Page 82 of Max's Mission

Margot frowned, then remembered what Em had on when she appeared outside. “What was she wearing when she left you?”

It was Brooke’s turn to frown. “The shorts and t-shirt you put her in this morning. Why?”

“Because she had her swimsuit on when she found me.” Margot sighed. “Maybe she went back to her room to change. I’ll go check. If she comes back in here or you spot her, text me?”

Brooke nodded. “Yep.”

“Thanks.” Spinning around, Margot started to head back the way she came, but decided to check the pool first. The girl had been wearing a swimsuit, after all. She doubted Em was there, it was fenced in, but Emily was as resourceful as they came. Margot wouldn’t put it past her to find a way in.

Reaching the back of the house, she exited through the sliding doors and walked to the pool, peering in. It was empty.

Feeling more confident Em had gone to her room to change, Margot returned to the house and headed upstairs to the bedroom wing.

“Emily?” she called as she reached the landing.

Frustration built in Margot’s gut when the girl didn’t respond. She should have paid more attention to where she went. Em could hide in a corner and pout when she didn’t get her way. At home, it wasn’t too big of a deal. The house was small. But here, there were a lot of corners to hide in.

“Emily, honey, you need to tell me where you are. We don’t play hide-and-seek in Max’s house without rules on where you can hide, you know this.” She pushed the girls’ bedroom door open. The frilly pink and purple bedspreads were still in a heap, their pajamas laid on the end of the beds. Emily’s outfit from earlier was on the floor by the dresser.

Sighing, Margot checked under the beds and in the closet. Em wasn’t hiding in here.

Back in the hallway, she went into the next room, which was the one she’d been using. Even though the girls knew she and Max were in a relationship, Margot didn’t want to move into his room until they were living in the house permanently. So, they’d stolen a few moments—or more—after the girls went to bed each night. There was enough upheaval in the kids’ lives right now. They didn’t need to worry about trekking further down the hall to find her if they awakened in the middle of the night. She’d like to move them down several rooms when they did eventually move in. Just so they were a little closer.

“Emily?” She knelt on the ground and peeked under the bed.

Nothing but dust bunnies.

With a huff, she sat up, frowning. Standing, she went to the closet.

It, too, was empty of a blonde-haired firecracker.

Spinning around, she marched into the hallway. “Emily! You need to come out now. I know you want to surf, but we can’t today.”

Margot continued into the next room, then the next, until she’d searched every bedroom on the floor. Getting more worried with each empty room, she hurried back downstairs to Brooke.

The woman looked up when Margot entered, her expression descending into a deep frown. “You didn’t find her?”

“No.”

Brooke stood, scooping Lily off the floor and onto her hip. “Come on, Lil. Let’s help your mom look for Em.”

They spread out. Margot went outside again, checking the pool once more. It was still empty.

And so was the bathhouse at the edge of the pool deck.

Hurrying back inside, Margot went into the kitchen. It was the ultimate hiding place for small children. She flung open cabinet after cabinet, looking inside, but there was no sign of her.

The frustration that had filled her until now descended into a touch of panic. Where was she?

Ten minutes later, with the entire house searched, Margot felt sick. She didn’t know where she could have gone.

“Let’s go check the cameras. Maybe they picked her up.” Brooke tipped her head toward the panel on the wall.

“Do you have the access code to get to the stored footage?”

“No. Call Max.”

Margot took out her phone and dialed.

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