Where There's Hope_A Well Paired Novel

by Marianne Rice

  “I think that’s a wonderful idea. Maybe you can help me pick out a few for her as well.”

  The shop wasn’t far from the restaurant, and they took their time picking out some pretty and some silly ornaments for the tree. Cameron may have gone overboard and had his hands full at the cash register.

  “I see Bethany outside. Can I go out really quick to tell her I got asked to dance tonight?”

  “Sure. Don’t go far, though.”

  “Awesome. Here’s some money.” She handed him the nutcracker and a ten-dollar bill. He would’ve told her to keep her money, but he figured it meant a lot to her to buy something for her mom.

  The lady at the register was in no hurry to cash out the three people ahead of him and had to call for assistance with each customer. When it was his turn, she couldn’t find the price on the coffee mug ornament and asked Cameron to wait.

  Normally it wouldn’t have bothered him, but Delaney had been gone for more than ten minutes and he couldn’t see her out the window. She was responsible, though, and wouldn’t stray far. Cameron figured she’d be waiting for him right by the door.

  But when he left the shop with a bag full of individually wrapped ornaments, Delaney was nowhere to be found. He looked to his left, then to his right. He glanced across the street and didn’t see her white and teal winter coat. It was hard to miss among the mob of black and navy coats, but the random flash of white he spotted wasn’t ever Delaney.

  “Delaney!” he finally yelled. “Have you seen her? A girl about this tall,” he said to the next passerby, holding his hand to his chest. “She has a white and teal coat and her hair pulled up in a tight bun. She’s twelve. Have you seen her?”

  “Sorry, man. I’m just walking by.”

  Maybe she went back into the store and he missed her. Cameron yanked the door open and shouted her name. When the lady at the cash register and the three other shoppers in the store gave him curious looks, his heart sank.

  “My...niece. She was here with me a few minutes ago. She’s twelve. I can’t find her. Have you seen her?” His heart raced and the chicken in his stomach turned to stone. His feet grew heavy yet he needed to run, to find her.

  “There isn’t anyone else in the store right now,” an elderly man said.

  Cameron pushed past him and ran out the door, yelling for Delaney. He ran down to the next block, cupping his mouth as he shouted. When he didn’t see her coat he dashed down to the next block and did the same, hollering, stopping people in the street, asking if they’d seen her.

  He yelled until his throat grew hoarse and then returned to the store, hoping she’d come back. Praying she got distracted with her friend and wandered off, not realizing how long she’d been gone. Dizziness took over, and his knees grew weak with fear.

  When the sky grew dark and it was nearing time to go back to the theater and she still hadn’t shown, he knew.

  She was gone.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

  EVEN WITH HER FATHER’S minor heart attack and missing two of Delaney’s performances, Hope couldn’t help the glow on her face, the smile on her lips, or the skip in her step as she tidied up her house and tossed a load of dirty clothes in the wash.

  If she could, she’d rewind the weekend. Friday night through Sunday morning were perfect. Insanely perfect. Now that she knew her father would be okay and Delaney wasn’t heartbroken over her not being there today, Hope could bask in the remembrance of being in Cameron’s arms.

  Not only was the sex spectacular, but their conversations and the joking brought them closer together as well. She simply enjoyed being with Cameron, clothed or not. There was a time for each, and if she could learn to have some of his patience, the naked part would last longer.

  Hope smiled at the memory of their Saturday afternoon tryst in his hotel room. She was lost in a daze, wiping the same spot on the counter over and over again as she daydreamed.

  Her phone vibrated in her pocket and she slipped it out, frowning at the number.

  “Hi, Karen.”

  “Hope? Where are you?”

  “I’m home. What’s wrong. Is it Delaney? Is she hurt?” Hope dropped the sponge and grabbed her throat. “Tell me she’s okay.”

  “I would if I knew where she was.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “That man, he’s your boyfriend?”

  Hope didn’t like the undercurrent in Karen’s tone. She was a gifted dance instructor but was rigid and uptight when it came to her girls. There was a reason she was fifty-four and still single.

