“When?”
“Sometime today. We talked with Bobby Joe’s employer. He won’t work this weekend. We can’t risk him doing that.”
Before Emma said anything, Brody cut in, “We’ll go back to Bobby Joe’s apartment after we check the Christian shelter. Emma and I are worried that there are other kids somewhere in Cimarron City that Mathew thinks Nate is protecting and trying to get food for them. I’m taking Charlie with me in case there’s something Mathew has that might have Nate’s scent. Charlie might be able to follow his trail.”
“I should tell you not to go, but we’re swamped. Let me know what’s going on.”
“I will. Bye.” Brody reached his home ten minutes later. He went into his house and brought Charlie to his SUV. After his dog was safely in his travel crate, he headed for the Christian shelter on the outskirts of downtown at the western end of Main Street.
Silence reigned in the vehicle. The lack of sleep was starting to take a toll on him. He glanced at Emma.
She leaned back against the headrest with her eyes closed. Exhaustion was getting to her, too. As he parked his SUV in front of the shelter, her head fell forward, jerking her awake. “I could use a whole pot of strong coffee about now, and I’m not even a coffee drinker.” She chuckled. “With all we need to do, we forgot to schedule a little sleep time.”
“I know that Mathew has coffee.”
“Good. We still have hours of work to do before we can sleep.”
“Then let’s get moving.” Brody exited his vehicle at the same time Emma did.
When they entered the shelter, Brody scanned the large room where the homeless people were fed. There were about twenty sitting at the tables. A large man with a slight limp and a thin man wearing a white cap and an apron were wiping down the serving area.
With Emma at his side, Brody walked toward the thin guy to see where Mathew was. He waved and caught the worker’s attention. “Where’s Mathew?” he asked the man with a nametag that informed them he was Cliff. The worker wore an earring, a large hoop, in his right earlobe.
“He’s in the back getting some items we need for lunch.” Cliff pointed toward a door.
When Brody entered a storeroom off the kitchen, Mathew pulled two ladles out of a box and looked up at Brody. “Nick told me you were coming. It’s good to see you Brody. I see you have Charlie with you.”
“Is it okay he’s here?”
“Sure.” The older man smiled at Emma. “And who is this?”
She shook his hand. “I’m Dr. Emma Reichs.”
Mathew shuffled toward the exit with the two ladles and stopped in front of a large coffeepot. “Would you two like some? I probably drink at least five or six cups a day.”
“Yes, we’ll take some coffee.” Brody scanned the main room as more homeless people came inside out of the cold.
Mathew poured coffee into three mugs, handed one to Emma and the second to Brody. Then Mathew led them to his office off the main room and waved them to take a seat.
A knock sounded at the door.
“Come in,” Mathew said in a loud voice.
Cliff opened the door. “I have to leave early. I just wanted to remind you I have a doctor’s appointment.”
“I remember. You told me this morning. You’ll be here tomorrow to oversee breakfast?”
“Yep. I’m not sick.”
“Good. Thanks, Cliff. I appreciate you filling in for me.”
Cliff smiled and closed the door.
When the middle-aged man left, Mathew said, “I’m so glad you two came to help with finding Nate. I have a bad feeling about him not showing up, especially when I heard about those two Amber Alerts going out yesterday. I can’t shake the thought that something’s happened to Nate. For the past several weeks, he’s been coming regularly either at lunch or dinner time. I pray he’s found and is fine. That I’m wrong in thinking he’s in trouble. So many people who come here will leave after a few weeks and move on. I didn’t get that feeling from Nate. I saw relief in his face, especially when I let him take extra food.”
“I hope you’re wrong, too.” Tensed, Brody took a sip of his coffee, relishing the caffeine in the lukewarm liquid. “I’m hoping you have something that might have Nate’s scent. Did he ever sleep while he was here?”
