Part 2
Trixie slowly became aware of the sunlight streaming through the window as she woke. Opening her eyes slightly, she wasn’t surprised to see her head on a T-shirt clad chest.
Slowly stretching her head, she glanced at the clock on the far side of the bed. She could see it was still early. Closing her eyes, she settled her head back on Jim’s chest. As she let out a breath, she thought back to the previous night. She called dinner together, then kissing one another on the couch before making their way up to their bedroom. She smiled thinking how wonderful the rest of the night was.
She suddenly felt Jim start to shift beneath her. She knew he was beginning to wake as he wrapped his right arm around her shoulder and caressed it.
Trixie kissed Jim’s chest and he said, “Good morning.”
“Good morning to you.”
“How did you sleep?”
“Pretty well.” She propped herself up on her arm and looked at Jim.
He reached up and brushed a curl away from her forehead. “I really enjoy waking with you in my arms.”
“I feel the same way.” Trixie kissed Jim.
He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her to his chest, kissing her intensely.
Moments later, the phone rang, making them both groan.
“Always when we’re busy,” Trixie mumbled as Jim reached for the phone.
“Hello?” Jim caressed her cheek with his right hand. “Hey, Mart, what’s up?” Jim stopped moving his hand and sat up. “Are they all right?” He paused. “No, that’s fine. Take care of them and we’ll talk later. All right. Bye.”
As Jim put the phone down, Trixie noticed the concerned look on his face.
“What is it? What’s wrong with Mart?” Jim looked at her. “Is it Di? Or is there something wrong with the twins?”
“Relax and take a breath.” She did and kept her eyes focused on him. “The twins have been sick most of the night keeping Mart and Di awake caring for them. Mart said it’s nothing serious, just the flu. He wanted to take the day off so he could stay with Di to make sure the boys will be all right.”
“At least it’s nothing serious.”
“You’re right.” Jim slid off the bed, pulling his robe around him.
“Where are you going?”
“I need to get going,” Jim said. “With Mart not coming in, there will be more work for me to do.”
Jim turned and headed into the master bathroom. Trixie leaned back against the pillow and mumbled, “Mart, I’m going to get you for this.”
* * * * *
When Trixie arrived at the office, she realized she was early. Settling at the computer, she grabbed the list and started searching for addresses.
An hour later, Honey came into the office. “I’m sorry, Trixie.”
“It’s all right.”
“It’s just that everything went wrong this morning.”
“I know how you feel.”
“Was your morning just as bad?”
“Let’s just say that I could have lived without the interruption this morning.”
Honey sat down beside her and looked at the list. “It looks like you’ve accomplished a lot.”
“It wasn’t that difficult.” Trixie jotted down the last address. “That’s the list and every single one on the list lives in the city.”
“That has to be a coincidence.” Honey picked up the list and stared at it.
At that moment, Catherine threw the office door as she entered.
“Have you found anything?” Catherine asked, coming toward them.
“Nothing yet,” Honey replied.
“How come? You should have some news for me. That’s what I’m paying you for.”
“Hold on,” Trixie said, stunned by Catherine’s tone. “You just asked us to look into this yesterday.”
“And when I ask for something to be done, I expect results.”
“We are working on it,” Honey said.
“It doesn’t look like it.”
Trixie had enough. She thought her morning had been ruined by a phone call from her brother and then Catherine came in demanding answers on a case they were given less than twenty-four hours earlier. But she was about to lose it. She stood up and put her face right in front of Catherine. “Do you have any idea what our work involves?”
“No one talks to me like that,” Catherine said, with an air of superiority.
“Stop it,” Honey said. She looked at Catherine. “You asked us to find your brother and we are working on that. With the small amount of information you gave us, we are going to have to do a lot of searching. You have to give us some time to find him. We won’t find him in an instant.”
Catherine stared at Honey for a moment, then looked at the table. “I apologize. I’m anxious to find my only sibling.”
“Catherine, you hired us to do a job, so you need to trust us to do what we think is right.”
