I should have gone to the hardware store. Even the one in town. The one I stopped going to the day Ellie died. I would have walked into that place if it meant keeping everyone safe.
I could hear Bea race up behind me. “It’s not your fault, Mica. If Chloe felt unsafe, she would have stayed with a friend. I hadn’t spent much time with her, but she seemed like a smart woman. Not the type to act first and then think about the consequences later.”
I turned to face Bea and I fumbled with the key to get inside. “What does that mean?”
“Nothing. It was just something about me.”
“I remember. I said something about your father.” I turned to her and regretted upsetting her. She had done so much for me, for my family, and I acted like it was my right to tell her how to live her life.
“I’m sorry. He’s your father and I had no right to—”
She shook her head. “No, it was true. But it wasn’t you who helped me see that my father didn’t respect me, it was Shelby.”
“What?”
“The way you are with her. The way Chloe is with her. Hell, even the staff at The Blue Spot treated her better than my parents ever treated me. Witnessing all that made me realize my father didn’t deserve me.”
Her lower lip wobbled, and I stepped closer, wrapping my good arm around her. Everything still hurt, but feeling Bea’s body next to mine dulled the pain.
“But we aren’t here to talk about me. We’re here to find your sister.”
I nodded, looking around. Nothing was out of place from when I left. She should have been here days ago. If she had arrived back and went out, then something would be different. Her backpack would be here.
I tried to run upstairs to her room but found the more steps I took, the greater intensity the pain. I slowed down. Wishing there was pain medicine that didn’t knock me out. I had to be coherent to find my sister. I could deal with the pain, but not finding her, I couldn’t.
Once I stepped foot in her room, I glanced around. Her large flower-patterned bedspread was perfectly made, but she normally made her bed every morning. I hoped she had dropped something that would give me a clue, but there was nothing on the blue rug by her bed.
I scanned the room. The short ledge on her window, the small, plain wooden table by her bed that had a digital alarm clock she’s had since she was ten, the small porcelain doll Mom gave her when she was eight, and the pad of paper—all exactly how she left it.
Wait. The pad of paper. Maybe she wrote a note.
I ran to the table and frantically rummaged through the paper, tearing a few sheets.
My shoulder sagged. Nothing.
“Is this something?” Bea wandered up behind me and held up something black and plastic.
The walkie-talkie.
I lifted it and immediately called out for her.
“Chloe, come in. Chloe, this is Mica, do you hear me?”
Nothing but static on the other end.
“Fuck.”
Why hadn’t she taken it?
I sat on the same twin bed she’s had since she was a kid and felt it sag under my weight. Bea came and sat beside me, rubbing her hand in circles across my back.
“What am I going to do? I drove off two sisters. What is wrong with me?”
“You didn’t drive off Chloe. I’m sure we’ll find her.”
I looked up at Bea, jealous of her positivity.
“She was worried about Shelby, and I brushed it off. She was worried about the house and me following through with the deal in Virginia. She probably went on that trip and decided I wasn’t worth it anymore. Realized I brought all this on when I fought with Ellie, causing her to run away. Now it was Chloe’s turn to run away.”
“Ellie ran away? How old was she?”
I rubbed at my forehead. “Only seventeen, but because of my age, I took on legal guardianship of her. We got into a fight about her pregnancy. Well, more so about who got her pregnant.”
“Did the father run off?”
“No, but I wish he had. I think the whole town wished he had.”
“Wow, he sounds like a bad guy.”
I chuckled at just how evil he was, and my sister was too naïve to see it. I was glad when he got his last year after the apple festival.
“He was also ten years her senior. He was an adult taking advantage of a high schooler. Then when I confronted him, with her beside me, he had the nerve to tell me that he had never met her.”
“Wow.”
“My sister sobbed and ran off. Told me before she went that it was my fault Keaghan Bailey wanted nothing to do with her.”
