Linda Warren - A Texas Child

As he headed for his truck, he couldn’t help but think of what Pop had said. Could he live with himself if something happened to that little boy?

CHAPTER THREE

MYRA DROVE TO the Westwood Nursing Facility to visit with Stu and to let him know Levi wasn’t taking the case. On the way, she called Mick Travers, another P.I., and left a message on his cell. She’d worked with him before and she knew he’d call her back.

Stu was lucky to have good health insurance that included extended care. He’d lived in a condo, but was so weak from the cancer treatments, Natalie had talked him into moving here, where he had constant care. The place was very nice and it brought Natalie peace of mind.

Stu and Myra went way back. Fresh out of law school, Myra had been searching for a job for weeks and had an interview with the D.A. of Travis County in Austin. She’d been sitting in the secretary’s office when Stu walked in. She had no idea he was the assistant chief of police. He was dressed in ordinary street clothes. They struck up a conversation and she told him she had little hope of getting the job but she was a damn good attorney. He told her she had guts and that would see her through and he wished her luck.

After the interview, she was called back. The D.A. told her Stu Stevens had put in a recommendation for her and the job was hers. She was stunned, having no idea who Stu Stevens was. But it didn’t take long to find out. Ever since then, they’d had a connection.

When he was offered the chief of police job in Houston, Stu moved on and she soon followed. He was the reason she had a job in the D.A.’s office in Houston. The relationship seemed to go on, too. She found him to be one of those trustworthy men she could count on...like Levi.

Stu had been one of the officers to start the petition to support Levi when he’d disobeyed the direct order. So she and Levi owed Stu a lot and she didn’t understand Levi not helping the man who’d always been there for him. This wasn’t about her and Levi. Couldn’t he see that?

She stopped at the nurses’ desk. “How’s Stu?”

“Sad.” Barbara, an R.N., shook her head. “We just called his daughter and the nurse held the phone to Natalie’s ear so she could hear her father’s voice. But she’s still in a coma. I hope you have some good news for him.”

Myra’s heart sank. Too much heartache and there was nothing she could do about it, except curse Levi under her breath. That didn’t help, either, though.

“Not really, but the police are still trying to find the baby,” she replied, and walked off down the hall. At Stu’s room, she knocked on the door.

At a faint “come in,” she went inside. Stu had a private room and sat in his recliner with oxygen tubing in his nose. He was painfully thin. His dull, tired eyes lit up when he saw Myra.

“Is Levi coming?”

“No. I’m sorry, Stu. He’s not taking the case. You should have called him. Seeing me only made him more bullheaded to never work with me again.”

“That surprises me.”

At the thoughtful light in his eyes, she asked, “Why did you want me to see him in person? A phone call from you would have been more effective.”

“Because, to get my grandson back, I need both of you on my team. I thought the two of you would have grown up enough to let the past go.”

“If I didn’t love you so much, I’d really be pissed.”

A slight smile touched his face. “I’ve always liked your spirit. Don’t worry, kid, Levi will come around.” “Kid” was his nickname for her and she found it hard to stay mad at him.

“Just in case your instincts are off, I called another P.I. and I’ll have him on it just as soon as he calls me back. The cops are still searching, too. I’m doing everything I can.”

“I know. You’ve been a good friend to Natalie and to me, but as each hour passes we’re losing time.”

Myra didn’t know what to say. Nothing was going to comfort Stu until Natalie woke up. Until Daniel was back with his mother.

“The nurse said you spoke to Natalie.”

“I couldn’t visit yesterday because I was so sick from the chemo. I had to do something. I was hoping my voice would trigger something and she would wake up.”

Myra chewed on the inside of her lip, wanting to give him some hope. “Would you like to see Natalie today? I’ll arrange it. Maybe in person your voice will be more effective.”

“Let’s do it.” His voice sounded stronger.

“Well, then, I’ll talk to the nurse and let you know what the other P.I. says.”

“Thanks, kid.”

“I’m making this my top priority.”

It took Myra ten minutes to set everything up. The home had a wheelchair-accessible van and it was available for the afternoon. She drove over to the hospital to be there when Stu arrived in case he needed someone.

On the way, she got a call from the FBI agent and made an appointment to meet him in two hours in her office. Things were starting to happen now and Myra hoped Daniel could be found soon.

While she maneuvered through Houston traffic, her cell buzzed again. It was her mother. Myra groaned. She knew a lecture was coming.

She clicked on. “Hi, Mama.”

“You come to High Cotton and you don’t take time to visit your parents.” No hello. Just go right for the juggler.

“You weren’t home and I had to get back to Houston.”

“You always have to get back to Houston. You never have time for your family.”

One. Two. Three.

“There’s a girl who works in the office and her boyfriend beat her into a coma and took their little boy. We’re working very hard to locate him.”

“I know. Jessie told me. I have to hear everything from Jessie.”

One. Two. Three.

“As soon as everything settles down, I’ll come and spend a weekend.”

“We do have phones, Myra. If you had just called, we could have been home today to see our only child.”

One. Two. Three.

“I’ll call soon, Mama. Tell Papa hi. I’ve got to go.”

And that was the weekly sermon for the ungrateful, disrespectful daughter. Her parents had never understood her desire to be a career woman. They wanted her to be a wife, a mother and a homemaker, and they never failed to remind her that a woman’s place was in the home.

Myra never went gaga over babies like Jessie had. Nor did she ever have the urge to bake cookies. Her mother was domesticated enough for both of them. She wasn’t sure why she was so different.

Until she was about nine, they’d had a normal life. Her dad had worked as a welder at a trailer manufacturing company and her mom was a housekeeper for Roscoe Murdoch. Then two things happened that changed their lives forever. Her father was laid off from his job and Roscoe’s niece was kidnapped and murdered.

Since her father had been in Vietnam and knew how to use a gun, Roscoe had hired him to guard Jessie, and the Delgado family moved in with the Murdochs. The house had been a little cramped, so Roscoe had built a fortress and they had plenty of room. Her parents poured all their energy into watching over Jessie, and sometimes Myra felt invisible.

She loved Jessie dearly and she didn’t begrudge her one second of her parents’ time. But sometimes she wished her parents had recognized that she needed them, too. Myra had become tough and independent and determined to make it on her own.

Roscoe had paid for her college education. He made it very clear, though, if her grades slipped or she got in trouble, her educational funding would stop. She’d graduated in the top 10 percent of her class and gone on to law school. She’d had boyfriends along the way, but not once did any of them instill in her the urge to settle down and have babies.

Until Levi.