Defy the World Tomatoes (17 page)

Griffin had been about to lift a bite of salad to his mouth, but caught it in time. “Hold the jokes until we finish eating, please. Of course, I plan to keep seeing you. Unless you don’t want to see me.”

As if, she thought. “As long as you keep the blinds closed at sensitive times, I won’t mind.”

Charmed by her nonchalance, Griffin gave her knee a playful squeeze. “You’re going to need a passport.”

“Why? I’ll not have the time to travel with you.”

Griffin winked at her. “One of these days, you’ll make the time.”

She could have argued, but it made little sense when she had the uncomfortable suspicion he was right.

Chapter Ten

Despite Griffin’s prediction to the contrary, he’d fit in Darcy’s bed, and quite comfortably, although they hadn’t gotten much in the way of sleep Monday night. Tuesday he’d gone into rehearsal mode before leaving for Chicago, while she’d been inspired to rush his fountain to completion before he returned.

Certain he would go along with whatever she selected, she chose a trefoil over a simple circle and had it lined with a beautiful sea-green tile. She called a sculptor she’d admired, grateful that Griffin could afford the woman’s exquisite work, and purchased a marble mermaid.

The enchanting figure was turned in a twisting pose, her chin nearly touching her right shoulder. Her crossed arms demurely covered her bare breasts, and water bubbled through her hands, clasped with da Vinci’s graceful perfection, to spill into the base of the fountain.

Delighted with the whole installation, Darcy had photographed it for her portfolio and returned to Defy the World Friday afternoon to spruce up the nursery for the weekend. With lovely weather and plenty of tourists, the remaining time would pass quickly until Griffin’s return, but she couldn’t help but count the hours. She hummed softly to herself as she rearranged the white and pink cyclamen clustered beside the register stand.

“Where’s Twink?” Christy Joy called. She scanned the walkways, then fixed Darcy with an accusing stare. “Isn’t she out here with you and George?”

George immediately left his post at the cash register. “I’ll check the pottery shed. Maybe she’s playing inside.”

Darcy felt certain she’d just seen the little girl skipping along the paths. “Twink was here a minute ago.”

Christy Joy shook her head. “I don’t believe this. Either you’ve kept an eye on her or you haven’t.”

With the strength of an earthquake’s first jolt, a burst of guilt-laced fear shot down Darcy’s spine, but she refused to add to her partner’s dismay and fought to respond calmly. “Twink’s been darting in and out of the shop just as she always does. She can’t have gone far.”

George hurried back toward them, his face a mask of concern. “The shed’s empty. Could Twink have gone upstairs to your apartment?”

“I’ll look.” Christy Joy hurried out the back gate and up the stairs. She unlocked the back door and nearly yanked it off the hinges as she entered. In a moment, she came back outside through the shop. “Twink’s not upstairs. She’s not in the shop, and she’s not out here. I’m calling the police.”

Darcy saw her own terror reflected in her friend’s eyes and thought it a wise move. “You stay here, George, in case Twink turns up. I’ll take a look on the street.”

Foot traffic was light that afternoon, and a quick glance in either direction revealed no sign of the little girl. Hoping Twink might have gone back up the street to her preschool, Darcy broke into a quick jog. The Sunshine Nursery School was located in a buttercup yellow cottage that could have come right out of a Beatrice Potter tale, but after leaving earlier with her mother, Twink had not reappeared on her own.

Darcy sprinted on to the park where a small crowd had gathered to watch a chess match being played with the four-foot-tall pieces on the big outdoor chessboard. She circulated through the onlookers asking about Twink, but no one had seen a fair-haired little girl in the park.

Swallowing her dread, she forced herself to check the small adobe structure which housed the women and men’s restrooms, but her voice echoed with a hollow ring through the empty stalls. As she came back outside, she tried to think where Twink might have gone, but the adorable little girl had always been right underfoot. She felt sick to her stomach and could only imagine how desperate Christy Joy must be.

She immediately thought of the sad ending to Griffin’s beautiful composition, but she refused to consider his music appropriate here. She was positive children strayed all the time and just as often turned up within a matter of minutes. She had to believe Twink was all right, because the hideous alternative was simply too painful to contemplate.

