Finding Abby: A Romantic Suspense set in the Colorado Mountains (Whispering Pines Mysteries)

by Rhonda Blackhurst

  “Abby?”

  “Yeah?”

  Remember, when more than one person is involved, there’s always more than one side.”

  “Spoken like a true school counselor. I guess you’ll have to choose which side to believe, won’t you?” The minute she snapped the words she winced. “I’m sorry.”

  “I think you should hear him out. Look, I’m sorry, too. It’s just—”

  “Don’t give it another thought,” Abby interrupted. She didn’t want to hear what else Holly had to say right now. She was having serious indigestion over the words already spoken.

  ”See you next weekend?”

  “Let me know your flight number and time. Love you.”

  “Love you, too.”

  July Fourth fell on a Saturday this year. Gabriel called her numerous times, but she refused to answer. If there’s one thing she inherited from her father, it was his stubbornness. Yet, she didn’t believe she was being stubborn about this in particular. What Gabriel had done was wrong, pure and simple. A part of her wanted to know exactly how much he was guilty of, but she was still so hurt and angry that she didn’t want to speak to him. Getting things ready for the weekend kept her busy during the week until she fell into bed exhausted each night.

  Guests began trickling in Thursday evening, and by Friday noon, the place was packed. Abby was grateful for a full house so to speak. With so many people around, the chance of Gabriel catching her alone was nearly impossible. If he even decided to come. By nine o’clock, he still hadn’t shown up. Just as well, she thought. And yet … well, her heart was still aching for him. For the man she thought he was. At times, that ache was nearly unbearable and she had to fight the urge to pick up her phone and call him.

  Her father pulled in the driveway at ten o’clock after picking up Piper from the airport. Abby met them at the car and pulled Piper into a tight hug.

  “I can’t breathe,” Piper said, winded.

  “I’m glad you’re here.”

  “Geez! You’d almost think you’ve been without anyone to talk to for weeks. Where’s Holly?”

  “Something came up and she couldn’t make it.” When Holly had texted her change in plans, Abby had a feeling it was because of their squabble. If that’s what it even was. She didn’t know what it was, other than awkward. Holly didn’t seem like Holly. Maybe it was all part of the transition of their new long-distance friendship. She just hoped it would iron itself out over time.

  “It’s just you and me?”

  Abby laughed and slugged her in the arm. “Yup. And you’re going to love it.

  “Stewart?”

  “Not this weekend.”

  “Gabriel?”

  The muscles in her stomach tightened. “Dunno.”

  If Piper noticed her discomfort, she glossed right over it. Instead, she looked around them.

  “This place is hoppin’ tonight.”

  Smooth segue. That’d be my sister. Abby smiled.

  Jeremiah hauled in Piper’s suitcase, and each of the sisters picked up a bag.

  “How did you get all this to the airport by yourself?” Abby asked, shaking her head.

  “You underestimate me.”

  “Apparently. I thought you were just visiting, not moving here.”

  “Love those guys at the airport who rush in to help.” Piper laughed. “I actually didn’t have to carry a thing.”

  “How come that never works for me?” Abby asked incredulously.

  “Because they can tell from a mile away that you’re closed for business.”

  Abby laughed. “Whatever!”

  Jeremiah gave each of them a rare hug and excused himself, heading upstairs to his room.

  “Where’s my nephew?”

  “In his room. Johnny’s over.”

  “Again? Does the kid live here or what?”

  “Pretty much.” Piper sank into the oversized chair, Abby on the couch caddy corner, tucking one bare foot underneath her. “I feel really bad for him. His dad is gone all the time so he’s stuck with his grandma a lot.”

  “Stuck with? Is she some old biddy or what?”

  “No, not at all. In fact, she seems pretty great. But a boy Johnny’s age wants to hang with kids his age, not his grandmother. At the very least, some time with his dad would be welcomed, I’m sure. He never sees his mom.”

  “Where’s his dad go so much?”

  “Out of town on business.”

  “What does he do?”

