The next morning was a mess of pre-occupation as my mind searched for something that would explain the depth of McKinley’s anger.
The book I was writing was getting closer and closer to the end. Soon I was going to be writing hard and clear about the events currently taking place. The way things were going it would be a shitstorm to write.
All I could do regarding the request for information on Edward Miller, on the other hand, was wait.
I wandered downstairs to refill my coffee hoping to find someone or something to distract me from my thoughts. Everywhere my thoughts were wandering was no place I wanted to be. Lisa entered the kitchen for her own refill before I gave up and headed back upstairs to sit in my bedroom and not write.
“I read the chapter you left for me. I told you Mac’s interested.” She bragged.
“He was interested.”
“Was? What happened?”
“I happened. I gave the notebook with the chapter in it to Phoebe and told her to put it where you’d be sure to see it. I failed to specify that Mac should definitely not see it.”
“He’s mad isn’t he.”
“He didn’t give me any specifics but yes he is.”
“I’ll call him.” She said.
“Don’t. When someone is that ready to storm off there are other issues at play. He’ll ask me for an explanation if he really wants one. If he wasn't as interested as you hoped, just you and Phoebe can spend time with him for the rest of our stay."
“I will not!”
I looked Lisa in the eye. “Phoebe is nuts about that man. If it wasn’t for me you’d like him just fine too.” I reached out and placed a hand on Lisa’s arm. “It’s okay.”
I continued on with my day, hoping Lisa would let McKinley choosing to put whatever was developing between us aside drop, at least for the time being.
It was Christmas
Eve, the perfect excuse to stay downstairs and help with food
preparation, laundry and general tidying up so when evening came and
computers were turned off, comfy Christmas clothes could be donned
and all but holiday festivities could be forgotten until December
26.th If I knew Phoebe she would have a holiday itinerary
all mapped out for us.
We were caught up in no time. By mid afternoon, I found myself sitting in bed with notebook and pen trying to write my way through the last three weeks.
It was not long before things fell apart, a matter of minutes actually.
“Have you seen Phoebe?”
I jumped at the question. Lost in my own scribbles I didn’t see Lisa enter the room. There had been no knock on the door frame. Lisa was subtle. This was her way of keeping her concern centered while trying not to overreact.
“I thought she went to town with you.”
“She told me she wanted to stay here and work on her holiday plans.”
I set my notes to the side, it was time to give the house a thorough going over. I took the side we were on which housed the master suite. Lisa took the side with the den and the other two bedrooms. We met downstairs one of us searching the great room and the foyer, the other searching the kitchen, pantry, and mudroom. We checked in with each other in the dining room and moved outside to search the yard, garage, and outbuildings. We talked about searching town and getting started on the wooded areas.
“I don’t understand it.” Lisa said after we returned inside. “Phoebe doesn’t run away.”
“She’s a great kid. A smart kid. This is out of character for her.”
“If she gets too upset with me she always calls you.” Lisa said.
“Not this time.” I thought about Phoebe and who she might turn to on a really bad day if Lisa or I were not a good option. “Have you checked with McKinley? To see if she’s been seen around town or at the ice rink. It is Christmas Eve. Maybe she went out to pick up some last minute Christmas surprise?”
“Can I get back the years I lost worrying about her if this is a simple misunderstanding plucked straight out of a holiday movie?” Lisa asked.
“Only if I can have mine back.”
As it turned out McKinley had not seen Phoebe. He said he would ask around a bit and get back to us. He asked at the rink and the winter market before everything was closed up. McKinley checked around town as well. No one had seen Phoebe all day.
“If no one saw her at the rink or in town she has to be here somewhere.”
“I stopped by her room just before two and asked her if she wanted to go to town with me.”
“I saw you both at lunch. When the house fell quiet this afternoon I assumed she was with you.” I looked out the window at the setting sun. “I should have done a walk through or texted you to verify Phoebe was with you.” Looking around the room, I spotted a message pad sitting on the kitchen counter. Taking up pad and pen, I began to map out all possible scenarios. Tucking that list away, I started a new one writing down every place we had already looked and areas that still needed to be checked. The wooded areas were what was left. The question I found myself grappling with was how far I could venture into the woods safely at night by myself. I looked at Lisa. “I think you should call McKinley and ask him to get a search started in town, then if you would please return to Phoebe’s room and search everything again. This time do a deeper search. You want to look for random notes, diaries, scribbling in her school binder, check her online history, her waste basket. If she did take off or something was bothering her that we didn’t know about you may find it there. While you are busy with that, I’m going to take a flashlight into the woods and see if I can find her.”
“You can’t do that alone.”
“We have checked everywhere else.”
“You aren’t a camper and you have a terrible sense of direction. What if you run into someone or something?”
Standing up I went into the mud room for my outerwear and a flashlight.
“What if you don’t come back?”
“This isn’t the wilds of Antarctica.” I said, I grinned as I pulled a boot on. “My will is in a safety deposit box at the bank. There are personal letters for you and Phoebe.”
“What if…”
“Nothing will happen but if something does happen to me you’ll both be okay.” I stood up and put my hat on. “It will be fine.” I said even though my insides were doing intermittent somersaults. “By tomorrow morning Phoebe and I will both be tucked safely in our beds and you’ll be wondering why you were so worried.”
“But…”
“I’m going.” I said as I turned the knob on the door leading to the back porch.
“Not without me you’re not.” McKinley said as he thundered in from the main house.
