Chapter Eight: Calling All Bob-Whites

A Bob-White reunion was normally an occasion for celebration and fun, so the serious faces of the teenagers posed a disquieting contrast to their usual gatherings. The boys shook hands soberly, and Di hugged Trixie, her violet eyes shining with unshed tears. The early morning air was fresh and chilly.
        “Come on inside,” Jim urged. “We can talk.” He led the way across the courtyard and into the apartment.
        “Before we fill you in, what about Moms and Dad?” Trixie looked anxiously at Mart.
        He shook his head. “We’ve left a message at the farm, but Uncle Andrew isn’t due in until tomorrow and Moms, when we spoke to her yesterday morning, said they were going to take their time getting there. We’ve changed the message on our answering machine and asked them to call here or the Wheelers.”
        Jim sighed. “I haven’t been able to reach Dad either. I know he’s due back in the States some time today. I’ve left a message on his cell. Mother’s in Paris, but neither Celia nor Regan knew exactly where. I’d rather talk to Dad first, anyway.”
        “Uncle Bill offered to come with us,” Dan said, “but we agreed it was better he stay at the Manor House, in case your parents call or in case whoever’s responsible for this makes contact. He’s pretty sure he can at least track down your father.”
        “I’m glad,” Jim said. “I’d really like to see Regan, but I feel happier knowing he’s on deck at home, especially with Miss Trask and her sister visiting their brother.” He paused to regard his friends. “I’m sure glad you’re all here. This is all a bit much for me. I guess I rely on Brian even more than I realized.”
        “We all do,” Mart said.
        Trixie gestured her friends toward the kitchen. “We should probably organize some breakfast. We didn’t think you’d be here so early.”
        “We forced ourselves to go to bed as soon as we got things sorted out after talking to you last night. I don’t think any of us got much sleep, but we wanted to get an early start.” Dan settled his lean form into one of the kitchen chairs.
        Di nodded. “I got dropped off at your house last night, Trix. That way at least we were all together.” 
        Mart added, “I was all for charging into the night, but Dan pointed out that we were going to need all our wits about us, and an early start was probably a better plan. So, what’s going on? What did the police say? How could this have happened? Has any contact been made?” Now, that the basics had been covered Mart had a million questions. He barely took time to breathe and he fixed Trixie and Jim with an intense stare.
        “We actually don’t know much more than we did when we spoke to you last night,” Jim replied. “The police called back just to let us know that they’d checked with hospitals and,” he took a breath, “morgues in the area, and no one answering Brian or Honey’s description had been treated. Trix contacted all the urgent care clinics–same result. So that rules out any possibility of an accident. He said not to expect to hear anything from them until sometime this morning.”
        Dan frowned. “That’s assuming that it was Honey or Brian who were injured. Besides, surely you told them neither Honey nor Brian would have left a pot burning on the stove or the kind of mess you described?”
         Jim nodded. “We told them, but I’m not sure they were completely convinced. At least now they can concentrate on what really happened. And as soon as they’ve had a chance to analyse the blood, we’ll have a better idea whether or not Honey or Brian was injured.”
        Di’s fair features paled even further at this. “It’s so awful,” she whispered.
        Jim rubbed his head worriedly then added, “The police do seem fairly keen to help.”
        Trixie snorted slightly and Jim gave her hand a squeeze.
        “They were a little sceptical at first, especially the younger officer, but they’re taking it very seriously now.”
        “Sceptical about what? Or should I say who?” Dan asked puzzled.
        “Whom,” Mart corrected automatically. “Sorry,” he mumbled. “Habit.”
            Dan waved his apology away.
            Jim looked slightly uncomfortable, and Trixie, blue eyes flashing, spoke up angrily. “Brian. The idiot thought that     Brian and Honey might have had some kind of fight and that Brian might have hurt Honey.”
            Not surprisingly, Dan, Di and Mart erupted in simultaneous protest.
            Jim held up his hand to stem the tide of anger. “They know now that Brian couldn’t possibly be involved,” he said decisively.
        “How could they even think that?” Di’s eyes widened, in disbelief.
        “They don’t know us. They have to check out every possible angle,” Dan said finally. “That’s part of their job.”
        Trixie opened her mouth to protest again, but Dan shook his head. “You know I’m right, Trix; every angle, every lead. Process of elimination.”