She was out of breath by the time she returned to Defy the World, and a police car was already parked out in front. She shook her head as she passed George and went on into the shop where Christy Joy was clutching a photograph of Twink while she provided a tearful description of her daughter’s clothing.

“I checked with the preschool,” Darcy announced, her heart firmly lodged in her throat. “Mrs. Kelly would have called you immediately had Twink turned up there, and what staff she can spare is going out to look for her too.”

“What about Twink’s father?” the officer inquired. “Could she be with him?”

Christy Joy wiped away her tears. “He’s a San Francisco attorney. He’d take me to court to win custody rather than snatch her off the street.”

The police officer was a freckled young man with bright red hair. He frowned as he made a notation on the report form. “What about her friends from preschool? Does she ever go home with them?”

“She has,” Christy Joy replied. “But their mothers would surely have called me if she’d arrived at their homes without our having made prior arrangements. I take good care of Twink, really I do.”

“We all do,” Darcy echoed, but she’d failed miserably that afternoon. She’d been so preoccupied with thoughts of surprising Griffin with the spectacular fountain that she’d been less than attentive with their customers, but she’d never dreamed Twink might slip away unnoticed.

“What about an Amber alert?” she asked.

“I’ll ask the chief,” the officer replied, “but with no license plate number or description of a car, freeway signs for an Amber alert won’t be of much use.”

Christy Joy sagged back against the counter. “Oh, please, don’t tell me it’s possible she’s been kidnapped. You’d have noticed if a stranger had grabbed her, wouldn’t you, Darcy?”

“Of course, I would have,” Darcy insisted, but she was horrified to think how easily someone might have scooped up Twink while her back was turned. A target of opportunity, she believed it was called. Someone might have seen Twink playing alone, grabbed her and been gone before either she or George had noticed a suspicious stranger lurking nearby.

She feared she was going to be sick. “We’ll find her,” she vowed hoarsely. “Let’s close early and we can conduct a store-by-store canvass.”

Mary Beth came out from behind the counter. “I think I ought to stay here with Christy Joy,” she offered.

With that decided, Darcy went out the door praying they would find Twink before nightfall. It was difficult enough searching for a small child in daylight, and she didn’t even want to consider going out with a flashlight.

Christy Joy barely made it to the shop’s restroom before becoming ill. She was terrified her precious daughter had been abducted by some sick monster who would abuse her and toss her tiny body on some filthy trash heap. She retched until she was dizzy and then, positive Twink deserved better, splashed cool water on her face and blotted it dry.

Mary Beth was pacing the front of the shop when she returned. “I swear I’ll lie down and die if something’s happened to my baby. None of this will mean anything if she’s gone.”

Mary Beth hugged her tightly. “She’ll turn up any minute now. I know she will. She’s such a sweet little thing, no one will harm her.”

“No, that’s only what you hope, but there are children who have disappeared and never been seen again, while others
—
”

“Stop it,” Mary Beth ordered. “This is a very small town. Everyone knows Twink, and she’s probably perched on a stool in one of the neighboring shops chatting happily with the owner.”

Christy Joy bit her lip until she tasted blood. “I ought to call J. Lyle, but he’ll just curse at me. Even if I don’t call him, he’s bound to find out that Twink was missing and he’ll insist I’m unfit. What am I going to do, Mary Beth? Even if we find Twink, I’m sure to lose custody.”

“Hush,” Mary Beth replied. “You’re only making it worse than it already is. I’ll make you some tea.”

Christy Joy shook her head, but Mary Beth insisted upon brewing a cup anyway.

Darcy had searched both sides of the street and was heading for the docks when she saw Jeremy Linden coming her way carrying Twink on his shoulders. Tears coursed down her cheeks as she ran toward them.

“Oh Twink, you had us all scared to death!” she cried.

Twink simply looked puzzled. “I went to see Jeremy.”

Darcy had to grab on to the captain’s arm for support. “You should have called us. We’ve been searching everywhere.”

“I’m sorry. I thought it would take less time to walk her home than it would to look up Defy the World’s number.”

