Page 105 of Grave Danger

Farid’s lawyer was suddenly coming up the walkway. “She’s long gone,” said Beech, joining the conversation.

“What are you talking about?” asked Jack.

“She left before sunrise,” said Beech. “She took Yasmin with her.”

“How do you know that?” asked Jack.

“Farid got a tip twenty minutes ago. I called the police immediately.”

Jack glanced at the car in the driveway. “They can’t be far away. Her car is still here.”

“She used another one, obviously,” said Beech. “Smart. No vehicle to list in the AMBER Alert.”

Child abductions by strangers were the primary mission of AMBER Alerts, but about forty percent were family abductions. Either way, a vehicle to track was a critical part of the alert.

Jack looked at the officer. “Are you planning to issue an AMBER Alert?”

“We have a tip that she left with the child in the middle of the night,” he said. “She’s not answering the door or our calls to her cell phone. This is not the behavior of a parent who intends to comply with the transfer of child custody. If you can’t tell us where your client is, it seems prudent to issue an alert.”

“Who was the tipster?” asked Jack.

“That’s confidential,” said the officer.

That old feeling—client turned fleeing fugitive—hit Jack like a punch to the gut.

“Okay, but let’s not jump to conclusions,” said Jack. “The time to transfer custody is still an hour away.”

“By then, she and Yasmin could be in the Bahamas,” said Beech.

“I’m just saying that, as of now, no crime has been committed.”

“There doesn’t have to be a crime for an AMBER Alert,” said Beech. “Just reasonable suspicion of a child in danger.”

“Zahra would never hurt Yasmin,” said Jack.

“Neither would Farid,” said Beech, “but that didn’t stop you from trying to take Yasmin away from him.”

The officer silenced the lawyers and leveled his gaze at Jack. “Mr. Swyteck, can you guarantee that your client is going to show up by the two-o’clock deadline and transfer custody to Mr. Bazzi?”

Jack couldn’t, so he offered the best he could. “I’m trying to reach her.”

“Well, you keep on trying,” Beech said in a condescending tone. “The AMBER Alert should be issued now. If your client doesn’t show, I’m going to ask the state attorney to get an arrest warrant.”

She turned and walked back toward her car.

Jack couldn’t argue with her position. In a situation like this, the principal concern of everyone—Jack included—was Yasmin’s safety. He stepped away and dialed Zahra’s number on his cell phone. Again, it went to voicemail.

“Zahra, the police are at your town house,” he said into his cell. “If you’ve done something stupid, it won’t work. You have until two p.m. to be in my office, or in the eyes of the law, you’re a child abductor. Call me right now. I mean it.Right now.”

Chapter 37

It was 2:00 p.m. Nothing from Zahra.

Jack was in his car across the street from her town house. The MDPD squad cars were still parked in the driveway. Until Jack heard from his client, the police were his best source of information. He would stay there as long as they did. Dr. Vestry was waiting at his office in case a miracle happened. He called her a few minutes after two.

“No news?” Jack said into the phone.

“Zahra is officially a no-show,” she said. “Any update on your end?”