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Yeah, sure, she agreed this course of action was the best thing for a kid who was beyond screwed up at this point. The abduction had obviously terrified him into fantasyland. And his mom was dead. Kelly patted his back. Poor little thing. How long had his mother been gone? Kelly knew only too well that it didn’t matter how long it’d been; the kid would hurt from that loss forever.
As they walked, Kelly listened to Wentworth’s authoritative voice behind her instructing someone to meet him in front of the police station. Who? She’d assumed the FBI would give them a ride to wherever Wentworth lived. Probably in the penthouse of a waterfront condo on Brickell Avenue, which fortunately wasn’t too far away. She really looked forward to a hot shower and something to eat. And she had to admit it’d be interesting to work with a sketch artist. She’d help however she could to get Adam and Caleb off the streets. That’s why she became a cop.
Dirtbags belonged behind bars.
A blast of hot air enveloped her like an old flannel robe as she exited the police station. Thank goodness. She narrowed her eyes against the bright light. Realizing how tense she’d held herself because of the cold, Kelly consciously relaxed her shoulders. As soon as she thawed out, she’d give Wentworth back his jacket.
A sleek black limousine pulled to a smooth stop in front of the station. A uniformed chauffeur exited, hurried around to the passenger side and opened the door.
“Thanks you, Hans,” Wentworth said.
Kelly stared at the limo. She’d never been inside one before.
“What’s wrong?” Wentworth asked.
“Nothing.” Kelly wrapped both arms around Jason, ducked her head and climbed into the vehicle. No graceful way to do it in running shorts. Facing the front, she planted her almost bare butt in the seat, and ran her palm across supple, luxurious black leather, breathing in its distinctive scent. She noted a bar to her left with two crystal decanters and matching glasses. Certain the amber liquid inside the decanters was some sort of liquor, she wished she could take a long swallow for quick warmth.
Better not. She needed to stay sharp.
Wentworth sat facing her and Jason. He gazed at his son with such longing that her resentment softened just a bit. When the driver shut the door, it instantly became quiet, making Jason’s harsh, erratic breathing very loud.
Wentworth’s eyes narrowed. “Is he okay?”
“I think his nose is stuffed up from all the crying.”
Wentworth leaned forward and reached his hand inside his coat pocket, his hand brushing against her flesh. She stiffened, but he withdrew a handkerchief and handed it to her.
“See if you can get him to blow his nose.”
She dangled it in front of the kid’s face. “Blow your nose, Jason,” she said.
“Hold it close,” Wentworth instructed.
But Jason turned his face away.
Wentworth placed the cloth next to Jason’s nose. “Come on, buddy. Blow for Daddy.”
The kid made a honking sound.
“Again,” Wentworth said.
After several more blows, the kid turned away again, placing his cheek against Kelly’s shoulder with a deep sigh, refusing to look at his father. But his breathing sounded better.
Kelly couldn’t read the expression on Wentworth’s face as he stared out a window. With a start, she realized they were moving. The vehicle was so solid, so quiet, or maybe the driver so expert, she hadn’t been aware that they’d entered traffic.
“Where do you live?” she asked after a few minutes.
“We spent the winter at the family villa on Collins Island.”
Kelly didn’t know what to react to first—the fact that it was currently spring, not winter, or that he had a villa, no less, on a private island accessible only by boat. No one could get on or off Collins Island without permission from an owner who resided on the Forbes Best or Most Whatever list.
Wentworth brushed lint off his trousers. “Jason has been receiving therapy from a child psychiatrist associated with Miami Children’s Hospital, so we stayed on this year.”
She nodded. So the kid had already been screwed up before the kidnapping.
“Have you called his doctor?” Kelly asked. “To let him know what’s going on?”
