by N L Hinkens
She straightened her keyboard in front of her and did a quick Google search for adoption lawyers. After perusing the reviews, she picked up her phone and called to make an appointment with a Derek Parsons. After she hung up, she downloaded the forms from the website that the receptionist had requested her to fill out and bring with her the following Tuesday.
Absorbed in the task, she was shocked when the bell rang for lunch. She hurriedly checked Noah’s schedule and then grabbed her purse and walked over to the science lab to try and catch him. She waited for several minutes as students filed out. Catching sight of one of his teammates, she called out to him, “Greg! Where’s Noah?”
He shrugged his burly shoulders without missing a step. “Dunno. He skipped class.”
Jo seethed with frustration as Greg disappeared around the corner before she could pepper him with any follow-up questions. There was nothing more she could do for now. She turned and made her way to the staff break room. As she pushed open the door, a frown settled on her forehead. None of the usual chatter infused the room. Instead, a somber silence hung in the air. The teachers stood around in twos and threes, their faces drawn, as the principal, Ed McMillan, addressed them. He stopped mid-sentence and turned to look at Jo. “Come in, close the door. I just told the rest of the staff I received some bad news.”
Jo’s eyes darted around the room, searching in vain for Robbie and Sarah. A foreboding feeling came over her. Her throat began to close over. Ed wouldn’t be addressing the teachers if something had happened to Sarah’s mom. It must be worse than that. She closed the door quietly behind her and padded over the industrial carpet to join the other teachers.
Ed twitched his nose to adjust his glasses and then continued, “I got a call from Robbie Gleeson this morning.”
Jo’s legs began to shake beneath her. She leaned against the cabinet behind her for support, sensing something terrible was about to fall from his lips.
“Sarah’s gone missing.”
Muted gasps of horror rumbled around the room.
“We don’t know any details other than that she wasn’t in the house when he woke up this morning. The sheets on her side of the bed were cold, so he thinks she must have been gone for some time. Her car’s missing too. It appears she took her purse and phone with her. Robbie’s been trying to reach her all morning, but he’s had no luck. He called the police about half an hour ago. As far as he knows, she had no plans to go anywhere today other than to school. I’m going to ask all of you to keep this on the QT for now. I don’t want the students getting upset until we know more.” He paused and looked directly at Jo. “Naturally, this will leak out at some point if Sarah doesn’t show up soon, so I need you to be prepared to counsel any students who need it.”
Jo opened her mouth to respond, the words sticking in her throat. “Of course,” she croaked. “Is there anything we can do for Robbie in the meantime?”
Ed shook his head. “I asked him that. Not much we can do at the moment other than pray for Sarah’s safe return. This is really out of character for her to disappear without letting Robbie know where she was going.” He exhaled a heavy breath and glanced at his watch. “Please be discreet, and don’t discuss the situation anyplace you could be overheard by students. I’ll keep you posted if there are developments during the afternoon.” With a curt nod he strode across the room and disappeared out the door.
For a long moment, a sobering silence reigned as the teachers exchanged apprehensive looks with one another before breaking into subdued conversation.
“Poor Robbie,” the teacher standing next to Jo said to no one in particular. “I can’t imagine anything more frightening than waking up to find your spouse has disappeared during the night. It’s like something out of a movie.”
While the teachers swapped thoughts and theories, Jo quietly slipped out of the break room and dialed Liam’s number. The phone rang several times before he picked up.
“What’s up, honey? I’m right in the middle of something.”
“Sarah’s missing.” The words tumbled out in a frightened bleat of sorts. Jo felt tears welling up and she screwed her eyes shut in an attempt to keep them at bay.
“What do you mean missing?” Liam’s tone was a careful blend of patient and wary, the same way he spoke to her when she was on the verge of having a meltdown.
“Robbie woke up this morning and Sarah wasn’t in the bed.” Jo let out a gurgling sob. “He’s been trying to call her all morning but she’s not picking up. He contacted the police about a half hour ago.”
“Jo, that’s awful. How’d you find out?”
“Ed McMillan came into the break room and addressed all the teachers. What should we do, Liam? There must be something we can do for Robbie. I don’t understand it. I mean, we just talked to Sarah last night.”
“I know, it’s crazy.”
“I think I’ll go by his place after school. They don’t have any family in the area, other than Barb, so I feel like I should be there to support Robbie.”
“Good idea,” Liam replied. “Text me and let me know if he wants me to swing by after work. Otherwise, I’m going to stay late again and try and nail down this job. If the police are there, they might not want us all piling into the house anyway.”
“Okay, I’ll keep you posted.” Jo ended the call and went back to her office in a daze. She slumped down in her chair, still trying to get her head around the news, the erratic beat of fear in her chest growing more insistent. Where could Sarah have gone so early in the morning? And why had she not returned? If there had been some kind of emergency with Barb, she would have left a note for Robbie or texted him by now.
