Page 22 of The Facilitator, Part 3

Chapter Thirteen

Before the required two weeks were up to see if Lauren was pregnant, we received the most shocking news and had the worst fright we’d ever had.

“Huh?” I said, bleary eyed as I woke from a dead sleep. I reach over to my phone to see Gabriella was calling me. I sat up as Lauren woke. “Hey,” I said, as I answered, assuming she’d forgotten the time difference.

The noise I heard down the phone caused my heart to stop. Lauren covered her mouth hearing Gabriella’s screams as well.

“Slow down, Gab, what happened?”

“He’s got my baby,” was all we could make out.

“I’m on my way,” I said, and I switched off the phone, I threw it on the bed and jumped out .

“I’m coming,” I heard. Lauren had also climbed from the bed.

“No, Lauren, you can’t,” I said, grabbing some toiletries from the bathroom. “Please, get online and get me a flight, or a plane, or whatever? Will you do that for me?”

“I’ll get two seats, or a plane,” she said. She grabbed my phone and scrolled through my contacts.

“No, you can’t fly,” I said, trying to take the phone from her.

“Says who?” she challenged me. “She’s not just your best friend, but mine too, and they need us both.” Her voice rose.

“What if you’re pregnant?” I said, shouting back at her.

“What if I am? Don’t start all that shit again,” she said, and her words inflamed me.

I knew it was the tension from the call. I understood that, but I exploded.

“Don’t start all that shit again?” I repeated, slowly. “We lost our fucking baby and you don’t want me to start all that shit again?” I shouted.

She spoke to someone on the phone and explained what she wanted, turning her back to me. I stormed off to the closet and grabbed a bag. I threw a handful of items in, a charger, and things I knew I’d need. I then walked back to the bedroom to see Lauren doing to the same.

“I’m coming, Mackenzie, even if I take a fucking economy flight myself.” She stood with her hands on her hips. “And if anything happens to this baby, if there even is one, I’ll take full fucking responsibility for that!”

I don’t think I’d ever seen her so angry, but so was I.

I grabbed my bag, she could carry her own.

I stormed silently to the car and loaded the trunk, leaving it open for her to place her own bag in there.

Then we had the agonizing two-hour wait until we could leave for our plane.

I paced the kitchen, drinking cup after cup of coffee, and took call after call from Alex.

“What happened?” I asked him.

His voice was so hoarse and I knew it would be because of tears. “He fucking broke in. We were in the kitchen and Gabriella thought she heard Dominic cry. She saw a car leaving and the crib was empty. I can’t breathe, Mackenzie,” he said quietly.

“I know, Alex. Lauren has chartered a plane; we don’t leave until five, but we’ll be there as quick as we can. How do you know it’s Daniel?”

“He called, told us he needed money and then he’d hand over Dominic.”

“How much?”

“I have it covered. I have the bank getting it together now. The police don’t want me to do this, but I just want my son back and then I’ll fucking kill him, Mackenzie. I swear an oath, I’ll kill him.”

I had absolutely no doubt he meant every single word of what he’d just said, and if he didn’t, I would.

“Mackenzie?” I heard, Lauren had come to stand behind me.

“What?” I snapped.

“Gabriella needs us both. This isn’t about you charging in on your white horse. Alex needs us both, as well.”

I turned to face her. “Like I said, you take responsibility for our baby, if there is one. I would rather you stay here so I don’t have to worry about you or…

it. You remember when he came to the house?

He didn’t care if he attacked you or me; it was whoever answered that door.

What happens if he gets to you? Do I need to worry about that as well? ”

I knew I was shouting and the more I shouted, the more she stood steadfast, staring at me. Finally, I stopped. I let my head roll back on my neck and I closed my eyes. I breathed in deep. I knew my hands were shaking. More so when she picked one up and held it to her lips.

“They need us both, Mackenzie,” she whispered. I nodded, of course, they would.

“I don’t want to risk…”

“We don’t know if there is anything to risk. ”

I placed my hand around the back of her neck and I pulled her close. I kissed her hard. “I don’t want…” I whispered, not bothering to finish my sentence.

“I’m going with you and I’d rather we arrived as a team and not with you shouting at me,” she replied.

It was a battle I wasn’t go to win, unless I got in my car and… I shoved that thought from my mind. My wife, my amazing and fucking infuriating wife would just get a taxi.

“I’m sorry,” I said. She shook her head and smiled, even though tears had formed in her eyes.

