Courting Disaster

by Boeshaar, Andrea

  “I told Harold about my visit to your office today.” A short pause. “He’s been on a fishing trip in Canada and just got back. I haven’t talked to him in weeks—until this afternoon. When I mentioned pressing charges against Cadi, he reminded me that he’d cashed the check for me.”

  “You understand, Mrs. Binder, that’s it’s a serious thing to accuse someone of theft and forgery.” Frank felt as if he were reprimanding himself as well as the older woman.

  “I realize that, although it’s not like I dragged Cadi’s name through the mud. I’ve only discussed this matter with two close friends, one being Harold. They’re both aware the incident is no fault of Cadi’s.”

  Frank felt appeased.

  “I’m terribly sorry for any trouble I caused,” she continued. “Chalk it up to an old man’s good intentions and an old woman’s less-than-perfect memory.”

  “We all forget things, even important things. Doesn’t matter what age we are.” He felt immensely relieved that the money had been found, but now he was doubly determined to speak with Cadi as soon as possible.

  “Thank you for your understanding,” Mrs. Binder said. “I’m very embarrassed, and I’ll have you know I deposited the money into my bank account this afternoon.”

  “Good. Thanks for calling. I’m glad everything worked out.”

  The phone conversation ended, and Frank sat back on the sofa, forming a plan. He fired off another quick prayer that Lois would agree to babysit for the weekend. His parents could probably help out, as well.

  He raked his hand through his short-cropped hair. His mind was made up. He stood and walked next door, letting himself into the house. The kids came running to greet him.

  “Are we going to Cadi’s now?”

  Frank saw the excitement in his son’s eyes and hated to disappoint him. “Cadi’s not home this weekend. She got called out of town on business.”

  A frown of disappointment furrowed the boy’s sun-streaked brows. “But she bought a new video game for me.”

  “There’ll be time in the days ahead to play it, I’m sure.” Frank saw that Lois had entered the room. He looked her way. “Cadi is assisting with the rescue operations near Fort Dodge. Major flooding over in that area. I’d like to go find her and maybe lend a hand.”

  “Can we come, too, Daddy?”

  “No, Em.” He swung the little girl up into his arms. “It’s too dangerous. But I’d like to go. . . .” He looked at Lois again.

  “If you’re asking in a roundabout way if I’ll watch my grandchildren this weekend, you know I will.” She stared at him with tightlipped acquiescence. “I know how important this woman is to you.”

  “Yes, she’s important to me.”

  Lois shifted her stance and slipped her slender hands into the pockets of her denim slacks. “I guess she’s a nice enough person.”

  Frank smiled, feeling both shocked and elated by the positive remark. “How did you come to realize that?”

  “She won you over, didn’t she?”

  “Sure did.” He smiled.

  “The biggest thing I noticed,” Lois said, “is that she’s succeeded where we, your family, and friends have failed. God used her to draw you back to church and back into His Word. For that reason alone, I’ve decided Cadi’s a special person.”

  “She is. She’s very special.” Frank felt like his mother-in-law’s comments were affirmation for tonight’s plans. He knew he was doing the right thing, even if it meant driving hours in the rain in order to talk to Cadi.

  He looked at Dustin and Emily. “You two behave for your grandma. I’ve got my phone, and you can call me.” He hesitated for a moment. “Maybe you can talk to Cadi, too, if she’s not busy.”

  And if she’s still speaking to me, he added silently.

  Twenty

  Cadi glanced up just as large droplets of rain fell from the darkening sky. By now the floodwater was hip-high in some areas on the street, and every muscle in her body ached. Her legs felt waterlogged. For a good part of the afternoon, she and her team helped people pack some of their belongings and cajoled others who insisted on staying. So far as Cadi knew, everyone on the cul-de-sac had evacuated.

  All except the Manskis, who’d changed their minds at the last minute. They’d been bent on staying until their neighbors convinced them otherwise. And now, as Cadi carried boxes out of their house and loaded them into an aluminum rowboat that Mr. Manski had stored in his garage, she prayed they’d finish before the last of their daylight vanished.

