Stolen Lives: A Detective Mystery Series SuperBoxset (25 page)

Keely turned to Miriam, considering her proposal. “We came this far. Might as well see what we can do.”

They exited the car and walked toward the hospital entrance, noticing an abundance of police cruisers and unmarked vehicles. Keely then turned to Miriam. “We came this far. Might as well see what we can do.”

As they entered the lobby they could already see the commotion building. Twenty uniformed officers were assembled in the lobby, looking as though they were attending a convention. Miriam and Keely walked past the group and presented their badges at the front desk.

“Sheesh, there’s a lot of you here,” the dazed receptionist said. “Wish I knew what was going on.”

“One of your patients is responsible for evading authorities in a high-speed chase,” Miriam answered. “That’s about all we know.”

She walked past the front desk to the elevator. Silva was being held on the second floor, room 234. As the elevator pinged open, they walked out, only to see a hallway packed with more police.

They walked down the bright and tiled hall, not garnering much notice. Miriam searched for their lieutenant, and as they approached the room, her eyes narrowed with displeasure. Summerson and Wright stood by, chatting with some uniformed officers. Their heads turned to Miriam as she reached the door.

“Can’t go in there yet,” Summerson said.

Miriam refrained from an eye roll. Instead, Keely offered a light jab. “Impressive moves back there, Summerson. Did you end up catching whoever you were running after?”

She flashed him a middle finger. “Why don’t you go crash into another dumpster?”

“Actually, that wasn’t us.” Keely pointed to the room. “That lump of garbage in there is responsible for that.”

Wright cut in. “You’re not too bad behind the wheel, Detective Keely.”

“And you’re not too bad at following,” Keely said. “But then again, I’m used to seeing you in my rear-view mirror.”

“All right, guys,” Miriam said, stepping between them. “What’s going on with Silva? We need to find out where Sarah Bynes is before it’s too late.”

“You and everyone else,” Summerson said, giving her a tinge of attitude.

“Who found his house first?” Keely asked.

Miriam crossed her arms. “Enough of this competitive nonsense. Sarah is still missing.” They all stopped talking.

There was no window into Silva’s room, and the door was closed, with a uniformed officer on each side of the door, staring ahead.

Wright offered the first bit of useful information yet. “A doctor is examining Silva now, seeing if and when we can transfer him. Sheriff Bork is in there with Lieutenant Vargas as well.”

“And his lawyer,” Summerson added.

“Already?” Keely asked.

“First thing he asked for,” she said.

Curious, Miriam and Keely exchanged glances. Chatter between other officers continued in the hall as hospital staff—everyone from nurses to janitors—passed through trying to go about their business.

Miriam, tired of the wait, began knocking. The clean-faced uniformed officer to her left was quick to step in.

“Sorry, ma’am. They are not to be disturbed right now.”

She held up her badge. “I’m investigating this case. It’s very time-sensitive and I need to be in that room.”

Keely came up behind her. “It’s okay, our lieutenant is in there, and asked us to report immediately.”

The guard studied them both and then opened the door, popping his head in to verify. From inside, Vargas told him that it was fine. He stepped aside to let Miriam go in first.

As they entered, both Vargas and Sheriff Bork turned to look, but stayed where they were, standing in front of the bed.

Bork was an older, skinny man in his late fifties with a bronze tan and white eyebrows so thin that he didn’t look as though he had any. A male doctor stood to the side with a clipboard. Another man in a rumpled, bluish suit and thick hair parted toward the center sat by the bed—presumably the lawyer.

On the bed lay Silva, with his bloated, red face bandaged at the forehead and a brace around his neck. He had an IV bag stuck in his wrist and wore a green hospital gown. His other hand was handcuffed to the side railing—a clear sign that their suspect wasn’t going anywhere.

Vargas looked at Miriam, drained and distracted. “What can we help you with, Detectives?”

“Yes, sir. I need to speak with Mr. Silva immediately,” Miriam said.

Sheriff Bork stepped forward, defensive. “
We’re
talking with the suspect right now. All further inquiries need to wait until we’ve conducted our interview.”

