Silence in the Dark

by Patricia Bradley

  “I think they will.” As for why . . . he wasn’t ready to share that information.

  Home. With Maria’s hand in her own, Bailey climbed the porch steps with Solana trailing behind. Earlier today she hadn’t been sure she’d ever see it again. But home had its own problems. Especially now, with Danny determined to stick to her like glue. Surely she could talk him out of hanging around.

  The door flew open, and her mother wrapped her in an embrace. “Welcome home, baby.” Tears glistened in her eyes as she held her at arm’s length. “Don’t they feed you anything in Mexico? You’re skinnier than Robyn.”

  Bailey laughed. From the reports she’d heard about her little sister, that wasn’t possible. She turned and hugged her dad waiting in the background, then put her hands on the child’s shoulders. “This is Maria. And this is Solana,” she said, nodding toward her friend.

  Her mom knelt. She cupped the child’s face in her hands, and again Bailey noticed tears threatening. “Bailey has told me so much about you. Do you speak English? I know this much Spanish”—she held her thumb and forefinger close together—“un poco.”

  Maria giggled.

  Kate rose and took Solana’s hands. “La . . . bienvenida a . . . mi casa. Bailey and Charlie”—she nodded toward her husband—“they taught me that much, but I’m afraid I don’t practice. I hope I said it right.”

  Her mom’s eyes became even wetter. What was with the tears? Kate Adams was not a crier, but in spite of her concern, Bailey grinned at the Southern-accented Spanish. She wasn’t sure Solana understood that her mom was welcoming her into her home until the young woman’s face lit up and a smile graced her lips.

  “Gracias. I do speak some English and understand more, so do not strain yourself.”

  “Si necesita un intérprete, puedo ayudar.” Her dad’s eyes crinkled as he smiled, waiting.

  “Ah . . . your Spanish . . . it’s mucho mejor—I mean, much better than Bailey’s,” Solana said with a laugh. “But I don’t think I need an interpreter.”

  “I should be more fluent,” Charlie said. “Most of the men I sailed with were Spanish speaking. It was learn it or talk only to myself.”

  “He was a merchant seaman,” Kate said.

  A familiar voice spoke behind Bailey. “Well, don’t I get a hug?”

  Robyn? Bailey whirled around and squealed. “Oh, I didn’t think I’d see you before morning! I thought you’d be home with Abby.”

  “I was so worried, I couldn’t wait.”

  Bailey looked from Robyn to her mother. They knew?

  “Ben told us what happened,” her mom said and picked up Maria.

  So that was the reason for the tears.

  Maria’s stomach growled.

  “Are you hungry?” Kate asked. “I have potato soup and can make you a grilled cheese sandwich.”

  Maria glanced toward Bailey, and her expression almost seemed to be asking permission.

  “You can answer.”

  “Uncle Joel said I shouldn’t ask for food when we go visit.”

  “But you didn’t ask,” Bailey said.

  “My stomach did.”

  The front door opened, and Angel and Danny entered, bringing cold air with them.

  “You’re just in time for some of Mom’s famous potato soup,” she said after introducing Angel all around. From the looks on the men’s faces, the vending machine snacks were long gone. Bailey followed the others to the kitchen, her mind replaying Maria’s words. Sometimes she seemed afraid of Joel. Bailey shook the thought off. They were all tired. It was probably something as simple as Joel’s authoritarian parenting style, which was understandable considering he’d never been married. She certainly admired him for taking care of his sister’s child. He just needed to loosen up a bit.

  Her mom ladled soup into bowls and handed Angel and Solana each a bowl. “There’s plenty of room at the table.” Then she turned to Danny. “It’s good to see you around here. I’ve missed you,” she said.

  “Not nearly as much as I’ve missed being here.” He directed his gaze to Bailey.

  Heat rose up her neck as she took her soup and sat beside Robyn. Her mom had always liked Danny, even after they broke up.

  With a start, she realized Robyn had asked her something. “What?”

  “Did you know Livy resigned from the Memphis Police Department?”

  Her cousin wasn’t a cop anymore? “No. What’s she doing?”