  “Okay, is that it?” She heaved a box over the side of the small, floating craft.

  “Well, let me think. . . .”

  Cadi suppressed a groan as the middle-aged woman began to ponder for the umpteenth time. She sat in the boat while her husband stood in the water at the helm, ready to pull his wife and property to higher ground. Unfortunately, his better half was having trouble making up her mind about what to take and what to leave behind. Cadi felt trapped between Mr. Manski’s impatience and his wife’s indecision.

  “Mrs. Manski, there’s really no time left.” Cadi knew that, at the request of the fire chief, the Disaster Busters crew, along with the last of the emergency personnel, had vacated the cul-de-sac almost forty-five minutes ago. None of the Disaster Busters team knew she had stayed behind to help, and she could only imagine how frantic Meg, Will, Jeff, and Bailey would be as they searched for her. It didn’t, however, match her own escalating fear of being in floodwater after dark.

  “Look,” she told the Manskis, “this is our opportunity to get out of here safely. We need to go.”

  A bolt of anxiety shot through Cadi when she thought again of the late hour, the rain, and the murky river water. Even so, she felt sure she’d manage if she held on to the boat and the Manskis were with her.

  “Maybe I should take—oh, wait—I guess those items can stay, too.”

  “We’re leaving Anita,” her husband said. “No more stuff.”

  “I agree.” Cadi peered down the long street, but because of the bend in the road and the encroaching darkness, she couldn’t see the other rescue personnel.

  “Wait.” Anita Manski began to push to her feet.

  “Don’t stand up!” Cadi’s heart did a flip as she imagined the petite woman falling overboard and cracking her head on some unseen object.

  “Honey, I moved a lot of stuff upstairs.” The man pulled off his baseball cap and rubbed his balding head. “You can make a list of what you want and I’ll get it tomorrow.”

  Cadi wanted to encourage that call to action. “Good plan, Mr. Manski.” She grabbed hold of the stern. “I’ll push, you pull.”

  “Oh, my purse. I’ve got to have my purse.” Anita Manski swung her gaze from Cadi to her husband. “My medication and my wallet are in there along with my cell phone and address book.”

  Sam Manski fired off a string of obscenities that burned Cadi’s ears. “If you think I’m going to fetch it,” he added, “you’re out of your mind.”

  “Well, maybe we should have just stayed put.”

  “Too late for that now!”

  “Please, stop bickering. I’ll go back into the house and get the purse.” Cadi realized it might be foolish to waste already borrowed time, but if Mrs. Manski required her medication, someone had to retrieve it.

  “You’ll need the keys,” the older woman said. “Sam, give her the house keys.”

  He trudged around and placed his thick key ring in Cadi’s palm. “Make it snappy, okay?”

  “You got it.”

  “My purse is on the dining room buffet. It’s a fawn-colored, leather handbag.”

  “It’s a suitcase,” her husband groused.

  Maybe we should have used it as a floatation device. Cadi tried not to huff about it as she waded through the water and cli
mbed the wooden porch steps. Inside the Cape Cod home, she strained to see in the unlit rooms. Only too late did she realize she’d left her flashlight in the boat with the Manskis. She hadn’t been able to carry the large flashlight and boxes, too, so she’d set down the battery-powered light and then forgotten it. Unfortunately for her, there wasn’t time to go back out to the boat and retrieve it. She’d have to fumble her way through the place and find Mrs. Manski’s purse.

  She gazed around. Everything was unfamiliar, yet she recalled glimpsing the dining room to the left of the front door.

  She felt her way to what she believed was the buffet and knocked into an object that clanged against the floor. She winced, hesitated, then moved on.

  Hurry. I have to hurry.

  She continued to feel her way through the room.

  No purse.

