The Girl Who Disappeared Twice (Forensic Instincts 1)

The guard was oblivious to anything but his evening entertainment.

Swiftly, without so much as a rustle, Marc sprinted across the lawn, moving between the gaps in the floodlight beams, until he reached the eastern garden. He squatted down and whipped out the penlight flashlight he kept in the pocket of his jeans. Flicking it on, he anchored it between his teeth and aimed it downward.

It took about two minutes to find the spot in the shrubbery that Ryan had described in detail. It took less time than that to retrieve Gecko, stick him in the backpack and retrace his steps to the fence.

Again, Marc remained crouched, waiting, sizing up the situation inside the security booth.

The guard was stretching. He scratched his head and looked idly around, using commercial time to do a perfunctory check of the area.

The game resumed. The guard’s scrutiny of his surroundings ended, and his attention shifted back to whichever Yankee was at bat.

Marc was up and over the fence, and on his way to his car before the ump could call strike one.

It was after eleven when Marc strode into the brownstone.

Casey and Ryan were pacing the floors. They jumped on Marc the instant he stepped inside.

“Did you find Gecko?” Ryan demanded.

“Yup.” Marc whipped the little critter out of his backpack and turned him over to Ryan. “Nice directions. He was right where you said he would be.”

“And no one saw you?” Casey asked, already knowing the answer.

Marc arched a brow. “A half-assed guard watching a Yankee game is not exactly a major challenge. And the positions of the floodlights were predictable as hell. Let’s face it, Casey, it’s a medical facility, not a terrorist compound.”

“I know. I wasn’t worried about the employees. I was worried about the task force.”

“No sign of them.”

“And I haven’t heard from Patrick. So, hopefully, we’re still ahead of the game.” Casey turned to Ryan. “What next?”

“Next we go to the conference room.” Ryan was already leading the way up the stairs.

Once inside, Ryan went straight over and plugged Gecko into a specially designed connector, where he began to recharge his battery and retrieve the information stored inside the little critter’s memory.

It didn’t take long for the first sights and sounds to come through.

Linda, sitting in the garden. Time passing as she gazed placidly around. Then impatience, followed by eagerness.

Abruptly, her eyes lit up and she began to wave her entire arm. “I’m here, baby. Right here.”

“Hi, Mama.” An eerily familiar voice reached their ears. “It’s so good to see you.”

Linda’s visitor came into view. She walked over, leaned down and hugged the older woman. Then, she straightened, and the camera got a full frontal view of her.

And all three of the Forensic Instincts team’s jaws dropped.

The person visiting Linda was Hope Willis.

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

Day Eight

Casey called Peg first thing the next morning, as she, Marc, Ryan and Hero headed up to Armonk in Ryan’s van.

“Nice of you to call,” Peg said in a chilly voice. “I’ve been trying to reach you since yesterday.”

“Peg, where are you?” Casey asked.