The Others 03 Vision in Silver (16 page)

Watersday, Maius 12

A
t seven a.m., Douglas Burke gave the phone his typical fierce-friendly smile and waited until the third ring before picking up.

“Chestnut Street station, Captain Burke speaking.”

“Captain,” Vladimir Sanguinati said smoothly. “Do you have a minute to talk?”

“Of course.”

It was a disappointment, but not a surprise, that the Sanguinati had gotten back to him before the Toland police called to inquire about a missing child.

There were a few reasons why Elayne Borden had sent her child to Lakeside, allowing the girl to travel several hundred miles alone. According to the verbal report he’d received from Officer Kowalski, Lizzy had said her mother was hurt in the belly. Acute intestinal distress could account for Elayne looking hurt or being in pain. It could also account for her decision to send the child to Monty while she sought medical help—especially if she was in enough pain that she wasn’t thinking clearly. Or, considering what had been found in the stuffed bear, maybe she
was
thinking clearly and realized she couldn’t trust anyone but Monty where Lizzy was concerned.

Or she could have put the child on a train without a backward glance so that she could go off with her new, socially prominent lover unencumbered.

He didn’t think Elayne was that cold or callous where Lizzy was concerned, or that any of his speculations were accurate, but they were arguments he could
make if anyone asked why he hadn’t called the Toland police after Lizzy arrived in Lakeside.

Had Monty called anyone in Elayne’s family yet? He didn’t think so, but he would check.

“Did your kinsmen hear anything on the news about a woman being injured or taken ill at the train station yesterday?” Burke asked. The Wolves had talked about dried blood on Lizzy’s bear, but the truth was, the patch of fur that had brushed against some blood was so small, the blood could have come from a fresh cut on someone’s hand, a moment’s jostle while people were boarding the train. A human would have overlooked it. Humans
had
overlooked it. If that hadn’t been the case, a conductor or
someone
on the train would have questioned the child about a bloody bear and the absence of an adult.

A hesitation. Then Vlad said, “Stavros considers it part of his work for the Toland Courtyard to read the human newspaper and listen to the news. There was a report yesterday evening about a woman being stabbed at the Toland train station. Dead at the scene. Police investigating. Name withheld until next of kin are notified. When I spoke with him, he hadn’t listened to the morning news, so I don’t know if they’ve named the woman yet.”

“So the police are investigating a suspicious death.”

Lizzy had been on the early westbound train. Next of kin would have been notified well before the evening news aired. If the dead woman and Elayne were one and the same, then someone had known Elayne was dead . . . and hadn’t called the father of her child.

Hadn’t even noticed Lizzy was missing?

Another, longer hesitation before Vlad said, “Train stations are a good hunting ground.”

Burke sat up straight. “Are you saying one of the Sanguinati killed Elayne Borden?”

“No. I’m saying that the Sanguinati are often at train stations, especially stations in larger cities like Toland because so many trains come in and go out, and there is usually an abundance of prey. But the stations also provide a way to study humans. The Sanguinati observe as well as hunt. They weren’t in that part of the Toland station when it happened, so they didn’t see the attack, and they didn’t see the Lizzy get on a train. They became curious about all the activity once the police arrived—and then they listened.”

Great. Were Sanguinati usually in the crowds around a crime scene, drawn by the commotion and the cluster of humans who would make easy prey? Something to think about. Later. “What did they hear?”

“The restroom where the woman was found had an Out of Order
sign on the door. The maintenance staff at the station insisted that the sign had been on the men’s restroom door,
not
the women’s. It was unclear if the woman moved the sign in an attempt to hide or if her attacker moved it to delay anyone finding her. The woman was wearing a small gold key on a long thin chain hidden under her shirt. It was speculated that the key opened the lock on a jewelry box, but the woman’s suitcase wasn’t opened at the station, so the Sanguinati couldn’t say if the box was found.”

Burke scribbled notes. “Anything else?”

“The woman had two tickets for a commuter train going to Hubb NE. She was found shortly before that train left the station, so police searched for her companion among the passengers boarding it but didn’t locate anyone who knew the woman.”

