Random Acts (17 page)

A gust of wind picked up and her golden auburn hair blew across her face. A strand got caught at the corner of her mouth. He resisted the urge to brush it away. Did Danielle really think she and her family were simply another case?

“I’m glad.” That’s all he managed to say. “And I’m sorry Jenny got caught up in this mess.”

“Me too.” She hesitated a fraction, then angled her face up at him, her expression sincere. “Don’t forget Ava’s just a little girl who wants to spend time with her daddy. She’s lucky to have you.” Something flashed in her eyes, then disappeared. “I have to say, you’re doing a wonderful job with Ava. She’s great company.”

“Thank you.” Patrick’s heart warmed. He glanced around. “Did Bunny come and get Ava?”

Danielle bit her lower lip, apprehension clouding her eyes. “I hope you don’t mind, but since she had her heart set on it, I let her go on the hayride with her friend, Kayla.”

“Kayla?” The name didn’t sound familiar. Ava didn’t bring a lot of friends home. He turned around and scanned the crowd. The last hayride had been scheduled to go out over thirty minutes ago. “And she’s not back yet?” Alarm bells clanged in his head. “Did they go alone?”

Danielle narrowed her gaze and shook her head. “No, of course not. Kayla’s older sister went with them.” A hint of pink colored Danielle’s cheeks and he immediately regretted his harsh tone. But because he was a police officer, he knew too much and often feared the worst. One of the hazards of the job.

“Wait, there’s Kayla.” Relief swept over Danielle’s features. She gestured to a girl around Ava’s age. “Kayla,” she hollered, drawing the girl to the booth. “You’re back from the hayride?” Uncertainty laced Danielle’s voice. Patrick scanned the faces behind Kayla, hoping Ava would emerge from the crowd.

“Yeah. Thanks for letting Ava go with me. We had a lot of fun.” Kayla took a bite from an apple on a stick.

“Where’s Ava?” Danielle asked.

“She ran ahead to ask you for money to buy a candied apple.”

“She never came back.” Danielle’s eyes widened

“How long ago?” Patrick asked. A muscle in his jaw twitched.

Kayla shrugged and her lower lip quivered. “At least fifteen minutes ago. I’m almost done with mine.” The girl showed them her stick, the corners of her mouth pulled down. “My mom called. I really have to go. My sister went to get the car.” She pointed to where the sawhorses blocked off the crafters’ section from vehicles. A teenage girl waved from the window of a lime-green Volkswagen Beetle idling next to his police cruiser.

“It’s okay. You go ahead.” Patrick crouched down next to the girl and asked in a reassuring voice, “Where did you last see Ava?”

Kayla tipped her head toward the crowd of people. “Over by the candied-apple stand. They also have cotton candy and stuff.”

“You go on with your sister.”

Kayla nodded. “Thanks, Officer Kingsley.” She turned and ran toward the vehicle. Patrick watched until she was safely inside with her sister.

He placed his hand on Danielle’s shoulder. He felt her shiver. “It’s okay. I’m sure she’s fine. I’ll go see if I can spot her. Wait here in case I miss her.”

“Okay.” Danielle seemed distracted as she searched over his shoulder. “I’ll stay here. She should have been back already. Why would it take fifteen minutes?”

“Stay here.” Patrick turned on his heel and headed out to find Ava. His intuition told him something was wrong.

Dear Lord, please watch over my little girl
.

Danielle’s eyes bounced from one face to another, all unfamiliar. Her heart jackhammered against her ribcage. Her mind whirled with the possibilities. She envisioned a big white van sliding its side door open and swallowing up poor Ava.

Her throat grew thick with emotion as she imagined one scenario worse than the next. The steady stream of people swirled in a kaleidoscope of color and random images. She felt like she was floating above herself, looking down. Her fingers tingled.
Calm down. Don’t overreact.
Maybe Ava had made a pit stop to use the facilities. Yet Danielle couldn’t stop the dreadful images racing through her mind.

She was on a freight train headed down the tracks to a full-blown panic attack.

