Faye Kellerman_Decker & Lazarus 06 Page 9

  Cindy felt strange and suddenly cold.

  She called out a hello, projecting so she could be heard over the squeaks and wails.

  No answer.

  Wrapping her arms around her chest, she walked over to the layettes. Baby Girl Jackson’s diapers had leaked onto the blanket. Spencer Dole had become completely untucked, the blanket loosely covering the infant’s face. My God, even Baby Boy Yamata was crying. He had spit up on his blanket, black hair wet and sticky.

  Cindy pulled the coverlet off Spencer’s face and placed the red-faced little baby boy on his stomach after reswaddling his body. Comfortable and cozy, the infant immediately fell asleep as he sucked on his fingers. She cleaned Baby Boy Yamata’s face with a sterile wipe, wrapped him in a clean blanket, and placed him on his stomach. That was his position of choice. He closed dark eyes and drifted off to baby slumberland.

  She looked around. Alone and anxious, she changed Baby Girl Jackson’s diaper, hoping no one would walk in and think she was molesting the infants. She knew she had no business touching the babies, but no one was in sight.

  Something was wrong.

  She looked inside the glass window of the nurses’ station for Nursery J.

  Empty.

  Where the heck were Marie and Darlene?

  Cindy looked at the clock, looked at the window, looked at the babies, her mind dizzy with indecision. She started toward the yellow line, but realized she was suited up. If she crossed the border, would she have to regown in order to get back to Hannah? She didn’t even know where the nurses kept the gowns.

  Then she saw the wall phone and a directory posted to the phone’s immediate right. She dialed the exchange for Front Desk. The phone rang and rang, and no one answered. Then she tried the hospital operator, who answered after ten rings. Cindy explained the situation to the operator and was then connected back to the front desk. Again no one answered.

  Darlene had said there had been some major cutbacks at the hospital, but this was ridiculous! Suppose Cindy was a sick person who needed help? Or suppose she was calling for one of the babies who needed help? What a disaster that would be. Her mind was suddenly besieged with worst-case play-outs.

  The clock read 1:45.

  All of a sudden, time was moving quickly.

  Two experienced nurses supposedly on shift, and there wasn’t a soul in sight.

  What to do, what to do?

  Give it another five minutes.

  And then what would she do?

  At two, she tried the front desk again.

  No one.

  Where was everyone? A baby could be choking or something.

  Now she was thinking like Dad.

  Dad!

  Good old Dad!

  She could call him, but she didn’t want to wake up Rina. Nor did she want Rina to know about the lax care at the nursery. Daddy was right. Darlene was weird to leave the babies alone. And Marie was weird, too. But at this moment, she would have given a lot to see either of their faces.

  What on earth was going on?

  As soon as the clock clicked 2:10, Cindy put her foot tentatively over the yellow line. Walking swiftly, encountering no one in the halls, she went directly to Rina’s room and knocked softly on the door. When no one answered, she opened it and stepped inside.

  Dad was sleeping in a cot next to Rina’s hospital bed. She went over and gently shook his shoulders. His arousal was so fast that he startled her. Then she remembered he was used to waking up on a moment’s notice. He was wearing gray sweats and had on tennis shoes that looked as big as boats. His bleary eyes scanned her face. A glance and he knew something was wrong. He put his arm around her shoulder and led her into the hallway.

  “What is it?”

  “Hannah’s fine, Daddy.”

  Decker took a deep swallow and brought his hand to his chest.

  “I scared you,” Cindy said. “I’m sorry. I just didn’t know what to do—”

  “Do about what?”

  “There’s no one in the nursery—”

  “What?”

  “For about forty-five minutes,” Cindy said. “I tried calling the operator and the front desk, but no one ans—”

  “Who’s with the babies now, Cindy?”

  “No one—”

  “Good God!” Decker started jogging. “You left Hannah alone?”

  “I’m sorry, but I just didn’t know—”

  “Why didn’t you call me?”

  “I didn’t want to wake up Rina—”

  “Cindy, for God’s sake, use some common sense! It’s better to call and wake Rina up than to leave Hannah alone—”

  “I’m sorry—”

  “Jesus!”

