“I’ll need my coat.” Grace started for the closet, but Sarah shook her head.
“No. You need to stay here.”
“I can’t just sit here while Mama G and Daisy are out there.”
“You have to. Someone needs to be here when they come back.”
A clap of thunder rumbled ominously. Grace found it hard to swallow, her heart aching. “I have to come.”
Sarah’s face softened. “You’re the one they’re going to want to see when we get them home, the one they’ll ask for. You have to be here.”
As much as Grace hated to admit it, Sarah was right.
Grace’s shoulders slumped. It cost her dearly and tears stung her eyes, but she managed to nod her agreement. What if Mama G has fallen into a ditch or been struck by a falling tree limb, or—
“Grace, don’t.” Trav’s deep voice interrupted her increasingly panicked thoughts.
As she met his gaze, she saw his concern, but more than that, she saw his deep reassurance. “She’s going to be fine,” he said.
“They will all be fine,” Sarah said, nodding firmly, her eyes bright. “I promise.”
I promise. It was an empty promise, but now that Grace was an adult, she knew what it really meant—that no matter what happened, they would be there to help her deal with it.
“We’ve got to go.” Sarah headed for the door, Trav following. Sarah’s phone rang as she stepped out onto the porch, and Grace strained to hear what she was saying as she dashed off through the rain.
Ava had stopped by the door. “Make yourself some of Mama G’s tea.”
“I thought it would only work for her?”
“It only works when it’s needed. Make some.” Ava waved, and then was gone.
Grace remained where she was, listening to the rain pouring down. Outside, thunder cracked loudly, and the lights flickered. She couldn’t bear to think of her loved ones out in this weather. They must be so frightened.
Grace found her phone and sank down on the chaise.
Please let them be found.
Please let them be found.
Please let them be found.
She didn’t know how long she waited. It might have been ten minutes, or it might have been an hour. She waited as the lightning flashed across the black sky and the rain poured down. She sat.
Then she paced.
Then she sat some more.
Her phone buzzed, and she almost dropped it in her eagerness to read the text. It was Trav. Someone saw Linda and Daisy earlier. Checking it out now.
Grace waited, staring at the phone. It was funny how time slowed when you most wanted it to hurry. As if it liked to tease the desperate into losing hope.
She raked a hand through her hair and remembered all the times she and Mama G had waited for news of Hannah, back when she’d been so young and had first started running off. You’d think I’d be good at this by now.
But she wasn’t. If anything, she was worse.
The minutes ticked on relentlessly.
Unable to sit still, she stood and paced again, her gaze locked on the phone screen.
She didn’t have long to wait.
Found them, Trav wrote. They are fine.
“Yes!” Grace texted back, They? All three? Mama G too?
She waited.
Not Mama G. Still looking.
Tears burned her eyes. Are you bringing them home? she asked.
Soon. They want to help search.
Grace waited, fighting the urge to ask a thousand questions. Finally, she typed in, Any news about Mama G?
There was no answer.
She dragged her hand through her hair, realizing she was still dressed for work. That seemed wrong, so she kicked off her high heels and ran upstairs to change. She tugged on jeans, a T-shirt, and sturdy boots in case she needed to go out in the weather.
That done, she went back downstairs.
The house was painfully silent.
Tea. Ava had suggested tea.
Grace went to put some water on to boil, wishing her hands didn’t shake so much. She’d just reached over to turn on the stove when her phone buzzed.
Got her, Trav had texted.
Got who? Mama G? And what did he mean, “got”? God, didn’t this man know she needed information? More than two lousy words? As if in answer, another text showed up. Mama G might need Doc Bolton.
Grace gulped a sob. Might? What the hell?
She’d started to call him when she got another text, this time from Sarah. Trav is an idiot. Ankle sprained, but nothing more. Doc Bolton on way to your house.
Grace kissed the phone as another text arrived, this time from Trav. She’s fine, Grace. She’s going to be okay.
Grace stood in the middle of the kitchen, not sure where to go or what to do, so happy she felt as if she could fly.
Blankets.
Dry clothes.
Towels.
She should get those. She ran upstairs, frantically collecting some of each, and then hurried back downstairs.