Jo pulled her chair into her desk and typed in her password to log into the school system. She couldn’t sit and stare at her phone all day waiting to hear if Sarah had turned up safe and sound. She needed to do something to distract herself until three o’clock. She pulled up the attendance record for the day and scrolled through to Noah’s name. Absent. Great! He hadn’t bothered to cancel. She would give him the benefit of the doubt and assume he was sick. She rested her chin on her hand, her thoughts drifting back to Sarah. She might have been involved in a car accident. Jo wondered if Robbie had called the hospital, or if the police were even looking into any angles like that yet. She had a hunch from the crime shows she’d watched that the police didn’t kick into gear right away, unless of course it was a child who was missing. But Sarah was an adult and entitled to drive her car wherever she wanted.
Her phone buzzed with a text notification. She jolted upright when she saw it was from Robbie.
You probably already heard. Sarah’s missing. Police came around but no sign of forced entry. They think she left of her own free will so not making it a priority yet. I’m freaking out!!! Called Brookdale Meadows to see if something happened with Barb but they haven’t heard from Sarah either. Any idea where she might be?
Jo took a deep breath and began to type a response, her fingers shaking so much she had to backspace every second letter.
I’m so sorry, Robbie. She didn’t mention anything to me. I’ll come by after school. Let me know if there’s anything I can do in the meantime.
After a few minutes, Robbie wrote back.
Thanks, I’ve driven all over the neighborhood looking for her car. Nothing we can do but wait. Police on the lookout for her license plate so that’s something.
After typing and deleting several unsatisfactory responses, Jo settled on sending back a sad face emoji before slipping her phone back into her purse. What was she supposed to say—that everything would be all right, that the police would find Sarah? Platitudes were the worst kind of wound dressings, as she knew only too well.
The rest of the afternoon dragged on as she racked her brain, trying to figure out where Sarah might have gone or what she could possibly be doing. By the time three o’clock rolled around, her emotions were jangling almost as loudly as the bell signaling the end of another school day. She hurried out
to her car and pulled out of the parking lot, only half paying attention, and forcing another driver to swerve and lean on their horn. She mouthed an apology through the windscreen, both hands gripping the steering wheel tightly to stop from shaking as she merged with the traffic.
By the time she turned onto Fairview Place, her chest felt like she was encased in a straight jacket, and she was hyperventilating. Two cop cars were parked outside Robbie’s and Sarah’s house. She parked a few doors down, not wanting to take up essential space for emergency vehicles.
An ominous feeling of being watched came over her as she climbed out and locked her vehicle. Instinctively, she glanced across the street. Mia Allen was standing at the curb staring intently at her, a small dog on a leash at her side. Jo raised her hand uncertainly and gave a shaky wave. Mia must have heard by now that Sarah was missing. Without acknowledging her, Mia turned away and walked around the corner. Jo frowned as she made her way to the front door and jabbed at the doorbell. What exactly was that expression on Mia’s face? It wasn’t sympathy, or even curiosity, if she had to name it, she would say it was something akin to enjoyment.
8
A female police officer with frizzy red bangs and a short ponytail opened the door, her alert green eyes flicking appraisingly over Jo.
“Hi, uh … I’m Jo Murphy, a colleague of Robbie’s and Sarah’s from Emmetville High. I told Robbie I would come by after work and check up on him.”
The officer nodded wordlessly, her stoic expression unchanging as she led Jo inside and through to the family room. The pleated, stone-colored drapes were drawn, presumably for privacy from curious passersby, like Mia. Robbie was slumped on the sage green couch with his head resting in his hands. A crew cut police officer sat on a chair just inside the door scrolling through the phone in his hand with intermittent flicks of his thumb. He looked up questioningly at Jo.
“She’s a colleague of Mr. Gleeson’s,” the female police officer explained before exiting the room.
Robbie glanced up, confusion flooding his face. “Jo?” He half rose out of his seat, the muscles in his jaw taut with a sense of urgency. “Have you heard from Sarah?”
Jo shook her head, sucking in a ragged breath at the crestfallen look on his face. “No. I said I’d stop by, remember? Oh, Robbie,” she began, taking a step toward him, “I’m so sorry. It’s unbelievable.”
He got to his feet unsteadily and they hugged for a long moment, Robbie clinging to her as though she were the only rock left in his world. When he finally released her, they sat down next to one another on the couch. Jo darted a quick glance at the policeman seated by the door, still toying with his phone. Her stomach churned at the disquieting thought that he might have been assigned to keep an eye on Robbie. They always suspected the partner first when someone went missing.
As if reading her thoughts, Robbie muttered. “They won’t let me leave the house. I think they suspect me of having something to do with it.”
“I doubt it,” Jo protested. “They’re probably here to make sure you don’t fall apart under the strain of it all. Have the police found out anything more?”
Robbie made a disgruntled sound at the back of his throat. “Nothing. No sign of a struggle and no evidence of a break-in. Their theory is that she went somewhere, well, just on her own accord. The worst thing about it is—I took a sleeping pill and went to bed right after dinner. I was feeling like crap. Sarah went shopping after school. I don’t know where. I don’t even know for sure if she ever came home last night.” He groaned, dragging a hand through his hair. “Of course, the police don’t believe me. They’re reviewing CCTV footage from stores in the area.”