“You’re right. I’m sorry about barging in here.”
“We have your phone number, so we will keep you updated with whatever information we come across.”
“Thank you.” Catherine turned and left the office, gently pulling the door closed behind her.
“Whoa,” Trixie said. “I didn’t expect that fast of a turn around from her.”
“Hopefully she now understands she can’t get this solved quickly. She just has to give us time like I said.”
“You don’t have to convince me,” Trixie said. “And I probably could have been better with the situation then I was.”
“It’s okay,” Honey said. “How about I start making calls? I think the sooner we solve this, the better I’ll feel.”
“I’ve got the same feeling,” Trixie said.
“Let’s get to work then.”
Trixie nodded her head. As Honey started calling the names on the list, Trixie started another search hoping for something that would stand out, giving them the lead about the whereabouts of Catherine’s brother.
Focusing on the computer, Trixie tuned out Honey’s conversations. She had a feeling there was more information out there then they had received. She wanted to know what was missing.
Trixie went back to Catherine’s birth certificate and found out the hospital where she had been born. Finding the file, she looked at each line slowly. She knew that if Catherine’s certificate was there, then her brother’s should also be there. She searched through the files of all the children born the same day searching for one close to when Catherine had entered the world.
About thirty children had started life that day. She narrowed the list down to the children born an hour before and an hour after Catherine. She then eliminated all the girls born in those two hours leaver her with six boys. She eliminated one more because she saw on the certificate that he had been born at home.
Writing down the names, she examined all the information, wishing something would jump out, catching her eye.
“You would like us to come there?” Honey asked, getting Trixie’s attention.
Looking at her sister-in-law, she saw Honey was staring at her. Trixie shrugged her shoulders.
“Of course we can meet you at ten o’clock tomorrow morning. We appreciate you
making time for us.” Honey paused. “Thank you and we’ll see you tomorrow.
Good-bye.”
Honey hung up the phone. “That was the third number of the list.”
“Were there any leads?”
“Not with the first two. They only knew Catherine’s mother after she was born. They didn’t know anything about her before that time.”
“At least you’re getting somewhere.”
“What have you been up to?”
“I just searched the birth certificates of those children born the same day as Catherine.”
“Were there a lot?”
“About thirty. From there I eliminated those who were born more than an hour before and after Catherine was born and the girls born in that time.”
“How many were left?”
“Five.”
“That’s a good lead.”
“It may lead us closer to her brother. At least I hope it does.”
“You’re not the only one.”
* * * * *
It was early afternoon when they finally took a break. They had Chinese food in front of them as they talked about something other than work.
“You know,” Honey began. “You and Jim really need to come over and see how the nursery turned out. We finally finished it while you were both gone.”
“I can’t wait,” Trixie said. “We’ll have to do it soon. If not, the baby will see it first.”
“I’ve got an idea. Why don’t you and Jim come over for dinner tonight?”
“Are you sure? It’s awfully short notice.”
“Let’s call Brian and ask him. He’s at the school and he’ll readily agree. I know it.”
“Go ahead and give my big brother a call.”
Honey picked up the phone and started dialing. “Hi sweetheart.”
Trixie rolled her eyes. She couldn’t believe Honey called her brother that.
“I’m fine,” she said. “There’s something I need to ask you.” She looked at Trixie. “Why don’t we invite Jim and Trixie over for dinner tonight? They haven’t had a chance to see the nursery yet and they should before the baby is born.”
Honey took a breath and laughed. “I knew you would agree. You talk to Jim and we’ll see you at the house later.” She paused. “I love you too.”
Hanging up the phone, Honey said, “I knew he would agree.”
“I don’t think you gave him a chance to say no.”
“He agrees you two need to see the nursery.”
“All right.” Trixie tossed the trash. “Let’s get to work so we can get out of here at a decent time.”
“Good idea.”
Trixie moved back to the computer and continued her search on the five boys. She wanted to get as much information as she could before calling them. A she searched, she looked for photographs of the five men hoping she would see some resemblance between him and Catherine that would give her an immediate lead. But there were none.