  She touched her way to the other side and tried again, but this time she tripped over something and fell. Unhurt, she pushed to her feet. Seconds later, she recognized the object over which she’d just stumbled: the leather handbag!

  Relief engulfed her as Cadi lifted the heavy purse, slinging its strap over her shoulder. She picked her way back through the house. When she reached the porch, the dense downpour combined with the water lapping against the steps gave her great pause. She tried to see beyond the sheets of rain but couldn’t make out a single thing, and she wasn’t about to wade into the blackness of the floodwater on her own.

  “Mr. and Mrs. Manski? I found the purse!”

  She listened for a reply.

  Nothing but the din of the falling rain.

  She called again, but no one answered.

  Once more. But no response.

  In the next moment, Cadi came head-to-head with her worst nightmare: She was stranded, alone, with darkness surrounding her, and the river rising.

  ❧

  “Cadi’s missing!”

  “What?” Frank exited the SUV and pulled the hood of his rain gear over his head. He stared at Meg. He could see she’d been out in the elements for some time and her plastic poncho was of little use anymore. “What do you mean she’s missing?”

  “We were helping with the evacuation,” she said, throwing a thumb over her shoulder. “We were supposed to quit when it got dark, and we agreed to meet at the checkpoint, but Cadi hasn’t shown up. Jeff was the last one to see her. He said she was at the end of the block, on the cul-de-sac, helping people gather up their stuff. He thought she was right behind him, but apparently she wasn’t. Next we located the folks she’d been assisting, the Manskis. They said they assumed she’d followed them to higher ground.” Meg’s voice strained from unshed emotion. “Obviously she didn’t, and now we can’t find her!”

  “She’s not in the lodge?” Frank had been in the facility but hadn’t bothered to look around. He’d been told emergency personnel were downhill a ways from the campsite.

  “We’ve searched the lodge twice. No sign of Cadi. But I was just on my way up there again for another look when I ran into you.”

  “Here, take my vehicle; don’t walk.” He handed her the keys. “Where’s everyone else?”

  Meg turned and pointed to her distant left. “Jeff and Will volunteered to hunt for Cadi, but the cops won’t let them beyond the barricades. Orders from headquarters and all that.”

  “That seems odd. Why wouldn’t they form a rescue party to locate Cadi?”

  “Because it’s not a mandatory evacuation situation. Some residents chose to stay in their homes, flooded or not. The cops feel Cadi’s safe until morning, but. . .” Meg almost choked on her words, and Frank knew she was extremely upset. “But they don’t know Cadi’s history. If she’s out there, even if she’s safe, she’s got to be terrified.”

  “I agree.” Frank wiped the rain out of his eyes and reran the information through his mind. It pained him to think of Cadi trapped in what was obviously a frightening situation for her.

  Lord, please protect her.

  Frank urged Meg into the shelter of his SUV and suggested she drive to the lodge and dry out for a while.

  “And don’t worry,” he added. “We’ll find Cadi.”

  He walked the rest of the way down the road and spotted the three remaining Disaster Busters members. They filled him in, stating, just as Meg had, that Cadi was still somewhere out in the flooded area.

  “It’s my fault.” Jeff had to raise his voice to be heard above the downpour. “I told her earlier this afternoon to face her fears. She was probably trying to prove something and pushed herself further than she should have.”

  “Well, let’s not jump to conclusions.” Frank noticed none of them laid any blame on him for Cadi’s disappearance. He wondered if they knew about this morning’s con-frontation. He felt responsible for her, and he realized he’d never forgive himself if the unspeakable happened to Cadi. He had to find her.

  He eyed the officers standing guard at the barricades. He wondered if he knew any of them. Often enough he crossed paths with state troopers, police, and other sheriff’s deputies, both within Iowa and out of state. A unique camaraderie existed among officers of the law, and Frank felt fairly confident he could enlist their help.

  He looked at Bailey. She had obviously assumed his thoughts.

