Page 113 of The Gift
“Speaking as someone who’s been in this position, Theo, I’m gonna say it would,” Danielvolunteered.
“Fine,” Theo said, caving. “I’ll tell her dad about the text and he can let the police know. Not that it’ll help much. Unless someone actually knows the warmest spot inO’Leary.”
“What did you say?” I braced a hand against the side of theshed.
“That’s the text she sent me earlier. ‘Safe and sound in the literal warmest place in O’Leary. Good for tonight and maybe tomorrow too. No specifics in case they confiscate your phone.’ And then a laugh-cryemoji.”
“Maybe the police can trace her texts? Isn’t that a thing they do on television?” Daniel asked. “Do they even look for runaways Sam’s age? Especially if she texted that she’d found a warm place tostay?”
“I guess we need to see,” I said, but my mind was caught on the words of Sam’s text. The ‘warmest place in O’Leary’ sounded familiar, but I couldn’t think why. It might have just been a thought I had about Daniel’s cabin, or maybe something that occurred to me at thediner.
“I think she’s fine. I was mostly trying to get to her before anyone else did, but maybe that’s not such a big deal anymore, because now that her dad knows she’s been around, she’s not gonna be able to do what she’s been doing anyway.” Theo sighed. “Sam’s good at taking care ofherself.”
Daniel snorted. “That’s debatable. Running away when shit gets hard might seem like the best thing to do. It’s really tempting to sayfuck itand just leave things behind. But you’re just delaying the inevitable. Her dad’s gonna need to be dealt with eventually.” He gave me a rueful glance, and I knew he was thinking about his own father and maybe the other things he’d run awayfrom.
All afternoon, I’d basically been hiding. Technically, I’d been shopping, wrapping, cleaning my apartment, and even organizing my tax receipts when nothing else presented itself. My refrigerator and office were never cleaner than when there was something I wanted to actively avoid thinking about. It hadn’t worked very well, though. In between bouts of scrubbing out already-clean crisper bins and scouring the bottom of my bathtub, I’d remember the look on Daniel’s face when he saw Sabrina, I’d think about all the opportunities waiting for him in the city, and I’d feel a sick sense of horror that staying here in O’Leary—staying withme—could only hold himback.
And I’d realized, while this anxiety was churning in my stomach, that it wasn’tmydecision to make, it was Daniel’s. I wasn’t gonna be like the dumbass hero of some romantic comedy who proactively breaks up with the love of his life so he won’t hold them back.Gag. But I was resigning myself to the idea that Daniel would definitely be going back to the city at some point, even before I heard about his father being ill. And once he was there, who knew whether he’d ever decide to come back to O’Leary? Once people left this place, they didn’t tend to come back. Though Parker had,so…
“Julian?” Daniel said, stepping closer so I had to tilt my head to look up at him. “What’sup?”
I shook my head, thinking of Parker. “The hottest spot in O’Leary, he calledit.”
“What?”
“Parker’s bar. Hoff’s. I was with him the other day and he was telling me about all these renovations he’sdoing.”
“Oh, shit!” Theo said excitedly. “That’s right. Park’s making apartments upstairs. Rae said the back rooms are a mess, and the other day they were cleaning for hours because the workers sprayed in insulation and it kept flying out of tiny cracks in the ceiling like it was snowing in thebar!”
“And did you say Rae was working today, Theo?” Danielasked.
“Yeah. They were working a day shift, so they’re probably getting out right now, or maybe a couple minutesago.”
“And if Sam asked Rae for help?” Iprompted.
“Rae would have gotten her upstairs through the back entrance. I’m going to call them,” Theo said. “I’ll call you back and let you know what theysay.”
“We should go check anyway,” I said. “Even if Rae didn’t help her get in, Sam might be there. If she is, we can talk to her. Offer to be there when she sees her dad. Maybe suggest that she contact him to let him know she’sokay.”
Daniel nodded. Without speaking a word, we both walked out of the shed, he locked the door, and we moved toward thecabin.
“You think I should tell her dad?” Theo asked dubiously. “That it’s apossibility?”
“Yeah, I do. We’re jumping in my car now, so maybe give us five minutes head start so we can be there to support Sam before her dad shows up. And I’ll give Constantine a call and let him know what we’re thinking, too, just in case Mr. Henderson’s already called thepolice.”
“I’ll drive so you can make phone calls,” Daniel said, and Inodded.
But when I called Con, I got hisvoicemail.
“Call Silas,” Daniel suggested, driving far too fast down his rutted gravel driveway. “Or call Parker to check if she’supstairs.”
But Parker and Silas didn’t answer their phoneseither.
“Where the hell is everyone in O’Leary tonight?” I demanded, hitting the button to callEverett.
Ev answered on the third ring. “Jules! What’s up? Saw you run out of the diner this morning and Ithought—”
“Ev,” I interrupted. “Is Silasthere?”
