Precedent: Book Three: Covenant of Trust Series (11 page)

He heard footsteps on the stairs, then in the hallway. Too heavy for Bobbi. Too quick for Jack. “Dad?” It was Joel.

Chuck doubted whether he could let go of Shannon’s desk and turn around to face Joel. He felt Joel’s arm supporting him almost as soon as he made a move. “I’m okay.”

“
Sure you are.” Joel leaned against the desk. “What happened?”

There was no way he was telling Joel about the pain in his chest. It would go away. It always did. “Shannon and I had—”

“
No, just now. What happened?”

“
I checked Shannon’s closet. She packed her clothes.” He had to make Joel forget that he saw the chest pain hit. “This is more serious than just blowing off some steam.”

“
Mom didn’t mention that.”

“
Mom doesn’t know.” He slumped into Shannon’s desk chair. “She can’t . . . This is more than she can handle right now. Maybe more than I can handle.”

“
What would make her leave home?”

He stared across the room, chewing his bottom lip. A curse. Judgment he brought on them all. That sounded crazy. He understood that, but his world had come apart in the last two weeks. Crazy had new boundaries.

“
Dad, whatever you’re thinking, it’s not true.”

“
I’m not so sure, Joel.”

“
All right, then let me ask you this—do you love that woman downstairs?”

Love her? He’d give his life for her. He’d pay any price just to see her smile again. If he’d done this to her . . . “More than my own life.”

“
She needs you now more than she ever has.”

“
I know that, and I can’t—”

“
Then fake it. You get downstairs and act like everything is gonna be all right.”

“
Joel—”

“
No excuses. Act like you’re in charge.”

“
But I don’t know what to do! She’s gonna look at me and say ‘what are we going to do’ and I don’t know what to tell her.”

“
You tell her not to panic. You tell her this is temporary. You tell her Shannon is safe.”

“
But I don’t know that!”

“
Yes, you do. Fear is the loudest, strongest voice you hear right now, but it’s lying to you. Fear always lies, Dad.”

Chuck unclenched his fists and blew out a long, slow breath. Fight or flight. He had to fight. Bobbi needed him. Shannon needed him, and Jack needed him. He took the deepest breath the tightness in his chest allowed, and he squared his shoulders. “I’ll have the nervous breakdown next week. Tell Mom I’ll be down in a minute.”

* * *

When Bobbi saw Joel trot down the steps alone, she quit pacing the living room and caught him just before he ducked around the corner to the kitchen. “What’s wrong? Where’s Dad?”

“
He’ll be right down.”

“
Is he okay?”

Joel nodded. “He’s in Shannon’s room.”

“
He thinks this is his fault.”

“
He mentioned that.”

“
She told him he’d brought a curse on us. His affair was why you and Abby can’t have kids, and why Brad . . .” She swallowed hard, and Joel reached for her hand. “He thinks Shannon . . . that it’s part of it.”

“
That’s ridiculous.”

Words choked off, Bobbi nodded, and when Joel hugged her, she couldn’t hold back any longer. Angry, frustrated, grief-stricken sobs came in waves. Joel never moved, never lied and said everything was okay. He understood it wasn’t, and she wondered if it ever would be again.

“
Do you know how much I love you?” she whispered. “I don’t know what I would do without you and Jack.”

“
You don’t have to worry, Mom.” He leaned down and kissed her. “Uncle Gavin’s here. We’ll handle everything. You and Dad take care of each other.”

“
I’m trying, sweetheart, but . . .”

“
You’re doing better than you realize.”

“
Yes, she is.”

Bobbi turned around, and Chuck stood on the bottom step, reaching his hand out to her. She took his hand and nestled against him, comforted in an odd way by the fresh scent of fabric softener.

“
I was up in Shannon’s room just now,” he said, holding her tightly.

“
Joel told me. You shouldn’t torture yourself that way.”

He took both her hands, staring at them for a moment before raising his eyes. “Honey, Shannon packed a suitcase.”

