“Her great-grandmother,” Peabody began.
“Dead—three years ago, traffic fatality. So, nobody.”
She switched on the board to start on the transfer of data and images. “With Covino and the others Dawber took, they had people, they had jobs, residences. And he took them for himself, not for profit. Mina Cabot had the same, but they still managed to hold her, without a trace, for months. Dorian, and others like her? They’ve got nothing and nowhere.”
“Easier pickings.”
“Probably, sure. But someone like Mina represents more projected profit. That’s my take, anyway, after a glance at the sales packets.”
“Do you want me to finish that?”
“No, I want you to start a search, nationwide, using Mina Cabot as a template. The age range, the good, solid family/neighborhood/schools angle. No history of running away, no trouble. And start with the seriously pretty type. Factor in missing for at least two months.”
She continued as she worked. “Filter out any with more than a sixty percent probability they were taken by a parent, family member, or other individual, any with conclusive ransom demands at the outset.”
“Nationwide?”
“If you don’t get a break in the next twenty-four, we’ll take that global. But for now, I want to whittle down whatever you get to highest probability, see if we can map it out, pinpoint areas, hunting grounds. When Feeney shakes free, he wants in. He can take this end over from you, but get it going.”
Peabody puffed out her cheeks, released the air. “Do you need me in here with Nadine?”
“Did you do the coffee thing?”
“Done. And if you don’t need me, I’d do better on a search of that scope at my desk. And I could tap one of the techie-type uniforms to assist.”
“Go do that. And have Nadine’s camera wait in the lounge until I clear him or her in.”
When Peabody left, Eve stepped back to scan the board. A lot of data already. Hadn’t done Mina Cabot any good, she thought, but they wouldn’t have the data without her.
“An alliance,” she said to herself, thinking of Willowby’s term. “I can see it. Same age, good brains. Your idea, I’m betting,” she added, looking at Mina’s ID shot. “Somebody like Dorian’s more used to going it on her own. You? Solid family, soccer team, friends. So you reach out to somebody you figure has some street smarts, somebody who wants out as much as you.
“And you’re the distraction.”
She thought, paced, thought, paced.
“Make yourself boot up dinner. There’s a mess. Do they call in a medical, take you to whatever sort of medical facility they have on-site? Have to have one on-site. It’s smart, took some guts and … trust,” she decided. “There had to be trust between the two of you. More than two of you?”
She rolled that around, but she just didn’t see it. Bring too many in, you widen the possibility somebody breaks, says or does the wrong thing, screws it all up.
Not impossible, she thought, but unlikely.
She stepped up, looked into Dorian’s angry eyes.
“Where the hell are you?”
* * *
Dorian woke in a bed, and under the hurt, under the fog, panic cut like blades. They’d found her. They’d taken her back to … She couldn’t remember, not all the way.
But she surfaced swinging, slapping out.
“Easy now, you’re safe now.”
The voice, male, older, quiet, had a steady calm. But her breath kept jumping in and out of her chest.
“You’re hurt, and you’ve got a fever. We’re going to help you.”
She saw the man, the wavy mass of brown hair, the little beard, the blue eyes, calm and quiet like the voice.
“Who are you?” Her voice sounded wrong, all croaky and hoarse.
“We’re friends. Mouser found you, and helped bring you here. It’s a safe place. Your ankle’s not broken, but you have a very bad sprain, and your knee’s banged up. You hit your head, or someone hit it. It’s probably a concussion. Do you understand me?”
“I guess.”
“We have another friend, and he’s a doctor. I sent for him, but if you want, we can get you to the hospital or contact someone. Your mother? Father?”
“No, no, no!”
“All right. We won’t do that. Drink a little water.”
When he held a cup to her lips, she grabbed it, tried to gulp it all at once.
“Not too much too fast. You’ll just sick it up. I’d like Dr. Gee to have a look at you before we give you anything more than the water. Do you want to tell me what happened to you?”