“Maddy,” Jami says. “This is Sergeant Ely Burton. He’s a good friend of mine, and he’s here to help us out, okay? And your mommy, too.”
Madison looks away from Jami to peer at me, and I kneel down in front of the little girl, hoping to connect with her in the same way Matthew just had.
“Hi, Maddy.”
“Hi.” She smiles back, but it’s a hollow smile. There’s darkness behind the little girl’s eyes, and I wonder if she will ever escape the trauma of a damaged family.
“My name is Ely. How old are you?”
“Six.”
“Six?” I repeat, pretending to be shocked. “You’re so smart and brave for a six-year-old, Maddy.”
“I know,” she says, and the smile on her lips is genuine, just for a moment. “Mrs. Hansen from school said I’m one of her best students.” She’s glowing now. The wall she has up slowly crumbles as she speaks.
“I’m not surprised at all,” I tell her. “I can see how smart you are. What do you want to be when you grow up?”
Maddy taps her finger against her lip, a habit she must have picked up from someone. “I want to be a doctor,” she says. “So I can help my mommy when she gets hurt.”
A crushing, tight sensation squeezes my chest. I reach out and take Maddy’s hand, hoping that I’m doing a decent job of keeping a smile on my face for her.
“You will make a fantastic doctor,” I say. “The world could use more wonderful people like you, kiddo.”
Madison smiles big and hands me her candy bar to open for her. “Are you a cop?” she asks, and something behind her tone is nervous suddenly, though I’m not surprised as to why.
“I am a cop,” I tell her. “But I’m a good cop, okay? Us good cops, we’re here to help you.”
She nods, looking mildly unconvinced, and Jami speaks up.
“We’re going to go talk to your mom, Maddy,” Jami says, leading the little girl back toward the nurse’s station. “My friend Nurse Renee would really like to hang out with you. Do you like to color?”
Madison nods, and Jami exchanges a knowing look with Renee, who grins down at Maddy like she’s her new best friend.
“Come sit behind the desk with me, kiddo,” Renee says. “I’ll show you my favorite coloring books.”
Jami mouths a thank you to Renee and then leads me to the patient room near the nurse’s station. Tara is in there, still sitting on the bed, hands folded in her lap, and when she looks up and sees me, she frowns.
“A cop?” she says, looking at Jami. “I thought we weren’t going to involve the cops.”
“This is Ely,” Jami says. “He’s a good friend of mine, and he’s here to help.”
“Do you work with my husband?” demands Tara. “Because if you do, I want you to leave.”
“Tara,” Jami says gently. “You need to understand that to do this the right way, we need him. It would be one thing if it was just you, but it’s a whole other ballgame because you have Maddy. She is still Kasper’s daughter, and he has rights as a father. We have to go through the right channels. Build a case. Document the abuse. It’s not as easy as taking your daughter and running. The last thing I want to see is you getting into trouble because you kidnapped Madison.”
“I can’t kidnap my own child.”
“You can,” I add before Jami can speak. “Because you’re still married, and Kasper is still Madison’s father. Now, we’re going to help you, so just hear me out.” I glance over at Jami for her okay, and she nods. I pull up one of the plastic chairs and sit down in front of Tara. “Yes, I’m a cop. A detective with Denver PD. I do work with your husband, but I also know all about the allegations against him, okay? I’m not here on Kasper’s behalf. I’m here because Jami asked me to be here and because I believe that with your help, we can hold Kasper accountable for his actions.”
Tara lets out a whoosh of breath between her teeth, hesitating, and for a moment, I wonder if I’ve scared her off. What if she bails and doesn’t return, and this issue just keeps arising?
Finally, after what seems like an eternity, she nods.
“Okay, if Jami trusts you, then I trust you. What’s the plan from here? Kasper is going to know once he gets home that something is up. Are you going to send us back home?” The terror that crosses her face when she says this is evident, and Jami reaches out automatically to squeeze Tara’s hand.
“We’ll get you and Madison set up in a women’s shelter tonight,” I tell Tara. “It’s not fancy, I know, but it will be safe for the time being while Kasper is investigated for the abuse allegations.”
“Allegations?” repeats Tara. “They’re not allegations. It’s real. You don’t believe me?”
