Not by Sight (3 page)

“Thanks for that. Speculation’s been hurtful. Truth is, Kate and Micah had been fussin’ at each other for a couple weeks over a business issue they disagreed on. The sheriff had to consider the possibility that Micah left her. Never rang true with me. But you never really know what’s goin’ on inside a person either.”

“Any idea why he’d take his youngest daughter with him?”

Buck wrapped his hands around his coffee cup. “All I can figure is Riley Jo was the only one of his kids young enough to forget the past. She’d be able to adapt to his new life. But even if he wanted out of the marriage, I can’t see Micah bein’ cruel enough to take Kate’s baby girl away from her.”

“So this is what the rumor mill’s been feeding off of all this time?”

“No. Kate and me and the sheriff are the only ones who know they were havin’ a squabble.” Buck stroked his mustache. “Gossip started flyin’ after a couple town busybodies thought they
might’ve
spotted Micah and Riley Jo at the corner of Main and Cleveland, gettin’ into a car with some blonde woman. Of course, neither of them can describe the car or the woman. And, at the busiest intersection in town, no one else saw them. But as time went on, the story got enhanced. I’m sure some folks believe it.”

Chapter 2

Kate went out the front entrance of Angel View Lodge, the morning sun high and the fog now dissipated. She walked across the road and spotted her son Jesse on the porch of their two-story log house, his red wagon parked at the bottom of the steps and filled with plastic jugs.

“Hi, Mama!” Jesse bounded down the steps and ran toward her. “Hawk and I loaded the wagon with nectar for the hummingbirds.”

Jesse came to an abrupt stop and threw his arms around her waist. “Thanks for trusting me with this. I won’t let you down.”

“I never thought you would.” Kate brushed his fine dark hair out of his eyes, noting that the smattering of freckles across his nose and cheeks seemed to have multiplied from exposure to the sun. “I have every confidence in you, or I wouldn’t have put you in charge of the hummingbirds for the summer. It’s a big job. And I wouldn’t let just anyone do it. You know how I love them.”

“Me, too. I’ll make sure they
never
run out of nectar. I promise!” Jesse’s eyes were round and animated, the color of the summer sky.

“I’m proud of you for the effort you’re putting into this.”

Jesse puffed out his skinny chest, as if to show off the word staff embroidered above the pocket of his bright blue Angel View Lodge T-shirt. “I Googled so much stuff about the ruby-throated hummingbird, I should be able to answer any questions the guests ask me. I’m the go-to guy, right?”

“Absolutely.” Kate smiled. Micah would be so proud of him. It broke her heart that Jesse could hardly remember his father.

“I’d better get going. I have a ton of feeders to fill.” Jesse hugged her waist again and ran toward the wagon. “See you later, Mama.”

“I love you,” she called.

“Love you, too! Bye!”

Kate watched as Jesse took the wagon by the handle and headed for the hummingbird garden, looking oh-so-grown-up and responsible. Had she contributed to that, or was he just a great kid all on his own? She worried whether Micah and Riley Jo’s disappearance would cause any long-term effects in Jessie, who had been just five when they went missing. Half his life, he’d been living with that loss and a mother consumed with grief.

Kate heard the screen door slam and glanced up. Hawk stood on the porch, slipping his arms into the straps of his backpack.

Kate walked up the steps. “Thanks for helping your brother. He is beyond excited.”

“Doesn’t take much to float
his
boat,” Hawk Cummings said.

“Why the sarcasm? A word of encouragement from his big brother would go a long way.”

“I did encourage him. I just think you’re making too much of it.”

Kate eyed her oldest son. “You sound
jealous
.”

“It’s nothing like that, Mama. But y’all are acting like Jesse’s the only one who does anything around here.”

“I’m sorry if I gave that impression. You’ve done so much, I wouldn’t know where to begin. I’m not sure I would have survived the past five years without your help. You’ve stepped up and done your father proud. I
have
told you that.”

Hawk hung his head, his expression sheepish. “I guess that sounded petty. Jesse’s really jazzed about being a part of what we’re doing here. He wants to prove himself.”