  “You won’t believe it—private investigator. With Alex, this really hunky guy. He’s the one who helped her find me, and now she’s gone to Texas to meet his folks.”

  Bailey realized her mouth had dropped open, and she snapped it shut. Livy must really be serious about this Alex. Her cousin had been her ally after Bailey broke off the engagement with Danny. “We’ll be two old maids with fifty cats,” Livy had said. A sigh settled in her heart. Now it looked like one old maid. She fingered the locket Joel had given her this morning.

  “That’s a beautiful necklace,” Robyn said.

  Her face flushed. “Maria’s uncle gave it to me this morning.” She nodded toward Maria. “She has one just like it, only with her initial on it.” Bailey dropped her hand. “I’m glad for her.”

  “Glad for who?” Danny said as he sat across the table from her.

  “Our cousin Livy.”

  “Oh yeah. I met Alex, and he’s okay.” He grinned at her. “Let’s see . . . Taylor, Robyn, there’s even Ben, and now Livy. Looks like that’ll just leave you the only one not married.”

  “There are worse things than not being married,” she said, making a face at him.

  “Name one.”

  “Being married to the wrong person.”

  When the color drained from his face, she wished she could snatch the words back. Instead they hung in the room like a bad odor.

  “At least you didn’t make that mistake.”

  She didn’t know what to say. Denying it might give him false hope, but neither did she want to hurt his feelings. “I didn’t mean it that way.”

  “Yeah, you did. But that’s okay—it’s completely understandable that you might view being married to me as a bad thing.”

  “What I said about being married to the wrong person had nothing to do with you.”

  He lifted the locket and examined it, his nearness sending a shiver down her spine. “Joel has good taste.”

  With the mood Danny was in, it would do no good to tell him there was nothing going on with Joel.

  Then his blue eyes swept over her. “Just don’t forget, like it or not, you’re stuck with me for as long as it takes to know you’ll be safe.”

  She yanked her gaze away, searching for Maria, and found her snuggled in her mom’s lap, completely engrossed in the song Kate quietly sang to her. “You don’t have to hang around. It’s not that I’m not thankful you were there in Chihuahua today. I am, but I believe we are completely safe in Logan Point. Besides, Angel is here.”

  “Sorry, but you’re stuck with me. When I thought those men had taken you . . .” He shook his head. “I want to be here if anyone tries something like that again.”

  Danny’s sincerity touched her heart. And that was something she had to guard against.

  11

  Weariness seeped into Bailey’s bones, and between the warm kitchen and a full stomach, she could barely keep her eyes open. A glance around the room confirmed she wasn’t the only one ready for bed. Maria had fallen asleep in her mother’s lap, and Solana’s sagging shoulders reflected her own weariness. “Why don’t we all go to bed?” She looked at her mother. “Where are you putting everyone?”

  “You and Maria are in your old room, and Solana is in Robyn’s room.” Her mom glanced at Danny. “Are you staying?”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  Bailey sighed. From Danny’s tone, she knew there would be no dissuading him.

  “Then you and Angel decide who gets the third bedroom and who gets the study with the daybed, although there are be
drooms downstairs.”

  Danny shrugged. “Other than remaining upstairs, it makes no difference to me.”

  “Or me,” Angel said. “You take the bedroom. If I can’t sleep on the daybed, tomorrow night we’ll switch.”

  Tomorrow night? Reality sank into Bailey’s mind. This nightmare would not be over in the morning. Maybe not for weeks. And what if those men had recaptured Joel? What if he was dead? What would become of Maria? She didn’t care what Danny said, tomorrow she had to try to contact Joel. And Maria’s grandparents. Oh, wait . . . Ben said he would call Joel. There was still so much to do. What would it hurt to let Danny be here in case she needed him? She sighed.

  “What’s the matter?” Danny asked.

  Concern deepened his blue eyes. She’d put him through a lot today. “I bet you didn’t expect to sign on as my bodyguard when you got up this morning.”

  A slow grin spread across his face. “I didn’t even expect to see you. But I’ll take whatever I can get, even if I have to run for my life. But what were you sighing about?”

