Yes, Timits quiet here now, but this was the scene earlier this evening, when Caitlyn Brown, niece of former President Rhett Brown, was taken from this South Carolina courthouse in handcuffs
The scene was pushing, shoving crowds of reporters, grim-faced men in uniforms and suits surrounding a slender figure wearing a sweatshirt with the hood pulled up to hide her face.
Ms. Brown was ordered to spend the night in jail after she refused to obey Judge Wesley Calhouns order to divulge the whereabouts of five-year-old Emma Vasily, who is the daughter of Florida billionaire, Ari Vasily. The little girl had been missing since Tuesday, and is the object of a nationwide hunt
On the television screen, the knot of law enforcement bodies loosened to reveal glimpses of the lone hooded figure sitting in the back seat of a police car. She turned her head and looked straight into the camera, and for one heart-stopping moment her eyes flared silver.
The childs mother, Mary Kelly Vasily, allegedly took her daughter from her school in Miami Beach only hours after a Florida judge had granted sole custody of the little girl to Mr. Vasily, also granting Mr. Vasilys request that the mother be denied visitation
The young reporter stood alone once more in front of the deserted courthouse. A windblown strand of hair teased her cheek as she earnestly continued.
Details are still sketchy at this time, but according to police sources, around 9 p.m. yesterday Mrs. Vasily, accompanied by Ms. Brown, walked into the police station here and gave herself up. The little girl was with the two women at that time, that much is certain, but what happened after that is unclear. As nearly as we can ascertain, the child apparently left police headquarters in the custody of a woman who identified herself as a representative of family services, but it now appears that woman may have been an impostor. Heres what we do know-more than twenty-four hours later police and social service agencies still have no idea where the child is. Little Emma Vasily seems to have vanished into thin air.
Just what Ms. Browns involvement is in the case is also unclear, but police investigators must have strong reason to believe the presidents niece has some knowledge of Emmas whereabouts, because this morning they asked a judge to order Ms. Brown to tell what she knows. She was given until the close of court this afternoon to comply, and when she refused, Judge Calhoun ordered her to jail.
Mr. Vasily, who arrived this morning from Miami expecting to be reunited with his daughter, has been unavailable for comment, but at a press conference just before noon a visibly angry chief of police promised a full investigation into his departments handling of the whole affair, and vowed to remain personally committed to finding the little girl and returning her safely to her father. Back to you, Tim.
A sharp pain in his chest reminded C.J. of the breath hed taken in some time back and hadnt gotten around to letting go. He released it in a gust of swearing and mashed the power button on the remote, cutting off the anchorman as he was launching into news of the latest statehouse scandal. He hitched himself around on the bed till hed got his feet on the floor and reached for his cell phone. His heart tapped hard against his ribs as he punched a number programmed in the autodial.
Hey, bro, he said to the groggy voice who answered. Whad I do, wake you?
What? Whos that-C.J.? Naw, you didnt wake me. I just dozed off watching the news. Whats up? There was an audible yawn. Where in the hell are you? Everything all right?
Im okay. Well, it wasnt much of a lie. Hey, is Charly around?
Shes right here. Aw, hell-youre not in jail, are you?
C.J. shrugged off that conclusion and the low opinion of his own character it reflected. Where his brothers were concerned, hed accepted the fact that it was going to take a while to live down certain escapades of his misspent youth. Just let me talk to her, okay?
There was a pause, and then in a molasses-thick Alabama drawl, Hey, C.J.-honey, howre you? Whats up?
Hey, Charly. You see tonights news?
Im watchin it right now. What part in particular?
The presidents niece getting jailed for contempt.
Oh, yeah. I did catch that. What about it?
Well, ImI think Im sort of involved. OrI might be.
What? Lords sake, how?
He told her the whole story, then waited through a thinking silence. A quickly drawn breath.
You did exactly the right thing, if thats what youre askin. I dont think you have anything to worry about. The police are probably gonna want to ask you some questions-thats to be expected. If you want me-
Thats not C.J. rubbed at his temples with his free hand. Its not me Im worried about. What I was wonderingI was thinking, you know, maybe you could go up there, see if she needs anything
She? You mean the mother-whats her name-Mary Kelly? Hon, you know shes probably lookin at kid-
Well, her, anduh, Caitlyn.
Caitlyn?
He said a bad word under his breath. MizBrown, then-the presidents niece. Whoever. He paused, but his sister-in-law didnt say anything, so he added in self-defense, I didnt see any sign of a lawyer on that news footage, did you? Arent they usually right there, shielding their client from the buzzards? I offered, you know-to get her one. Well, hell, Im the one turned em over to the cops, it seemed like the least I could do. Hed about rubbed a burned spot on the skin of his forehead, but it hadnt done a thing to help the pounding inside his skull.
