“I’m assuming she didn’t take the news well?”
“She cried and then she completely shut down. When I left her in her classroom, she didn’t say goodbye.”
Brooke closed the lid on the container of fudge she was unpacking and stood beside Megan. “It will be okay. Nora was upset but, by tonight, she’ll be back to her normal self.”
“I hope so. She doesn’t normally act like that.”
“Maybe you could do something together after school? The recreation center has a great climbing wall.”
The thought of dangling from a harness thirty feet in the air gave Megan goosebumps. “I don’t like heights. Nora would have to rescue me.”
“It would be exciting.”
Despite feeling miserable, Megan smiled. “It would give Nora something to tell the rest of her class tomorrow.”
“Exactly. She could even draw some pictures of what happened. She’d love it.”
Megan’s cell phone rang. She wiped her hands on her apron and frowned at the caller display. “It’s Nora’s school.”
Brooke looked just as worried.
“Hi. It’s Megan Stevenson speaking. How can I help you?”
“Megan, it’s Harry O’Donnell from Sapphire Bay Elementary School. Nora wasn’t in her classroom when the bell rang. We know you brought her to school, but did you take her home?”
Her gaze shot to Brooke. “I left her in Mrs. Polanski’s class at half past eight. Are you sure she didn’t go to the library or somewhere else?”
“We’ve looked everywhere. If she left the school grounds, she could get into difficulties. Does Nora have her own cell phone?”
“No. I didn’t think she needed one.”
“That’s okay. I’ll call the police and ask them to look for her.”
With her heart pounding, Megan ran to the coat stand. “I’ll drive to the school, then go home the way we usually travel.”
“That’s a good idea. Keep your cell phone with you. I’ll give the police your number so they can contact you directly.”
“Thanks. I’ll let you know if I find her.” She ended the call and pulled on her jacket.
Brooke handed Megan her car keys. “I’ll ask Kathleen to look after the store while I help look for Nora. Where do you want me to go?”
Megan thought about the places they’d visited in Sapphire Bay. “You could try the library and the general store. I don’t know where else she would have gone.”
Brooke slid her arms into her jacket. “Nora’s probably hiding somewhere in the school building.”
“I hope you’re right. If you find her let me know.”
“I will. I’ll talk to you soon.”
Megan ran out of the store. It wasn’t just cold, it was freezing. Nora’s jacket was insulated, but it wouldn’t keep out the bone-numbing cold for long. And then there was the scenario that she didn’t even want to consider.
If someone had abducted Nora, she might be lost forever.
Taking a deep breath, Megan unlocked her car. This was Sapphire Bay. It was a safe community. If someone found Nora walking along the street, they would take her to the police station or back to school.
There must be somewhere else she’d gone.
William.
Megan grabbed her cell phone. While she was working, William had taken Nora to visit other places around Sapphire Bay.
With trembling hands, she found his number and called him. If anyone could think of out-of-the-way places Nora might have gone, William could.
William walked out of a meeting with his boss and looked around the office. Two other special agents were working at their desks. For a Tuesday, it was quieter than usual, which was more than okay with him.
With only a couple of days left until he flew to Chicago, there was a lot of work he needed to finish. So far, he’d managed to debrief another agent about half his cases, but he still had a long way to go.
Spending so long in Sapphire Bay had almost been a blessing. It had reduced the number of additional cases he was working on and would make leaving his job a lot easier. It had also left him wondering what he was doing with his life.
He missed Megan and Nora so much that it felt as though he’d left a piece of his heart in Sapphire Bay. He hadn’t spoken to either of them since Caleb’s engagement party and, if he’d used his brain, he would have broken the news about his new job to Megan a little differently.
“I take it you haven’t had breakfast?” Bill Adams, another special agent, asked him.
“How did you guess?”
Bill smiled. “You get a hungry dog look on your face. I’m about to head out, myself. Do you want to join me?”
William stood in front of his desk. The folders stacked in neat piles wouldn’t go away unless he worked on them. “I can’t. But if you’re going to Angel Wings Café, you can get me a chicken burger.”
“Do you want fries?”
He thought about all the takeout he’d been eating. For someone who usually lived on healthy food, his diet was looking decidedly grim. “No, thanks. The burger will be enough.” He pulled twenty dollars out of his wallet and handed it to Bill. “Did you manage to track down the father of the missing teenager?”
Bill shook his head. “No one knows where he’s gone. It could be a long search. I’ll be back soon.”
William sat at his desk. If he were lucky, by the time Bill got back, at least one folder would be ready for filing.
With the clock ticking, he took the top folder off the pile, then remembered to turn on his cell phone. As usual, there were too many messages waiting for him. He scrolled through the list of recent calls and frowned. The last four were from Megan.
He opened his voice mail. Something must have happened.
Hearing the panic in her voice made his heart pound.
Nora was missing. He checked the time. Forty minutes had gone by since Megan had left the last message. He called her cell phone, hoping she answered straight away.
“Hi, William. It’s Megan. We still haven’t found her.”
“Have the police been called?”