  “What about him?”

  “I told him to be back at four-thirty.”

  Hope glanced at the clock on the microwave. “They’re fifteen minutes late. I’m sure she’ll be there any second now.”

  “How can you be so sure? You left your daughter in his care. You’re aware of his past, aren’t you?”

  “I don’t see how this is relevant to Delaney’s dancing skills.”

  How Karen learned about it was most likely through the trail of gossip. Usually she weeded out the superficial drama and harped on the real deal. Who was having an affair, the neglectful mom who left parenting up to the nanny, the unsupportive parents, the women who were living vicariously through their daughters.

  Apparently, Cameron’s past had made its way through the buzz line, not that Hope was entirely surprised. Still, she didn’t worry about Delaney being with him, but the fact that they were fifteen minutes late was completely out of character. For both of them.

  “It’s all relevant if your boyfriend doesn’t get my ballerina here in the next thirty seconds.”

  “I’ll call him now. I’m sure there’s a logical explanation as to—”

  “There are other girls who would kill for a spot in this ballet.”

  “I know, Karen. Delaney appreciates being asked to fill in tonight. I’ll find out what’s going on.”

  The phone went silent on the other end, and Hope quickly dialed Cameron. Now that Karen wasn’t chewing her out, worry set in. She wasn’t one to imagine the worst, but when he didn’t answer on the second ring, or the third, panic set in. Finally, on the fourth, he answered.

  “Hope,” he sounded winded. And scared.

  “Tell me you two are okay. Was there an accident? Where’s Delaney?”

  “How did you hear?”

  “Hear what?” Hope shot her hand up in the air, her heart taking over inside her chest, working frantically to pump the rush of blood streaming through her veins. “Karen just called looking for Delaney. Where is she?”

  “I don’t know,” he said softly. Too softly.

  “What do you mean you don’t know?”

  “I...I lost her.”

  “She’s not a dog. Or a cat. Or even a toddler.” Fury and fear encroached her throat. “She’s twelve and she’s my daughter. How did you lose her? There was barely any downtime between the two shows.” She was too scared to sit, but she could feel her legs starting to give out. Hope dropped to the kitchen chair and rubbed her temple with her free hand.

  “We had lunch and then went into a store.”

  “What store?”

  “A gift shop. I was in line when she spotted a friend outside.”

  “Who? Who did she see?”

  “Bethany. She wanted to tell her friend about being asked to dance tonight.”

  “And then what? Where is she now?” Hope wouldn’t accept that her daughter was missing. She had to be sitting somewhere waiting for Cameron to return.

  “When I left the store, she wasn’t anywhere to be found.” His sigh came out like a moan, as if in pain. “I yelled for her, stopped everyone on the street asking if they’d seen her. I ran from block to block and came back to the store hoping she’d be there. She vanished.”

  “My daughter didn’t just up and vanish. She’s somewhere else. You didn’t check all the stores. All the streets. She wouldn’t have wandered off. She’s twelve. A responsible, mature twelve-year-old,” she cried. Hope
shot up out of her chair and paced furiously through the downstairs of her house, searching for Delaney, hoping she’d somehow found her way home.

  “She did. She’s gone.”

  “No. She’s not,” Hope choked and ran up the stairs, searching through Delaney’s room. She scooped up her favorite pink bunny, the one with ratty ears that she used to carry with her everywhere she went until she turned nine, and hugged it to her chest. “She’s not gone. You just haven’t found her.” Hope cried into the bunny’s matted fur.

  “Sweetheart, I’m still looking. I’ll find her.”

  “How long has she been gone?” she finally managed to squeak out. Maybe he hadn’t looked long enough.

  “Over an hour.”

  “An hour?” She shot up off the bed. “And you didn’t think to call me? To tell me my baby girl is missing?”

  “I’ve been looking everywhere. I didn’t want you to worry. I figured I’d find her by now.”

  “You need to go to the police.”

