Baltimore [3.5] Broken Silence Read Free Page B

be watching over her. He hoped like hell he’d done the right thing. ‘I put off asking her,’ he confessed quietly to Kate. ‘But our chances of finding whoever killed Angel’s parents drop with every hour that passes. Angel’s the key.’
    ‘Hi, Joseph. Kate.’ Heidi closed the door behind her. ‘This kid is a tough nut to crack.’
    ‘Daphne may not have any more luck than you did,’ Joseph said. ‘Thanks for bringing Angel here so that we could try.’
    ‘My pleasure. It was good for her to get out of the hospital, get a little change of scenery. I have learned something about her. She has a sweet tooth.’ Heidi smiled at the little girl sadly. ‘We stopped for ice cream on the way. She put away three scoops. Kid has a hollow leg.’
    ‘Then she and Daphne should get along just fine.’ Sending up a prayer, Joseph listened.
    ‘Hey,’ Daphne was saying. ‘My name is Daphne. I hear they call you Angel.’ She took a moment to choose a coloring book from the pile on the table. ‘I actually thought you looked more like a fairy when I first saw you. Fairies have wings like angels, but they have more attitude. I like attitude. I’ve got a lot of attitude myself.’
    The child did not move a muscle.
    ‘I saw your boots,’ Daphne continued. ‘Love ’em. You’ve got good taste, sugar. Or maybe your mama has good taste. Either way, I’m jealous.’
    The child’s shoulders stiffened, a minute movement that Joseph might have overlooked had he not been watching so intently. Daphne noticed it too, her eyes flashing up to the glass before returning to her coloring book.
    ‘She did that,’ Heidi murmured, ‘whenever I mentioned her mother. But only when I said “mama.” I don’t think I got anything with “mommy” or “mother.” It might be nothing, of course.’
    ‘All parts of the puzzle,’ Joseph murmured back.
    ‘And your coat. It’s so beautiful and soft. Where did you get it?’ No response. Daphne chose a crayon and opened the coloring book. ‘Oh, I like this coloring book. It’s got ponies.’
    This time there was no mistaking it. Angel’s chin jerked up and she met Daphne’s eyes for a split second. Then a dark shadow crossed the child’s face, and down her chin went.
    ‘And here I’ve been coloring kitties all this time,’ Heidi said dryly.
    ‘You like ponies?’ Daphne asked quietly. ‘So do I. The pony in this book is on TV. I think it’s supposed to be blue or maybe purple, but I like pink, so I’m coloring this pony pink.’
    Angel’s shoulders heaved up and down. She was crying. Daphne swallowed hard, compassion in her eyes.
    ‘When I was a little girl,’ she said, ‘a little older than you, I saw something terrible. I saw someone I loved get hurt. Later, some nice people found me and took me home to my parents, but I didn’t talk for a long, long time. Everyone was in my face, asking me to tell them about the girl that got hurt. They wanted to find her and I was the only one who knew where she was. But I couldn’t remember. And what I did remember, I was too scared to tell.’
    No response. Angel’s shoulders no longer shook, but it was because she was holding her breath. Daphne ran her hand down the child’s back. ‘It’s okay, honey. Cry. It’s okay.’
    Angel hunkered down, arms wrapped around her knees. The sob barreled out, such agony from a child so small. Daphne continued to rub Angel’s back, letting her cry until the child began to cough.
    Sliding out of her chair to the floor, Daphne lifted Angel onto her lap, rocking her, her face mirroring the child’s anguish.
    ‘She didn’t cry at all in the hospital,’ Heidi said. ‘But why are ponies a trigger?’
    ‘I don’t know, but they seem to be.’ Just hearing the sobs was tearing at Joseph’s heart.
    Eventually Angel stilled, shuddering out a breath.
    ‘Angel?’ Daphne murmured. ‘I have ponies. Would you like to see them?’
    The child froze.
    ‘It’s okay to say no,’ Daphne said.