Julie and Grace would be in charge of the apple-bobbing station. Renee vetoed the idea of letting people bob for apples with their mouths; she was afraid the health department would shut them down for sponsoring a germ fest. Instead, the girls came up with a fun game using a special scoop they designed to catch an apple.
***
By five o’clock the next evening, all was ready.
Since it was Halloween, most in Renee’s family opted to wear fun costumes—nothing too scary for kids. Julie and Grace looked amazing in their Hansel and Gretel get-ups. Since Grace was a little taller, she wanted to play Hansel; her white-blond hair was tucked inside a bowler hat, and she wore knickers and suspenders. Julie’s hair, nearly the same shade as Grace’s, hung in two long braids and she wore a blue-and-white gingham dress with a white pinafore and clogs. Renee was struck again by how much they looked alike. They could easily pass as siblings (in this case as brother and sister).
It would be Robbie’s job to keep moving amongst the kids, handing out snack-size packs of baked goldfish and glow sticks. He was dressed like a clown, but Renee didn’t let him use any face paint. Fully made-up clowns gave lots of people the creeps, including her.
Luke wasn’t crazy about wearing a costume. Val convinced him to go the cowboy route. He always wore boots, anyhow—all he had to do was throw on his Stetson and one of his flannel shirts and he would look like someone out of the Wild West as he helped man the bonfire. Val looked good on his arm in one of Lavonne’s square-dancing dresses and boots of her own.
Even though they planned for people to start arriving at 6:00, visitors started showing up earlier. Apparently there was still plenty of interest in the old resort. George added Halloween tunes to the old jukebox, laughing when Lavonne suggested he dress up like Frankenstein’s monster and dance around to “The Monster Mash.” He opted to pass on that idea. Flashing lights and festive music helped set the tone. Outside a nice fire burned and there was no wind, so people congregated out there, too. Little costumed creatures were everywhere. Adults appreciated the impressive array of food samples and treats, and since they kept candy to a minimum, kids weren’t getting crazy on sugar highs. Agatha, Renee’s new friend from the farm stand, came early dressed as a scarecrow and was proving to be a big help in the kitchen. She appreciated the small tent cards Renee placed strategically around the lodge thanking Agatha for contributing to the decorations and produce. Jess tried to keep track of the number of people coming through the lodge: she estimated a hundred came through during the first two hours. There were hourly giveaways. Lavonne prepared three gift baskets for prizes; visitors tossed their names and contact information in a box for the drawings. It was a great way to start a mailing list, and they would count the number of slips to estimate how many adults visited.
Renee shouldn’t have worried about the open house being a flop. Now she worried about running out of food.
***
By 8:00, the girls were running low on apples. One last bag was out in the shed, and Julie offered to run and grab it. Grace waved a quick hand at Julie in acknowledgment but was busy helping a three-year-old who was struggling to catch an apple; the cute little witch was having trouble with the scoop.
Other kids kept coming through the line. Before long, only four apples floated in the big, galvanized tub. Grace looked down at the apples and then at the fresh batch of kids headed her way. What was keeping Julie?
“Hey, Robbie!” Grace motioned him over. “Have you seen your sister? She went to grab apples out of the shed but hasn’t come back.”
“Nope. Want me to go ask Mom if she knows where she is?”
“Yeah, you better. I’m almost out of apples.”
***
Robbie headed off in search of either Renee or Julie, his big clown shoes flopping and threatening to trip him up. He ran upstairs, but Grandma Lavonne was up there talking to two women. Thinking he might find them by the bonfire, he headed out there. Grant was talking to some guys—probably dads whose kids were having too much fun inside to leave.
“Grant, you seen either Mom or Julie?”
“No. Aren’t they in the lodge? I thought Julie was working at the apple station with Grace.”
“She was, but she went to get more apples. That was a while ago, and she hasn’t come back yet.”
“That’s strange. Maybe she’s having trouble finding the extra bag. Why don’t you stay here and watch the fire? I’ll go see if I can find her.”
