Night Light

by Terri Blackstock

  Aaron just kept his eyes fixed on the road ahead of him.

  Doug glanced at Aaron. “Aaron, why do you think God’s mad at you?”

  The boy didn’t look at him. “I don’t think, I know. He’s punishing me.”

  “But why? Is it the stealing?”

  He rode for a moment without answering. Finally, he said, “Yeah, the stealing. And other stuff.”

  Doug wished he could see Aaron’s face better. “What other stuff?”

  “It doesn’t matter,” he said. “I can’t undo what’s done.”

  “No, you can’t. But you can be forgiven, Aaron. The Bible says that if you confess your sins, Jesus is faithful and just to forgive us for our sins.”

  “That doesn’t work.”

  Doug caught his breath. “Of course it does. Why would you think it doesn’t?”

  “Because I did that, and he’s still punishing me. Some things are too big …” His voice trailed off.

  “Too big … for what, Aaron? Too big for him to forgive?”

  Aaron shrugged.

  “Aaron, you know God has provided for you and your family through some pretty rough stuff. He led you to our house, so we would learn about your situation and take you in. Don’t you believe that?”

  The boy’s face was intent on getting there. “I guess. Maybe.”

  “That means he loves you. He’s watching out for you. He can forgive you for whatever you’ve done, Aaron.”

  Aaron snapped his chin up. “Oh yeah? Then how come Sarah got kidnapped, huh? How come God would do this if he doesn’t hate me?”

  “Aaron, there are things going on that we can’t see. But I can guarantee you that God is greater than any evil, and he’s in control. And he doesn’t hate you. He loves you. And he loves Sarah too.”

  “Well, if this is what his love looks like, then I hate him, okay? I hate him for doing this to Sarah. If there’s a God and he didn’t stop this, then I hate him!”

  Doug was quiet. He knew that nothing he could say could change the boy’s mind. Instead, he prayed silently for God to make himself known to Aaron, and for Aaron to see that God answered these prayers, so he could understand how much he was loved.

  But even as he prayed, Doug knew that God sometimes had plans that humans couldn’t fathom. God, you can stop this if you will. Please, Lord, deliver her just like you delivered Deni. For your name’s sake, let Aaron see answered prayers.

  At Moe Jenkins’s apartment, they saw the headlights from the sheriff’s old vehicles illuminating the building. Residents stood outside in their pajamas and robes, watching the activity around his apartment. “See? The sheriff’s already here,” Doug said.

  They made their way to the sheriff’s van. Doug pushed through the crowd of deputies standing around him. “Scarbrough, have you found Sarah?”

  Scarbrough looked annoyed to see them. “Guys, what are you doing here? You were shot tonight, Doug. You should stay home.”

  “I had to look for my sister,” Aaron said. “Did you find her?”

  “No, not yet, son.”

  Aaron looked crestfallen. “Where’s Moe? What did he say?”

  “Moe’s not at home, and his neighbors haven’t seen him since the disbursement. We’re searching his room right now, but so far there’s no sign of Sarah.”

  Aaron got off the bike and let it fall to the ground with a crash. “I want to go in.”

  “No, Aaron,” Doug said. “You stay back now. This is police work.”

  “But you have to ask them who his friends are! Where he might have gone. Somebody knows something!”

  “We’re asking them all those questions, son,” Scarbrough said. “Come here. You and Doug can sit in my van and wait until we’re finished searching his room. We’ll let you know the minute we find anything.”

  Aaron started to cry again, his face twisted and his lips purpling in his grief. But he climbed into the van and watched through the window as the police did what they had to do.

  sixty-one

  DAYLIGHT FINALLY BROKE, BUT THE SHERIFF AND HIS DEPUTIES were no closer to finding Sarah. Doug’s wound pulsed pain through his trunk, and his head ached. Aaron’s eyes were red and swollen, and he looked like he needed to lie down and sleep for a while.

  But he still carried the weight of his little sister’s life on his shoulders.

  Doug had only felt this helpless one other time in his life. He mussed the boy’s hair.

