UNSEEN (22 page)

"
This is serious. Right now it’s serious, Dan!"

"
Okay. I get it. I'll put on my serious face." His face went blank and he stared at her with the most unusual expression. There was an intensity to it, yet it was devoid of any recognizable emotion, almost as if he was applying an excruciating effort to not be happy or smile. The absurdity of it brought a bubble of laugher to the surface, but she immediately stifled it. This was not a time to laugh, and Dan was a moron for not realizing that fact.

She pushed him again.

"
What? I'm being serious."

"
You're like a child who never grew up."

"
Growing up is for grown-ups and people who are afraid to get bubble gum in their nose hairs."

She rolled her eyes. "Just stay here." She exited the vehicle and nervously approached the front door, her fist tightly squeezing the strap of her purse. It would be over soon. All she had to do was drop the package, and get out without being seen.

A horrible thought entered her mind. What if there were more jobs like this one? What would he ask her to do? And would she be willing to do them? She pushed the thought away like a diseased thing. There was no time to consider what came next. She needed to stay in the moment, and hold it together.

The entrance room was small but cozy. Maine themed paintings of lobstermen, pine trees, and moose hung on two of the walls, and to the right was a metal door. Beside the door was a microphone with a red push button, and above the microphone, a long thin surveillance camera dangled from the ceiling.

Holly pressed a nervous finger to the button.

"
State your name," said the impersonal voice on the speaker.

She leaned into the microphone. "Holly Paris."

"
Reason for your visit?"

She fought a shiver in her belly. He hadn't given her a reason. What was she supposed to say? If she didn't give a reason for the visit, this whole thing would be over before it started. He’d said exam room B. Was this an appointment for a health exam? A pregnancy test? Something else?

She leaned in and said simply, "Exam." The door lock buzzed, and she pulled it open. Beyond the metal door was a large waiting room off to the left. Straight ahead was an open doorway to a tiny room. The plaque to the side of the doorway said reception. Holly shuffled into that room.

On the left wall and part of the wall across from her was a thick glass, bullet proof, the kidnapper had said. There were two receptionists. One was speaking on the phone; the other waved her in to a seat in front of her reception station.

Holly spoke into the microphone that rose out of the counter like a metal snake. "I'm Holly.”

The receptionist looked at her screen. "We have you set for a nine o'clock gynecological exam."

Holly held back a look of shock. There was no way that was ever going to happen! She would make sure her task was complete before the nurse or doctor came in, then she’d come up with an excuse to leave quickly.

"
Have a seat in the waiting room. The nurse will be with you shortly."

Though it was difficult to stand; her legs felt like jello, and she thought she was going to be sick—Holly managed to get up and go into the lobby.

The waiting room was as plush and inviting as the initial entry room. Padded seats lined the walls, and in one of them sat a red-haired woman Holly thought she recognized.

"
Hi.” Holly took a seat across from her.

The young woman looked up sheepishly, as if the last thing she expected in this place was to have someone talk to her.

"
Hey," she said.

Holly looked at the coffee table covered with magazines and informational trifolds, then peeked back up at the woman across from her. "I'm sorry," she said sitting back. "I think I know you from somewhere."

The woman looked up, slightly embarrassed. "I- I don't think so."

"
Did you go to Sunbury High?"

"
No. Foxcroft Academy."

"
Oh," said Holly, "I know some guys from up that way."

She pressed a polite smile, but her eyes said, leave me alone. Holly took the hint. It was evident from the woman's posture and the tightness in her brow that she was not here for a routine exam. It was probably something much more troubling. The Doris Boardman Center was the only clinic in central Maine where a woman could get an abortion, and Holly couldn't help but wonder if that was what this pretty redhead had come here to do. It would explain her discomfort. After all, this visit was supposed to be quick and discreet—and running into someone who recognized her was hardly discreet.

There was a buzz, and a nurse came out of the reception room. She looked at Holly, then at the redhead. "Elizabeth?”

The woman stood and followed the nurse through the reception room and the door beyond.

Chapter 30

Jake jumped up and sat on the window ledge by Aiyana's feet. She was still upset, but at least the tears had stopped.

"
Do you think maybe we can start over?"

It relieved him to see her nod.

"
Do you have any idea what you are or where you come from? Maybe if we can figure that out, we can figure out if you were sent to help rescue Gabe."

She shrugged.

"
Do you remember anything before being here in the hallway?"

She shook her head slowly. "Just a little, but I'm not allowed to talk about that."

"
Why?"

"
It’s unlawful."

"
Unlawful—you mean, against the law? Whose law?"

She thought for a second, then said, "God's law."