  “When we last saw her, Cadi was unharmed, so they said if she’s stranded, we’ll have to wait until morning to get her. Emergency crews say there’s no imminent danger, such as ruptured gas and electrical lines. All power to the area has been shut off. Even so, they won’t let anyone back into the area because of safety concerns. Sounds like an oxymoron to me.”

  “Well, I can see their point,” Frank said, although he understood Bailey’s side, too. “Someone might slip and fall and drown, and then the family could sue the city, county, and state for not protecting its citizens.”

  “I get it, Frank. But I can’t handle the thought of Cadi cold and wet and scared to death all night. We have to do something.”

  He heartily agreed. “How deep is the water down there?”

  “Not too bad,” Will replied. “Maybe three feet high.”

  “That’s bad enough,” Bailey argued.

  Frank rubbed his jaw, contemplating. “And you’re sure Cadi’s down this particular street?”

  “Yep. I saw her carrying boxes from the last house on the right,” Jeff said.

  An idea formed. He glanced at the officers again and then back at the trio beside him.

  “Listen, why don’t you all head to the lodge, warm up inside, and give me some time? Say, an hour? I’ll meet you up there, and maybe I’ll have more answers.”

  ❧

  Cadi sat just inside the front entrance of the Manskis’ home. She shivered and watched the veil of rain pour from the sky. She leaned her aching back up against the wall and, as she mulled over the events of the last ten hours, she deemed it a bad day all around.

  She concluded she’d overreacted this morning with Frank. Why didn’t she soothe away all his doubts instead of becoming defensive? Now she could only hope and pray he’d believe she was innocent and forgive her childish fit of temper.

  Next she’d let the Manskis manipulate her, and then she’d defied the law by lingering in an area that was off-limits after nightfall. Now she faced the consequences. She hated to think how worried her friends were—and all because she didn’t do what she knew was right!

  Assessing her present situation once more, Cadi wondered if she could work up the courage to duck into the rain and walk up the street. Sounded easy enough. But then the gravity of the situation struck her and she envisioned the pitch-black night and the water swirling around her, and she decided there was no amount of courage on earth that would propel her through all that. She could scream for help, but no one would hear her above the rain, and she’d likely drain the last of her energy, just
upsetting herself further.

  She reached into her sweatshirt pocket and pulled out her cell phone. She tried to place a call again, but just as before, it was no use. No signal.

  So, now what? Ride it out and wait until morning?

  Cadi closed her eyes and prayed. She willed herself to relax. Breathe. Think of something positive. A picnic with Frank and his kids on a gorgeous summer day. No rain. Just sunny, cloudless skies. No angry words. Only mutual adulation.

  “Cadi!”

  She snapped to attention. She listened. Had she imagined it?

  “Cadi!”

  The voice was unmistakably Frank’s, and moments later she flinched as a bright beam shone in her eyes. It moved away then returned, illuminating the open entryway of the home.

  She squinted. “Frank, is that you?”

  “Yep.” His voice grew closer.

  Disbelief and joy swept over her. She shielded her eyes from the blinding light as he approached. “What are you doing here?”

  “Courting disaster. What does it look like?”

  Cadi almost laughed.

  Almost.

  Instead, she stood and hurried onto the porch. She met him on the stairs and threw her arms around him. She pressed her cheek against his cold, wet jaw. “I’ve never been so happy to see anyone in my life!”

  “I was hoping you’d say that.” She felt his strong arm close around her waist as he held her.

  She took great comfort in the fact that he didn’t seem angry. Nevertheless, she owed him an apology.

  “I’m sorry about this morning. I have such a hotheaded temper. My mouth runs off without my—”

  He silenced her with a kiss. “Cadi, I’m the one who should be saying I’m sorry. I never should have doubted you—you, of all people.”

  “You trust me? You really do?”

  “Yes, Cadi, I do.”

  Sudden tears obscured her vision, and her pent-up emotions gave way.

  “Shh, don’t cry.” He held her for several long moments more before moving back a few paces. “I think we’d best finish this conversation later.”