Chapter 11: A Missing Husband Case

The Master Bedroom, The Rawsone Residence, Denver, Colorado....

Another sleepless night alone in a half empty bed saw to a relatively attractive woman with long dark hair draped at her shoulders and dressed in a white silk lace strapped gown she'd chosen to retire for the night in. Her baby blue eyes were filled with tears once more as she lack of heat from the crisp white sheets that lined her husband's side of the bed reminded her of his continued absence. A quick glance at her diamond engagement ring and the silver band that accompanied it once more assured her that her life had not been a dream she'd long awoken from. The room was nicely decorated, a modern pleasant look of whites and grays with semi expensive furniture. When they first bought the house, it was as modest as a house could get for two young people whom had barely gotten out of her parent's house with twin baby daughters to care for.

Tears began to stream down the supple cheeks of the grief stricken Julia Renee Rawsone as she came to terms with the fact that she had once again awoken to find that her husband, Dr. Hadrian Sheridan Rawsone, was still in fact missing. It was getting to be a little over a month since his initial disappearance from his office and the moment he didn't return home she called everyone they knew to see as to his whereabouts. The best lead she could come up with came from an onlooker whom had passed by the office and noted that his car, keys and an accompanying attaché case had been left at the scene, but his body was otherwise gone.

The lead had informed her and the police that Hadrian had gotten into an altercation with a patient whom he had not wished to see anymore frequently insisting that he be transferred as a result of their soured association. The patient, an older man much older than the good doctor himself seemed to be quite resistant to the transfer and insisted on speaking with Hadrian for some odd reason.

Julia had never known her husband to get upset with a patient before let alone anyone in general. He was usually a calm and carefree man with a good deal of an empathetic nature. She found it difficult to believe that someone had managed to make him uncomfortable enough to get upset especially at his place of work.

The phone was ringing, her heart sank into the pit of her stomach as she climbed out of bed expecting the worst as she picked up the receiver.

"Hello?" she asked in a half curious tone.

{"Hello...Julie has Hadrian been found yet?"} asked the voice on the other end of the phone she recognized as belonging to her mother.

Julia took a deep breath, being relieved that the call had not been bad news, but she had nothing new to report about her missing husband. The detectives where working on it and instructed her to sit by the phone incase something came up or he finally returned home on his own.

"No Mom, he hasn't been found yet." she replied honestly. "The detectives are searching for him as we speak and I don't know what to to in the meantime...it's only a matter of time before one of the girls realizes that he's missing and phone's home."

{"Don't you worry love, the detectives will find him and he'll be home before you know it."} her mother assured her. It didn't hurt to have a bit of optimism of course but she still wasn't so sure.

Julia took another breath and was about to end the call with her mother when she heard the sound of the doorbell followed by knocking. Immediately she grabbed her robe and slippers before rushing back to the phone as she made herself more presentable.

"Mom I've got to go, there's someone on the door and it's possibly the detectives with news of Hadrian." she said quickly.

{"Keep me posted."} added her mother as she hung up the phone in a bid to rush down the stairs.

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Downstairs Entrance, The Rawsone Residence, Denver, Colorado....

Opening the door, Julia had been surprised to find that the detective whom had agreed to look into her case had arrived with a partner and an older man she had not seen before yet he had looked a good deal familiar when it came to his appearance. He wore a worn suit with the shirt unbuttoned and sloppily thrown own wrinkles and all. His shoes had no luster revealing that they were not shined in quite some time despite being black dress shoes and gave off a more dull brown hue when looked upon.

His eyes were a dark brown color that eerily reminded her of her husband's and his white facial cast a shadow over his slightly darkened complexion as Hadrian's had whenever he neglected to shave.

She didn't need the detectives to tell her whom the older man was in that instant.

"Oh my...." she began placing a hand over her mouth in utter shock.