She’d just piled them on the chaise when her driveway filled with lights. Two trucks, one of them Trav’s, pulled up.
She grabbed a blanket and hurried onto the porch as Trav walked up the sidewalk, carrying a bundle, Ava following. Mama G’s pale face rested near his shoulder, and she was wrapped in a blue tarp, which looked far too much like a shroud for Grace’s comfort.
Trav stepped onto the porch, water pouring off him and the tarp, the porch light spilling over them. He carefully set Mama G on one of the chairs and tugged off the tarp.
She sat half upright, limp but alive, soaked through and through and shivering, her chin moving as her teeth chattered. She had one hand on her leg, and she winced when her heel touched the floor.
Grace wrapped her in a blanket, hugging her swiftly. “I was so worried about you!”
Mama G tried to talk, but her teeth chattered too much for Grace to understand her.
“I’ll go make some tea.” Ava disappeared inside, pausing by the door to remove her wet raincoat and hang it up.
Grace looked at Trav. “Can you take Mama G inside? We’ve got to get her warm.”
Trav nodded and bent to wrap the blanket more tightly around Mama G. He picked her up and carried her through the door and into the sitting room, where he gently placed her on the couch. He nodded toward the fireplace, which hadn’t been used since she’d first moved in. “Should I start a fire? It’ll warm the house faster. There’s wood on the end of the porch; it should be dry.”
“That would be nice.” Grace put a pillow under Mama G’s injured leg and tucked her in with the lap blanket that hung over one end of the couch. Mama G leaned back and closed her eyes, looking as fragile as glass.
Trav left and came back with some split logs and a handful of bark. “There’s no kindling, but this should work.”
Grace watched as he set the fire. “Where did you find Mama G?”
“About three blocks over, in the field behind the elementary school. I don’t think she knew where she was. The lightning frightened her.”
“I’m so glad you found her.”
“I didn’t.” He reached up on the mantel and pulled down the box of matches Mrs. Phelps had left there. “The Spankles did. They live beside the elementary school.”
Ava returned from the kitchen, apparently just catching Trav’s comment. “When the Spankles got the prayer call, one of their kids mentioned that he’d seen a ghost out in the yard earlier.”
“It wasn’t a ghost,” Trav added unnecessarily as he lit the chunks of bark where they stuck out between the logs.
Ava grinned. “Not this time.”
“Where’re Daisy and Linda?” Grace asked.
“With Sarah. They’re on their way here.”
The fire crackled to life, and soon the welcome warmth soothed Mama G’s shivers.
Someone knocked on the door and Trav went to answer it.
“Hello!” Doc Bolton came inside, a bag in his hand.
&
nbsp; Trav took the doc’s wet coat.
“Heck of a night for a stroll, isn’t it?” Doc went to Mama G and took her wrist, patting her hand as he took her pulse. “Causing trouble, are you?”
Mama G stirred, tugging weakly on her arm. She looked exhausted, although her teeth had stopped chattering. “What are you doing?”
Grace knelt beside her. “Doc Bolton came to visit and we’re going to have some tea. I— Oh, the tea.” She looked at Ava.
“I’ll go see if it’s ready.” Ava disappeared back into the kitchen.
“Tea?” Mama G blinked in confusion.
“Something hot to drink would do you some good,” Doc said. “But first, we should get you into some dry clothes and into bed.”
Sarah looked at Trav. “Would you mind?”
“Sure.” Trav picked up Mama G, swinging her into his arms as though she weighed no more than a feather pillow.
Mama G protested weakly, but Trav would have none of it. “Mrs. Giano, do you remember when you used to babysit the Parker boys?”
Mama G stared at him. “The Parker boys.” A weak smile touched her mouth. “You are all trouble, do you know that?”
“I once took a cow to church, or so I’ve been told.” He carried her upstairs, repeating the story she’d told him more than once.
Grace turned to the doctor. “If you’ll give me a moment, I’ll get her into her nightgown.”
“Of course. She seems fine, but I should look her over before I leave.”
“I will. Thank you for coming.”
He smiled. “It’s what I do.”
She hurried upstairs. Trav was with Mama G, who sat on the edge of her bed, looking tired. “Thank you, Trav,” Grace said. “I’ll take it from here.”