After obtaining the phone numbers which she hoped were current, she called the parents, not knowing it they one they were looking for had been told he was adopted.
Dialing the first number, an answering machine picked up and she left a message. She had the same response at the next two. As she dialed the fourth number, she had a feeling she wouldn’t be talking to anyone that day. The phone was picked up on the second ring.
“Hello?” a female voice asked.
“May I speak to Margaret Oswald, please?”
“This is Margaret. May I help you?”
“My name is Trixie Frayne. I’m a private investigator and am looking for some information.”
“What kind of information?”
“I’m looking for a young man who was adopted about thirty years ago. He was born on October 16th.”
“My son was not adopted,” Margaret said harshly. “Don’t ever call here again.” The phone was slammed down.
Trixie slowly lowered the phone as she stared at it. She was shocked at the woman’s tone. She wondered if the woman knew something, but didn’t want to say anything.
Pushing the call out of her head, she dialed the last number on her list. She made contact and the mother said that her son was not adopted in a gentler tone than the previous call.
After hanging up, Trixie leaned back in her chair. She wondered if there were any other angles she could examine to find Catherine’s brother.
“Trix,” Honey said, getting her attention.
“Do you have a lead?”
“No. How about you?”
“I’ve left message at three of the five. One person I talked to was a very adamant that her son wasn’t adopted and the other was a little nicer, but said the same thing.”
“May the one who was adamant has something to hide,” Honey suggested.
“I was thinking that too. I’m going to research the family more.”
“Let’s save it for tomorrow,” Honey said. “It’ll take a little while to get to the apartment and all this will still be here when we come in.”
“That’s a good idea. There’s nothing more I can do until these people call me back.” Trixie stood up. “Let’s get out of here.”
* * * * *
An hour later, Trixie and Honey arrived at the apartment Honey and Brian lived in. They saw neither of their husband’s cars were parked in the lot. Once inside, the two of them quickly pulled a meal together before settling in the living room. Honey wanted both of them to see the nursery at the same time.
Half an hour later, they heard two vehicles pull up. A few minutes later, Brian and Jim came through the door.
“You beat us home,” Brian said, coming into the living room. He leaned down and gave Honey a kiss on the lips.
“Just by a little while,” Honey said.
“Hey sweetie,” Jim said, giving Trixie a kiss.
“I missed you,” Trixie wrapped her arms around Jim’s neck, returning the kiss.
“So,” Brian said, “have you shown Trixie the nursery yet?”
“Not yet. I was just waiting so I could show them both at the same time.” Honey got to her feet with some help from Brian.
Trixie got to her feet and noticed Jim’s face was flushed. “Jim, are you feeling all right?”
“I’m fine. Why?”
“Your face is flushed.”
“It’s from the cold wind. I’m fine.”
“Come on, you two. Dinner should be ready once you see the nursery.”
“We’re coming.”
Trixie and Jim followed Honey and Brian to the nursery. Honey stepped into the room and turned the light on.
Trixie stepped into the room, amazed. The room was decorated in pastels. There were circus animals on the walls. Everything seemed perfect for the baby and they had no idea if it was a boy or girl from the decor. The white crib matched perfectly with the pastel blanket and bumper pad to keep the baby from getting caught in the rails. A lamp with a circus elephant and monkey on its back adorned the dresser. There were a bunch of stuffed animals that could be seen at the circus set about the room.
“This is great,” Trixie said. “You both did an excellent job.”
“We can’t wait to put it to use,” Brian said, wrapping his arm around Honey’s waist.
“It won’t be long,” Honey said. “Come on. Let’s eat. Dinner should be ready by now.”
Trixie followed the others out of the nursery, turning the lights off. She was happy for her brother and best friend knowing they would make terrific parents. She couldn’t wait to have a family with Jim.
* * * * *
After dinner, they were back in the living room. Trixie sat with her back against Jim. She watched her brother as he had one arm draped over Honey’s shoulder while the other one rubbed her extended stomach. She could see he was anxious to hold their first child.