"Sorry to bother you Mrs. Rawsone, but our latest suspect insisted on seeing you for himself before telling us anything." said one of the younger detectives.

"We tried calling you but you were apparently busy....so we brought him down with us." replied the senior detective meeting her gaze. "If he tries anything he's going away for a very long time."

Julia nodded pleased that they thought to bring the man to see her.

"Well, you wished to speak with me." she said turning her attention back to the older man. "You can start with your name."

The older man seemed to be shocked at the chance to get to finally explain himself.

"My...My name is Colin Winters." he said truthfully. "I formerly went by Colin Rawsone years ago prior to getting my last name legally changed to distance myself from my former family."

"Colin Rawsone?" said Julia caught off guard despite having her suspicions upon meeting this older man that eerily reminded her of Hadrian in some way.

"Indeed." replied the old man known as Colin. "Despite my appearance and relatively idiotic decision to walk out on my family, I was or rather I am Hadrian's father."

"Hadrian never mentioned you." said Julia getting a bit defensive. "What kind of father walks out on his son especially when his mother passes away?"

Colin sighed knowing she'd already go for the heavy stuff as it were.

"What can I say....I was an idiot back then and have been working like crazy to make amends with all my living children." explained Colin finding the topic uneasy.

Julia noted how personal it was getting and invited the men inside and escorted them to the kitchen where she prepared a kettle of tea for them all. They each took a seat at the table while the young detective took notes and the Senior detective eyed Colin Winters suspiciously as he continued with his story.

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The Kitchen, The Rawsone Residence, Denver, Colorado....

Colin continued with his story once everyone had settled and received their respective cups of tea. He seemed to have been impressed with the way his eldest son had turned out despite the lack of support from him or his mother over the years.

"Mildred and I clashed a lot back then, I was a heavily stressed surgeon and very much in the throes of a drinking problem with two newborn sons to deal with and a wandering eye to boot." admitted Colin. "It took some years of counseling and trial and error with my younger children before I finally admitted that there were some things I was neglecting to speak of....I told my other three children about leaving their elder brother and never looking back."

"How did they take it?" asked Julia not in the least feeling sorry for the old man now that she knew the extent of his transgressions against her still missing husband.

"Let's just say they were none too thrilled." replied Colin with a somber expression filed across his aged face. "I was encouraged by my current wife whom had separated from me to track down my eldest son and make amends if I was ever going to have my family whole again."

Julia narrowed her eyes at the man whom had been responsible for most of the pain her husband endured in childhood and refused to speak of.

"I take it this is when you approached my husband?" she asked realizing Colin had been the older man the witness saw whom had upset her husband the last day he was seen.

"It didn't happen in that order...I actually didn't know your husband...was a doctor let alone the one I was assigned to meet with after counseling with my wife." insisted Colin. "He didn't seem to remember me either until he asked me about my life and I shared that I'd been married and walked out on the family the first time and remarried again siring three younger children....I expressed my desire to make amends with my eldest son after learning that his mother had been dead but could never find him and Dr. Rawsone...suddenly got pale in the face."

"Chances are he realized who you were and wanted nothing to do with you." said Julia matter of factly.

"He simply referred me to another professional for assistance and walked out of the office." said Colin. "By that point I had not realized that he'd been my long lost son....so I followed him into the parking lot where he once more got upset and referred me to someone else."

"And then what happened?" asked Julia realizing this man had been the last one to see Hadrian before his disappearance. "What happened to my husband after he got upset, witnesses say there was a sign of a scuffle and there was traces of blood on the scene so what happened...what did you do to my husband!?"

Julia found herself getting hysterical in that moment and the senior detective moved to calm her down.

"Take it easy Mrs. Rawsone." he said. "As it turns out the old man's story checked out with the witnesses."

Tears began to stream down Julia's cheeks before she could stop them.

Her husband was still missing and they were no closer to a lead on where he'd gone than the day before only now she knew her apparent father-in-law had not been behind it.