            The Bob-Whites exchanged looks. They all knew of Dan’s plans for a career in the police work. His own past had given him a healthy appreciation for the role a concerned, well-trained officer can play in the life of a troubled youth. He’d made it his business to familiarise himself with the law, special projects and local force members. He’d also volunteered to work on youth-related programs. His experience and his opinion was valued by his fellow club members.
            “I do know, Dan. I’m sorry,” Trixie said contritely. “It’s just that it was hard to hear that policeman, he was so…”
            “Officious,” Mart offered.
            “No, he wasn’t efficient at all!” Trixie snapped.
            “I said officious, not efficient,” Mart said airily, unable to resist teasing his sister even in this troubled time, or maybe because of it. “It means intrusive, forward.”
            “Listen, Mr. I-Eat-Dictionaries-for-Breakfast,” Trixie began hotly. She stopped abruptly as Di, in spite of the seriousness of the situation, erupted in a fit of giggles.
            “Sorry,” she managed in between gasps, her face red. “It’s just that you both sounded so normal,” she gulped. “I’m sorry,” she repeated. 
            Trixie moved across to hug her friend. “You’ve got nothing to be sorry for. I guess it’s kind of reassuring to know that whatever happens you can count on Mart and me to carry on with our regular bickering.”
            “Mart and I,” her brother said with a grin. “We wouldn’t want to disappoint. Would we, Trix?”
            “There’s no chance of either of you doing that. On any score,” Jim said staunchly. “Now, how about that breakfast?”
Some time later, the Bob-Whites were gathered in the living room. Their spirits and bodies revived by the food they had just consumed.
            “I was sure I wouldn’t be able to eat a bite,” Di confessed, draining her second cup of hot chocolate. “And I just ate heaps!”
            “Nobody thinks it means you don’t care, Di,” Dan was quick to point out. “Even in times of crisis, people need sustenance.”
            “Especially then,” Jim confirmed. “Though I have to agree, I felt the same way. I guess our bodies know what we need better than our hearts or minds.”

            During the preparation and eating of their breakfast, Trixie had been uncharacteristically quiet. Now, she leapt to her feet and paced up and down in front of her friends. “We have to do something!” she cried. “We can’t just sit here talking. We should be out looking for them.”
            “Fair enough, where would we start?” Mart asked, his tone calm and reasonable.
            “At the beginning, of course,” his sister snapped.
            “Where precisely might that be?”
            “How do I know?” Trixie glared at her almost twin.
            “Then what exactly are you proposing we do?” Mart continued.
            “Why do I have to do all the work?” Trixie shrieked. “Come up with the ideas? Organize everything?”
            The other Bob-Whites look appalled, but Mart remained unmoved.
            “You’re the detective,” he observed quietly. “It’s time to get to work.”
            “Okay, okay,” Jim interposed, standing up to put an arm around the now-distraught Trixie. “I think Trixie has had about as much as she can take for now.”
            There was a momentary hush following his calming words, and Trixie took a deep breath.
            “Mart’s right. I’m not making the most of my detecting instincts, so to speak.” She gave her brother a grateful smile.
            “Sorry, sis,” Mart said, “but we need the head of the Belden-Wheeler Detective Agency now, more than we ever have.” In some ways he understood his sister better than anyone. He wanted to give her a big hug, but knew that getting her to focus and use her instincts was more important.
            Trixie nodded. “Let’s approach this the way we would any other case or mystery we were trying to solve.”
            “Good idea,” said Dan. “In that case, and please don’t bite my head off, where do we start?”
            “I start by asking for a pad and a pen,” Di said “If we are going to do this properly, someone should take notes and keep a record.”
            “Sound thinking,” Jim said approvingly, moving to fetch these items and hand them to Diana. As soon as she was settled, Jim nodded to Trixie.
            “Well, there are a couple of things we do know and a couple more we can probably assume,” Trixie said professionally. “Firstly, we know down to a couple of hours when they were taken. We know they didn’t go willingly. Secondly, there had to be a least two and I’d bet on three, kidnappers.”
            Di’s pretty brow wrinkled. “How do you know that?”
            “Deduction,” Trixie responded without hesitation. “From what we’ve been able to piece together, Honey and Brian were taken completely by surprise. I think, and Jim agrees with me, that someone was probably watching the apartment and waiting until we had split up.  Add into the equation that someone tried to grab Honey the night before when she went out to the car alone, and I think we can assume that they waited until she was alone.”
            Jim nodded. “We also know Brian was going to drop off our assignments yesterday afternoon and they are gone. So that means either Brian left with them and came back, or they grabbed him when he left the building.”
            “The fact that something was cooking on the stove means that Honey certainly didn’t go with him. I think it’s more likely that the kidnappers originally struck when Honey was alone. Maybe Brian wasn’t gone as long as they expected. Maybe they couldn’t get into the apartment straight away,” Trixie continued. “But while one person may have managed to subdue Honey, that would have been a pretty big risk to take. There might have been two, but I’m willing to bet that between them, Honey and Brian, they would have made things pretty difficult for two people.”
            Di shook her head in amazement. “You’ve worked all that out with just the tiny amount of information we have now?”
            “It all sounds very plausible,” Mart said. “But surely it wouldn’t have mattered how many of them there were if they had a gun?”
            Trixie’s look of confidence faltered slightly, but she shook her own head decisively. “A gun would obviously make a difference, but they had to get them away from here without being noticed, so they must have had a car.”
            Mart nodded. “I’ll grant you the car, but what difference does that really make?”
            “There had to be at least two. One with the gun to watch Honey and Brian, and one to drive the car; it seems likely that that person would stay with the car.  Even if they didn’t, considering that it was just starting to get dark outside, they’d need someone to keep a lookout. It wouldn’t have suited their plan to get caught dragging Honey or Brian out of the building. So, there’s one to two making the grab and another person watching out, or with the getaway car, then you have three. Plus, someone was injured, we’re not sure who yet, but it would have made things more difficult.”
            “Do you think that someone was also waiting for the person who tried to grab Honey the other night?” Di queried.
            “I hadn’t really thought about it,” Jim said slowly. “Why do you ask?”
            “Well, from what you’ve said, one person made the attempt in the car park. But Honey was outside, it was night time and she was alone.” Di sounded hesitant, but continued after an encouraging pat from Mart. “So maybe, he had accomplices waiting nearby with a car or something. He couldn’t have just dragged Honey along the street. Someone might have seen something.”
            Trixie gave her friend an approving smile. “I hadn’t even thought of that,” she admitted. “That’s good reasoning, Di. And it gives us something else to check up on.”
            Di bent over the notepad scribbling furiously, her dark hair falling across her face and disguising her blush. She was not as intrepid as either Trixie or Honey, and she was proud to be able to contribute at such an important time.

