"As I've said, sergeant, this fellow hypnotized my wife. He made her think he was her brother. She doesn't even have a brother. Then he tried to get away with the baby." Martin leaned down and patted the dog. "It was Tiger here who scared him off."
The police sergeant looked at the father, at Nancy and then at the dog. He scribbled notes in his book.
"Are you a rich man, Mr. Laughton?" he asked.
"Not at all. The bank still owns most of the house. I have a few hundred dollars, that's all."
"What do you do?"
"Office work, mostly. I'm a junior executive in an insurance company."
"Any enemies?"
"No ... Oh, I suppose I have a few people I don't get along with, like anybody else. Nobody who'd do anything like this, though."
The sergeant flipped his notebook closed. "You'd better keep your dog inside and around the kid as much as possible. Keep your doors and windows locked. I'll see that the prowl car keeps an eye on the house. Call us if anything seems unusual or out of the way."
Nancy had taken a sedative and was asleep by the time Martin finished cleaning the .30-.30 rifle he used for deer hunting. He put it by the stairs, ready for use, fully loaded, leaning it against the wall next to the telephone stand.