by Cari Cole
"So? Now what?" Jane said.
"We make ourselves comfortable and wait for Belle," Lucy said. "I'm sure that cake wasn't the only treat in the house."
So they chose bedrooms, put together a snack tray of cheese, crackers and fruit, and settled in on the main deck with big glasses of sweet tea. None of them were ready to venture back into the world of alcoholic beverages after dancing on the bar and getting tattooed.
Jane rattled the ice around in her glass and looked over at Lucy. "So what do you think this big mystery of Belle's is all about?"
Lucy shrugged. "There's no telling. I'm more worried about what I'm going to do for the next forty years than the next two days."
"Well, I'm sure you'll be just fine. Think of this as a chance to figure out what makes you happy, all on your own," Mae said.
"And what about you?" Jane said. "I'd say you're in need of a little overhaul yourself. Or maybe Chip needs one."
"Maybe both of us could use a little shaking up," Mae said. "I feel like I don't have a self of my own anymore. Know what I mean?"
"Of course I do," Lucy said. "Let's make a pact that we'll really use this time away. To evaluate where we've been and where we're going."
When Jane rolled her eyes Lucy turned her best Mom look on her. "You too. Obviously you weren't deliriously happy with your job or you wouldn't have self-destructed yesterday."
"Fine," Jane said. "But could we wait at least a couple of hours? I'm still fighting the last of my hangover."
"Sure, but first we swear by our sacred tattoos that we'll each leave here with a positive plan for change," Lucy said.
"Let's make a ritual promise," Mae said. "Right hands on your tattoos ladies. Left hands in." She put her left hand out.
Lucy put her right hand on her ass and solemnly put her left hand on top of Mae's.
With a put upon sigh, Jane joined in.
"Okay, repeat after me," Mae said. "I swear on the sacred mark of the B Girls to leave this mountain retreat with a concrete, measurable plan to live my best life."
Lucy and Jane repeated the oath and they all threw their left hands into the air.
"Now, let's snack," Lucy said. "I wish Belle would hurry up and get back, I'm curious about the mystery but I'm more anxious to get her input on our plans."
Mid-afternoon wore on into late afternoon.
And still Belle didn't appear.
Talk turned back to their pact and they tossed out wild possibilities for their futures.
"No idea is too crazy at this point," Jane said after Mae let out an appalled gasp at her suggestion that Lucy consider opening a strip club. "There's good money to be made from randy men."
"I don't think supervising naked women is in my future," Lucy said. "But maybe I'll shave my head and join a Buddhist monastery for a while."
"I'd be happy with finding the nerve to tell Chip he has to cook once a week so I can go out with you two without having to worry over supper first."
"You have to want more than that," Lucy said.
"Yes but that would do for a start. If I could find the courage to demand more of Chip, I think the rest would fall into place."
Lucy turned to Jane "What about you? You've been quick to make suggestions for me but I haven't heard you come up with any wild plans for yourself."
"I'm thinking of becoming a starving artist. I was once told I had the potential to be a successful painter."
"Really?" Mae said. "I don't have an artistic bone in my body. Do you still paint? Have we seen anything you did?"
"No, I haven't picked up a brush in years. My lovely ex ruined it for me with his snide comments and criticisms. All my old paintings are boxed up in a rented storage building."
"Well, just as soon as we get back to town we're going to get them. Even if you decide to do something else with the rest of your life, I want to check them out for myself," Lucy said.
"Believe me, they're competent but not all that fascinating," Jane said.
"All the same, I think you should let us be the judge of that," Mae said.
"Fine. What do you suppose is keeping Belle?"
"I don't know but I'm starting to get a little worried. I'm going to try her cell again." Lucy had already tried two or three times and been routed to Belle's voice mail. She left brief messages that she didn't expect to have answered. Belle rarely answered her cell, she considered it a convenience in case of emergency rather than a means of making herself available to her friends and relatives.
"And I'd better check in with my family," Mae said.
Jane shrugged. "Go ahead, I think I can manage to entertain myself for a few minutes since my fish don't currently have phone skills. Maybe I should look into a hands free model for them."
The clock ticked its way to dinner time and Belle was still gone. And she hadn't called.
Lucy went through Belle's address book. There were only four local numbers among the hundred or so entries. The housekeeper and the yard man hadn't seen Belle since their own respective work days at the house. Louisa Dent didn't even know Belle was in town and Vernon Taper hadn't spoken with her in two days. No one was alarmed that Belle was a few hours overdue and they all promised to call if they heard anything.
Lucy wouldn't have been alarmed either if Belle hadn't been aware of the crisis in her marriage. That one fact changed everything.
Lucy made another futile call to Belle's cell phone and paced around the kitchen while Mae performed some magic with red leaf lettuce, radicchio, baby spinach, button mushrooms, pomegranate, fresh shrimp and a loaf of crusty French bread.
They went out to the deck to take advantage of the view.
The sun dipped lower on the horizon.
Lucy stirred her lettuce around, picked at the shrimp and watched Mae and Jane crunch through their salads.
"You're not eating," Mae said.
