The Hidden Heir. Debra Webb

been involved for just over one year.”

      Victoria was surprised to hear this. She wasn’t aware that Desmond had any children. “Was proof of paternity obtained?”

      The lawyer nodded. “Certainly, but the trouble ultimately proved unnecessary. There were a few minor complications at birth and the child’s blood type confirmed the truth of his parentage. Mr. Van Valkenberg has a very rare blood type. The child has the same.”

      “Has there been contact with the child or the mother recently?”

      “Not since the child was about three months old. The woman, Miss Orrick, left abruptly and took the child with her.”

      The idea that Van Valkenberg would simply permit her to leave with his son in tow surprised Victoria. “Did Mr. Van Valkenberg attempt to stop her or to exercise his rights as the father at that time or since?”

      “No,” Brody explained carefully. “There were problems with the woman. She threatened to blackmail him, using the child as leverage. At one point, she went so far as to contact one of his rivals in an attempt to undermine an ongoing business deal.” Brody shrugged. “Frankly, I’m convinced she was unbalanced. Her irrational behavior only worsened as time went by.”

      “And yet,” Victoria interrupted, “you allowed her to leave with the child.”

      “Actually,” he said pointedly, clearly somewhat offended by her suggestion, “she took the child and disappeared. After stealing a considerable sum of money from Mr. Van Valkenberg, I might add. This woman was a gold digger from the outset, I’m afraid.”

      “Mr. Van Valkenberg wishes to find the child now,” Victoria guessed.

      “Yes.” Brody opened his briefcase and took out a file. He leaned forward and offered it to Victoria. “You’ll find all the information we have on Miss Orrick in this file, including numerous photos, but, unfortunately, the photos are ten years old.”

      Victoria accepted the file, considered the contents a moment before asking, “Why now? After all these years?” She needed to know the rest of the story. The Colby Agency prided itself on discretion, both in the cases they accepted and in the way they conducted their investigations. However long Van Valkenberg had been a client, she needed clarification on exactly what he wanted and, equally important, why.

      Mr. Brody leveled a solemn gaze at her. “As you’re well aware, Mr. Van Valkenberg has always been a man dedicated to his work and inordinately reserved in his social agenda. He hasn’t taken the time to develop or nurture any sort of real personal life. However, he recently learned news that has forced him to rethink his past decisions.”

      Victoria braced herself for what came next. Judging by the man’s expression as well as his somber tone, the news was not good.

      “Mr. Van Valkenberg has given permission for me to share this information with you, but, as you will see, the public cannot know, for obvious reasons. He’s dying. According to the team of specialists working on his case, he has five or six months at best. He feels he has accomplished all that he’d set out to in the business world for a man barely forty. However, he knows that not acquainting himself with his only child would be a disgrace on a personal level. This is his greatest wish. We must locate the boy before it’s too late.”

      Victoria understood how Mr. Van Valkenberg must feel. The thought of never seeing her son again had been almost too much to bear. She’d been down that path. No parent should ever have to feel that kind of pain and desolation.

      Victoria made a decision then and there to do all she could to ensure that Desmond’s son was found. “Mr. Brody, I would like you to convey to Mr. Van Valkenberg my personal feelings of regret for this untimely tragedy. Assure him that we at the Colby Agency will do all within our power to find his son and, as always, with the utmost discretion.”

      Mr. Brody acknowledged her words with a nod. “I will relay your assurances, but Mr. Van Valkenberg has no doubt where your agency is concerned. I would, however, like to give him some sense of the time frame you feel you require to accomplish your work, since time is clearly of the essence.”

      Victoria thought about her answer for a moment. She didn’t want to sound overly optimistic since the woman and child had been missing for ten years, but, at the same time, she didn’t want to worry her client needlessly.

      “One week minimum,” she allowed. “I wouldn’t expect, barring any unforeseen circumstances, more than two. It’s much more difficult for a woman to hide with a child in tow.”

      “Excellent.” Mr. Brody stood and extended his hand. “We will look forward to hearing from you, Mrs. Colby-Camp.”

      Victoria rose as well, shook his hand once more and gave final assurances that Mr. Van Valkenberg needn’t worry. The Colby agency was on the case.

      When Brody had left, Victoria again considered the file he’d provided. Ashley Orrick, according to the documents in the file, had been twenty-one at the time she’d given birth. Very young. Strawberry blond hair, pale skin with a scattering of delicate freckles, and green eyes, all of which she could have easily changed with hair color, contacts and sufficient makeup.

      Miss Orrick had grown up in a small farming community in Indiana. Her father had passed away when she was eighteen but her mother still lived on the small family farm.

      The fact that she had a surviving family member would most likely make the job of finding her somewhat less difficult. Victoria turned over the picture of the missing woman’s mother to find a note scribbled on the back: Uncooperative. Combative.

      A good deal of background information had been gathered by Brody himself, it appeared. Ashley had attended the local high school and gone on to attend a nearby university. After graduating from college, she’d come to Chicago and met Desmond at a job fair in one of his uncommon public appearances.

      She hadn’t gotten a job, but she had moved in with him within two months. One year later, she disappeared after a Mommy and Baby Yoga class.

      The child, in his three-month-old photo and in the physical description listed in Brody’s report, appeared to have his father’s coloring, dark hair and olive skin. Too early to tell about the eyes—dark, perhaps brown if the color remained the same.

      Victoria summoned Mildred on the intercom. “Would you have Ben and Keith come to my office please.”

      Ben Haygood was the agency’s top systems man. He could do just about anything with a computer. His resourcefulness with gadgets was unparalleled.

      Keith Devers had worked for the agency for several years in the research department. Only recently had he agreed to Victoria’s prodding and moved into investigations. He was more than qualified for the position of investigator but he’d hesitated for some time, preferring to delve into research from his desk rather than to move into the field.

      Victoria found Keith’s shyness quite refreshing. She recognized that he would blossom into a terrific investigator once he got his feet wet. All he needed was a little prompting and the right case. He’d shadowed a couple of other cases already. This one would serve quite well for putting him out there for his first solo. A simple missing person case with no real theatrics attached. With one or two cases this un-complicated under his belt, he’d be ready for something with a little more drama.

      Keith arrived just then. “You wanted to see me?”

      “Yes, come in, Keith.”

      Ben poked his head through the door next, his glasses as well as his tie askew as usual. “Did you call for me, Victoria?”

      “I did. Please join us, Ben.”

      Ben half stumbled through the open door as if her answer had startled him, then took a moment to right his eyewear and straighten his tie. Victoria kept her amusement tucked out of sight, though it wasn’t easy. Ben’s clothes were a bit rumpled, and he wore his typical, perpetually distracted expression. The quintessential computer geek. Extremely intelligent with absolutely no fashion sense