Precious Stones Read online

  Michael walked over to the crib and looked into the child’s innocent eyes, playing it cool. “She’s beautiful, Kevin.”

  “I know,” he answered as he leaned against the door frame.

  “Do you mind if I hold her?” Michael asked. He wanted to make sure she was unharmed and in good health.

  “Yeah, but just for a second,” he replied nervously. “Her mom will be picking her up shortly, and she might not want other people handling her child.”

  Michael held the baby close and was sure this was Keilah’s daughter. Now all he had to do was get her back to her parents safely and as soon as possible. Kevin had obviously gone off the deep end to resort to kidnapping. Who knew what else he was capable of? If he let him get away with her, they Stones might not ever see their child again. He felt responsible, since adopting a child was something they had talked about when they were together.

  “She’s beautiful. What’s her name?” Michael asked.

  Stuttering, Kevin said, “A—A—Angel.”

  “Angel. What a pretty name for such a pretty girl.”

  The baby started crying as Michael held her. “I think she’s hungry. Can I feed her, please?”

  Kevin was reluctant, as he wanted Michael out of the house as quickly as possible. “I’ll let you feed her, but after that you have to leave. Give me a second to warm her bottle.”

  Michael placed Neariah back into the crib and then quietly followed Kevin into the kitchen, where he found him standing at the sink with his back to the door.

  “Why are you here, Michael? I thought you hated me,” Kevin asked suspiciously.

  “I never hated you. I just hate what you did,” he said as he walked up behind Kevin.

  Kevin sat the bottle of milk on the countertop and quickly turned around. He lunged at Michael with a large butcher knife.

  “Damn it, Kevin!” Michael yelled as he jumped away from the sharp blade.

  Kevin swung the knife at Michael again and yelled, “You’re not taking that little girl from me.”

  “She doesn’t belong to you!” Michael shouted as he tried to grab Kevin’s wrist. “Put the knife down.”

  “You son of a bitch!” Kevin yelled as he swung the knife again, connecting with Michael’s hand. Blood started seeping from the wound, but Michael was able to get a good grip on Kevin’s wrist. Kevin struggled to free himself as Michael pinned him against the cabinet. He had all but cut off Kevin’s circulation, but the blood running down his hand was causing him to lose his firm grip.

  Kevin eventually dropped the knife and asked, “Why are you doing this to me?”

  Michael put Kevin’s arm behind his back and wrapped his other arm around his neck. “Oh, let me see. You sent a journalist to Keilah’s office, who threatened to expose her relationship with me. You spray painted obscenities in my driveway, and you assaulted Keilah and kidnapped Keilah’s daughter.”

  Kevin continued to struggle against the tight hold Michael had on his throat, but it was to no avail. He clawed at Michael’s arm with his hand and tried to free himself; however, his air supply was quickly being cut off.

  “I’m so sorry, Kevin. You’re out of control and a danger to society. I can’t let you hurt anyone else. Lord, please forgive me.”

  There was a loud cracking noise, and then Kevin went limp in Michael’s arms. He let Kevin’s body slide down to the floor and then grabbed a towel to wrap around his bloody hand. He quickly headed back into the bedroom, where he handed the bottle of milk to Neariah, who was still lying in the crib.

  “Let’s get you home,” he whispered as he cuddled her in his arms and quietly exited the home. He knew he was leaving his DNA in the house, but it was more important to return Neariah to her family.

  Outside, Michael looked around to see if anyone saw him leaving Kevin’s town house. He put Neariah on the front seat of his vehicle and did his best to buckle her in safely since he didn’t have a car seat handy. She seemed calm as he struggled to secure her in the seat while she drank her milk. He continued to speak to her in a calm, soothing tone, and when she smiled up at him, it warmed his heart and made him feel like the crime he had committed was necessary to save her life. Now all he had to do was get the baby back in the arms of her loving parents.

  As he was backing out of the parking lot, Ramsey’s vehicle nearly rammed his as it came to a screeching halt behind him. Keytone jumped out of the vehicle with his weapon drawn and ran over to the driver’s side of Michael’s car and opened the door.

