by SM Olivier
“Well, I guess we can start looking,” I said with a shrug.
Even if I believed their search was futile, I didn’t want them accusing me of not cooperating. My sperm donor, his wife, and children all accused me of sabotaging their lives as it was. I wasn’t going to perpetuate the myth.
I started to walk to the Denali since I kept a carrier and stroller in the trunk. The stroller wasn’t practical, but I could always wear Clay. It was his preferred method of travel when we were out and about.
“What can we get ya?” Lindsey asked as I reached out to grab the handle of the rear hatch.
I nearly yelped, not expecting her presence. How did I not notice both of the girls? Where did they come from, and why were they here? When they both asked to come and visit, Mr. Isaacs had warned them that we had a lot going on this weekend. They hadn’t seemed to mind, claiming they just wanted to help out with the kids.
From what Crew had informed us, apparently, they hadn’t liked the fact that the guys weren’t around that much. The guys trusted them with the kids, just not with each other.
The girls were beautiful. Lindsey was the taller of the two, and she was about an inch, maybe two, taller than me and had a tiny frame. Her long, blonde hair was in a ponytail, and her bright blue eyes were heavily accented in makeup. She was stunning, to say the least. I could easily see her modeling for Calvin Klein or any of the other companies that preferred uniquely beautiful people.
The other one, Tori, was about an inch shorter than me but built exactly like her sister. She could easily pass as her twin. They both had fair skin and great complexions. It took me a second to recognize my cream-colored camisole top and cropped, brown faux-leather jacket.
My brows knit. Who gave her permission to go in my closet and borrow my clothes? “I’m good,” I said in a slightly clipped tone. “I’m just grabbing Clay’s carrier.”
“No worries. I’ll just carry the little tyke.” Lindsey reached over to grab him from me.
Now that I knew her game, I wasn’t going to allow her to use Clay to ingratiate herself towards the guys. I knew she wanted to make herself indispensable in the hopes that they would come to need her. It may have worked a few weeks ago because the guys had been in desperate need of a woman’s touch, but I kind of had that role now.
I like that role. I had no hidden motives or intentions. I had no clue that the guys had been left an inheritance up until a few minutes ago. It didn’t matter then, and it still didn’t matter. I liked the guys and loved these kids without the incentives of their money.
Clay immediately cried out and dug his head into my neck. “No!” he shouted.
He wasn’t very loquacious yet, but he knew the words Bub, Pey, May, Pax, Go, and his all-time favorite, No. Mr. Isaacs had asked us to start teaching him sign language to help him communicate without screaming at us, as he had been doing. The flash cards were coming in handy. So far, he signed milk, drink, eat, and sleep. The screaming had reduced significantly already.
“It’s okay,” I said with a shrug as I opened up the hatchback. “He gets heavy after a while, and if we’re traipsing through the woods, this would be far easier.” I feigned a smile.
“Suit yourself,” she muttered before walking towards the other guys.
I rolled my eyes and reached into the cargo area to retrieve the baby Tulla carrier. I pulled my hair up into a messy bun before I slipped the carrier onto my back. I nearly jumped when I felt Mr. Isaacs step up behind me to assist with placing Clay into the carrier. I barely concealed the quiver that coursed through me as his hands brushed against my sides.
“Thank you.” I smiled at him.
“My pleasure.” His eyes were hooded as his hands lingered on my waist. The warmth of his hand felt soothing and arousing at the same time.
“Hey, Peyton,” Lindsey said with a smile that didn’t reach her eyes as she came back over to the vehicle. “Maisie couldn’t stop talking about her usual diet today. If you have some free time, I would love to talk to you about the stuff you're feeding them. As a nutritionist, I have to tell you their diet doesn’t sound the…greatest.”
I rolled my eyes. If her intentions weren’t clear before, they were now. She wanted to undermine my attempts at helping with the children. She wanted Mr. Isaacs to believe she was the better option of the two of us to assist with Maisie and Clay.
