The Girl Who Didn't Die--A Suspense Novel Read online

  “What do you want me to do?”

  “I was thinking of making Ryan confess to taking my daughter.”

  “How are you going to make him confess?”

  “We could force him to confess.”

  “Force him? How?”

  “We could beat him up.”

  “Beat him up?”

  “Yes. I can’t do it alone because he’s stronger than me. Will you help me?”

  “Do you have any other ideas?”

  “You could wear a mask so he wouldn’t know it was you.”

  David folded his arms across his chest. “It’s not going to end well.”

  “He’s a terrible man. He’s a criminal. He kidnapped my daughter.”

  “You don’t know that for sure.”

  “I’m almost sure he did it.”

  “What are you going to do if he confesses?”

  “I’ll report him to the police.”

  “Why not let the police investigate him?”

  “They won’t be able to do anything because there’s no evidence against him.”

  “Look, Alice, I want to help you, but beating this guy up is a terrible idea.”

  “Do you have a gun? We could threaten him with a gun instead of beating him up.”

  “I don’t have a gun.” David took her hands and looked in her eyes. “Alice, promise me you won’t shoot him. Promise me you won’t do anything stupid.”

  She could pull the “you’d do it if you loved me” card, but she considered it an unfair tactic. Besides, it wouldn’t work on David: he was far from a pushover.

  “I promise I won’t shoot him.”

  3

  On Saturday morning, a good idea came to Alice. She would meet Ryan at a coffee shop and while they were chatting, David would send Ryan a text message accusing him of abducting Melissa. Ryan would read the message, and she would watch his reaction to it. If Ryan looked guilty, she would buy a gun and interrogate him until he confessed.

  Alice told David her idea (she didn’t tell him what she was going to do if Ryan looked guilty) and asked if he would help her.

  “Okay, I’ll text him,” David said. “What if he calls me? Do you want me to talk to him?”

  “Yes. You’re going to use a disposable phone.”

  “Promise me you won’t assault him in the coffee shop.”

  “I won’t assault him, I promise. Thank you, honey.” She kissed him.

  “When do you want to do this?”

  “Tomorrow. Are you free tomorrow afternoon?”

  “Yes.”

  Alice picked up her phone and called Ryan.

  “Hello.”

  Alice cringed at the sound of Ryan’s voice.

  “Hi, Ryan. It’s Alice.”

  “How are you doing? I’m really glad you called, Alice.”

  “Did you miss me?”

  “A little. What’s new with you? Are you married?”

  “No. Are you?”

  “No. Where do you live?”

  “Pasadena.”

  “I live in Santa Monica. Would you like to hang out sometime?”

  “Sure. How about tomorrow?”

  “Yeah, I’m free tomorrow. What time do you want to meet?”

  “Let’s meet at the Coffee Bean on Third and Arizona at one.”

  “Okay.”

  “See you tomorrow. Bye.”

  “Bye.”

  Alice hung up and said to David, “We’re meeting tomorrow in Santa Monica at one.”

  They composed the text messages David would send to Ryan on Sunday, then went to a cell phone store in Glendale and purchased a disposable phone. When they got back to Alice’s house, they discussed what David would say to Ryan if Ryan called him. They decided that David would demand fifty thousand dollars for keeping his mouth shut about Ryan’s involvement in Melissa’s abduction.

  Chapter 4

  1

  On Sunday, they drove to Santa Monica in Alice’s Altima. As they walked from the parking structure to the Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, they pretended not to know each other in case Alice met Ryan. She entered the coffee shop a few seconds after David, and as she did, Alice pushed her sunglasses up onto her head. She had instructed David to text Ryan when she took her sunglasses off her head and put them on the table.

  The first message would read: “Hi, Ryan. I know that you abducted your and Alice Cannon’s baby from the hospital 13 years ago, and I can prove it. You’ll go to jail for a long time, buddy.” The message had already been typed up, and all David had to do was enter Ryan’s number and press Send.