Kate tilted Hawk’s chin, still not used to the five o’clock shadow that matched his buzz cut. “It’s not as though I’m creating busywork for him. Having Jesse taking care of the hummers will help me immensely. I’d like to think we would all build him up.”

“You know I will.” Hawk glanced at his watch. “Gotta run. I’ve got three drivers already out there, and I’m scheduled to take out a dad and his two boys at ten.”

“Hawk …” Kate waited until he looked at her. “I hope you know I’m proud of you for pulling together the details to launch the jeep-rides operation. I would never have thought of such a thing, let alone that it would become a huge draw, even for folks who don’t stay at Angel View. It’s helped keep us in the black.”

Hawk smiled with his eyes. “I love it. I can’t imagine working for someone else and punching a time clock.”

“You do better when you can set your own schedule. This suits you.”

“Good. Because I’m never leaving Sure Foot Mountain.”

She hoped that was true, more than she dared say. For some reason she couldn’t explain, she felt vulnerable every time Hawk was away on a hiking or hunting trip. “Then you’d better marry a girl who loves it as much as you do.”

“Marry?” Hawk cocked his head and flashed his father’s grin. “I’m barely twenty-one. Don’t be trying to marry me off just yet.”

“
I’m
in no hurry. I think you have to start dating first anyway.”

“I’m too busy getting the jeep business going. I’ve got plenty of time for that later.”

“Not if you’re interested in that cute little blonde at Bella’s Bakery. Some other young man is liable to snatch her out from under your nose.”

Hawk threw his hands in the air. “Did Abby tell you I had my eye on Laura Lynn Parks?”

“So it
is
true.”

“I’d have to be blind not to notice her,” Hawk said. “She wouldn’t give me the time of day.”

“How do you know if you don’t ask her out?”

“Chicks like that can date any guy they want.”

Kate put her hands on her hips. “And how do you know she doesn’t want to date you?”

“Guess I’m too chicken to find out. I don’t want to get shot down.”

“Hawk Cummings, since when are you afraid of anything? So what if she says no? There are plenty of fish in the sea.”

“Fish?” A smile tugged at the corners of Hawk’s mouth. “We’re talking mermaid here.”

Kate and Hawk laughed at the same time.

“Granted, she’s a beautiful girl,” Kate said, thinking it should be Micah having this conversation with Hawk. “But don’t underestimate yourself. You’re handsome, inside and out. Smart. Creative. Hardworking. Polite. And, I dare say, a tad romantic like your father.”

Hawk grinned and put on his sunglasses. “I’ve really gotta run, Mama. I’ll be home in time for dinner.”

“Be safe,” Kate said, painfully aware that those were the words she had withheld from Micah before he and Riley Jo vanished.

Chapter 3

Abby left Flutter’s Café and went down one flight of stairs to the outdoor cedar deck that ran along the entire length of Angel View Lodge. Guests sat at round tables, shaded by colorful green-and-white striped umbrellas, enjoying a postcard view of Beaver Lake and the rolling Ozark Mountains. The fog had burned off, and the lake sparkled in the noonday sun like a million blue sapphires. She only wished her spirits matched the brilliance of the day.

She descended another flight of stairs to the ground level, not surprised to see her friend Jay Rogers waiting for her, his smile warmer than the cedar railing, her gray-and-white cat perched on his shoulder.

“I see Halo thumbed a ride again,” Abby said, running her hand across the ring of white fur on the cat’s head.

“I never mind giving her a lift,” Jay said. “So are you done for the day?”

“No. I’m working the dinner shift. It’s catfish night, and the place will be hopping. But I’m off until five.”

“I’m not scheduled in at Tutty’s till four.” Jay stroked Halo’s tail. “You wanna take the paddleboat out? I know this is a hard day for you. We don’t have to talk about it or anything.”

“Thanks. I’d love to get my mind on something else.” Abby held out her pale arms. “And I’d like to get a tan before the weather turns hot. I need to change clothes and grab something to eat first.”

“Why don’t I go get sub sandwiches and meet you at the dock?” Jay set the cat down. “You want your usual turkey, lettuce-and-tomato, black olives, and jalapenos on whole wheat?”