  “Daddy, you’re going the wrong way.” She tugged on his arm and steered him to the left. “This way.”

  Quickly, they ran down the common nursery hallway, nearly bumping into Darlene. The plump nurse looked at them wide-eyed, then started marching toward Nursery J.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Where were you?” Cindy asked.

  “Nursery B,” Darlene said defensively. “If you needed something, why didn’t you ask Marie?”

  “Because I can’t find Marie.”

  “What?” Darlene exclaimed. “Then who’s with the babies?”

  “Good question!” Decker snarled.

  “No one in there for the last hour maybe,” Cindy said.

  “That’s crazy!” Darlene said. “I passed Marie a long while back. She said she was on her way back to Nursery J.”

  “Then she didn’t show up,” Decker said.

  When they arrived at the nursery, Darlene stopped and said, “Detective, you’re going to have to wait here, because you’re not suited up.”

  “Cindy, go in and tell me Hannah’s okay.”

  “Right away.”

  Darlene faced Decker. “I’m very sorry. I don’t know how this hap—”

  “It happened because you were careless,” Decker snapped.

  “I don’t appreciate your rudeness, Detective.”

  “And I don’t appreciate hospital negligence.”

  Darlene folded her arms around her chest. “I don’t think there’s any sense in pursuing this conversation.”

  “I agree,” Decker said. “So why don’t you forget about my manners and just get back to work.”

  Red-faced and shaking, Darlene opened and closed her mouth. Then she turned and disappeared within the inner sanctum of the nursery. Decker looked down at his sides and saw his hands clenched into fists. Slowly, he uncoiled his fingers. Cindy came back a moment later. She was breathless.

  “She’s fine, Daddy. Sleeping like…” Suddenly, Cindy broke into tears. “I’m sorry.”

  Decker hugged his daughter tightly. “No, I’m sorry, Cynthia. I shouldn’t have belittled you like that. That was terrible.” He laughed nervously. “A heap of thanks for all your help, huh?”

  “But you were right,” Cindy dried her tears on his sweats. “I shouldn’t have left Hannah. I should have just called you.”

  “As long as Hannah’s okay.”

  Cindy pulled away and nodded. “She’s fine. I’ll just go back—”

  Decker pulled her back into his arms and hugged her again. “Cindy, thank you, thank you, thank you!”

  She smiled. “It’s okay, Daddy.”

  Decker said, “I’m checking Rina and Hannah out just as soon as Rina gets the final okay from her doctor. This place is a security nightmare. You better believe Rina’s doctor as well as the administration are going to be hearing from me. Some heads are going to roll.”

  “Daddy, Darlene is a single parent—”

  “I don’t care, Cynthia. If this is a typical example of her competence, it stinks!”

  “What about Marie?” Cindy said. “Isn’t she at fault, too?”

  “Cindy, as far as I’m concerned, the both of them aren’t fit to run a chicken coop!”

  Cindy broke off and whispered, “Daddy, you’re shouting.
”

  Decker stopped. “Dad on the rampage, huh?”

  Calm down, Deck.

  “I’m all right, Cindy.” Decker gave her a forced smile.

  And remember to unclench your jaw.

  Sighing, Cindy hooked her arm around her father’s. “I understand your feelings. I’d be upset, too. As a matter of fact, I am upset! I was panicked, seeing all those babies and not knowing what to do. Watching Hannah has really turned into an awesome responsibility.”

  Decker digested that. “You’re right. It’s not what you’re supposed to be doing. It was just that Rina needed me very badly. But now, you and Hannah need me more. You go on home. I’ll stay with Hannah.”

  “Daddy, I didn’t mean that.”

  “I know. I just want you to go home and get some sleep, okay?”

  Cindy looked down.

  “Princess, it has nothing to do with trust. You’re as capable as I am, we both know that. We also both know that I’m not going to be able to sleep a wink until Hannah is out of here. You know how I am once I get a bug in my brain. So humor me, okay?”

  “I understand. Would you like me to look after Rina?”

  “No, I’d like you to go home and get some sleep.”