  “Know what? I have no idea. Whenever I’ve asked Johnny, he just shrugs his shoulders. Poor kid probably has no idea either.”

  “Hm.”

  The two did a final walk through the grounds, Piper hanging onto Abby’s arm. They double-checked the doors to be sure they were locked, then stayed up and talked until past midnight. Finally, Abby stood and stretched, yawning so big her eyes watered.

  “I don’t know about you, but I’m beat. I need to go to bed and get a little sleep.”

  “Me too, I suppose.”

  They turned out the lights, except for the light above the sink and a small lamp in the living room. Abby made one more check of the door that led to the store.

  “I’m pretty sure it didn’t unlock itself while we were sitting here, Abs.”

  “I’m not sure about anything lately,” Abby mumbled.

  Upstairs, each poked her head into Cooper’s room, Piper to say goodnight and Abby to issue bedtime orders.

  “Only a half hour longer, kiddos, and then it’s lights out.”

  “Mom—”

  “No arguing, buddy. A half hour or right now if you argue with me. Your choice.”

  “Fine.” But his tone told her it was anything but fine.

  26

  The next morning, Abby jumped out of bed bursting with energy. She let herself into Piper’s room and dove onto her bed, waking her up.

  “Are you kidding me?” Piper groaned.

  “Come on. We’re wasting time,” Abby said. “Let’s go for a morning hike before the day gets crazy.”

  She tried to pull the covers over her head, but Abby pulled against her.

  “Abby,” Piper complained, “I’m pretty sure the birds aren’t even up yet.”

  “That’s who woke me up. The birds.” Abby pulled the covers off of Piper. “Come on!”

  Piper squinted at her through eyelids barely opened. “You’re insufferable. Now I know where Cooper gets not taking no for an answer,” she grumbled.

  “You had fun last time, didn’t you? Now come on!” She took hold of Piper’s arm and pulled. “I don’t get to see you often enough. We need to take advantage of the time we have.”

  “Since when have you become so perky in the mornings?”

  “This is what fresh mountain air does to me.”

  “Remind me not to get too much of it.” She grudgingly sat up, leaning back on her hands, a chunky strand of red hair hanging over the left side of her face.

  “Come on sleeping beauty.” Abby picked up her clothes from the night before and tossed them at her.

  “Can I at least take a shower?”

  “When we get back. We have to hurry if we’re going to be back on time.”

  “Abby, normal people aren’t up at this hour.”

  “Come on,” she insisted. “The longer you sit there and balk the less time we’ll have.”

  “And the problem with that is what?”

  “I’ll be downstairs waiting. Just don’t keep me waiting too long.”

  “Or what?”

  “Or I won’t make you breakfast.”

  “Give me a minute to decide if it’s worth it.”

  Abby laughed. “Brush your teeth and get downstairs.” She left the room, leaving the door open behind her.

  Ten minutes later Abby handed a travel mug of coffee to Piper and they were out the door, Gus by Abby’s side.

  Minutes into their hike, Abby turned to look at Piper who had fallen a distance behind her. She was bent over, inspecting he
r legs closely.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Looking for wood ticks. I don’t want to get Lyme’s disease. You should be checking Gus every day, too.”

  “Lyme’s disease comes from deer ticks. They’re smaller and have white spots. You’re a nurse. You should know that.”

  “You’ve become a park ranger now or what? Nonetheless, they’re both disgusting, and I’m not giving either one of them a chance to infect me with their diseases.”

  Abby laughed. “I’m thinking nursing isn’t a good profession for you. You worry too much.”

  “Speaking of worry, anything from Hunter?” She finished her inspection and jogged a few steps, catching up to Abby.

  “No more phone calls if that’s what you mean. Not to me, anyway.”

  “What’s that mean?”

  “Hunter is competing for dad of the year by manipulating my son.”

  “Care to expand on that?” Piper grabbed onto Abby’s arm, pulling her to a stop.

  Abby looked at her, then continued walking, Piper sticking close as Abby filled her in.