Robbie frowned. “I’m supposed to be inside handing out these stupid cracker bags.”
“You can go back in when I get back. Stay here for a few minutes, all right?”
“If you say so,” Robbie replied reluctantly. He didn’t want his Mom ticked off at him.
***
Grant made his way back toward the shed with a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. He didn’t want to overreact, but he didn’t like hearing Julie hadn’t come back. And he didn’t want Renee to hear Julie was missing—she had enough on her mind. It was dark between the lodge and shed. Too bad the wand he carried as part of his Harry Potter getup couldn’t light the way. He pulled his phone out and used the flashlight app instead.
The shed door was partially open. A large bag of apples leaned against the shed wall. Grant heaved the heavy bag over his shoulder. He wasn’t sure Julie could have carried it inside herself. Maybe she tried but gave up, going instead to get help.
Grant made his way back through the still-crowded lodge to Grace. Her tub held only water.
“Oh, hey, Dad. Thanks for bringing more apples. Julie said she was going to get more, but she totally ditched me.”
Grant dropped the bag by the tub and straightened up. “You mean she still hasn’t come back?”
Grace shrugged. “I haven’t seen her. Robbie ditched me, too.”
Grant shook his head. “He’s out by the fire, and neither of us can find Julie. I don’t want to scare Renee . . . maybe Julie is talking to someone. Why don’t you run some of these apples into the kitchen, get them washed up, and let more kids play? We have less than an hour left.”
Grace’s eyebrows shot up and she slapped her forehead. “Wait! I should have thought to try her cell right away!” She pulled her phone out of her pocket and dialed Julie.
Within seconds, they heard Julie’s ringtone coming from a jacket thrown over the back of a nearby chair. Grant pulled a phone out of the pocket.
“Darn,” Grace said, disappointed, “I suppose she didn’t have any pockets in that dress.”
Grant spied George coming down the stairs and went to talk to him. George hadn’t seen Julie, but he was immediately concerned when he heard she was missing.
“Is there any chance she might have run back to the duplex to grab something?” Grant asked.
George looked grim. “I doubt it. I’ll go check with Jess, you talk to Val. Ethan had to leave about an hour ago. If Val and Jess don’t know where Julie is, either, we need to tell Renee and all look harder.”
***
Val hadn’t seen Julie. Jess hadn’t either.
Hating to do it, George headed upstairs to talk to his daughter.
“Renee, sorry to interrupt, but I need to talk to you for a minute.”
“I’m sorry, ladies . . . if you could excuse me for a minute, I will be right back,” Renee said politely to the two women, leaving them again in Lavonne’s hands. She followed her father over to the top of the stairs, confusion and frustration clear on her face. “What’s up, Dad? I was close to talking those two into signing up for our November retreat.”
“Honey, I don’t want to scare you, but have you seen Julie?”
“What do you mean? She’s downstairs helping with the apple bobbing.”
George shook his head patiently and explained the situation, careful to keep his voice calm.
Renee was down the stairs in a flash, her cape billowing behind and one hand securing her witch hat on top of her head, George barely keeping up with her
. She ran over to Grace, almost mowing down a little toy soldier and a princess in her haste. “Pardon me—excuse me—” Renee said as she rushed by the kids and their mother. “Grace, where’s Julie?”
“I don’t know, Renee. I’m starting to get scared.”
George came up behind Renee, placing a firm hand on her shoulder. He sensed she was within a whisper of falling into a full-blown panic.
“Now, don’t assume the worst, honey. Maybe she ran to the bathroom and then started talking to someone. Or maybe she had to go back to the house for something. There could be a reasonable explanation, and she isn’t going to appreciate it if you raise the alarm. Try to stay calm.”
George glanced at his watch. It was getting late.
Renee hustled over to Jess, who was standing near her retreat table anxiously scanning the room, whispered something to her, and then came back to her dad.