  “I can sleep on your cot, Daddy. If Rina needs something, I can get it for her. Besides, I’ve gotten to know Hannah. Maybe Rina would enjoy hearing all about her. How often she sleeps, how often she eats, how many ounces she drinks, how often she poops.”

  Decker laughed. “That’s really nice, Cindy. And yes, I think Rina would really like to hear all about Hannah.”

  “It’s her first daughter.”

  “Yeah.” Decker winked at her. “Something special about those first daughters.”

  Cindy smiled.

  Decker said, “Go bunk down in the cot. When Rina wakes up, tell her we switched places. Don’t tell her what just happened. No sense scaring her.”

  “I’ll just tell her you were giving me a sleep break.”

  “That’s good.” Decker looked around. “I need a gown, don’t I?”

  “Yes. Oh, here’s Darlene. Can you get my father a gown? He’s going to spend some time with Hannah.”

  Darlene didn’t answer. She looked dazed.

  “What is it, Darlene?” Decker said tensely. “Is everything all right?”

  “It’s…” Darlene put her hand to her mouth. “I don’t know where the devil Marie is. I’ve paged her and…this is…I…”

  Decker regarded the nurse’s face—as white and blank as an empty canvas. Her voice was unnatural; her hands were shaking. He said, “Sit down and tell us what’s wrong.”

  She gazed helplessly at Cindy. “I’ve called Security. They’re going to want to talk to you.”

  “Me?” Cindy felt her chest tighten. “Why do they want to talk to me?”

  “What’s wrong?” Decker said louder.

  “It’s crazy….” Darlene muttered. “She came back at twelve-oh-five. She was on her way here when I left to help out in some of the other nurseries.”

  “Who was here?” Cindy said. “Marie? Marie hasn’t been here for the past hour.”

  “I can’t seem to locate…It’s simply not…and Marie’s not answering her page. It’s crazy. In all my years as a nurse, I’ve never…I mean you read…” Again she faced Cindy. “Somebody had to have been here, Cindy. Someone must have been in the nursery.”

  “Maybe somebody was here, Darlene,” Cindy said. “I was with Hannah. I wasn’t in the main nursery—”

  “So you must have seen someone. Who did you see?”

  “I didn’t see anyone. I was busy with Hannah.”

  “Why are you interrogating my daughter?” Decker said.

  “I’m not interrogating. I’m just asking—”

  “Why?”

  “If only Marie…”

  “Why does Security want to talk to my daughter?” Decker said forcefully.

  “Because she isn’t here.” Darlene began to shake all over. “And Cindy was probably the last person to see her.”

  “But you said you saw Marie in the hallway, Darlene,” Cindy said. “That would make you the last person to see Marie.”

  “No, not Marie!” Darlene burst into tears. “It’s one of the infants! I can’t find Baby Girl Rodriguez!”

  12

  Nose pressed to the glass, Decker stared at the newborns—things no bigger than a rib roast, completely helpless…sinless. His heart went out to them, knowing that life would dish out a fair amount of dirt even if they were lucky. Baby Girl Rodriguez’s safety net had unraveled just a few days into her existence. His eyes traveled over the infants of differing races and sexes until they landed on an empty layette. His heart began to pound.

  “Hey, Sergeant.”

  Decker spun around, startled by the interruption.

  Officer Brian Harlow. He’d been in uniform nearly three decades. He was still muscular and fit, but the years were there. Hair that was more silver than blond, a gut straining the buttons of his shirt. Vanity probably prevented him from admitting he needed a larger size. Harlow ran his fingers through his slicked-back hair.

  “We’ve done three passes through the lots, through the immediate neighborhood, too.” He shook his head. “No sign of the red Honda. It’s still dark, not easy to tell colors, but we’ll keep trying. Should be better when the sun comes up. In the meantime, do you want to put out an APB on the car?”

  “Yeah, call it in.”

  Harlow clapped his hands together. “You got it.”

  “Any action by Bellson’s apartment?”

  “Just talked to the cruisers. Everything’s quiet.”

  “No movement inside?”

  “Nothing.”

  “Any lights?”

  “Black as a well,” Harlow said. “When do you think the warrant’ll come through?”

  “Probably take another hour or so,” Decker said. “Hollander couldn’t get through to the first two judges. Finally, he managed to locate a third and wake him up. He’s on his way to His Honor’s house as we speak.”