Miriam shut the door. It was clear that she wasn’t going to go away that easily. “Forensics just did a sweep of the house and found no signs of the girl.” Her words piqued the interest of the lawyer who shot up from his chair and glared at her.

“Mr. Silva has denounced all accusations of kidnapping being levied by this department. Unless you have any evidence to the contrary, this has to stop right now.”

“Why did he run?” Miriam asked. She stepped forward, just out of reach of Keely’s hand as he tried to hold her back.

“My client felt threatened. He did not know that it was law enforcement who were surrounding his house. There have been break-ins in the area, and he did not know who he was dealing with.”

Miriam scoffed and looked at Silva in disgust. “That’s ridiculous. How can he possibly expect us to believe—”

She suddenly stopped and leaned against Silva’s bedframe. “Where’s Sarah? Tell us now, or so help me God.”

Vargas turned to Miriam, livid. “That is enough, Detective.”

Miriam knew that she was pushing it. Her emotions had gotten the best of her. She apologized and stepped away from his bed. Silva’s wasn’t going to willingly offer information, not until it was approved by his lawyer.

The pudgy middle-aged doctor then tried to steer the conversation back to what he felt pertinent. “As I was saying, Sheriff. We have Mr. Silva’s condition listed as stable. However, I’d still like to keep him here overnight. X-rays show some bruised ribs, a fractured collarbone, and possible concussion.”

With everyone’s attention on the doctor, Miriam rushed to the open side of Silva’s bed without warning. His eyes widened in surprise and fear. She gripped the guardrail next to the bed where his handcuff was latched, swooped down and got within inches of his sweaty face. “Tell me where she is!”

Keely rushed over and pulled her away for the sake of the case and her career. The lawyer watched in shock as both the Sheriff and Vargas stood wide-eyed in disbelief.

“He knows!” she shouted as Keely held her back.

“Keep her away from my client,” the lawyer said. “Unless this department wants a lawsuit so big it’ll make your head spin.”

“Miriam, enough!” Vargas said, stepping forward.

Once she calmed down, Keely let her go. The lawyer stood to the side, shaking his head. The doctor held his clipboard tight against his chest, like a shield, looking around the room awkwardly.

Silva’s gaze shot around the room like a man lost in a vortex. He looked desperate and afraid as if this were just a taste of everything that was to come. “For the last time,” he began slowly, “I didn’t kidnap any girl.” He paused, glaring at Miriam. “If there’s a girl missing out there, you got the wrong guy.”

Miriam remained undeterred. “Her name is Sarah. She’s the congressman’s daughter, and you’re telling me that you know nothing about it?”

Vargas and the sheriff stood back, watching their feisty new detective in action. The lawyer looked around as though everyone had gone insane. “You don’t have to answer any of her questions. Understand?” he told Silva.

Silva’s bloodshot eyes welled with tears. Whatever he knew, he couldn’t hold it in any longer.

“It’s on my computer, okay? All of it.” He sat up, slightly, burying his face in his hands. “I thought you were the FBI. That you knew everything. The things I said on the chat rooms. The pictures I downloaded. I know how the NSA works, and I know that you have it all!”

Miriam backed up, silent, and examined Silva with caution. She wasn’t sure what to say.

“I didn’t hurt nobody. It was just role playing. Fantasy stuff. I-I got spooked… so I ran.” He wound one plump hand back and slapped himself in the head repeatedly. The doctor stepped forward, face stricken with concern.

“Mr. Silva, stop that!”

“I knew that when my van got stolen and returned… I knew that you were following me then. I tried to delete the files, but then I remembered that the NSA stores everything.” Sobbing, he threw himself against the backboard and the bed shook and trembled.

The lawyer got as close as he could to Silva without muzzling himself. “Mr. Silva, I implore you not to say anything else. You must stop—”

Silva raised his head as tears streamed down his cheeks. “What does it matter? They have me now. All because of one stupid fucking weakness. I just couldn’t help myself!” He turned and looked back and forth between the sheriff and Vargas desperation. “Lock me up so I’ll stop. Just do it already!”

The revelation silenced everyone in the room except the sobbing Silva. Keely continued taking notes.

“What are we talking about, Mr. Silva?” Miriam asked, closing in.