She hadn’t had one of those in years. The stable life she had carefully carved out for herself—unlike her mess of a childhood—had allowed her to control her life and her panic attacks. Now that she was letting others in, she remembered why she had worked so hard to keep people out. Caring too much can hurt sometimes.

“Relax,” she whispered to herself as she paced back and forth in front of the booth, her eyes peeled for any sign of Ava. “Ava is okay. You’re okay. Ava’s okay.”

A long-ago memory of Jenny and Danielle locked in a closet slammed into her mind. Huddled close, Danielle had her arm around her little sister as they rocked back and forth, fearing their mother’s alcohol-fueled rage. They had offered a prayer of mercy to God. He hadn’t answered. Not that night anyway. She corralled the painful image, realizing it only fueled her anxiety. She drew in a deep breath.

Calm down.

Danielle screwed up her eyes, but didn’t trust the images distorted by her panic attack. She swallowed hard. Patrick strode toward her. Her heart plummeted. He was alone.
No Ava
. His hard expression did nothing to alleviate her panic. She forced a smile, trying to hide the embarrassment that always accompanied her panic attacks. One fed the other.

“Did you find Ava? Maybe she stopped by the bathrooms?”

Patrick squeezed her forearm, his solid touch tamping her panic down a notch. “I haven’t found her yet.”

Danielle gasped.

“I’m sure she’s fine. What was she wearing? Pink sweatshirt and jeans, right?”

Danielle nodded, praying her stomach wouldn’t revolt. “I’m sorry I let her go on the hayride. I had no right.” She pressed a hand to her forehead.

He shook his head. “She probably just got turned around. Stay here in case she comes back this way. Call me as soon as you see her.” The look in his eyes was too painful. He had entrusted his daughter to her and now she was missing.

“Okay,” she said, tiny dots starting to fill her field of vision. Slowly drawing in a breath, she strode to the far side of the booth. She found her purse and rooted through it for some bottled water.

“How did sales go today? Did Ava make a lot of money for the charity?”

Danielle spun around to find Bunny standing there in a crisp tan pantsuit. Once again, she felt the color drain from her face. But now was not the time to worry about what Bunny thought.

“Bunny, can you stay at the booth?”

Bunny’s eyes flared wide. “I was going to meet some of my lady friends for some apple pie.”

“I shouldn’t be gone long.” She had to help Patrick find Ava. She’d go crazy standing here.

Bunny narrowed her gaze. “Is something wrong, dear?”

Danielle took a deep breath. “Ava seems to be lost.”

The older woman glared at her, then rummaged through her wide straw purse. “I’ll call Patrick.”

“He’s already looking for her. I don’t think it’s a big deal, but I’d feel better if I could help him.”

“Go, go.” Bunny gestured in a shooing motion with her hands. “I’ll stay here in case she comes back this way.”

Danielle’s shame would have been complete if she hadn’t been so worried about Ava. The church grounds weren’t that big. Ava was a responsible girl. If she was lost, she’d ask for help. At least she hoped so. Surely, as the daughter of a police officer, she had been schooled in basic safety protocol.

Why did you let her run off with her friends?
The thought haunted her, but she shoved it away for fear another panic attack would distort her senses.

Danielle circled the Porta-Potties a few times, her eyes scanning each and every child’s face. Her mouth grew dry and her heart raced. She knocked on the two occupied units. Both times, adults emerged from behind the closed doors, understandably baffled by the frantic woman on the other side.

A man with a graying goatee and a tied-dyed shirt strode purposely toward her. At first she thought he was heading toward the Porta-Potty, but he pulled up short in front of her. “Did you lose something?” he asked, a snarl pulling up a corner of his mouth revealing yellowed teeth.

Danielle felt her brow furrow. She followed his gaze. Her heart leapt with joy. Ava was crouched down making funny faces at a toddler. Danielle would have never noticed her by the stroller if the man hadn’t pointed her out. The toddler’s mother smiled timidly in their direction. Ava didn’t seem to notice the exchange between the adults.

Danielle let out a long breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding and ran to Ava. “Honey, your father and I were worried. We didn’t know where you were.”

