If you can spare it. And Captain, no sirens until we know what’s going on, okay?”
Sparks agreed.
He disconnected and stuck the phone back into his pocket.
“How long do we have to wait?”
“Just a few minutes.” He slowed down in front of the house. It was the only one on the short street. The way the area was laid out, it appeared that Bess Raymond’s house had been built before the streets around her sprang up.
Sunny put a hand over her mouth and stared out the car window.
It looked quiet enough. A medium-size house with a red roof and a large, welcoming front porch. White rocking chairs were lined up close to the porch rail. The yard looked like a toddler’s paradise. A slide, two swing sets and a wading pool were grouped together on one side of the long sidewalk. Colorful flower beds lined the front of the house.
Before Griff even stopped the car, Sunny grabbed the door handle.
“Wait! Damn it!” He slammed his foot on the brake and simultaneously reached across her, stopping the door from opening. “What the hell are you doing?”
She strained against his hand. “My daughter could be in that house.”
“We don’t know who else is in there.”
Her eyes met his. Finally she stopped fighting. Her lips formed a thin line, the tendons in her neck stood out.
“We agreed to wait for backup. You have to promise me you won’t do anything foolish.”
She lifted her chin.
“Sunny, you have to listen to me. What good is it going to do Emily if you get yourself hurt?”
Finally her gaze faltered.
“If you’ll stay here, I’ll go in.”
She stiffened. “By yourself?”
“Backup will be here in a couple of minutes. But you have to promise to stay in this car and out of our way.”
He suffered her scrutiny as she decided whether she could trust him with the life of her child. Somehow, he passed her test. He wondered if he’d still pass if she knew about his sister.
She nodded. “Please be careful. She’s just a baby.”
He brought her hand to his lips. “I promise.”
As Griff got out of the car, he noticed something that froze his heart. The front door was ajar.
He shot a quick glance back at the car, just enough to be sure Sunny had stayed put. She sat in the passenger seat, watching his every move.
He drew his gun. His gaze quickly assessed the condition of the porch and the door. Nothing had been disturbed. The door didn’t seem to have been forced. With his back against the wall, he glanced around the yard and the driveway, then slowly, with his gun hand, eased the door inward a fraction of an inch.
He heard a sound—a moan, coming from inside the house. Someone was hurt!
Clutching his gun in both hands, he shouted, “FBI. Coming in!” He shoved the door open with his shoulder and trained his gun on all corners of the dimly lit room.
Another pained moan sounded, along with labored breathing. He saw a body crumpled over the large glass coffee table.
He eased over and nudged the woman’s shoulder with his gun barrel.
She sucked in a sharp breath.
“Anyone else here?” he whispered.
She didn’t answer.
He checked the perimeter of the room, then quickly checked the rest of the house, acutely aware of every sound, every flicker of light.
Retracing his steps, he bent over the woman, who lay in a widening pool of blood. As he crouched beside her, he saw what lay next to her.
Griff’s heart shattered, and a sob shuddered through his chest. Automatically he reached into his pocket for the handkerchief he always carried, and picked up the rattle. It was spattered with blood, but the engraving wasn’t obscured.
Emily.
Ah God, not this time. Don’t let me be too late this time.
He felt the woman’s neck. A faint, thready pulse beat there. She was alive, at least for now. But she’d lost so much blood.
“Ms. Raymond? Bess Raymond? Can you hear me?”
A breathy moan answered him.
“Who did this? Where’s the baby?”
She said something he couldn’t understand, then slumped, unconscious. At the same time, Griff heard the sound of tires on gravel.
Rising, he whirled toward the door and stuck his head out, spotting the police cars and ambulance.
“Get the EMTs in here,” he yelled. “She’s alive!”
The ambulance drove right up to the door, destroying flower beds and leaving huge furrows in the well-kept yard.
He hurried down the steps to the car. Sunny opened the passenger door.
“Emily?” The hope in her voice struck his heart like a bullet.
“She’s not