“Call if you need me.”
He went to leave the room, but as he walked past her, Grace slipped her arms around him and gave him a quick hug.
He rested his cheek on her head and hugged her back.
She would have stayed like that, warm and safe, but Mama G put her hand on her nightstand and tried to get up, wincing when she put weight on her hurt ankle.
“Mama G!” Grace released Trav. “I’ve got to get her into a nightgown.”
“I’ll be downstairs. The fire will need tending.”
“Thank you.” She hoped he knew how much she meant it.
After he left, she helped Mama G dry off and into a nightgown. Mama G, tired and fretful, complained, but Grace kept her tone light even when her eyes filled with tears at the bruises and scrapes she saw on the older woman’s legs.
Finally dressed, her damp hair combed, Mama G was tucked under her blankets, a mound of pillows behind her head. Her lip quivered as she looked wearily at Grace. “I don’t understand.”
Grace kissed Mama G on the forehead. “You got lost. That’s all. But everything is fine now.”
Outside, the rain eased. We are almost back to normal, Grace told herself.
Mama G plucked at her covers. “I was looking for Theo.” She looked around the room. “Where is he?” She tried to push herself upright. “He hates the rain.”
“He’s fine. Here. We’ll put a pillow at the foot of your bed for when he comes home. He likes that.”
“He does, doesn’t he?” Mama G settled back against her pillows. “He keeps my feet warm.”
“Of course he does.” Grace adjusted the covers, noticing that Mama G’s skin appeared almost translucent, the blue veins visible. She looked so fragile, so delicate. Grace brushed the back of her fingers across Mama G’s cheek. “Doc Bolton wants to see you for a minute, to check your ankle.”
“It hurts.”
“I know. That’s why he needs to see it. After he’s done, I’ll bring you some of your special tea.”
Mama G nodded. “I like my tea.”
Grace smiled. “Then you shall have two cups.”
Outside, a car pulled into the drive, followed by another.
Grace kissed Mama G and turned to leave, glad to find Doc Bolton waiting in the hallway. He winked at Grace as she left, but she found herself too choked up with gratitude to do more than give him a tremulous smile.
She reached the sitting room, where she grabbed a towel from the stack before she hurried onto the porch.
Daisy, sopping wet, jumped out of one of the cars almost before it had stopped. She flew up the walkway and into Grace’s arms.
“Oh, Daisy,” Grace said, holding her tight.
Daisy burst into tears.
“Hey, it’s okay. Mama G is here and she’s fine.”
Daisy sobbed harder.
Grace pulled the little girl inside, settling her on the couch in front of the fire. Grace knelt in front of Daisy, holding her tight and ignoring the water that seeped from her clothes. “I was so worried about you.”
Daisy, still burrowed in Grace’s arms, spoke so fast that her words tumbled over one another even as shivers racked her thin body. “She w-w-was here and I opened the door and then she w-w-was gone and Ms. L-L-Linda and I l-l-looked for her, but we didn’t know w-w-w-where she went and Ms. Linda’s cell phone d-d-died and no one knew where we w-w-were and it w-w-was raining so hard and I—” Daisy sobbed.
Grace hugged Daisy tighter and rested her cheek against the girl’s wet hair, catching sight of Trav. She mouthed the words hot chocolate and he sent her a warm smile, then disappeared into the kitchen, where she could hear him talking to Ava.
Grace rocked Daisy, letting the girl weep. Finally, Grace said, “Whatever happened, you’re home safe now. You’re okay.”
This seemed to calm her, for Daisy caught her breath and pulled back. Hiccupping, she gave Grace a miserable, tear-stained look. “M-Mama G got lost b-because of me.”
“Oh, honey. It wasn’t your fault. She gets confused. That’s why I put the bolt on the door, but she’s found a way around it, so—”
“It wasn’t her. It was me.” Daisy gulped loudly. “I undid the bolt. I’ve been undoing it every night after you went to bed.”
Good God. “But . . . why?”
“Killer likes it here. If Mama G’s window isn’t open, he scratches on the door.”
Grace laughed wryly. “That darn cat.” She got up to fetch another towel, wrapping it around Daisy. “So you’ve been unlocking the door and letting him in.” She should have thought of that.