          Trixie pushed a hand through her tangled sandy curls. “In light of everything we’ve just covered, I also think it’s safe to assume that they used the back entrance.”
            Dan raised his brows questioningly, and Trixie continued, “They couldn’t risk being seen coming out of the front door. There’s people coming and going constantly. In the car park, the other apartments, anyone sitting in any number of living rooms could have seen them.”
            “Plus,” Jim added, “the altercation appears to have been restricted to the kitchen, so Trixie’s theory tracks.”
            “We also found Brian’s keys, where he always leaves them, near the front door and Jim says that’s where he always leaves them. So, either he was with Honey or he came back that way and walked in on what was happening.”
The other Bob-Whites looked impressed at Trixie’s latest deduction.
            “So what now?” Mart asked. “We need to start gathering information. I know the police are on our side.” He waved his hand apologetically in Dan’s direction. “But we can’t leave it to them.”
            Dan nodded. “I actually agree with you. Normally, contact should have been made by now. I’m not sure what these people are after, but if it was only about money, my guess is that we’d have the ransom demand before this.”
            Trixie’s face reflected her relief that her friends were going to support her plan of action. “We need to talk to Kyle, Mick and Jeff. See if there is anything they can recall from the other night.”
            “And someone needs to follow up in that café you mentioned,” Dan noted. “I think it’s pretty important to establish whether or not Honey or Brian may have made a perfectly innocuous call to Rhumba’s or if, as we suspect, it’s something more sinister.”
            “That may be kind of hard to find out,” Mart said. “It’s a public phone, so who knows whether anyone would even notice it ringing.”
            “All the more reason to try,” Dan returned.
            “I also think we should talk to our speed-freaks from across the way,” Jim added grimly. “They’ve only been here a couple of weeks.”
            “Speed-freaks?” Di queried uncertainly.
            “I think they might be brothers. They’re subletting, or something like that. They roar in and out of the place constantly. They nearly knocked Trixie down the other morning,” Jim explained.
            “Nice,” Mart said. “Do you know anything about them?”
Jim shook his head. “Not really, but one of them is probably in his late twenties. Old enough to know better.”
            “They definitely sound worth talking to.” Dan stood and moved around the living room stretching his long legs. He crossed to the window and, pulling back the curtain, gazed intently across the courtyard.
            “You’re right, Trix,” he announced, turning back to face the others. “Someone just pulled out of here; there’s two people getting out of their car in the lot, and across the way a guy’s sitting on his balcony. You couldn’t risk going out the front way.”
            “We should talk to all the residents though, shouldn’t we?” Di suggested. “They may have heard something, seen a car. Something that will provide us with a clue.”
             “Maybe you and Mart could make a start on that.” Jim looked to Trixie as he spoke and she nodded in agreement. “We should also check whether our assignments made it to the college.”
            “I’ll have a chat with your newer residents with the penchant for fast cars. And a quick look around the area where the attempted grab took place,” Dan offered.
            “Jim and I will examine the rear entrance thoroughly now that we think that's where the kidnappers parked, then check in with the college,” Trixie said with renewed purpose.
            “It’s still pretty early. It’s only just turned nine,” Diana noted.
            “Good,” said Trixie briskly. “We might catch some people by surprise.”
            “I just need to call home,” Diana said. “I promised Daddy I’d check in. He said if we haven’t heard from your dad in the next few hours, Jim, he thinks he should come out here.”
            “If we can’t get a hold of Dad soon, we’ll let him know,” Jim said. “I’ll be glad of the support, Di.”
            Di nodded and moved to the phone. It didn’t take long.
            “Okay. We all have our assignments. Let’s get to it.” Jim moved back to the desk. “I’ll just organize pens and paper for everyone. Let’s plan on comparing notes,” he said as he consulted his watch and finished, “say, ten-thirty?”
            The young people, their expressions serious and determined, headed out to complete their tasks.
        MBW:MAIN                                                                                                                                                                                                                        NEXT
 
Author's notes: More and yet more thanks to Dana and her dynamic editing skills. Her technical prowess, narrative savvy and ability to pick up on my glaring Aussie-isms are all helping to make this a better story.  All remaining errors and wackiness are all my own.
Word count: 2950
    Disclaimer: Trixie et al belong to Random House and not to me. No profit is being made from these scribblings.