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“When you are done with that, you can go on home,” Birdie told her. “My granddaughter should be coming anytime.”
Reese glanced at her watch, seeing it was almost noon. “Wow, time flew this morning.”
“It usually does when you are busy and lost in your own thoughts,” she smiled, stacking loaves of bread into another order. Reese watched her for a moment. The woman had to be close to seventy, but she didn’t look a day over fifty. Her hair was styled and sprayed into submission with a color close enough to natural it didn’t stick out. She was trim and of average height for a woman, but the eyes set her apart. There weren’t many things her brown eyes missed, including a new eligible bachelor. Reese was glad Pappy was seeing Officer Franks’ mother. Lord knew she didn’t want him to have a mysterious disappearance after becoming husband number six.
Reese went about finishing her work and cleaning what she could before heading back home. Walking gave her a chance to think. She knew she was going to have to have another discussion with Cash. The man was too stubborn to leave her alone. However, the nose shot might have helped her out for a few days. If the man thought she was going to be one in a crowd, he had another thing coming.
Leisurely strolling down her street, she basked in the sunshine enjoying the feel of it on her skin. Her stroll came to a halt when she saw the car still parked in the same spot it had been this morning. Smiling to herself, she went in the kitchen door of her little house. The keys were still in the same spot. Reese decided to remedy the problem herself. Driving the Charger across the street, she tossed the keys in the glovebox with a smile on her face. Two could play at this game. Strolling back across the street, Reese let herself back into her house. Humming in contentment, she poured herself a glass of water from the fridge and hit the blinking button on the answering machine.
The sound of the principal’s voice had her smile dropping. Her humming became a groan. His jovial voice announced that since Mav was absent from school, he would not be admitted back in without a note from the doctor. He also took the time to remind her if he could not get a note from the doctor, Mav would be expelled for skipping school.
“Damn it, Mav,” Reese groaned. “Why didn’t you go to school today?”
Mr. Woodson was the only one on the answering machine. With messages like that, who needed more than one?
It only took Reese a second to conclude that Mav had stayed home to work with Cash. He had been complaining about school, but he knew what would happen if he skipped. Grabbing the phone from the charging station, she dialed the number for Cash’s garage, silently praying Pappy answered the phone.
She breathed a sigh of relief when Pappy’s voice came across the line. “Pappy, is Mav there?”
“Nope, he was headed to school this morning the last I saw him. Why?”
“I got a message from Mr. Woodson that Mav wasn’t in school today. Did you take him to school?”
“He said he was going to catch the bus today. I heard it stop, but I didn’t see him get on. I was kind of busy setting Cash’s nose back in place. Any chance you want to tell me about that? Your other half has been tight-lipped, won’t say a damn word about anything.”
“No, Pappy. You are sure Mav isn’t there.”
“He isn’t here, girlie. Call the school. Make sure it wasn’t a mistake, then call me back and let me know.”
Reese hung up the phone. A quick search of the house revealed he wasn’t sound asleep in his bed or hiding out somewhere like she hoped. A sense of dread settled over her. Mav took the bus to school. He had to be there. It was just a simple mistake.
Reese tried to calm down as she dialed the school. After being put on hold and transferred to the attendance clerk, she was assured Mav was counted absent all day. She vaguely remembered thanking the woman before she hung up the phone.
Mav was gone. She hadn’t heard anything from her father and her ex-husband in weeks, but this reeked of them. They waited until she let her guard down, then they took him. Reese’s breath froze. She thought for sure her chest would explode from the pain. They had Mav.
Blindly dialing, Reese called Officer Franks.
“It’s Reese Carter,” she gasped, drawing his full attention.
“Reese, what happened?”
“Mav is gone,” she managed before the dam burst, and she dissolved into great wracking sobs, sliding to the floor of her kitchen. She never heard anything he said to her. She just held the phone as the pain overtook her. The air seemed like it was sucked from the kitchen, and there wasn’t enough for Reese to breathe. Black dots danced at the edges of her vision, and the room swirled. Reese sat on the floor clutching the phone.
Reese could hear the sirens, but she couldn’t bring herself to move. It was as if she was outside her body looking in. The situation seemed surreal. Any minute now, Mav was going to come running in the house. His thundering steps would give him away. Her son would want to know what she was making him to eat. Her baby wasn’t gone. He couldn’t be gone.
“Reese. Reese, honey,” Franks knelt beside her, taking the phone from her hand, hanging it up. “Reese, come on. I need you to talk to me. We need to find Mav, honey. Pull yourself together and tell me what happened.” The only response he got was a slight nod before she broke down again.
Tires screeching in the driveway drew his attention. Looking out her kitchen window, Franks watched Cash jumping from his truck with Oliver coming as fast as he could behind him.
“Where is she?” Cash demanded.
“Right here,” Franks pointed to his feet. “What the hell happened to you?” Franks questioned the tape on his nose and the bruising under his eyes.
Cash ignored him and dove toward Reese, wrapping her in his arms, holding her close. “Beautiful, we are going to find him. We are going to bring our boy back home,” he promised, rocking her.
“No,” Reese shoved herself away from him. The sound of his voice and the memory of his betrayal snapped her mind back into gear. “You don’t get to call me that. Mav is mine. You can have whoever else you want, but that is my son. Mine.”
“Cash, you want to go wait on the porch until I get a chance to talk to her?” Franks tried to intervene.
