It was a gruesome experience for Patty. She sat there crying and her head hurt while the paramedics did their job on her. The tears wouldn’t stop, even with Daddy trying his best to console her. Patty a pretty six year old had just been on the receiving end of a botched up kidnap attempt. The kidnapper wearing a baseball bat, had apparently timed his move pretty well, just when Mr. Jose had left Patty alone, to get her a cone of her favourite vanilla ice cream, but had failed miserably in the execution. All he got away with was a fistful of poor Patty’s hair, leaving behind a badly shaken six year old whose head hurt like hell.
Detectives Steve and Laura were upon the scene in ten minutes. And it was Laura who finally managed to stop the flood of tears.
Luckily a Samaritan had noted the no of the SUV in which the kidnappers, apparently there were two of them, had fled.
In two days the kidnappers were caught. And Patty made a positive id of the Baseball cap guy. The interrogation that followed, threw up a few surprises. The kidnappers claimed that were private detectives hired by one Mrs. Michelle. The kidnappers/detectives claimed they specialized in restoring lost/kidnapped children to their parents. Steve on checking up the State Private Eye’s office found that indeed the two kidnappers were private hires. Steve and Laura promptly turned up at Michelle’s place. To their surprise, Michelle was expecting them. Michelle went on to claim that Patty was her child. She claimed Anna (that was what Michelle called her girl) had lost her way when she was a year old. Michelle was arrested on charges of aiding/abetting kidnap.
Upon preliminary trial, the kidnappers and Michelle were granted bail, on the condition that they must not be present within 500 yards from Patty’s house, school or play ground. Later in the day, Michelle was found violating the order and was promptly arrested again.
When Steve checked the database of unsolved lost/found cases, he was astonished to find that there indeed was an Anna who matched Michelle’s description but she was presumed dead in a road accident. But her body had never been found.
So, Steve and Laura came to the conclusion that Michelle was suffering from a psychological disorder, having been under severe trauma, losing both husband and child in a single accident. There were in for a surprise.
DNA tests on the handful of hair that Baseball-cap had grabbed on to, revealed that Patty was indeed Michelle’s child!
Now the onus was on Mr. and Mrs. Jose to prove that Patty was their child. And prove they did, in a convincing fashion. They produced a valid birth certificate; moreover they had recorded the birth of their only child on tape.
How could Patty be both Michelle’s and Mrs. Jose’s child??
Laura had a hunch, which was to be proved correct.
Guess what?
Wait till the next post! ;-)