I sighed, wishing I could go back in time and redo that moment over again. I’d support Ellie no matter what.
“But it wasn’t your fault. It was . . . Wait a second, that name. Keaghan Bailey. Isn’t he the town mayor?”
“Was. He was the town mayor until he kidnapped and tried to do terrible things to a local celebrity.”
Bea’s hands flew to her mouth. “That’s right. I remember that. Olivia couldn’t stop talking about how the famous Iona Dell had been taken by the mayor. Apparently, he was a creepy stalker of hers. It was so weird. That guy is Shelby’s father?”
“Unfortunately. He’s in jail now and won’t be seeing Shelby for the rest of her life if I have any say in the matter.”
“Look, Mica, that was the past. It’s not a great past, but it’s not right now. I’m sure Chloe was irritated with you about various things—like any sister would be annoyed by a brother—but it wouldn’t cause her to run away.”
That hurt even more.
“But at least if Chloe ran away, that meant she might be safe. If it’s anything else, that means she could be hurt somewhere.”
Or worse.
TWENTY-ONE
Bea
“More coffee?” Debbie asked with hesitation.
I shook my head and held Mica’s hand. He hadn’t slept well. I stayed in his bed and he tossed and turned all night. But I couldn’t blame him. I was the same way when Olivia disappeared last year. The only difference was everyone was helping Mica, and no one helped me—no one but Debbie. I had left her an envelope in this very diner in case my sister stopped by.
We arrived last night, and there was still no word on Chloe. My brother, Konrad, had come up and hired an entire team of people to scour the area. You’d think it was his sister with how he was acting. I had a feeling he believed if he did this, it would make up for not believing me last year.
Olivia had forgiven him, but he just couldn’t forgive himself.
“I think four cups is enough for now,” I said.
“You let me know if I can help in any way,” Debbie said and smiled down at Shelby, who sat drinking her milk out of a sippy cup in the highchair.
“Why wouldn’t she have taken her two-way radio? I don’t understand.”
Mica kept repeating that all last night and most of this morning. It was difficult to hear. My heart hurt every time he said it. Because he was right. If she had taken that, then if something had happened, she’d have some way of communication.
“I bet she just forgot it. It happens. When my sister ran from her wedding into the mountains, she forgot her phone. But,” I held up my finger with a smile, “she never would have met Carter.”
“Have you heard from them? Maybe they’ve found something. I wished they had let me come with them. An extra pair of eyes would only be beneficial.”
I shrugged and pretended I had no idea why he wasn’t allowed on the search. The thing was, he was already hurt and still in pain. When he tried to go with them this morning, he didn’t get very far before he had to go back.
Carter told me that Mica needed to rest, and I agreed. So, I made up the excuse that they were at a part of the mountain that required specially trained people to search. Mountain climbers.
It was a lie. Some townsfolk were on the search too, but the less he knew, the less stressed he’d be.
“Right, let m
e call her.”
I grabbed my phone from my coat pocket and quickly brought up my sister’s number to dial.
After a few moments, she answered, “Hey, Bea. Is there any word yet?”
My shoulders sank, but I turned my head from Mica so he wouldn’t see the disappointment on my face. “No, how about you?”
“I’m standing by Carter’s truck. He’s with Konrad and his crew. They went toward the valley on the other side . . . Wait, I think that’s them coming back now.”
I held my breath. I heard rustling and some voices but couldn’t make out what they were saying.”
“Bea?” my sister said while breathing hard like she was running.
“Yes?”
“I think they found her and her friends. We’re taking them straight to our cabin and contacting an ambulance. Come to the cabin.”
“On our way.”
I ended the call and looked over to find Mica staring at me with uncertainty.
“They found them.”
His face fell into his hand and his upper body sank onto the table. He winced as his left arm hit the linoleum. He had refused to take the pain medicine in case they found Chloe. He wanted to be coherent for her return.
“Thank God.” Then he lifted his head. “Is she okay? Are they hurt?”
