Spring Comes To Barncastle Inn (8 page)

             
“Lord, we can't fathom what you did for us, but we thank you,” Luke prayed aloud. “Let us remember your suffering, even as we look forward to the joy of celebrating your resurrection on Sunday morning. Let us live with humble, repentant hearts as we live our lives. Amen.”

             
Sadie's eyes had adjusted to the darkness. She could see dark shapes in the seats lining the barn, along with shadows of empty chairs. A pale blue light lit the barn opening, along with the glow from lights in the parking lot.

             
“You are dismissed,” Luke said. “You are welcome to return for our sunrise service at seven on Sunday morning.” Andy lit a solitary lamp in the rear of the barn to give enough light to see as the guests departed.

             
Those in the barn rose, speaking in soft voices, in the same way they'd entered the barn. Sadie had never attended a service like this. Who could forget the sight of the room darkening, little by little, after each reading, or the sound of Marcella's beautiful voice, filled with sadness?

             
Sadie hurried to the barn doorway, murmuring her goodbyes to those leaving.

             
Peter met her by the barn entrance. “Did you see Marin? She told me she was going to help you.”             

             
“I did, for a few moments.” Even in the light from the parking lot, she could see Peter's wrinkled brow. “I thought she went back to sit with you.”

             
He shook his head. “No, she didn't.”

             
A tremble went through Sadie's shoulders, but she stilled herself. “Maybe she went to sit near Jayne, Andy, and Hank.” But then she remembered Jayne and Andy had helped with the lights and candles, while Uncle Ted had kept an eye on Hank.

             
“I don't know.” Peter glanced around the barn.

             
Cars began to leave the Barncastle parking lot, one by one. The barn had emptied, and someone flipped the light switch near the stage, revealing an almost-empty barn.

             
No Marin.

**

A thorough search of the barn revealed nothing.

             
Where had Marin gone? Peter alternated between worry and irritation.

             
“Has she ever done anything like this before?” Luke glanced from Peter to Sadie.

             
“No.” Peter shook his head. “I have no idea why she would have either. Not entirely, anyway.”

             
This had to be his fault. He knew she was more mature for her age than some other ten-year-olds. Yet, the subject of Christ's suffering and death wasn't the usual choice for happy Bible stories children learned.

             
Tomorrow, though, was the day that Kate had passed away. Marin hadn't been there, at their home, while the Hospice nurse had waited at the house those last few moments. Peter had insisted that his parents take Marin out, somewhere, anywhere, until Kate had slipped away from this life.

             
Peter roused himself from the memory as Sadie asked the few remaining guests if they'd seen Marin leave.

             
Marcella McSweeney spoke up. “It was pretty dark, but I thought I saw someone really short leave the barn, right after Jayne put out the last candle. I didn't think much of it at the time. I'm sorry, I didn't think...”

             
Peter held up his hand. “You had no way of knowing.” Once, Marin had begged him to let her have a cell phone, and he'd said no, that ten was too young. If only she had one now, he could find out exactly where she was. What if she was in trouble? Yet if she'd been taken, Marin wouldn't have gone quietly.

             
“I—I wonder if she walked home. It doesn't make sense.” He glanced at Sadie. “You don't think she might have gone to the gift shop?”

             
“No, it's locked.” Sadie grasped his arm. “We'll find her. I'm sure she's all right.”

             
“We'll start looking on the property, fan out and walk through the woods, toward your house,” Luke said. “If we don't find her, then we'll call the police.” His voice sounded grim.

             
Peter almost objected, but his denial wouldn't make the current situation go away. He didn't want to think about anything happening to Marin.

             
Now Sadie gripped his hand. “I have some flashlights in the shop. I know Luke has some around here, too.” She turned and half-jogged, half-limped toward the shop.

             
Numb, Peter strode toward the nearest section of woods and stopped.

             
“I'm going to check the house,” he said aloud. “I can't see her having walked home so quickly, but if she cut through the woods instead of walking down to the main road.” Neither idea appealed to him, but the woods would have been the obvious route to walk home.

             
He hurried to the Volvo, his heart pounding.

**

Sadie returned to the parking lot as Peter left. The flashlights in her hands felt like weights.

             
“Here,” she said to Jayne. “Unless you need to see to the guests?”

             
Marcella, beside Jayne, said, “I can help out. I don't mind, Jayne. I know where the hot chocolate and snacks are, plus I can get the coffee brewing.”

             
Jayne nodded. “Thank you, Marcella.”

             
Sadie turned on her flashlight and its beam pierced the woods. Through the still-bare trees, she glimpsed the distant glow of the Applemans' porch light, more than one-hundred yards away. The sugar house was locked for the night, and not operating with the temperature dropping at night and the sap not flowing as quickly as the daytime. That, too, was probably securely locked. She figured Marin wouldn't want to go inside there by herself.

             
A flash of metal in the distance—Peter's car going up his driveway and stopping in the open yard between the buildings.

