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There might be a police station around here somewhere, but from the look of the area, my guess is it’s going to be one person in a tiny office with limited resources. Considering Shane lost a whole week and smells like a hospital, my guess is something on the order of weird happened here. I’ve never been one given to believe in those crazy conspiracy theories. However, on the off chance there’s something shady going on here—like the CIA grabbing people for random experiments—going to the local police would only tip off the bad guys.
Also, I’m not ready for law enforcement to descend upon this place. As they say... I got this. For now, I’m going to keep this investigation to myself. Can’t exactly leave the boy here alone. No, he’s going to be safe with my sister while I rip these woods to pieces.
Metaphorically.
A little luck comes my way while hanging out on the two chairs in front of the cabin.
Shane—somehow—manages to fall asleep. Not sure how he did so between possibly having a nine-day-long nap or being so worried about his father. Still, I’m not going to question my fortune.
I scoop the boy into my arms, close my eyes, and summon the dancing flame. Within the flickering orange glow, I focus on the image of Mary Lou’s backyard. She’s got a high fence and some trees, which makes her yard a good landing zone for teleportation. While she wouldn’t necessarily mind me popping directly into the house, Rick had recent heart surgery and I don’t want to give him a shock.
My timing is damn near perfect. Within seconds of the flame expanding to the size of a doorway and me stepping through into my sister’s yard, Shane wakes up. His eyes flutter open. He appears to take stock of his present situation, decides it’s okay, then looks around.
“Where are we?”
“This is my older sister’s house. I’m going to ask her to keep you safe for a little bit so I can go look for your dad.”
Shane scrunches his nose. “Why?”
“Because I can’t leave you alone at the cabin and I can search much faster by myself. I know you want to help find your dad, but I’m sure you’d rather we find him as fast as possible, right?”
“Yeah. Do you think he’s hurt?”
“I honestly don’t know.”
“Really?” He tilts his head.
“Yep. Normally, when people are missing this long, they probably did get hurt. But… remember how you thought it was only the next day but, in reality, more than a week went by?”
“Yeah. Weird.” He rubs his nose.
“Maybe your dad’s only been missing for one day, even though it’s been longer.”
“That’s confusing.” Shane yawns.
“Tell me about it, kid.” I chuckle.
Mary Lou—who evidently heard voices in her yard and came to check it out—opens the sliding door. “Sam? What’s up?”
“Hey. This is Shane. Shane, this is Mary Lou.” I gently set him down on his feet.
“Hello there.” My sister shakes his hand.
“Hi. You’re her mom?” asks the boy. He seems at ease with her. Most kids do. My sister has serious ‘mom vibes,’ though they’re starting to turn into grandma vibes.
My sister and I exchange that look. One of these days, it might be simpler to just run with it. For now, Mary Lou says, “Older sister.”
“Oh. Duh. She said that. Sorry.” Shane yawns.
“It’s okay. You’re tired.” I ruffle his hair.
“So, what’s up with the little man?” asks Mary Lou. “Have you finally snapped and started collecting them like Pokémon?”
I laugh. “Nah. His father’s part of a missing person case I’m working. About to go searching hundreds of miles of woodlands. Kid needed a safe place to wait.”
“All right. Coming in?” Mary Lou smiles.
“Love to, but I need to search. Could be precious minutes…”