  “Put the goddamn car in park and get out of the car!”

  With his heart beating a thousand beats per minute, Ramsey hurried over to Michael’s vehicle and nervously peeked inside. He thought he would pass out when he saw the little girl lying back on the seat, quiet and content as she continued to drink her milk. As Keytone held Michael against the vehicle at gunpoint, Ramsey picked the child up, and to his shock, it wasn’t Neariah.

  “Is she okay?” Keytone asked.

  With his voice quivering and tears in his eyes, Ramsey whispered, “She’s fine, but it’s not Neariah.”

  “What?” Keytone yelled as he walked around the vehicle to see for himself. When he looked at the child, he yelled all sorts of obscenities.

  “Ramsey, I didn’t have anything to do with it,” Michael pleaded. “I was on my way to bring your daughter back to you.”

  “I believe you,” Ramsey answered, then instructed Keytone to put the gun away. “But this is not my daughter.”

  “It’s not?” Michael asked, with his voice quivering. “She looks like the picture I saw on the news.”

  “They have similar features, but no, this is not Neariah,” Ramsey said as he cuddled the child to comfort her.

  Michael slid down on the ground and mumbled, “What have I done?”

  Keytone pulled the gun back out of his waistband and asked, “Whose child is this?”

  With his head in his hands, Michael answered, “I don’t know. I took her from the man who resides here because I thought it was Keilah’s daughter.”

  “I need to talk to him,” Keytone said as he headed toward Kevin’s door, but Michael called out to him to stop him.

  “He won’t be answering the door. I made sure of that.”

  Concerned, Ramsey stared at Michael and asked, “What did you do?”

  Michael ran his hand over his head and said, “He’s dead on the kitchen floor.”

  “Shit!” Ramsey yelled when he noticed the blood on Michael’s hand. “Are you shot? You’re bleeding!”

  “No, I’m not shot, but he did cut me pretty deep on my hand when he tried to stab me.”

  Keytone looked in the back of Ramsey’s truck and pulled out a first-aid kit. He walked over to Michael and tended to his hand.

  “What made you think he was involved?” Ramsey asked.

  “I saw the video surveillance on TV and noticed the way the man walked and his build. It looked like him. I killed a man for no reason.”

  “Him who?” Ramsey asked.

  “Kevin. The guy I used to be friends with. You remember him from the night Keilah shot me?”

  “That dude?” Ramsey asked.

  Michael nodded and then said, “You two need to get out of here. I’ll take the heat for this. I’m sure someone’s called the police by now after hearing all this commotion.”

  Ramsey pulled out his cell phone and said, “No way. This isn’t my daughter, but you risked your life to save her, anyway.”

  “Who are you calling?” Keytone asked as he looked around to see it they had drawn the attention of any of the neighbors.

  “I’m calling Kyle. He can get some people out here quick to help us with this situation.”

  “I’m sorry, Ramsey,” Michael stated. “I should’ve handled this with more discretion.”

  Ramsey looked Michael in the eyes and said, “You have nothing to be sorry for. I’m the one who should be apologizing to you. You didn’t have to get involved, but you did, and I appreciate
it.”

  “Maybe we should get back in the car before people get suspicious,” Keytone suggested.

  All three agreed and climbed into Ramsey’s vehicle and waited for instructions from Kyle. Within minutes two unmarked government cars pulled up to the complex, and four individuals exited the vehicles.

  Ramsey gave the child to one of the men, who buckled her into a car seat in one of the unmarked vehicles. Then he and Michael went inside the town house with the agents to inspect the scene. When they finished, the agents put Michael in the backseat of one of their vehicles, a black sedan, and assured Ramsey that he would be taken care of. Another agent got inside Michael’s vehicle and drove it away from the premises.

  “Where are you taking him?” Ramsey asked, fearing that Michael might be arrested.

  “Don’t worry, Mr. Stone. We have to talk to Major Monroe, but he should be home before dawn, and we’ll find the child’s parents,” said one of the agents.