“Don’t say anything!” the lawyer snapped.

“What do you think?” Silva said, disregarding counsel. “I did what every dirt bag does on-line. I chatted with people I shouldn’t have been chatting with. Talking about things I shouldn’t have been talking about. Lookin’ at pictures I shouldn’t be looking at.” He buried his face in his hands again, defeated. “I’m sure you’ll find what you need on my computer.”

Miriam leaned closer, her voice full of intensity. “What was this about your van being stolen?”

Silva wouldn’t look up. Instead he just waved her away. “That’s all I’m saying. No more.” He looked up at the doctor. “I want them to leave. That’s all for today.”

Miriam and Keely stood at the end of the hall, out of earshot of the other authorities. Sheriff Bork and Vargas had been called away for a private meeting with Congressman Bynes, who had put the department on notice with his press conference. Miriam knew that she was in trouble. The look on Vargas’s face had told her that much.

“We’re going to have a little talk later,” Vargas had said to her before storming away. Miriam tried not to be bothered. Her focus wasn’t on police decorum, snide lawyers, or politics. But with Silva’s bizarre confession, she didn’t know what to think.

“What if that was a ruse?” Keely asked her, leaning against the wall, sipping coffee from a small foam cup. He rocked back on his heels, trying to come up with something that made sense.

“His confession?” Miriam asked.

“Yeah. Something to throw us off Sarah’s trail? What do you think?”

“He mentioned his van being stolen.”

Keely nodded. “I nearly fell over.”

“That’s something we need to look into,” she said. “Right now.”

Suddenly the elevator near them opened and the congressman came out, flanked by two security men. He looked angry. Vargas and Sheriff Bork trailed behind him as they blasted past Miriam.

“Congressman, we have to wait,” Bork protested. “Nothing coherent is coming out of him at the moment.”

Bynes ignored their pleas and went to the hospital room door, pounding on it, just as Miriam had. The two police officers denied him entry. The congressman argued with them, but they wouldn’t budge. Perhaps Miriam was the only exception for that day. Or, they had learned a lesson from it.

There were too many conversations going on at once. Too much being said, planned, or theorized. The entire scene was chaotic. Keely leaned closer and quietly summarized what he was thinking.

“Look, we know that Silva was into some unsavory things, but kidnapping? He lacks the fortitude and competency to keep something like that under wraps.”

“I don’t know what to think right now. But we better come up with something fast,” Miriam said.

The congressman began shouting threats against the entire police department. He accused them of screwing the case up. Of failing to find his daughter. He promised to have their jobs. Despite his outbursts, nothing was getting him into that room.

He turned and darted for the elevator with an enraged, offended look plastered across his face. Miriam was certain that criticism of Maricopa County was on the agenda for his next appearance in front of the cameras. Bork and Vargas looked too preoccupied to look at her or Keely as they breezed by. And the more Miriam thought about it, the less likely it seemed that Edwin Silva was their man.

Her phone vibrated in her pocket. Expecting Ana, she pulled it up and looked at the touch screen, not recognizing the number. She hoped to God that it wasn’t a reporter. She stepped away from Keely and answered.

For a moment, there was silence on the other end. Then came static, followed by a faint voice.

“Seńorita Castillo?”

“Yes?”

Keely flashed her an inquiring look. The expression on her face said enough: she had no idea who she was talking to.

“It’s G.”

“G?”

“Guillermo. We spoke today? You haven’t forgot me already, have you?”

“No. Yes, G. of course not. What’s up? How did you get my number?”

He paused. “
You gave me your card. You don’t remember that either?”

Miriam shook her head. “I’m sorry. Please, go on.”

“I have some new info for you.”

“New info? About the missing girl?”

“Who do you think? Si, the missing girl. You have the wrong man.”

Miriam turned to face Keely and then held his hands out for her to tell him what was going on. Miriam turned back toward the phone. “How do you know?”

“I told you, fat gringo in blue van, yes?”

“You did.”

“Well there’s more than one blue van in this town. If you want to know more, meet me off Chandler Heights. There’s an old park there.”

“You want to meet?” she asked.

“Si. Only you. I don’t trust any of those conyos in your department.”