Deadly Image

Copyright © 2012 by Tamelia Tumlin

CHAPTER ONE

“I didn’t
do
anything to my daughter!” Lexi Yates glared across the gray rectangular table separating her from the sharp-suited FBI agent in the interrogation room of the Gator Bayou Police Department. She gritted her teeth and silently counted to ten. If this man accused
her
of harming Anna one more time, she would deck him.

Seriously.

A full-fledged right hook across his smug, angled jaw.

Of course, she should be grateful the Child Abduction Rapid Deployment agency sent a team to her small Louisiana town so quickly to lead the investigation in her daughter’s disappearance, but this particular CARD agent seemed to be wasting precious time interrogating
her
instead of looking for her child.

Why wasn’t he out there gathering evidence instead of asking her the same questions over and over again? Anna could already be…

Tears stung her eyes. Lexi blinked and steeled her mind against the flood of horrific thoughts. She couldn’t help Anna if she fell to pieces.

She had to stay strong.

No matter what horrible crime she was accused of.

“Ma’am, you could make this so much easier for both of us if you would just tell me what really happened to your daughter.” Agent Ace Valdez expelled a weary sigh and leaned forward, elbows resting on the chipped gray table.

Cold, almost-black eyes pierced hers.

Waiting.

Lexi gripped the Gucci handbag in her lap. A wave of nausea surged toward her throat. She shoved it down. The stench of mold and stale cigarette smoke in the room didn’t help her churning stomach. With its cold, impassive atmosphere and dark gray brick walls, the interrogation room mirrored the agent’s frosty demeanor. The room, just like the entire sparsely populated town of Gator Bayou, seemed to be accusing her of this unspeakable crime.

Panic seized her throat; blood pounded in her temples. Her hand tightened around her purse. She should have taken her anxiety meds before she came to the precinct, but she had been in such a hurry to get here hoping they had some news about Anna she had forgotten. Now, a full-blown panic attack taunted her sanity. But there was no way she was going to pop a pill in front of
this
man. Even though her prescription was perfectly legal. For some reason, everyone from the local sheriff to this fancy-shmancy FBI agent – from who knows where – seemed to think she had hurt her own daughter and made up this elaborate story of a kidnapping.

Popping a pill probably wouldn’t help her case right now.

“I’ve already told you what happened. Just like I told the sheriff yesterday and every other Tom, Dick and Harry who has asked in the past twenty-plus hours. Why isn’t anyone listening to me? Someone picked up my daughter from daycare around two o’clock yesterday afternoon. Someone who wasn’t on the authorized list.” Lexi narrowed her eyes and focused on the agent rather than her body’s imminent panic attack. “Agent Valdez, why aren’t you out looking for my daughter?”

“We have several law enforcements combing the area as we speak. My job right now is to find out anything that might help us find Anna. Since you were the last person to see–”

“I was
not
the last person to see my daughter. Mrs. Jenkins at Lil’ Gators Daycare was the last person to see Anna.” Lexi slammed her palm on the table.

The sudden bang drew a frown from the agent. His full lips thinned in disapproval as he flipped through his notebook. “Mrs. Jenkins said
you
were the one who picked Anna up at ten minutes after two yesterday. According to her you signed her out and told her Anna would be out the rest of the week. You even settled the bill.”

“I did no such thing!” Lexi jumped to her feet and paced the concrete floor. The sudden high pitch in her voice resonated off the walls. “I did not pick up my daughter. She was already gone when I went to get her at five. I don’t understand why Mrs. Jenkins would say such a thing. She
knows
I didn’t pick up Anna.” Lexi’s voice cracked. “Someone has my baby, Mr. Valdez, and I don’t know who it is.”

She had to make him understand. Make him believe her.

Ace’s jaw pulsed. He set the notebook on the table. Something flickered in those melted-chocolate eyes.

Empathy?

Concern?

Then his eyes shuttered, the professional mask carefully camouflaging any emotion. “Do you have anyone who could account for your whereabouts at two o’clock yesterday?”

“No. I was at home alone.”

“Doing what?”