  “The guy’s even more psycho than I thought,” Piper said, shaking her head. “What are you going to do?”

  “I haven’t figured that out yet.”

  “He’s got to be violating a protection order or something, isn’t he? Doesn’t it include Cooper, too?”

  “Yeah. I need to report it.”

  “Darn right, you do. Do you think he’s been around here?”

  “Not that I’m aware of. According to Cooper, he’s still in California as of now.”

  “You actually believe him? I thought you were smarter than that. Has anything else weird been going on?”

  “Not since the attempted fire.”

  “I’ve been thinking about that.”

  Abby waited for her to continue. “Well? Are you going to tell me or do I have to guess?”

  “I think you should mention it in front of Gabriel and see what his reaction is.”

  “Yeah, I’m sure he’d fess up and apologize right on the spot.”

  “No need to get snarky. I’ll be with you and watch him as you mention it. I’ll see if I can read anything.”

  “He’s not up here. Probably won’t be this weekend.” They fell into silence, Piper checking for ticks again. “You think I’m overreacting, don’t you?”

  “I think it’s good to be cautious. But I also think to focus solely on Gabriel lets Hunter off the hook. That’s dangerous.”

  “So you think I should just ignore Gabriel’s part in this?”

  “I didn’t say that. I’m saying to be vigilant of your surroundings, as I’ve said a hundred times before. But don’t make Gabriel the author of everything weird that’s happened. And for gosh sakes don’t go anywhere alone for a while. Any of you. That includes Dad and Cooper.”

  “You want to be our babysitter while you’re here? I hate to break it to you, but you, city girl, aren’t too scary.”

  “I’m serious. Don’t go anywhere alone.”

  “We haven’t been. There’re always people around. And Cooper and Johnny have been pretty much joined at the hip.”

  “Does he ever go over to Johnny’s house?”

  “Just once.”

  “Why?”

  “He hasn’t wanted to. And Johnny is all too happy to come over here. With all the people around, not to mention girls, I’m sure it’s much more fun here than at home. Besides, having the extra set of hands around here isn’t bad either.”

  Gus took off running ahead of them, Abby trotting after him.

  “How can you run in those things?” Piper called after her. “Wouldn’t it be easier to walk in tennis shoes than flip flops?”

  “Apparently for you, it would be,” she called over her shoulder. “Gus! Get back here!” Gus, torn between listening to orders and pursuing the chase, looked in each direction. “Good boy,” she said as he sauntered back to her. “If I didn’t know better I’d think you’re pouting, big guy.” She bent over and rubbed his head with one hand, lifting his chin with the other to plant a kiss on his nose.

  Gus stayed by Abby’s side, trying to sneak the occasional glance in back of him as they headed back to the house. “Don’t even think about it, buster.” Abby reached down and scratched behind his ear. That was all it took to keep Gus by her side.

  Cooper met them at the door. “Aunt Piper, what are you doing?” He was looking at her as though she’d gone plum crazy.

  “Looking for wood ticks. Or deer ticks. Whatever they are.”

  “Looking weird is more like it.” He laughed at her and she shot him a look.

  “You’re not too old to take over my knee, you know.”

  “I’m not afraid of you.” He laughed and ran as she pretended to take off after him, stopping only when he saw she hadn’t moved. “Hey, Mom, can I call Johnny and see if he can come over and camp tonight?”

  “Honey, we don’t have a tent. Unless you know something I don’t.”

  “We can make our own,” he answered, eyes shining with excitement.

  “Make your own?” she echoed.

  “Yeah! The old-fashioned kind. I saw it on a TV show once. You know, like when I used to build a fort over the dining room table, only this time we’ll put blankets over the clothesline.”

  “The clothesline is next to the woods. What if raccoons or skunks find their way into your makeshift tent?” Or something a whole lot worse. She involuntarily shivered. “You won’t have a secure bottom or a zipper on the door—”

  “We can put pieces of wood or rocks along the bottom and use clothespins to keep the door closed.”

