Maggie Black - Kidnapped At Christmas

Sprigs of holly and pine bows curved along the window frame. Her coffee smelled like nutmeg and cinnamon. She held the side of the mug tight with one hand, feeling the comforting heat of the ceramic seep into her palm. With the other, she idly ran an electronic stylus along the computer tablet. She’d let the officer who’d questioned about the break in look it over. But with all of ATHENA’s data saved on Torchlight’s online server, there wasn’t much saved on the actual tablet to look at, and she knew her job well enough to know she didn’t have to relinquish it without a warrant. Fortunately, the officer seemed satisfied to let her keep it.

Slowly she sketched out everything she could remember about the second-floor intruder, using the pieces of her memory like puzzle pieces. The lines of his square, clean-shaven jaw. Deep-set eyes. The shape of a holster on his hip. She focused on every tiny detail she could remember. The two kidnappers and Hermes may not have sparked anything in her mind, but there was something about this snoop that was familiar and she was going to figure out what.

Where have I seen your picture before, stranger? What did you want with my tablet?

Are you Magpie?

Bells jingled and clattered as the café door opened, bringing a gust of cold air in with it. She looked up, embarrassed at just how much part of her hoped to see Joshua standing there.

“Olivia!” Samantha jumped up as a woman with flame-red hair and a voluminous white scarf crossed over to her table. Even dressed in a tracksuit without any trace of makeup on her skin, the Torchlight editor seemed to beam with both happiness and confidence. Samantha gave Olivia a gentle hug, and was surprised at how strong her embrace was in response. “What are you doing here? I thought you’d be home with the baby!”

“She’s with Daniel.” Olivia unwound her scarf and dropped into the seat farthest from the window. “Police needed someone from Torchlight to come in and confirm the state of things. Our apartment is only a few blocks from here and to be honest we really needed a walk.” A tired but genuine smile crossed her lips. “We finally decided on a baby name by the way—Abigail Rose.”

“It’s beautiful.” Samantha sat down opposite her. Olivia leaned her arms on the table and squeezed her hands.

“How are you doing?” Olivia asked. “Are you holding up okay?”

There was an understanding in her voice that tugged at something deeper inside Samantha, reminding her that there were times others in the Torchlight family, including Olivia herself, had faced criminals, danger and threat of death to get the story. I’m okay.” Samantha squeezed her back and let go. “Not great. Still kind of shaky. But I’m okay. Thank you for asking and understanding.”

“Do you remember Theresa Vaughan?” Olivia asked. “We did an article on her a few months back. She’s a therapist and counselor, who does a lot of work with Victim Services.”

Samantha nodded. “I think so.” The woman Joshua had mentioned. Why did her thoughts keep turning to him?

“I gave her a call about what happened to you today. She and I have talked in the past about running something for the staff. She’s willing to meet with you before you leave town. She’s really good at helping people sort out their memories and feelings about trauma.”

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