Concealed Intentions: Day 2

Word Count: 12,024

Summary of Events:

Nadia was informed by her father that, now that she was eighteen, it was time for her to decide on her secondary education and informed her that he intended to send her to Moscow to take financial economy, but she resisted the idea and only thanks to her mother's efforts was he willing to let her have some time to inform him of what she wanted to do instead. After not enough sleep Borden got up and had his usual scant breakfast before heading for work, doing his best to put all the thoughts of the early-morning murder out of his head . . .

Excerpt of the Day:

The news music came on and Borden turned the radio up a bit so that it was more than just a murmur slightly louder than the combined engine, wheels on pavement, and wind whipping around the outside.

“An Amber Alert has been issued for seven-year-old Honour Fedoruk,” the newswoman announced. “She was last seen at four PM heading east on Aleza Crescent, departing the home of a friend for her own home on Reid Crescent, but never appeared, being reported missing by her foster parents at six PM.”

Shock left Borden numb, he slowed down and pulled over to the side of the road, barely remembering to press the red triangle-adorned button that controlled his hazard lights so that people wouldn’t think he was an outright freak.

“Honour is described as blonde, blue-eyed, one point two three metres tall, and weighing twenty five kilos,” the newswoman continued. “She was last seen wearing black running shoes, blue jeans, a pink t-shirt, and an orange sweater made to look like a fox. Anyone with information about her whereabouts is advised to call the RCMP at once.”

The news report went on, but Borden stared at his speedometer in shock. Honour Fedoruk. That notebook stuffed under his mattress was about Honour Fedoruk. That woman who’d been murdered last night had been spying on Honour.

Borden didn’t know what it all meant, but he felt cold. His uncle’s niece and her husband had just had a child kidnapped. Even if she wasn’t biological, she was still their child, and what said Social Services wouldn’t panic and take all their kids — even their biological ones — from them until Honour was found?

It wasn’t until a bright, cheery jingle advertising a heating and air conditioning company informed him the news report was over that Borden was able to recover himself enough to drive on.

He was lucky if he did the speed limit the rest of the way to work as he shut his radio back off, not able to take in anything more with the shock that had settled into his bones.

Arriving at work, he parked on the shady side of the building where the staff usually parked because customers rarely used that portion of the lot — in spite of its shady benefits — and shut off the engine.

He stared at the logo in the middle of the steering wheel for a long time, only the tick-like sounds of the cooling engine reaching his ears.

There was no doubt about it; Honour Fedoruk had been kidnapped, but why? What did it all mean? How was the murder he’d heard connected? How was the conversation he’d heard connected?