"I'm not hungry." Lucy put her fork down and stood. She knew better than anyone that Belle wasn't a woman to be ruled by clocks and calendars but she was a woman concerned with the feelings of others.
She wouldn't leave Lucy to worry and wonder if she could help it.
Something was wrong. Lucy felt it in her bones.
"I'm going to see if Belle left any hint about where she went."
"Want some help?" Mae asked.
Lucy shook her head. "No. I'm not even sure what I'm looking for."
In the kitchen, she found a notepad, a Sharpie and a few computer printouts. Her first thought was to do the trick of rubbing the top sheet of the notepad with a pencil to find out what was written on the last page to be torn off but the Sharpie probably hadn't left any impressions to be raised.
The printouts were more promising. They were all relating to a nearby wilderness area--Cohutta Wildlife Refuge. It was managed by the National Park Service. Belle had circled some of the information about parking and hiking trails.
Lucy called the number for the Ranger Office but didn't get any answer. She didn't bother to leave a message. Chances of anyone checking messages on a Sunday night were probably slim and none.
"Now what?" she muttered to herself glancing at the clock surprised to see it was going on nine-thirty.
She looked up the non-emergency number for the county police. They didn't have any accident reports for a vehicle matching Belle's Cherokee and wouldn't take a report on an adult who'd only been gone a few hours.
She called the only hospital within fifty miles. No Belle Morris and no unidentified patient matching her description. Where the hell was she?
Mae and Jane drifted in from the deck to see what she was up to.
"Find anything?" Jane asked.
"Just these printouts about the Cohutta wilderness area."
"I've heard of that place," Mae said. "I think Chip and Gary went bear hunting up there."
Lucy nodded. "I think you're right. But what would Belle be doing up there? She doesn't hunt and even if she did it's the wrong time of year."
"We could drive up there and see if he
r car is there," Jane suggested.
"These printouts show several different parking areas, no one's answering at the Ranger station and we're not even sure that's where she went," Lucy said.
"But you're worried," Mae said.
Lucy nodded. "She would've made a point of letting me know if she was going to be gone this long."
"Well, we're all sober. I say we at least check out the parking lots at the wilderness area," Jane said.
"I think it's most likely she went to one of these two," Lucy said pointing to two circled spots on a sketchy map of the area.
"Let's go," Mae said.
Lucy left a note for Belle in case she returned while they were gone and they piled into the van.
###
"I wouldn't want to make this drive if I was in a hurry or with even one drink in my system," Mae said.
The winding mountain roads were a little unnerving in the dark. The girls were used to large, well-lit suburban avenues.
"Just take your time," Lucy said. "We don't want to wind up on the missing list too."
The first circled parking area on the map was empty.
"Of course we couldn't have been that lucky," Jane said.
"It looks like we have to drive past the Ranger station to get to the next spot. Maybe there'll be someone there," Lucy said.
"Just tell me the way," Mae said.
The Ranger station was dark and there weren't any vehicles in the parking lot--official or otherwise.
They drove on to the second parking area on the printout.
There was no one parked in the gravel area.
Mae circled once and put the van in park. "Now what?"
"I guess we go back to Belle's and wait until morning to call the Ranger office," Lucy said.
Headlights appeared coming up the road from the direction of the Ranger station.
Lucy watched the lights approaching not at all sure whether she expected a serial killer, a ranger, or just someone out for an evening drive. Then again, the way her stars were apparently aligned right now it was probably a serial killer.
A pickup truck with US Forest Service painted on the door pulled into the parking area and stopped driver's door to driver's door with the minivan.
Both sides rolled down their windows.
The driver of the truck touched the brim of his hat, an old fashioned gesture that Lucy found oddly reassuring. "Bill Leonard, I'm the resident ranger here in Cohutta. Everything okay ladies?"
Mae looked to Lucy for a response.
Lucy held up a finger indicating he should hold on and climbed out of the van.
He didn't wait but got out of his truck and met her halfway.
"I'm not sure if everything's okay," Lucy said. "My aunt is missing and we think she may have been headed up here. We were checking the lot for her car."
Mae and Jane joined the party.
"I don't suppose you've seen a seventy-odd year old woman wandering around in your park?" Jane said.
Lucy took note of the fact that Jane was giving the Ranger the once-over while she talked.
He smiled and chuckled to himself. "You wouldn't be talking about Belle Morris?"
Flirting Empty Handed
"Yes!" Lucy said. "Is she hurt? Lost?"
"Not when I watched her drive away from the Ranger station."
"She was at the Ranger station? What did she want?"
"Maps of the area. Said she was looking for an old homestead and needed the most up to date map."
"Homestead? I thought this was all wilderness?" Lucy said.
"Now. Back in the 1800's there were quite a few homesteaders up here. The terrain made it tough going and most folks left for greener pastures. Some of the homesteads are still recognizable. Chimneys, stone walls, the occasional well."
"Do you have any idea where, specifically, she might have been planning to go?"
He shook his head. "Sure don't. I cautioned her about hiking alone. She said she was planning to have company before she went into the backcountry."