  “What do you say we go home and get something to eat? Get some water to bring with us? Then we can set out again.”

  Aaron nodded. “Yeah. She might be thirsty when we find her.”

  The sheriff put their bikes in his van and drove them home, lecturing them all the way about leaving police work to the professionals. But Doug knew Aaron didn’t hear a word. When you loved someone who was in trouble, reason had little to do with it.

  They stayed home for half an hour, time enough to eat a slice of the homemade bread Kay had baked and fill up water jugs to take with them. Then they rode to the homes of every friend of Jessie’s that Aaron could think of. No one had seen Sarah. Most seemed alarmed at the news of her disappearance. A couple of them gave them leads on where Moe Jenkins might be, but those leads came up empty.

  Finally, Doug convinced Aaron to return home with him for a little while to see if the sheriff had come by with any information. Secretly, he hoped the boy would agree to rest for a while, because the pain was starting to get to Doug. He needed to lie down, take whatever analgesic Kay had in the medicine cabinet, and give his injury a chance to heal.

  Then he’d get up and look for Sarah some more. The innocent little girl was in grave danger, and Doug wouldn’t rest easy until he found her.

  sixty-two

  HOURS PASSED WITH NO WORD ON SARAH. DENI PACED THE house with her mother, too frazzled to do the usual chores that kept the family going. But they needed water, and since Jeff was needed to guard the house in case the kidnapper made another appearance, the job fell to her.

  Craig had gone back to bed a little while ago, and was sleeping as if he hadn’t slept in days. He seemed traumatized by the events of last night, as if he’d been the one to get shot. He’d slunk around brooding for hours afterward, not saying a word, and staying out of her family’s way.

  Deni rolled the containers of water home, fighting her disappointment at Craig’s reaction to the break-in. She would have expected him to be a man — to take the shotgun out of Jeff’s hand and head down to take care of things himself. Instead, he’d let the sixteen-year-old walk into the line of fire, and Craig had cowered in her room with the girls. Now, he couldn’t even step up and help with the chores.

  Would she feel safe with him if she married him? In her own home, she knew that her father would do anything it took to protect his family — risking his own life. The man she’d once thought was wimpy and weak had proven to be a man of toughness and courage. Even her little brother Jeff had grown into a good protector. He didn’t back away from a threat to their family, and he didn’t wait for anyone else to come forward and protect them.

  Was she being too hard on Craig? She had cowered behind that door too, and she hadn’t grabbed the gun out of Jeff’s hands and insisted on leading the way down the stairs. But she would have, if she’d had to.

  Even her own courage at setting out across the country seemed stronger than Craig’s. He’d waited for the safety of the train to come to her. Was that wisdom — or just lack of passion?

  Maybe she was being too hard on him. Maybe he was just prudent. He had a different way of reacting to crises. Not a worse way. Just different.

  But as she pulled the water back up her driveway, she had to admit her disappointment in her fiancé. He wasn’t adding up to be the man she’d thought he was.

  sixty-three

  THE KIDS HAD EATEN NOTHING BUT BREAD TODAY, BECAUSE Sarah’s disappearance had kept Kay so preoccupied. Doug and Aaron had been gone for hours, and Kay feared where their search mi
ght take them. Doug’s injury was still fresh, and last night he had lost a lot of blood. He wasn’t in any shape to hunch over his bicycle — he had two broken ribs and a wound that could break open.

  Then again, they had to find Sarah. Whatever it cost, they had to rescue the child.

  When the knock sounded on the front door, Kay rushed to open it, hoping it was the sheriff with good news. But a couple she’d never seen before stood there instead. The man had a shotgun hanging from a sling on his back and a suitcase in his hand.

  “Mrs. Branning?”

  Her hand went to her hair. She couldn’t even remember if she’d brushed it today. “Yes?”

  The man who looked about Doug’s age reached out to shake her hand. “I’m Allen Gatlin. And this is my wife, Marie.”

  It took a second for the last name to sink in, but then she caught her breath. “The grandparents?”

  “Yes. We came as soon as we got your letter.”