Mathew leaned back in his chair and looked toward the far wall. A minute later, he replied, “On Tuesday, he was exhausted when he came to the shelter. I gave him something to eat then insisted he lay down in my office. When I suggested that in the past, he wouldn’t, but this time, he did. Nate collapsed onto my sofa,” Mathew gestured toward the piece of furniture along the far wall, “and went to sleep immediately. I put that blanket over the teen.” He pointed at the one that draped the left sofa arm.
“Has anyone used it since that day?” Brody asked, praying it would give Charlie a trail to follow.
“No. Some people have sat on the couch, but they didn’t use the blanket.”
Brody examined the coverlet. “When was it washed last?”
“On Tuesday before Nate used it. That’s when we do the laundry for the shelter as well as on Saturday. It hasn’t been used since then.”
“Good.” Brody eased his stiff muscles. He’d wanted the best opportunity to find Nate by using Charlie. Thankfully, the handling of the blanket gave him that. It was as though God was watching out for Nate. The power of the Lord was powerful. “Do you have a paper or plastic bag I can use. I’m going to put the cover in it. The less other smells are on it the better for Charlie to home in on the right scent.”
“Yes, I’ll get you something to carry it in.”
“We suspect Nate is protecting others, possibly children and maybe even adults.” Emma sat forward, crossing her legs. “You said he takes extra food. How much more? Just enough for him or others?”
“Quite a bit. I have people who have done that before. As long as I have the food and the money, I won’t stop them because they need it. That’s why we’re here.”
“Have you tried to get him to stay?” Emma asked.
“No because the others would get upset. They come here for help but on their terms. Some have issues with authority figures. If a police officer comes here, they flee if at all possible. That’s why Nick always tells me when he plans to visit. No uniformed officers come in. Some know who Nick is. He’s helped out here serving food, so they’ve finally accepted his presence.” Mathew stood. “I’ll go get a paper sack for you.”
Ten minutes later, at the door Nate had used to leave the building, Brody paused and surveyed the area with Emma by his side. A movement behind the trash bin caught his attention. It happened so fast he wasn’t sure what it was. “Stay here. I need to check out something,” he whispered to Emma and transferred the leash and Charlie to her. He felt better if his canine stayed with Emma. His dog would protect her if needed. “Charlie, guard.”
Brody kept his full attention on the container and hurried his pace. He rounded the back of the large trash bin at the same time a tall thin man in a ratty brown overcoat looked at him with wide eyes. Then the man pivoted and ducked under the fence where a couple of slats were broken. For a few seconds, Brody thought about going after the guy, but right now, it was more important for him to see if Charlie could track Nate’s movements. He returned to Emma and his dog.
“What’s going on?” she asked.
“A homeless person is living behind the shelter. Maybe he gets his meals inside but doesn’t want to stay there. There are a limited number of beds. I’ll say something to Mathew. He probably knows about him.” Brody took the coverlet from the bag and held it out for his canine.
Charlie smelled the blanket then sniffed the area around the exit. To the right, Charlie fixed on something and headed down the alley behind a row of stores on one side and a field on the other, a six-foot fence separated the alley from the pasture. His dog tugged on his leash and headed west on the asphalt path as he checked out various places. At one dumpster, Charlie went aro
und it and lingered for a long moment.
Worry slashing her eyebrows downward, Emma placed her foot on a ledge and stepped up to see what was inside the large trash bin. When she hopped down, relief replaced the frown. “There’s only half a foot of trash. No sign of a body.”
Charlie continued his trek toward the end of the passageway about half a block. When there was a break in the fencing, his canine pulled Brody that way and slipped through the gap. Brody and Emma were barely able to wiggle through.
A large field stretched before them. Woods with thick vegetation lay beyond the field. “If I wanted to hide, it would be there.” Brody pointed in the direction of a cluster of thick underbrush. “We need to keep an eye out for anyone living here.”
Three-fourths of the way across the field, Brody spied a movement—a flash of blue—in a cluster of shrubs. He pointed in the direction. “Someone’s in there.”
