Vanish

by Karen Spafford-Fitz

  The Runway Girls nudge each other and giggle as I make my way up the aisle. Apparently, they’re enjoying checking out my hair and my T-shirt from the rear view too. I wish they would fall off the face of the Earth. My head is buzzing with worry about Lily. I know one thing only. I can’t take much more of this.

  The day doesn’t improve. So I don’t know whether to feel relieved or worried when I get called to the office after lunch.

  I sit in one of those straight-backed chairs that are like torture devices. Minutes later, Aaron arrives.

  “You got called down too?”

  “Yeah.” Aaron looks sleepy and untidy. For some reason, it looks cute on him. I bet the Runway Girls didn’t snicker when they saw him today.

  Aaron yawns. “The police came by last night to ask questions about Lily. I couldn’t sleep after that.”

  “I didn’t sleep either. I saw a news report last night. I knew it was Lily’s house. Mom took me to the police, and I told them about seeing Blake. I gave them your name.” I pause and take a deep breath. “Sorry I didn’t get the chance to let you know.”

  “That’s okay.” He smiles and runs his hand through his hair.

  “Even still—”

  That’s as far as I get before Ms. Boyd steps into the waiting area.

  “I understand you two had an eventful day yesterday,” she says.

  We open our mouths to speak. But apparently Ms. Boyd isn’t expecting an answer. She motions us toward a back office.

  “I understand you both spoke with the police last night about Lily’s disappearance. An officer named—” She checks her notes. “Constable Dakin phoned today. She might need to ask you some follow-up questions in the next few days.

  “I phoned your parents. Both of your mothers have limited availability. They have given me permission to be the adult present should the police wish to ask you more questions.

  “I have asked that they make as little impact as possible. Constable Dakin has assured me that she will drive an unmarked police car should she need to come to the school. She will also dress in plain clothes instead of her uniform. And I want you both to know that I will be with you at all times.”

  We are probably supposed to be reassured by those last words. Somehow, they feel more like a threat. I knew Ms. Boyd was hardly the warm-fuzzies type. But jeez, she might at least ask us how we’re doing. I keep my eyes on the floor.

  “Aaron, you may go now. I need a few minutes with Simone.”

  Oh no! My heart hammers in my chest. What is Ms. Boyd going to say next?

  Before she has a chance to say anything, I jump in with a question. “Have they arrested Blake yet?”

  Ms. Boyd slowly removes her glasses. She takes a deep breath. “I don’t know. In fact, they told me virtually nothing. It occurs to me, though, that you may need extra support in the days ahead.”

  “You mean until Lily is safe at home and Blake is arrested?”

  Ms. Boyd takes a long look at me. “Until Lily is found.” She pauses. “And until then, what can I do to help you?”

  My chin drops to my chest. I finally lift my head and look at Ms. Boyd.

  “Nothing,” I say. “There’s nothing you can do.”

  I close the door quietly behind me as I walk out of her office.

  Chapter Thirteen

  It’s nearly the end of the week, and the police have not shown up to talk to Aaron or me. I’m in no hurry to talk to them, but it might seem like something was happening if I did. I feel like the police aren’t making any progress at all.

  In the meantime, school has become even more unbearable. There has been a lot in the news about Lily’s abduction. People who have never talked to me before keep trying to chat with me about what happened. Also, the Runway Girls have noticed a connection between Aaron and me. I’ve become interesting to them as a result. I preferred it when they ignored me or snickered at my bad hair.

  To top everything off, this is a Kinderbuddy day in leadership class. We are supposed to start organizing the Halloween party today. As we step into the elementary-wing hallway, Lily’s friends wave at me. They must have asked their teacher why Lily is away. I wonder what Mrs. Mankowski told them.

  I break into a burning-hot sweat. A wave of dizziness hits me next. I can’t do this!

  I turn and stumble down the hall. I’m standing by my locker, shaking, when Ms. Boyd finds me. “You can go back to my classroom if you’d like, Simone.”

