His mistaken Identity

Chapter 18

There was something to be said about newfound respect for baby wipes and an extra change of clothes, Christopher thought with amusement.

The little boy in his arms yawned and stretched his little arms, fists clenched like he was making a point; I am cute, but I am also strong. Christopher couldn’t help the smile that settled on his lips. His heart felt so full at that moment. It didn’t matter that the baby was not his own. Christopher already knew he would do anything to keep the boy safe and happy.

It was a strong emotion that had filled him and anchored itself around his heart. From the very beginning, he had been drawn to the child, but after hearing Jane’s story, Christopher was almost overwhelmed with the need to love and care for the little boy.

He continued to rock the baby gently in his arms as he hummed a random tune. If someone had told him six months ago that he would be rocking a baby to sleep in his living room in the morning instead of being at the office making money, he would have thought it was a poor taste of a joke. But there he was, enjoying every moment of it.

Jane was in the bathroom having her second bath in less than an hour. It was only eight in the morning. The second bath was courtesy of the little boy in his arms. Tony had refused to settle since waking up that morning and then he had gone a step further and barfed milk all over his mother and himself.

“You know that wasn’t very nice,” Christopher whispered to a cute dozing Tony. “Mummy didn’t deserve a regurgitated milk bath. That’s not what they meant when they said a milk bath is good for the skin.”

Tony smiled in his sleep, as though he could actually understand what Christopher was telling him. Christopher chuckled quietly. “Naughty boy. You will have to make it up to her, you know.”

“Are you talking to a baby?” Jane asked behind him.

He turned and found a fresh and clean Jane dressed in a simple blue summer dress. It was one of those he had bought for her. She looked really nice. And the smile on her face was bright and carefree. So beautiful.

Christopher swallowed. He looked down at Tony in his arms and tried to gather his thoughts. “We were having a man-to-man conversation,” he answered with all seriousness after a beat. “We agreed it wasn’t nice to puke on mammy and we were going to make it up to you.”

“Hmm… I really doubt Tony said all that.”

“Ha!… you doubt my ability to communicate with him? I speak the universal language of the male species.”

Jane chuckled. “No comment on that. Here… let me have him so you can go to work.”

“There is no hurry,” he said, even as he handed Tony over to his mother rather reluctantly. His arms immediately felt empty. He watched as she rocked him gently until the boy settled again against her chest. It was an image that brought many thoughts to his mind. All of them warm like a glimpse into the future he desired with all his heart and soul.

Just then, his phone rang, breaking the peace and silence in the room. Christopher cursed under his breath and quickly dashed for it before it woke Tony up. He had forgotten to put it on vibration again, a habit he had adopted after Jane had stormed into his bathroom. Christopher reached for the phone, and glanced at the unknown number for a split second before he swiped his finger across the screen and raised the device to his ear. He mouthed a ‘sorry’ to Jane, then concentrated on the call.

“Hello?”

“Mr. Baker? Am I talking to Mr. Christopher Baker?” the caller asked.

“This is he… who am I talking to?”

“Mr. Baker… I am calling you from Viking Security.”

Christopher stopped walking. He had been heading for the kitchen so he would not disturb Tony. His sudden halt caught Jane’s attention. She looked at him, then frowned in concern. It was probably a mirror reflection of his own concerned frown. Viking Security was the security company he had employed for his new offices after he was forced to relocate. This call couldn’t be anything but trouble at his office.

“What happened?” Christopher asked, already feeling dread settle in his gut.

“Sir, I am sorry to inform you that your offices suffered an incident.”

“What kind of incident?” Christopher nearly growled in impatience.

“A rock wrapped in a paper was thrown through the main window. Fortunately, the only damage is the broken window, sir.” The man hastened to reassure him before he added, “However, the guard on duty was unable to apprehend the culprit, unfortunately.” The caller cleared his throat. “We have called the police.”

Christopher didn’t like the sound of this. It didn’t spell like a random occurrence to him and he was already getting the feeling he wouldn’t like the answer to his next question. “Was there something written on the paper?”

The line was silent for a few beats. Then the man cleared his throat again. “Sir, we are not supposed to touch anything before the police arrive… It’s evidence.”

“Let’s assume the paper unwrapped when the rock hit the floor… what does it say?” He was pretty sure they had already checked, if all the throat clearing and pauses were any indication, and he wasn’t in the mood to wait for answers. Christopher had a feeling this had something to do with the men that had sent the first letters and kidnapped Jane and Tony. He needed to know if they had found him, found them.

The man on the line cleared his throat again. “Sir, the paper only has one sentence on it… ‘You thought you could hide’... That’s all that’s written on it, Sir.”

Christopher somehow managed to thank the man for calling and informing him of the matter. Then he ended the call.

Jane had put Tony down on the couch and she now stood next to him, her arms wrapped tightly around her middle. “Is everything alright?”

She had obviously heard his side of the conversation. It wasn’t much to go on, but it had told her something was wrong. And given recent events, her imagination was probably in overdrive for the worst.

For a moment, he considered lying, then he looked at Tony asleep on his couch a few feet away. He had to make sure he kept them safe and he couldn’t do that by lying to her. Not even a lie of omission.

“Someone threw a rock through my office window.”

Her eyes widened in horror. “Is anyone hurt?”

“No. The office wasn’t yet open for the day.” He went quiet, wondering how to tell her that the same men that had kidnapped her and threatened to kill her son were yet again after them and had found his new offices. He once again cursed the news bulletin that had appeared on television, even though it was the same broadcast that had allowed Jane to find him.

“Christopher, what is it? What are you not telling me?”

He sighed heavily and faced her. “The rock had a paper wrapped around it… with a message for me… I think it’s the same men.”

“Which men?” Her tone suggested she already knew, but her eyes pleaded he told her otherwise.

A sad sigh left his lips. “The same ones that kidnapped you and Tony.”

Jane swayed suddenly to her left, like someone who had been hit really hard. He moved fast and lifted her off her feet. Christopher carried her to the empty couch and put her down before kneeling down next to the couch. “I won’t let them get you or Tony… I promise.”

White noise filled her ears for a moment, but she heard him. Jane wanted to believe him. She really did. But all she could think about were the days she had spent scared for her life and her son’s life while angry men in ski masks waved guns around. She touched her shoulder, where she still held a reminder of her miraculous escape. She couldn’t imagine she would be so lucky if they got their hands on her again.

Still wrapped in worry that was threatening to choke her, Jane’s eyes traveled to her sleeping son. He was still so small, defenseless. She was his only source of protection.

Then anger boiled within her. It was all Enock’s fault. Whatever her dead boyfriend had done was responsible for their current nightmare.

But she wasn’t the only one caught up in the mess. She looked at Christopher. The man’s life had also been turned upside down because of Enock’s mess.

With all the thoughts running through her mind, there was only one question to ask, “What are we going to do?”

Despite the terrifying situation they faced, Christopher smiled softly at her. He ran his hand over her hair gently. “I will call the detective and make sure he knows I still have a problem. Then I will call my friend to help me out with the office matter.” He moved his hand and cupped her cheek. “Then I am taking you and Tony away from here to a safer place until we know more.”