“This isn’t like Sarah at all,” Jo said, wringing her hands. “Something must have happened to her. Did the police try tracking her phone?”
“Yeah, nothing. It must be turned off.”
“Any leads on her license plate?”
Robbie shook his head. “No, it’s just like she disappeared.”
Jo shot him a pitying look. “Is there anything at all Liam and I can do to help? Put up posters, hand out flyers?”
Robbie gave a despairing shrug. “You’ll have to ask the police. I overheard them talking about some kind of community outreach, but my head’s buzzing and I don’t know who’s organizing what.”
Jo patted his arm. ”Don’t worry. I’ll find out what we can do and make sure to help any way we can.”
Robbie rubbed his hands over his face and sighed. “Thanks, Jo, I appreciate it.”
“Have you eaten today? I’m happy to bring you over some dinner.”
He gave a mirthless laugh. “I don’t think my freezer can hold all the meals the neighbors are dropping off. They don’t know what else to do to help.”
“I’m glad they’re taking care of you at least. Do you want Liam to swing by after work?”
Robbie sighed. “No, don’t bother him. There’s been a steady stream of people in and out of here all day. I could use a little space this evening—to clear my head.”
“Of course,” Jo said, getting to her feet. “Call or text us anytime, day or night.”
Robbie reached out and squeezed her hand gratefully. “You’re a good friend, Jo. I know they’ll find Sarah soon, and there will be a simple explanation for all of this.”
Jo nodded her agreement, not wanting to voice any doubt that would add to Robbie’s distress. She exited the room and followed the sound of voices coming from the kitchen. The female police officer who had opened the door to her was deep in conversation with another officer.
“I’m just leaving,” Jo said. “Is there anything I can do to help? I’m sure the teachers at school will pitch in—putting flyers in mailboxes or whatever it is you normally do in these situations.”
The female police officer picked up a small stack of flyers from the table and handed them to her. “If the teachers want to start distributing these in their neighborhoods, that would be a help.”
Jo took the flyers and studied the photograph of Sarah beaming at her from the page. The joy she always exuded reflected in the light dancing in her eyes. The picture had been taken at the Botanic Gardens on a school field trip. Jo swallowed a hard lump in her throat. Up until now it had been impossible for her to grasp the fact that Sarah was actually missing, but she was holding the proof right here in her hands. She nodded to the officer. “I’ll pass these out tomorrow. If you think of anything else, Robbie has my number.”
Back in her car, Jo exhaled a heavy breath and set the stack of flyers on the passenger seat next to her. She stared at them for a moment and then leaned across and flipped them upside down. The idea of driving all the way home with Sarah’s smiling face watching her was unnerving, a nagging reminder that something was terribly wrong, that this was no ordinary day. She started up the engine, and then pulled out her phone and sent Liam a quick text to let him know not to stop by. On a whim, she decided to drive past Mia’s house on her way out of the subdivision. She wasn’t sure what she would say to her if she saw her again, but for some reason she felt compelled to check up on her.
She cruised through the neighborhood, keeping a sharp eye out for any dog walkers along the way, but there was no sign of Mia anywhere. As she approached her house she slowed down even more. Driving by, she thought she caught a glimpse of the curtain in the family room twitching. That same foreboding feeling of being watched came over her again. Unnerved, she accelerated and pulled out of the subdivision, suddenly eager to be on her way before Mia appeared in the doorway.
Back home, Jo decided to turn in early after tossing and turning the previous night. Liam might work until midnight again for all she knew, so there wasn’t much point in waiting up for him. When her alarm went off the following morning, she stirred from a deep sleep, disoriented as her mind yanked her out of a vivid dream. She reached for her phone on the bedside locker and stared bleary-eyed at the indecipherable text on the screen. As she scrabbled for her glasses, Liam yawned loudly and threw
back the covers, swinging his feet to the ground. “Morning, honey,” he said, stifling another yawn. “You were sleeping hard when I got back, and I wasn’t even that late—nine or so.”
“I crashed as soon as I hit the pillow.” Jo slid her glasses on and peered at the text on her phone again. She let out a moan. “Ed wants the staff to come in half an hour early this morning. He must be going to make an announcement about Sarah to the students.”
“Don’t be surprised if you see police officers on campus,” Liam warned her. “If Sarah’s still missing, they’ll likely want to start interviewing all her colleagues.”
Jo scraped her hair back from her face and climbed out of bed. “You’re right. They’ll probably ramp up the investigation now that she’s been missing over twenty-four hours.”
“Man, I feel bad for Robbie,” Liam said as he pulled open a drawer and rummaged around for some socks. “I can’t even imagine what he’s going through.”
“He was pretty broken when I talked to him yesterday. He’s normally always the one cracking jokes and making everyone else feel better.”
Liam walked into the adjoining bathroom and turned on the shower. “I’ll swing by this morning on my way to work and check up on him.”
