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“I don’t think the girl was running out of teenage angst,” she said, almost to herself.
“We can argue about this all day, but we know nothing about her,” Gene said. “And there’s nothing we can see here that will help us figure this out.”
“We can’t just quit!” Amanda’s frustration peaked.
“Walking these woods isn’t helping, either.” Gene stepped closer to her. “You’re getting tired. We should go back while you still can. You promised you wouldn’t overdo it.”
“Ugh… I know, but…”
She couldn’t really argue, except she just knew she had to keep looking.
“We can drive to the neighborhood.” He checked his watch. “The school buses should drop the kids off soon. Maybe we’ll get lucky and see her?”
That was a good idea, though Amanda doubted they’d see the girl getting off a school bus like nothing had happened. Amanda felt it deep in her gut. That girl needed help.
But what else can we do?
Gene was right. They had nothing to go on. Reluctantly, Amanda let Gene lead them back to his car.
Gene drove them back into town in silence. Amanda was in the passenger seat, asleep.
I let her push herself too far today.
He probably should’ve insisted they went home when he’d persuaded her to return to the car, but he knew she would feel she hadn’t tried enough. So they drove to the nearest neighborhood, a few minutes’ drive away, and watched the school buses. The kids in that neighborhood were mostly grade school age and younger, but there were a few teenagers. But none was Amanda’s mystery girl.
Gene indulged Amanda further by driving through the next neighborhoods. The more they drove toward town, the denser the road became with businesses and residential neighborhoods. The girl could belong to any of those households. And they couldn’t knock on every door, looking for some girl. But he thought Amanda probably would’ve if he hadn’t put a stop to it.
She’d even told him to stop on the side of the road when she’d spotted a homeless encampment. They’d asked a couple of men there if they’d seen the girl, but neither of them had seen any girl.
Amanda had ended up giving the men their water and snacks. She also told them there were warm meals and supplies at the shelter nearby, where she volunteered and urged them to use it.
Gene couldn’t help but admire the woman for her tremendous kindness, but he felt she was getting obsessed over this mystery girl. He wondered if her head injury was worse than he’d thought.
Was there really a girl?
eight
Amanda pulled open the curtains and let the morning sunshine into her bedroom. The twinge on her wrist was becoming less noticeable, unless she bent it at a ninety-degree angle.
I guess no yoga yet.
Besides that, she felt almost normal. The ten or so hours of sleep must’ve been what she’d needed. She’d been super tired when Gene took her home yesterday. The nap in the car had given her enough energy to make plans with Jo for later today, and she’d eaten the casserole Gene’s mom had dropped off for dinner.
Gene had asked if she needed him to stay another night. But she was already indebted to him enough. She basically pushed him out the door, knowing he hadn’t even seen his parents yet since he’d been home. Even then he’d only left after he’d walked Loki and she’d promised to text and update him how she was feeling in the morning.
Picking up her phone from her nightstand, Amanda called Loki to follow her to the backyard when she noticed an unread message.
Noah.
Noah: Hey, I had a great time at dinner. I’d like to do that again soon. You free this Saturday night?
Amanda grimaced at the question, torn about how to answer the text. She’d been driving home from dinner with Noah when she’d gotten into the accident, and she’d forgotten all about him. For a second date, she’d actually had a pleasant time getting to know him more. He was a gentleman, a small business owner like herself, and hadn’t raised any red flags.
How did I forget him?
Amanda waited to answer Noah's text and wrote to Gene instead.
Amanda: Good morning, Doc. I’m up and feeling like I can take on the world.
