Echoes (4 page)

"I'm sure, Caity, I haven't heard from her. I wish I had. But I'll tell you what. When I do," Tess made a monster face, "when I do I'm going to grab her, and tickle her until she promises never to be late again."

This seemed to suit Caitlin fine. She gave Tess a real smile and hugged her again.

"We're all hoping we'll hear from her soon," Lydia said. Her voice was childlike and musical. "Cell phones don't work for beans out here, so she probably just hasn't been able to call."

"You hear that?" Tess said to Caitlin. "I'll bet Ms. Hughes knows what she's talking about." Over Caitlin's head, she gave
Lydia a grateful smile.

"Are you hungry?"
Lydia asked. "We had pizza earlier, but there's some left in the fridge."

"I snarfed a Big Mac on the way, but thanks for the offer. We should get out of your hair now. I can't thank you enough for watching Caitlin until I could get here."

"Oh, she's a little angel. It was no trouble." She waved off Tess's thanks, but she looked pleased by the appreciation and sincere as she said, "I'm glad to help. What will you do now?"

Good question. Between racing to get here and expecting to find Tori waiting when she arrived, Tess hadn't thought much further. Now she looked blankly between
Lydia and Caitlin.

"Are we going to your house or mine?" Caitlin asked.

"Well, my house is in New York and I don't know where yours is."

Lydia
said, "It's not far from here. I can give you directions."

It hit her then, really hit her. Tori wasn't home yet. Whether or not she would stroll up tomorrow remained to be seen, but right now, tonight, Tori was missing. Outside, dark pressed against the windows and seeped into the corners of the room. It had been easy to rehash her anger at past escapades when deep down she'd been certain Tori would be home before Tess's airplane even landed. But now...

"Or if you'd feel more comfortable staying somewhere else," Lydia went on, "I own a bed and breakfast in town. This time of year the coffee shop is the only part of it that I keep open, so I have plenty of room." She made a bitter sound. "Honestly, any time of the year I have more vacancies than I care to claim. I swear, the only thing keeping this town from shriveling up and blowing away are the rocks."

"Why can't we just go to my house?" Caitlin interrupted. "If Mommy comes home and I'm not there, she'll be worried."

Tess swallowed thickly, trying not to think about how worried she and Caitlin would be waiting for Tori to walk through the door.

"I know, Caitlin, but for one we don't have keys and for two—"

Caitlin jumped off Tess's lap, reached a hand into the pocket of her jeans and pulled out a key. She set it on the table. It made a hollow, clicking sound against the wood.

"Oh, you have a key," Tess said, strangely uneasy.

Caitlin nodded. "Mommy gave it to me. She said I should give it to you when you got here. She said if something happened, you would come."

Chapter Five

Tori's house was just around the corner from Craig Weston's. Their backyards shared a fence, or so Lydia had told Tess, though several acres of open pasture divided the two homes from sight of one another. Clouds had blotted out the moonlight and stars, leaving the night beyond her headlights basement black and alive with unseen movement. She'd been driving awhile and still she hadn't seen the side street Lydia described.

Tess took her eyes from the road for a moment to glance at her niece. Since she'd pulled the key from her pocket, Caitlin had been quiet and withdrawn. Reaching over, Tess patted her leg.

"Caity?" she said, choosing her words with utmost care. "When your mom gave you the key, did she think something was going to happen? Was she worried that you'd need me to come?"

"I don't know. She didn't say."

"Did she mention that she might go someplace today?"

Caitlin shook her head. Tears filled her eyes. "She said she'd see me after school."

"Did she give you the key this morning?"

"No, awhile ago. I don't remember when."

"Did she say why I would be coming?"

She looked down at her swinging feet. "She said just in case."

Her words settled in the stillness of the car. "In case what?"

She lifted her shoulders in a small shrug. Tess licked her lips and tried not to look tense, but it didn't work. Caitlin pulled her knees up and wrapped her arms around them. She tucked her chin against her chest and withdrew.

Tess caught sight of what looked like a porch light gleaming in the distance and a moment later she came to a road that branched off towards it. The light winked between the trees, looking at once deceptively close and suspiciously far away. Tess followed it all the same, turning onto a narrow dirt road which passed beneath sentries of ancient trees standing guard on either side. A little while later she saw a shadowy grouping of buildings ahead.

"Is that where you live?"

Caitlin looked up and shook her head. "No."

Tess cursed silently. The road wasn't wide enough to swing a U-ey. She'd have to keep going until it opened up. Gravel crunched loudly beneath her wheels and the darkness seemed to layer in thick folds just outside the beam of her lights. At last she pulled in front of a large house with unlit windows that looked creepy as hell. She almost had the car turned back the way they'd come when she saw a silhouette move away from the other shades of darkness and step forward.

She slowed to a stop as the shadow became a man in a heavy jacket wearing a cowboy hat pulled down low on his head. She couldn't make out his features as he stopped a few feet from her car, but there was something familiar about him. How that could be, especially when she could hardly see him, she didn't know. The feeling was undeniable though.

She rolled down her window part way and said, "Excuse me, I think I'm lost. I'm looking for
Old Post Road?"

The man stood still for such a long moment that she began to feel uneasy, thinking that a city girl like herself should have had more sense than to stop in the first place. Then he took a step closer to the car and that overpowering sense of familiarity monopolized her thoughts. How did she, how
could
she know this man? The brim of his hat concealed his face, giving her only the vaguest impression of glittering light eyes. He was very tall and lean, yet powerfully built. Not like a body builder. More a man who worked in a physically demanding job. Well, duh. He was a cowboy if the attire and locale were anything to go by.