Burke thought for a moment. Had Elayne purchased a second set of tickets to give herself another escape route? Or had one set been a diversion? If
Lizzy
had both tickets for Lakeside, that could explain why no one had questioned the absence of an adult. Mommy was in the bathroom. Here was her ticket.

Mommy
had
been in the bathroom. Just not the bathroom on the train.

“Thank you for the information,” Burke began.

“Captain?” Vlad’s voice, which had been conversational up to that point, suddenly chilled. “Has anyone called you or Lieutenant Montgomery to ask about the child?”

Burke felt his heart thump heavy against his chest. “No,” he said, swallowing a sour taste he recognized as fear. “No one has called to ask about the child.”

“That’s what we thought.” Vlad hung up.

Gods above and below,
he thought, noticing how his hand trembled as he returned the receiver to its cradle. It was one thing for him to condemn that disregard for the child’s welfare. It was quite another to wonder how the Sanguinati viewed that disregard.

Considering how the
terra indigene
had reacted to the deaths of
cassandra sangue
babies, he didn’t think the Others were going to allow humans to make all the decisions where Montgomery’s little girl was concerned.

Burke slumped in his chair but straightened again a moment later when Louis Gresh tapped on his doorway. Waving the bomb squad commander in, he said, “Come in and close the door.” He studied Louis and added, “Aren’t you off duty today?”

“I was supposed to be, but with Monty being off I thought you could use an extra hand.” Louis shrugged. “Did you hear from the Toland police?”

“Nothing from the police yet, but I did hear from the Sanguinati. I called Vlad last night and asked him to make some inquiries with his Toland kinsmen.” Burke blew out a breath. “A woman was attacked and killed yesterday morning at the train station. I’m guessing it was Elayne Borden.”

“Gods,” Louis breathed. “Does Monty know?”

“Not yet.” Burke sat back and folded his hands over his trim belly. “You have children.”

“A boy and a girl. Both teenagers, may the gods help me.”

“It’s a seven-hour trip from Toland to Lakeside. The attack happened early in the morning. Police are called in, crime scene investigators begin their work, and someone contacts next of kin. If you were informed of the death of a family member, a single mother, what would you say after you got past the initial shock?”

“‘Where’s the child?’” Louis rubbed his chin. “Assuming the girl wasn’t staying with me or her location was already known.”

“Exactly. The woman is dead under suspicious circumstances. Her child is missing, and both the relatives and the police know that well before the train reaches the Lakeside station. And yet
no one
called Lieutenant Montgomery to ask if Lizzy somehow got on a train to Lakeside. No one called to see if she was with her father, if she was safe. Twenty-four hours have passed, and no one has called looking for the child.”

Louis eased himself into the visitor’s chair. “Monty turned off his mobile phone and he’s not in his own apartment. Someone could have tried to reach him.”

“He’s a cop,” Burke said quietly. “If you call the station and tell anyone that something happened to his daughter and he needs to be found, you can be damn well sure we will find him whether his phone is turned on or not.”

“True enough.” Louis sighed. “But if they haven’t been looking for the girl, what
have
they been looking for?”

A jewelry box that goes with a small gold key? A fortune in jewels that someone hid inside a stuffed bear?

“I’ve answered a couple of calls on Monty’s office phone this morning,” Louis said. “A man’s voice. Wouldn’t leave his name. Wouldn’t leave a number. Said he needed to make a delivery and wanted to be sure Monty would be home today. When I asked for the name of the store making the delivery, he hung up. The second time he called, he must have recognized my voice as fast as I recognized his because he hung up before making his spiel. Officer Kowalski is here, so I asked him to man Monty’s phone. It could be one of Ms. Borden’s relatives.”

Or it could be the man who needs to find a bag of jewels,
Burke thought.

A one-two rap on the door before it opened partway and Kowalski leaned into the office.

“Pardon the intrusion, Captain, but there’s a Captain Felix Scaffoldon from the Toland police calling for Lieutenant Montgomery. He says he’s from the Crime Investigation Unit. He’s holding on line two.”

“This should be interesting.” Burke wagged a finger at Kowalski to indicate the officer should come in. Then he picked up the phone. “This is Captain Douglas Burke.”

A pause before a too-hearty voice said, “Guess your man on the desk hasn’t had enough coffee yet. I asked for Crispin James Montgomery.”