“So,” Jim said. “What have you to been doing today?”
“Trying to get a lead on the case,” Trixie said.
“The one where you’re looking for the woman’s brother?” Brian asked.
“Yeah,” Honey said. She explained how Catherine had stormed into the office earlier that morning. She even told them about how the search was going.
“Any leads yet?” Jim asked.
“Honey contacted acquaintances of Catherine’s mother,” Trixie said.
“Trixie did a search for all the children born the same day as Catherine and narrowed the list down to five possible people,” Honey said.
“That was good thinking, Trix,” Jim said.
“Hopefully this will give us something,” Trixie said. “We need some serious hard core clues.”
“You’ll get them. You always do.” Jim said and suddenly sneezed three times.
“Bless you,” Trixie said. “Don’t tell me you’re coming down with a cold?”
“It’s probably allergies,” Jim said. “Don’t worry.”
Trixie pushed it out of her mind, figuring he was right.
They talked for a while longer until Brian said, “It’s getting late and you both look exhausted.”
“I am a little,” Honey admitted.
“We should get going.” Trixie slid out of Jim’s arms and saw he was trying to keep his eyes open. “Come on.”
Jim got to his feet as Brian said, “Maybe Trixie should drive.”
“I’m fine,” Jim said. “It’s just been a long day.”
“I understand,” Brian said.
After saying good-bye, Trixie and Jim climbed into his Jeep with Jim behind the wheel. Trixie leaned her head against Jim’s shoulder as he drove.
“With all the talk after dinner, I didn’t get a chance to ask how your day was,” Trixie said.
“It was all right.” Jim let out three more sneezes.
“Bless you,” Trixie said.
“Sorry,” Jim said, pulling out a handkerchief and wiping his nose.
“It’s all right. So, how was your day?”
“Let me just say that Mart is going to owe me big time.”
Trixie sat up and looked at her husband. “Was it really that bad?”
“A couple of the kids have the flu. It seems to be working its way through the school. I have a feeling each student will have been sick at least once by the time this is over.”
“Just as long as you don’t get sick while it’s making its rounds.”
“I don’t want to get sick,” Jim admitted.
“Did you talk to Mart at all today?”
“For a few minutes. He’s going to stay home again tomorrow.”
“Are the twins worse?”
“They’re getting better. He just wants to make sure and get some sleep himself.”
“That’s understandable. I’m everything is going to be all right.”
“So am I. I can’t wait for Mart to come back.”
“Well, maybe when he does, you and I can take a day, just for us.”
Jim looked at her with a smile. “I like the sound of that.”
* * * * *
The next morning, Trixie was back at the office in front of the computer. She had a hot cup of coffee in her hand as she looked for any information to solve this case.
She closed her eyes and leaned back in the chair, fingering her coffee mug. She was exhausted. The previous night she had been ready to sleep, but wasn’t able to get any. All night long, Jim had tossed and turned, keeping her up. Jim was also tired, but couldn’t admit why he was having trouble sleeping.
“Good morning,” Honey said, coming into the office, making Trixie open her eyes.
“Morning.”
Honey stopped on the other side of Trixie’s desk, staring at her. “Are you feeling all right? You look tired.”
“I didn’t sleep well.”
Honey set her purse on the desk as she sat down. She asked, gently, “Did you and Jim have a fight?”
Trixie shook her head. “I just couldn’t sleep.”
“All right,” Honey said. “So, have you found anymore leads?”
“Not yet.” Trixie leaned forward and set the mug on her desk. “But hopefully, we’ll have something soon.”
“Don’t forget, we have the 10 o’clock meeting with the one woman today.”
Trixie looked at her watch. “We should get going then. Hopefully she has something valuable to this case.”
“I hope so too.”
* * * * *
An hour later they arrived in the city and parked in front of a two-story house. As they made their way to the door, Trixie asked, “Who is it we are seeing?”
