devastated. Her physician had prescribed a heavy-duty sedative, but she refused to take it. The distraught woman considered her daughter’s abduction to be entirely her fault, and no one was going to convince her otherwise.
“If she’s…dead,” Katherine murmured, “I don’t think I’ll…” Her feeble voice trailed off.
“Mrs. Fowler.” Ann took a deep breath in an effort to subdue the adrenaline throttling through her veins. With genuine understanding in her eyes and compassion in her tone, she attempted to relay whatever assurances she could. “I’m sure the Bureau has told you that there is every reason to operate under the assumption that your daughter is still alive. Until there is evidence indicating otherwise, that won’t change. It’s important that you hang on to that.”
Special Agent Frank Lewis was on the back patio, speaking to the father. There had been a time when Ann had worked closely with Lewis. They’d been friends. Still were, she supposed. That old connection had gotten her past the father, who wanted nothing to do with what he called his wife’s ridiculous scheme.
The father, Trey Fowler, a member of a special Homeland Security council, had been out of the country at the time of the abduction. He knew nothing, but there was always the remote chance that his daughter’s abduction had something to do with his work. That possibility couldn’t be ruled out at this stage in the investigation no matter how much the MO of this case resembled that of another. Lewis had been kind enough to bring Ann up to speed on the way from the airport. But she understood that he’d told her what the Bureau wanted her to know.
Katherine Fowler shook her head. “There’s nothing else they can do. They won’t be able to find her.” A fresh wave of tears spilled down her cheeks. “They haven’t found even one of the other five.” She scrubbed at her cheeks with the backs of her hands. “That’s why we have to find him. He’s our only hope.”
Ann recognized and understood the feeling of being completely alone and helpless. She wished there was something she could do to assuage that horror. But there wasn’t. All she could do was attempt to distract her for a little while. “Before we move into that phase of my investigation,” she began, “I need you to understand a few vital facts.”
Katherine Fowler nodded eagerly. “Whatever I have to do. Anything.” She grabbed a wad of tissues and swiped at her nose.
Ann moistened her lips and went for broke. “First of all, you need to be fully aware that the perpetrators in this case watched your family for days or weeks. Every move you made was under a microscope. Intense planning and strategizing went into the decision as well as the move to take your little girl. I’m certain the Bureau emphasized that these people would have found the right opportunity one way or another, it was only a matter of time once the decision to take your daughter was made. Nothing anyone could have done would have stopped them.”
Katherine’s worried gaze clouded with confusion, and her head moved slowly from side to side. “No. I wasn’t watching her closely enough. Then I let them fool me into not calling the police. This is my fault.”
Ann ordered her heart rate to slow when it stubbornly continued to increase. The annoying constriction around her chest wouldn’t abate. She could not let the tension and panic gain so much ground so quickly. She hadn’t allowed that to happen in years; she wasn’t about to start now. Where was her objectivity? Focus, she ordered. Focus and stay that way.
“You had no reason to believe your daughter wasn’t perfectly safe in your backyard.” Ann tried again to reach past the blame Katherine Fowler had heaped onto her own shoulders. “The people who took your daughter are professionals. You have to understand that before we can move forward. This is an essential step, Katherine.” She used her first name for emphasis. “I need you to stop fixating on what you should have done and focus on what we can do.”
The neighborhood where the Fowler family resided was premiere. There was no reason at all to suspect trouble. The family’s feelings of security had been bought and paid for with top dollar. But no amount of money could erase the idea that if she had watched more closely, been more careful, her daughter would not be missing. Still, Ann had to try.
The confusion cleared from Katherine’s eyes and she looked directly into Ann’s. “I want you to do a press conference for me. Plead with him to help my daughter.” She shuddered visibly. “My husband won’t let me do it. And, quite honestly, I’m in no shape to get in front of a camera.” Hope glittered in her eyes for the first time. “But you can do it.”
Ann definitely hadn’t seen that one coming. “Do you realize how that will expose you and your family to every freak in the state? Maybe even the country?” This was not a sound idea.
“Couldn’t we have one of those hotlines?” Katherine straightened her back and lifted her chin ever so slightly in defiance of the paralyzing emotions glittering in her eyes. “There has to be a way to make this happen, and going to the media is the most efficient method I can think of.”
Ann wouldn’t argue that. She’d already considered that issuing a personal invitation would be the quickest route to getting this guy’s attention. The debate revolved around whether or not this so-called Guardian Angel would respond to the invitation. An attempt to summon him in this manner didn’t feel right. There were other means—the classifieds, online chat rooms.
“This is what I want,” Katherine urged. “Please say you’ll help me. There is no one else.”
Ann glanced at the French doors and the man pacing restlessly on the other side. Tragedy was already tearing this family apart. As much as Ann wanted to help, this was so not a good idea. But if summoning this man the world called the Guardian Angel was the point, she damn sure couldn’t immediately call to mind a more time-efficient way of reaching out to him. “Let me take some time to think about it,” Ann offered. “I’ll discuss the option with Agent Lewis.”
“And he’ll shoot it down,” Katherine rebutted. “I want this done. Today. Before it’s too late.” Tears welled in her eyes all over again. “Don’t let me down, Ms. Martin. Please.”
“I’ll do everything possible to get your daughter back,” Ann assured her as she stood. “I’ll be at the Hilton. You have my cell number.”
“You could make the six-o’clock news,” Katherine pressed as she pushed unsteadily to her feet. “We could have a response by morning.”
“I’ll call you at five,” Ann promised. “We’ll either be doing a press conference at six or I’ll have another option on the table for your consideration.”
That was the best she could do. She offered her hand, but Katherine ignored it. Instead she grabbed her and hugged her hard. “Please,” Katherine whispered. “You’re my only hope.”
The return drive to the city left Ann feeling damned helpless. As if she’d left something back at the Fowler home. Maybe a little piece of herself. She’d thought she had put these extreme anxiety reactions behind her a long time ago. But today had proven that she still had a good deal of work to do before the past was really behind her. Hell, maybe it never would be.
Agent Lewis wasn’t sure his SAC—special agent in charge—was going to be happy about the press-conference proposal. Except for the part about where they might lure the Guardian Angel into a trap. Apparently the Bureau wanted him almost as much as they wanted the people responsible for the Fear Factor abductions. Ann supposed that wasn’t so surprising considering a number of people were dead by his hand.
“What’s