  “Do you really think a flimsy zipper is going to keep something out that wants in?” Piper asked Abby.

  “But what if—”

  “Mom! What’s the point of having all this room outside if we can’t use it?”

  “Dude, I’m sure your mom has a reason.”

  “I didn’t ask you, Aunt Piper.”

  “Cooper!” Abby was horrified. “What has gotten into you?”

  He cast his eyes down and mumbled, “Sorry, Aunt Piper.” He looked back at Abby with forced hope. “It’s the fourth of July, Mom. There’s going to be so much noise around here there won’t be any animals anywhere close.”

  “It’s not exactly the animals I’m worried about.”

  “What?” he asked.

  Oops. She hadn’t realized she’d said it out loud. “Nothing.”

  “He does have a good point,” Piper said. “With all the activity that will be happening at the resort, what could possibly happen?”

  Abby looked at Cooper as though she hadn’t seen him for a long time, holding him in her gaze. “When did you get to be so grown up?”

  “Since we moved here,” he said smiling. “So that means we can?”

  “Yeah, I guess so. In fact, it actually sounds like fun. Maybe Pip and I will sleep out there, too.”

  “No way! No girls allowed.”

  “I’m not just any girl. I’m your mom.”

  “Especially no moms allowed.”

  “What about me then? I’m not a mom.”

  Cooper looked at her slowly. “Aunt Piper, I said I was sorry for being mean. But that doesn’t mean you get to intrude on guy time.”

  “Excuse me,” Piper sang, laughing. “Geez, kid!”

  Cooper bolted away from them before either of them could say another word.

  “He wasn’t about to stick around for me to change my mind, was he?” Abby said. She glanced at her watch. “I’m going to go check how Dad is doing in the store. He’s probably wondering what took us so long.”

  “As soon as I take a shower I’ll be back down.”

  “Good, then you can watch the store with me. Sam will be here in thirty minutes and he said he would help Dad with my studio for an hour or so until they start working on the grounds around here.”

  She turned toward the store, looking through the big picture window towar
d Gabriel’s camper. She willed her racing heart to slow to a steady run rather than sprinting. She saw the tail of his car off to the far side of the camper. Her stomach flip-flopped, and she took three deliberate long, slow breaths. So he’d decided to come up after all.

  She was looking at his camper when she opened the door leading into the store and bumped right into her father.

  “Sorry, Pops.”

  He was scowling, holding a cup of coffee with one hand, holding the door open with the other. “You can tell him to leave, you know.”

  “Who?”

  “Who d’ya think?”

  “Without proof that he did anything, I can’t tell him he can’t be here.”

  “You own the place. You can tell him anything you want.”

  If only it were that easy, she thought. What she really wanted to do was ask him why. But that would only open the door for him to confuse her. Forcing herself to stay away from him was the biggest challenge she’d had in quite some time.

  “I told Cooper he and Johnny could make a tent over the clothesline tonight. I’m going to have to tell him he can’t. Not with Gabriel up here.”

  She turned and went back into the house, poured a cup of coffee, and wrapped her hands around the mug as she looked out the window toward the camper. Jeremiah stood beside her.

  “It’s gonna break his heart. Especially when I tell him to stay away from Gabriel. It’s not like he needs another reason to be mad at me.”

  “Stop the self-pity. You put yourself in that situation by not telling him in the first place.”

  She felt the arrow hit the center of her heart. “Don’t hold back how you really feel, Pops.”

  “Sorry, kiddo, but it’s time you step up. I haven’t been saying anything, but—”

  “Don’t worry, you’re making up for it,” she said, still stinging.

  “Tell ya what.” He took a step closer to her, placing a rough, warm hand on the back of her neck. “I’ll sleep in the chair on the porch tonight. That’s just steps away from the tent. Boys won’t even know I’m there.”

  “I can’t ask you to do that.”

  “You didn’t. I offered.”

  She rested her head on his shoulder. “Thanks.”

  He slipped his hands into the front pocket of his jeans. “Don’t mention it.”

  “Did you mean what you said?”