Jane made a wry face. "That would probably be us."
"Well, if you ladies come back up here you should check in at the ranger station first."
"I'm more worried about my aunt at the moment," Lucy said. "When did she leave here?"
"About two . . . three o'clock," he said. "I went out to make my afternoon rounds after that."
"Three o'clock and it's ten now," Lucy said. "Something must have happened after she left here."
The ranger shook his head. "I've patrolled all the parking areas in this part of the park. Her car didn't break down anywhere nearby and it's not parked in any of the lots. She probably had plans she didn't tell you about."
Lucy didn't bother to argue with him. "When can I report her missing and expect someone to do something about it?"
"Wednesday morning. Unless there's reason to believe there was foul play or a medical emergency."
"Wednesday!" Mae said. "Anything could happen before then."
"Do you have some reason to think she's been harmed or fallen ill?" Ranger Leonard said.
"You mean besides the fact that she invited me to her home and should have been there hours ago?" Lucy said.
"Besides that, yes."
"No. But I'm telling you something is wrong."
"What time was she supposed to be home?"
Lucy frowned, knowing her answer wasn't going to help her cause. "She didn't say specifically. Just that she had something to do and she'd be home."
To Leonard's credit he didn't state the obvious. "I understand you're concerned. I'll give the county police a heads up. Get them to keep and eye out for Belle's car. But there's really nothing else we can do until Wednesday."
Lucy wasn't happy but it was clear she wasn't going to get anywhere by pleading her case further.
With nowhere else to look, the girls returned to Belle's house to wait.
###
"What if the burglar was a kidnapper?" Mae asked as they began their vigil in Belle's living room.
Jane shook her head. "Timing's wrong. Belle was safe with the ranger about the same time we were chasing off the raccoon."
"Thank goodness," Lucy said. "One less nightmare to have tonight."
"But you think something happened to her?" Mae said.
"I think she would've at least called if she could. My hope is that she's stuck somewhere with a dead cell phone," Lucy said. "I can't think about anything else right now."
Lucy drank her way through two pots of coffee one dollop of half and half and one packet of Splenda at a time, called the county police every hour on the hour and paced until her legs ached.
Mae and Jane tried to keep her spirits up and took turns dozing on the couch.
Mae was on cheering up duty when the clock on the mantel ticked over to two AM. "You know," Mae said, "Belle is--"
Lucy spun away from the fireplace and held up a hand. "Stop!" She was afraid her head was going to explode if she had to listen to one more version of "I'm sure she'll walk in the door any minute".
Mae snapped her mouth closed mid-sentence looking a little wounded.
"I'm sorry," Lucy said. "The coffee's making me jumpy. You and Jane should go to bed. I'll wake you if I hear anything."
"You shouldn't be alone," Mae said.
"Believe me, alone is exactly what I should be."
"If you're sure?"
Lucy nodded. "I need some time."
Mae rousted Jane and they went up to bed.
Lucy breathed a sigh of relief. Giving and receiving feelings wasn't her best thing on a good day. The past couple of days hadn't been good days and she needed to be alone to think without all sorts of messy emotions beating at her.
Maybe that was part of the problem with her marriage. She'd always thought Gary appreciated the fact that she didn't need a lot of cuddling and love talk. But maybe he just thought she'd become cold. And maybe he never thought about it at all.
How could he when he'd obviously
been spending a great deal of time thinking about and planning their divorce?
Her heart pounded double-time at the thought of the "D" word.
She tried to push back the natural mental question about what else could go wrong, but with Gary leaving her and Belle disappearing in a single weekend it was hard not to feel a little fatalistic.
She shuddered. God or fate had a way of showing what else could go wrong.
Lucy knew that only too well. A lesson she'd learned when she was ten years old, trapped in an abandoned sewer during a severe summer thunderstorm praying her friends would give away the secret of the "magic maze" and bring help before the water covered her and took her breath.
First she'd fallen in a hole. Next her friends left with the promise they'd bring a rope to get her out. Then the thunder, loud and frightening. Last came the water rising toward her face. She remembered thinking each step of the way "what else could go wrong?" and each time the universe provided a frightening answer.
Of course help had arrived but Lucy and her friends never again enjoyed the same sense of freedom they'd had in those few heady days before the grownups discovered their secret playground.
That was the day Lucy learned dreams could be dangerous. Looking back, she realized she'd begun taking the safe roads in her life after that day.
Spending summer days reading in her room instead of creating her own make-believe with her friends.
Going to yoga class with her mother instead of taking gymnastics lessons.
Staying home instead of traveling to Cancun with her fellow seniors after graduation.
Commuting to college instead of moving into the dorm.
Marrying Gary instead of digging up history.
Even those decisions hadn't kept her safe.
This time Gary had shoved her into a hole and fate seemed to be determined to pour water in after her.
This time she'd have to rescue herself.
This time she'd take some chances.
Lucy finally fell into a fitful, jittery doze in an armchair about four in the morning and dreamed about standing on the balcony of her beach condo watching the sun set over the Gulf of Mexico--alone.
Theories
