Free It Only Takes a Moment by Mary Jane Clark Page A

stood at the door. One was of medium height and build, the other was tall and quite overweight. Maria wondered how he would ever be able to run to catch a criminal. Both wore neatly pressed blue uniforms, heavy black leather gun holsters around their waists.
    “May I help you?” Maria asked.
    “Buenos días, ma’am,” said the medium-size policeman. “Are you Maria Rochas?”
    “Yes.”
    “And your mother is Carmen Garcia?”
    Maria shifted the baby on her hip. “ Sí. ”
    “We have a few questions to ask you regarding your mother.”
    Maria waited, not inviting them inside.
    “When was the last time you saw your mother?”
    “Over the weekend. We went to Mass together on Sunday and then she spent the afternoon here.”
    “You didn’t see her at all on Monday?”
    “No,” answered Maria.
    “Did you talk with her on the phone?”
    “No, I didn’t.”
    “Do you usually talk to her every day?”
    “Yes.”
    “Does she usually call you or do you usually call her?”
    “We usually talk during my break. I usually call her.”
    “Did you call her Monday at lunchtime?”
    “No, I didn’t.” Maria knew there was no point in lying. There was a way to check the phone records.
    “Why not?”
    Maria’s heart pounded and her face grew hot. Dear God, they werethinking she had something to do with Janie Blake’s disappearance, that she had known her mother wouldn’t be at the Blakes’ house, so she hadn’t bothered to call.
    “Why didn’t you call your mother on Monday, Mrs. Rochas?” the officer asked again.
    “I had to work through my break and I didn’t have a chance to call her. That is the truth. You can check with my boss.”
    The medium-size officer wrote down the name and address of the nail salon and the proprietor’s name.
    “May we see your papers?” asked the heavier one.
    Maria thought quickly. “My husband takes care of all that,” she said. “He’s not home.”
    “And where can we find your husband?”
    “He is working.”
    “Where?”
    Maria hesitated. “At the car wash.”
    The officers looked at each other.
    “Look, ma’am,” said the fat one. “We know that most of the guys who work at the car wash are illegal. That’s not what we’re here about. We want to find Janie Blake and your mother.”
    “Is there anything you can think of that will help us find them?” asked the other cop. “Did your mother say anything, tell you anything at all, that might assist us?”
    The baby in Maria’s arms started to cry. The combination of the morning heat, the smell of spit-up, and the tension made Maria feel nauseous. She struggled to remain erect.
    “I can’t think of anything. No.”
    The policemen didn’t look pleased. “All right, Mrs. Rochas. That’s all for now. But if it turns out you know something and aren’t telling us, there will be serious consequences,” said the heavy cop.
    “Life-changing consequences,” said the other cop.

CHAPTER 27
    “W hat the hell were you thinking, Annabelle?” It was Executive Producer Linus Nazareth calling from the control room at the KEY News Broadcast Center.
    “Excuse me?” said Annabelle into her cell phone.
    “Why on earth would you make yourself the spokesperson for Eliza and go out there and brief our competition?” Linus was shouting and Annabelle could imagine all the people in the control room listening to the executive producer’s tirade.
    “Because Eliza and I decided it would be the best way to handle it, Linus,” she said evenly. “And I want to do anything I can to help.”
    “Well, you can help Eliza without screwing us, can’t you?” Linus demanded. “Anything and everything pertaining to this case should air on KEY News first. We should be exclusive on every bit of new information. And there you are, giving it up to the other networks. I saw clips of you on Today, Good Morning America, and the CBS Early Show. What’s the matter with you?”
    Annabelle was ready to scream right back at him, but