Abby smiled. “Don’t forget the chocolate chip cookies.”

“Or the Sun Chips?” Jay laughed, and Abby felt her burden lighten. Being with her best friend would help her get through the rest of the day.

Jay looked at his watch. “See you on the pier in about fifteen minutes?”

“I’ll be there.” Abby walked toward the log house and glanced over her shoulder. “Remember to have them put hot mustard on my half.”

“Yes, ma’am. I’ll make sure it’s exactly as you ordered. I’ll even get you the Coke you forgot to mention.”

Abby grinned and kept walking.

Abby followed half a dozen guests down the earthen path that led to Angel View Pier, a habit she had adopted five years earlier when her mother insisted there was safety in numbers, and it was unnecessary to walk it alone when there were dozens of guests coming and going all the time. Though her mother never said so, Abby knew she was afraid that whatever had happened to Daddy and Riley Jo could happen to any of them.

She spotted Jay standing on the pier and waved. She politely squeezed past the guests, skipped down the stone steps at the end of the path, and hurried over to him.

Jay held up a sack with the Sammie’s Subs logo on the front. “I’ve got lunch. The paddleboat’s ready.”

Abby climbed in, and Jay settled into the seat next to hers. They pedaled in reverse until they were away from the dock, and then turned toward Egret Island and pedaled at a relaxed pace.

Jay’s sandy hair blew gently in the breeze, his shadowy beard just visible enough to make him seem older than seventeen. “The lake’s tame today.”

“That can change on a dime.”

Jay looked up at the bluebird sky, a silly grin stretching his cheeks. “Oh, I’m sure there could be a thunderhead out there
somewhere
between here and Jamaica. Why are you always looking for trouble?”

“Just habit,” Abby said. “I was raised to be cautious.”

“Yeah,” he said knowingly. “Well, there’s no cause for worry out here. It’s just us, the birds, and the breeze, and the good Lord smiling down on us.”

Abby breathed in deeply and let it out. “Did you happen to catch the sunrise this morning?”

“I wasn’t up that early.”

“I got so caught up in it that I ran smack dab into that swinging door to the kitchen just as my mother was coming out. Made a huge mess. Not exactly a great beginning to an already-hard-enough day.”

“For both of you.”

“Mama keeps her feelings in check better than I do.” Abby shifted her gaze to the dragonfly that landed on the steering wheel. “Speaking of mothers, did yours ever decide when she’s getting married?”

“Soon. She and Number Four are flying to Vegas on Monday. Guess I’ll have to get used to the idea of her being Mrs. Richie Stump.” Jay shook his head. “I’m just glad I don’t have to change names every time she does.”

“I can’t believe this is the fourth time you’ve been through it. Has to be hard.”

“What’s hard is not having a close relationship with my real dad. We don’t have much in common.”

“You’re his son. How much more ‘in common’ can you get?”

Jay looked out toward the island, his gaze intense. “I don’t think he knows what to do with me. He’s remarried and has three other sons that are more like him, into macho stuff. I feel like the odd man out.”

“Do you get along with your stepbrothers?”

“I guess. I spend holidays with my dad’s family, but I don’t really belong. And Mom’s life is a revolving door. About the time I get attached to a new stepdad, he leaves. And when I spend time with my real dad, I get the feeling he’s just doing his duty.”

“Dads are important,” Abby said.

“I guess we both have a big void there.”

This was too heavy a subject. Especially today.

Abby pulled the sandwiches out of the bag and handed Jay his half. She unwrapped hers partway, said a silent prayer of thanksgiving, and took a bite. “I’m glad you thought of this.”

Jay tilted back his head and closed his eyes as if relishing the feel of the sun and breeze on his face. “There’s no one else I’d rather be with. You’re not like most girls.”

“Is that supposed to be a compliment?”

“Yeah. I’m completely at ease with you. I don’t have to be a jock. Or good-looking. Or say the right thing. Or impress your girlfriends. There’s no real agenda, other than enjoying your company. Plus you’re a good listener. I can just be myself when I’m with you.”