             
Sadie took the first few steps into the woods. They'd all torn through here as children, making believe they were in a medieval forest, battling dragons and other creatures with invisible swords, jousting on imaginary horses. In summery daytime, the woods provided a green fantasy world. At night, though, the woods appeared shadowed, dark, with sharp angles and crevices and downed tree limbs hiding who knew what?

             
Bears, again. Sadie swallowed around the childish lump that rose in her throat at the thought. Even on her still-healing ankle, if she saw a bear she'd run like the dickens to the Barncastle, whose turret cast a long shadow toward the woods on the other side of the sprawling home.

             
She heard voices calling out for Marin, and joined her own with their calls.

             
“Marin, where are you? If you can hear me, holler!” Her voice rang out against the tall maples, with an occasional pine mixed in with the shorter trees.

             
“Help me! I'm stuck!” a small voice called, not far from where Sadie stood.

             
“Marin?”

             
“I can't get down!”

             
Sadie swung the flashlight in the direction of Marin's voice. It was high above them.

             
The old treehouse. Of course. She used the light to guide herself toward Marin.

             
“I found her! And we need a ladder!” She called out to the others, and whistled. She grabbed her phone and called Peter.

             
“You found her?” he answered after the first ring.

             
“Yes, she's in the old tree house. I have no idea how she got up there, or why—”

             
“I'm coming right over. Wave your flashlight so I can see where you are.”

             
“Okay.” She made it to the base of the old maple and started swinging her flashlight beam in the direction of Peter's house. “Marin, I'm on the phone with your dad. He went home to look for you. He's coming back.”             

             
“All—all right.”

             
Her phone went silent, so Sadie slipped it back into her pocket. “How did you get up there?”

             
“I climbed. There was an old board nailed into the trunk and I found some footholds.”

             
“Well, um, why did you climb up there?”

             
“I—I got scared. I thought I heard something.”

             
Ah, child logic. Sadie glanced around the darkened woods. A few flashlight beams bounced in the distance, as the others headed toward her. Peter arrived first.

             
“I already hollered for someone to bring a ladder,” Sadie told him.

             
“Thank you.” He laid his hand on the tree trunk and looked up. “Marin, you scared me. Why did you leave the barn?”

             
“I—I don't know. I didn't want to be there anymore. It was so sad, and I...I miss Mommy.” With that, she started to sob.

             
Sadie lowered the flashlight, and sighed. “Peter.”

             
He echoed her sigh. “I know...Marin, honey, after we get you down from there...”

             
“It was tomorrow, Daddy. Tomorrow. And I still want her back.”

             
“I know, sweetheart. We'll always want her back.”

             
The words cut into Sadie and ripped into her heart. She thought she'd done a good job protecting it, but evidently not. Her eyes stung with tears.

             
If Peter wasn't ready to move on, despite the kiss, all this between them would be a mistake.

             
She allowed herself a smile at the bitter irony. It was on this same spot, years ago, he'd nearly kissed her. But her own pride had made her stand by while other kids teased him about it, and then she joined in.

             
After this weekend, she'd email Jessica a fresh copy of her resumé.

Chapter 8

Peter woke Saturday morning with a headache. It figured. Two years ago today, Kate had left them. The day had grown ever closer, and of course, the perfect Vermont spring weather called to him outside as if nothing were wrong in the world.

              He rolled out of bed, and headed downstairs to the sound of cartoons.

             
Marin sat on the couch. She held a bowl, probably containing her favorite cereal. “Morning, Daddy.”

             
“Morning.” He headed for the coffee pot, and groaned as he stood at the counter. He'd forgotten to program the coffeemaker last night.

             
They'd stayed up late, talking about Kate and going through a photo album, started when Marin was a baby and filled with pictures until right before Kate got sick. She'd been the one to keep the photos straight. Peter had plenty of digital photos stored on the computer, but had neglected to keep up with ordering prints.

             
He set up the coffeemaker, and while the coffee gurgled and brewed, his thoughts drifted to Sadie. Last night he hadn't missed the look on her face, lit by flashlight. He wished he'd chosen his words more carefully, but at the moment, his first priority had been Marin.

             
His first priority, for the past two years, had always been Marin. But Sadie—

             
A pair of arms crept around his waist. “Thanks, Daddy.”

             
“For what?”

             
“Being the best dad in the world.”

             
“Remind me again about that when you're sixteen.”

             
“Huh?”

             
“Never mind.” He leaned over and kissed the top of her forehead. “I'm glad Sadie found you.”

             
“I knew somebody would find me. I didn't want to yell at the end of the service and ruin it. I could hear the music, too. It was beautiful.” Marin skittered back to the living room.

             
Barncastle Inn had invited him and the rest of the neighbors up and down the road to their Easter egg roll and Easter parade today, along with a picnic lunch. Anyone who wanted to dress up could come in late 1800s costume, the bigger the hat the better for ladies, or at least come in their Sunday best. After the stroll, the inn was hosting an egg roll for the kids.