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“All right, Mrs. Thayer,” Garrett said, gently ushering them both toward the door.
They left but the incident left an uneasy feeling in my stomach. If Brielle had left her family, it wasn’t hard to see why.
“Shameful.” Mom shook her head. “She’s their daughter.”
Dad’s face was flushed with anger. “They’re taking her posters down? How could they do that?”
Mom put a hand on Dad’s arm. “Maybe she left for a good reason.”
“Clearly.” Dad gestured the way the Thayers had gone. “If she were my daughter, I wouldn’t rest until I found her.”
“It’s so sad,” I said. “I wonder where she is.”
“Hopefully somewhere safe,” Mom said.
Dad twisted in his chair to face the table where Garrett had gone back to his seat. “You’ll keep looking, right?”
“The investigation is still open,” Garrett said.
“Let me know if there’s anything we can do to help. The SPS have numbers. We can form search parties, whatever you need.”
“Appreciate that, Craig,” Garrett said. “We’ll let you know.”
Dad turned around and went back to his food.
Something about Brielle’s disappearance was disturbing. Maybe there was an explanation—she’d left with a boyfriend or gone to stay with friends in another town. But why hadn’t she told anyone where she was? It was like she’d vanished without a trace.
Her posters were everywhere in Tilikum, but I wondered if her parents were really going to try to take them all down. How could they stop looking? She was their daughter.
I just hoped she was okay, wherever she was.
As we finished our breakfast, the conversation turned to easier topics. Mom couldn’t seem to get Banff out of her head and Dad mused about when the first snow would come and whether he needed to re-insulate any of the pipes in the garage before it froze.
They never let me pay for anything when we were out together, and this time I didn’t bother arguing. We said our goodbyes and I decided to make a quick trip to the restroom before I left.
I fluffed my hair and applied some lipstick, then headed back into the restaurant. But when I caught sight of the man in the lobby, my breath caught and my heart began to race.
Zachary.
The hostess handed him a bag. He must have come in for a to-go order. Indecision gnawed at me. I could duck into the bathroom and avoid him. He was probably about to turn around and leave anyway. Or I could keep walking and talk to him.
Did I want to talk to him?
The decision was made for me when our eyes met. But instead of puffing out his chest and flashing me his usual cocky grin, his smile looked different. Subdued. He looked almost dejected.
Someone walked past him and he winced, as if in pain. He mouthed ouch and gingerly picked at his shirt. Then he met my eyes again and jerked his thumb over his shoulder, indicating he had to go.
He turned around and walked out the door.
I told myself he must have to get to work. He was probably running late. That was why he didn’t stay to at least say hello to me.
Then again, the last time I’d seen him, I’d walked away upset. Maybe he just didn’t want to deal with me after that.
Whatever his reason, it made me inexplicably sad. I went out to my car, telling myself it was fine. What did I expect, that he’d keep chasing me when I’d told him I was dating someone else and we needed to stay just friends? That was awfully selfish of me, to assume he’d keep trying.
Was that what I was assuming? Was I hoping he’d keep at it until I made up my mind? Keep himself in the running as an option while I hemmed and hawed and complained to my friends about being confused?
I was a horrible person. Absolutely horrible.
