Chapter 104

ONE HUNDRED FOUR

Ellie looked up from the coffee machine as Derrick returned.

"The doctor said Ros is going to recover. She's still sedated though to give her body time to heal."

"At least when we find Mazie, she'll still have her mother," Ellie murmured.

Derrick checked his watch. "Time is up. Let's talk to the Stuarts."

Together they walked back to the waiting room, anxious to hear Loretta's explanation. Tension rattled through the room, the look on Michael's face indicating he'd just suffered a terrible shock. Loretta looked shaken and kept glancing at her husband then back to her twisted hands.

"Okay, now let's talk," Ellie said.

Loretta wiped at her damp cheeks, then began.

Ellie listened quietly. Loretta's voice was riddled with pain, fear, regret and love for her daughter as she explained about her relationship with the other women and children. "Michael never knew," she said with a quick look at her husband. "Claire, Ros and Barb and I made a pact to never tell anyone. We met often so the kids could know each other and were all a family."

"So the little girls are actually biologically sisters," Derrick said.

Loretta nodded. "And we kept our deal with Barb, so she was a big part of the girls' lives."

"Did it occur to you that she'd want the girls back at some point?" Ellie asked.

Loretta hesitated. "At first I was afraid of that, but Barb had the biggest heart and we'd all gotten so close in the support group that we were like sisters, too." She pressed a hand to her chest as if she was physically hurting.

Michael's shoulders slumped slightly. He looked torn between being furious at his wife and wanting to comfort her, but he didn't move.

Ellie arched a brow. "If you and Barb were such friends, why would she help abduct Ivy?"

"I d-don't know," Loretta said brokenly. "I still can't believe she did, but I saw her there with him."

"Who abducted Ivy, Loretta?" Ellie pressed.

"I honestly don't know."

"Was it that Thacker man, the one who's the father?" Michael asked.

Ellie licked her dry lips. "No, we questioned him more than once. He was actually in our custody when Mazie was abducted."

"Did Barbara have any idea who was behind the murders and abductions?" Ellie asked.

Loretta clenched her jaw. "If she did, she never told me."

Frustration filled Ellie. She had a bad feeling Barbara was the key and held the answers.

She just hoped she regained consciousness in time to tell them.