“Her name is Gertrude Archibald. She is, or was, Alexandria’s best front in high school and college. She was really eager to talk to us.”
“Maybe she’ll be able to tell us about the little boy.”
“Maybe,” Honey said and knocked on the door.
As they waited, Trixie looked at the house. It had white, vinyl siding with blue shutters. Each window had blue curtains hindering the view of the inside. The sound of the door opening turned Trixie’s attention away from the house. She saw an older woman, standing at the door.
“You must be Honey,” the woman said.
“And you are Mrs. Archibald?” Honey asked.
“I am,” she replied.
Honey turned to Trixie. “This is my partner, Trixie Frayne.”
“Please come in.” Honey and Trixie stepped into the hall. Gertrude ushered them into the room to the right, the living room. “Please have a seat.”
They settled themselves on a couch as Gertrude settled in an armchair. Gertrude got right down to business. “What do you want to know about Alexandria?”
Trixie smiled. “We were wondering if you remember Alexandria when she was pregnant with Catherine.”
Gertrude smiled. “She was so happy to be having his child.”
“Can you tell us about it?” Honey asked.
“Alexandria had been seeing the same person all through high school. She kept saying how the two of them would marry and have a family of their own. It was about a month before graduation when Alexandria admitted being ill. She confided in me that she and her boyfriend had been intimate. We immediately went to another town to have her tested to see if she was pregnant.”
“And she was,” Honey concluded.
Gertrude nodded. “She was excited and couldn’t wait to share the news, but she held off until graduation.”
“So, after graduation, she told her parents and her boyfriend,” Trixie said.
“Yes, but her excitement quickly vanished when her boyfriend claimed it wasn’t his. He left and she never saw him again.”
“How did her parents react?” Honey asked. “They weren’t happy. They decided she would have the baby and put it up for adoption when she wouldn’t name the birth father.”
“Her parents didn’t believe her when she said it was her boyfriend?” Trixie asked.
“No. Especially since he denied it.”
“Then what happened?” Honey asked.
“Alexandria’s parents took her to a relative in another town so she would be out of sight of the neighbors. Her parents didn’t want them talking about Alexandria’s condition.” Gertrude paused. “During her time there, Alexandria constantly wrote to me. I couldn’t write back, but she kept me up to date as to what was going on. Alexandria hated being away, but knew she couldn’t go against her parent’s wishes. About a month before her due date, Alexandria called.”
“She had given birth,” Honey concluded.
Gertrude nodded. “I asked if the baby had arrived and she said the baby had. I could tell Alexandria was upset. She said the babies were being monitored because they were early.”
“Didn’t her comment about ‘babies’ catch your attention?” Trixie asked.
“I always thought it was a mix-up,” Gertrude said. “I figured she was upset because the baby was early.”
“Did Alexandria say anything about the babies?” Honey asked.
Gertrude closed her eyes and was quiet for a couple minutes. She opened her eyes and looked at them. “I do remember a comment Alexandria made when she came home with Catherine. I was surprised her parents let her bring the baby home. When I was holding Catherine, I commented on how beautiful she was and Alexandria said ‘they are beautiful’.”
“So, Alexandria knew there were twins and she kept one,” Trixie said.
“There must have been another and that one was adopted,” Honey said.
Trixie looked at Gertrude. “Are you sure Alexandria never said anything about the other baby?”
“Nothing,” Gertrude said. “I can’t believe she kept that secret.”
“Do you think the birth father ever knew there were twins?” Honey asked.
“He never knew,” Gertrude said. “He joined the Army and went off to war. He never came back.”
Trixie looked at Honey. “This gives us some idea as to what went on.”
“But it doesn’t lead us to the other baby,” Honey said.
“At least we have a start,” Trixie said. “It’s more than we had before.”
Honey agreed and looked at Gertrude. “Thank you for taking the time to talk to us.”
“I hope it’s been some help,” Gertrude said.
“We do appreciate it,” Trixie said.
After saying good-bye, Trixie and Honey headed back to the office.