“The school called them as soon as they realized she was missing. The radio stations, TV channels, and community Facebook pages are all showing Nora’s photo. But no one has seen her.”
Megan’s voice shook so badly that he almost didn’t understand what she was saying. “Take a deep breath. Sapphire Bay isn’t Milwaukee. There are good people there. Everyone will be doing their best to find her.”
“I don’t know what to do next. I’ve been driving around Sapphire Bay looking for her.”
“Is someone at your house in case she goes home?”
“A neighbor is there. Brooke checked the library and the general store. Is there anywhere else you’ve taken her that she might have gone?”
William closed his eyes and focused on helping Megan. Thinking about all the things that could have happened to Nora was tearing him apart.
“We went to the pet store on Main Street. There’s a llama farm a few miles out of town, but it’s too far for her to have traveled on foot. Has someone searched the school grounds?”
“The police have been to the school. Can you wait a minute? Someone’s trying to call me.”
“I’ll be right here.” While William waited for Megan, he logged into his computer and searched for flights going to Polson. He could hire a car from there and be in Sapphire Bay in a few hours. If that didn’t work, he would drive.
“Are you there?” Megan’s voice was even more fragile than before.
“I’m here.”
“That was the police. They want me to go home and wait there.”
William was thankful they hadn’t asked her to go to the police station. “Ask your neighbor to stay with you. I’ll call you in a few minutes once I’ve organized how I’m traveling to Sapphire Bay.”
“You don’t need to come here. The police said—”
“I don’t care what they said. I’m coming. Call the
police officer you’ve been speaking to and tell them about the other places Nora could have gone. If I think of anything else, I’ll let you know.” He took a deep, steadying breath. “I know it’s hard, but try to remain positive. Nora will be somewhere in Sapphire Bay. We’ll find her.”
“She’s been gone for nearly two hours.”
“It will be all right,” William repeated. “The police will call you as soon as they know anything.”
“Okay. I’ll go home and wait there.”
“Try not to worry. I’ll be in touch soon.” He ended the call and kept searching for flights.
He checked his watch, bought a ticket and, two minutes later, was rushing out of the office. He needed to get to the airport. If he missed the next flight, he’d be driving for three and a half hours.
And by that time, if Nora was still missing, she could be dead.
Megan had only been home for a few minutes when the doorbell rang. She rushed into the entranceway and threw open the door. Her heart sank when she saw Brooke.
“I’m sorry if you thought I was Nora. Do you need some company?”
All Megan could do was nod.
Brooke wrapped her arms around Megan’s shoulders. “Everyone’s doing what they can to find her.”
“What if it’s too late?”
“It’s never too late. Come into the kitchen and I’ll make you a hot drink. You’re as cold as a block of ice.” Brooke held onto Megan’s arm as they walked through the house. “I thought one of your neighbors was staying with you?”
“I told Judy to go home. She has two children of her own to look after.”
Brooke pulled out a chair from the kitchen table. “Sit here. Would you like coffee or hot chocolate?”
Megan dropped her head into her hands and started to cry.
“It’s okay.” Brooke sat beside Megan and gave her another hug. “Have you eaten anything since breakfast?”
Megan blew her nose. “I’m not hungry.”
“It doesn’t matter. You need to keep up your energy. I’ll make you a hot chocolate and find something for you to eat.”
Watching Brooke move around the kitchen was like being in a parallel universe. Everything was slightly fuzzy around the edges and didn’t make sense. All Megan could think about was Nora and how cold it was outside.
When Brooke placed a drink and a plate of cookies in front of her, she stared at them. Piece by piece her heart was breaking and there was nothing she could do about it.
Brooke squeezed Megan’s hands before wrapping them around the mug. “Drink this. It will make you feel better.”
Like a robot, Megan lifted the mug to her mouth and slowly sipped the sweet liquid.
“That’s it. Did you manage to speak to William?”
“He’s on his way here. The police are checking the two places he suggested.”
“That’s good.”
Megan’s cell phone rang. Hot chocolate sloshed everywhere as she dropped her mug to the table.
With a hand that was far from steady, she answered the call.
“Hi, Megan. It’s Detective O’Halloran. We’ve found Nora.”
Her heart slammed against her chest. “Is she all right?”
“She’s alive but has hypothermia. Can you meet me at the Sapphire Bay Medical Clinic?”
“I’ll be there as fast as I can.” Megan ended the call and ran toward the mud room. “The police have found Nora. I need to go to the medical clinic.”
Brooke stood beside the kitchen door. “We’ll take my truck. Let’s go.”
Megan pulled on her jacket and slid her cell phone into her pocket. Nora was alive and that was all that mattered.
Chapter 18
Megan and Brooke rushed into the medical clinic.
Detective O’Halloran was waiting for them in the reception area. “Nora is in a room at the end of the corridor. I’ll take you there.”
They followed him into a large open-plan area where four staff were working. Nora was sitting in a bed in the middle of the room.
Megan ran across to her niece. Nora’s face was pale and her hands shook as she drank from a cup.
As soon she saw Megan, tears filled her eyes. “I’m sorry. I wanted to see William, but I took the wrong bus.”