“Lisa, I need you to call Mr. Baker at the coffeehouse and tell him to organize a search in and around town. Tell him to make sure he includes the ice rink and winter market. Then you’ll need to go into Phoebe’s room and search it…”
“...thoroughly.” She said. “Look through everything including diaries, electronic devices, reading all notes as well as checking the waste basket for any clues telling us where she might have gone.”
“You’ve heard this before.” He said.
“I said the same thing ten minutes ago.” I said. “All that’s left to do is check the woods.”
“These are mountains.” Lisa said gesturing outside. “Where will you start?”
McKinley pulled a map out of his coat pocket and laid it across the top of a large bureau. “This is where we are.” He said as he marked the map. “Here is town. Here is the ice rink. We’ll start here and work our way towards town stopping at any cabins, sheds or abandoned vehicles. We’ll get to the rink first then town. By the time we get to town Baker may have something for us.” McKinley left the room returning with a two way radio. “Use this if you text or call and you can’t get an answer. It’s on four so the channel is already set. Turn it on, push the button and talk.”
“She knows how to use a walkie-talkie McKinley.”
“My mistake.”
“It’s okay. I’m nervous. I might have had trouble later without the reminder.”
Lisa looked around McKinley and mouthed the words: Be Nice.
I pointed to McKinley and mouthed back: Tell him to be nice.
He raised his head before Lisa had a chance to roll her eyes.
McKinley did not speak as we entered the wooded area behind the house. I didn’t have to be psychic to see that his aura, if he had one, was currently pulsing a deep vibrant red. If he didn’t have an aura the rifle he had slung over his shoulder was not reassuring me that he held nothing but loving feelings towards me.
Clearly he was not happy to be escorting me into the wilderness. I was not happy to have him along either. Not after the events of the night before. I felt a hand on my upper arm. I looked up.
“If you see a bear, don’t run. Back away slowly without turning your eyes from it. It the bear comes towards you make yourself look larger.”
I had not seen another bear since that first morning but this was a walk in the woods at night. What McKinley told me I already knew, I realized I didn’t know what to do if I couldn’t make myself look intimidating enough. “If that doesn’t work?”
He reached into his pocket, pulled out a canister and handed it to me. “Bear spray.”
“Thanks.”
“If you see a wolf or a mountain lion. Do the same things. Keep in mind the spray doesn’t work on the cat.”
“What is the next step with the big cat?”
“Throw rocks, if it gets physical fight back.”
“If fighting back doesn’t work?”
“That’s what the rifle is for.” He said.
“You wouldn’t hurt an animal would you?”
“Usually a few shots above the animal’s head will run them off but if it comes down to Phoebe or one of us or the animal, I will shoot it.”
We continued walking through snow. The crunch of the frozen water beneath our boots the only sound.
“I hope we don’t see anything in these woods.” I said.
“Me either. I’d like to return from a long cold walk and find Phoebe tucked in her bed. Sleeping.”
My phone vibrated in my pocket, I nearly dropped the canister of bear spray. Reaching into my pocket, I traded the canister for the phone while Brenda Lee belted out “Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree” for all the woodland creatures.
“Hello?”
“Ms. Windstrom, this is Beth Simmons from Tamerly Investigations I was calling to let you know the check you requested has been completed. Since your email was marked urgent I wanted to give you a call and let you know what we found.”
McKinley held the flashlight near his face and mouthed: Lisa?
I shook my head. “Go ahead.”
“Edward Miller, born on April 21, 1956 in Newark, New Jersey was an orphan. His parents, Edward Miller Sr. and Jessica Miller were killed in a car accident on December 31, 1961. As all known relatives were no longer living, Edward was placed in the foster care system. He remained there until he reached the age of 18. He joined the military on April 22, 1974.”
“Are there any distant relatives?” I asked.
“We looked for siblings, half siblings, aunts, uncles, cousins, second cousins and as requested, checked to see if Mr. Miller had any girlfriends or encounters that led to any offspring.”
“And?”
“You are his only child. I am emailing you the entire report before we close for the holiday. I wanted to make sure you got your answer as soon as possible.”
“Thank you for getting back to me with this. Have a wonderful holiday.”
“You as well.”
“Everything alright?” McKinley asked.
We continued walking as I sorted out what I needed to do next. I didn’t know who the man was or why he looked like my father. I didn’t know if he was dangerous or if he would have taken Phoebe. I also didn’t know if he was a living being.
“The man you said knocked me down in the winter market. I’ve seen him before.”
“Why didn’t you say anything?”
“It’s complicated.”
“Almost everything does seem complicated with you.” McKinley responded.
“He showed up on one of the final days of my book tour. At a signing. When he approached, he just complimented me at first. Fans usually do that. Then things turned a bit creepy.”
“How?” McKinley asked.
“He said I never tell people everything. That it hurts my mother.”
“Does it?”
“My mother died 17 years ago. The man in the bookstore looked young. He would have been a little boy when he knew her. If he knew her.”
“The man I saw yesterday was young.”
“There’s more.” I said. “Stop walking for a minute.” I pulled the photo I had taken of the old picture I found and showed it to him.
“That looks like the man I saw.”
“And the man I encountered in the bookstore in November. This picture is of my father.”
“You must have a nephew. Congratulations.” He said as he started walking.
“That’s the thing. I don’t. That phone call was from an investigations firm I use from time to time. My father is long dead. He has no living relatives other than me.”
“Are you saying you’re being haunted by your father’s ghost?”
“I don’t know. What I do know is I don’t know exactly who this man is. I also don’t know if he’s dangerous.”
1 comment:
Wow! That is a twist.
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