“
Packed . . . ?” She pushed around him and took the steps two at a time. She charged into Shannon’s room until cold reality stopped her. Empty hangers dangled from the rod. Suddenly unsteady, she hoped she could make it to the desk chair before she vomited or passed out.

“
Bobbi?” Chuck knelt beside her. He was going to say something stupid, like “don’t worry” or “everything will be all right.” He didn’t. “I misjudged her. I had no idea how deep . . .”

“
This is bad.” She closed her eyes and leaned back in the chair. Gone. Shannon was gone.

“
Yeah, it is.”

Thank God he agreed. He wrapped his hands around hers, and she opened her eyes.

“
She’s not stupid, though. She had a plan. If we can figure out her plan, we can find her.”

“
But I’ve called everyone I can think of.”

“
Except Katelyn. We haven’t heard from Katelyn.”

“
You’re right. I left a message.” She glanced at the note still lying on the desk. “If she’s with Katelyn . . .”

* * *

Bobbi returned to the kitchen, her hand secure in Chuck’s. When Chuck prayed just now as they huddled over Shannon’s desk, God had to be listening. They would get through this. Some way. Somehow. God would intervene here in the eleventh hour and wrap this all up for her. God knew her limits, didn’t He?

She walked through the doorway and immediately felt as if she had interrupted a high-level strategy session. Joel leaned over the kitchen table, poring over papers and lists with Jack and Gavin. Rita held the phone in one hand and scribbled notes with her other hand. Rita forced a smile, then looked up at the back door and waved. Kara Isaac pushed the door open, and Katelyn shuffled in behind her. But no Shannon.

“
I’m sorry,” Kara said, crossing the kitchen to hug Bobbi. “We’ve been gone all morning. I didn’t know anything until Mom called. We got here as quick as we could.”

“
Aunt Bobbi, I promise, I promise, I didn’t know anything about Shannon running away,” Katelyn said, begging to be believed. “I haven’t talked to her since last Saturday. I’ve been grounded.”

Gavin looked up from his papers at Kara. “Unground her,” he said, and Kara nodded. “Katelyn, you get on every online site you can to try and contact Shannon. Tell her she needs to come home.”

“
Yes sir,” Katelyn said quietly.

“
Did you take her cell phone?” Gavin asked Kara.

“
Of course. You want me to give it back?”

“
Yes, and her car. Katelyn, I want you out of the house. Circulate yourself. Be visible so Shannon knows she can contact you.”

“
Jack,” Gavin said, “head down to the bookstore. Let them know the situation, but tell them not to do anything. We want Shannon to go to work just like normal.”

“
Okay,” Jack said, and hustled out the door.

Joel motioned for Bobbi to follow him to the study. “Mom, I need you to get online with your bank, and I need you to cancel her cell phone service.”

“
Don’t,” Chuck said, following close behind them. “That’s the only way we can track her.”

“
Can you see what calls have been made on that line?” Gavin asked. He stood in the doorway bouncing his glances between them, occasionally checking the kitchen. Bobbi knew that look. He was gathering his data, then he’d make his reasonable, rational pronouncement and give them the pathway out of this mess. She silently thanked God for Gavin, and that someone could still think clearly.

“
Yes, if we can’t get it online, I’ll get it some other way.”

Gavin then turned to Bobbi. “Did she take her class ring, jewelry, photos, anything like that?”

“
Just clothes. Why?”

“
Gimme a minute,” Gavin said. “How much money was in her bank account?”

“
She had her college money in there so we could pay her tuition in the next week or two,” Bobbi said.

“
Is your name on the account?”

“
Yes.”

“
We need to get it now,” Gavin said.

Joel was already on the computer, on the bank’s website. “Mom, type in your password.” When Bobbi did, the accounts screen appeared. Shannon’s bank account showed an available balance of twenty dollars, and a pending withdrawal of the rest. “She got it this morning,” Joel said.

“
That was thousands of dollars,” Bobbi said, and Gavin scowled. “What? You have an idea about what she’s doing, don’t you?”

