Sail With Me (18 page)

Lying against him, Delaney couldn’t believe how stiff he was.
 
His huge erection was rubbing against her back and the temptation to turn and take it was killing her.
 
The feeling of his hands sliding down her stomach and under the bubbles took her breath away.
 
He pleasured her over and over with just his thick fingers sliding in and out of her until the water became cold.
 
It was going to be a night to never forget.

Chapter Twenty Five

The ringing of the phone echoed in the room.
 
Turning over she looked at the clock, 5:00 a.m.
 
Answering in a groggy voice she said, “Good morning, Dad. What did you find out?”

“Good morning sweetie.
 
When did you arrive?”

“Just a few hours ago.
 
I wanted to get some rest before I saw you and Mom.
 
I have a friend with me.
 
His name is Jake Thrasher, he’s with the FBI, Philadelphia office.”
 
She stretched her legs and looked at Jake as he stretched and let out a yawn. Quickly she covered the receiver with her hand.

“Oh, I hope your friend will join us for bagels and coffee.
 
Then I will tell you what I’ve found out.
 
Don’t let your mom know you’re sharing a bed with a man, you know how she feels about that stuff.
 
Don’t you remember the story of the cow giving her milk away for free?”

With a soft giggle she said, “How could I forget? I listened and it didn’t work out for me the first time so now I’m just following my heart.”

“That’s a good girl.
 
You can’t find love, you have to let love find you. Come over, the coffee is on and you’ll miss rush hour traffic.
 
See you soon, sweetie.”

Rolling over she wrapped herself around Jake and kissed his shoulders.
 
He rolled onto his back.
 
Delaney was happy to see the tent that formed in the center of the sheet.
 
“One more time before we go,” she said.

“I want every morning to start like this,” he said as he watched her mount him.

Chapter Twenty Six

“Mr. and Mrs. Davenport, it’s my pleasure to meet you,” Jake said as he shook their hands.
 

“You don’t need to be formal with us, I’m Richard and this is my wife Abigail.
 
Come sit down, we have lots to talk about.
 
It sounds like my daughter has found herself in quite a mess.
 
It’s just unbelievable.”

Richard walked into the small living room as Delaney and her mom hugged and headed towards the kitchen.
 
He could hear her mom making a fuss over her shoulder, as expected.
 
As he looked into Richard’s eyes he could see Delaney.
 
She was a spitting image of her father.
 
They made small talk and discussed the flight over from the States until they were all settled.
 
Delaney remembered he drank his coffee black and handed him a cup.
 
Adding cream and sugar to hers, she sat next to him on the couch.
 
The last time she saw her parents she was a married woman.
 
Now she’s divorced and having the best sex of her life.
 
She felt like it was written all over her face.

Her father spoke first in a very serious tone.
 
“Delaney and Jake, I have found the suspects you are looking for.
 
They are not far from here, staying in a country inn on the outskirts of the city.
 
The boy is with them.
 
I did surveillance and was able to get pictures.”

Delaney gasped and brought her hand up to her mouth.
 
Jake straightened up and was equally shocked by the photo of the little boy pushing a truck in a sandbox.
 
Delaney saw he still had his mother’s eyes.

“I took the liberty of having their room and phones tapped.
 
The only time they leave is for a meal.
 
They suspect you are looking for them but have no idea you and Jake have already left the country in pursuit of them.
 
As far as I can tell they believe you are still in the hospital.
  
But it won’t be long for them to find out you are gone.
 
The woman is in great denial and truly believes the child belongs to her.
 
The man is becoming less patient and has repeatedly said the entire abduction was a mistake, and he can’t believe it’s taken this long to be discovered.”

Delaney interrupted, “I believe the woman has a true mental illness.
 
I did some research on it while I was in the hospital.
 
She believed so much that she was pregnant that her body even appeared pregnant.
 
The medical name for it is pseudo-pregnancy.
 
It’s an illness that’s pretty rare.
 
It usually occurs in a woman who has had multiple miscarriages and hasn’t been able to carry a baby full term.
 
In such great denial over the loss, she can convince herself and her body that she really is pregnant.
 
With every passing day she becomes more obsessed with the baby and finds herself in a position that she believes she has to get one, even if means kidnapping another woman’s child.
 
Somehow she is able to rationalize all of this.
 
I remember Chief O’Malley announcing her pregnancy; a couple of the guys took him out for drinks.
 
When I heard he was born, it was only days after the loss of Andrew.
 
It’s all making sense.
 
Originally the plan was for Dr. Wu to pass the baby to his brother in the parking lot, which he did.
 
Andrew was to be a gift to his mother upon his death.
 
I don’t know why Joseph didn’t take Andrew to his mother or how Chief O’Malley got involved in this.”

