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“But he was probably speaking in anger,” she continued as we walked down the sidewalk. I wasn’t sure if we were heading toward her car.
“You know Kendall pretty well at this point, don’t you?”
I nodded, the motion making me feel light-headed. “We spend most afternoons after school together.”
“Has she been struggling with anything else?” Ellie paused on the sidewalk to face me.
I thought for a second before answering. “Meeting friends. She didn’t like one of her teachers.”
Ellie tipped her head to the side. “She talked to you about that?”
“Yeah, she did.” It had made me feel good, but then it put me in an untenable position today.
“Doyouknow where she might have gone?” Ellie’s gaze was steady on me.
“She loves spending time in the bakery, going to the library, and listening to music. Other than that, I don’t know.”
“Are you sure about that?”
There was something dancing on the edge of my consciousness. “Do you think she’s with Drew?”
Ellie sucked in a breath.
My mind was clearer now that I wasn’t fixated on Mark’s final words to me. “Drew’s her only friend. She’s said that to me repeatedly.”
“And they’re not in the same class,” Ellie rushed to add.
“She was really upset about that because she only sees him at recess, but he plays with the boys. Have they spent a lot of time together since school started?”
“Not as much,” Ellie admitted.
“Would she go to him?” I asked, feeling hopeful for the first time since Kendall walked out.
Ellie’s face was pinched. “She might.”
“Where does Drew hang out?” I asked, eager to go wherever they might be.
“When he’s not at school or playing soccer, he’s playing video games.”
“In the basement.” I was moving before she’d finished her sentence.
“Do you really think that’s where she is?” Ellie asked as she followed me.
“It’s a possibility. If he’s not there, I’ll go back to the bakery in case she comes back.”
“That’s a good idea. My car’s this way.” Ellie took my elbow and guided me down a side street.
I’d wanted to bury myself in the hurt that Mark’s words caused me. But I was doing my best to navigate a difficult situation.
Hopefully, when Kendall was home—safe and sound—we’d revisit our conversation from earlier. Maybe he’d see that he’d jumped to conclusions.
I didn’t need Mark, even if these past few months had been the best. Mark needed to work with me if we were going to be a family unit, not pull back and throw blame and accusations around when something didn’t go right.
We should have discussed what would happen if Kendall discovered that Mark was filing for custody and how I should handle it. But we hadn’t. We’d naïvely thought she wouldn’t.
Ellie drove as fast as she could to her house. “Call Dad and make sure they’re not there.”
“Good idea.” We might be wrong. I didn’t want to think about how I’d feel if we didn’t find her.