  “That’s where I am now. I just finished telling them what I told you. They said it’s a bit too soon to file a missing person’s report, but since she’s a minor, they’re going out on foot patrol.”

  “How long have they been looking?” Hope sniffed and picked up a picture of Delaney and her friends at her dance recital last spring. So young. So innocent.

  “Not long. They’re following up with paperwork now.”

  Her phone beeped signaling an incoming call. She didn’t recognize the number, but it could be Delaney. It had to be her. “Stay by your phone and call me the second you find her.” She clicked over to the other call, her voice catching. “Delaney?”

  “Is this Hope Windward?”

  “Yes. Who is this?”

  “This is Detective Milford. I’m calling about a missing person’s file.”

  “My daughter. Have you found her? Is she okay?” She held the picture and the bunny close to her heart, wishing for a miracle.

  “You’re aware your daughter Delaney Windward is missing?”

  “Please, tell me you found her.”

  “Not yet, Ms. Windward. Are you familiar with a Mr. Cameron Smithfield?”

  “Yes. He was with Delaney today. I had to leave Portland to take care of my father. Cameron told me what happened. Please tell me you have your people out there looking for her.”

  “We’ve set out a foot patrol, yes. In the meantime, I need to ask you a few questions.”

  “Can you ask me later? After you find my daughter?”

  “I assure you, Ms. Windward, we’re looking, but the more information you can give us, the better chance we have of finding her.”

  Hope sank on to Delaney’s bed and closed her eyes, no longer fighting the tears.

  “Do you or your daughter have any enemies? A disgruntled neighbor, a jealous ex-boyfriend?”

  “What? No.”

  “Are you aware of Mr. Smithfield’s criminal past?”

  “Yes, I’m aware. And it has nothing to do with Delaney.”

  “Does Delaney know he’s her uncle?”

  “What does this have to do with her disappearance?”

  “Hopefully nothing, but we need to investigate every avenue. What would Mr. Smithfield have to gain by taking your daughter?”

  “Taking her? He was helping me out today, he wouldn’t take her.” Hope jogged down the stairs and rifled through her purse for her keys. If the police were going to waste their time with stupid questions, she’d go search for her daughter herself.

  “You’re aware he comes from an extremely affluent family?”

  Hope paused, her hand on the doorknob. “Again, where are you going with this? How will this help find my daughter?”

  Headlights shone through her front windows. Delaney. She’d been found. It had to be her. Hope flung open the front door and ran out into the cold in her bare feet. Ty stood outside his truck, his shoulders hunched. She looked through the windshield expecting to see Delaney in the passenger seat, only he was alone.

  “Hope, honey.” He opened his arms and she ran into them, crying into his chest. She barely remembered the rest. Him picking her up and carrying her into the house, setting her on the couch and handing her a roll of paper towels to blow her nose as he responded to the detective’s questions on the phone.

  When he hung up, she wiped her eyes on her shoulder. “Did they find her?” she whispered. Her body was weak, shaking, and drained, yet her heart quickened, beating with adrenaline.

  “We’ll find her.”

  “Where is she?” she cried again, beating his chest with her fists? “Why aren’t they looking for her? Why aren’t you? I’m going to Portland. My baby is lost and alone in the cold. She needs me.” Hope darted for the front door, but Ty stopped her.

  “You can’t drive like this.”

  “Then you take me. I need to look for her.” She clung to his shirt, begging. Her heart was in a thousand shattered pieces, her throat sore and hoarse from crying and yelling. The pain in her chest burned so deep no mending of time would heal it. Nothing would until she held her baby girl in her arms again.

  “What if she comes home and you’re not here?”

  Hope sank to the floor of her foyer, limp and powerless. “Go find her, Ty. Please.”

  He crouched next to her and engulfed her in his arms. What used to offer so much comfort and solace now felt like a weight on her shoulders.

  “Mia’s on her way over here. I don’t want you to be alone. I’ll drive down to Portland and see what’s going on.”

  Hope barely had the energy to nod.

  Sometime later she noticed Mia sitting by her side, a cup of untouched warm tea in her hands.

