Dani took one and dabbed at her eyes. “I didn’t mean to cry. I guess the hormones are still a little crazy.”
“You don’t have to say anything.” Tricia looked fiercely around the table. “Unless you want to share, Dani.”
“It’s all right.” She blew out a slow breath as she looked toward the ceiling. “I didn’t expect it to catch me this year. Maybe it’s Bri. But tomorrow is my eldest’s birthday. I have so many questions. Ones I’ll never have answers to. I can have a good life, know I’m blessed, and still feel like a piece of my heart is missing. Most of the time, I ignore it, but then there are days or weeks when it catches me. This is one of them. And that’s not helping my sleep.”
“Thirteen years, right?” Tricia’s eyes were soft as if she remembered with Dani.
Bridget watched, shifting against the seat and wondering if she should be at the table for such personal memories and pain. Her friends never made her feel like an outsider, but she didn’t really belong, not when she didn’t know and understand the source of this kind of pain.
The waitress came, and the conversation shifted as she took their orders. Bridget could almost forget the awkwardness as the mood shifted, Sydney telling the story of a potential witness interview she had conducted that day. “It’ll be interesting to see what happens when the defense calls him. He’ll be a train wreck of a witness, but at least I know that.”
Dani shook her head as she sliced an asparagus spear. “Have you decided when you’re coming back to the Lincoln office?”
Sydney shredded a corner of her roll onto the bread plate. “I’m thinking about staying. The county board has asked me to consider becoming the permanent county attorney.”
“That would be amazing.” Bridget had many memories of the ways Sydney had launched herself into the community of Tyler, Nebraska. She’d really made it her home.
Bridget’s phone buzzed, but with the unique ring she’d assigned to the number with calls from the emergency response line at work. She bit back a groan. So much for her nice evening with friends.
“I’m sorry, but I think I’m going to have to leave. Duty is calling.” She grabbed her phone and bag. “Can someone pay for me and let me know what I owe you? I’ll send money tonight.” And imagine someone else enjoying her food.
After quick hugs, she hurried from the dining room. As soon as she stepped out of the restaurant, she put the phone to her ear. “Bridget Ellis speaking. How can I be of assistance?”
CHAPTER 2
The emergency room at Bryan Memorial Hospital West was relatively quiet when Bridget arrived ten minutes later. She showed her government ID to the woman seated at the registration desk. “I received the call on the emergency line about an unidentified minor who was brought in.”
The woman seated behind the desk studied her credentials and then handed them back. “Yes. You’re with the state?”
“Yes, ma’am. The lucky one on call tonight.” She hoped the woman didn’t ask too many questions because Bridget didn’t have answers, not on her first solo night.
“Detective Westmont is with her. I’ll have an aide take you back.” The receptionist picked up her phone and spoke to someone. “A student will be right up.”
A minute later, a bright young student arrived, her black hair pulled back in a bouncy ponytail. “I’m Lexi, and I’ll take you back to the room.”
Bridget had to grin in response. “You’re pre-med?”
“Is it that obvious?”
“You’re a little too excited to be spending your Friday night in the emergency room.”
The pixie grinned as she swiped her ID to open the doors. “It’d been quiet until Officer Westmont arrived. I hope you can figure out who the girl is. She’s in bad shape.” The young woman clamped her lips together as if afraid she’d already said too much.
Bridget held back the questions she wanted to ask because she didn’t want to put the student in a position where she said even more. In a minute, she’d have a better idea of what she faced anyway. The overly bright lights glared off the sanitized white floors and ceilings, and she was glad to step into the curtained room. She stopped the moment she noticed the girl, who looked small in the bed and pale as the sheets she lay against.
“Good luck.” The student stepped back, and Bridget found herself alone in the doorway watching a man study the girl, concern etched into the lines of his face.
He didn’t move as he stood there. He barely breathed, and Bridget didn’t interrupt him. It felt almost sacred, as if he’d appointed himself as the girl’s guardian. Did she need one? It was a question Bridget would have to answer as she looked for the girl’s family. The answer was a qualified yes, because girls didn’t simply turn up without their families, even in cities as relatively safe as Lincoln.
This one had, and her job would be to unravel why.
Had a family member become tired of her?
Had the girl run away from home?
Had she been abducted?
None of the questions represented a good home life.
