Slowly, he walked down the hallway. One by one, he checked each room. No one was here.
He’d just lowered his gun when he heard a noise at the other side of the house.
He darted toward the back door just in time to see someone run outside.
He followed, desperate to catch the person who’d been there. As soon as he stepped on his deck, something hit his head.
Then everything went black.
***
Charity gripped the armrest, trying to control her racing heart. She wasn’t exactly a person of prayer, but she found herself crying out to God.
Lord, please help him. Keep him safe.
Just then, Charity saw someone running through the backyard. The person darted toward the woods.
But there was no Joshua.
Where was he? Had something happened?
In a moment of decision, Charity dashed from the truck and into the house. If something happened to him because of her, she’d never forgive herself. She couldn’t live with any more guilt.
She dashed through the living room and kitchen, pausing as she caught a glimpse out the back door. Joshua lay on the grass there, unmoving.
She gasped, panic rising through her. Wasting no time, she darted toward him. Kneeling on the ground, she checked for a pulse. It was there. Thank goodness, it was there. A nasty bump already welted on his forehead.
She looked up once more, in the direction that the figure had run. Whoever it was was long gone.
“Joshua, can you hear me?” she asked, her hands on his shoulders.
He moaned, and a moment later his eyes opened. “Charity?”
“Are you okay?” She almost wanted to cry, at the worst, or pull him into her arms, at best. She’d been so worried.
He squeezed his eyes shut a moment but finally nodded and started to push himself up. “Yeah, someone knocked me out.”
“We should get you inside. I don’t trust being out here right now.” She offered one more glance around, fearing she’d see the intruder watching them from the woods again.
She put an arm around Joshua’s waist to keep him steady and walked with him into the house. She didn’t let go until he reached a kitchen chair and lowered himself there. She sat across from him, unable to shake her worry. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
He glanced at her a moment, an unknown emotion flashing through his gaze. Finally, a slight smile feathered across his lips. He reached across the space between them and squeezed her hand. “I’m fine, Charity. Thanks for your concern.”
“What happened?” Her throat felt tight as she waited for his response. That’s what she told herself, at least. She knew it had something to do with the fact that his fingers touched hers. That simple motion made every cell of her skin feel alive and tingling.
“The intruder must have run outside when I came in. When I stepped onto the deck, someone clobbered me over the head.”
“Any idea what he was doing here?” Charity asked, even though she knew in her mind that this had something to do with Andrea. She had no idea what, nor could she even fathom the connection at the moment. But it was there. She just had to figure out what it was.
“Only guesses. As far as I can tell, nothing was taken or destroyed. But there had to be some reason this person was in the house.”
She swallowed hard. “Maybe he wanted to send a message, let you know he was out there.”
Joshua’s gaze locked onto hers. “There’s something else, Charity. That intruder . . . she was a woman.”
CHAPTER 23
Joshua watched Charity’s expression as it turned from curious to shocked to fearful.
“What do you mean?”
He shook his head, which only made it ache more. “I need to see a picture of Andrea.”
“All the ones I had were destroyed in the fire.”
He stood, the motion again causing his head to wobble, and grabbed his laptop from a table in his living room. He didn’t really need to confirm it was Andrea. But for his sanity—and Charity’s—he would.
He did a quick search and pulled up a picture of Andrea. He studied it for a moment before nodding. The woman he’d seen had been a brunette. Her hair was long now, not bobbed like it was in her high school picture. The woman he’d seen had a more defined face, but that often happened as a person aged.
He had no doubt about it. The woman in his house had been Andrea.
“Maybe I’m not losing my mind,” Charity whispered behind him.
As a tear trickled down her cheek, he quickly rose. Without thinking about it, he pulled her into his arms. He expected resistance, but instead she folded into his embrace.
He couldn’t help but marvel at how perfectly she fit into his arms. Her head rested snugly under his chin. Her petite frame fit up against him, and something about the moment felt right, made him want it to never end.
That thought scared him.
He had no desire to be in another relationship. So what was he doing right now?
Despite the warnings in his mind, he continued to hold her. In fact, he didn’t want to let go. Ever.
Finally, Charity took a step back and ran her fingers under her eyes, as if to hide any evidence of tears. Then she dropped onto the couch and stared pensively at the wall.
“I’m trying to put together what all of this means.”
“Unless your friend has a twin, it looks like she is still alive and close by.”
“But how could that be?” She turned those big, luminous eyes on him. There were too many questions there, too much pain. “While nothing would make me happier than to find out she’s okay, there’s so much that doesn’t make sense.”
“I’m hoping I can help you find some answers.”
She stared at him a moment before a smile cracked her face. “Thank you, Joshua.”
“I need to make sure nothing was disturbed.” He shrugged. “I’ve found that sometimes it’s the subtle things that you don’t expect. Do you want to wait here?”
She stood, tilting off balance for a moment. But her whole world had just shifted, Joshua realized. It was going to take some time before anything appeared straight.