  “They’ll find her. Tell me they’ll find her.”

  Mia cradled Hope’s head against her shoulder and spoke soothing words. What she said, Hope hadn’t a clue, but her voice was calming.

  A noise from the living room startled her and she leaped to her feet. “Delaney?”

  “It’s my phone. Let me take this, okay?”

  Mia answered her phone and Hope swayed, unable to control her body movements. Nothing was in her control anymore. Her heart was an empty cavity in her chest. She needed Delaney to fill it. If they couldn’t find her...

  Hope’s knees buckled under her and she dropped to the couch.

  “Hey, Ty. Any news?” Mia asked.

  Hope studied her face for clues. A smile, a glint of hopefulness to hold on to. When her eyes closed and her head tilted forward, Hope grabbed on to Mia’s arm and took the phone away.

  “Ty? Where is she?”

  “No news. They’ve upped the foot patrol and spread the search to the outside of town. There’s not much we can do besides wait.”

  “I can’t wait, Ty. I need to do something.”

  “I can’t imagine how hard this is for you. Hang on to us, okay?”

  Hope shook her head and dropped the phone on to the couch. Needing to be alone, she dragged herself upstairs and locked herself in Delaney’s room. She curled up in a ball and cried until she had no tears left and no energy to make any more.

  Her daughter, her lifeline, her heart and soul. She couldn’t be gone. Her life would be empty and pointless without Delaney in it.

  She dozed in and out of consciousness, clutching her phone in one hand and the pink bunny in the other. When a soft knock echoed on the door and Cameron’s gentle voice called her name, she opened her eyes, keeping her back to him.

  Part of Hope resented Cameron for being the last one to see Delaney. For losing her. He wasn’t a father. He didn’t know how it felt to lose a piece of your soul. She shouldn’t have left her most precious, invaluable love of her life in the hands of someone who’d never had a child of his own.

  “Sweetheart.” He curled his body around hers and hugged her tight. His tears wetting her cheek, his trembles shaking her body with his. They lay like that for hours, curled into each other, not speaking, but sharing tears and heartache.


  CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

  IT WAS TWO IN THE MORNING when Cameron found Hope curled in a ball on Delaney’s bed. Not knowing the right words to say, he held her tight and let the tears pour out.

  He didn’t sleep and was fully aware when Hope dozed off. He wanted her to sleep more, but as soon as her breathing steadied, she’d flinch and sniff back the tears. He had no words. There was nothing he could say to comfort her, to bring Delaney back.

  It was his fault she was missing. He should have never let her leave the store by herself. He shouldn’t have agreed to the evening show without talking to Hope first either, even though she had said at the time she would have said yes.

  She blamed him for her hurt, and he deserved it. But he’d fight like hell to bring Delaney back. She couldn’t have simply vanished into thin air. The only possibility was a random kidnapping. Spending a third of his life behind bars, he’d heard plenty of stories. The first twenty-four hours were the most crucial. The longer she went missing, the less likely she’d be found.

  Leaving Portland wasn’t exactly a choice he’d made. The police asked him to keep out of their investigation, but insisted he not go too far. If Ty hadn’t shown up and told him Hope needed him at home, he never would have left.

  It pained him to see her this way. To know he was at fault for losing Delaney. Squeezing her tighter, he drew Hope’s body into his and rested his chin against her shoulder.

  The front door opened and voices could be heard from below. Hope pushed him away and scrambled out of bed, rushing out of the room.

  “Delaney?” She stumbled down the stairs, and Cameron barely had time to catch her by her waist before she took a big fall.

  They reached the bottom of the stairs and saw Rich and Diane, faces drawn and pale.

  “Honey.” Diane caught Hope and held her as they both wept. Rich surrounded them with his arms and cried into the huddle as well.

  Cameron stepped away, giving them their privacy. His body ached with hurt and guilt. His muscles sore from holding back tears and rage. Seeing Hope grieve crushed his soul. A soul that was empty and hollow before he met her. He’d do anything for her, anything to bring Delaney back.