Whirlwind

53

Chicago, Illinois

Hedda Knight’s dream was slipping through her fingers.

Chelsea Drew-Flynn’s $750,000 offer and all that it entailed was getting further out of reach with each passing minute, like the sailboats drifting out of sight on Lake Michigan.

Where’s Remy Toxton? Where’s the baby?

Her worries robbed her of sleep and she’d come to the office early this morning. Sitting with her elbows on her desk in her seventy-fifth-floor law office, Hedda steepled her fingers, touched them to her lips and thought. Ed Bascom’s investigation had followed Remy’s trail to the Beau Soleil West Medical Center in Shreveport, Louisiana. A nurse had suggested to him that Remy had had the baby there. But the nurse-What was her name? It didn’t matter-was nervous. She’d refused money, given him no other details.

They’d hit a brick wall.

Why would Remy travel over one hundred miles to Shreveport to deliver when I was paying for all of her medical bills in Texas?

The most likely reason: she’d decided to keep the baby.

It happened, but rarely. Most of Hedda’s surrogates had children and no desire to raise more. They were motivated by different reasons: the money; the desire to help childless couples; and some liked being pregnant.

At a loss, Hedda glanced at her folded copy of USA TODAY on the edge of her desk. She’d already skimmed the story on yesterday’s visit to Dallas by the President. She’d also watched the live TV news coverage of the President’s speech at the memorial service and now she’d reconsidered the reference to the missing baby. This is the same case Bascom had mentioned to her. Thinking more on it, she flipped through USA TODAY and its related features on the toll of the tornadoes, including a small story on the missing Dallas baby, Caleb Cooper. As she looked at the FBI’s sketches of the persons of interest, an icy sensation began creeping up Hedda’s spine.

The sketch of the woman almost resembled Remy. The age and hair was similar and for a crazy moment Hedda wondered if- No, no, it can’t be them. No, not if Remy already had the baby in Louisiana. Besides, the baby vanished after a tornado destroyed a flea market in Dallas. Remy lives in Lufkin.

Hedda rejected the possibility that Remy was involved.

She searched the lake’s sparkling waves for a solution but was overwhelmed by reality. All she’d worked for, all she’d dreamed of, now rested on the actions of a supermarket cashier and her ex-convict boyfriend.

Ex-convict.

Hedda looked at the FBI sketches again.

But what if they were involved? What would it mean? No, that was insane. Okay, what if they were killed in the tornadoes? That would end it all. But they live in Lufkin, and it was not touched by the storm. But what if they went to Dallas the day the storm hit and were killed? What would that mean, given the situation with Chelsea Drew-Flynn?

She was driving herself crazy with the what-ifs.

Hedda got up from her desk to go to her private bathroom to check her face. She’d reached the door when her cell phone rang. She returned to her desk. The number was not displayed. It rang a second time and Hedda answered.

“This is Remy Toxton.”

Stunned, Hedda kept her phone to her ear and sat down.

“Remy? Oh my God, are you okay? We’ve been watching the news reports on the Texas tornadoes and when we couldn’t reach you- We’ve been so worried. How are you doing?”

“I’m kind of okay.”

“What do you mean? Did you have the baby?”

Several long moments passed.

“Remy?”

“Yes.”

“Okay. That’s good. How’s the baby doing?”

“He’s fine. He’s healthy and he’s so big.”

“I’m happy to hear that. Where are you right now?”

“I don’t want to say.”

Hedda paused.

“Where did you have the baby? Because our nurse lost touch with you.”

“I’d rather not say.”

“Do you want to discuss the next steps? The adoptive mother is extremely anxious to have him, and we need to provide you with full payment.”

“That’s just it. I’m scared.” Remy stopped and began crying.

“Take your time, dear. I understand. Take your time. Why are you scared?”

“Just before I had him I had second thoughts about giving him up. Then when I had him, he was so beautiful and something just happened. I was overcome with these powerful feelings to keep him, so Mason took me away to have him and to think about everything.”

“And what are your thoughts now?”

“I’m ready to honor our agreement and give him to you and sign all the papers I need to sign.”

Hedda looked to the sky and heaved a sigh.

“That’s good. I’m happy to hear that.”

“But there’s a problem. The storm made things hard on everybody. Mason and I are facing a tough situation, real tough.”

“What do you mean?”

“We’re going to need more compensation, or whatever it’s called. A lot more.”

Hedda didn’t respond for several seconds. “How much?”

“We need one hundred thousand.”

Hedda never expected that this trailer park girl and her loser boyfriend were going to shake her. She misjudged them being satisfied with sixty. Realizing that she had few options, Hedda was inclined to reach an agreement when Remy continued.

“I’ve been doing some research on the internet and was thinking about the way you recruit surrogates, and use a Russian clinic, then actually sell babies, because that’s what it looks like. I was thinking it might be something the FBI would be interested in hearing about.”

Hedda said nothing.

“So what’s it going to be, Hedda?” Remy asked.

Before Hedda could respond the line was muffled. She heard Remy talking, arguing with someone, before a new voice came on the line.

“This is Mason. All I’m going to say is you got thirty minutes to agree to one hundred. We’ll call you back. If you don’t agree, we go to the FBI.”