“That sounds good.”
He started in the bedrooms. He didn’t really have any jewelry or other things of much value. But there’d been a reason that woman was in his house. Was it to send a message? He had to cover all his bases.
His bedroom looked fine. There was nothing out of place.
He walked into the guest bedroom. His mom had helped him to decorate it with a vanilla bedspread and some nightstands. He searched through the room, but again, nothing.
Finally, he reached Rider’s room. He stepped inside, but saw nothing out of the ordinary. He opened the closet door and paused.
There had always been a piece of wood inside the closet that had been screwed into the wall. He’d assumed that at one time there’d been a pipe burst or something, since the bathroom was on the other side, and the previous owners didn’t want to spend the money to fix the wall, especially since it wasn’t visible.
He squatted down and examined the space. He found it hard to believe that the wood had just come off. He touched the plaster, and it wasn’t soft with moisture. No, someone had unscrewed this piece of wood and left it on the ground. But why?
“What is it?” a soft voice said behind him.
“I’m not sure,” Joshua said. “Can you grab me that flashlight on the dresser?”
Charity handed it to him. He shone the light into the cubbyhole. It caught on something on the floor. What was that?
He reached into the wall and pulled out a metal box. His gut told him that this was significant.
***
Charity felt the air leave her lungs. She knelt down beside Joshua, and their gazes connected, something unspoken between them.
Without saying anything, Joshua opened the box. Inside there were three notebooks, a necklace, and some photos.
“It’s almost like a time c
apsule,” Joshua said.
“This was Andrea’s,” Charity whispered.
Joshua’s eyes widened. “Really?”
She nodded, feeling almost numb. “This was her room. The writing on the front of that notebook is hers. And those Dalmatian stickers are definitely Andrea’s. She always wanted a Dalmatian.”
She picked up one of the photos. It was a professional shot taken of Andrea. Her friend wore her favorite jeans and a black top. The light hit her hair in a way that made it shine and glimmer.
Charity’s breath caught when she spotted her friend’s bracelet in the photo. It had been years since she’d thought about that piece of jewelry. Andrea’s dad had given her the gold piece, which was lovely with its connecting hearts linked together.
“You okay with this?” Joshua asked, pausing.
Charity nodded. She wasn’t sure what they’d find on those pages. But she knew there was no going back at this point. She had to know what was so important that her friend had hidden this within the wall.
Joshua sat down and leaned against his son’s bed. Charity sat beside him as he pulled out the first notebook. “This one looks like the most recent. Based on the dates across the front, she kept this during the month before she was abducted.”
Charity’s stomach roiled with anticipation. Would there be answers here? Guilt also began to claw at her. This was also such an invasion of privacy.
Joshua began reading the first entry out loud. “Dad and Mom had another one of their fights today. I’m so tired of the fighting. Dad drinks more. Mom cries more. Then everyone gets mad at me.”
Charity shook her head, fighting back pain.
“Did you know any of this?” Joshua asked.
“Not really; apparently there were things Andrea didn’t think were important enough to tell her best friend.”
“Maybe she had a reason.” He squeezed her knee.
Charity shrugged. “Maybe. But the more important issue here is what she said. Why were they fighting?”
“Who knows? Couples fight. It doesn’t mean that has anything to do with her disappearance. Why would it?”
“I have no idea. Bringing the past up . . . it can be painful.”
“We can stop.”
Charity shook her head. “No, I have to push through this.”
Joshua continued reading. “Charity is so much stronger than she thinks she is. She has to be strong to endure what she does at home. There are times I’ve just wanted to march over to her house and give her mom a piece of my mind. All those men—”
Charity put her hand over Joshua’s arm. “Maybe I don’t want to hear the rest of this.”
He stared at her another moment, compassion in his eyes. “I understand.”
“My past is complicated.” He had no idea, even if he thought he did.
“You don’t have anything to be ashamed of, Charity. I like you for who you are right now.”
Her heart warmed before quickly cooling. He said that now, but did he really mean it? “I appreciate that. But maybe I just need a break.”
“I should take these down to the station, anyway. The chief will want to see them.” He stared at her another moment. “I’m sorry, Charity. I don’t know everything that’s in here. I hope it’s nothing that causes you too much pain.”
Almost instinctively his gaze seemed to go to the scar under her neck.
“Thank you.”
He pulled out the necklace. “Do you know what this was?”
“Her grandmother gave it to her.” Charity shook her head. “It’s so strange. For years, I thought Andrea had the perfect family. Maybe no one does. We all have our issues, don’t we?”
“I can’t deny that. Sometimes you can try your hardest to have the perfect family and still fail.”
Was he talking about his own family? About his failed marriage and having to share custody of his son? Charity didn’t ask. They’d had enough somber discussion for the moment.
She glanced at the metallic box again. “There’s one other thing,” she started. “That woman who broke into your house. She wanted us to find these. Otherwise, she would have taken them herself.”
