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EVE KNOX
Friday, December 22, 1995
11:00 a.m.
Eve searched each one of Nola’s usual haunts. First she checked the library, Nola’s second home. She moved past a blue Schwinn bicycle propped against the side of the building. Odd, she thought. You didn’t see very many bikes out in the middle of winter. Eve stepped into the library vestibule and peered through the glass doors hoping she’d spy Nola right off since she had a feeling that Nola wouldn’t be so easily extracted from her spot among the shelves today.
Eve pushed through the doors in resignation. Walking into the Grotto Public Library was a bit strange, like walking uninvited into someone’s home. The building, the former residence of a wealthy Grotto family, was donated to the city for the express purpose of housing books. Each room held a different section of the Dewey Decimal System. Books on philosophy and religion in the master bedroom. Applied and natural sciences in the dining room. Social sciences and languages in the family room and so on.
Eve breathed in the dry, dusty smell of old paper. Nola wasn’t the only one who liked to read. Eve read, just not the thick, boring reference books that Nola was obsessed with. Eve preferred romances and sweeping historical sagas.
The space that was once a parlor now held the circulation desk where patrons checked out their books. Standing behind the desk was Rita, the librarian. She glanced up from the pile of books in front of her. “I haven’t seen Nola today,” she said, smiling apologetically at Eve. Rita was used to Eve coming in and hunting for her sister. “I may have missed her though. It’s been kind of busy today.”
“I’ll go take a quick look,” Eve said.
The library’s former dining room alone was larger than the entire first floor of the Knox home and still it was crammed with books. Dimly lit with rows of floor-to-ceiling bookshelves, it was difficult to see if anyone else was in the room with her. A perfect hiding place for Nola.
Eve walked down the length of the room, her footfalls muffled by the worn, frayed carpet. She glanced down the narrow stacks. Usually Nola could be found sitting cross-legged, her back pressed up against the shelves that held books about anatomy and physiology, with a heavy science text on her lap. Nola, Eve would say in exasperation and Nola would take her time reading to the end of the page before looking up. Mom says it’s time to come home now, Eve would grouch.
Nola would get to her feet and carefully, lovingly, replace the book in its rightful spot on the shelf. Eve’s irritation never lasted very long. It was hard to get too mad at Nola when she lost track of time at the library. It meant that she wasn’t antagonizing anyone else for the time being. But today there was no sign of Nola.
Eve turned to leave when at the far end of the room something caught her eye before it quickly disappeared behind a shelf. Was Nola playing a childish game of hide-and-seek? This was exactly what she would pull. Eve was having none of it.
She retraced her steps in hopes of cornering Nola before she could escape but as she hurried down the rows she saw that they were empty. Eve had been certain that someone was in the room with her. She should have parked herself in front of the exit and waited for Nola to appear. She couldn’t stay hidden forever.
Instead, Eve found herself in a far corner of the stacks opposite the exit, out of breath and sweating beneath her coat and scarf. “This is so stupid,” Eve muttered, deciding she’d had enough. There was no reasoning with Nola when she got like this, so it was useless to try to track her down.
Once again, Eve headed down one of the rows toward the exit when the damp, acrid scent of unwashed clothing pricked at her nose. Eve stopped short. Someone else was in the room with her, but not Nola. A barb of fear swept through Eve and she swung her head around, sure that someone was directly behind her. There was no one.
The foul odor grew stronger and Eve slowly turned toward the shelf of books to her right and staring back at her between the spines was one rheumy blue eye and a gray stubbled cheek. The man reached his tobacco-stained fingers across the shelf and stroked Eve’s hand. A yelp of fear leapt from Eve’s throat. She forced her legs to move and in a matter of seconds she was across the room and out of the room. Heart hammering, she made a beeline to the circulation desk.
“No luck?” Rita asked.
“No,” Eve said as the man from the stacks emerged carrying an armful of books. Her stomach churned at the thought of his grimy, rough fingers on her skin. The man, tall, bone thin and wearing a grubby red sweatshirt that smelled like damp, rotting wood. “I’m going to go check the bathroom,” Eve said and breathed a sigh of relief as the man passed by her without a second look. She had overreacted like always. The man was scruffy looking and had poor hygiene but that didn’t make him a serial killer.
Eve made her way to the women’s restroom and closed the door firmly behind her. “Nola, are you in here?” she called out. “Mom says you need to get back to school. Now.” No answer. “Nola, seriously.” Silence. Eve turned to leave, thought better of it and went back inside to check each individual stall. All vacant. Eve opened the bathroom door to find the man in the red sweatshirt was right there staring back at her. Eve slammed the door shut and pressed her back against the door, heart pounding. Surely someone would come along and the man would go away. She would stay in here all day if she had to.
Minutes passed and through the heavy door Eve heard a light tap, tap, tap of someone knocking and felt the door push open. Eve planted her feet and pushed back. The door opened an inch, then two, before the person on the other side gave up and the door closed. Was it the man or someone waiting to use the bathroom? Eve screwed her eyes shut and waited, still pushing against the door. She waited five more minutes and when she cautiously opened the door again, the man was gone.
With relief, Eve walked slowly back down the steps to the circulation desk. “I’ll be sure to tell Nola you’re looking for her,” Rita assured her.
“Thanks,” Eve sighed. “But she might not listen to you if she knows I’m the one looking for her. Maybe just tell her my mom wants her to call her right away. Technically, that’s true. Can I use the phone?”
Rita nodded and Eve reached for the phone and dialed the house number. It rang seven times before the answering machine picked up and her mother’s voice came across the line. “Nola,” Eve said in a low voice. “If you are home, you better pick up. I mean it. Grow up!”
Eve banged the receiver down harder than she intended and it trilled back at her in protest. Eve looked around, embarrassed, to see if anyone had seen her mini tantrum but she was alone. Her eyes drifted toward Rita’s desk and there was the man’s pile of books.
Eve ran her finger over the green cover. Why would the man dump his books on the counter? Maybe he had forgotten his library card or maybe he just decided he didn’t want to check out these particular books.
Eve had seen this man before. Supposedly homeless and always riding around on his bicycle. Maybe he just wanted to get out of the cold for a little bit. Did Grotto even have any homeless people? Eve considered calling Rita and asking her about the man, if she knew who he was, but then thought better of it. She would sound paranoid. Silly.
Eve tried to push the thought of the strange man out of her head as she stepped back out onto the street but she couldn’t help scanning the street in search of his red sweatshirt. A few flurries danced around her head but then the snow abruptly would stop, as if the sky was frozen in indecision. Eve couldn’t decide what to do either. Where to look next.
Finally, the cold pushed her into action. She hurried down the street, poking her head in the doorways of businesses and asking if anyone had seen her sister. Everyone knew Nola but no one had seen her that morning. At the pharmacy Eve chose a candy bar from the dusty display and dug into her pocket for a dollar bill to pay the clerk.
He hadn’t seen Nola either.
The caves?Eve wondered as she peeled the wrapper from the bar and took a small bite, hoping to make it last as long as possible. Would Nola really run off to sulk in Ransom Caves in the middle of winter? Eve didn’t think so. But the caves were secluded and would offer a spot for Nola to be alone and out of the elements. It was worth a look anyway, but after this she was going home.