  “How’s the baby’s mother?”

  “Lourdes Rodriguez,” Decker stated. “Detective Dunn’s with her now.”

  “I’ll call in that APB.” Harlow slapped Decker’s back. “Congratulations on your kid, by the way.”

  “Thanks.”

  Decker checked his watch. Darlene had last seen Marie around midnight. If Marie had taken off with the baby, she’d have a big jump on them. He had sent some uniforms to watch her apartment. So far nothing.

  Why would a woman who had worked with babies for years suddenly snatch a kid? A latent maternal longing? A fit of madness? Maybe she’d done it against her will. Some psycho sticking a gun to her temples and forcing her to take the baby. It was that very thought that scared Decker the most—Marie and the infant in the hands of a psycho.

  Slipping his hands into his pockets, he glared at the security guard. Guy was pissed, probably felt usurped—too damn bad. He and his guard buddies had had their chance, and they’d blown it with a capital B. Not that TECHWATCH Securities International wasn’t working overtime, covering its butt, hoping to keep the liability down.

  Good luck, pal.

  Mom was hysterical now, not even thinking about litigation. But after a day or two, even if the baby was recovered safely, odds were that the security firm and the hospital would get phone calls from a heavy-breathing lawyer.

  Marge walked over to him, notebook in hand. “How’s it going, Rabbi?”

  Decker stuck out splayed fingers and rotated his wrist back and forth. “How’s Lourdes Rodriguez?”

  “Sleeping.”

  “Get a chance to talk to her?”

  “A little. She isn’t married to the father, but they’re together—boyfriend/girlfriend. She couldn’t imagine Papa stealing their baby. Or forcing Marie to steal the baby. As a matter of fact, she grew hysterical at the prospect of telling him what happened. She’s afraid of what he might do.”<
br />
  “To her?”

  “To her, more like to the hospital.” Marge raised her eyebrows. “Seems Matty likes to play with matches and owns a firearm or two—”

  “Jesus!”

  “If I were you, I’d get Rina out of here.”

  “She’s leaving at ten this morning. We’d better put a watch on this guy once he’s informed. What’s his full name?”

  “Matthew Luke Lopez.”

  “Did he Anglicize his name?”

  “No, it’s his legal name. He’s American born but was raised in the barrio. Lourdes said he has a good heart, but a bad temper.”

  “Tell me something new,” Decker said under his breath. “How old is he?”

  “Seventeen, eighteen. Lourdes wasn’t sure.”

  “Prime age for impulse.”

  “Yeah, I thought about that.” Marge stopped talking. “In all fairness to Matty, Lourdes wasn’t making a lot of sense. Doc upped her dose of sedatives. She’s completely zonked out now, poor kid.” She pushed wisps of hair out of her brown eyes. “Man, this is just horrible! So close to home. You must be freaked.”

  “Yeah, I’m a little…” Decker was quiet. “Did you get anything out of the Rodriguez family?”

  “Mamacita is with Lourdes now. She speaks broken English, refers to her sons a lot.”

  “Lourdes’s brothers are here?”

  “Waiting for me in the lobby. I kicked them out of the hospital room early on. Which didn’t endear me to the clan. But I couldn’t get anything done with three mucho macho guys hanging over my shoulder. I did tell them to stick around, that I’d want to talk to all of them. That didn’t set right with them, either. Guess their prior experiences with the police haven’t been positive. At least I feel I’m earning my money. You want me to interview the nurse who was on duty?”

  “Darlene Jamison,” Decker said. “No, I’ll handle her. I did a quick interview with her right when it happened. She wasn’t making much sense, either. But she did give me an approximate timetable of her whereabouts. She was where she said she was. But I’m far from done with her.”

  “Where is she?”

  “In the nurses’ station, making arrangements with her baby-sitter to stay a little longer. I’m angry as hell at the woman, but I do feel for her. She looks genuinely shaken. And she’s probably worried about her own derriere. She’s got some liability in this.” Decker looked at his watch again. “It’s been about fifteen minutes. I’ll give her another five minutes, then we’ll go over it again.”