“Linds,” Mr. Isaacs said with a warning. “I already told you that Peyton cooks healthy meals for us. Even though she doesn’t have to. On the weekends we splurge every now and then.”
Lindsey laughed condescendingly. “It won’t hurt to talk about it, Loch. I just want to make sure you all are taken care of. Someone needs to until I find a job here and move back.”
I stiffened. This was news to me. I especially didn’t like the look she was giving Mr. Isaacs.
Mr. Isaacs opened his mouth, about to respond, but instead, we were interrupted.
“What are you doing here?” David Delaney, AKA, my sperm donor.
I turned to see he was speaking to me. For someone that thought his daughter was missing, he looked put together. He was a tall man, roughly six foot one and lean. He had a strawberry blond hair and my bottle green eyes. After seeing him, years of wondering about my coloring came to me with lucid clarity. I was more him than I was my blond hair, blue-eyed mother.
“I asked her to be here,” Grandpa stated. “I figured, since we were searching on her property, she had the right to know, and they all wanted to help.”
I refrained from correcting Grandpa. I really hadn’t wanted to help. It was Crew who told me he thought my grandfather would like me to be there. Especially since Grandpa had tried calling me. Seeing him, I had to agree with Crew’s assumption. Grandpa needed moral support right now.
I heard the murmuring in the crowd that had now joined around us. No wonder rumors ran rampant in this town. We constantly fed it. Now the whole town would know it was legally my house and land.
“I thought you said it was Sean’s?” David frowned.
“I tried to tell you.” Catherine’s murmur was barely discernible.
I couldn’t help but notice that she looked like she was unaffected by her daughter’s supposed disappearance as well. Her hair was immaculately done in a fancy updo, her face carefully made up, and she wore tan linen pants, a white blouse, and a pair of designer boots. Her ensemble wasn’t too practical to be traipsing through the woods.
“I’m entitled to change my mind. Now, what’s the plan?” Grandpa said brusquely.
“We’re going to fan out and start searching the woods,” Officer Pope stated immediately, stepping forward.
I barely recognized him in his civilian clothes of jeans, gray T-shirt, and Philadelphia Eagles ball cap. Behind him were a few uniformed officers. One of them came forward with a box and started to hand out flashlights.
“The sun should be going down soon,” he explained as I read his name tape. It said Swift on it. He looked barely older than me, with his clear complexion, dark hair, and dark blue eyes.
He gave me a small smile as he held the box out. I noticed his slow perusal of my body, and I abstained from informing him my eyes were on my face as his gaze lingered a little too long on my long legs, bare beneath my denim cut-offs.
I knew years of dancing and my height gave me long, lean, toned legs. If his attention was wanted, I would have been flattered by a good looking guy in uniform checking me out, but it wasn’t. I was happy with the men I had.
“You gonna hand out the rest of the flashlights, Eddie?” Golden said drolly. “Or are you too busy ogling my girl?”
Eddie gave me a wink before he started handing out the rest of the flashlights.
“Your girl?” Leah snorted. “Yesterday, she was all over Zane and Pax. Today it’s you? Give me a break.”
I groaned inwardly. I hated feeding the vultures that made up this town. I generally hated drama, but it seemed to follow me wherever I went.
I looked over
at Leah and noticed she had her usual cronies around her. She was dressed like she was going to a party, not walking through the woods. Her hair was done in beach waves, and her makeup was just as flawless. She wore a short tennis skirt, a low cut tube top, and sandals. Again, I was left wondering what these people were up to. Was Claire missing or not?
“Jealous much?” Paxton grinned.
“I−” Leah began before she was interrupted.
“We should get a move on.” Officer Pope cleared his throat, clearly annoyed. I’m sure it didn’t escape his notice the less-than-appropriate clothing and strange behavior of Claire’s family. “We’re losing daylight, and if we want to find Claire, I suggest we go now.” He turned to me suddenly. “I hate to ask you, but can we take another look around your house? I don’t have a search warrant, so you can say no, but it’ll be easier if we can rule it out once more.”
