pushed back her hair with both hands, her expression thoughtful. “I’m not sure, exactly.”
That stopped him. “All right. Did he just fail to return from school or somewhere else? Did the parents come home and find him gone? Is he unhappy, possibly a runaway? Twelve is a little old to be snatched by a stranger, but not out of the question.”
Kincaid crossed his long legs. There was a story here. There was always a story. “Maybe you’d better start from the beginning.”
“I’ll try.” Sara gazed down at the paper cup between her hands, finding it oddly difficult to think clearly with those sharp, intelligent eyes on hers. “My sister called me Sunday and said she was worried. It seems that the day before, she’d been out running errands and returned home to find a note from her husband saying he was taking Mike on a surprise trip to celebrate his graduation from grade school and starting junior high in the fall. Friday was the last day of school for the semester.”
“Does Lenny do this often, surprise trips, not keeping his wife in the loop?”
“Well, I know he’s impulsive. Last summer, he spent a small fortune on fishing gear, a tent, camping stuff and took Mike to Roosevelt Lake to fish. Meg wasn’t invited along and she was angry with him. So she went out and bought a big-screen TV and a VCR.”
Irresponsible. Hell of an example for a kid, Kincaid thought. “Do they have that kind of money?”
Sara sighed, uncomfortable with having to reveal so much about her family. But she had been concerned for some time about Mike’s home life, and wondered now if something had happened to cause Lenny to go off with the boy. “I’m not sure,” she answered honestly.
“Not sure of much, are you?” he asked, wondering when she was going to start telling him the truth. She was busily shredding a napkin in her anxiety, her eyes downcast. People who didn’t look you in the eye were usually hiding something.
“I need to go back further and explain that our parents were killed in a terrible auto accident when I was twelve and Meg just twenty-one. We were on our way home from Meg’s graduation from ASU. I was in the back seat when a drunk driver lost control of his car and hit us head-on. Mom and Dad died instantly and I was in the hospital for several weeks. I even missed the funeral. When I was released, Meg became both mother and father to me, literally putting her life on hold to raise me. I owe her a lot.”
Apparently that was why she wanted so badly to help her sister get her son back now, Kincaid decided. “Did she work back then or was there insurance money?” He needed to get an overview of the family dynamics.
“Both.” Relaxing fractionally, Sara leaned back. “Dad owned an insurance agency and had a lot of personal insurance, plus the house was free and clear. So I went to school and then on to college, and Meg went to work at Macy’s. She got me a job there summers and after school, which is when I got interested in fashion.”
“You’re still there?”
“No. Four years ago, I opened a boutique on Scottsdale Road, Sara’s Closet. I have plans for a second store, but…well, I have to concentrate on finding Mike right now.”
“So you’re close to your nephew?”
“Yes, very.”
Kincaid thought she was unaware of the sad smile on her lips as she spoke of the boy.
Sara decided she’d best tell him the rest. “Meg married Lenny a year after our folks died. He moved into the house with us. Meg often talked about wanting a child, but I don’t think Lenny was quite as enthusiastic. When Mike was born, Meg quit her job after some sort of back injury. She chose to stay home and be a full-time mother. I attended ASU but I lived at home and spent a lot of time with Mike. He’s a wonderful boy, bright and funny and handsome.”
Love for the boy radiated from her like the warm sunshine drifting in through the window. “I can see you dote on him. What about Meg and Lenny…are they loving parents?”
Sara glanced up quickly, her eyes suspicious. “Why are you asking?”
Kincaid shrugged. “Not all parents are.”
Sara wondered just how much she should reveal. “As I said, Meg really wanted a child and was thrilled when Mike was born. Lenny’s a bit of a strict disciplinarian. Maybe because he’s a cop.”
Maybe the father had been a little too strict and the boy had run away from home. And maybe both mother and aunt hadn’t caught the signs. He needed to know more. “A cop, eh? What precinct does he work out of?”
“Mesa, where they live,” she said, naming a suburb south of Phoenix.
“Do you know what his rank is?” Kincaid knew a lot of officers and had heard of even more, but he’d never run across the name Lenny Nelson.
“I believe he’s currently a patrolman, with a partner, somewhere in Mesa.”
“Currently?”
Sara shook her head as she crossed her arms over her chest. “He’s sort of a jack-of-all-trades, has trouble holding down a job, gets restless. He’s been a truck driver, mechanic, exterminator, landscaper. He quits after a few months because the people in charge are all stupid, according to Lenny. He’s been with the police department for nearly two years, a record of sorts.”
Interesting. But obviously not against the law. Was this lovely woman an overreactor, making a mountain out of a molehill? Kincaid hadn’t had time this morning to check her out, but he would.
“Is Mike an only child?”
“Yes.”
He watched her put the shredded tissue into the nearby trash can, her hands trembling slightly. From worry and strain? Or something else, he wondered.
“So when did you move out of the family home and why?”
Sara frowned, annoyed at the question. “I don’t see what that has to do with all this, but, if you must know, I moved out after college. I wanted to be on my own. I was making good money as a buyer for Macy’s and I had some investments from my folks’ estate, so I bought this condo.” That was the truth, as far as it went, Sara thought, her eyes downcast once more. She didn’t see any point in revealing that a strain had developed between her and Lenny, mostly over Mike, so she’d left, thinking it would be better for the boy if there wasn’t so much noticeable tension. And Meg always took Lenny’s side. Mike was sensitive and picked up on their discord.
Kincaid took a moment to glance around, noticing that her home was not extravagantly decorated but done in good taste with fairly expensive furniture, the location in a neighborhood of upwardly mobile families, probably a fair share of singles with good jobs.
“Did Mike mind you moving out?” he asked, watching her face.
“A little. But I fixed up my spare room for him here, and he often spends weekends with me.” A frown came and went as Sara wondered if he ever would again.
Her expression suddenly imploring, she looked up. “You’ve just got to find him.” Was he just playing with her by asking all these questions or was he really going to help her? “I want to hire you to find Mike.”
“Not