A child emerged from the thicket and began running north. Brody handed Charlie’s leash to Emma then raced after the boy. He pumped every ounce of energy into his quest to stop the kid. His longer strides helped him to close the distance between them. As he increased his speed, Brody’s lungs burned with the stress, but his daily basketball games at the center had kept him in shape.
A yard away, Brody lunged forward and grabbed the little boy, no more than seven or eight. He scooped the child up into his arms and came to a stop. The kid wiggled and fought for his release.
“I’m here to help.” Brody had seen the type of fear in the boy’s eyes before. In a village when he and his fellow soldiers freed them, but at first, the people hadn’t known the soldiers were there to help. “I’m looking for Nate. Do you know him?”
* * *
Charlie sniffed the ground and yanked on his leash. Emma let him guide her to the massive shrubs with a small gap in the thicket. The canine came to a stop as the foliage opened up more to reveal a small hollowed out space. Emma’s attention swung from a little girl no more than five to an older one who was probably nine or ten, holding the younger child against her chest. As Charlie moved forward, smelling the ground, the two shrank as far back as they could until they encountered a green wall. Before going into the thicket, Emma dropped the sack with the blanket in it outside the opening. It would be hard to crawl clutching the bag in one hand while holding Charlie’s leash in the other.
Then Emma with Brody’s dog entered the place where the children must have been living while the kids scrambled deeper into the evergreen foliage. Charlie moved faster than Emma could. The two girls were scared, their wide-eyed gazes fastened on the Belgian Malinois.
“Charlie, heel.” Emma yanked gently on it. Brody’s dog came to her. “Sit.” As Charlie obeyed, Emma settled on the ground a couple of feet from the two girls.
Both of the children’s wide brown eyes were fixed on Charlie. Emma smiled. “He’s a highly trained canine. He won’t hurt you. He likes to find missing people.”
The two children huddled together under a sheet of plastic tied to the branches above them. “We aren’t missing,” the oldest girl said while her hold on the younger one tightened. The elder one scooted as far away from Emma as she could before she encountered the thicket of branches and leaves.
“Where’s Nate? We want to make sure he’s okay,” Emma said in a soft gentle voice.
The older girl looked away and dropped her head.
“Is he missing?”
The younger one pulled away, turned toward Emma, and nodded. Then she hid her head against the other girl.
“We need all the information you know about what happened to Nate to help us find him. I’m Emma. What are your names?”
Wet tracks ran down the oldest girl’s cheeks. “I’m Terri, and this is Beth. Nate was taken.”
“Did you see who took Nate?”
Her tears increased. She scrubbed her hand across her face. “Not me, but Danny did,” Terri said between sobs.
“You and Beth look alike. Are you sisters? How old are you?
Terri nodded. “I’m eleven, and Beth is five.”
“Who was the boy who left?”
“My brother, Danny. He’s eight.”
“Where’s he going?” Emma wanted to close the space between her and the two girls and put her arms around them. Beth shook within her sister’s embrace. At best, it had been days since either one of them had washed their face or hands. Their clothes reeked with the scents of dirt and body odor.
“To look for Nate, our brother. He’s the oldest,” Terri answered.
“How old is he?” Watching them, Emma felt as though her heart shattered into pieces.
“Fifteen.”
“How long has Nate been gone? The people at the shelter are worried about him since he hasn’t been there since Wednesday.”
Terri hugged her sister even tighter. “He never came back from the shelter. Danny went looking for him Wednesday and yesterday. He couldn’t find him.”
“Is that what he was doing a while ago?”
“Yes. We haven’t eaten in days—since Tuesday night.” Terri’s eyes glistened with the tears she was trying to keep back.
“Did Nate bring you food Tuesday?”
“Yes.”
“When did he leave on Wednesday for the shelter?” This was important because Mathew said he hadn’t shown up. If they could pinpoint the time Nate disappeared, it might help in finding him. Emma held her breath waiting for an answer.