“No problem,” I said with a shrug. I had nothing to hide.
●
“Why do I have a feeling you are avoiding me?” Mr. Isaacs asked as he moved up next to me.
We had been walking through the woods for over two hours now. The sun had long descended, and Clay was currently sound asleep on my back. Maisie was presently riding on Kyler's broad shoulders, plucking at any reachable leaves above her head.
It didn’t take long for the officers to sweep my house once more. When I came back outside, I noticed my guys and the sisters were still there. I wanted to ask Tori why she was wearing my clothes, but I refrained from causing any more drama today. I already had a headache forming, and I knew my day was far from over.
Now we were trudging through the woods looking for…what were we looking for? This all seemed pointless to me. I was sure by tomorrow morning we would find Claire. She was young and wild enough to have run off for a bit. It wasn’t like her parents paid that much attention to her, to begin with.
“Peyton.” Mr. Isaacs gently nudged me with his shoulder.
I didn’t know what to say. Lindsey had made it apparent really quickly that she wanted him. For the first hour, she regaled us with tales about their friendship growing up. On more than one occasion, I noticed her shrewd eyes on me. It had become increasingly difficult to keep my face blank of any expression.
“I’m not crazy about Lindsey,” I informed him quietly, aware of how the sisters had dropped back the further we walked on. “I know you don’t have feelings for her… I think. But every time you come near me, she becomes more annoying.”
“You think?” He seemed irate for a moment. “What do we have?” he asked.
I wished I could see better. It was nearly pitch black in the woods. “You tell me,” I muttered. “A forbidden attraction?”
“So you still have an attraction to me?” he asked, his voice void of expression.
“You know I do,” I mumbled.
I felt his hands grip mine as his head lowered close to my ear. “Good, because you’re the only one I want. Someday, hopefully soon, I’ll be free to hold and kiss you as I’ve been longing to,” he said huskily.
I felt my breathing hitch at his admission. “I can’t wait for that day.” I caressed his palm with my thumb.
“When are they going to call this a bust?” Lindsey came up from behind us. She inserted herself between us, making it clear that she had seen us conversing intimately. “Claire’s a teenage girl. I’m sure she’s just like most girls your age, right, Peyton? Isn’t that why you're staying with Loch? Family problems at home?”
Funny, I thought her eyes were blue, but I’m pretty sure the green-eyed monster was rearing its ugly head. She was trying to assert her dominance and mark her territory. Little did she know, she could try all she wanted, but Lochlann was mine.
“Lindsey.” Lochlann sighed loudly. “I already asked you to please drop the subject.”
“I’m just looking out for you, Loch,” Lindsey pouted. “Does your boss know that one of your students live with you?”
There was a silence in the air before Golden snickered. I knew that reaction. He was acting like he wasn’t bothered by her statement, but in truth, he was getting perturbed.
“None of your business,” Golden said smugly.
“Why not?” Tori added. “We’re family, and you guys have been acting so strangely when it comes to her. You even forbade us to go down to the basement, as if it’s a dirty little secret.”
I felt an arm go around my waist, and by the smell of cedar and mint, I knew it was Paxton. “No, we just want you to respect Peyton’s space, and it didn’t stop you from going down there today, now did it?”
“Is that when you took my clothes without asking?” I asked drolly.
“Why not?” Tori said in an unrepentant tone. “Pax kept going on and on about how generous you were. I’m just borrowing it.”
“Without asking?” Golden asked in an irritated tone.
“Let’s wait for this discussion until the whole town isn’t hearing it,” Loch said in a clipped tone.
“No.” Lindsey stopped. “We should talk about it now,” she demanded. “We’re family, and you’ve been treating us like we’re unwelcome. We came for a visit to help out, and you don’t even seem appreciative of our help!”
Kyler swung the flashlight towards Lindsey. “Knock it off, Lindsey,” he muttered. “I’m sorry your doctor boyfriend dumped you and that you lost your meal ticket, but you had your chance with Lochlann our freshman year in high school. You blew it. Move on.”
