Page 101 of Missing Pieces (Men of Manhattan 3)

I pulled my phone away from my ear and stared down at it. If Tyler wasn't in training, where the hell was he? For a second it felt like the last few weeks had been a strange dream. Maybe I had made him up. I shook away the thought. My high was quickly turning back into a low.

He lied to me. He lied about joining the marines. I shook my head. That didn't make any sense. There was no reason for him to lie to me about that. There must have just been a problem with their records. That must be it. Tyler had no reason to lie to me. Unless he never wanted to see me again.

Chapter 55

Hailey

Friday

The makeshift cot in my father's office was not the best place to sleep. Or maybe it was this desperate feeling in my chest that wouldn't go away. I stared up at the ceiling. I should have been happy. The bar could keep functioning for at least two more months now. I had a purpose again. I could keep my father's memory alive right here.

But it wasn't the same without him. I closed my eyes. This office still smelled like him. Like his aftershave. I slowly breathed in and out.

If I stayed here, it felt like time would stop. I so badly wanted to stop time in California, but I didn't want to stop it here. I didn't want to freeze this sad state I was in. That was the exact opposite of what my father wanted.

I had convinced myself last night that I did have a future outside of this town. I put all my eggs in one basket. A lying basket. I bit my lip. This whole thing had to be a misunderstanding. Tyler was definitely in San Diego. I put my hand on my stomach and opened my eyes again.

This was definitely a misunderstanding. The more times I tried to convince myself, the more real it seemed. I'd call the recruiters office back today and ask them to look in the older records. Maybe Tyler's name had been filed in the wrong place or something. That had to be it. I slowly sat up and put my hand over my mouth. Claire was right. Morning sickness was the absolute worst.

***

"Hi, Dad." I sat down in the wet grass near his headstone. There were small blades of grass already coming up in the dirt where he had been buried. Time was definitely not standing still.

I placed my hand on the cold tombstone. I had called the recruiters office again, only to receive the same response. Even the recruit depot in South Carolina didn't have Tyler's records. It wasn't a misunderstanding. Tyler wasn't there.

I wasn't sure why I felt so abandoned. We had only shared one week together. To me it had been magical. But who knew what it really was to him.

If my dad was standing in front of me right now, I'd have a hard time telling him. But here in the grass, I wasn't worried about his reaction. I felt like no matter what, he'd be proud of me. Even though I had made a terrible mistake. No, not terrible. I placed my hand on my stomach. This baby wasn't terrible. It was exactly what I needed. My dad had me. He was alone most of his life except for me. And somehow the world knew that I needed that too. I needed this baby. The sun would rise and set with his smile. His. I smiled to myself. I'd be happy with a boy or a girl. But it felt like it was going to be a boy.

For a brief moment I frowned. What if it looked like Tyler? What if every time I saw him, I'd be reminded of the boy who disappeared? It would be just like how my father saw my mother when he looked at me. I didn't know if I could handle that.

What the fuck am I doing? I wasn't my dad. And Tyler wasn't my mom. I needed to go find him. I needed to go to San Diego and hunt him down. I wouldn't let my baby grow up feeling unwanted. That had put me through hell. Tyler at least needed to be given the chance to decide. And he was a good guy. This whole thing was definitely a misunderstanding. He loved me. And I loved him.

I had been spending too much time alone in my own thoughts. I had damned myself to a life of isolation for no reason.

I placed my hand on the dirt. "Thanks for reminding me, Dad. I'm not going to let you down." I stood up. I was going back to California.

Chapter 56

Tyler

Friday

"Stevens?"

I lifted my head. A police officer was walking toward me. Maybe I was finally allowed to have my phone call. I had asked enough times.

I stood up.

"All your charges have been dropped."

"Really?"

"Don't sound so surprised, son. Makes you sound guilty," he said with a laugh as he unlocked my cell. "You're free to go."

Free to go? Just like that? I had been thrown into a cell in California, driven across the country in handcuffs, and then sat in this cell for God knows how long without anyone telling me anything. "What happened? Did they find who did it?"

"Oh, yeah. A while ago. It was Isabella Hunter. But the detective working on the case was crooked. Paperwork was a nightmare. Sorry about the confusion."

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