Bringing his hand up to his temple, Richard shook his head.
 
“This is a case of extreme emotion.
 
Sometimes the people you believe to be the least capable of violence can do the most disturbing of things.
 
I don’t want to tell you how to work your case but you’re my only daughter and I have to look out for you.
 
I think your best chance of getting this little boy back safely is by using the element of surprise.”

Jake and Delaney looked at each other and shook their heads in agreement.
 
Nobody said anything for several minutes, the only sound in the room was the drinking of coffee and the occasional clinking of cups and saucers.
 
They were all thinking the same thing; they needed a foolproof plan.

“Richard, I take it you’re still working for the NSA?” Jake asked.

Nodding quickly, he answered, “Yes, I am just not on a full-time basis anymore.
 
They still have me traveling quite a bit though.
 
But if you’re asking if the evidence I have was legally obtained and admissible in a court of law then that answer would be yes.
 
Once they left the United States they crossed into the murky waters of international kidnapping.
 
Those laws are much more liberal with how evidence is collected.
 
They will be spending a long time in prison.”

Abigail left the room for fresh coffee.
 
Bringing back a new pot, she topped off everyone’s cups before sitting back down.
 
“I’m scared for you, Delaney, and you too, Jake.
 
That little boy belongs with his real mother, but can’t you let the French authorities handle it at this point?”

Delaney put down her cup and looked her mother.
 
“If they have any idea we’re closing in on them they’ll take off.
 
I’m too recognizable, but neither one of them have ever met Jake.
 
If we bring in the French police now, they will want to do their own investigation and that could take months.
 
By then they could be gone.”

“She’s right, Abigail.
 
I have to be the one to take Andrew.
 
We have to get them when their guard is down,” Jake said with Richard nodding in agreement.

They all turned to Delaney when she said, “I have a plan.”

“Dad, I need your surveillance tapes and notes.
 
You still do that, right?”

Looking almost insulted, Richard replied, “Of course I still keep my tapes and notes.
 
What kind of international spy do you think I am?”

“I was just checking to make sure you’re still on your toes.
 
Don’t be offended.
 
But I want to read them, and listen to the audio.
 
Jake should too.
 
I need to figure out their routine and the time they’re most vulnerable.”

Looking like a proud father now, Richard spoke up.
 
“I see where you’re taking this and I couldn’t agree more.
 
I’ll give you everything I have.
 
Take them with you and examine them.
 
Go have a good dinner tonight and think about your plan.
 
It has to be a foolproof one.
 
Run it by me before you put it into action.
 
You may need the help of the NSA on this one, and I want to let the American Embassy know to be expecting you.”

“I love you, Dad.”
 
Delaney gave her dad a hug and kiss on the cheek before turning to her mother and embracing her also.
 
Before they left, Abigail wrapped up a plate of pastries and walked them down the driveway.
 
Whispering in Delaney’s ear, she said, “Remember dear, don’t give your milk away.”
 
Delaney cringed and climbed into the car.

Jake made the drive back to the hotel without stalling.
 
He parked a few blocks away in the shopping district.
 
Delaney wanted to check out the stores and sent Jake with the recordings back to their room.
 
“Go ahead and start, you can fill me in when I get back.”

Delaney went into several stores before finding what she was looking for.
 
She was thinking she would wear something white and virginal-like for Jake.
 
As she shopped she changed her mind.
 
That’s something the old Delaney would have done, she thought.
 
She wanted to rock Jake’s world.
 
Let him know that she had a naughty side too.
 
After going to several more stores, she finally found what she was looking for.
 
She couldn’t wait to see his face.
 

Jake was sitting at the small corner table in the room.
 
His laptop was open and Delaney could hear the audios when she walked in.
 
The hairs on her neck stood and chills went down her spine when she heard the kidnapper’s familiar voice.
 
The stress in his voice was heavy and she sensed he wouldn’t be able to hold it together for much longer.
 
His wife’s intermittent sobbing made periods of her speaking incoherent but she knew they had enough evidence for the prosecutor’s office back in New Jersey.
 
Delaney was able to detect the undeniable love the woman had for the child, even if it was twisted.
 
She thought about the first time she saw Caroline alone at night rocking at Andrew’s grave.
 
More than anything she knew she had to reunite them.
 
“What have you found out?” she asked Jake.

Stopping the audios, he turned and brought his long legs out from under the desk.
 
“It’s definitely Andrew.
 
He talks about the kidnapping and how it was accomplished.
 
He’s placed numerous calls to Joseph Wu’s cell phone; he doesn’t know he’s dead yet.
 
I give it less than twenty-four hours before he knows he was killed and you’re out of the hospital.
 
They don’t call him Andrew, they named him …”