  “I’m not sure where I should start in the morning.” She shivered as he brushed a strand of hair from her cheek. How easy it would be to just let him take care of her and her problems. She threw the idea off and straightened her shoulders. She wasn’t some fragile china doll that needed to be encased in a glass box. And that’s what Danny would do if she didn’t watch it.

  He tilted his head. “Why don’t you let it rest tonight? After breakfast we’ll talk about it.”

  “Sounds like a plan.” Problem was, she doubted Danny or Angel would like what she planned to do. She reached for Maria, but Angel picked her up first.

  “I’ll take her. You show me where you’ll be sleeping.”

  Robyn stood and spoke to Solana. “Come on, and I’ll show you to your room. I think I can find a pair of Bailey’s pajamas for you to sleep in.” She turned to Bailey. “And then I’ll go up into the attic and see if I can find a pair of Abby’s pjs from when she was Maria’s age.”

  A little later Bailey helped Maria up into her high bed. She tucked the quilt under the child’s chin. Abby’s pajamas were a little big, but they would do until they could go shopping. Another item to add to tomorrow’s list.

  Maria snuggled under the quilt. “Miss Bailey, would you tell me a story, like you do at school?”

  Bailey sat on the side of the bed and smoothed the child’s dark hair away from her face. She searched her memory for a story. “How about Snow White?”

  The child’s eyes brightened. “Oh, good! I like the prince in it and the dwarfs, especially Bashful.”

  The door opened, and Robyn slipped into the room. “Solana is all settled, and Mom sent me up to get your clothes. She’s going to put them in the wash so you both will have something to wear in the morning.”

  She glanced down at the clothes she’d put on this morning. “Maria’s are in the bathroom, but mine can wait. I’ll wear something I left in the closet, but you’re not leaving right away, are you?”

  “I’ll be here a little longer, but right now I’m going to take the clothes downstairs.”

  “Wait until I tell Maria a story, and I’ll go down with you.”

  “Sure. I haven’t heard one of your bedtime stories since Abby was her age.”

  Bailey turned her attention to Maria. “Once upon a time . . .” She softened her voice and quietly began the story, hoping to quickly lull Maria to sleep. When she came to the part about the wicked queen giving Snow White the poisoned apple, Maria interrupted her.

  “That’s not nice. It will make her sick, like Mommy.”

  In all the times Bailey had told the children in her classroom the story of Snow White, Maria had never once mentioned her mother. “Why do you think that?”

  “Because everyone brought Mommy food, and she got sick and went to heaven. Tio and Uncle Joel brought her candy too.”

  “Oh, honey, that wasn’t the same thing. They just wanted to make her feel better.”

  Maria’s eyes held her gaze until finally she sighed. “Okay. Do you think Mommy and Daddy are in heaven together?”

  Bailey faltered. Maria was full of surprises tonight. “I’m sure they are.” She hesitated. “Do you remember your daddy?”

  Maria grew quieter. Her fingers rubbed the edge of the quilt. Finally she shook her head. “But sometimes when I’m asleep, I hear him say, “Te amo, niña.”

  I love you, baby girl. Bailey took in a shaky breath. “I’m sure he loved you very much.”

  “That’s what Cook says.” Maria smiled. “Finish telling me about Snow White.”

  When she saw Joel again, Bailey would ask him about Maria’s dad. If she saw him again. She tucked the sheet under the girl’s chin. “Okay where were we?”

  “The wicked queen was giving her the apples.”

  A text beeped on Robyn’s phone. “That’s Mom wanting the clothes. I’ll see you in a little bit,” Robyn said and left for the bathroom.

  As Bailey returned to the story, Maria settled deeper in the bed and touched her neck. Her eyes popped open. “My necklace. It’s gone!”

  Bailey lifted the blanket and sheet and shook them. No necklace. “Maybe it’s in your jumper.” She hurried to catch her sister. “Maria’s lost her necklace.”

  Robyn paused at the top of the stairs. “Maybe it got caught in her top.” She shook first the pullover, then the jumper Maria had worn over the shirt. The necklace tumbled onto the floor.

  “Thank goodness!” Bailey stooped to pick it up. “Looks like the clasp is broken. She’ll be so disappointed.”

