Read Online STOLEN by DAWN KOPMAN WHIDDEN - Free Book Online

only witness. The surviving gunshot victim was still in surgery
and the last word she received from the medical staff was that he was critical.
If he didn’t make it, the boy and Michaelah may be her only chance to find out
what actually happened in the cabin in the woods.
    She pulled Marty aside. Normally, Jean would be looking up because
of the difference in height, hers reaching five-six and Marty six-foot-three,
causing her to strain her neck, but she was still dressed for court and wearing
the uncomfortable heels. The extra few inches made a radical difference and she
liked the fact it was less of a strain. Now she wondered how the petite Hope
did it without getting whiplash or suffering from a host of cervical muscle
problems.
    “We need to interview this kid, Marty, and we need to do it
now while everything is still fresh in his mind. I know you’re technically on ‘family
leave,’ but I really would appreciate you helping me out on this one.” Jean
knew part of the reason she was requesting his help was to intervene with Hope.
She wasn’t too sure how Hope would react to her trying to interrogate the child
so soon, and if Marty requested it, she may be less reluctant to say the boy
wasn’t ready.
    Hope had overheard her and walked over to where Jean and
Marty stood. It was Hope that replied to Jean’s request.
    “We don’t know if he can even speak, Jean. All he has given
us so far is a few grunts. I don’t know how much of this behavior is normal for
him, or because of what happened and what he may have witnessed. There is no
question that he has been traumatized, and I don’t know how far we can push him
without contributing to even more psychological damage. His psyche is most
likely very fragile right now, and I think we need to walk a very thin line.”
    Feeling slightly embarrassed she was caught trying to
manipulate the situation, Jean’s eyebrows raised, her lips turned down, and for
a brief moment, her thoughts floated away.
    She didn’t realize, but she was staring at Hope. She fixated
on her friend’s natural beauty and butter smooth olive complexion and she
suddenly became self-conscious of her own appearance. She knew that she was
being oversensitive and knew that Hope wasn’t wasting her time doing the same
by counting the creases on her friend’s face. She tried to shake off the
intimidating thoughts as she realized her thoughts floated off and her mind had
gone somewhere else. She realized she hadn’t heard all of Hope’s answer.
    “We can try, but let’s keep it simple. I don’t think it
would be a good idea to ask him about the shooting,” Hope paused and then
added, “not yet.”
    At first she thought that Hope had said ‘absolutely not,’
and that questioning the boy was out of the question. It took a moment or two
for her to realize that she would be allowed to interview the boy, but she
would be limited in what she could ask. Jean was disappointed because she felt
not having full control over how and what she could ask would hinder her and
possibly could be detrimental in conducting the investigation. She started to
verbalize her dissatisfaction with Hope’s decision, and began to argue with the
psychiatrist, but she caught herself. Suddenly, her thoughts drifted again and
a frivolous thought entered her mind. She reminded herself to ask Hope which
skin product she used. She shook her head; feeling embarrassed at her sudden lack
of professionalism and childish behavior. She admonished herself for being so
self-indulgent that she was thinking of herself instead of doing her job. She
couldn’t understand what was going on and why she, suddenly, had become so vain
and unfocused.
    Jean was just about to go back into the room when the young
nurse came back with a plastic cafeteria tray loaded with food. A burger, under
a sesame bun, was loaded with cheese, spilling out onto the Styrofoam plate. A
pile of french fries covered what was left of the dish, and the overflow