The next few hours passed in a nightmare slow pace with a mix of uninterested police officers and tired social workers. No one could give Bailey or Leo an answer as to where Joe was or how he managed to convince the staff to let her leave with him. Each officer told the desperate, clinging mother only one thing: Go home. Wait.
Bailey couldn’t do that. She couldn’t just wait for someone to happen upon her, not knowing what Joe was capable of. No one moved fast enough. No one had her urgency. No one cared enough. All except Leo.
After several hours of interviews and false reassurances, Bailey had enough. Slumped over in Leo’s arms, she whispered in his ear, “I need to go. Get me out of here.”
He picked her up, carrying her past the cars with their lights still flashing and the officers sipping their mugs and writing the same information over and over again in their tiny notepads. Bailey listened helplessly for the sounds of the female voice announce the description of the missing girl over their intercoms. Tears fell from her eyes onto the thin cloth of Leo’s black and white flannel shirt.
Leo placed her gently into the passenger side, taking care to buckle her in as she stared mindlessly out the front window. “We're going to find her, Bailey. We’re going to find her.”
But just like the police officers standing stagnant in the center’s parking lot, he had his doubts. He wasn’t sure what to believe. He heard this story before like everyone else. Crazy parent manages to get ahold of the child and the next thing you know, there’s a body. No happy ending and a devastated parent left to mourn.
Leo shook his head as he got into the car. This was a fight he wasn’t about to get knocked out of before the bell even rang. He turned to the silently sobbing Bailey and asked gently, “Bailey, I know this is hard, but I need you to think. What do you know about Joe? Where would he take you if he had you?”
“I—I—I don’t know. I don’t know, Leo.” She turned her head again with her glossy blue eyes searching the horizon for an answer she had yet to come up with. All of the abuse she had suffered came back to her in a wave as she imagined what Lily was living through. She imagined a scared little girl with bright blue eyes huddled in a corner of a room, just as she had done nearly four years earlier.
A phone rang as both Leo and Bailey broke their concentration to turn their attention to the foreign sound. Leo’s cup holder vibrated as it rang a piercing sound. The screen lit up with the picture of his agent. Leo turned the phone on using his bluetooth. The car filled with the sound of Jonathan’s voice, “Leo, I’ve got some information for you.”
“This best be about Bailey’s ex-husband, man,” Leo barked. “He kidnapped the girl. We were too late to get to her.”
“He what?! Son of a bitch. I'm so sorry. Are the police involved? Do you need me to do some presswork? What can I do?” His voice was genuine in his concern. He would never take the loss of a child lightly despite the circumstances or his personal feelings.
“No. No press was there that I know of. What we need from you is whatever information you can get on Joe. Did you find anything out?” Leo turned up the volume of his speaker so Bailey could hear, as well.
“Yeah, actually the detectives got some intel on him. I’ll email the specifics to you as soon as I hang up. The big stuff is that he owns several properties and has some addresses in the states. The Parkhurst, Idaho place looks pretty run down. The detective I used sent a guy over there to check on it. I don’t think he’ll be going there anytime soon. There’s another in Arizona.”
“That’s his father’s ranch in Tucson,” Bailey interjected in a zombie-like, monotone voice. “He won’t go there. His father would kill him if he attempted that.” Bailey flashed back to their divorce and the elderly man who screamed at her ex-husband in the parking lot. He may have been a potential heir to their very small fortune, but he had done him a huge dishonor when the details of Bailey’s abuse got out.
Jonathan continued, “One’s here outside of Chicago. It’s a cabin about twenty miles west of the Indiana border in a town called Rocking Hill.”
“What do you think? Should we start there?” He looked at Bailey for answers, but she remained silent, preferring to keep in the darkness of her mind.
Jonathan gave his stern warning, “I think you should stay home, Leo. Call the cops, give them my information and let them handle this. This is a job for professionals, not people who have court dates coming up.”
“Yeah. I think that’s what we're gonna do. Bailey needs to rest and the police can do their job. I’ll call them as soon as I get in the house. Thanks for your work, Jon. Let me know if you hear of anything else.” Leo hung up the phone as his car pulled into the long, winding driveway.
The house lights were still on from earlier and the entire estate loomed over them. Bailey glanced over at him, catching his eyes.
He reached over and touched her face gently with the palm of his hand as he assured her, “She’s going to be okay. They're going to find her, and she’ll be home with you in no time.”
She nodded, wanting to believe him, to rid herself of this doubt that there was a happy ending for her and her daughter. But her life had been a string of regret and disaster. What little hope she should have disappeared every moment she spent waiting. She looked at him one last time as he made the slow turn into the roundabout to drop her off. With a final glance to the house, she quickly unhooked her seatbelt and lunged at Leo. Her hands gripped the steering wheel as he yelled in surprise. The car screeched as it slipped into the damp grass. Bailey pressed her body down on Leo’s leg to push the gas pedal.
Leo caught his breath in time to push her off and take hold of the wheel before it slammed into one of the lawn’s trees. “What are you doing!” He screamed at her, unable to hold his temper. He knew she was distraught, but he did not think she was capable of risking their lives.