  “Mr. Stevens at Logan Point Jewelers can mend it,” Robyn said. “I can take it in for you tomorrow and drop it off when I take Abby to school.”

  “That would be great. I might not have time. I’m going to talk to Danny and Angel again about contacting Maria’s grandparents in the morning. I’d like to go see them.”

  “Do you plan to take her with you?”

  She hadn’t thought about what she’d do with Maria. Certainly not take her, not until she knew exactly what was going on with the grandparents. “Maybe I can get Danny to stay here.”

  Robyn eyed her with amusement. “Yeah, right. Why don’t you let her stay with Mom? I’ll come over and help. How about Angel and Solana—are they going with you?”

  “I don’t know.” She hadn’t even thought about them and what they would do, but now that she had, she knew Angel wouldn’t leave Maria. What if he was the one trying to kidnap her? No, because if that were the case, he wouldn’t have helped them get out of Mexico.

  Her mind went round and round with possible answers, none of them satisfying. The one thing she knew—Angel would not let anything happen to Maria while she was gone. And given the way he seemed to feel about the child, she didn’t believe he would do anything like whisking her away. Maria had been traumatized enough in the past twenty-four hours.

  “If you can come over, it would be great. I probably won’t be gone over a couple of hours.” She hesitated. “We haven’t talked about what happened, but I’m so glad you’re home safe.”

  Robyn hugged her. “Me too.”

  “How did you do it? I mean, mentally. I’ve read the papers, so I know the physical things that happened, but what kept you going?”

  “God, plain and simple. But you know all about that. You’re the missionary.”

  “Yeah, you’re right.” What would Robyn say if she told her she didn’t know all about it? That she’d lost her grasp of who God was. If she’d ever had it. “You have so much peace. Let’s find time to talk soon.”

  Robyn tilted her head. “Anything going on I should know about? Danny, maybe?”

  Her mixed feelings about Danny surfaced. Robyn had always liked him, so Bailey didn’t know if she was the right person to talk to. “Nothing that can’t wait.”

  Later after Robyn left and Maria had fallen asleep, Bailey stood by the window, searching the skies. When she was a child, the stars had s
hone like diamonds from her window, but now only one or two managed to peek through the bright security lights. The urge to recapture that time before days like today propelled her to the closet for a coat and the fur-lined boots she’d left behind. She checked Maria, and, satisfied that she was sleeping soundly, Bailey eased her door open and tiptoed down the hallway to the stairs.

  She skipped the squeaky second step and soon sat on a stump beyond the lights, on the other side of the barn. Facing north, she scanned the velvet sky for the Little Dipper, then followed the handle to the North Star. Polaris, her dad always called it. The one star that did not rise or set and that could be seen even with a full moon like tonight. After she found it, tension eased from her body. Even though everything else in her world had crashed and burned, Polaris remained.

  The mask slipped from her heart, and at this moment, Polaris seemed more real than God. How many times had the sight before her filled her heart with the nearness of him? Under these very stars, she’d preached God’s love to Danny. Her cheeks burned in spite of the cold air. What a fraud she was. At the first sign of trouble, her faith had deserted her like a rat fleeing a raging fire.

  Today hadn’t been the first trouble. No, today was just meringue on the pie. Doubt had started the first day in Copper Canyon when the self-proclaimed priest Father Horatio took one look at the new missionary and decided she was trouble. Later, he pointed out the starburst pattern in Bailey’s eyes and had declared her a witch. Then when she encouraged the village women to question his authority, his campaign to get rid of her began in earnest and culminated on the day of her most successful tea party . . .

  It had been a beautiful day, so she’d moved the tea party from inside the church to under the trees. The air had been filled with laughing women excited about the purses sent by the church she’d partnered with back in Mississippi.

  “I don’t know which is the bigger hit—the purses or the New Testament,” she said to Elena.

  “I think the little white Bible is,” her friend replied. “But do you see Father Horatio? He’s standing across the road.”

  Bailey looked up and gasped as he stepped out of the shadows of the abandoned building across from them. The look of anger and hatred he shot at her sent chills down her back. Abruptly, he turned and disappeared around the corner of the building.