

“Go right ahead. I doubt if anyone will tell you anything. You earn a bad reputation around here if you ‘narc’ on someone.” The counselor sounded frustrated.

JP walked around the campus. It consisted of nine small, cabin-like structures. Each cabin housed four students and had its own private bath. There was one large building with a reception area that doubled as a living room in the evening. A hallway led to three offices and an examining room for the pregnant girls. At the end of the hallway and to the left was the back of the house where the kitchen, dining area, and the recreation room were located.

Since the recreation room was the last place Mena was seen, JP began his investigation there. He found several girls there. None of them could provide any significant information, but someone had seen Mena speaking to one of her roommates, a girl named Brenda who had just returned to her room. JP walked over to Mena’s bungalow and knocked on the door. When Brenda answered the door he explained who he was. She stepped outside. She wasn’t showing a lot. If JP had seen her in a different situation he wouldn’t have thought she was pregnant. He guessed she was three or four months along.

“We’re not allowed to have anyone in the room,” she said.

“I understand,” he said. “I won’t take long. Did Mena tell you she was going to leave?”

“No.”

“But you talked to her this afternoon?”

“Yeah, for a bit.”

“I understand she was pretty upset.”

“I guess. She just told me that Dr. Ric had pulled her pass.”

“Did you say Dr. Ric?”

“Yes, he’s the obstetrician on duty today.”

“What’s his last name?”

“I dunno. I’ve never had him for a doctor, but I haven’t been here that long.”

“Have you seen him? Do you know what he looks like?”

“Yeah. He’s kinda … fat … and old.” She quickly tried to cover what she said by adding, “But most of the girls like him okay.”

“Thanks. You’ve been very helpful.”

“There’s one other thing you should know.”

“What’s that?” JP asked.

“Mena sneaks out sometimes after curfew with a couple of the other girls. I think she goes to the meetings.”

“What kind of meetings?”

“I don’t know exactly. They can’t talk about them.”

“Do you know where they go?”

“No, but it’s not here on campus. They drive somewhere.”

“And you’ve never been?”

“No. You don’t get invited until you’re at least six months along.”

JP checked his messages and returned Sabre’s call. She didn’t answer. He called Collicott and left her a message in case she hadn’t heard that her client was missing. Then he drove to Dr. Ric’s house. He had to get there before another baby was sacrificed.

47

Sabre opened her eyes. It was almost dark, and for a moment she wasn’t sure where she was. The smell drove it home. She was under the bridge and Piccadilly was leaning over her.

“Are you okay?”

Sabre started to stand up. Piccadilly reached her hand out to help her. But Sabre stood too quickly and it made her head hurt even worse. She felt the large lump on the side of her head, and when she brought her fingers down there was blood on them. She felt the cut again. It was minor and had already stopped bleeding.

Suddenly, Piccadilly turned and ran toward the field. “Mama T,” she yelled. Sabre could see a figure walking toward them pushing a cart. She must have found another cart, Sabre thought.

Sabre went to meet her and walked with her back toward the bridge. “I’m glad you’re okay, Mama T. I’m sorry I didn’t bring any food this time. I left in a big hurry.”