“Sure, I’ll move on!” Lindsey shouted. “Once I find out why a teenage girl is living with her authority figure!”
I noticed how several people had stopped. I had heard enough. I was done being the fodder for the gossip mill. I saw Mr. Isaacs and Kyler close in on Lindsey with menacing looks, and I chose that moment to walk away.
I started to trudge forward, determined to put as much distance as possible between me and them. I saw lights bob behind me as if I was being followed. As one of the flashlights passed a tree about ten feet away, I swore I saw a splatter of blood on a location where the dark bark had begun to peel off. I ran forward, my light shining on the area.
“Peyton,” Zane called after me.
I ignored him as I drew closer to the tree. I paused, not believing what I was seeing. It was a spot of blood, and attached to the tree bark surrounding the bare lumber, were long strands of red hair similar to my own. I withdrew my phone from my pocket and called Officer Pope.
As far as my eyes could see, I saw people spread out across the vast space. The illuminations from flashlights bobbed up and down on the forest floor. I could see at least ten people, approximately thirty-feet in front of me. They had walked right past it. I didn’t fail to notice most people seemed to be talking and catching up and not actually looking.
As I waited on the line, I could hear the distinctive laugh from Leah off to my right. Occasionally, I heard Catherine's name coming from Boob-Job Betty’s distinct voice. I knew Catherine had been with Diane, Boob-Job Betty, Botox Bianca , and some other woman I hadn’t met. From the laughing and talking from her group, I’m sure they were treating this as a social hour as well.
I guessed they thought it was a hoax just as I had. I really didn’t think anything could have happened to Claire until this moment. From the position where the blood spot was, she must not have been standing when whatever it was that happened. I was roughly the same height, and the blood only came to about my waist. A sudden feeling of foreboding sank into my stomach.
“Officer Pope,” Carl answered in a clipped tone, bringing me out of my musings. He sounded as weary as I had been.
“Hey, Officer Pope.” I cleared my throat. “It’s Peyton. I think I may have found something.”
“Say again?” he asked, his tone suddenly alert.
“I found some blood and red hair on a tree. I’m putting in my red lens now so you can find me.”
“Copy that. Thanks, Peyton,” he said grimly before he hung up on me.
I
unscrewed the top of my flashlight, as I had been instructed to, and slid in the red lens. We had all been briefed when we’d entered the wood on what to do in the event we saw anything suspicious. We were to stop, call the lead, and swap out our lenses.
The red light was a stark contrast to the surrounding white lights.
“I found her phone with a glittery case.” Zane was kneeling to my left.
“Don’t touch it,” Mr. Isaacs quickly added as Paxton went to pick it up. “They’ll want it as evidence.”
I turned and noticed I wasn’t the only one who had switched my lens out to the red.
“We should step back,” Crew stated as he brought me into his arms.
I leaned into him, realizing how cold I was all of a sudden. We all stepped away, understanding that this was now a crime scene.
8
●
Questioning
I closed my eyes, feeling the music pour into my soul. My legs and arms moved in time with the music. After hours of learning the choreography and perfecting it to satisfaction of Anya, Star—our choreographer—and another instructor, Alex, I felt everything fall into place. I no longer had to think about what I had to do next. I just did it on instinct and relied on muscle memory.
I hugged myself, crossed my right foot over my left, and tilted my head down as the music drew to an end. I heard the spattering of clapping erupt in the room.
“Perfection,” Star cried out in happiness. “Seriously, Peyton, can I clone you?”
I could hear muttering from the wall where the other girls were sitting. They were waiting to perform their dances next. We had already watched two of the other girls go, and they had done well, but they weren’t as technically perfect as they could have been.
I tried to ignore the tilted heads and whispering off to my right. I’m pretty sure it was Bailey and her best friend Wendy gossiping about me. It was no secret they resented my addition to the team. Little did they know, their hate only fueled my desire to push myself harder.