Megan had no idea what she was talking about. But there would be plenty of time later to find out why she was looking for William. She stroked Nora’s blond hair and kissed the side of her face. “I was worried about you. We all were. How are you feeling?”
“I was really cold, but the bus driver gave me a blanket and made me feel better.”
A doctor stood beside Nora. “I’m Steve Jacobson, Nora’s doctor for today. You must be Megan.”
She nodded and tried not to cry.
“Nora will be okay. She has mild hypothermia, but no other injuries. When she arrived at the hospital, we wrapped her in heated blankets and have been giving her warm drinks. She should be okay to go home in three or four hours.”
Megan wiped her eyes. “Thank you.”
“It could have been a lot worse. Nora wanted to go to the airport, but she ended up on one of the city loop buses. She was asleep on the bus for an hour before the driver realized she was there. If she’d tried to walk to the airport, we would be looking at a completely different outcome.”
Megan’s eyes widened. “How did you get on the bus without a ticket?” she asked Nora.
“I waited at the bus stop with a big group of people. When they got on the bus I did, too.”
The doctor adjusted the blankets around Nora’s shoulders. “Nora must have walked for at least half an hour before she boarded the bus. Given the weather conditions, her jacket, hat, and mittens probably saved her life.”
“Aunty Megan bought my jacket off the computer,” Nora told the doctor. “They had lots of colors, but I wanted the pink one.”
The doctor smiled at Nora. “I’m glad you were wearing it outside. It kept you nice and warm.”
Nora’s mouth trembled. “I was cold when I got on the bus. I fell asleep and didn’t go to the airport.”
Megan wrapped her arms around Nora. “We’ll go to the airport another time. William is on his way here.”
Nora stilled. “Is he angry the policeman had to bring me to the hospital?”
“I haven’t told him yet, but he won’t be angry. He’ll be happy you’re safe and warm.”
“Is he going to stay with us?”
“He’ll stay for a little bit, but he needs to go back to work.”
Nora dropped her chin to her chest. “I’ll tell William I’m sorry.”
“That would be a good idea.” Megan turned to the doctor. “Can I use my cell phone in this room?”
“Sure. I need to check on other patients but, if you need me, talk to one of the nurses. They’ll move Nora into a different room soon.”
“Thank you for everything you’ve done.”
“You’re welcome. If I don’t see you beforehand, I’ll be back in three hours. If Nora’s body temperature is where we need it to be, we’ll discharge her, and she can go home.”
Megan held Nora’s hand. That was the best news she’d had all day.
When William arrived at the medical clinic, a nurse took him to see Nora. It had taken two hours to travel to Sapphire Bay. At some stage on the flight from Bozeman, the weather had taken a turn for the worse. By the time the plane landed, a storm was closing roads and creating havoc everywhere.
If Nora had been out in this weather, there was no way she would be sitting in a hospital bed now. And for that, he was profoundly grateful.
The nurse smiled and pointed to a room on their right. “She’s through here. First bed on the left.”
He thanked her and stepped into the room.
Megan had her back to him, but Nora saw him.
Her eyes widened, but she didn’t give her usual squeal of delight. “I’m sorry.” Her softly spoken words echoed around the room.
Megan turned aroun
d.
The worry of the last few hours was etched into her face. “Hi, William. Thanks for coming.”
“I couldn’t have stayed in Bozeman.” He pulled a pink, fluffy toy rabbit out of a bag and gave it to Nora. “I’m glad you’re okay. I thought you might want to cuddle this rabbit. She’s not as fast as the rabbits we saw at Zac’s house but she’s cute.”
Nora clutched the toy to her chest. “Thank you.”
Megan stood and looked around the room. “I’ll get you another chair.”
“I don’t mind standing. I’ve been sitting for most of the day.”
“I’m surprised you could get here. The weather is really bad. One of the nurses said the road between Sapphire Bay and Polson is closed.”
William wanted to do so much more than talk about the weather. He’d started to think about Megan and Nora as his family. He wanted to protect them, keep them safe, and love them.
“I must have gotten through at the right time. How are you feeling Nora?”
“I feel good now, but I had to use the bathroom a lot.”
He looked at Megan, not quite sure how that fitted with Nora’s hypothermia.
A small smile pulled at the corners of Megan’s mouth. “Nora drank lots of hot chocolate after she arrived at the hospital. The nurses were trying to warm her from the inside out. That’s why she needed to use the bathroom.”
“I had warm blankets as well,” Nora added. “But I’m okay now.”
“You are indeed,” a voice said behind them.
William turned and looked at the doctor who stood at the foot of the bed.
He shook William’s hand. “I’m Nora’s doctor. You must be the man Nora told me about.”
“William is a special agent,” Nora said. “He works in a big city called Chicago.”
William didn’t have the heart to tell her he wasn’t going to Chicago until Friday.
“That explains why you wanted to go to Chicago. Next time, ask Megan or William first. It’s too dangerous to go there on your own.”
The smile on Nora’s face disappeared. “I’m not going anywhere on my own again. It was scary.”
A Christmas Wish Page 19