Cody's Come Home. Mary Sullivan

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СКАЧАТЬ fact that Salem was so full of worry for his daughter’s safety that he’d forgotten about Cody’s recent tragedy and didn’t look at him as though he thought he might shatter was a relief.

      “We found Aiyana’s car in the parking lot,” Salem’s dull voice intoned. “Park personnel wouldn’t let us mount a search in the dark.” He slammed his hand on the table. Spoons danced. “She’s been out there all night, but they were afraid one of us would get lost.”

      “Fair enough,” Nick said.

      “No, it isn’t,” Salem shouted. He covered his eyes with one hand. “I’m sorry, Nick. I’m so sorry.”

      “Believe me, I understand.” Nick squeezed Salem’s shoulder. “It would be unnatural if you weren’t upset.”

      Salem dropped his hand. His eyes brimmed with tears. “My little girl’s out there alone in the dark. She won’t like that.”

      No, Aiyana wouldn’t like that at all. Cody knew that much about her, remembering how upset she had been that summer before she turned sixteen. Urgency built inside him to find her and bring her home safely.

      “So you want us to come with you now.” It wasn’t a question on Cody’s part. He would go. They all would.

      Laura put mugs of coffee on the table.

      They doctored them while the bacon she’d put on to fry sizzled in a couple of pans. She took a dozen eggs out of the fridge.

      “Don’t cook—” Salem started.

      “You’ll eat, Salem,” she said, in a no-nonsense tone they knew well.

      Nick’s raised eyebrow intimated, Don’t even bother trying to resist. “You’re going to need your strength. We all will.”

      While Laura cooked, Cody retrieved a notepad and pen from a drawer then sat back down.

      “Right. So we have to gather at least a dozen volunteers for a park that size. At least. We’ll need supplies. Maybe the park authorities can get us maps. Salem, do you know where she went within the park?”

      No one answered. He glanced up from his furious scribbling. They were staring at him, mouths open.

      “What?”

      “You’re taking control,” Salem said.

      Disgusted with himself, Cody threw the pen onto the table. “Yeah, I’ve been accused of that a lot lately.” He sounded bitter. He was. “Sorry. Bad habit.”

      “No. It’s good.” Salem rubbed his chest as though a bad case of heartburn had settled in. “I’m not myself. I’m panicking too much to be useful. What’ve you written so far?”

      “Supplies we’ll need. I’ll raid Pearl’s closet for dry clothes.” His sister had to have something that would fit Aiyana. “Pearl’s petite, though.”

      “Nothing from my closet will fit Aiyana.” They all turned at the voice. Pearl stood in the doorway, rubbing her eyes. “I gather she’s lost in the woods and you’re putting together a search party? I’m in.”

      Even freshly out of bed and rumpled, with creases on her cheek, Cody’s sister was supernaturally beautiful. Angelic.

      She poured herself a coffee and put on a couple of eggs to boil. Pearl didn’t do bacon.

      While her eggs boiled, she stood behind him and rubbed his shoulders. No questions. No concerns expressed. She dug her sharp thumbs into his neck, where he carried tension.

      When he was a teenager, she used to do the same, especially after his football games.

      “You’re still the world’s best massage therapist,” he said, making a joke to keep his emotions tamped down.

      “I’ll give you some of my clothing,” his mom said. “It’ll be too big, but still warm and dry.”

      “You should consider bringing clothes from home, too, Salem.”

      “Good call, Cody. It’s only the end of October, but I’ll pack winter clothes.”

      They got into the nitty-gritty of how this was going to run and who was going to help look for Aiyana. They would call on another half-dozen families.

      Salem pulled a list from his pocket. “Emily’s phoning everyone now. The Colantonios, for sure. Aiyana’s been hanging out with Sophie since she came home. And her friend Alyx’s family. Also the Walkers.”

      “How is Iris doing?” Cody asked quietly. Iris Walker had had a tough adolescence.

      “She’s good. Aiyana has helped her through a lot.”

      “Then she’ll come out for sure. How many people can you get altogether?”

      “I’m guessing fifteen or twenty.”

      Laura put heaping plates of food in front of them and then sat down with one of her own.

      They ate in silence, Cody all but shoveling the food into his mouth. He needed to get out there.

      When he was done, he rinsed his plate, put it into the dishwasher and sat back down to finish the list. “I’ll call Noah and get him to open the surplus store early for me. I’ll pick up plenty of protein bars for the searchers. Flashlights, too. Don’t know how late we’ll be.”

      At Salem’s expression, Cody rushed on, “I’m sure we’ll find her soon. This is just in case. We need to prepare for every eventuality. What else will we want?”

      “First-aid kits,” Nick said.

      “First aid?” Salem paled.

      “Just in case,” Cody said quietly.

      “How about a couple of thermal blankets?” Nick took everyone else’s plates. “Laura, we’ll clean up later. We need to get out there.”

      “What will we need blankets for?” Salem stood. “As soon as we find her, I’m taking her home.”

      “She’ll be chilled, Salem,” Nick said. “We’ll need them to warm her quickly. It rained last night. She’ll be wet.”

      “Will she have hypothermia?” Salem’s voice rose.

      “No,” Cody answered. “It wasn’t that cold. Only cool.” Salem knew all of this, but as the man had said, he was too distraught to think straight.

      “Where’s Annie?” Laura asked.

      “Annie?” Cody glanced at everyone. “Who’s Annie?”

      As one, they stared at him. By the way Salem stiffened beside him, Cody could tell he’d just remembered Cody’s loss.

      “She’s—” Salem swallowed.

      “She’s Aiyana’s daughter,” Pearl said, cutting through the tension.

      “Daughter?” СКАЧАТЬ