“Jess is going to keep watch out here,” she told him. “The crowd is thinning. It’s getting late for the little ones, and the open house is almost over. I want everyone else in the kitchen.”
Renee bit her lip to keep it from trembling.
“Dad, we need to find Julie.”
***
He hid it well, but George was worried sick. His mind flashed back to the bedroom of the crappy old cabin where he had found Julie’s picture. Slipping quietly out of the lodge, he carefully made his way back to the cabin now. He used the mini-flashlight on his key chain to light his way. He had to make sure Julie wasn’t back there.
All was quiet. The cabin door was locked, as were all the windows.
George picked his way through the dark back to the bonfire. Luke was sitting next to Robbie.
“Robbie, come inside with me. Luke’s gotta stay out here with the fire. We still have guests.”
Robbie stood, grim-faced.
George turned to his son-in-law before walking back to the lodge. “Luke, do me a favor. Give Ethan a call, OK?”
Luke nodded, and without another word, George and Robbie headed to the kitchen.
***
Inside, most everyone was gathered in the kitchen with Renee. She, Grant, and Val were debating whether or not they should call the police.
Renee’s phone rang. Matt.
“Matt, thank God. Where are you?” she said, hurrying off into a corner to talk.
“What’s wrong, Renee?”
“We can’t find Julie.” She was almost in tears now, she was so scared. She briefed Matt on what little she knew.
“Renee, listen to me. Hold it together, OK? Stay calm. I want you to hang up and call Sheriff Thompson right now. He isn’t on duty tonight—still recuperating—but he’ll know who is and what to do. I’m only ten minutes out. Be sure everyone else is accounted for and don’t let anyone go wandering off in the dark looking for her. I’ll be there as quick as I can.”
Renee hung up and made the call.
Sheriff Thompson answered quickly, but those three rings beforehand felt agonizingly slow to Renee. “Hey, Renee, did Matt get in?”
“Sheriff, we have a problem out at the resort. My daughter went outside, and now we can’t find her. We’re having an open house and there are lots of people around—lots of people we don’t know.” A new thought struck Renee and she gasped. “Oh my God, what if someone took her?”
“Slow down. Back up. Is Matt there?”
“No, but he will be in a few minutes. He told me to call you right away.”
“All right, now stay calm,” he said, echoing her father’s and her boyfriend’s words. “She’s probably fine, but I understand your concern. I’ll send a car out there right away. Sit tight. Call me back if she shows up.”
When he hung up, Renee groaned.
How in the hell do they all expect me to stay calm?
***
Sheriff Thompson knew this was potentially serious if Matt had told Renee to call him right away. This shot his plan to spend a quiet night at home and let his deputies handle any Halloween nonsense. He hadn’t been off duty on Halloween for thirty years, but he hadn’t been feeling well enough to work tonight. It looked like he wasn’t going to spend a quiet night at home in front of the fire after all. He called Dispatch to send a car over, grabbed his badge and gun, and headed out.
His doctor was going to give him hell for this.
***
Matt got to the resort first.
He scanned the parking lot when he pulled in. There were a number of cars he didn’t recognize—people there for the open house. He parked next to Renee’s SUV and headed for the lodge, watching closely for anything suspicious. Once he was inside, Jess pointed him toward the kitchen. She was thanking people for coming out, obviously trying to keep a normal atmosphere for the visitors. He recognized the woman from the farm stand, handing out food samples, but he didn’t recognize anyone else.
Matt saw most of Renee’s family in the kitchen when he entered. He wasn’t sure what condition Renee would be in, but when she turned toward him, he could see she was dry-eyed. A little pale, but in control of her emotions, which he was instantly grateful for.
She rushed to his side. “Matt, what should we do? Where could she be?”
“Did you call the sheriff?”
“Yes—he said he’d send a car right over, but they aren’t here yet.”
“OK. They should be here soon. Come on, I need to talk to Grace.”
