Page 17 of She Didn't See It Coming
She steels herself to take Clara and her parents over to Constitution Drive. Somehow they have to get through this together. They have to be strong.
•••
After her terrible night,Tracy couldn’t face going into work today and had called in sick. So she’s in her apartment when she hears her cell phone ring and glances at it. She registers the caller’s name with disbelief. Why is Angela calling her now, when she hasn’t spokento her in so long and seems to make a point of avoiding her? Another fair-weather friend. Should she answer? On the fourth ring, she accepts the call. “Yes?”
“Tracy, it’s Angela, across the hall.”
She sounds nervous, Tracy thinks. “I know.”
“You must have heard about Bryden?”
“Yes. Why?” She’s not going to make this easy for her.
And then Angela speaks all in a rush, and Tracy can’t believe what she’s hearing.
“Tracy, if there’s any chance that Henry took Bryden, you have to—”
Tracy abruptly disconnects. Her heart is beating too fast. She’s lightheaded, and she’s absolutely furious. At Angela, at her husband, at everyone.
•••
Sam is finding it hardto concentrate. There’s a lot of activity around him now that Lizzie’s arrived with her parents and Clara, and he almost wishes he was alone again. His brain is full, and he wants to shut everything out. It’s midafternoon, and what he wants right now is a nap. He didn’t sleep at all last night. Clara is being especially demanding, and he has no patience for her. She’s on his knee now, gently slapping his face, trying to get his attention. He grabs her hand and holds it to make her stop.
He was rather shocked when he saw his in-laws. They were together at Christmas, and they look so much older now, so suddenly. But he knows he looks like a wreck too. They are all in the midst of a crisis. He likes his mother-in-law, Donna, and his father-in-law, Jim, but they require a lot of effort. Lizzie runs around getting everyone settled and bringing coffee, and cookies that are ignored, keeping the stilted conversation flowing. No one wants to say much in front of Clara.
He doesn’t know how Lizzie does it. She must be as exhausted andas afraid as he is. But they’re her parents, and he lets her take care of them, the same way he always let Bryden take care of them. He needs Bryden now, to take care of Clara.Oh God, how will he manage?
He stifles a sob, but not quickly enough. Everyone has heard it and turns to look at him with concern. Even Clara has gone still and is staring at him. He runs a hand over his face and says, “Sorry.”
Donna says tearfully, “You don’t have to apologize, Sam.”
Jim’s face is rigid; he’s trying hard to keep it together. Bryden has been missing for close to twenty-four hours and they don’t know what’s happened to her. With every hour that passes their thoughts turn darker.
Sam looks up from his phone and says, “Angela’s home. She wants to know if Clara would like to come play with Savanah.”
Lizzie nods in relief. “That’ll be good for her. I’ll take her over.” She picks up Clara and says, “Let’s go see Savanah.”
When Lizzie returns and sits down beside him, the life goes out of her, and she seems almost catatonic, staring straight in front of her at nothing.
Sam asks her, “Are you all right?”
She just shakes her head, biting her lower lip.
“What are the police doing?” Jim asks brusquely.
“Everything they can,” Sam answers. He tells them what he knows about the search, which the detective had described to him in detail, and the older man nods. They are all unnerved about the man in unit 811.
“I can’t believe this is happening,” Donna says, her voice trembling.
Sam shakes his head helplessly. “All we can do is wait.”
As if on cue, there is a knock at the door. Sam starts at the sound. His entire body tenses as Lizzie rises and walks down the hall. He hears the detective’s voice. He feels on the edge of hyperventilating. They all hold their breath.Have they found her?
Detective Salter comes into the living room accompanied by the tall, athletic-looking Detective Kilgour. Sam and Lizzie had met Detective Kilgour the night before, when they’d reported on their search efforts, but Salter now introduces him and herself to Bryden’s parents.
Sam watches as Detective Salter sits down on one of the armchairs. Detective Kilgour remains standing.
“I thought I’d come see how you’re holding up,” Salter says, glancing at all of them, then looking directly at Sam.