He looked at Chuck first, then back at her. “She’s the prodigal,” Gavin said. “She’s taken her inheritance, and she’s leaving us all behind.”

The prodigal? How could she have become a prodigal? She and Chuck did everything right with Shannon. They trusted her, gave her freedom, and loved her unconditionally. But that’s what made a prodigal, wasn’t it? Every material and emotional advantage.

She swiveled the desk chair around to face Gavin. “If you’re suggesting we sit back and let her go until she’s so miserable she drags herself home—”

“
Not at all.”

“
Then what do we do?” She looked to Chuck, ready for the action plan, but he leaned against the desk, grimacing, rubbing a hand across his breastbone. “Chuck, what’s wrong?”

“
Nothing,” he muttered.

“
It’s doing it again, isn’t it?” Joel said, pushing back from the desk.

“
Again? Doing what again?”

“
He was like this up in Shannon’s room.” Joel took Chuck’s arm and pulled him toward the love seat.

“
I don’t want to sit down,” he said. “It’ll hurt worse.”

“
Tell me what is going on!” Bobbi demanded.

“
Honey, it’s nothing. It’ll go away on its own.”

“
What is IT? Are you having chest pains?”

“
Kind of.”

Bobbi felt Gavin take her arm and ease her back to the desk chair. God had to know she had a breaking point. He couldn’t take Chuck, too.

“
Mom, it’s okay.” Joel held Chuck’s wrist and kept an eye on his watch. “Guys come in the ER all the time with chest pains from a whole host of things. It’s not necessarily a heart attack.”

“
But?”

“
I’m gonna take him to the ER.”

“
I’m going with you.”

“
What if Shannon calls?” Joel said.

“
Then somebody can tell her where I am. You’re not leaving me here.”

“
Joel, I don’t think it’s any big deal,” Chuck said, standing a little straighter. “It’s done this all day.”

“
All day! You think you should have mentioned that before now?”

“
You just told your mother it was probably no big deal.”

“
Yeah, and you’re a sixty-two-year-old guy with a sedentary lifestyle whose mother had three heart attacks. Get in the car.”

“
I’m not sedentary. I play golf all the time.”

“
I’ve played with you. You rent a golf cart. Go.”

On the drive to Christian Hospital, Bobbi sat in the backseat, listening to Joel fire off question after question, trying to gauge whether Chuck was having a heart attack.

“
I thought you were a pediatrician,” Chuck muttered.

“
Yep, and that’s going to come in very handy.” Joel pulled his hospital ID badge from his sun visor and clipped it to his shirt. “My all-access pass. Chest pain will get you fast-tracked. You shouldn’t have to wait to get in.” Just as Joel predicted, Chuck was taken back for an exam not long after they arrived.

Too nervous to sit, Bobbi leaned against the wall in a corner of the waiting room, watching Joel talk to nurses and anybody else in scrubs who happened to walk through the ER. When he joined her at last, she asked, “Is it a heart attack?”

“
I don’t think so, but we need to be sure.”

“
I trust you. I can relax if you say it’s not a heart attack.” She eased into the nearest seat. “Thank God, we got a break on something.”

They sat in silence for several minutes, then Joel spoke. “This thing with Shannon will work out like everything else we’ve been through, Mom. Hang on to that faith.”

“
Faith? I’m not sure I have any left.”

“
You do. It’s just a little overwhelmed right now.”

“
A little?”

“
Figure of speech,” Joel said with a wink. “I’m going to go check on Dad. They should know something by now.” He squeezed her hand and walked down the hallway with long, confident strides. Definitely his father’s son.

His father.
God, he has to be okay.
She leaned her head back against the wall, and a tear made its way from the corner of her eye.
I’m begging, Lord.
Another tear squeezed out, then another, then the floodgates opened. Alone in the waiting room with no one to be strong for, Bobbi let herself cry. For the injustice, for the uncertainty, for the disappointment of each passing hour with no word from Shannon, for the emotional exhaustion, and for the intensity of regret and failure.