  I stagger back to her classroom. I flop onto a chair and drop my head into my hands. I don’t know how long I sit like that.

  “You okay?” It’s Aaron’s voice.

  “I guess. It’s just—”

  “Yeah. I know,” he says.

  I don’t feel like talking, and I’ve just noticed there are tears pouring down my face. But there’s something I need to say. “Aaron, I’m really sorry.”

  “Sorry?”

  I take a deep breath. “For pulling you into this. If I hadn’t done that, everything would still be okay for you. You wouldn’t have had a police car at your house. And you wouldn’t be waiting for the police to come by with more questions.”

  “Yeah, except that Lily is still gone. I care about what happens to her too, you know.”

  “Sorry. Yeah. I just meant—”

  I realize it was better when I wasn’t saying anything. When the bell rings, we both pick up our stuff and shuffle out the door.

  I’m so dazed from not sleeping and from worrying that I hardly realize I’m actually following through on my plan. I’m becoming an expert at making posters in leadership class.

  Ms. Boyd hasn’t softened much since Lily was abducted, but she understands that I can’t go to the kindergarten class with Lily still missing. On Kinderbuddy days, I stay in Ms. Boyd’s classroom and make posters.

  The posters are starting to run together in my mind. Bake sales. Pizza days. Anti-bullying. Drama club. Aaron often works with me. I think he also has a hard time going to the kindergarten class.Fiona must have asked to stay too, because she joins us most days.

  I have a hard time pulling my mind away from Lily, but I’ve always liked doing art. And Fiona is really good at it. She brings felt-tip markers in all colors and thicknesses, acrylic paint and paintbrushes, glitter glue and calligraphy pens. They make our posters stand out really well. Even Ms. Boyd seems impressed.

  It’s the end of class, and the rest of the kids have returned from the kindergarten room. I’m packing up the supplies with Fiona when Ms. Boyd calls Aaron and me to the side of the room. The Runway Girls have mostly lost interest in me again, but they perk up whenMs. Boyd says Aaron’s name.

  “The secretary called me from the office,” Ms. Boyd says. “The police have further questions for you two. Constable Dakin is waiting for us.”

  As we make our way to the office, my stomach is flip-flopping. Beads of sweat form on my forehead and upper lip. A trickle runs down the middle of my back.

  What if they have news about Lily? And what if the news isn’t good? My throat tightens, and I nearly choke.

  “You’ll need to wait here, Aaron,” Ms. Boyd says. “Constable Dakin wants to talk to Simone first.”

  I’m not sure I’m ready for this. I glance at Aaron. He looks way calmer than me. Or maybe he’s also terrified but can hide it better than I can.

  Constable Dakin is not wearing her uniform. That makes her look even less like a police officer.

  Ms. Boyd plunks down into the chair beside me in the assistant principal’s office.

  “Constable Dakin,” she begins, “I have the families’ permission to be the adult present with my students. Neither Simone nor Aaron’s parents are available.”

  “But Simone and Aaron aren’t being charged with anything.”

  “We
ll, no,” Ms. Boyd stammers. “Of course not, but—”

  “They don’t need an adult present on their behalf.”

  “Oh.”

  I glance at Ms. Boyd. Her mouth is open, but no words are coming out. For once, she is speechless. If I wasn’t so scared, I would laugh out loud.

  Instead, I say something that surprises even me. “Actually, I’d like Ms. Boyd to stay.”

  I wonder how much I’ll be allowed to ask. Will the police tell me any official information?

  I’m about to test it out when Constable Dakin says, “Just so you know, we have not yet found Lily or Ms. Warnicke.”

  Oh no—Rachel! My mind has been so filled with thoughts of Lily that I’ve hardly thought about Rachel at all. I feel a twinge of guilt. Then images of Lily crowd back in.

  “I need to ask you a few questions about Ms. Warnicke,” Constable Dakin says. “Had she said anything to you about going anywhere? Moving, or going on a trip maybe?”