Dont you go blamin yourself, Charly scolded. Those women are grown-ups, they made their choices, one of which was to involve you in their mess. Its not your fault their choice of getaway driver turned out to be a law-abidin citizen.
C.J.s face stretched into a grimace nobody was there to see. Yeah, wellId feel a whole lot better about that if I knew she had somebody in her corner, is all. I know she made at least one call after I told her I was turning her in, and I just assumed But Im thinking that mustve been how she arranged for somebody to pick up the little girl. If she did, maybe-
C.J., shes the ex-presidents niece, for Lords sake. Do you seriously think they wont have the best lawyers money can buy? C.J. didnt say anything, and after a moment she let out an exasperated breath. Okay, look, do you want me to see what I can find out for you?
It was his turn to let a breath out in a rush of relief. If you wouldnt mind? Id go myself, but Im stuck up here in Wilmington waiting for my load. Soonest I can get there is-
Best you stay out of it, Charly said in a warning tone. If she gives you up as the person who gave her a lift and the cops come lookin for you to ask you questions, thats one thing. Otherwise, speakin as your lawyer and as your brothers lovin wife and therefore family, Im advising you to keep your distance. For all kinds of reasons, startin with the fact that if this Ari Vasily is as dangerous as these gals make him out to be, you dont want to mess with him. And like I said, its not like she hasnt got resources. Shes the presidents niece.
Yeah His laugh was dry and bitter. She neglected to tell me that little bit of information.
Charly snorted. What did you expect her to do? Say, Hi, Im hijacking you, and by the way Im the presidents niece?
She had plenty of time later on to tell me anything she wanted to, he said, feeling sullen and put-upon. She never told me a damn thing about herself. Not even her name. I only got the Caitlyn part when the other woman called her that.
She was probably just tryin to keep you out of it as best she could. Charlys tone was uncharacteristically sympathetic. I doubt she was happy about havin to do what she did.
Spoken like a defense attorney.
Which is what I am, and the whole reason you called me, sugar. And by the way, if youre so POd at the woman, why are you tryin to help her?
Damned if he knew. He closed his eyes, thinking how much he wished he had a beer right now. Or something stronger. Which was just about unheard of, for him; hed spent his teenage years watching his brother Roy battle the booze and it had left a lasting impression on him. He heaved a big sigh and said, Just see what you can do, okay? Im gonna be home probably late tomorrow night, but you can reach me on my cell.
Ill make some calls, but Im not promising anything.
Thats fine. And Charlythanks.
He disconnected but sat where he was for a long time, fidgety and keyed-up, slapping the cell phone against the palm of his hand. Hed done the right thing, turning them in, he knew he had. It wasnt his affair, and Charly was right, he ought to stay the hell out of it. So why was it he couldnt get her out of his mind? Her. All three of them, really. Except, it wasnt Mary Kellys scared brown eyes or even little Emma Vasilys big black ones he saw whenever he shut his eyes, as if the backs of his eyelids had been tiny TV screens. Uh-uh. No, it was her face that haunted him, pale and frozen in the shadows of the back seat of a police cruiser, the silvery slash of her eyes zeroing in on him, seeming to look right into his soul with mute and desperate appeal.
He was on I-95 somewhere south of Richmond when his cell phone tweedled at him from the no-hands holster mounted on the dash. He reached over and mashed the Receive button and hollered, Yeah? over the roar of highway noise.
C.J., honey, that you? Charlys voice was distant and tinny.
His heart gave a little kick. He turned up the volume and yelled, Yeah, Charly. Whatd you find out?
Couple things. First thing is, shes still not talking. Neither one of em is-the mother, either. So theyre both back in the pokey, and it looks like they might be there for a while. Judge Calhoun seems determined to keep em where they are until they give up the little girl. She paused.
And? C.J. prompted. He kept his hands easy on the wheel, but a pulse was tapping hard against his belt buckle.
She doesnt want any help, C.J.-at least, not from you.
Did she say that? He squinted at the ribbon of interstate rolling out ahead of him, though there wasnt a speck of glare. You got that straight from her? Not some other lawyer? You talked to her?
He heard the gust of an exhalation. In a word, C.J., yeah. What she actually said was that youd done enough. There was a long pause before Charly added gently, Shes right, you know. Give it up, honey. Its not your trouble, so dont go spendin any more time stewin about it. You got other things to worry about-which reminds me, hows that law degree comin? When are you plannin on tackin up your shingle here with Troy and me?