  What timing! She burst into tears. How could she tell them that Sarah was gone? Unable to speak, she let them into the hot house, hugging both of them.

  “I’m so sorry,” she choked out.

  “Sorry for what?” Marie pulled back, looking up at her with a mixture of compassion and concern. She was a small, attractive woman — not much older than Kay — with short brown hair and big, warm eyes. “Where are the children? Don’t you have them?”

  She wiped her face, trying to pull herself together. “Joey and Luke are out back.”

  The Gatlins didn’t wait another second. They shot to the back door and looked out into the yard. The children weren’t working today. Luke and Joey sat in the dirt at the back of the yard with Beth and Logan. Beth was talking, and they were all listening with rapt attention.

  “Luke and Joey are the ones on the — ”

  “I know which ones they are,” Allen cut in. He rushed out the door and into the yard. “Joey? Luke?”

  The children looked up. Luke showed no recognition, but Joey slowly got to his feet.

  “It’s Grandma and Pop,” Marie said. “Do you remember us, Joey?”

  He regarded them cautiously and took a step toward her.

  “Oh, I know you do!” She swept him into a hug.

  Allen picked up Luke and kissed him on the cheek. “I’m your Pop, Luke!” He squeezed the boy so tight that Luke squealed. The man broke into tears. “I thought I’d never see you again.”

  He put Luke down and reached for Joey. “Hey, Pop,” Joey said as he went into the man’s arms. The boy began to cry with them as they all embraced. Luke grinned uncertainly.

  Kay stepped toward them to break the news, but before she could get the words out, Joey blurted it out. “Sarah’s kidnapped.”

  Marie gasped. “What?”

  Allen swung around to Kay. “Is this true? What happened?”

  “We don’t know for sure, but we think it was her father.” Standing frozen in the yard, she told them everything. The cruelty of their situation didn’t escape her. Luke and Joey sat in their grandparents’ laps as they took in the news.

  “Aaron is out with my husband looking for her,” Kay said. “They’ve been gone all day.”

  Marie buried her face in her hands. “We came just in time.”

  Heartbroken, Marie told Kay about their history with Jessie. When she’d gotten pregnant for the second time in high school, they’d tried moving to Tuscaloosa to get her away from her friends. But when their rules for her behavior had been too restrictive, she took her babies and fled back to Crockett. Several times they had found her and court-ordered her into drug treatment, hoping to save her life, since her destructive lifestyle was a danger to herself and her children. During those times, the children had stayed with them. They’d had them for almost a year when Aaron and Joey were babies. Each time Jessie had gone into treatment, she had bided her time until she was discharged, then gone right back to her drugs. They told Kay that they’d spent over a hundred thousand dollars on treatment programs for their daughter. But she had never made the decision to change her life, so it had all been a waste.

  When Luke was born and Jessie was still using drugs, they had finally initiated a lawsuit to get custody of the children. At that point, Jessie had moved without leaving a forwarding address, and they hadn’t been able to find her. Detectives they’d hired had traced her to Tennessee, but by the time they’d found her address, she’d moved again. Six months ago, the Gatlins had moved from Tuscaloosa to Atlanta so that Allen could accept a promotion with his company. They’d tried to notify Jessie of the change of their address through an e-mail address they weren’t even sure she checked anymore. But they’d never found her, and they hadn’t heard from her in over three years. They didn’t know she had gone back to Crockett, and until the letter from Kay, they hadn’t known that there was another child. Sarah was a complete surprise to them — their first granddaughter, whom they might never get to see.

  When at last Doug and Aaron came home, Kay watched the reluctance on the boy’s face as he went to his grandparents. It was clear he was having trouble processing all the things his mother had said about them. But after a while, he seemed relieved that they were here to help.

  The reunion couldn’t have come at a better time.

  DOUG AND KAY LEFT THE GATLINS ALONE WITH THE KIDS TO GET reacquainted, and Doug collapsed onto the bed. Sweat poured from his forehead even though the night was cool. His breathing was labored.

  Kay checked his dressing. “Should I call Derek, honey? You don’t look good.”