I shrugged as I scooted out of the booth to make my way over to the counter to pay.
“Go, go, it’s on the house.” Debbie saw me and waved me off. She must have been eavesdropping.
I moved to take Shelby out of her highchair but a hand stopped me. “I’m off soon, why don’t I look after her while you two go to Chloe,” Debbie said with a warm smile.
I placed my hand on her arm and mouthed the words, “Thank you.” Then I shrugged on my coat.
Mica was already at the door, and I ran after him. We raced to my car and my driver quickly opened the door to let us inside.
“I think it’s weird that we’re being chauffeured around town. I can drive even with my arm in a sling,” Mica said as he scooted into his seat. I came right behind and the driver shut the door.
“With what car? This is my car, and that’s my driver. Ed’s been my driver for years. This isn’t his weirdest adventure with me, is it, Ed?”
“No, Ms. Love,” Ed said as he slid into the driver’s seat and shut his door. “That would be Mexico City and the city officials.”
I laughed at the memory as Ed pulled away.
“Oh, right. All those bullet holes and not once did you flinch, Ed. That’s what makes you the best driver.” I turned to Mica; his eyes wide. “That’s why no one can replace Ed.”
“I didn’t notice bullet holes in the car.”
“It was a rental.”
“Not anymore,” Ed added.
My laughter turned into a full belly laugh. Ed even chuckled. He never laughed, so I was enjoying our stroll down memory lane.
“Yeah, they wouldn’t accept it and made me pay full price for the car. They tried to rip me off, but—”
“Ms. Love easily charmed them until they lowered the price so much that even I thought you were ripping them off.”
Before I could go on with the story, we were pulling into the driveway of my sister’s cabin. There were several cars and trucks already there. When the car came to a stop, Mica didn’t wait for Ed to open his door, he hopped out and ran to the front door of the cabin. I quickly trailed behind him.
Mica flung open the door, and there she sat; her leg propped up on a chair. Chloe sat at my sister’s kitchen table. She looked dirty and her hair was a mess, but she appeared healthy. Two women were a little farther in the cabin talking with Carter. They must be Chloe’s friends.
“What happened to you?” Chloe stared at Mica’s arm.
“It doesn’t matter. What happened? Where were you?” Mica ran to Chloe’s side, kneeled, and wrapped his arms around her waist like a little boy giving his mom a hug.
Chloe glanced back at her friends. One of the women, the redhead, shook her head.
“We got stuck and couldn’t get out. Thankfully, some men found us.” Chloe pointed at Carter as Konrad came from the back with a blanket in his hands.
“Konrad.” I ran up to him and gave him a hug. “Thank you so much for your help.” I pulled back and watched the big lug blush.
"Your friend needed help. It’s the least I could do.” His eyes fluttered over to where Chloe sat.
“Uh, no. It was the most you could do. Anyone else would have not done a thing, but you babysat a kid you didn’t know, flew up here, and brought a team of specialists to find his sister. A man you had never met before. You know, I always called you names like Bigfoot or caveman or—”
“I get it, Bea.” He shook his head. “I’m stupid and a physical oddity in your eyes.”
“No, you’re not stupid. Not at all. And, yes, you are huge, and I still hold by the theory that your mom was ’roided up while pregnant with you, but it doesn’t make you odd.”
He sighed. “Then what does it make me?”
I gave him a big squeeze. “Extra lovable.”
He tolerated the hug before pulling back.
“So, Carter’s an interesting guy. I still can’t believe he’s a Fitzwilliam.” My brother shook his head.
I knew. I knew before Olivia did. I wasn’t going to say anything and bring up past issues. I gazed over at Olivia and Carter; he had his arm around her and his hand on her stomach.
I held my breath. Was she telling him about being pregnant?
“Excuse me.” I moved away from my brother and tiptoed toward Olivia. If she was breaking the news, I didn’t want to intrude. But I was also a curious sister.