Together they made their way over to the scared-looking young woman standing in the corner next to her dad. Matt asked her to tell him everything Julie had said before she left, how long it had been since she headed outside, and anything else she could think of that seemed strange or out of place tonight. Matt questioned Grant, too, since he had already done some searching for Julie.
“Thanks for helping keep Renee calm,” Matt said to him in a low voice. “Can you break this group into two search parties? I want the younger kids to stay inside with an adult. I’ll be back in a few minutes, and we’ll get a search organized.”
Grant nodded to Matt and started organizing the family.
George approached Matt.
“Hey George, sorry y’all have to deal with this now,” Matt said, shaking the older man’s hand. He could see the ache of worry in George’s eyes.
“Listen, Matt,” George said, “I couldn’t help but wonder if somehow this might all be related to that damn Gray Cabin.”
Matt nodded. “That cabin was gonna be the first place I was going to look.”
“I already did. Checked it out a few minutes ago.”
“Alone?” Matt asked, arching a disapproving eyebrow.
“For God’s sake, yes, alone. She’s my granddaughter, dammit,” George replied, as if that fact justified his going off into the dark by himself. Matt didn’t press the matter. “Never mind about that. The place was locked up tight as a drum. No one was back there. The important thing is to find Julie.”
“All right, thanks for letting me know. That’ll save me some time. From now on, though, no one is to be outside searching alone. Got that?”
George nodded. “Agreed.”
Matt walked over to Renee where she stood with her arm around her son. Robbie was visibly shaken.
“Why don’t you come outside with me, Renee? We can see if anyone from the sheriff’s office has shown up. We don’t need uniformed officers traipsing through the lodge while you still have visitors here.”
Renee turned to Robbie. “I’ll be right back, OK, honey?”
Robbie nodded, but Matt could tell he wasn’t doing OK. “Hey, Robbie,” Matt said before he and Renee walked away, “nice clown outfit.”
***
Renee followed Matt out, thankful he was taking charge of the situation. She was trying hard to remain calm—but where the hell was Julie?
Fewer cars remained in the parking lot now. A woman was loading a sleepy toddler into a car seat and another car was driving away as a sedan pulled in. The open house was winding down. Sheriff Thompson got o
ut, dressed in street clothes. Renee groaned at the sight of him. Had something else gone wrong?
“What the hell are you doing here?” Matt asked. “You just had a damn heart attack! You should be home.”
“It was a mild heart attack, son, but don’t worry—I won’t do much. A deputy is on his way. Any updates since I talked to Renee?”
***
All the visitors were gone now, so with the coast clear they went back inside the lodge and made their way to the kitchen. Renee was getting agitated. This was taking too long. She needed to get out there and find her baby. Matt gave her hand a quick squeeze.
The group was divided as Matt requested. It was quickly decided Matt would lead one group in the direction of the shed and then check the duplex and surrounding areas. Grant would lead the other group in the direction of the lake.
Renee hadn’t even considered that big black lake out there, and swayed a little at the thought.
Robbie and Renee would be part of Matt’s search group. Younger cousins were to stay at the lodge with Val. Both Sheriff Thompson and Grace were to stay at the lodge, too, neither well enough to go roaming around in the dark. Both Matt and Grant were to check in with the sheriff every ten minutes via cell phones. Before the search parties could set out, two deputies arrived in a squad car, and they had a supply of flashlights in their trunk. Each of them joined one of the two groups.
They made for two odd-looking search teams, a wide range of ages and at least half of them still in costume.
***
Sheriff Thompson listened with approval as Matt took control.
He’ll make a good sheriff, he thought.
“If you see anything unusual, be sure to tell me or one of the deputies,” Matt instructed. “Stick with your assigned group, and be quiet so we can hear anything out of place. Grant and I will call for Julie as we go. Remember, she may be close by. Maybe she got turned around in the dark, or took a tumble and is sitting out there with a bum ankle. Don’t assume the worst. If we don’t have any luck in the next hour, we’ll bring in more help.”
Whispering Pines (Celia's Gifts Book 1) Page 39