She kneeled in her seat as she looked at him. “We have to drive to the cabin. I remember now. That town—Rocking Hill—it’s where his buddies used to go with their jet skis in the summer. He never missed it, ever. It’s the season for it. If anything, the people in the town might know something. We have to go Leo! We have to go now!”
“Are you sure this is what you want? We can call the cops and they can take care of this. It’s their—” He tried to reason with her, but she quickly cut him off.
“No. No. It’s not their job. It’s my job. I'm Lily’s mom, and I'm supposed to protect and fight for her. I need to do this. Please, Leo. Let’s go.”
He looked deep in her eyes and saw the hurt and pain. He could not deny her what she wanted. And by how she pled with him, he knew that even if he forced her back into the house, there would be no stopping her from going out to finding Lily on her own. “Okay. Let’s go.” Leo spun the car around back towards the exit as he opened the large metal gate from his car’s clicker. He used the voice command to set the course towards the rural town of Rocking Hill.
The two remained silent as the car navigated outside of the city limits. As the GPS’s commands led them off the highway and onto the small town roads, Leo turned to Bailey once more. “Listen,” he said gently, “it’s dark. Do you want to get a hotel or something or do this now?”
“I know how to get there. I remember the way. I had to drive it every year when he and his boys would get too drunk to make it all the way. I can do this, Leo.” Her voice had become nervous and raspy.
He nodded at her and turned off the GPS. She sat up straighter as she began to call out directions based on the town’s restaurants and signage. “That diner!” She pointed to a rickety old brick building on the main street of town. “That’s where he used to go every day. He used to love that catfish, and the waitresses always over-served the guys when they tipped well. We need to go in. If he’s in town or has been, they would have seen him.”
Bailey again got out of the car before it was fully stopped. Leo had just enough time to put his Lexus in park, unbuckle himself, and run to her side. She had already called out for a waitress as she walked through the door causing the entire patron of diners dressed in flannel and hunting hats to turn their heads her way.
She used their attention to her advantage. “Have you seen a man named Joe Malnuty come through here recently? He owns a cabin out by the lake. He usually comes in with a couple of his friends—uh—Rick and—uh—Dale, I think. He may have had a woman with him—”
“Short, brown hair, real slender with a funny walk.” Leo interrupted her with the description of the partner.
A bleach blonde waitress eyed him up and down as her made up eyes heavily blinked in appreciation for the man in front of him. Without losing her stare, she answered, “Honey, I know who you’re talking about. But I haven’t seen him in a week or so. He got real drunk at the bar and started yelling at the girl he was with. Bartender walked him out and called his lady a cab.”
“Is the bartender working? It’s real important that we find the address for his cabin, and we’d be so grateful for your help.” Leo winked at her knowing the power he had on women like her.
“Sure, sweetie. Let me go get him.” She walked away, her hips swinging dramatically from side to side. Bailey nudged him playfully in the side as she gave him a knowing look. He shrugged his shoulders as if to say, “whatever works, works.”
A man in a bartender’s apron walked over shortly after. His thinning hair gave off the appearance of a regular. No doubt he would have noticed Joe in a timid crowd like this. The man reached out his hand to Leo and spoke in a jovial roar, “Leo ‘Lionheart’ Connelly! I knew your face from the moment you walked in! I was a huge fan! A huge fan!”
“Thanks, man. I appreciate it.” Leo tried to keep himself from beaming. “Listen, we’re looking for someone. It’s very important. A man by the name of Joe Malnuty. The waitress said he came in last week and was kicked out by you when he started arguing with the young girl he was with.”
“Yeah, I remember. Mean guy. Kept talking about his ‘plan.’ Nothing good comes out of a drunk guy with a plan. I kicked him out after he smacked her in front of the rest of the bar.” He lowered his voice to a serious tone, “No one disrespects a girl like that in this place—no matter what she may have done or said.”
Bailey piped in, “Did you hear him mention a daughter or a little girl at all?”
“No, I don’t think so. He just talked about the plan but never gave specifics. I would have remember it if he had.”
Bailey sulked at the bartender. “Okay, well, do you remember where you told that cab driver to take the girl? We need to find the cabin they were staying in. I know he used to own a place by the docks for jet skiing. Does that sound familiar?”
“Yeah, I think I told him to take her to Yellowstone Street off of the Charlie Dock on the east side of town. She mentioned that as where she was staying. He walked in that direction that night, as well. I’d start looking there. I know there are a couple cabins in that ar—”
Bailey had no time for him to finish. Without another word, she turned her back and ran out of the diner. Leo quickly thanked the man and shook his hand in appreciation. As he left, he could hear the bartender request a picture, but he had no time to respond. This was Bailey’s quest, and he had to abide by her rules.
“I remember, Leo. I know where the cabin is. Take a right at the end of the road and then another at the stop sign about a quarter mile down. That’s Yellowstone Street. The cabin should be right there on the left.”