I didn’t have to pretend I wasn’t listening long as Carter shouted, with a big, goofy grin, “I’m going to be a father!”
Everyone in the room clapped and shouts of congratulations rang out. I, of course, ran over and threw my arms around my sister.
“How are you feeling?”
“A little better. The cravings for the bacon disappeared, replaced with lemons. Anything lemon. Candy, lemonade, I would even eat a raw lemon if we had one.”
I was both happy at her change in food preference and disturbed by her willingness to go that far with it.
“You want the lemons right now? I’ll go get some,” Carter said, and before Olivia could answer, he was out the door.
“I told you he’d love being a father. You had nothing to worry about.”
She frowned and leaned closer. “But after I told him, he said we’d have to stop having sex while I was pregnant.”
“What? Why?”
Olivia glanced around us before she continued, “Because he thinks his dick will hurt the baby.”
I erupted with laughter. Men.
“Please break it to him that his penis isn’t big enough.”
She nodded. “Right. I remember the talk Dr. Alders gave us when Mom hired her to give us the sex talk. The detailed anatomy posters made it obvious that it’s impossible to get near a baby with a penis.”
“I guess growing up isolated from people up here, with his dad, maybe he didn’t get as detailed a talk as we did.”
She bit her lip. “Maybe you’re right. I just hope I can talk him out of it. Speaking of sex . . . so you and Mica?”
I glanced back at him and smiled. Things may not have gone well for us over the last two days but, now that things have settled, I think we can get back to it. And by it, I mean sex.
“I was thinking I could come up to Maine on the weekends to visit him, and you too, of course.” I turned back to my sister and felt the warmth rising in my cheeks.
“That’s it. Just some sex on the weekends?”
I nodded. “Yes, of course. We’ve only known each other about two weeks. It’s not as if I plan to marry the man.” I snorted.
“I’m not saying that, but I don’t know.” She shook her head. “Have you spoken to him about it?” We both looked over at Mica, who was glaring at my brothe
r as he placed the blanket over Chloe’s shoulders.
“Not yet. With all that’s happened, we haven’t discussed much. But I can tell you one thing, I’m done trying to impress Father. Being with Mica has made me realize that I deserve the attention from people who believe in me, not scold me because I wasn’t born with a penis.”
“Good. If you want my opinion, you’re smarter and better at business than Dad. He’s an idiot for not considering you to take over.”
As I dealt with the people at The Blue Spot and made the deal, it felt great. Not one person in that conference room thought I didn’t belong there. Every time I was in a meeting at Love Foods, my father always made a snide comment about how women were taking over.
I was the only woman in those meetings.
Perhaps I could stop focusing on taking over Love Foods and start working toward diversifying it. I was in charge of who was hired in the marketing department. Maybe I could speak with Konrad and we could work together at fixing my father’s many mistakes.
“I’ll still be here a few more days. Help with Mica and Chloe, getting settled. It looks like Chloe hurt her leg. With Mica’s arm and her leg, they might need someone to help with things.”
“I can help, too. I can come over and watch Shelby.”
“And once I leave, I’ll hire some people to help out.” I felt good that I was stepping up and making sure everyone was taken care of. The old me would have landed the deal and then been on my way. Even if I slept with him, it wouldn’t have been more than once.
But, after spending the time with him on the road and at the resort, I realized he was worth more than a one-night stand.
As I watched him try to block my brother from getting close to Chloe, something thudded harder in my chest.
“I wonder if I’m falling in love,” I whispered to myself.
TWENTY-TWO
Mica
“He didn’t come,” my sister said as she held an apple pie in her hands with oven mitts on and stared out the front window.
It had been four days since she was found, and she still hadn’t told me exactly what had happened. Every time I brought it up, she said she and her friends were stuck. That’s it. Not where or how, just stuck.
Lost and Found (books 1-3): Small-Town Romantic Comedy Page 58