  Ramsey leaned down to talk to Michael. He handed him a business card and said, “Call me as soon as you get home. I appreciate everything you’ve tried to do for me and Keilah.”

  Michael took the card out of his hand and said, “It was my pleasure.”

  Ramsey smiled and said, “Hey, guys, make sure you get him to a doctor and get his hand stitched up, and let him call his woman on the way. I’m sure she’s worried sick about him.”

  “We’ll take care of it. Don’t worry,” one of the agents stressed to Ramsey. “Major Monroe’s in the best hands possible, and please know that the authorities are doing everything they can to find your daughter.”

  Ramsey closed the door of the black sedan and climbed into his own car. As he and Keytone were pulling out of the parking lot, they met a van with government license plates pulling into the complex. They assumed it had been called in to discreetly remove Kevin, who was lying dead on the kitchen floor.

  Keytone looked at Ramsey. “What next, bro?”

  “I won’t stop until I find my daughter.”

  Chapter Twenty-four

  In an unmarked stone building downtown, Michael sat in a room while a doctor stitched the cut on his hand. One of the agents who had brought him there walked in with a notepad and a cup of coffee.

  “Major, how are you feeling?” he asked.

  “I’m fine. Just a little tired,” Michael replied. “I’d like to get home so I can get out of these bloody clothes.”

  “Don’t worry. We’ll have you out of here in no time. Doc, are you almost done?” the agent asked.

  “He’s stitched up. I just need to give him tetanus shot and put a dressing on him, and he’s all yours,” the doctor answered.

  Being in the military most of his life, Michael knew not to ask a lot of questions, but he was extremely curious about where he was and who he was with.

  “Who are you, and what’s going to happen to me?” Michael finally asked the man in the suit.

  The agent crossed his leg over his ankle and tapped the ink pen on the table and, with a smile on his face, answered, “Oh, you don’t have to worry about anything, Major. I’m a friend of a friend who didn’t want to see a good man’s life ruined for trying to saving a child. Your debt to this country is more than paid after your service to this country, not to mention what you suffered at the hands of those insurgents when you were imprisoned. What you did tonight for that little girl was necessary.”

  “All done!” the doctor announced as he removed his rubber gloves. “You’re as good as new, Major.”

  Michael hopped down from the examination table. As he examined the dressing on his hand, he said, “Thank you.”

  “Have a seat, Major. I brought you some coffee. I’m sure you could use the caffeine at this late hour,” said the agent.

  Michael sat down across from the agent and took a sip of the hot beverage.

  “Okay, Major. Let me run a few things by you. The perpetrator at the town house was an acquaintance of yours, correct?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  The agent flipped the page over on his notepad and stated, “And you went to his town house, why?”

  Michael took a breath and said, “I saw the surveillance tape of the kidnapping at the zoo this morning, and I thought I recognized the child on TV from a picture I had seen on Mrs. Stone’s desk in her office.”

  “Don’t you think it would’ve been safer to call the police?”

  “You don’t understand, sir. I felt responsible. Therefore, it was my job to make sure I got that little girl back to her family.”

  The agent studied Michael’s body language and then asked, “Why did you feel responsible?”

  With his head in his hands, Michael revealed his sordid past to the government agent. He told him about the sexual abuse by Lieutenant Colonial Biggs, which led to his confusing relationship with Kevin and their desire at one time to have a child and be a family. That was when he confessed to his plan to marry Keilah, have a child, and fight her for custody of the baby after divorcing. He explained that he couldn’t go through with it. He actually loved Keilah and was very remorseful for hurting her. He felt obligated to make right all the wrongs he had committed in order to redeem himself and thus have a chance at a respectable and happy life.

  “So you see, sir, Kevin always blamed Keilah Stone for ruining our relationship, and he desperately wanted a child. When I saw the person on the tape, the physical characteristics of the kidnapper looked like Kevin’s. I had to do something.”

  “It’s obvious you’ve had some challenges in your lifetime, Major Monroe, but I’m here to tell you that no good deed goes unrewarded. It’s unfortunate that a life has been lost over this situation. Mr. Wilson is no longer here, and we have to be mindful that he probably has family who loved him.”