  If Ryan texted back asking who it was, David was going to reply, “Jim Jones. I’ll go to the police tomorrow.”

  If Ryan said that he hadn’t abducted anyone, David would reply, “I have proof that you abducted Alice Cannon’s baby. You’ll go to jail for a long time.”

  If Ryan asked what David wanted, David would reply, “50 Gs. Call me.”

  Alice bought a cup of coffee and sat down at a table by a window. David took a seat at a table fifteen feet from her.

  At 12:50 Alice sent Ryan a message saying, “I’m at the Coffee Bean.”

  At 12:53 Ryan replied, “I’ll be there in a minute.”

  About three minutes later Ryan walked into the coffee shop.

  “Hi, Alice!” Ryan smiled, revealing his white teeth. He was clean-shaven and wore a short-sleeved blue shirt and gray jeans. He didn’t look like a bum or an alcoholic. He had developed a small beer belly, and his hairline had receded an inch, but his face was still handsome.

  “Hi.” Alice smiled.

  Ryan sat down across the table from her. He wasn’t holding his phone in his hand; it must be in his pocket.

  He might have left his phone in his car.

  “How are you doing?” Ryan asked.

  “I’m fine.”

  “You look great.”

  “Thank you. You look good, too.”

  “It’s been thirteen years since we last met.”

  “Yeah.” Alice nodded.

  “Did you miss me?”

  “A little.”

  Ryan looked at her cup and asked, “What are you drinking?”

  “Mocha Latte. How long have you lived in Santa Monica?”

  “Four years.”

  “Do you live nearby?”

  “I live a few miles from here.”

  “I love Santa Monica.”

  “Me, too.”

  “How are your parents?”

  What if his phone was in silent mode? He wouldn’t find out he had received a new message until he took his phone from his pocket and looked at its screen.

  “They’re fine. How’s your mother?”

  “She went missing last October.”

  Ryan frowned. “Jesus. That’s terrible. I’m very sorry.”

  “I miss her a lot.”

  “I hope she’s all right.”

  “Have you ever been married?”

  “Yes. Once. We divorced four years ago.”

  Ryan’s marriage had broken down; that was music to Alice’s ears.

  “Do you have children?”

  “No. Have you ever been married?”

  “No, I haven’t. Can I see your ex-wife’s picture?”

  “I don’t have it with me.”

  “Do you have it on your phone?”

  “No. Why do you want to see her picture?”

  “I’m just curious. What’s her name?”

  “Diana.” Ryan placed his hand on hers. “Look, Alice. I know I hurt you thirteen years ago, and I’m very sorry about that. I was young and stupid. Can you forgive me?”

  Alice nodded. “Yes.”

  Was his phone in his pocket, or had he left it in his car?

  “Thank you.” Ryan smiled and removed his hand. “Are you seeing anyone?”

  “No. Are you?”

  “No. Do you have children?”

  “No, I don’t.”

  Ryan glanced toward the counter. “I’m reall
y glad you emailed me, Alice.”

  “How long were you married to Diana?”

  “Two years.”

  “Did she cheat on you?”

  “No. I don’t think so. We split up because we were incompatible.”

  Alice picked up her phone, opened the text app, and said, “Are you on Facebook?”

  “Yeah.”

  “I’ll text you my Facebook username.”

  She opened Ryan’s message, typed her Facebook username in the reply window, and tapped the Send button. A moment later she heard a quiet beep. Ryan reached into his jeans pocket and pulled out his phone.

  “Friend me.” Alice took her sunglasses off her head, folded them, put them on the table, and then glanced at David, who sat facing her. David saw that she had placed her sunglasses on the table.

  “Sure,” Ryan said. “I’ll do it right now.”

  “What are you doing tonight?”

  Ryan’s phone beeped, notifying him of a new text.

  “I don’t have any plans yet.” He tapped the screen of his phone twice.