We decided to drive to the private airport in Kent.

We’d rather wait there than at the house, at least it felt like we were being productive.

Alex called to say an eyewitness had seen the car and it had pulled into a gas station.

Lauren comforted Gabriella. Finally, we were allowed to board our plane.

I’d flown privately before and had it been in any other circumstance, I would have enjoyed the luxury, but I couldn’t settle knowing we were still hours away.

I held Lauren’s hand all the way. We hardly spoke, not because we were still pissed with each other, and I was seriously annoyed with her, but because we just couldn’t speak. It had to be every parent’s nightmare and the hopelessness of being thousands of feet in the air was a torment in itself.

The luxury of a private jet meant a private airstrip and a quick customs check. I sailed through, Lauren was questioned. She scanned for me in the small terminal, not knowing what to say to the customs clerk. I could only stand back behind the barrier and watch. Eventually, she was let through.

“What was the problem?” I asked.

“I was here only a few months ago and they wanted to know why I was returning so quick.”

“What did you tell them?”

“That I had business to attend to.”

We ran through the small building and out to a waiting car with Alex standing beside the rear door.

I pulled him into a hug. I’d never seen the man so wrecked. His eyes were red and sore and his body shook. I patted him on the back and then we parted. He pulled Lauren into his arms and kissed the top of her head.

“I’m so glad you’re both here. Gab needs you, Lauren. I’m all over the place, figuratively and literally. She’s beside herself,” he said.

Lauren didn’t look at me, and I wished she had so I could smile and apologize. Of course Gabriella would need her. Lauren, however, being the woman of substance that she was, didn’t do the, I told you so .

Lauren left her bag in the car when we arrived, she opened the door and flew to the house.

Both women fell into each other’s arms and sobbed.

Lauren coaxed Gabriella back to the sofa and they sat.

Vivienne, Gabriella’s mother, stood holding her hands over her mouth.

I came to a shocked stop. She had aged significantly.

She didn’t have the perfectly made-up face or hair and the clothes she wore look days old.

I walked over to her and she lowered her hands.

Tears ran down her cheeks. She held out her arms and I wrapped my arms around her.

“I was meant to be minding him, Mackenzie. This is my fault,” she said, hiccupping through.

“It’s not your fault, Vivienne,” Alex said, rubbing a circle on her back.

Charlene, the housekeeper, hovered not knowing what to do. “How about we get some cold drinks?” I asked her, she clearly needed something to do. “And maybe something to eat. Has anyone eaten?” I asked. Everyone shook their heads.

“Right, you catch Mackenzie up-to-date and I’ll help Charlene,” Lauren said, standing and handing my best friend to me. “Vivienne, how about we get you all dressed up as well?” she said gently.

Vivienne took her hand; she looked so frail. “Charlene, I’ll come and help in a minute,” she said, leading Vivienne to the stairs.

“How could he have done this? That is his nephew. He must be hungry. Oh, God help me. Mackenzie, my baby needs me. He’s hungry and scared,” she rattled off. I encouraged her to take a breath and I held her .

“Shush, baby. Breathe, okay? We’ll have your baby back, I guarantee,” I said.

I watched Alex take yet another call. It seemed the police were always one fucking step behind. The call he wanted, however, the one to tell him where to meet with the bag of money that now sat in the hallway hadn’t come in.

I didn’t want to leave Gabriella, but I also needed to talk to Alex alone. “Hey, why don’t you go and help your mom?” I asked gently. She nodded.

Once she was out of earshot, I stood. “What exactly do we know?”

Alex told me the make of car, the investigators he had employed to find him, and what the police had said so far.

There wasn’t a property registered to Daniel and he drove a beat-up sedan.

He appeared to be heading north and Alex confirmed there was no family that way, none that would take him in, anyway.

“Friends?” I asked. He had a baby in a car he was driving. He had to have planned to snatch Dominic, and I hoped he had adequate seating for him. I didn’t think him of sound mind enough to have done that. I picked up my phone and scrolled, I made a call.

“Addison, do you know where Daniel is?” I asked, not offering a greeting.

“Mackenzie, how nice to hear from you. Are you in the States? You sound so clear,” she said .

“I don’t have time for chat. Do you know where Daniel is?” I asked.

“You know, if you just tried to be pleasant—”

“Daniel has kidnapped Gabriella’s baby. Do you know where the fuck he is?” I asked slower, and with all the aggression I could muster despite my exhaustion. I fucking hated her but I needed to know that one thing.