Fragmented by George Fong Page A

kidnappings. How long ago did this happen?”
    “Don’t know. I just got the call.” The switchboard operator gave Jack the name and number of the detective who called.
    Jack immediately started dialing. While it rang, Jack looked over at Marquez and said in a low voice, “Looks like we may have just found out who our kidnapped child is.”
    The phone call connected to the Chico Police Department dispatch center and was routed to Detective Mark Colfax. Jack made a quick introduction and jumped into the pertinent questions .
    “We got the call around
6:30 p.m.
,” Colfax said, “from the 911 operator advising that a Mr. Paul Baker had called in screaming that his wife had been murdered. We dispatched two units to the location but they couldn’t get Mr. Baker to come to the door. The officers were concerned he was armed. It took another hour and a half just to convince him to come out of the house with his hands raised. By the time we got the whole story out of him, it was nearly nine. Said his daughter was missing. We posted a
TRAK
flyer to all western states, put out a BOLO on NLETS. Name’s Jessica Baker. No car or suspect, so no Amber Alert.”
    “What does she look like?” Jack asked.
    “Five feet, ninety pounds, slender, athletic, dark hair, shoulder length.”
    Jack stared at the photo while Colfax described his kidnapped victim. Without confirmation Jack was only guessing, but his inclination told him it was the same girl. Jessica Baker. Jack informed Colfax on their investigations, their search and the photo. Even without seeing the photo, Colfax believed they were the same girl.
    “What happened to the mother?”
    Colfax’s voice lowered as he cleared his throat. “Pretty ugly. Husband came home and found her in the bathtub. Head bashed in, throat slit ear to ear. It’s amazing her head wasn’t detached. The husband told me when he returned from work, wife’s car was in the drive. He went to the refrigerator, grabbed a beer, went through the mail. Daughter had stayed home sick with the flu. Thought she was still asleep and didn’t want to disturb her. When the wife didn’t appear, he started searching the house. That’s when he came across her body.”
    “Forensic sweep the place?”
    “We’re just getting started. I had a difficult time locating all our crime scene examiners this late at night.”
    “What about blood and
DNA
?”
    “No shortage there. There’s blood everywhere. CSI should be able to find something in that mess.”
    “I can send our ERT crew if you’re short-handed,” Jack offered.
    “Could use the help.”
    “I’ll contact our team leader to give you a call and get you whatever help you may need at the scene. Detective, I think it would be beneficial to both our agencies if we meet to coordinate the investigation. Better chances of locating our killer and finding Jessica Baker if we work together.”
    “That’s fine with me,” Colfax replied. “When?”

    Jack paused for only a beat. “How about now?”

14
     

    Tuesday –
10:21 p.m.
     

    Jack retrieved the
TRAK
flyer of Jessica Baker that came across the Bureau’s fax machine.
TRAK
, which stood for Technology to Recover Abducted Kids, had sent this flyer to every law enforcement agency on the West Coast. The picture showed Jessica’s high school portrait. Based on the hair and Colfax’s description of her build, Jack had little doubt that this was the kidnapped girl from the photo. An uneasy feeling ran through him as he thought about Jessica Baker, the trail of murders, the killer’s need for new identities. There was certainly more to this case than what they knew. Their suspect had taken a child but had not asked for a ransom, and in Jack’s mind that was as bad as it could get. Marquez looked over, watched Jack rubbing his forehead between two fingers, tension surfacing through his temples.
    “Tell me what you’re thinking,” she said.
    Jack glanced over at Marquez. “Four parts to a