  He opened David’s message.

  Alice watched Ryan’s face carefully, paying attention to every movement of its muscles. Staring at his phone, Ryan leaned back in his chair.

  He’s reading the message.

  “I don’t get it,” Ryan said in a low voice, his eyes still fixed on his phone.

  He didn’t look shocked or scared or nervous. He appeared to be puzzled.

  “What is it?” Alice raised her cup to her lips and drank from it.

  “I just got a really weird text.”

  “From whom?”

  David’s chair was empty now. He must have left the coffee shop, which was part of the plan.

  “I don’t know.” Ryan put his phone on the table. “Our baby, she died right after she was born, didn’t she?”

  “Yes, she did. Why?”

  Ryan stared at his phone for a long moment, then picked it up and typed something on it.

  “Do you want to hang out tonight?” Alice asked.

  “Yeah, let’s hang out.”

  Ryan’s phone beeped again. It must be David’s reply to Ryan’s message.

  Alice watched Ryan read the text and saw no signs of guilt on his face.

  “What the hell,” Ryan muttered.

  “Is something wrong?”

  “I got a text saying that I abducted our baby from the hospital thirteen years ago.”

  “Let me see.”

  Ryan handed his phone to Alice, and she read the messages. Ryan’s reply to David’s first text was: “Who is this?”

  Alice gave the phone back to Ryan. “A week ago somebody called me and told me that our child was alive. That she was abducted from the hospital shortly after she was born.”

  “Do you mean our baby?”

  “Yes.”

  “Did he say that I abducted her?”

  “No. He didn’t say who did it.”

  “Where is she now?”

  “He didn’t tell me. Are you glad our daughter’s alive?”

  “Yes, of course.” He did not sound sincere. Pointing at his phone, Ryan asked, “Did he call you from this number?”

  “He blocked his number.”

  “Do you think he’s telling the truth?”

  “I hope so.”

  “He’s wrong about me. I didn’t abduct our baby.”

  “Just ignore him.”

  “Do you want to call him?”

  “Yes. Let me write down his number.”

  Alice added David’s disposable number to her contact list and said, “I’ll call him tonight.”

  “Be careful. It might be a scam. Don’t give him any money.”

  “Okay.”

  “I hope our daughter really is alive.”

  “Her name’s Melissa.”

  He must be wondering if she would ask for child support when she found Melissa.

  “Give me a call when you find out where she is.”

  “I will.”

  Ryan looked at his watch. “I guess you don’t really want to hang out tonight.”

  “No, I don’t. All I wanted to do today was to tell you that Melissa was alive.”

  Ryan nodded. “That’s fine. I’m glad we met, Alice. Let’s do it again sometime.”

  “Sure.”

  Ryan stood up. “Take care, Alice.”

  “You, too. Bye.”

  Alice waited until Ryan left, then called David and told him that she was done with Ryan.

  “Where are you?” she asked.

  “I’m by the parking structure.”

  “Go to my car.”

  She tossed her cup in the trash and walked out of the coffee shop.

  When they got in the car, Alice asked David if Ryan had called him.

  “No,” David said.

  “Did he text you after your second message?”

  “No, he didn’t. So what do you think? Did he abduct your daughter?”

  Alice shrugged. “I don’t know. I might have been wrong about him.”

  “Did he hit on you?”

  “No.”

  Chapter 5

  1

  As Alice drove through the parking lot of the Riverside Community Medical Center, an image of the newborn Melissa flashed through her mind. Alice remembered cradling her beautiful daughter in her arms right after she was born, and then she remembered holding Melissa’s dead body.

  But that dead baby wasn’t Melissa.

  She could no longer think of this hospital as the place where her child had died. Now it was the place where her child had been stolen from her.

  As she sat in the waiting room, Alice noticed that the woman next to her was reading a brochure on infertility. The brochure said that ten percent of reproductive-age women had difficulty getting pregnant or staying pregnant. Ten percent. It was a big number, wasn’t it?