She wished he'd step closer nearly as much as she hoped he wouldn't. She felt anxious and strangely excited with him as near as he was. "Next turn down," he said. His voice was low and even more familiar than his silhouette. Deep and rich, it reached across the distance dividing them and brushed against her senses. He pointed back the way she'd come. "Go right at the end of the drive. It's about a quarter mile more."

"Thank you."

She started to roll up the window and then paused. He was staring at her. Watching her with an intensity she could feel, even if she couldn't see it. Maybe he was trying to place her as well?

She nearly laughed at her own thought. Yeah, right. If she'd really ever met this man before, she knew she'd never have forgotten him.

"Drive careful," he said.

As she pulled away, she glanced in the rearview mirror. The night quickly cloaked him, but she felt as if he still stood watching her.

"It sure gets dark here," she mumbled as she peered back over the steering wheel at the road.

"I know. I hate the dark."

Tess gave Caitlin a quick look. The little girl sat huddled against the door. "Well scootch on over here next to me and we can hate it together."

Caitlin didn't need to be asked twice. With one hand Tess raised the console that divided the front seat and Caitlin settled in as close as she could get.

"We'll be to your house soon. Do you know who that man was?"

"I couldn't see him good," she said. "Maybe Mr. Weston."

"Your principal?" Tess asked, surprised.

"Or the other ones." Before Tess could ask what she meant by 'other ones,' Caitlin exclaimed, "Turn there. That's our street."

It began to rain as they bumped up the pitted drive to Tori's house. Apparently Tori had expected to be back before sunset because, like everything around them, the house was dark. Tess turned off the ignition and stared at the place where her sister lived. It was small, two-storied, with a tiny front porch and a big picture window in the front. The glass reflected her headlights back like eerie, vacant eyes.

Shadowy bushes and trees shivered in the chilled spring air while the drizzle coated them in a damp, glossy sheen that gave life to their barren limbs. A haunted graveyard would have fit right in with the scenery.

"Mommy's not home," Caitlin said in a small voice.

"No, it doesn't look like she is, does it?"

In her mind, she watched Caitlin pull out her key and say,
Just in case.
Just in case what? What had Tori told her daughter after that
just in case
?

She squeezed Caitlin's hand. "Honey, everything's going to be okay. Your Mommy will come home soon and she'll have a perfectly good explanation for why she was gone. You'll see."

Just then, the inside of their car lit up and another vehicle pulled in behind them. Surprised, they both turned and peered out the back window. Dark though it was, they could easily make out the blue and red bubble lights on the roof and the two uniformed men in the front seat.

Tess's stomach plunged at the same moment her heart contracted and a surge of adrenalin shot through her. There was only one reason the police would be there.

Tori.

Chapter Six

It seemed the weather waited for just the right moment to let loose. As Tess and Caitlin stepped from the car, a huge gust of icy wet wind tried to push them back in. The officer who had been driving motioned for them to make a run to the house. Without hesitating, they did.

The key turned easily and the front door opened without a sound. Tess reached inside the house and flipped the light switch. She ushered Caitlin in first. The two officers followed. She called out for Tori, even though she knew she wouldn't get an answer. Caitlin raced up the stairs, shouting for her mommy. She came back slowly, her expression revealing all the hurt and confusion she felt.

Tess didn't give the officers a chance to shrug out of their wet coats before she asked, "What happened? Has there been word from Tori?"

"No," the older of the two men said. "I'm Sheriff Smith, this is Deputy Ochoa. We're here to ask you some questions."

Sheriff Smith stood square and purposeful, but his uniform hung on his bulky frame with a negligence that echoed the disillusionment on his face. A dark spot, which she knew from experience could only be ketchup, marred the beige shirt at the slope of his belly. His skin was pasty pale, his expression weary.

In contrast, the younger man behind him was tall and fit. His uniform was pressed and creased with an attention to detail that Tess's military father would have appreciated. Unlike her father, he had warm brown eyes and a compassionate face.

Caitlin stood at her elbow, tense and frightened. Tess squatted down and took the girl's shoulders in her hands. "They haven't heard from your mom, honey. Do you understand?"

Caitlin nodded.

"Okay, I want you to go change into some dry clothes and then come back." When Caitlin didn't move, she added, "I promise I'll tell you if they say anything about your mom."

"I want you to come with me."

Tess glanced up at the sheriff. He frowned with impatience.

"Go on and help her," the young deputy said. "We'll wait in the kitchen."

Caitlin led the way up a narrow flight of stairs and Tess followed, turning on every light they passed. Her niece's room was neat and pretty, filled with stuffed animals and frilly pillows. Caitlin went straight to a small, stuffed kitty that lay in the center of the bed and cuddled it close.

"A friend of yours?" Tess asked.

"Purcy. He's my best friend."

With the kitty under one arm, Caitlin went to her drawers and pulled out a soft fleecy pair of pants and an oversized t-shirt that said "Cowgirls Rule" in bright pink letters across the chest.

"Okay?" Tess asked.

Caitlin nodded solemnly. "I'll come down when I'm changed."

Tess smiled, gently touching her silky head. "I'll see you in a minute."

"Ms. Carson," the sheriff said as soon as she stepped into the kitchen. "You are Tess Carson? Ms.
France's sister?"

"That's correct."

"I understand her husband is estranged?"

"Ex-husband. They haven't spoken since before Caitlin was born. The last time I asked, she didn't even know where he was."

"Any reason to believe he might have resurfaced?"