“Redecorating Anna’s room. It was supposed to be a surprise for her.”

She had taken a day off to finish the room. She’d even bought her daughter a new pink princess comforter, curtains and matching wallpaper to go with the new toddler bed since Anna had outgrown the crib.

“Can any of your neighbors give you an alibi?”

Lexi shook her head. “I doubt it. The closest one is a half mile down the street. I don’t even think they were home.” She bit her lip in frustration. “I didn’t realize I was going to need an alibi or I would have banged on every door between the daycare and home announcing my presence.”

A beat of silence passed before Ace said gently, “Maybe there was an accident. Something unavoidable happened to Anna and you simply got scared. That’s understandable. It’s not too late to tell us what happened, Ms. Yates.”

Lexi’s voice frosted. “Maybe I didn’t make myself clear. Perhaps we have a language barrier?” Her gaze swept across his features. Darkly tanned skin. Even darker eyes and onyx black hair cut short above the collar of his white button-up shirt. His Hispanic heritage prominent in every angle of his remarkably handsome face. “What about Spanish,
senor
? If I explain to you in
Espanola
that I did not take my daughter would you understand then?”

Ace’s jaw tightened. “My native tongue is not the problem, ma’am. I was born in the Bronx so I speak English quite well.” His tone took on a defensive note. Surprised, Lexi realized she must have struck a nerve. Guilt squeezed her stomach. Being a snot towards the agent wasn’t going to help her find Anna. It wasn’t his fault Anna was missing.

She really wished she had taken her meds. She could handle this so much better if her body didn’t feel like it was about to explode.

Lexi sank to the metal chair, shoulders deflated. “I don’t understand. Why won’t you believe me then? What possible reason would I have for pretending my daughter has been kidnapped?”

“What reason would Mrs. Jenkins have to lie about it?” Ace countered softly, his chin resting on steepled hands.

Lexi blinked back a tear. “I have no idea. Why don’t you interrogate her for a while and find out?”

The agent ignored her question. “How long has Anna been going to Lil’ Gators Daycare?”

“About six months. We moved here to Gator Bayou right after…” Lexi’s throat clogged. She twisted her hands in her lap. Her chest ached and moisture collected in her palms.

Really, really could use those meds right now.

She usually didn’t forget to take them, but the sheer stress from the last couple of days had her off track with everything.

“After?” Ace quirked a dark brow.

Lexi shuddered a breath. “After my husband, Anna’s father, was killed. I had to get away from it all. The memories. The pain. I thought moving to a new town and starting over would help. My parents weren’t too keen on the idea, but I had to do what was best for Anna and me.”

“Did it help?”

“No.”

“Why did you choose Gator Bayou? That’s a long way from your family in Texas.”

“I worked for a big company in Texas – Family Protection Insurance. They had an opening here in a much smaller office, so I seized the opportunity to get away.” Lexi shook her head. “My family and friends were great. Very supportive. But I couldn’t handle it anymore. The sympathetic looks. The constant attention. It was smothering. Everyone treated me as if I was going to fall apart.” She drew a ragged breath. “I probably would have too if I’d stayed. Starting over somewhere new seemed like a logical choice at the time.”

“Tell me what happened to your husband.” Ace pulled a plastic package from the inside of his suit pocket. “Caramel?” He held out a wrapped piece of candy.

Lexi shook her head. Who could eat at a time like this?

Ace shrugged, unwrapped a candy and popped it in his mouth. “Tell me about Carl.”

Lexi’s gaze darted to the file folder on the table. He had the folder with her life story in it.

Widow of a prominent pastor from Dallas. Mother of a three-year-old. No siblings. Two caring parents still living in her hometown in Texas. Moved to Gator Bayou six months ago after the death of her high school sweetheart and husband of five years. Been on meds for an anxiety disorder since she was a child. Yep. That about summed up her pitiful life.

Lexi jutted out her chin. Agent Valdez knew perfectly well exactly what had happened to Carl. It was all in her file.

Ace slanted a look toward the manila folder. The left corner of his lip curled up. “I know what the file says, but I’d like to hear it from you.”