  “He has a mother in Connecticut and a sister who, I believe, still lives in Baltimore,” Michael disclosed. “I didn’t want things to end like this. Kevin was a friend, but he had changed and become erratic. He blamed Keilah for missing out on the best chance he had to have a child. That’s why I thought he was the man on the video.”

  The agent jotted down some notes, and then their interview was interrupted when another gentleman entered the room and handed the agent interviewing Michael a folder.

  He opened it and said, “Major, you’ve been most helpful in this investigation. It might ease your mind to know that we found out who the child belongs to. Her mother was a prostitute, and Mr. Wilson used to keep the child for her from time to time. Some of her friends said she sold her child to Mr. Wilson for a thousand dollars. Unfortunately, she’s no longer with us, because her pimp beat her to death two nights ago.”

  Michael was shocked. He never thought Kevin would try to buy a child, but who best to buy one from than a prostitute?

  The agent went on. “Mr. Wilson’s cause of death will be described as the result of your self-defense. You have the injury to substantiate it. And the child will be put in foster care until a suitable home can be found for her. We’ll notify his family of his death.”

  “And tell them what?” Michael asked.

  The agent stood and said, “The truth.”

  Michael solemnly nodded, but his heart was still heavy.

  “You will be listed in the investigation only as a Good Samaritan. Now, come on so we can get you out of those bloody clothes and back home.”

  Michael stood and asked, “What’s going to happen to the child?”

  The agent looked at Michael and said, “She’ll be put into foster care until we have a chance to try and locate family members.”

  “What happens if you’re unable to find her family?” Michael asked with concern.

  The man looked at Michael and said, “I guess she’ll stay in foster care until she can be adopted. Why?”

  Michael hesitated for a second and then said, “If possible, I would like the opportunity to adopt her first.”

  The agent smiled and opened the door. “I’ll see what I can do. Come on so we can ge
t you some clean clothes.”

  Michael followed him into another section of the building, where they provided him with hospital scrubs to wear home in place of his bloodstained attire.

  An hour later they dropped him off at Madeline’s house, and before he could walk to the front door, she ran out into the yard and jumped into his open arms.

  With tears in her eyes she hugged him tightly and said, “I was so worried about you. Where have you been? Are you okay?”

  “I am now,” he whispered in her ear as he held her tightly against his chest.

  “What happened to your hand? I told that man not to let you get hurt!”

  Michael chuckled and said, “It’s not that bad, and Ramsey didn’t have anything to do with this.”

  “Major Monroe,” the government agent called out to him from behind the wheel.

  With Madeline by his side, Michael walked over to the agent’s car.

  The agent reached inside his jacket and handed Michael his business card. “Call me if you need anything or have any questions.”

  “I will. Thank you.”

  He put the car in reverse and said, “No, thank you, and someone will bring your vehicle home shortly.”

  Once the car was gone, Madeline asked, “Who was that?”

  “To be honest, I’m not sure,” he answered.

  “Come on inside, babe, so I can take care of you. You’ve been gone all night, and what happened to your clothes?”

  He held up the bag with soiled clothes and said, “They’re in here. They got a little dirty. I’ll wash them when I get home. Right now all I care about is some breakfast and sleeping with you in my arms.”

  She held on to his waist and said, “That sounds wonderful. Go shower while I make you breakfast. I hope you’re hungry.”

  “Don’t worry. I am.”

  Michael disappeared up the stairs while Madeline took eggs and bacon out of the refrigerator.

  Ramsey was pretty much running on fumes by the time the sun came up. He took comfort knowing that his parents were at the hospital with Keilah, but there was only so much he could do. He and Keytone had been to the TV station to be taped for the upcoming news segment, and they’d gone back to the zoo, but to no avail. There was still no sign of Neariah and no phone call asking for ransom. Since Tori was their best witness, they decided to go back to the hospital to check on Keilah and see if Tori remembered anything she hadn’t already revealed.