“Actually, that does describe some of my showings.” he said out loud.

He looked at his watch.

8:04.

No sign of the man. It began to occur to him that this might be a ruse to get him away from home. The idea horrified him. He dialed Kate's cell.

It rang seven times, then went to voice mail. He hung up and was about to bolt for home when he saw a man step out from the stairwell.

It was 8:13.

Wade watched him come towards his car. He was about Wade's height with short, almost wild, black hair. He wore jeans, boots, and a black jacket, partially zipped, with his hands in his coat pockets. Wade couldn’t make out his face. He walked with his head down, and the poor lighting helped conceal him.

He walked to the center of the lot and stopped. He stood perfectly still, and appeared to be waiting for Wade to get out. After a few minutes, Wade opened his car door and stepped out. The man waited while Wade walked towards him. When they were about ten yards apart, he stopped him.

“That's far enough!”

Wade froze as the order echoed around the empty lot. He took the initiative.

“You tried to kill my son—why?”

The stranger said nothing.

“Well? Did you come here to talk or not? Why did you run down my son?”

The man slowly lifted his face.

“I wanted you and your wife to experience the same pain my wife and I did.”

“What pain? What are you talking about?”

“The pain of a lost child. You brought it upon us.”

“How? We don't even know you.”

“Kristian.”

“Who is Kristian?”

The stranger moved closer.

“You call him Jack; his real name is Kristian and he is my son, not yours.”

Wade was stunned.

“There must be some mistake; we adopted Jack through legal means. We have all the paperwork.”

The man snorted.

“Don't tell me about paperwork, it's fake and you know it.”

Wade started to realize that this man thought that he and Katie had stolen his child.

“My wife and I would never take part in something like that.”

That seemed to set him off.

“My…wife…is…DEAD!” He spat the last word.

Moving towards Wade, he was yelling.

“Cancer took her because she didn't have the will to fight. The loss of her son was too much. That makes her death your fault.”

Wade was backing away now, trying to figure out how to escape.

“You can't blame us for that.”

“Oh yes I can, and I do.”

Wade turned to run back to his car when his body suddenly exploded in pain. Two probes sunk into his back and electricity began coursing through his body. Every muscle he had tightened and he slammed to the ground. His head struck the pavement and everything went black.

****

Wade began to come around. He could see the stranger sitting on the wall, watching him. He tried to get up, but quickly realized he was tied.

The man noticed he was awake and came over to stand above Wade.

“I lost my son and my wife. Do you have any idea what kind of pain I went through?”

Wade didn't answer.

“I would explain it to you, but there are no words. You have to experience it. You have to suffer it, eat and sleep it. The pain is there every waking moment. Tonight, you will begin to understand.”

Wade looked up, unable to fully grasp what was happening, as Michael drove his fist into his face, and everything went black again.

****

Katie wrapped her hair in a towel and put on her robe. Jack was in bed and she planned on curling up with a good book. As she sprawled out on the bed, she noticed a missed call from Wade on her phone, but no voice mail. She figured that meant he was going to be late. She pushed his number and it rang until she heard his voice mail greeting, followed by the beep.

“Hey, it's me. I guess you'll be late. I'll probably fall asleep, so don't worry about calling again. Jack was beyond thrilled with his bike. Good luck with the showing. Love you.”

She got up and put on a pair of sweats and an old t-shirt. She changed her mind about reading and turned on the TV instead, and flicked off the light and got into bed. She was out cold in minutes.

****

Michael sat in his car just down the block from the Duncan home. All the lights were out in the house.

He played the layout of the house over and over in his mind. Jack's room was at the top of the stairs, the master to the left. The stairs were to the right when you entered.

The night was cool and the moon concealed by clouds. He would be nearly impossible to spot in the black jacket and jeans. Once inside, there would be no way to stop him. The time was fast approaching when Jack would learn who he really was, who his mother was, and where he was from. He would finally get a real father, and not an adopted one.

Everything would be set in order.

He pulled the picture of his wife from his jacket pocket. He would keep his promise and show it to their son. He smiled to himself in the darkness. This would be the first day of him and Kristian being a family again.

Michael could see the glow from a TV flashing images on the blinds. He would wait about an hour more. It had been ten years; patience for one more hour would be easy enough.

He slid down in the seat and checked his watch.

It was 9:30.

 

****

Sam and Jason were on their third pot of coffee. The newscast at 6:00 P.M. had broadcast the picture and information about Michael Barton, but had prompted little in the way of leads. There were a couple of calls from folks who thought Michael looked familiar but couldn't remember where they had seen him. Of course, they took down all the info, but none of them seemed promising.

The 10:00 P.M. news had started and, within minutes, the picture of Michael Barton appeared on the screen.

 

“Police are seeking information from anyone who may have seen this man.”

 

They proceeded to give a description and show the phone number. A call came in and Sam answered. Another call came in and Jason answered. After a few moments, Jason hung up.

The phone rang again and Jason picked it up.

“Hotline.”

“Yes, my name is Peggy and I met the man in that picture.”

Jason sat straight up. Sam was still on the other call but he saw Jason motioning.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, quite sure. In fact, he identified himself as ‘Michael from San Antonio’. It was that man.”

“When was this?”

“A week, maybe ten days ago.”

Jason was scribbling down details as fast as he could.

“What were the circumstances of your meeting?”

“I am the receptionist for Golden Century Realty. He came into our office looking for one of our salesman.”

“Really? Can you tell me who the salesman was that he was interested in?”

“Is my co-worker in danger?”

“I don't know for sure, but it is a possibility.”

Peggy hesitated for a moment and Jason tried to remain patient.

“Wade Duncan.”

“Do you know his address?”

Jason was already getting up and preparing to leave while Peggy gave him the address. Sam hung up and came over. Jason showed him the address and Sam nodded his head. Jason thanked the lady and hung up. They raced for the door.

****

Wade didn't know how long he'd been out. The trunk was shut and in the darkness, he couldn't tell if it was still night or the next morning. More importantly, he didn't know what had happened to Katie and Jack. There might still be time to warn them, or it may already be too late. He didn't know what the man was planning, but he knew it couldn't be good.