  That wasn’t what I expected. I shake my head.

  Constable Dakin looks like she is going to move on to the next question. Then I remember something.

  “Actually Lily said something about a new house. One with dolphins and a swing set and sandcastles.”

  I realize how silly that must sound. Constable Dakin likely thinks I’m just a dumb kid. “I don’t know if that counts though.”

  “You never know,” Constable Dakin says.

  She is probably humoring me. Why isn’t she asking about Blake? It’s like she’s forgotten all about him.

  “Were you ever inside Lily’s house?”

  “No. I stopped there one day to return something. But I didn’t go inside.”

  “Why was that?”

  “Rachel was outside when I got there. Lily wanted me to go inside with her. Then Rachel called me back outdoors.”

  “When did this happen?”

  “Um, it was the weekend before Curriculum Night. On the Saturday afternoon.”

  “When was Curriculum Night?”

  I glance sideways at Ms. Boyd. “It was October thirteenth,” she says. “That was a Wednesday evening.”

  “So the previous Saturday was—” Constable Dakin flips through her notebook “—October ninth.” She writes, then looks back up at me. “Did you see anything inside the house?”

  “All I saw was some boxes inside the front door. They had clothes spilling out of them.”

  “Did you notice anything about them?”

  “I’m pretty sure they were Lily’s. They were pink. Her mom buys her a lot of pink clothes.”

  As Constable Dakin writes this down, I wait for her to ask me about Blake.

  “Did Lily mention anything out of the ordinary going on at her house?”

  “Not really. But Rachel told me that Blake missed a lot of his scheduled visits with Lily.”

  Constable Dakin hardly seems interested. “What about at her actual house—with her mom?”

  I can’t believe she keeps pulling the conversation away from Blake.

  I rack my brain. “It’s hard. Lily jumps from one idea to the next when she talks. But she said the TV and computer disappeared. Rachel wouldn’t tell her why when she asked. According to Lily, neither one was broken.”

  Constable Dakin writes this down.

  Seriously? She’s more interested in the TV and the computer than in Blake?

  “Did you ever notice anything unusual about Rachel’s behavior?”

  “Well, yeah. She was moody. It was hard to figure out if she was happy or friendly or not.”

  It feels awful talking this way about Rachel, considering she got abducted too. She’s also in danger. Yet I’ve hardly given her a thought.

  “I don’t blame Rachel though,” I say quickly. “Blake made her life really tough.”

  There. Hopefully I’ve got this interview back on track.

  “Can you think of any other unusual situations with Rachel?”

  I grit my teeth before I answer. “The first day we started the Kinderbuddy project, Rachel came into the kindergarten class. She was checking if Lily was okay.”

  “And was she okay?”

  “Lily was sad at first because she was supposed to work with a boy. She was afraid of Aaron in the beginning.”

  “Okay, so Lily was upset. Had the teacher phoned Rachel to come into the classroom as a result?”

  “I don’t think so.” I glance at Ms. Boyd.

  She clears her throat. “Mrs. Mankowski and I worked together for the entire class. I can confirm that Mrs. Mankowski did not phone Lily’s mother. There was no need. The child was momentarily upset. Then she settled down.”

  “I worked with Lily for the rest of the class,” I say. “Lily was great. We had a fun time together.”

  A huge lump pushes its way up into my throat.

  Constable Dakin is still writing. She doesn’t even look back up at me. “Thank you, Simone. I’d like to speak with Aaron now.”

  As I leave the office, every muscle in my body is clenched. It seems Lily has just vanished. But that can’t be. And why didn’t Constable Dakin want to know a single thing about Blake?

  I am all the way down the hall before something occurs to me.

  Maybe Blake didn’t abduct Lily and Rachel after all.