A police cruiser pulled up before Darcy could reply, and the red-haired officer who had taken the report on Twink climbed out. “What’s your name, little girl?” he asked.

Twink straightened proudly. “Catherine Jennings, but everybody calls me Twink.”

Jeremy swung her down off his shoulders, but kept hold of her hand. “I found her on my boat and was walking her home.”

The officer shot Darcy a decidedly skeptical glance and reached for his handcuffs, but she stepped in front of Jeremy. “Captain Linden is a family friend. Twink went to see him without asking permission, but now that she’s been found, we need to take her home to her mother.”

The officer’s glance never left Jeremy and he waited a moment too long to agree. “Okay, let’s do that.” He opened the rear door of his car and waited for them to slide inside.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t realize
—
” Jeremy began.

Darcy raised a finger to her lips. “Let’s concentrate on getting Twink home.”

Once they were all seated in the cruiser, Twink bounced on Jeremy’s knee. “Can you turn on the siren?”

“Not today,” the officer replied. “We don’t want to scare your mother any worse than she already is.” He quickly reached for his microphone to radio in that he was on his way back to Defy the World Tomatoes with Twink.

Twink settled back against Jeremy’s chest. “Am I in trouble?”

Darcy was too relieved to have found the little girl safe to want to see her punished. “You know better than to wander off, but you’ll not do it again, will you?”

Twink played with the organdy apron on her pinafore. “I didn’t get lost.”

“That’s not the point,” Jeremy insisted. “Pretty little girls can’t go wandering around the docks alone. I told you so, remember?”

Twink lowered her head. “Do I stink like fish?”

Darcy pulled the sweet child into her arms and hugged her tightly. “No, you smell absolutely delicious.”

The police cruiser pulled into a parking place in front of Defy the World, and Christy Joy came running out to meet them. She plucked her daughter from Darcy’s arms and muffled her tears in her shiny curls.

Jeremy left the car, but hung back. When Darcy glanced his way, he just shook his head. “Twink went to see Jeremy,” she explained.

Christy gasped. “Oh, baby, you went all that way alone?”

The policeman cleared his throat. “Why don’t you call your pediatrician and have him meet us at the hospital to check her over.”

Christy’s expression filled with confusion, swiftly followed by a sudden flash of horror. “Please, Jeremy, swear you didn’t
—
”

Jeremy spread his arms wide. “What? No, of course not. I went up to the Scarlet Letter to pick up a book I’d ordered. When I got back, Twink was jumping up and down on my bunk.”

The officer pulled a small notebook from his back pocket. “Captain Linden, was it? Better give me the name of your boat.”

“The
Great Escape
, but no crime has been committed.”

“Better let me be the judge of that,” the officer replied. “I really think we ought to go on over to the hospital, Mrs. Jennings.”

Christy wrapped her arms even more tightly around her daughter. “No, can’t you see that Twink’s fine? Thank you for your help, but you’re no longer needed here.”

Obviously disappointed, the officer waited until Christy Joy had carried Twink inside before he spoke. “She’s in denial, but I’ve got your name, Captain, and you can count on my checking out your story at the Scarlet Letter.”

“The time I paid for the book is stamped on the receipt,” Jeremy exclaimed, “and it wasn’t more than fifteen minutes ago.”

“Doesn’t take all that long to molest a child,” the officer replied, but after regarding Jeremy with a final dark glance, he closed his notebook, got into his cruiser and drove away.

Darcy still felt sick, and Jeremy didn’t look much better. “No one’s accused you of anything,” she assured him.

Jeremy shoved his hands in his pockets. “Christ, he didn’t have to. Didn’t you see the way Christy Joy looked at me?”

Indeed she had, and the unspoken accusation had stung her as well. “She was frantic about Twink.”

“Sure, that’s only natural, but suspicion’s an ugly thing and damn hard to disprove.”

Darcy again reached for his arm, but when he flinched she promptly withdrew. “We’re all upset, but please don’t imagine it’s worse than it is.”

Jeremy shook his head. “I’ll not blame Twink. She’s just a little kid, but whatever chance I may have had with Christy Joy is gone, and you know it.”