“At the Walleye Tavern?” I ask.
“Yeah, we close at three and then there’s cleanup.”
Sheriff Mane’s voice comes from a megaphone.
I step closer to Theo. “Was the bar less crowded than normal with the party happening?”
“No, this” —he tilts his chin to the crowd— “was for underage and outsiders. The Walleye Tavern had its regulars.”
“I thought it was a send-off of sorts for Coach?”
Theo shrugs. “Still too many underage for most Blue Gil residents to attend.”
“But they knew about it?”
“I assume most people did.”
I turn and look down at the sheriff speaking before the crowd. “What about him?”
After taking a drink from his mug, Theo turns his attention to the man talking. “It’s been a shitty couple of weeks around here. I can’t say if the sheriff or the rest of the department knew. My dad didn’t mention it, but if they did get wind of it, I guess they probably patrolled the area for drunk drivers and let the partiers, especially the seniors who have dealt with so much, let off steam.”
Let off steam.
Word is there will be a few kegs of brew, Skittles, and plenty of blow at the bonfire.Those were some of the last words my sister said to me. It seems Blue Gil hasn’t gotten with the program regarding underage usage. “Any idea about who specifically was here?”
“I could come up with a list of people at the Walleye Tavern, if you think that might help Sheriff Manes.”
I smile and nod. “Thank you, Theo. Anything to help.”
Turning, I continue walking until I make my way toward the front of the crowd where I get a closer view of the man whose voice is booming through the air, Sheriff Manes.
“...for coming out today. Together we will work to systematically cover as much ground as possible.”
“Are there any signs of foul play?” someone yells from the crowd.
Sheriff Manes holds the megaphone in one hand and lifts the other. “All we know for sure is that the Thompson and Thorne girls were last seen here, where you’re standing, last night. We have multiple statements confirming their presence. They were reported to be last seen some time after eleven but before midnight.”
The crowd murmurs as I move between the people. Finally, I see my family. My father is standing with his arm around my mother. Liv is on her other side. Matt is there next to Ollie.
It’s the first time I’ve seen my younger brother in person in years.
Of course, there’s been occasional social media posts and many pictures from my mother. Nevertheless, I’m a bit surprised at how tall he has grown; he’s at least an inch taller than Matt and three or four taller than our father.
Walking behind them, as Sheriff Manes continues to talk, giving the town as much information as possible, I reach for Liv’s shoulder. When she turns, her eyes are red and her cheeks damp with tears. After releasing our mom’s hand, she wraps me in a hug.
“You should have gone to the party,” she whispers against my ear.
“We thought...” I don’t finish the sentiment as we both turn and listen to the sheriff.
“...searching this area since before nine this morning, but I believe more can be accomplished with groups.” He points to his side. “We would like everyone to divide up. Deputy Morton, Deputy Ford, and Deputy Williams will each coordinate up to thirty people. But before you divide up, there is one more thing.”
There isn’t a sound beyond the rustling of the immature leaves blowing in the wind or the flutter of duck feathers landing on the pond as we wait.
“Mills County has 140 lakes, 128 of those have homes. That is over ten thousand structures. Of those ten thousand, nearly 4,500 are occupied by seasonal occupants.”
Though I thought the percentage would be higher, I can’t help but wonder if this goes along with my conversation with Becky and phrogging.
“Some of you may live next door or down the lane from one or more of these homes. We don’t have the manpower here in Blue Gil to adequately search the open land and search each and every empty house. We need your help.”