He drove in her directions. Behind him, the sun began setting on the small town. He watched it go down through his mirror as he attempted to focus on something, anything else besides the thirst that came up while standing in that bar. Even now, Leo’s demons had managed to chase him down.
Bailey broke his thoughts as she exclaimed, “It’s there! Leo! There!” She pointed at a small wood and brick cottage. It was pitch black, but in the driveway was the white truck they saw before. Leo parked his car outside of the home, unsure of what came next.
“I’m going in! Come on! Let’s go!” Bailey shouted at him in command.
He remained motionless as he thought of his options. “Bailey, we need to be smart about this. If we go in too fast or make a wrong move, we could be putting her in more danger. We don’t know if he’s armed or if she’s hurt. Let’s just take a moment to think.”
“I’m tired of thinking, Leo!” Bailey stormed out of the car and made the run to the house as a light from one of the windows turned on in a flash. Leo ran to Bailey’s side and pulled her down to the ground, grasping a hand around her mouth.
“Bailey!” He whispered, “Are you crazy? You’re gonna get yourself killed! You can’t do this alone. Let me go first.” He stood, wiping the dirt from his pant legs and crept towards the lit window. Peering through a small crack in the window’s cloth shades, he saw the woman inside laying on the couch sobbing. Shadows covered her face, but for the most part, she looked alone.
Leo motioned for Bailey to join him as he moved towards the front door. He pushed her back as he took ten running steps and then kicked it in as hard as he can. The wooden door stood no chance as the metal hinges tore apart and splinters flew. Inside, the woman screamed as Bailey ran in screaming her daughter’s name over and over again.
He ran towards the woman as she remained on the couch with her hands raised. “Where is she? Where’s Lily?”
“He has her. You have to believe me. She’s not here!” She trembled at the sight of Leo covered in the dust and dirt. He towered over her as she sank into the couch’s folds. “I—I—think he took her to Arizona. Said he knew guys there that could protect him. I wanted to bring her back to y’all, but he wouldn’t let me…” The woman’s voice died down.
Leo looked at her for the first time. Her eyes were sunken in and black from bruising. Her nose looked broken and her lip was cut open. Despite having caused many similar injuries, he found his stomach turning as he thought of Bailey looking just like the victim in front of him.
Bailey stopped her search of the rooms to join them in the living room. Without warning, she leaped on the girl, dragging her down with her hands. “You fucking cunt!” she seethed. “Where the fuck is she?! What did you do with my daughter?”
“I didn’t know! I didn’t know!” The woman sobbed in terror. “He told me that she was his…that—that you took her away from him and it was his job to get her back. I believed him until she started crying. He threw me out of the car when I tried to call the cops. Please, you gotta believe me!”
Bailey eased up as she looked at the girl with the same eyes as Leo’s. She saw herself just a few years prior. The ghost had returned. Bailey dismounted herself, letting the woman gasp in a sigh of relief. She sat on the living room’s tan area rug as she held her head in her hands. After a long moment of silence, she turned back to the woman on the couch, “Are you sure they're going to Arizona? What about his dad?”
The woman nodded over and over again as if she were a bobblehead. “He kept saying his daddy would be proud of him and that he could keep her on the ranch. He promised me we’d live there, raise some cattle. He promised me I’d get a little garden when everything was done with.” She began to cry as she realized how misled she had been. There would never be the cows on the ranch with the little stepdaughter. Her garden was just another illusion Joe had created to get her to stay.
Leo watched as Bailey reached up her hand from behind her head and offered it to the woman. She took it, squeezing it tight into her chest as the two remained in place. For a moment, they were united by something so sinister and vile.
“You have somewhere to go?” Bailey asked as the woman firmly answered yes. “Good. You get there as soon as possible. Don’t let him convince you to come back. There is no turning around. You need to do this for yourself. You hear me?”
The girl nodded again and turned back towards the couch.
Bailey stood up slowly and turned to Leo who had kept his ground in the middle of the living room floor. With a new fire in her eyes, she looked up at her boyfriend and said, “I guess we’re going to Arizona.”
Her daddy and hit an spit on the woman when she mentioned being Lily’s new mommy. “You’re gonna scare her, you idiot!”
When he dropped her off at the cabin, Lily took her place in the front seat, closer to him. Her body shook as she worried that if she said something wrong too, she would also get slapped or kicked. She had seen her own mommy get the same kind of beating when she was very little.
“Don’t worry, darling.” Her dad said to Lily as he patted her head, “Nothing’s going to stand in our way now. We’re going to go home!” He reached down into a black bag by her feet and pulled out an open juice box with the straw already stuck inside. He lifted it to her lips as he commanded her, “Now you drink this whole thing. I’m gonna watch to see if you finish. I don’t want a drop left. Okay?”
Lily lowered her eyes, hiding her fear from him as she sucked up the air in the box. The taste was familiar, yet it was bitterer than the juice boxes she had drank at the old home. She coughed a bit as she tried to rush her way through. By the time she had finished the box, her head had drooped to the side as the seatbelt cradled it against the car seat. Everything had gone dark as Lily dreamt of home.