The toddler squeezed Ava’s index finger. Ava wiggled it and the baby squealed in delight. “Sorry, Miss Danielle, I ran into Miss Debbie.”

Danielle tilted her head, looking at the thin woman with dark circles under her eyes. “You know each other?”

The woman smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes. The man had joined them and planted his hand on the woman’s shoulder. The gesture struck Danielle as more possessive than affectionate. “Sure, I see Ava at the grocery store when she comes in. I’m a cashier there.” The woman hesitated. “I’m Debbie Jones. I was in your class in high school.”

Recognition slowly dawned. The woman standing in front of her was a whisper of the feisty girl she had known in high school. “Oh, yes, how are you?” Danielle feigned an enthusiasm she didn’t feel.

“Fine. I still live in town and this is my little one,” Debbie said.

“Isn’t she the cutest?” Ava looked up, wiggling her fingers again, causing an infectious laugh to erupt from the child.

Debbie’s eyes brightened with the sound.

“Miss Debbie has photos of her baby by her register. I was so excited to meet Gracie finally,” Ava added.

The woman smiled shyly, her eyes cast downward. She had the fidgety movements of someone who was afraid of something. “I’m sorry if you were worried, but Gracie really seems to like Ava.”

“Yeah, we didn’t mean to worry you,” the man finally spoke. Something in his deep, dark eyes caused the fine hairs on the back of Danielle’s neck to prickle to life.

“How did you know I was looking for her?” Unease sent goose bumps across Danielle’s arms.

The man tilted his head as if considering. “You called out her name?” He phrased it as half statement, half question, obviously mocking her. The whole situation unnerved Danielle. She hadn’t been calling Ava’s name. Something about the man seemed familiar.

“Do I know you?”

The man frowned. “Aw, I’m offended.” He offered his hand and she took it tentatively. “Billy Farr. I graduated with Ava’s daddy. But of course, you wouldn’t know that. You only had eyes for football players.” Billy pulled back his lips, making a sucking noise. That’s when the name registered.
Billy Farr. The drug dealer.

Danielle glanced down at Ava, who was thankfully too enthralled by the baby to pay any attention to their conversation.

“Come on,” Danielle said to Ava, her mouth going bone dry. Holding out her hand, she drew Patrick’s daughter toward her. She rested her hand gently on the child’s shoulder. “Your dad’s worried.” She tried to act nonchalant when every bone in her body screamed that this man was pure evil.

“Don’t run off so soon. We haven’t had a chance to catch up.” He ran his hand across his goatee. “It’s a shame Jenny’s all banged up. Turns out she was the party girl, huh?” He cocked a knowing eyebrow and let his gaze drift down Danielle’s body, making her feel dirty. Debbie pretended she was distracted with the baby, but if her crimson face was any indication, she had heard each and every word.

“We have to go.” Danielle tugged Ava’s hand.

“Don’t be in such a hurry. Daddy is about to join the party,” Billy said.

Danielle swung around at the same time as Ava. Ava’s smile brightened. “Hi, Daddy, I met Miss Debbie’s baby. She’s adorable.”

Patrick’s upper lip thinned and a muscle twitched in his jaw. “She sure is. But I’m afraid we’ve taken up enough of their time.” He took Ava’s hand and pulled her away.

As Patrick and Ava walked toward the booth, Danielle found herself rooted in place. Her head was swirling. Before she had a chance to clear it, Billy Farr leaned in close, nicotine on his breath. “Let your boyfriend know I’m not the only one with a family.”

“What—” Danielle started to ask, but he held his hand up and pivoted on the heel of his boot. In a few long strides he had caught up with his girlfriend. Danielle stared after them, trying to process what had happened.

Debbie followed Billy, her head bowed as she pushed the stroller. This woman had gone to school with Danielle and represented everything she’d feared becoming.

Chapter Thirteen

Patrick set a box of crafts on the table inside the foyer then pushed the door shut with the heel of his shoe. “I’ll bring in the rest later.”

“Okay, thanks, Dad.” Ava slipped off her jacket and draped it over the banister. Noticing her father’s raised eyebrow, she said, “I’ll hang it up later.”