  Chapter Fourteen

  That night, I’m too restless to sleep. Mom’s not going to be home from work for a while. I’ve been rattling around the house by myself for too long. I don’t feel like going to bed yet, so I pull a chair up in front of the computer. I try to brace myself for disappointment as I log on to Facebook.

  But what’s this? I can’t believe it. I actually have a message. Lauren or Danielle must have messaged me after all.

  Hang on a second. It’s from—who? Teresita Romero? I’ve never heard of her. She’s probably writing to tell me about the million dollars I won in some fake lottery overseas. I slump down in the chair as my eye scrolls over the message.

  Hello. I help the mother here. I babysit little girl.

  She say you are best friend.

  She miss you.

  She want I tell you, Hi Simone. I love you. From Lily.

  That familiar message that I thought I’d never see again! My mind is zipping in a hundred different directions. Every muscle in my body is twitching as I read the message again.

  It sounds like Lily is safe. And she’s somewhere with her mother?

  Just who are you, Teresita? And where do you live?

  As I click on her name, I pray she’s not the cautious type. I hope she has lots of information on her Facebook page.

  She has an open profile. I learn that she is employed at Jubilation Hotel and Resort. She lives in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.

  So Lily is in Mexico?

  I don’t even breathe until I have Constable Dakin on the phone.

  After believing for so long that Blake abducted Lily, it’s hard to shift my thinking. I feel awful for the things I’ve thought and said about Blake. So at first I don’t know what to do when Constable Dakin phones me to talk about him.

  “Blake would like to speak with you, Simone. He asked me to give you his phone number. He’d like you to call him, if that’s possible.”

  “Why?”

  “I understand he would like to thank you,” Constable Dakin says.

  “For what?”

  “For being a good friend to Lily. For being the person she knew she could reach out to. She didn’t try contacting anyone else, you know.”

  I can’t stop the tears at this point. But when they finally let up, I dial Blake’s number.

  “Hello, Blake? It’s Simone.”

  “Simone, I’m so glad you phoned. I’ve been hoping to thank you
for—”

  “No,” I say. “Please don’t thank me. I thought some horrible things about you. I was wrong, and I’m really sorry.”

  “You don’t have to be sorry. Rachel had a good smear campaign going against me. I don’t blame you for believing all the things you heard. Of course people thought the worst of me.

  “As for Lily, the police located her quickly after you gave them Teresita’s Facebook information. I’m flying to Puerto Vallarta first thing tomorrow morning to be with Lily. We fly home on Monday.”

  “Is, uh, Rachel flying home too?”

  “Actually, no. She hasn’t returned since the police found Lily at the hotel with Teresita. They haven’t apprehended Rachel yet.”

  “But Lily is okay?”

  “Yes. I talked to her earlier. She knows I’m coming to bring her home. She’s pretty confused—especially with her mother having disappeared. But it’s okay. We know she’s safe.” His voice cracks. I hear the sincerity in it. I feel horrible all over again for thinking he was the bad parent.

  “By the way,” Blake says, “I wonder if you could do me a favor. Could you meet us at the airport when we arrive home? I think it would really help Lily to see you.”

  I think about all the news stories and the photos and the TV reports that I have tried to ignore since Lily vanished. I picture swarms of reporters at the airport.

  “Will I really get to see her?” I ask. “I mean, won’t lots of reporters and other people be there too?”

  “Hopefully not. I’m trying to keep our return date from the media. I haven’t told anyone else. Lily has been traumatized enough. Please promise me you won’t tell anyone. Other than your mother, of course.”

  As I write down the flight information, I wonder how I’ll get to the airport Friday night. It’s way south of the city, and Mom doesn’t have a car. She’s probably working anyway. I have to get there somehow.

  “I’ll be there for sure,” I say. “I’ll see you and Lily then.”

  The three days before Lily flies home drag on forever. Mom has to work most of the weekend, but she tries to find diversions for me. We bake cookies, and we go online to figure out how I’ll get to the airport. It looks like the airport shuttle bus is the best option. Mom insists on giving me the money for it.