Lance Pratchett's temper was still as short as ever.
The moment he heard that Reyona's call had anything to do with Thomas, he sparked like a lighted fuse.
"I already told him I don't want anything to do with him again! And now he is asking his wife to call me?! Hey, hey Davies! Switch off the TV now! It is long past your bedtime! This is not your Mama's place!" He said to someone for a while before he continued to talk to Reyona.
"Wait, aren't you his ex-wife? What the hell are you calling me for? I have enough problems of my own and I don't have a dime to borrow Tom anymore. You all should leave me alone!"
Maxwell collected the phone from Reyona and said "Now, listen here. Thomas said he talked to you about me and his kids. Did you by any chance tell anyone about those things too?"
"Who the fuck are you? That asshole told me lots of things that passed right through the right ear, then out the left. I don't have time to prattle to someone else about… hey, Davies! What did I say?!" To Maxwell. "Nobody should call my number for such shit again. Now fuck off."
The call was disconnected immediately.
Maxwell looked at the phone as he pondered the audacity of the man who wouldn't dare to raise his voice in his presence.
He shook his head and said, "Well, that was helpful."
"I am sorry," Reyona said with a sigh. "You are right. This is useless."
"No, no. You did what you felt was right. For all we know, there might be something there. I am going to send Pratchett's number to Officer Guy anyway." Then, to cheer her up, he added "Even if it is just so they could rouse him out of bed tomorrow and take some of his precious time."
Reyona smiled and sighed again.
"Let's get you home," Maxwell said."You need to eat and sleep. It is going to be a long day tomorrow."
"I am not…"
"I am not taking no for an answer," Maxwell said as he started the car. "Think of Pat, please."
Around midnight, they settled down to a turkey sandwich, lentil soup and warm milk.
They shared the food in silence after they had sent the reluctant Jane to bed.
When Reyona complained of a lack of appetite again, Maxwell urged her to eat by feeding her.
After the mini table they had brought to the living room had been cleared, they sat on the couch opposite the phone as they waited.
After a while, Maxwell urged Reyona to lie down.
She did not protest much as she wearily lay against his side with her eyes on the phone.
"Do you think they might hurt her?" She asked later with a catch in her throat.
Maxwell held her closer as he said "Positive thoughts, remember?"
"Yeah, I know. I just…"
She turned her face to his neck and he could feel the wetness of her skin against his.
"I just hope she is okay, and they will make the damn call so we can know what they need."
"Yeah," Maxwell said as he leaned down to kiss her. "Try to sleep. I will keep an eye on the phone."
"You need to sleep too." She says in a small voice.
"You need it more than I do though. Pat needs you to stay strong for us all. It wouldn't do if you break down after we found Allysyn."
Reyona nodded as she snuggled closer to him.
"Can I take you to bed?" He asked gently.
"No, no, I want to stay right here. Please wake me if…"
"I will." He promised and kissed her hair again.
Soon enough, he felt her body slacken against his.
Maxwell protectively cradled her stomach with his hand as he listened to her sleep.
He needed to protect his family as much as possible.
He needed to make her stop worrying.
He needed to get Allysyn home.
He wished he knew of ways to do that that had nothing to do with her having to face her deadbeat husband.
Maxwell could easily picture her reactions to the mess that had become of Lanoth.
He didn't want to put much meaning into it.
Pregnancy made people more emotional, and she was a compassionate and kind woman to start with.
So he supposed he shouldn't put much thought into the raw panic that had shown on her face last night when she thought Thomas had drunk himself to death.
Maxwell could not stop the ugly feeling in him as he remembered the moment he held her while she cried for another man.
He smoothed his hand over her hair and breathed in her scent.
"No, it didn't matter. She is mine." he reminded himself.
If she said she felt nothing for him again, then he had to believe her.
What had happened tonight had only been her natural response as the loving woman she was.
"Really? Why then has she never told you she loves you?" His mind whispered disturbingly.
Maxwell held her to him and turned his mind to Allysyn's case.
When he sent Pratchett's number to Officer Guy, there were no new updates on their end.
No call. No update.
"Just great!" he thought in a sudden surge of anger.
Reyona was right.
Even as Maxwell reassured her, he knew she was right.
Anything could be happening to that girl right now.
She must be so scared and waiting for them to rescue her, yet here they were with nothing vital other than an unidentified van with an unidentified plate and a probable female driver.
The police are already trying to track such a van in Kayooma based on the dates of their make, but that would take a long time. The time that Allysyn did not have.
His men were at work already, yet nothing satisfactory was coming from that end also.
For a moment, he thought of calling Don again.
He had done so earlier, but just as it had been since Susan's escape, Don didn't pick up his call.
After the incident, Don had just sent him a message after he called the first time. "I have a score to settle with that bitch. Wait until it is done before you know if you still want to talk to me."
Maxwell had been a bit anxious about the many ways that he knew Don could choose to settle his score with anyone.
But at the moment, he did not care. He just wanted help from any angle he could get from to get that little girl home.
Why were they not calling yet?
Wasn't that how all the kidnapping cases played out?
A call to demand ransom right after the kidnapping had taken place?
Why was this different?
Maxwell didn't even want to think of the many alternatives that could be the reason for the lack of calls.
"They would call." He affirmed firmly.
But when?