“Lieutenant Montgomery is taking a couple of days’ personal leave. I’m his commanding officer. What can I do for you?”

“It’s important that I talk to him. Could you give me his home and mobile phone numbers?”

“Talk to him about what?”

“It’s private.”

“Then give me your number, and I’ll give him the message when he calls in.”

“You said he’s taking personal time.”

“He is. But he’s a diligent officer, so he’ll call in.” Tucking the phone between shoulder and ear, Burke tore off a sheet of paper from a pad and wrote
Call Pete. Custody. ASAP.
He handed the paper to Kowalski, who looked at it and hurried out of the room.

Burke could feel the hostility coming through the phone line.

“Look,” Scaffoldon said. “I need to verify Montgomery’s whereabouts for the past forty-eight hours.”

He waited a beat. “Why?”

“Damn it, Burke!” Heavy breathing before Scaffoldon continued with more control. “He’s a person of interest in the suspicious death of Elayne Borden.”

“He couldn’t be. Lieutenant Montgomery hasn’t been off duty enough consecutive hours to make the trip to and from Toland.”

“You said he’d taken personal time.” Scaffoldon had latched on to those words.

“Which began after his shift ended yesterday.” Burke got tired of dancing. “He’s taking personal time because his daughter arrived for a surprise visit.”

“She . . . She’s
there
?
How?
”

The surprise in the voice wasn’t genuine. Scaffoldon, or someone he’d talked to yesterday, suspected Lizzy was in Lakeside.

“She had a ticket and got on a train,” Burke said.

“No.” Scaffoldon’s denial bordered on vehemence. “Celia Borden, Elayne’s mother, told me Montgomery had been making threats, that Elayne feared he was going to forcibly try to take her daughter. If the girl is there, it’s because Montgomery took her and Elayne was killed when she tried to stop him.”

“Montgomery couldn’t have made the trip,” Burke insisted. “If I were you, I’d be looking at the man who moved in with Elayne shortly after Lieutenant Montgomery moved out. He’s an unsavory character living under an assumed name.”

“What name?” Scaffoldon asked warily.

“Nicholas Scratch.”

Silence. Then, “Do you know who Nicholas Scratch is?”

Burke heard fear as well as hostility in Scaffoldon’s voice. “No. That’s the point. If I were you, I’d see what kind of alibi
he
has for the time of the murder.”

“You impugn . . .”

While he waited for Scaffoldon to regain some control, he looked toward his door, waved Kowalski and Pete Denby into his office, then held a finger to his lips to indicate he wanted them to be quiet.

“You have no proof,
none at all
, that Nicholas Scratch was associated with Elayne Borden, let alone living with her,” Scaffoldon snarled. “You’re trying to smear a man’s reputation by connecting his name to a murder inquiry.”

“Isn’t that what you’re doing by trying to drag Lieutenant Montgomery into this? My man is a seven-hour train ride away from the crime scene. Your man is in the same city. I know who I’d be talking to.”

Silence.

“Mrs. Borden has custody of the child,” Scaffoldon said. “We’ll arrange a police escort to bring the girl back to Toland. If she was with her mother in the train station, she’ll need to make a statement.”

If the first gambit doesn’t work, try another,
Burke thought. “Once again, you’ve been given inaccurate information. Lieutenant Montgomery has custody of his daughter. She will be staying here. We’ll take Lizzy’s formal statement later today, and I will send you a copy of the transcript. Good—”

“Wait! What about the bear?”

Burke gave the three men listening to his every word his fierce-friendly smile. “The bear?”

“Mrs. Borden mentioned a stuffed bear. The girl’s favorite toy. Took it everywhere. Is it there?”

“Most of it,” he replied pleasantly. “Little girls can be careless, and Wolves have sharp teeth.”

Scaffoldon sucked in a breath. “It was destroyed?”

“It lost an arm and a leg but is otherwise intact.”

A hesitation. “Where is it now?”

“I tucked it out of harm’s way here at the station and was going to have it mended as a surprise for Lizzy. But I can box up the pieces and send it to you if you think it will help your investigation.”

“No,” Scaffoldon said sharply. Then his voice shifted to something that might be mistaken for courtesy. “There’s no need to do that.”