  Maybe Linda Corrigan was infertile? Maybe she had abducted Melissa for herself?

  Dr. Linda Corrigan looked harmless and innocent and seemed incapable of abducting a child. But you can’t judge a book by its cover, can you?

  “What can I do for you?” Linda asked.

  “My name’s Alice Cannon. You delivered my baby thirteen years ago.”

  “Nice to meet you again, Alice.” Linda smiled. “How is your child doing?”

  “Do you have kids?”

  “Yes. I have a son.”

  “How old is he?”

  “Twenty.”

  Thirteen years ago Linda had had a seven-year-old child, so she had had no reason to abduct Melissa for herself.

  “Do you know what happened to my daughter the night she was born?”

  “No, I don’t. What happened to her?”

  “She was abducted from the hospital.”

  “Abducted? Did the police find her?”

  “No.”

  “I’m very sorry.”

  “They say that one of the doctors was involved in this.”

  “Did they catch the abductors?”

  “No. The police don’t know who they are.”

  “I hope they find your daughter.”

  “Did you help abduct my baby?”

  “What?”

  “Did you help abduct my baby?”

  Linda frowned. “You think I helped the people who abducted your baby?”

  “Yes. I think you helped them.”

  The puzzled look on Linda’s face changed to one of indignation. “Alice, I had nothing to do with your daughter’s abduction.”

  “You were there that night. You switched my daughter with a dead baby and then smuggled her out of the hospital.”

  Linda shook her head. “I didn’t abduct your baby, Alice. I had nothing to do with that whatsoever.”

  Linda did not look guilty.

  Alice had no other suspects to talk to, so all she could do now was hope that Detective Hagan would find Melissa’s adoptive parents.

  “Do you know who stole her?”

&n
bsp; “No, I don’t.”

  Seeing anger in Linda’s eyes, Alice felt ashamed of herself: she had accused an innocent woman of abducting a child.

  “I’m sorry for bothering you, Linda. And I’m sorry for being so rude.”

  “No problem.”

  “Were there any suspicious nurses in your hospital thirteen years ago?”

  “Suspicious? What do you mean?”

  “Nurses you didn’t trust.”

  “No, there were no suspicious nurses here thirteen years ago.”

  “One of them stole my daughter.”

  “I have no idea who might have abducted your child. I’m sorry.”

  2

  At six in the afternoon Alice called Detective Hagan and asked if the police had found Melissa’s adoptive parents. Hagan told her that they were still looking for them.

  Alice went to the website of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and searched for California girls who had gone missing between June 25 and 28. She found three cases, but none of the girls was twelve or thirteen. She did a search covering the whole country and found one thirteen-year-old girl, who had gone missing in Alexandria, Virginia. The girl couldn’t be Melissa because she was black.

  It had been six days since Melissa had been murdered, and she still hadn’t been reported missing. It meant that the people she had lived with did not care about her at all.

  Alice checked the NCMEC’s website again on Thursday, but found no new cases that matched Melissa’s profile.

  Chapter 6

  1

  “Did they find Melissa’s adoptive parents yet?” David asked.

  It was Sunday, July 9. Alice and David sat on the couch in her living room, eating take-out pizza and watching TV.

  “No,” Alice said.

  “What if they never find them?”

  Alice said nothing.

  “Suppose they find her adoptive parents. They’re not going to admit they bought Melissa. Are you going to torture them to make them confess?”

  “No, I’m not.”

  As Alice reached for another slice of pizza, her phone rang. The caller ID read Detective Stephen Hagan. Alice accepted the call.

  “Hello.”

  “This is Detective Hagan.”

  “How are you, Detective?”

  “I’m fine. I’m calling to tell you that we found your daughter’s adoptive parents.”

  Alice breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank you, Detective. Can you give me their address?”