  “I’m okay,” he said. “Just give me a few minutes to rest.” He took her hand and pulled her down next to him. “Kay, where is she?”

  She shook her head. “I don’t know. We’ve been praying all day, Doug. They’ve got to find her soon.”

  He closed his eyes and pressed his fists against them. “I should have been guarding the house. I should have heard him sooner.”

  Kay took his hand and kissed it. “Doug, you did hear him. You may have stopped him from killing us.”

  “He didn’t want us dead,” he said. “He needs us alive so we can pay him to get her back.”

  “But there hasn’t been a ransom note.”

  “There will be.” He hoped he was right. If there was, Moe would be motivated to keep Sarah alive. “Aaron won’t be able to handle it if anything happens to her. He’s almost at the end of his rope now. He’s only nine.”

  A knock sounded on their bedroom door and Kay called, “Come in.”

  Deni came into the room. Jeff, Beth, and Logan trailed behind her, and Craig brought up the rear. “Mom, is Dad all right?”

  “I’m fine,” he answered. “Come here.”

  His children all came to the bed. Logan and Beth climbed up on it next to him and Kay. Jeff and Deni stood over him. Craig hung back at the door.

  “You don’t look fine,” Deni said. “Dad, you look really sick. You’re not taking care of yourself, and if you don’t stop going all over the place to look for her, then you might get an infection and die.”

  “Yeah, Dad,” Jeff said. “I’ll take Aaron and his grandparents to look for her, and you can stay here.”

  He tried to laugh. “I’m okay, guys. I’m just tired.”

  “Your gunshot wound doesn’t hurt?” Logan asked skeptically.

  “It hurts, but I can stand it.”

  “And you have broken ribs,” Deni pointed out. “The doctor said for you to take it easy. You could puncture a lung or something.”

  “I can’t take it easy right now. Sarah’s still missing, and I have to do everything I can to find her.” He settled his gaze on the ceiling. “I’m hoping she’ll be found tonight. The police have several leads they’re working on.”

  “So how are the Gatlins doing?” Kay asked Deni.

  “Some tears,” Deni said. “Really stinks, you know? Them coming all this way only to find out that their granddaughter has been kidnapped. But I think it’s helping Aaron to have them here.” />
  Doug took Deni’s hand. “Since all of you are here, let’s pray, why don’t we?”

  Deni took Jeff’s hand, and the rest of them grasped hands. Craig remained at the door.

  “Come on, Craig. You too,” Kay said, reaching out a hand for him.

  He looked reluctant, but he came and stood at the edge of the bed, between Jeff and Deni. They began to pray one at a time, speaking as they felt led. Craig remained quiet.

  Silently, Doug sent up a prayer for him too, that God would work on his heart. It looked like he really was going to be a member of their family, and Doug needed to start thinking of him as a son … whether he liked it or not.

  sixty-four

  MOE JENKINS SNIPPED A TENDRIL OF SARAH’S HAIR, WATCHED IT fall to the floor. Too bad he couldn’t sell it. He knew women who’d cut off an arm to have hair like this.

  Careful not to wake the child, who had cried and screamed until he’d had to drug her with Dramamine, he snipped again and added another strand to the heap on the floor. She was too identifiable with that hair. And if his first plan didn’t work, then he’d have to resort to plan B. And that meant the hair had to go.

  He finished cutting her curls off, then gently brushed his fingers over the crudely cropped haircut. She looked like a little boy now. Perfect. He’d be able to walk or bike across town with her in broad daylight and no one would recognize her.

  And the hair would add a great touch of drama to his ransom note. Kick up the urgency a notch or two.

  He scooped the hair up onto a piece of notebook paper, then dumped it into a Ziploc bag that had previously held his dope.

  He tried to think, but his brain was muddled. He’d taken too many painkillers to dull the pain of his gunshot wound. The bullet had grazed his waist, taking a chunk of flesh with it. Focus, he told himself. Think. Maybe he shouldn’t alert them that he’d cut off all her hair. If they knew that, the police could sketch pictures of what she’d look like without it.