He hadn't considered God in the equation. How odd to think he could be the one sending these children. "It’s against God's law to tell me where you're from?"

"
No. It's unlawful for me to tell you what I've seen in heavenly places."

His eyebrows rose. "Okay...”

She thought again, harder this time, then said, "Can we talk about something else? I don't want to get in trouble."

Jake nodded. "All right, so there are some things you can't remember, and other things you’re not allowed to talk about. Is that right?"

"
Well, I can remember a lot more now, but not everything."

"
But you still don't know why you're here."

She shook her head.

"
Do you know what you are?"

"
Of course I do. I'm a girl."

"
I know, but are you a ghost?"

"
No. I'm in your head, and..." she thought again, "and also in my mommy's belly."

Jake’s mouth dropped open. His mind raced to go over each of his strange encounters with the "ghost” children. Were they the spirits of unborn babies? In the craziest possible way, it actually made sense. It would certainly explain all the pregnant women he’d been seeing. He studied Aiyana; was she the baby his new neighbor was expecting?

"
Why are you looking at me that way?”

He gave his head a little shake. "Aren’t you a little old to be a baby?"

She thought a moment. "I look as old as I want to look." Suddenly her eyes grew wide. "Oh no."

"
What? Did you say something wrong? Did I get you in trouble?"

"
No. My mommy’s getting too far away. You won't be able to hear my thoughts anymore."

Hear her thoughts? Was that the secret behind all of this? There was no time to process this new information. He pushed off the ledge. "You think we can catch her?"

"
I don't know."

Jake lifted her by the armpits and set her on the floor. "Come on, let's try to catch her!"

They ran down the hallway and Jake stabbed the elevator button. A light yellow number three glowed above the doors. It was on the third floor! "Come on," he said, "we’ll take the stairs." He jogged down the hallway, keeping pace so Aiyana could keep up. If the pregnant lady next door was Aiyana’s mother, she would be close to the parking lot by now. Would they be able to catch her before she drove away?

He pushed into the stairwell and held the door for Aiyana. Her slight body lost its balance as she came through the opening, but she recovered without falling. It was amazing to see her push off the wall as if she were actually physically with him. There was even the subtle lack of motor coordination he would expect from a child her age. How could she only be a thought in his mind? She was so real!

They raced to the first floor and down the hallway to the right. There was a door that led to the parking lot, but it was only for emergencies. Jake didn’t care. He desperately wanted more time to talk to Aiyana. He pushed through the door.

No alarm sounded.

He spoke over his shoulder. "If you can think of anything we can tell your mother that would make her believe I'm not crazy, and that might keep her here till we can..." He glanced back, and slowed to a stop. The hallway was empty.

Aiyana was gone.

Chapter 31

Holly scratched her wrist nervously as she waited for the nurse to haul her off into her lair. It was a morbid thought, but she couldn't help it. There were so many odd qualities to this government-funded health center with its bullet proof glass, reinforced steel doors, and surveillance cameras. She felt like she was in the novel, 1984, by George Orwell, like her every move was being carefully monitored.

How odd it seemed that a health clinic, built to help women, should be so fortified and guarded. Every effort had been made to make the room feel plush and inviting, but fear floated in the air. The chum was in the water and the sharks were circling.

Holly had seen it first hand. The sweet middle-aged woman who had done her interview when she was pregnant with Gabe had never once suggested that she keep her baby. In her defense, she never said she should abort it either, but there was an understanding between them. The center wanted to help her make her troubles go away, and her troubles were all connected to the baby she wasn't ready to have.

It could have been her overactive imagination, but Holly never felt comfortable here. Though everything about the clinic was created to make women feel welcome, she always got the sense something was a little off.

"
Holly?"

She looked up. A thin nurse who looked Holly's age stood in the doorway to the reception area. She wore an official white lab coat and carried a clipboard. "We're ready for you," she said.

Not sure if her legs would work, Holly stood. This was it. There was no turning back. Whatever agenda the kidnapper had, she was now a cog in the machinery. She didn't know where it would all lead, but if the first step was setting fire to this place, she was okay with that.

She followed the nurse into the reception area where they were buzzed through the door. The corridor beyond was thin, long, and mostly white. They went halfway down, took a left, and went halfway down the next hallway to a room marked examination room A.

"
A?" Holly stammered.

The nurse turned around. "I’m sorry?"

"
Examination room A?"

"
Yes? Do you have a problem with that?"

Holly had to think fast. What problem did she have with that? Why hadn't she come up with a pre-made excuse? Events were moving too quickly; her brain felt like it was wrapped in cellophane.