“I use a kitchen chair to reach it. But I always put it back. I didn’t want you to know I was doing it.” Daisy looked at Grace with a miserable expression. “I thought you were just trying to keep Killer out. I didn’t know you were trying to keep Mama G safe. I didn’t think—”
She sobbed again, and Grace pulled her closer. “Oh, honey. I should have told you. But it’s all right. Mama G is fine. Doc Bolton is with her now and he doesn’t look the least worried, so we don’t need to be.”
“I just wanted Killer inside.”
Grace rested her cheek on Daisy’s head. “It is raining . . . and I’ve heard that he hates the rain.”
Daisy pulled back, sniffling. “You’d let Killer inside?”
“I guess I’m going to have to, seeing as both you and Mama G have fallen for him.” She looked around. “I wonder where he is now? That poor cat.”
Daisy wiped her face with the end of the towel. “He’s under my bed. He doesn’t like thunder.”
“No one does, do they?” Grace hugged Daisy. God, but she loved this child. She remembered being at the hospital with Hannah and holding Daisy for the first time. It had been so very special. So right. And now she’s mine to care for. Mama G was right; that’s a gift. “Come Monday, I’m going to call the Callahan brothers and have them install a cat door for Killer.”
Daisy looked up at her, her blue eyes reddened by tears. “Really?”
“Yes. I’d do anything for you and Mama G.”
Daisy’s smile made Grace think of a rainbow after the rain.
A ruckus arose on the porch and Sarah, Linda, and Linda’s husband, Mark, appeared in the doo
rway, Ed and Maggie Mayhew not far behind.
Sarah closed the door and they all peeled off their wet raincoats and hung them on the coatrack. “We’ve called off the search.”
“Everyone is accounted for.” Mark took off his ball cap and hung it over his coat. “Jules Stewart is serving hot coffee to the rescue parties at the Moonlight.”
“But no snacks,” Ed said, obviously disappointed.
“She would have, if we’d been out longer.” Linda looked at Grace. “How’s Mama G?”
“Tired and a little bruised, but she’s going to be okay.”
“Thank God for the First Baptist Church prayer chain,” Ed said.
Linda snorted. “You mean the Dove Pond Methodist prayer chain.”
“No, I mean the Baptist prayer chain. The Spankles are Baptists.”
“Yes, but Lisa Tilden saw me and Daisy at the corner and she called the Methodist prayer chain and let them know where to find us, so she was first.”
Ed rolled his eyes as he went to stand in front of the fire. “You and Daisy were never lost.”
“We were stuck in a doorway because of the lightning and thunder.” Linda turned to Grace. “My uncle was struck by lightning. I never go out in it if I can help it.”
“I hope your uncle recovered.”
“It turned his hair white, but my aunt said he was an animal in the sack after that, so it wasn’t all bad.” She looked around. “Where is everyone else?”
“Doc is upstairs with Mama G,” Grace said. “Trav and Ava are in the kitchen making tea. Would you throw me another towel? Daisy has been using this one as a tissue.”
Mark picked up a towel, rolled it into a tube, and started to toss it.
Linda muttered at him, then snatched the towel out of his hands and marched it across the room to Grace. “Here.”
Grace wrapped the towel around Daisy.
Linda sat down. Her hair was soaked, and it clung to her head, although small curls were already beginning to pop up. “Grace, I’m sorry we left without calling you. I gave Mama G some of her tea before bedtime and had taken the empty cup to the kitchen. When I came back, she was gone. I was out of that room a minute, maybe less. When I realized she’d escaped, I grabbed Daisy and took off, thinking Mama G would be right outside. I had my cell with me, too, figuring I could give you a buzz if it took longer than a few minutes to find her. I didn’t realize the stupid thing was dead, and once Daisy and I got down the road, the thunder started up and the rain grew worse, so we took shelter under the Kavanaughs’ porch. They’re visiting their kids in New Jersey, so I knew we wouldn’t bother anyone. I figured that once the rain let up, we’d find Mama G and bring her home, but apparently Daisy and I headed the wrong way, and the rain—”
The Book Charmer Page 31