“I don’t have a watch, but the sun was high overhead of me.” Terri dropped her head, staring at the ground.
Must have been around noon that Nate went missing. Hopefully, that would help Nick to find the teenage boy. “You’ll be getting food today. As much as you want. You aren’t alone anymore.” Emma held her hand out to Terri. “Let’s get out of here and find you something to eat. Charlie and I are here to help you all.”
Terri stared at Emma’s hand, shaking her head. “I can’t. Nate won’t know where we are. When Mama died, he promised he’d take care of all of us.”
“When did she die?”
“Four months ago.”
“You’ve been here,” Emma gestured toward the surroundings, “that long?”
Terri shook her head while holding Beth who cried against her chest.
Emma remembered that Nate had only been coming to the shelter recently. “Where did you live before you came here?”
“Riverbend.”
The small town was twenty miles away. “How did you get here?”
“We walked.” Terri stroked Beth’s back.
“Do you have any relatives?”
“No. Pa left us years ago. Mama said he died in a work accident.”
“Where?”
“Don’t know.” Terri stared at the exit hole in the vegetation.
“What’s your last name?”
“Stark.” Terri frowned. “Why do you want to know?”
“To help find a relative,” Emma answered while watching the barriers fall into place on Terri’s face from her narrowed eyes to her thin pressed lips.
“Where’s Danny? Is he okay?”
“Yes. He’s safe with Brody. They’ll come here soon.” Emma hoped Brody had been able to catch the young boy.
Emma scanned the small hollowed out area and noticed there was little in the way of possessions. And what clothes the two wore were falling apart with holes and rips. Terri had on a coat that was several sizes too big for her. Emma’s heart swelled with emotions at the sight of the two.
“In fact, let’s gather your belongings and go meet up with your brother.” Emma saw a paper sack and reached for it.
“Don’t!” Beth screamed.
Emma peeked inside at a dirty stuffed animal, a brown dog, then passed the bag to Terri. “I was just getting it so you two can pack up your stuff. Okay, Beth?”
The five-year-old snatched the dog from the sack and clutched it against her chest. “Mine.”
Terri crawled to the rest of their possessions, a
few items of clothing, a book, and a notepad with several pencils.
“Are you ready? Let’s go see Danny,” Emma said.
Terri, holding the bag, started toward the exit while her younger sister followed. Emma and Charlie took up the rear. She was aware the two girls might try to run away, so Emma kept herself within reach of Beth. Emma didn’t think Terri would go anywhere without her younger sister. She hoped that Brody had been able to hold Danny who’d been fighting him.
When they had them safely in place, Emma would need to call her aunt. These kids needed to feel safe. With Emma and Aunt Polly, they would be.
* * *
Brody held the squirmy little boy, but the second Brody mentioned Nate’s name, the child stopped fighting him for a few seconds.
Surprise flashed across the kid’s face. “Nate? You know him?”
“Not personally, but—” Brody’s attention was diverted.
Emma with Charlie approached the thicket. She knelt near a break in the vegetation. His dog crawled into the green shelter, tugging on the leash until Emma had to follow him or release her hold. She vanished inside. Occasionally, he caught a glimpse of her red overcoat.
While Brody’s attention was on Emma, the child leaned over and bit his neck. Brody automatically loosened his hold on the boy. That was when the kid kicked him several times causing the child to slip from Brody’s embrace. The kid ran faster than he had earlier. Brody raced after him. This time the boy headed for the alley behind the row of stores.
Again, Brody caught up with him as he climbed the fence. Brody reached out and grabbed him. The child opened his mouth, but before he could scream, Brody covered his lips. He whipped around and stalked across the field with the seven or eight-year-old flailing his body the whole way. He hoped Emma wasn’t having as much trouble as he was.
“I’m worried something happened to Nate. The person who runs the shelter is worried about him, too. Do you know where he is?” Brody asked halfway to the cluster of large bushes where the boy had darted out of earlier.
Missing (Everyday Heroes Book 6) Page 8