High Stakes Gamble

Chapter Three

“Sorry to just drop in on you Deb, but I need your help.” Aurora smiled and waited for her surprised ex-partner to back off and let her step into the apartment. She carried all of Lily’s paraphernalia in a baby pack over her shoulder and hoped to coax Debbie to babysit while she kept her date with Hampton at the precinct.

As Debbie waved Aurora into the hallway and swept the baby out of her arms, a glad cry escaped from the delighted blonde. “Here’s my gorgeous whittle doll!” Debbie acted ridiculous over the tiny baby who waved her arms and cooed delightedly.

Aurora hid her prideful smirk and swung away to lower the baby’s things onto the nearby armchair. When Debbie swung Lily into the air and held her at face level, her babbling worsened. “You-wa da pwettiest whittel baby ev-er, you know dat, dontcha sweetkins?”

“Hey, cut that out? How come I never hear you talk idiotic-talk to your son, Alec? Funny thing, you get near my child and you act like a First grade drop-out? You’re going to corrupt her with all that silliness.”

Aurora had a hard time believing that this was the same woman who’d been her partner before Lisa. Hardened criminals had feared Debbie in those days and paid close attention when she spoke.

“She likes it. Look at her.” Debbie turned the baby towards her mother who couldn’t help but smile at the toothless drooling grin plastered over her child’s happy face.

“She likes her Auntie Debbie, is all. So cut out the dumb shit.”

“Hey grumpy, who pooped in your cornflakes this morning?” Without waiting for an answer, Debbie swung Lily onto her hip with the ease of practice and started towards the kitchen where she lowered her into baby Alec’s bouncer. The tiny angel settled down happily as soon as Debbie handed her a soft rubber toy she could chew on. With a twist on the handle the chair swung gently back and forth—almost as good as being rocked in mama’s arms.

“Is Alec down for his nap?” Aurora looked toward the playpen where she knew Debbie put her son to keep him safe anytime she left the room. Since the little beggar was almost a year old, a big fellow like his dad, he’d made up his mind that crawling was for sissies and he needed to walk everywhere. Bruises didn’t stop him and neither did the bumps he’d collected. Stubborn was part of his DNA and Aurora had no doubt the handsome little guy would be running everywhere soon.

“He went down but not without a fight. My goodness he’s a handful. Into everything and demands our attention every minute. It’s impossible to get anything done while he’s awake.”

Aurora knew Debbie used this excuse for the bit of messiness around them, but she also knew Deb loved to be with the baby and considered housework way down on the importance list while she could spend her time with her son.

“Since you’re the only person I trust to babysit, can I leave Lily with you for a short time?”

“Sure. You know you can leave her anytime. I love having her around; she’s no problem at all. I never knew such a happy, contented child. Goes to sleep when you lay her down, hardly ever cries and she’s always smiling, even with a tooth starting. You certainly lucked out.” Teasingly, she added, “She must have inherited her daddy’s personality.”

The coldness that permeated the room halted Debbie’s rambling. Guilt filled her face. Her hands reached towards Aurora beseechingly. “I’m such a blabbermouth, Rory. I’m sorry. I know you don’t like us talking about him.”

“I don’t want to hear about the bastard.” Her voice lowered on the profanity so Lily wouldn’t hear her mother swearing. “And stop calling me Rory. What is it with you guys today?”

Breathing a sigh of relief for the subject change, Debbie quickly grabbed the reprieve and asked. “You guys? Were you with someone from work?”

“That’s why I want your help. I need to go and make a statement with Hampton this afternoon. The craziest thing happened this morning while I was at the pediatrician’s for Lily’s two month checkup. A woman fell out of the elevator screaming that her baby’d been abducted right out of her arms.”

“Oh no, not another one?!” Instantly, Debbie’s hand jerked to cover her mouth and she turned away.

Aurora narrowed her eyes and drilled a look toward Deb. “What do you mean, another one? This has happened before? When?”

“Forget I said anything, Aurora. Cory will kill me if he knows I blabbed. They’re trying to keep a lid on things so parents won’t panic.”

“This is me you’re talking to, Deb. Not some jumpy idiot from the suburbs. What’s going on?”

Debbie wrung her hands and stuck her lip out. “Can’t. If I do, you won’t be able to sleep at night. You know how you get, especially when it’s anything to do with kids. Since you can’t help, the less you know the better.”

After working with the goofy blonde for five years, Aurora knew when Debbie’s stubbornness kicked in; there was no talking her out of it. Particularly if she thought she was protecting someone she cared about.

“Fine, I’ll go and talk to Cory at the station. Since I’m only on maternity leave, he’ll fill me in.”

Debbie smirked and answered, “You do that.”

Aurora caught on immediately. “What aren’t you telling me?”

Expression straightening from smirk to grimace, her ex-partner groaned and admitted. “Cory’s at a circle jerk for the Division Heads in L.A.”

“He is? What’s the topic?”

A huge sigh escaped before Debbie answered. “Human trafficking. There’s a sophisticated Chinese ring working in the Southwest, a syndicate of big shots. No one can touch them and Cory believes they could be tied to what’s happening here in Vegas.”

“Shit! That’s bad news. If the Chinese have anything to do with this, it’s well-run and you’ve gotta know there’s a lot of money involved. But why babies? Why not older kids?”

“Don’t ask me. I’ve said more than I should have. Cory is gonna kill me.” Debbie glanced over to the now sleeping baby nestled in the comfy seat and motioned for Aurora to look also.

Lily lay contentedly sucking her thumb, her face resting on her collarbone like a pink-cheeked old man with jowls.

Aurora tiptoed to the hallway and pointed at the pack she’d left on the chair. “I pumped milk for her and there’s a change of clothes and extra diapers. I should be back soon.”

“Take all the time you need. Alec will be thrilled to see her when he wakes up. And I’ll get in some huggy-time since the monster will hardly let me hold him anymore. He’s in too big of a hurry to explore and get into mischief—just like his dad.”