CHAPTER 24
Charity stared at Joshua a moment as they stood on the porch of Daleigh’s place. She had the urge to reach up and plant a kiss on his cheek. Her cheeks flushed at the thought.
The idea was crazy. She wasn’t in a good place for a relationship. Joshua certainly didn’t seem interested. Yet, despite all the warnings in her head, her heart felt differently.
As she looked up at Joshua, she wondered if he felt the spark between them, also.
He started to say something, but then stopped and took a step back. “I’ll keep you updated about those journals, okay?”
She nodded her good-bye, hesitating before taking a step back toward the door. No one was in the house. Daleigh was probably with Ryan, if she had to guess. She imagined the two of them making wedding plans and getting his house ready for her to move into. Charity used to have dreams of doing that sort of thing. She hadn’t thought about it in a long time.
But something about Joshua seemed to be fueling desires she hadn’t known existed, even. Being around him made her long for more; it stirred up desires for family and forever and a chance at happiness.
She saw a paper on the breakfast bar and wondered if Daleigh had left her a note or maybe some instructions. She picked it up, and a scream lodged in her throat.
It wasn’t a note from Daleigh.
It was a picture of Charity and Andrea. Words were scribbled across the back: You’re the only one who can help.
***
Joshua went back to the station, his head still throbbing from his encounter with the woman at his house.
Was she Andrea? Something just didn’t settle in his gut about the whole thing. The pieces didn’t fit together.
He put the box on his desk and opened the latch. Charity was right: that intruder had wanted them to find this information. But why? What was in these journals that was so important?
He opened the first one, and his eyes adjusted to Andrea’s flowery handwriting.
August 29
Charity and I picked some cotton today. Then we threw it in the air and pretended it was snowing. We even tried to build a snowman. It seemed so juvenile, like something we would have done when we were eight. There are some silly things that only girlfriends can do together.
He smiled at the image that formed: the image of Charity being carefree. It was almost hard to picture. She just always seemed weighed down. But the few times he’d caught a glimpse of her genuine smile, it had delighted him. Those moments made him wonder what Charity would have been like if life hadn’t taken the course it had.
Another entry read:
I found out something horrible today. It explains why my mom and dad have been fighting so much. I can’t believe it. Part of me wishes I didn’t know, but another part of me is glad. Reality can be hard to face, but dealing with truth is always better than dealing with lies. I confronted my dad with the information I learned. He was angry. So angry that I thought for a minute he might hit me.
Lawrence overheard the conversation. He told me afterward that I needed to drop it and mind my own business. He said I was digging into adult matters that I needed to stay out of—if I knew what was best for me.
Has my whole family gone crazy? At one time, I thought my dad was perfect. But he’s fallen off his pedestal, and I don’t know what to do about it. Should I bury this information? Or come forward?
What had Andrea discovered? Had her father committed a crime? Had that crime remained hidden to this very day?
He skimmed over several other entries until his gaze stopped on one. It was dated two weeks before Andrea disappeared.
Today I asked Brody to run away with me. My dad doesn’t approve of our relationship. He thinks I’m too young to date. I’m so tired of living under the strain at my house. There’s so much fighting. I know I have it be
tter than Charity and that I shouldn’t complain. But if Brody would say yes, I’d be gone in a heartbeat. Well, except for leaving Charity. Of course, my dad would track me down. There are downsides of having the police chief as a dad.
Joshua leaned back. Run away with Brody? Now there was a thought. Andrea had hated living at home and wanted to get away. Would she have staged her own disappearance and abduction?
Of course, Andrea had said she didn’t want to leave Charity, but if things got bad enough at home, maybe she would reconsider.
Joshua didn’t feel confident in that theory, but it was worth exploring, if for nothing else than to eliminate the possibility.
Maybe it was time to pay his friend a visit and have a heart-to-heart talk.
***
“Hey, Joshua,” Brody said. “What’s going on?”
Joshua nodded at his friend. “Sorry to stop by without an invitation. I was hoping I could chat for a minute.”
Brody’s eyebrows furrowed together; the man obviously knew something was up. Brody had always seemed like a stand-up guy, and Joshua couldn’t imagine him keeping a secret like this.
“Come on in.” Brody opened the door to his waterfront house. The Coastie was out on the water as much as possible, so this property was perfect for him. Joshua had already discovered that in the short time they’d known each other. “Can I get you something? I’ve got some Gatorade and tap water. Sorry, but I wasn’t expecting company.”
“I’m good. I’m actually here in an official capacity.”
“I’m intrigued now. Have a seat.”
Stiffly, they sat across from each other. Joshua dragged in a deep breath. “Brody, I hate to ask you this, but I have to explore every possibility. Tonight, Charity and I found some journals that belonged to Andrea. They were hidden in a wall in her old closet.”
Gone by Dark (Carolina Moon Book 2) Page 14